60 - WALKING ON THE RIVER SIDE

 60 - WALKING ON THE RIVER SIDE

 - Wow, what a nice surprise....

- I missed you, Alberto....

- What can I say? A beautiful woman missing me...

Alice laughed. A sweet laugh, with the innocence of a child's laugh. She had a basket in one hand and placed it on top of Alberto's desk.

- And then? Ready to go for a walk?

-But it's still four o'clock... hadn't we agreed to enjoy the sunset later?

- Yes... but the day is so nice... and I think you won't have any problems if you close the office a little earlier than usual... after all, you're available to the community all the time, with the office open or closed...

- Well, that's true... yes, you're right... let's go for a walk...

Alberto took off his lab coat and hung it on the hanger. As he was getting ready to leave, he decided to open the basket to see what the girl had prepared for the two of them... however, she didn't let him...

- The snack is a surprise... only when we're down by the river...

- But, Alice... stop being mean... I'm hungry now...

- No, sir... you weren't even going to leave work now... so you wouldn't eat so soon... can you wait a little...

- You're very mean, you know that? Thus punishing a poor starving...

And the two laughed together. Alberto closed his office, not without posting a notice first, explaining where he could be found in an emergency. And there the two of them went down the lane, towards the river... they talked animatedly about everything and nothing, which is the way that all people usually talk... important things, mixed with subjects that don't arouse interest in anyone, but that people pretend to pay attention more out of politeness than for any other reason. At a certain point, Alice decided to talk about the meeting she had in the morning...

- I bet you have no idea who I met early in the morning...

- There you go with your guessing games...

- Stop being boring...

- Okay... who did you find?

- Try to guess...

- Is it someone important?

- I don't know... I thought not... now I'm not sure...

- Wow... and who would that person be?

- Your Zacarias...

- Zechariah? Did you guys cross paths early? But he works on the farm, and he usually doesn't come downtown in the morning...

- I know... but he had scheduled to meet me early in the morning, so we could talk...

- Serious? And what did he want?

- That's where it gets weird... I have no idea...

- Like this?

- Well, you know that sometimes I have memory lapses...

- Yes... and that worries me.

- Yeah... I remember that we met at six o'clock in the morning, in the square. We talked for some time. But, suddenly, when I found myself, I was at Dona Mônica, sitting at a table and devouring some cornbread with coffee with milk...

- AND...?

- And that's it... I don't have the slightest idea how I ended up there at the boarding house... simply, the next thing I know, there I was... and I don't know what Zacarias and I talked about.... can you believe?

- You know that your condition worries me... I've told you more than a thousand times... you have to do a complete exam, to know what's going on with you...

- But that's the problem... I don't feel like there's anything wrong with me... it's just that sometimes I forget some things...

- You really have no idea what your Zacarias wanted with you?

- No... it's like I told you... at one point we were talking... and suddenly, there I was, at the boarding house...

It's... it's really strange... but it's like I'm telling you... we should do some tests to find out what's going on with you...

Alice shrugs but smiles at her friend's concern. She is also worried about her memory lapses, but she tries to soften the situation so that no one finds out the real dimension of her problem... which she has no idea what it is...

After walking for about an hour along the banks of the river, they find a perfect place to have their picnic... on the other side of the banks, far away, the mountains served as a frame for nature. And, when the sun began to go down behind them, its rays illuminating the mountains, creating a myriad of colors, turning the green into various shades, the two young people remained silent, simply embracing, head to head, appreciating the spectacle that the nature provided. It was almost impossible to hear even his breathing, as the two were absorbed in enjoying the beauty that the sunset showed....

- Alice...

- Yes?...

- Have I told you that you look very beautiful today?

Alice smiled. She knew how much Alberto wanted her. And she felt the same way about him. But, for some reason, she felt that she shouldn't harbor that feeling... she felt that it wouldn't work out, that something unpleasant could happen and that she would regret harboring that feeling...

Alberto was watching the girl, with the eyes of a lost dog... he was in love with her, he felt that he was reciprocated. Which was why he couldn't understand the girl's reluctance to accept him. There was no plausible reason for this. He was a prominent person in society, cultured, intelligent ... and, modesty to the extreme, a really handsome young man ... and everyone said that the two made a beautiful pair. Hence, he couldn't understand her reservation towards the two...

Seeing that he couldn't find an opening to declare what he felt for Alice, Alberto started talking about his day, the encounters and disagreements in his office. He spoke of curious things that had happened during the last few days, including the incident with Mané da Tiana, as he had not yet told him about that incident. Of course, he omitted the more lurid details, but he noticed a slight change in his company's mood when he brought it up, so he quickly changed what they were talking about. The night was cool and pleasant, but Alberto suddenly began to feel uncomfortable. And he suggested to the girl that they return to the village, which was readily accepted.