When he saw her reaction, Roberto was afraid he might have gone too far. He was worried, scared of having somehow offended her.
“Forgive me, doctor,” he said, going back to his initial form of address, “I had no wish to make you uncomfortable, I assure you.”
“Roberto,” she said, using his Christian name for the first time, “don’t torment yourself, please... It’s not your fault, you haven’t said anything wrong... The thing is, I can’t overcome the teachings I received as a child or my genetic conditionings.”
They both laughed effusively, an imperceptible bridge had connected them. At that moment neither of them was thinking about crossing it and reaching the other side, journey’s end. The wandering, the mere motion, were themselves sufficiently gratifying. That initial contact, meeting each other, the elevated dialectic games they were capable of playing, were all pleasurable.
“I don’t remember ever having enjoyed a dialogue with a woman as much as tonight,” thought Roberto. “It’s exciting to know Rocío, to illuminate her reserved areas. She has magnetism, personality. She seems less passionate than Alicia, but I don’t know, perhaps not, perhaps diving under the surface a little... When she blushed she was like a volcano about to erupt, she’s got a lot of fire within, although she hides it. It would be nice to explore her...”
“I like him, he attracts me,” thought Rocío.
Before dropping her off at home, Roberto invited her for a drink in a café on the same block. At that moment he asked her, “Excuse me, Rocío, wouldn’t it be reasonable for us to use the informal form of address? Can’t we permit ourselves this licence... We’ll still respect each other, won’t we?”
“Of course, Roberto, it should be that way from now on... It doesn’t seem right that after having shared such confidentialities we should talk like strangers. It’s been very gratifying for me to be able to talk to you, I’m at a very important juncture in my life.”
“In what way, Rocío? Affection? Are you on the verge of an important change? I’d like you to tell me...”
“I’m going to tell you so that you understand my behaviour and the cause of my discomfort in the restaurant. I’m reaching the end of a long process, understanding at last that I’ve wasted a lot of time. This realisation is recent, but its roots go way back, approximately twelve years. At that time, I met a boy who was going out with a friend of my big sister, Sebastián was his name, I think I fell in love with him, or perhaps I was simply being capricious; I’ll never know for sure... Perhaps he would have been the love of my life, but the truth is I rejected him because it wasn’t a traditional relationship. At the time I was twenty-three and he was thirty-seven. The age difference struck me as an abyss. Sebastián said he loved me, but he needed time to sort things out with his girlfriend, they had already set the date for their wedding. I didn’t want to fall out with her or complicate my life putting up with the reproaches of my family. In fact I rejected him roundly, energetically, I shunned his pleading and took no notice of the voice of my heart. He knew I loved him, or at least that I felt something similar to love, and he didn’t resign himself to losing me. At that age I thought the future would be easy, full of passionate romances, without so many complications. I dismissed him harshly, without the right to reply, I prevented him from insisting. He finally accepted my rejection, the only thing he did was give me a letter. I hardly read it, I didn’t think it was anything special. But look how it goes, last week I found it in an old drawer. It was a moving experience, as if a whiff of the past had intoxicated me. When I reread his message; I understood how mistaken I had been.”
“What had he written? That he loved you?”
“Look, Roberto, I’ve got it on me... Since I found it I haven’t been able to leave it alone: I keep it as a symbol of my blindness, my coldness. Would you like me to read it to you?”
Copyright © | Ricardo Ludovico Gulminelli, 1990 |
---|---|
By the same author | |
Date of publication | September 2002 |
Collection | Global Fiction |
Permalink | https://badosa.com/n145-59 |
Wonderful. I think that the story is fascinating, the situacion is provocative, and the end is surprising. Congratulations. It's a fantastic book. I'm so happy to have found it.
In my opinion, Ricardo Ludovico Gulminelli is an excellent writer... I'm from Miami Beach (Florida) and I have been studying Spanish since 1999 and I'm very happy indeed that I had the opportunity to be able to read this wonderful book. I know that I liked it because he described everything so well, as if he had lived it, and I felt very identificated. I hope to read more materials from Ricardo Ludovico Gulminelli. Thank you!
I fell in love after reading the description of the character Roberto Burán of Fraudulent Fertilisation (Episode 11). The man I am currently dating is so much like him... except, he's not an Attorney. I work with Attorneys. I'm a legal assistant... and I think Attorneys are so fascinating!
Me gustó la obra: me hizo sentir deseos de seguir leyendo página a página, no sólo por la trama, también porque me sentí identificado con su protagonista, su forma de ver las relaciones, su concepto de la mujer como compañera e igual. Hay también manifestaciones sobre determinados temas (aborto, matrimonio) que comparto y me hicieron reforzar mis propias opiniones.
Soy un asiduo lector y hacía mucho tiempo que un libro no me despertaba tantas emociones. Gracias a Badosa por publicar libros así (además gratuitos).
Creo que se trata de una novela-folletín que, en cuanto atañe a aspectos judiciales, está muy bien documentada; se nota que el autor procede de la abogacía y judicatura. En el e-mail que le envié, le dije que vale más un folletín bien relatado que novela suspirada, pero no conseguida. Salut i tenis-sala.
Como escribe de lo que entiende, se le entiende todo lo que escribe. Salut i tenis-sala.
Éste ha sido un gran libro, donde el lector se va adentrando a la vida de cada uno de los personajes, es un libro bien documentado en cada uno de los temas a los que se refiere. Debo felicitar a Badosa.com por brindarnos este servicio.
Mi opinión es que es una historia excelente. Me atrapó verdaderamente leer el libro, me enseñó, comprendí lo complejo que puede ser un tema que parece tan simple. Es un orgullo tener académicos de tan alto estirpe, espero que el Dr. Ricardo Gulminelli haga otras obras tan interesantes como es Fecundación fraudulenta.
Es un libro muy interesante, muy bien planteado, que lo atrapa en su lectura de principio a fin. Lo recomiendo ampliamente.
Inquietante la secretaria, se llama Estela, como mi hermana ídem de un médico... Un saludo Ricardo,
Un libro que atrapa, una historia plausible, muy bien tratado el tema, mis felicitaciones para el Dr Ricardo Gulminelli.
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