"I am now a mother." "And a married woman." "But not long ago, I was a criminal." "My brother and I had become orphans." "Somehow, that justified it all." "We had no one." "And it all happened from dusk to dawn." "THE FUTURE" "Here it is..." "This is the car." "But it was yellow." "Excuse me?" "My parents' car was a yellow Fiat." "A yellow Fiat?" "ZM 937 CP." "From Bari, right?" "This is the car, nobody changed it." " It was yellow, right?" " Huh?" "Mom and Dad's car was yellow." "Yes, but before." " What do you mean "before"?" " Before the accident." "What is this nonsense?" "The crash left it like that." "The crash modified the color of the car?" "Yes, color, shape, everything changes." "Could be..." "Anyhow, gray, yellow, this is the car." "I'm sorry it's not yellow anymore." "Alright, follow me, we must..." "We did recover this, though." "One thing..." "A watch, intact..." "Incredible." "It's shockproof." "They bought it in Germany." "Ah, right." "It's a good brand." "A cookie, Bianca?" " Tomas?" " Thanks." "Are you a psychologist?" "No, dear, I'm a social worker." "Is that a career?" "Certainly." "For the last five years." "I've never heard of it." "And what do you want to study after high school?" " Computers." " Interesting." "It's a career with a big future." "And you, Bianca?" "Bianca doesn't know what she wants to study." "And she's out this year." "That's normal, you need to take time to decide." "There are some questions I have to ask..." "Do you have any other relatives here in Rome?" "No, they are all in Chile." "Is there anyone here, or in Chile... who you would want to contact?" "Well..." "Don't worry, there's time for that." "You have a right to your father's pension." "It's almost the same he used to earn, minus taxes." "But your mother had no formal contract..." "What does the tattoo say?" ""Ad Astra per Aspera." To the stars through adversity..." "It had a special meaning when I got it." "But I will erase it with laser." "We were talking about your mother, as she never had a contract, you won't be able to get her share." "Anyhow, we'll do our best to get you as much as possible." "What do you say, Bianca?" "You think you can assume this responsibility?" "If not?" "If not, Tomas will have to live in an orphanage." "With Bianca?" "No, sweetheart, just you." "A family would adopt him?" "Yes, something like that." "That's not necessary, we can take care of ourselves." "Bianca?" "Alright." "We'll come by to visit you often to make sure everything's going well." "You must know you are not alone." "Shouldn't it be night already?" "Yes, it should be." "Strange..." "All this light, do you see it?" "It's what I've been trying to tell you." "What?" "Accidents release so much energy, they modify the universe." "You believe that?" "How strange!" "It's normal." "Well, not normal, but it happens." "But..." "Is the light real?" "Or can we see in the dark?" "Both." "Light is here, but only you can see it." " But do you see it?" " Yes, more or less." "Then it's psychological." "No, it's real." "I mean, paranormal." "Like those who see the dead." "The dead are here, but only they can see them." "Sleepy?" "No." "Neither am I." "How will I be able to sleep with all this light?" "Hurry up." "I couldn't find the shoes." "I was going to start with the gym this year." "Remember?" "I convinced Mom to convince Dad to pay for it." "No, I don't remember." "Now you want muscles?" "Weren't you into computers?" "One thing doesn't exclude the other." "And the computer broke down." "Whatever." "We can't afford a gym." "How come?" "We've got the orphans' pension." "Don't say that horrible word." "What?" "Orphans?" "It's stupid." "It's stupid." "Hello..." "Hello, dear." "What's up for today?" "Latin... is it true you will give me the lesson..." "Come on." "I thought not." "And so you were waiting for your people when you sat on that stile?" "For whom, sir?" "For the men in green:" "it was a proper moonlight for them." "Did I break through one of your rings, that you spread that damned ice on the causeway?" "I shook my head." "The men in green all forsook England a hundred years ago, said I, speaking as seriously as he had done." "In that time, the economic situation had worsened." "The TV said something was happening to Europe or to Italy." "Or to Rome or to our neighborhood." "The fact was our money was just enough to eat." "I waited for something." "A catastrophe." "The arrival of a meteorite that darkened the sky." "But nothing happened." "The client arrives, I greet him and ask what he