TALES THAT ARE NOT TALES

The Crossing

The hotel was on the outskirts of the village, next to the junction of two routes. The transit heading to the big cities did not mix with the roamed province. Only the hotel and the service station twinned those who passed through. From the junction to the only square of the small hamlet, seven blocks. Next to the square, there were some shops, the quartermaster and a school. All this could be seen in the images that the local channel put into the air. After ten o'clock at night only a static landscape on the screen of the TV, as if transmit a postcard. Not even the most ardent lovers dared to show themselves in the eyes of the cameras covering the entire inhabited area. Next to the hotel rose flour mill with its towering silos. The only industry in that La Pampa's (1) a place lost among wheat¨s field. He learned all this after loading gasoline, checking in at the hotel, and sitting on the bed in the tiny room, starting to zap with the television. It was eleven o'clock when he decided to go to sleep.

The storm that stopped him in the place inveighed with winds becoming stronger. A thunder's sound startled, He was drenched in sweat and the fourth suffocating. He went to the bathroom and opened the window. The darkness of his room was repeated outside. He looked out and saw that the street lighting was off and closed the service station. Outside, the silence was broken by the crackle of rain increased the feeling of suffocation. Water was poured dark and returned to the room. A getting out of the bathroom without thinking, just out of habit, he pressed the power switch; the light came on. Confused, he looked out and saw was darkness. Rays rushed to the ground the distance was the only illumination's source, fleeting but recurring. He returned to his bed and tried to sleep. Noises in the hallways would not let him. He looked at his watch, it was five minutes to one. They have heard doors that opened and closed. People who transited the hallways speaking loudly. The sound of voices mingled with the entrained lumps. Lumps imagined bags. He turned on the television, and the only channel transmitting returned the image of the people barely illuminated by yellow lights. The rest of the channels supplied cable service were cut. They showed only tiny flashes of light on the black background and squeaky noise characteristics. He turned on the television, and the only channel transmitting returned the image of the people barely illuminated by yellow lights. The rest of the channels supplied cable service were cut.

He cursed out loud. It was hot. The electric fan did not comfort him, and the noises bothered him. Looking for some fresh air shutter opened first and then the sheet sliding window. He felt nothing but the sound and suffocating sensation of the rain penetrating the parched earth. He leaned his body forward but did not allow him to get wet. Annoyed that the outside heat was not less than that of the room, he lowered his gaze. He was startled to see that the courtyard and stone footprint that cars entering the parking at the hotel were not. He looked up and saw dim the service station, the route, and the entrance to the village. Everything was suspended in the air. The falling rain disappeared at the height where once stood the floor. Appalled and disbelieving returned to watch the channel transmitting postcard town. He noticed that the sidewalks, stonemasons streets, and the square had disappeared from the picture. His heart rate increased. Fear paralyzed him beside the bed. In the corridors, voices were heard louder and louder. Suddenly someone started to move the doorknob of your room. He recalled that the lock was a simple key. He named God without thinking and without making sense. Now not only they tried to force the lock, but the door pushed to tear it down.

He heard the rumble of a transport heavy goods vehicle approaching slowing down. He went to the window to ask for help. When the lorry stopped in front of the service station, the street and business lights came on. The rain continued. The struggle over the door ceased. He saw a young man getting ready to fill the tank. The driver, meanwhile, went to the business of multiple items attached to the fuel dispatch beach.

He decided to leave before he left the lorry. He left without leaving the keys at the reception of the hotel. When he passed, the service station noted that the driver came with a tray of food. The young man continued refueling.

He took his route and drove faster than the rain was profuse. He saw the rearview mirror when the truck left. Seconds later observed the lights went out again. From that moment, the mill, the hotel, the station, and the town disappeared before their eyes. He had only one kilometer away.

His watch, the car's, and the National Anthem on the radio told him that the new day had just begun.

(1) Argentina state