This is the writer's voice, new fiction from The New Yorker.

I'm Deborah Treasman, fiction editor at The New Yorker.

On this episode of The Writer's voice, we'll hear Camille Bordas read her story, Only Orange, from the December 23rd, 2019, issue of the magazine.

Bordas has published two novels in France,

Etrez deserre and Partie Comune.

Her first novel in English,

How to Behave in a Crowd, was published in 2017.

Now here's Camille Bordas.

Only Orange.

All I said was that she must like beige a lot.

I was trying to put my finger on why I disliked her so much, Audrey, my brother's new girlfriend.

I thought maybe it was the different shades of beige she'd been wearing all week.

You must really like beige, I said, and she said, what do you mean?

Your pants, I said, your shirts, all beige.

Or oatmeal, maybe?'

"'Otmeal sounded less aggressive.

I'd been told I was a little mean at times, in my choice of words.

"'My pants are green,' Audrey said.

"'Jean is right,' my brother said,

"'and it was the first time he'd agreed with me all year. "'Your pants are green, Audrey said. Jean is right, my brother said, and it was the first time he'd agreed with me all year.

Your pants aren't green, babe.

Just like that, Audrey found out that she was colorblind.

...