"Besides going to school, I build stuff for astronauts at home." "I make rockets and now I'm working on a space suit." "Things like that." "My family is poor and can't afford to send me to NAS A yet." "The only problem I have is with my eyes." "My sight is okay, but I'm a bit cross-eyed." "But maybe astronauts don't have to look straight ahead." "I practice holding my breath every day." "Thas very important in space." "So far I can hold it..." "Shit..." "Only thirty seconds!" "I live with my grandma." "My grandpa died one year ago." "Valentin!" "She talks to herself a lot now and complains about everything." "What else can I do but listen to her?" "The poor woman is old." "Wake up, lazy bum." " Get up!" " Why are you making such a fuss?" "Oh, is nothing." " Just that your dad earns a fortune." " What?" "I can't hear you." "Your dad earns a lot of money." "He no longer sells medicine." "He's now the manager for a German-owned laboratory." "But all he cares about is to impress people with nice shoes, jackets and suits." "And what does he give us?" "With what can I go to the market and buy food for you?" "And everything you need for school?" "Stop it, Grandma." "You always complain about Dad." "Here's my dad, Vicente." "There are only pictures of him and my uncle Chiche because my Aunt Silvita ran off with a cabdriver two years ago." "Your aunt killed your grandpa." "He didn't want to live on." "The doctor told him he had diabetes." "I had to run after him with his pills." "According to my grandma, my dad was born with psychological problems." "Your dad almost suffocated." "He was tiny and purple." "Thas how he got that awful temperament." "All babies to whom that happens turn out like that." "Their brains didn't get enough air, so they're always in a bad mood." "Well, everyone has mental problems according to Grandma." "Ungrateful Jew, your mother." "I treated her like my own daughter." "I wish she were dead, so you'd stop asking about her." "If ever she comes knocking at the door," "I'll shoo her off with a broom." "That slut cheated on your father while still breastfeeding you." "Nevertheless, she is my mother." "And I miss her a lot." "To be honest, I miss her a whole lot." "Often I sit in the hallway and imagine that if I count to 1 000, she'll ring the doorbell." "But even if I count to 4700 or 4800, she never comes." "I go to the Bernasconi school, one of the biggest in the country." "And is free." "You just pay a small fee." "When this Bernasconi died, he left all his money to build a school." "There's a huge painting of San Martin." "Every chance I get I slip out to look at it." "My teacher this year is really cute." "I have nothing to complain about." "Sometimes I get distracted and imagine she's my daïs girlfriend." "He always shows up with a different girlfriend, saying she could become my mother." "A few months ago, during one of my space walks" "I met Rufo, the pianist who lives across from us." " Everything OK?" " Yes?" "And you?" " Fine." "Are they very heavy?" " No, you get used to it." " Because there's no gravity, see?" " Of course." " You play the piano, right?" " Yes." "Do you ever hear me play?" "Yes, I like those strange melodies that all sound the same." "I have a friend who is also an astronaut." "And?" "I can do it longer than him." "Valentin, come in and drink your milk." "Whas the matter?" "Don't talk to strangers." "Especially not to this drunk." "Drunk?" "I know what I'm talking about." "I've lived long enough to see it all." "What did that good-for-nothing want?" " We talked about my space shoes." " What space shoes?" "He's a lunatic." "He might tell you anything." "Don't sulk." "If I tell your dad, he'll make you cry for real." "He said hello to me." "What should I have done?" " Here, wipe your nose." " My nose isn't running!" "At night we stayed at home and listened to music." "Grandma told me stories, above all how she met Grandpa." "He had beautiful green eyes." "I knew right away he was the man of my life." "We couldn't go out." "My dad disapproved of him." "But every Friday he'd stand outside my window and he'd light a cigarette." "The tip would burn, and I'd know it was him." "We never said a word." "But one day as I was coming home I ran into him." "He told me many nice things, like that I was very beautiful." "And he took my hand." "I