The Golden Dream

CHAPTER VII

         Is done, we sold my friend's gold with no problem. I regret having done it without his permission but the circumstances have led me to this. I'm not going to think about it much, after all Rachel's father will reward me with money and I'll be able to pay back what I've stole.

First we go to the pharmacy and buy the medicine for my mom.

"Do you know how to apply it?" Rachel asks me.

"Yes I did it last time."

"All right."

"Now we have to get you a ride."

Is not a problem to go to Miramonte, after all, is the capital city, the problem has always been money, like everything in this damn town, money is always the problem. We go to the bus station and bought a ticket directly to the city, I warn Rachel that she can stumble upon guerrilla roadblocks along the way, is not very common but it can happen, especially now that they are looking for her.

"I can't go with you" I say.

"I know you have to go back and take care of your family."

"Will we see each other again?"

"Yes, I promise I'll pay back everything you did for me. You saved my life Marcelo."

Rachel hugs me.

"I'll be back in three days, if case I don't I'll send someone."

"Is that a promise?"

"Yes, is a promise"

I say goodbye to my friend. I will miss her, she's different from all I know. Her compassionate spirit is something we need in this town. Is not that there are no good people in Malagueña, but our circumstances has made ​​us hard, we can only trust in ourselves.

Rachel gets on the bus and I see it disappear into the road. There's goes the only hope left for me to do things right, to replace what I've stolen from Andre. Hope is the word, since I'm not really sure, I may not see her again; she may have lied about his father and is as poor as I am. It is what somebody does when trying to survive.

Now it's time to go to the hotel, rest a while (more than anything I want to watch TV) and then back to Malagueña. No more spending, only for transport, I have to make an effort to spend as little as I can, I have to pay the debt of my friend. It might take me years but I'll do it.

I get to room #22, put the medicine on the dresser, the money in a drawer. I drop myself on the bed. This hasn't been a busy day but the emotions left me exhausted. I cannot stop thinking about the gold nugget. I don't know what I'm going to tell Andre. He'll probably understand about my mom, but I'm not sure about Rachel. I feel like I just stole his dream.

Someone knocks on the door. I open and see my friend Andre.

"Marcelino!" he says enthusiastically as ever.

He took me by surprise, I hope he does not ask more about the nugget or what I'm doing here.

"Andre! Come in my friend. What's going on?"

"How are you?" he says as he drops himself on the bed. "You're living the good life in this hotel aren't you Marcelo?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary."

"How could you afford this? I thought you didn't have any money."

"My friend paid."