David

David

It all started and finished with a gaze. One day, I don’t know when, he looked over here as he passed by and that’s when I took some interest in his existence. He bought fritura from Doña Ana every day at a quarter past eight. Not that I spied on him. I worked in an internet center right next to it and I saw him go by, just as I saw José’s guagua at 9:30 every Monday and Wednesday with his original song: Veeeeeenga vecina, lo tengo buuuueno, bonito y baaaaaraatooooo, veeeeeenga, platanos por cinco peso’ buuuueno, bonito y baaaaraatooooo, tengo batata, auyama… One day, I decided to get some fritura too. It was eight ten. I wanted to be there before him. Doña Ana gave me two tostones and a rueda de salami because according to her I was very skinny. While she was frying, I enjoyed the aroma of salami bathed in burning oil. He arrived just in time. With his good morning and serious expression, he aroused a tremendous curiosity on me. Besides, who eats fritura every day? He could have cheese and bread for a change. Well, who am I to judge? Timidly, I asked him if he worked close by to break the iceberg. He told me yes, he worked with Don Carlos in the smithy. He did not look like a blacksmith; he had the face of a Greek philosopher with a Caribbean touch. Me and my conclusions… We continued talking, briefly, about our jobs and how expensive plantains are getting. My order was ready, I said goodbye, without saying my name. That day, for the first time in a long time, I ate ignoring what I was eating, narcissistic thoughts gnawed at me. I have a bad habit of observing and analyzing everything, thinking of myself in high esteem when I am just an observer of life who does not take more than safe steps. The next day, I saw him pass a few minutes early, eight ten to be exact. How weird. When he came back, he looked at me. And I greeted him from a distance. The next day, I decided to shop again and left at eight-five to arrive before him, in case he had changed his schedule. But today he did not come, that’s weird. I left without even buying anything. The next day I returned, only to find out that he, David, had died the same day we spoke.