wants." "You stand by my side, alert, you take her coat or purse?" " Or the umbrella, in winter." " Or the umbrella." "First, test the water temperature." "It must be pleasing." "Sit down." "Remember to massage gently." "To do so, you must be relaxed." "Understood?" "Then you wrap the head in a towel, you take her to one of them, who do coloring, styling, cutting." "Will I learn to cut?" "You must pay close attention to how they do it." " It took me three years." " Three years." "Three years is nothing, Bianca, you'll see." "Doubts or questions?" "No." "Concentrate, and it will be all right." "In three years, after learning how to cut hair, I will open my own salon." "A small place." "Why small?" "Why don't you open a big salon?" "Gigantic." "No, the future is in small, exclusive places." "Nobody wants to go to a huge place, where everyone goes." "The future is only in computers, artificial intelligence, neural networks." "Hello?" "Yes." "Where?" "No, I don't feel like going." "Yes, I know." "Alright..." "See you, bye." " If you want to go out, fine." " I don't feel like it." "What are you doing?" "A trick my friends taught me to watch all channels." " Without paying?" " Obviously." "What friends?" "Schoolmates?" "No, friends of mine." "You don't know them." "This is what you wanted to see?" "This film is disgusting." "True." "Why did you watch this shit?" " To learn." " To learn what?" "How to make love." "You won't learn by watching these movies." "Don't be so sure." "But..." "Are you still a virgin?" "None of your business." "Not according to me." " You had a boyfriend." " So what?" "We dated only two months." " Are you a virgin or not?" " What do you care?" "I am." "It's normal at your age." "Don't worry." "We are almost the same age." "You said it... almost." "What are you doing here?" "What are you doing here?" "Working." " Since when?" " A few days." "Why didn't you tell me?" "Did they hire you?" "Not yet." "But they say I have potential." "I can practice for free." "Potential for what?" "And who says so?" "My friends." "Where did you meet them?" "What do you care?" "They are my friends." "Your porno friends?" "You can't skip school, know that?" "Yesterday you skipped it." "You could've asked." "It's only for today, to have a fresh start." "Excuse me, I must go, I'm on tryout." "Take one of these, they're free." "Hello, this is my sister Bianca." "Bianca, these are my friends." " Hello." " Hi." " Are you from the gym?" " Yes, they work with me." "Fine." "You also do cleaning?" "No, we train and prepare people." "We're personal trainers." "But we also do maintenance on the machines." "These are hi-tech machines." "Some are even computerized, no?" "That's right." "Excuse me." "You can't smoke in here." "Says who?" "My friends will stay overnight." "Why?" "Don't they have a place to stay?" "They have a problem." "They are moving." "But there's no place here." "How come?" "In Dad and Mom's room." " Where are they?" " In the kitchen." "We don't know them." " What if they are thieves?" " No." "Only for today." " Hi, Bianca." " Hi." "They cooked." "I made mashed potatoes and spinach." "My brother made meatballs with tomato." "Thanks." "Are you brothers?" "Everyone asks the same thing." "Yes, but people are never wrong." "Even if they seem stupid... they are never wrong." "Even when we despise them, with reason, they are never wrong." "Are you brothers or not?" "We are brothers in blood." "You made a blood oath?" "Yes." "But you cut your palms and joined blood?" "Exactly." "Do you have the scar?" "May I?" "Thanks." "Marco, who fixes the treadmill, told me Gigi eats 10 cans of tuna and 10 bananas a day." "Don't believe everything they say." "Especially Marco, from the treadmill." "Is this computer working?" "My dad was fixing it." " So that's not true?" " No..." "But not false either." "Drop it." " But do you have all the pieces?" " I don't think so." "Mom used the screws..." "Why don't you go talk in the kitchen?" "I like this show." "I like it too." "Excuse me, Bianca." "To win 50,000 euros, pay attention:" "The meaning of the word "nimbo."" "Aureola: circle of light that identifies the holy." "Low cloud." "No, that is a "nimbus."" ""Nimbo" is a halo, which identifies the holy." "Phenomenal!" "He does crosswords all day long." "He finishes them all, not like Dad." "I always tell him to be on this show." "But it's not the same." "There you're against time." "That's what I say." "Besides, there's the stage fright." "The lights, the child host." "Everything is against you." "He should