𝑴𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉 [english]

13.

"And that phrase? 'For travelers, the stars are guides' it's very pretty where is it from?"

"It's from a book my parents always read to me when I was a kid... The Little Prince. That book also contributed to arouse my interest in traveling... I'm old now, and my parents are no longer around to read it to me, but one day I'll read it to my son" Matthew said and Sofía smiled very tenderly. "Have you read it?" he asked, and she shook her head.

“Every time I wanted to take it out of the library, someone else had already taken it. Over time, I forgot about the book" she laughed.

"I can bring it if you want... So you have something to do besides watch TV when I'm at work, since you couldn't bring any more books..." he offered kindly and she accepted without hesitation.

“Alright then, I won't talk about this tattoo. Since you're going to read it, I don't want to give you spoilers" and that's how Matthew ended the talk about the tattoo.

The next day he brought her the book as promised. Sofia almost instantly immersed herself in the pages like never before, and in the time Matthew was away, she was able to finish it.

She finished the book feeling quite thoughtful. She looked at the book with yellowed pages imagining Matthew as a child. She took the time to look at the drawings on the cover, already faded by time. Then she stopped for a moment to think about the phrases that she liked the most.

'Walking in a straight line, one cannot get very far...' It would be that life takes many turns, whether we agree or not.

Life takes many turns... Hers had always remained linear, but she had to admit that sentence was true. She was not going to come to anything good if she continued to be alone, even if she wanted to stay that way, because all the turns that Matthew's life had taken ended up leading him to that place. Sofia's life was arranged so, that day in which it seemed that everything was going wrong, was the beginning of a stage where she would live the happiest moments of her life.

'You are the owner of your life and your emotions, never forget it. For better and for worse...'

That sentence brought back a memory; if there's no one I miss, then no one will miss me... It was my decision, and I think it was for the worse. Sofia was understanding what Matthew had always wanted her to keep in mind. She shouldn't be alone, she shouldn't carry everything alone.

And then another phrase came to her mind.

'It's good to have a friend, even if you're going to die'. Sofia finally understood.

But that moment of reflection didn't last long.

"You finished it? You like it?" Matthew asked, pulling her out of her thoughts.

She was a little startled, but the truth is that he was back at the same time as always, it's just that since she had lost track of time by reading, she really didn't expect his arrival yet.

She didn't answer anything. She only stared at him for a moment. His eyes were slightly red. Sofia wondered if perhaps he was talking about her with his friends from work. Sometimes it disturbed her so much to think that Matthew was sad because of her.

"So?" he asked once again, excited to know her opinion.

"Oh yeah. I've finished it, it's very nice..." she replied this time.

"Excellent! Maybe I could bring you another..." he began to say, as he tried to think of a book he had that Sofía might like.

She just sighed. She knew that those actions unconsciously sought to comfort himself more than her. She knew that this was being very hard for him.

"I already asked you once not to be sad... But I know that I really can't ask you that. I know that you will feel so sick, but it comforts me to know that you will recover soon. I'm very happy to have met you, And when you're consoled (everyone eventually is consoled), you'll be glad you've known me. And since I will be a butterfly I will be able to fly very high, until I reach the sky to look for my star. In one of the stars I shall be living. In one of them I shall be laughing. And so it will be as if all the stars were laughing, when you look at the sky at night. You–only you–will have stars that can laugh!" she ended up quoting those phrases from the book, giving it her own touch, with tears slipping down her cheeks.

Matthew couldn't do more than hug her. "You're wrong, Sofia. I will not be glad in the future, because I already am. Every day I'm happy to have met you".

They both cried hugging in silence, feeling that they were somehow saying goodbye. They knew the end was near.