SHORT STORY END WITH ANALEPSIS AND PROLEPSIS
END WITH ANALEPSIS AND PROLEPSIS
Automatic traslation from the original story in Spanish. Not checked manually
Julio was already many years old, perhaps even too old, but despite this, he looked much younger and continued to fend for himself perfectly.
He was sleeping peacefully when he suddenly woke up. Then he looked at the alarm clock and saw that it was not yet five in the morning and mechanically he squinted again trying to fall asleep.
He wondered why he had woken up, since he usually got up around eight in the morning, which was the time when he and his wife Lisi usually got up.
Then he realized that during the dream he had remembered the day he met Lisi, 60 years ago.
He thought, “what a curious analepsis” and he couldn’t help but smile when he thought that having a language as rich as the one, we have, people usually refer to the evocation of scenes from the past through the horrible Anglicism “flashback” and he turned on his side to go back. to sleep.
Without realizing it, this time being awake, his mind once again recreated the scene in which he had met Lis. He went back to 1963. It was February 6, he turned 42 and, precisely on his birthday, he needed to make a notarized document.
He had reluctantly gone to the notary office that he had near his company and that had almost become “his primary notary office.” He knocked on the door and waited for Gertrudis, a rather efficient but perennially grumpy older woman, to open it.
When the door opened, his surprise was enormous. Penetrating dark green eyes flanked a beautiful and somewhat upturned nose, all framed by a captivating smile, covering the beautiful face of a young stranger.
Somewhat dazed by the vision, I couldn’t help but let her gaze travel with barely any concealment over the body of the long-legged girl who, with a certain blush, although without extinguishing her smile, said: “Are you Mr. Fabregas? —And without giving her time to respond he added —Please come in, the notary will attend to you right away.
-Thank you, Miss…? “He,” he managed to stammer, trying to find out the name of that dazzling woman.
—Elisabeth, although my friends call me Lisi. —She responded, completely composed and self-confident.
—I hope I can call you Lisi. By the way, you can call me Julio and, naturally, tell me about yourself. —He added, regaining her confidence, but surprised by the enormous chemistry he had perceived with her.
—That’s what I’ll do, Julio. Thank you. —Lisi smiled, as she accompanied him to the waiting room.
Julio sat in one of her already somewhat rickety chairs while he observed the dizzying curves of the young woman’s body looking at her from behind.
He couldn’t help but think about the previous failed relationships that he had had and that had led him to be sure not to form a new partner and only live adventures and enjoy good sex. He noticed that this thoughtful decision was breaking down.
It was absurd, the girl was much younger than him. She had simply been very nice, but that did not mean that she felt anything like what, at this moment, he was feeling.
The notary’s voice brought him out of his reverie.
—Good morning, Julio come with me to the office. Let’s see what you need.
A while later, they had already agreed on how to write the document and that I should sign it and pick it up the next day. Although initially Julio’s idea was to have asked him to do it right away, he thought that this would give him the opportunity to see Lisi again.
When he left, he saw that Lisi was at the reception desk sorting out some documents and he went towards her saying: “Well Lisi, I’m done for today, but since I have to return tomorrow, I will have the pleasure of seeing you again.”
—Thank you, Julio. And the pleasure will be mine. —She responded somewhat embarrassed.
The remaining hours of the day and the night seemed eternal to Julio. The next day, shortly after they had opened, Julio was knocking on the door of the notary’s office. He smiled happily, evoking Lisi’s angelic face… a smile that was erased as if by magic when Gertrudis’s evil face made way for him.
Julio greeted her politely, trying to hide her frustration, and headed to the waiting room when she told him to. Already seated, he noticed a huge disappointment inside him. Maybe he would never see Lisi again… he felt a strong bitterness that made his eyes water. He closed them, so that no one would notice…
A few moments later, Julio was still with his eyes closed, when suddenly footsteps were heard approaching the waiting room… A happy voice whispered: —Julio, have you fallen asleep?
—Lisi? —Julio answered—I thought you weren’t there.
-Yeah. I was preparing some urgent documents and that’s why Gertrudis opened the door to you… but for the record, if I had known it was you, I would have opened the door to you.
“Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?” —Julio said, surprising himself.
—I’m sorry Julio, but I can’t.
Julio made a disappointed face and in a quiet voice answered: — Don’t worry. I perfectly understand. I have overstepped my bounds.
-Do not rush. I told you I can’t, but I was referring to today. If any other day goes well for you…
-Tomorrow is Wednesday. It is the day of communication. If it goes well for you, perfect for me. —Julio managed to respond, with his eyes wide open.
The dinner was wonderful, the company even more pleasant than either of them could have imagined.
Lisi had told him that the day before she had not been able to have dinner with him, because she had arranged to meet the boy, she was dating to end the relationship. Having met him, she felt something that she had never felt before and although she did not know if they would ever have a relationship, what was certain was that the one she had was no longer useful to her and she decided to leave it.
She commented that she felt very excited when she asked you to go to dinner. Although she had doubts, she decided that she wanted to do things right and leave her partner, before you had dinner together…
After dinner, a drink… then at your house or mine? The sex was brutal, for both of them. In fact, she had remained that way during the 60 years they had been together.
Yes, although it may seem strange, despite the lower frequency imposed by age, they continued to have good sex… It was incredible that he, at 102 years old, and she, at 94, continued to enjoy sex…
Julio emerged at that moment from the vivid recollection of his past and felt an uncontrollable need to caress his wife who was to the left of him in bed. He raised his right hand… that hand, aged and somewhat deformed by osteoarthritis, and brought it closer to his wife’s face… Without knowing why, he couldn’t help but think that, although his life had been wonderful, his memory could be somewhat distorted…
Just at that moment, his hand, gently so as not to wake her, touched the somewhat shrivelled skin of his wife’s face and he noticed that it was cold, very cold… He tried to wake her up, although deep inside she knew that that was no longer possible. it would be possible…
Tears welled up in his eyes, while he tried to imagine what her life would be like without her… he tried to get her mind to create a prolepsis, an image of her future… well, what they now call “flashforward.”, but he couldn’t…
Suddenly he felt a strong puncture in his chest and intense pain in his left arm and he smiled, just before death took him too… He smiled because he realized that, if the prolepsis had been true, it was also true. doubt it was the analepsis and with this he died happy.
Final with Analepsis and Prolepsis – Short stories series – Copyright ©Montserrat Valls and Juan Genovés