try anyway." " I agree." " I don't want to go there!" " Are you scared of the child?" " You go then!" "Turn it up a bit." "And days went by." "I wondered what my brother's friends saw in me." "They were living in my house." "Sleeping in my parents' room." "And watching me from up close." "Like nobody had ever done before." "What had they seen?" "Which face?" "Which eyes had they seen?" "Now I know closeness does not exist." "There's always one with the eyes closed." "One sees when the other does not." "The other sees when one does not." "My attitude was of someone with open eyes, while my brother and his friends wandered, eyes closed." "Keeping the eyes open, meant consuming yourself." "I consumed myself." "What's your opinion about men under 20?" "Same opinion I have of my brother." "A normal one." "What's your opinion about men under 30?" "None." "Do you have a boyfriend, Bianca?" "Can I cut this kid's hair?" "No, absolutely not." "I've learned how." "I can do it well." "Don't even think of touching the scissors, you hear me?" "You could snip his ear off!" "He could bleed to death, and who would be responsible?" "Me?" "No Bianca, it would be me for having authorized you." "How old would you like to be at death?" "Before forty." "Thirty-six." "Which movie actor would you like as a lover?" "Johnny Depp." "Which movie actor would you like as your father?" "Brad Pitt." "And which movie actor would you like to marry?" "Brad Pitt." "Which movie actress would you like as your best friend?" "Maria Grazia Cucinotta." " Is there anybody?" " Wait, can I change?" " Pen茅lope Cruz?" " No." "Is there anyone capable of risking his life for you?" "No, nobody." "If there was one, I'd do everything to change his mind." "I'd tell him it's not worth risking his life for me." "If you were a mammal, which mammal would you be?" "A mole..." "Or a mouse." "If you were a fish, which fish would you be?" "One of those small ones." "Have you seen the ones they use for bait?" "Once when I was a child," "I saw a fisherman at a beach fishing with a long fishing pole." "And he had a bucket, filled with fresh fish..." "Horrible, half-alive, sandy." "Next to him in a box, he had the bait that he put on the hooks." "The bait were small, transparent fish." "When I asked if he had fished them all, he said no, he had only fished the bigger ones, the parents." "But the small ones, the babies, he'd bought them at a fish market." "But they were no good to eat." "They were only useful as bait." "If you had no option and had to kill somebody, who would you kill?" "Anyone." "I'd pop out the window and shoot randomly." "Do you consider yourself a pretty girl?" "Yes." "Do you consider yourself intelligent?" "No." "How many kids would you like to have?" "Zero." "You're here." "Hey look, she was here." "We were waiting for you." " They've even made lasagna." " Hello, Bianca." "Hello." "Listen, Bianca, we have an idea." "Remember I told you we'd find a solution?" "Change our situation a bit..." "Better you tell her?" "It's not an idea." "It's a plan." "It's what you call a master strike." "It can change your life." "This is important, it could be a new start for us all." "Who knows, maybe a house by the beach in Chile." "Our own gym, our own salon..." "Cut it out you two." "That's for later." "Now let's think about the plan." " Cleverness is the key." " That's it, cleverness." "And you are a crucial part of it." "Let's just say you have the perfect profile." "Pretty, intelligent, speaks languages." "I'm listening." "Let's finish eating and then we'll go out." "But is he really called "Maciste"?" "It's not his real name." "He's not even Italian, he's English or Australian." "Everyone calls him that." "Maciste, Mister Maciste or Mister Bruno." " Or Mister Universe." " Why Mister Universe?" "Once he was Mister Universe, and a movie star." "When?" "In the Sixties." "Then he had an accident and retired." "With his earnings from the golden years, he bought a huge house." "Now he lives alone, and he doesn't go out." "He even has a gym for himself." "Once, a friend and I went there to fix a machine." "And despite the language problems, we got along." "We even became friends." "But when I came back, he wouldn't let me in." "Maciste is distrustful." "That man trusts no one, not even banks." "That's why he hides all his money in a safe box." " Did he tell you?" " No." "Gigi told me and he told Gigi." "And where exactly is this safe?" "You have to discover that." "It's part of your job." "They normally are behind paintings, below the