'All things belong to the same
order of things, for such is the oneness of human perception, the oneness of
individuality, the oneness of matter, whatever matter may be, the only real
number is one, the rest are mere repetition,' (Lost Property, page 83).[...] 'I
cannot help feeling there is something essentially wrong about love. [...]
For if I say "two" I have started to count and there is no end to it. There
is only one real number: One. And love, apparently, is the best exponent of
this singularity.'
I suppose that Sebastian lies in a Zero
position to refer to ONE. I don't know how to
represent the narrator's place, but I fear he didn't
escape his half-brother's narcissistic trap. His closing lines are: "...try as I may, I
cannot get out of my part: Sebastian's mask clings to my face [...]. I am
Sebastian, or Sebastian is I, or perhaps we both are someone whom neither of us
knows."
And yet,
by referring to "someone whom neither of us knows", he must have started to
count two, at least.