everybody knew that some of the bathhouses were brothels where you could pay for a “water frolic.” Frank claimed he’d already lost his virginity to one of the “fallen women,” a lie so obvious I didn’t bother to dispute it. With more dread than excitement, I felt that I would ultimately have to visit, that there was no way I could avoid it, that I owed it to myself to return to the States a man, that this was the only conceivable way.