stairs, under the floor or the rug." "Yes, corners in general." "And how do you know?" "Everyone knows that." "And what's the other part of my job?" "You have to gain Maciste's trust." "Only if it's right for you." "It's just a small sacrifice." "I will be a delinquent now, I thought without fear." "From that moment on, my story becomes blurrier." "Do you want to eat something?" "I made meatballs." "No, thank you." " Shall we go?" " Let's go." "Not you." "You have school tomorrow." "Bianca is right." "Finish eating and go to bed." "But I am part of the plan." "You are not going anywhere." "Did you understand?" "About the age and all?" "Yes, I understood." "Are you sure?" "Who's there?" "Friends." "Who is there?" "We're from the gym, Body Fight." " Tell him we are..." " We are Gigi Girardi's friends." "We came with Bianca." "Is there anybody there?" "Stop!" "How are you, Mister Bruno?" "Do you remember us, from the gym?" "No, it's all right." "For me, you're still the best!" "Good Night." "Forms a green carpet..." "Five letters." "Herb." "That's four." "Change the channel." "It's used to polish shoes." "Great!" "Why isn't this working?" " How did it go?" " The decoder broke again." "Why didn't you tell me he was blind?" " We didn't think it was important." " Maciste is blind?" "Did you see the safe?" " Not important?" " Better to go without prejudice." " Did he trust you?" " No prejudice?" "He's blind!" "I know, but at home he moves as if he can see." "He's blind, not crippled!" "You should've told me anyway." " Do you want to quit?" " Did he ask you to go back?" " Yes." " Perfect." "Do you want to eat something?" "There are meatballs left." "No, I am going to sleep." "You should've told me and her that he was blind." "That morning, the streets I walked didn't seem the same as the day before, even if I knew they were the same." "The streets don't change overnight." "Maybe in Africa, but not here." "Here, I was the one changing." "I am changing, I am changing, I repeated while I walked." "When I got to the hair salon, I realized that it wasn't true." "The streets had moved slightly to the left or to the right." "But not me." "I had remained the same." "Elia, daughter of Idione, prepare to receive your sentence!" "Hear me, our power will be limitless." "My father liked these films, they're terrible." "There's no rhythm, shallow characters, arbitrary plot turns..." " What do you know about art?" " This is art?" "Of course it is, idiot." "Who's that actress?" "Dolly Plimpton." "Do you think she is pretty?" "Yes, she is." "I don't think so." "She seems vulgar." "Sometimes I imagined sleeping there every day, with Maciste." "And convincing him to go out like two normal people." "Or like two people who pretend to be normal." "And by pretending to be, they finally are normal." "I fantasized about calling a taxi, going to a good restaurant... where we would have a slow dinner, talking about everything." "Or downtown, where I would buy clothes for him in an elegant store." " Hello." " Hello." "These are not for you." " Why not?" " Because." "You're still too young, they can do you harm." " What can they do to me?" " You can become impotent." "Like Gigi." "Did you go to school today?" "Yes." "Tomorrow I'll go." "We had things to do." " What things?" " Important things." "I'm not washing strangers' heads for you to waste your time." " Your sister is right." "Apologize." " Sorry." "Don't worry, he'll go tomorrow." "We already told him." "Didn't we tell you?" "Answer!" "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the 11th edition of" "Master Gym trophy, please take your seats." "Soon we'll witness the grand spectacle of bodybuilding we've all been waiting for." "After the run-ups, only three finalists to go..." "No. 21, Franco Pini... with No. 24, Gigi Girardi..." "Go Gigi!" "I told you not to use that music, it distracted you." "Tell me about it." "You played some gay music..." "Well, no more regrets, the tournament wasn't important." "Why did you go then?" "To train him." "For the regionals." "And you?" "How are you doing?" "How is Mr. Bruno?" "I didn't go today." "Why not?" "It seems you are a bit distracted too." "Why?" "Because you are taking it easy." "Nobody said it had to be fast." "Nobody said it had to be so slow either." "What is it?" "You're starting to like the job, Bianca?" "Golden." "You're fine." "How did Maciste lose his sight?" "I don't know." "But don't dare ask him." "Why?" "It makes him mad." "The last guy who asked ended up with two broken ribs." "He'd never raise a hand