Mónica
I walk quickly through the center of the boulevards, avoiding groups of people without identity who constantly cross me and who are causing, without a doubt, that I do not arrive on time for my appointment. I know I seem stressed out about being late, maybe even my scruffy look can make anyone think that I just came out of a dramatic scene; makeup is no longer what it was last night when I left my apartment, nor my clothes, which now must smell like another perfume or various random stuff.
​
- At what point did last night drag on? - Asks my inner self.
​
- Surely when Gustavo brought that out. - My conscience answers me.
​
The truth is that I am not sorry, the music from the disco boomed in a fascinating way, I felt the bass drum go through my veins and my body just made me move to its rhythm, letting itself be carried away.
Suddenly one of those passersby who were walking along the boulevards without an identity ran into me and forced me not only to leave my thoughts about last night, but also to stop in my tracks halfway to the subway.
​
- Excuse me pretty, are you from here? - He says dangerously approaching his face to my breathing space.
​
- No, it's only the tourists from here. - I say pissed off by his overconfidence. - Sorry, but I'm in a hurry.
​
- I said it because I'm looking for some substances... I don't know if you understand me... - And he tells me, raising his eyebrows exaggeratedly from top to bottom.
​
Inside me there is a voice that insists that I continue on my way to the subway and ignore this character who will make me arrive even later, but his appearance makes me think that he has money and that perhaps he could be of use to me. Gustavo's house is barely a hundred meters away and I know he has all kinds of 'substances', as the posh boy says.
​
- Do you have a motorcycle by chance? - My face reflects an undoubted demand.
​
- Clear! It's that one there - He points to a scooter that is parked on the sidewalk in front of me - Can you take me to get something?
​
- I'll take you only if you take me later to a bar in Hospitalet. - I decide to rely on the driving skills of a more than likely county junkie, his appearance as a young and clean boy invites me to think that he will fulfill his promise and that implies that I will be able to arrive on time for my appointment.
​
When we get to Gustavo's house, I tell him to come down, I let them talk for a while and finally we can go. The boy insists on thanking me for how cheap everything has turned out, even though I know that my friend will have seeped the look of the posh boy and will have raised the price a little. I insist that you hurry up and stop flattering. It is a quarter to twelve and in fifteen minutes I should be in Hospitalet, Google Maps knows that this is impossible, but I trust the skills of the county boy and the power of his scooter.
When I get off the bike I feel like my hair has become an expansive wave that has been created only where the shape of the helmet ends, and the top is greasy. I look at myself in the driving mirror and now my appearance recriminates me for the previous question, but I still think about the good time I had. It always pays off.
​
I don't know if this guy is expecting something from me, he got off the bike and it seems like he's waiting for something. I thank him with a smile and raise my hand in goodbye. It seems like he wants to say something, but I don't care much and I'm late.
​
- Well, I'm leaving I'm in a hurry, huh? Have a good life!
​
- Goodbye pretty, I hope to see you again! - I roll my eyes as a sign of exhaustion from the use of the compliment again, I give him an ironic smile and leave.
​
I'm in front of the bar and now is when I start to feel nervous. I look at the clock, in the end I'm only ten minutes late, here the county boy has kicked the bike and we have won six minutes from Google Maps.
​
On Tinder it said that Julia, in addition to having her own bar, was a constantly busy girl. Surely the bar has a lot to do with it, but there she is, with a copper color apron to match his hair and a tray in her hand. She is serving coffees to an elderly couple and when she finishes she surprises me watching her.
​
- I thought you would not come, perhaps you had seen me dressed in this - she says touching the apron - and you had backed off.
​
- Come on ginger - I say seductively - do you really think I could forget about you? - She smiles and comes to hug me.
​
- Come, sit wherever you want. What would you like to have? - I see that, for a moment, she stares at me from the top to the bottom and slightly frowns.
​
- I had an intense morning and also I went out last night, I deserve a huge piece of that good cake that you say you do.
​
- Did you go out with the team yesterday? Or with the hippies and Gustavo?
​
- Option B. - I see her smile satisfied because she was right. - It went out of control... I wanted to go to Gloria this morning... - Julia takes a card from her apron and places it on the table.
​
- I'm going to take care of the tables and I'll be here in a bit. This card has been left by a very arrogant customer before, find out, I think they are looking for people.
​
I light a cigarette and settle into the chair waiting for my big piece of cake. I take the card that Julia has left on the table and read what it says.
Mr. Carlos Ramos Fernández, Director of HR Endeka S.A.
​
I turn the card over, expecting a bland white background, but I find a sentence written in pen that says: Having soy milk in the 21st century is a claim for many customers. Tell to the owner.
​
- What a fool... - Says my inner self.