The Decay of the Angel - Yukio Mishima

and now it was the blind Tōru who needed a guardian.
Honda drew up a notarized will and named the most
reliable guardian he could think of.
Tōru dropped out of the university, remained shut
up in the house, and spoke to no one except Kinué.
The maids were dismissed, and Honda hired a
woman who had had experience as a nurse. Tōru
spent most of the day in Kinué’s cottage. All through
the day Kinué’s soft voice could be heard through the
doors. Tōru did not seem to weary of making reply.
His birthday passed on the twentieth of March. He
showed no sign of dying. He learned to read Braille.
When by himself he listened to records. He could
recognize birds by their songs. One day, after a very
long silence, he spoke to Honda. He asked that
Honda let him marry Kinué. Though aware that her
insanity was hereditary, Honda gave his permission
immediately.
Decay advanced, the signs of the end appeared
quietly. Like hairs tickling his neck when he came
back from the barber shop, death, forgotten most of
the time, would come tickling when remembered. It
seemed strange to Honda that, though all of the
preparations for receiving it had been made, death
did not come.
Honda had been aware during the excitement of a