Lo Que Podría Haber Sido - What Might Have Been

Capítulo 17 - La Amanecer

       

Chapter 17 - The Dawn

Fernando drove in darkness while Leticia slept soundly in her room in Acapulco. As he drove, he thought about their impromptu visit to Cuernavaca and hoped that he did not get another flat tire or that the car did not somehow break down. Thinking about Cuernavaca led him to think about all of the other adventures they had shared. With Lety, it seemed like life was never boring. She stimulated him in both the mental and physical. Fernando did not know it, but as he drove and relived the moments that had made up their romance, Leticia dreamed the same memories. 

Fernando manejó en la oscuridad mientras Leticia dormía profundamente en su habitación en Acapulco. Mientras conducía, pensó en su visita improvisada a Cuernavaca y esperó que no tuviera otra rueda pinchada o que el auto no se descompusiera de alguna manera. Pensar en Cuernavaca lo llevó a pensar en todas las otras aventuras que habían compartido. Con Lety, parecía que la vida nunca era aburrida. Ella lo estimuló tanto mental como físicamente. Fernando no lo sabía, pero mientras conducía y revivía los momentos que habían conformado su romance, Leticia soñó los mismos recuerdos.

The sun was rising over the beach when Fernando found himself arriving in Acapulco. He stopped to consult a directory to find the hotel she was staying at. Fernando arrived at the hotel and asked for the room number for Lety, but the hotel refused to give him the room number. He asked if they could call her. They obliged him and rang her room, but no one answered in her suite. Fernando was agitated by the delay. Here he was, in the city with his beloved, but he had no way to find get to her. It was still early, so he imagined that she had not picked up her phone because she was still asleep. He decided to go to the beach, decided to try and walk off the frustration he was feeling. He was tired from the drive and from not sleeping. He made his way down to the water and strolled for a while. In the distance he saw a woman on the beach. She had a long black braid and wore a dress that covered her from head to toe. The image was a softer version of his Lety. But something about her, made him start moving toward her. The closer he got, the more sure he was that it was indeed Lety in the distance. When he had only a about a hundred meters to go, a man came up next to her and put his arm around her.

El sol se amaneció sobre la playa cuando Fernando se encontró llegando a Acapulco. Se detuvo para consultar un directorio para encontrar el hotel donde Lety estaba hospedada. Fernando llegó al hotel y pidió el número de habitación para Lety, pero el hotel se negó a darle el número de la habitación. Él preguntó si podían llamarla. Estuvieron de acuerdo y llamaron a su habitación, pero nadie respondió en su suite. Fernando estaba agitado por la demora. Aquí estaba, en la ciudad con su amada, pero no tenía forma de encontrarla. Todavía era temprano, así que imaginó que no había contestado su teléfono porque todavía estaba dormida. Decidió ir a la playa, decidió intentar alejarse de la frustración que sentía. Estaba cansado del viaje y de no dormir. Bajó al agua y paseó un rato. A lo lejos, vio a una mujer en la playa. Tenía una larga trenza negra y llevaba un vestido que la cubría de pies a cabeza. La imagen era una versión más suave de su Lety. Pero algo sobre ella, lo hizo comenzar a moverse hacia ella. Cuanto más se acercaba, más seguro estaba de que se trataba de Lety, en la distancia. Cuando solo le quedaban unos cien metros, un hombre se acercó a ella y la rodeó con el brazo.

Fernando stopped short. That woman could not be Lety, there was no way she could be Lety and another man was touching her so familiarly. He was about to turn around and walk away when he heard something indisputable. The wind carried to him the tinkling laugh of Leticia Padilla Solis. His steps quickened as he approached the couple that were walking along the sand. His Leticia was with someone else. He couldn't understand what was going on. It seemed unfathomable that just days ago she was in Omar's office with him and they were kissing and she had called him, told him they needed to talk. By 'talk' did she mean to tell him she had found someone else. Fernando was confused but determined to confront her. She was his, and he wasn't going anywhere until he had an explanation.