Memories of a Life That Never Happened

Chapter 9 - Hide and Seek

"What is this place?" Mica asked her stepfather as they marched side by side along a tunnel. Countless yards of white tarpaulin surrounded them.  

"This is the backstage," Escobar said as they kept going. "Imagine two bowls. They have the same height but different widths. If you turn them upside down and place one on top of the other, what do you have?" 

"A gap?" 

"Exactly." Escobar pinched her chin. "The gap between the bowls forms a ring: this corridor. While the party goes on outside, the staff moves through here," he said, wiggling his fingers. "Waiters, dancers, everyone. It keeps the dirty work out of sight."  

Mica shook her head. "Why bother? Just to hide a few grimy dishes?"  

He held her shoulder, making Mica stop. "When rich people drink champagne," he said seriously, "they do not want to be thinking of the boy pouring it. They do not need to notice the waiter, or realize that he too has a family. That he too should be celebrating. Their fun must seem effortless."  

They continued walking through the tunnel, past a slew of empty wheeled shelves. 

"You're saying they believe the meal just pops in front of them and the mess just vanishes?" she asked. 

"It's a bit like magic." Escobar snapped his fingers. "I'm Escobar, the magician. My job is to make sure the illusion is perfect. The public cannot catch us hypnotizing them."  

They stopped by a hemmed doorway in the fabric walls. Brushing open the gauzy curtain that acted as a door, Escobar gestured Mica to enter.  

Holding her breath, Mica stepped into a large dome. This was it. For the first time in her life, Mica was standing in the guts of the legend.  

On their way to the party site, all Mica saw were three white, half-globular marquees. The first was medium-sized and not very impressive. The other two, however, were monumental and likely visible from the moon.  

Her stepdad poked her with an embarrassing white safety helmet.  

"If you're going to stay here, you have to wear this."  

She had no recollection of him getting those things, but he had one on too. Judging by the looks of it, that helmet had often served its purpose. 

"There's no way I'm going to wear that!" Mica told Escobar, pushing his arm away with gentleness but also conviction. 

"You can always go home and tell your mom why you didn't stay," he replied.  

Mica glowered at him, then scoffed but in the end capitulated. "Fine! Give me that." She snatched the headgear from his hand. 

"Listen, cariño, we are late. I need do hurry up now. I will be here the whole time. You do not need to stick to me like birdlime." He nudged her. "Go. Look around. I know you want to." 

There could not be a bigger understatement. Mica longed for this moment so bad that it made her want to pee. Excitement had always been diuretic for her.  

"Ok!" she giggled and gave him a thankful kiss.  

Ready to explore the area, Mica recalled a few years back, when she would play hide and seek. At any crucial moment when the seeker was about to find her, she always had to retreat to the toilet. Innumerous times she lost the game thanks to that nasty lack of control over her bladder.  

Abel, her oldest and closest friend, was well aware of her weakness. Whenever he was the seeker, he would stay put in the bathroom door. All he had to do was to wait for her to come out.  

One time, he suggested hiding together inside the shower stall. Mica had a vivid memory of it. That day, Abel stole her first kiss. At that time, she was ten and he was twelve. From that day forward, Mica had never again agreed to share a hiding spot with him. The scene never repeated and their friendship grew stronger. They were still best friends.  

Every year, that party turned their hometown into a turmoil. As Mica, her accomplice always longed for a glimpse of it, to know what the fuss was all about. She wished Abel were there with her.  

"I'll explore it for us both," she promised aloud to his spirit.  

In the bright light of mid-day, Mica watched her stepfather teetering atop circular stands. He seemed to be back to his normal self, except in a paler version. Prowling around, she realized she was on a circus ring. Dark wooden bleachers rose up to a third of the dome's height.  

"Mica!" she heard someone call.  

Upon checking her environs, she found no one. Escobar was too far away to have called her. 

Confident enough that Escobar could be left alone for a minute, Mica trotted to find a restroom. Soon, she stumbled upon a door with a curious sign. Instead of the usual men and women symbols, there was a single one, where a woman offered an apple to a man.  

"Kinky," she said under her breath. "I hope it means unisex," she said and swung the door open.  

What a restroom that was. Much better than the one in her house. Floor to ceiling mirrors met clear marbled floors. Once inside, Mica ran a finger over the cold stone resin counter. 

"Wow!" she scoffed fascinated, driving a hand to her mouth.  

The toilet was the most futuristic thing her eyes had ever witnessed. Unfamiliar to the concept of a chemical loo, she found it both strange and elegant.  

Snuggly installed atop the toilet seat, Mica tinkled away her anticipation. While at it, she took a thin booklet out of her purse.  

Revelations was the name printed in bold yellow letters. Against a purple background, Capricorn's pale blue symbol filled most of the cover. Flipping through the pages, she found the forecast for that day.  

Romance should be going very well today, although you might have some doubts. Do not let insecurities get the better of you! If your loved one seems standoffish, it has little if anything to do with you. It is possible that money matters are the source of the preoccupation. Keep your eyes and ears open. It would be foolish to ignore signs and warnings.

When she was done, Mica stood up. To her astonishment, the toiled flushed itself, vacuuming it all away to who cared where.  

After considerable scrutiny, she left the helmet on the sink and walked out of the restroom.  

"Mica!" someone whispered again. This time, she was sure.  

Under the stands, the shadows would cloak her, Mica pondered. From there, she could spy the arena. So with eyes wide open, she made her way into the dark. As a precaution, she knocked three times on a wooden pillar to ward off evil spirits, just as Jacira had taught her.  

Beams creaked as the workers shifted above. All of them were oblivious to her presence. Their movement had dust dropping on her, as some kind of silent mockery. By instinct, Mica lowered her eyes at the gritty floorboards. That was when she noticed footprints right below her, going the opposite direction from where she came. 

"Alone at last," a hoarse male voice said behind her.  

Startled, Mica gasped aloud and her shoulders tightened. She was too frightened to look.  

He tittered so close that she felt the warmth of his body on her back. Holding her breath, she turned her head slowly, her knees threatening to fail. 

"Lucky me you just got out of the bathroom," the shadowy figure teased. "We both know what happens when you get nervous."  

"Abel!" Mica punched her friend on the chest. "What-? How did you even get here?"