against me." "Really?" "And why not?" "Because he's a good man." "He is driving you crazy." "You're falling in love with the son of a bitch." "Find the safe and let's get this over with." "It's not that easy!" "Then, how is it?" "Your sister is falling in love with Maciste." " Are you falling in love?" " It's not true." "It's not true?" "Why doesn't she want to find the safe." "Your sister is going crazy." "Not that movie again!" "You broke our TV!" "Besides, it's a new one." "Bianca, are you going crazy?" "You're falling in love and forgetting about the plan." "You're not thinking about the future." "Hercules, why don't you stay with me forever?" "He was wrong about my thinking." "I was always thinking about the future." "I thought about it so much that the present had become a part of the future." "The strangest part." "For me, the future was like one of the rooms at Maciste's house, but brighter and with furniture covered in old sheets." "As if the owners had gone on a trip and didn't want their stuff to get dusty." "That was my future, and that's how I thought of it." "If that could be called "thinking."" "And if that could be called "future."" "...same price." "What's going on?" "Nothing." "Where were you?" " Hanging around." " Training for the tournament." " So late?" " Go get some sleep." " Did Tomas go to school today?" " He did, bye." "You're up early today?" "Are you going to work?" "Don't be so funny, Bianca." "And ask your boyfriend about the safe, we're tired of waiting." "The government psychologist." " Good morning." " Good morning." "Hello..." "We were just leaving." "Hello, Bianca." "I came by to find out how you were managing." "Friends from school?" "No, from the gym where Tomas goes." "Are you doing sports?" "Yes, mostly weight-lifting." "Great." " How are computers going?" " Very well, thank you." "And how is the raise in our pension going?" "It will take a bit longer, darling." "At school, they tell me Tomas is cutting classes." "It's because of the gym, but we've talked about that, don't worry." " Tomas?" " It's true." "And you, Bianca, is everything going well?" "Very well, thanks." "I'm a hairdresser now." "That's very good news." "Well, I see you are busy now, and I have more visits to make." "Just call me if there's anything you need." " Goodbye." " See you." " What do you want us to do?" " Cut and style, please." "OK, this way, please." "I don't do drugs." "What's wrong with you, Bianca?" "You look worse every day." " I'm not sleeping well." " You can't go on like this, you have to smile to the customers, at least." "OK." "I'll do my best." "Bianca!" "Hi." "How are you?" "Fine." "Why aren't you going to school anymore?" "It's temporary." "There are some things I had to do these days." "Will you be back this year then?" "Probably." "She's Laura, my girlfriend." "This is Bianca, she was my girlfriend last year." "Only for two months." "Hi." "I'm sorry about your parents." "Thanks." "I have to go." " Bye." " Bye." "What a waste of time, fucking assholes!" "You are burning." "No, thanks." " You were out all night." " That's not your problem." "I don't want to know anymore about this business." "What?" "What you heard." "What business?" "The Maciste and his safe plan." "And I want them out of our house." " Now." " Now?" "And where do we go?" "That's your problem." " Did you find the safe?" " No." " Is there a safe?" " I don't know." "Probably." "So?" "So you go look for it if you want it that much." "I am not interested anymore." "You can't do this, Bianca." "I am going for a walk now." "When I come back, I want you to be gone." "Are you coming with me?" "Shall we go back now?" "Let's go." "I hope I don't ever see them again in my life." "I hope so too." "Can I sleep here tonight?" "Yes." "Can I cut your hair tomorrow?" " Don't even think about it." " Come on!" "For several days, I expected bad news." "I read the papers." "I watched TV, afraid to see images of Maciste's face on the sidewalk in the middle of a blood pool." "And next to him, photos of my brother's friends, looking at me with nostalgia from our TV screen." "As if their pictures of murderers and victims were the sign that outside the storm still persisted," "A storm that wasn't located above the sky of Rome, but in the European night, in the space between planet and planet." "A storm without sound and eyes that came from another world." "A world where not even the satellites that circle around the Earth can see." "And where there existed a hole that was my hole." "A shadow that was my shadow."