still remember what that felt like." "And he kissed me on the mouth." "I was crazy about him and wanted to stay with him." "I went up to my room, packed my things and ran off with him." "We had nothing." "We lived in a small boarding house without a bathroom." "Imagine." "But I loved him so much." "That was enough." "He used the washing line to hang photographs up to dry." "Can you imagine how awful our room smelled?" "And in that room your father was born." "At night there were no lights, and I had to light candles." "I felt terrible about that." "But your grandpa, who loved me very much, would take my hand and say:" "Don't worry, sweetheart." "And then I'd forget everything." "When he looked at me and kissed me, I forgot all my worries." "I wish he was still here, because I miss him very much." "I'm very lonely." "I have you, but I'm still very lonely." "When you meet a girl you really like, you'll understand." "I'm glad you keep me company, but I miss your grandpa very much." "So much." "He listened to me like no one else." "When you see me talking to myself," "I'm actually talking to him, because he loved me like no one else." "And he was so handsome." "So handsome." "Roberto Medina is my best friend." "We're in the same grade." "We think alike and share everything." "Stop it, Valentin." "Is my turn now." "Get off, asshole." "His parents are, how should I say, more modern." "Yes, more modern." "Especially to me, as I live with my old grandma." "I wish I had a mother like his, blond and beautiful." "In the muzeum at our school there's one very strange display." "A goat with two heads." "But the strangest thing I've ever seen, is a schoolmate I have, who never says a word to his mother." "He comes out, gives her his bag and thas it." "If I had a mother, I would talk to her all day long." "Some people have it all, and don't enjoy it." "Like this man at the café, who only drinks coffee and reads the paper." "There are people who seem not to live, or not to make any use of life." "Are you really coming by?" "At what time?" "Fine, whenever you want." " Who was that?" " That wayward dad of yours." " He has something to tell you." " What?" " He wants to tell you himself." " Something nice?" "I don't know and I don't want to know." " Come on, don't be mean." " The same old song." "He has a new girlfriend." "If you say I told you, I'll kill you." "I won't tell him." "Valentin!" "Go to the pasta factory and buy two boxes of ravioli with ricotta," " and a bag of cheese." " Small or big?" "Small." "And don't loiter." "Come straight back home." "Don't loiter." "Got it?" "Go on, then." "On the way home I grew sad." "My daïs girlfriends never lasted." "It probably had to do with his character." "How is my little astronaut?" "My little man!" "Did you go buy ravioli?" "I'll give them to your grandma." "I've heard you've been very good." "Watch out, or he'll start about rockets again." "Quiet, Grandma." "I've been very good." "You make your dad very proud." " Where's the girl?" " You said you'd keep quiet." "Stop bickering." "Is true, Dad has a new girlfriend." " Whas she like?" " Pretty." "I don't like ugly ones." " Except for your grandma." " You're ugly yourself." " You won't even stay with us." " I have to work all weekend." " But I brought you some money." "Come on." "Stop it." "You look so pretty." "Doesn't your grandma look pretty?" "Look at the way she smiles." "Now she's acting like a vain movie star." "I wanted to tell you about this girl with whom I've started a relationship." "We only just know each other, but I feel good about her." " Perhaps she'll be your new mother." " Is she blond?" "She's blond and she's a hard worker." "She's twenty-two years old." " She could be your daughter." " Would you prefer it if I dated a man?" "I still look good and I'm healthy." "There are no more real men, men like Dad." "Men like that don't exist anymore." "Now they're all dirty and hippies." "Who would you choose if you were her age?" "A guy like me or a 22 year-old who plays electric guitar all day long?" "Dad doesn't like pop music, but I love it." "I play the records Aunt Silvita left when she ran off with the cabdriver." " Uncle!" " Quiet." " Where's Grandma?" " Inside." "What are you doing?" "Whas that, Uncle?" "I'll take care of it, Mom." "Come and sit down." "I'll show you in a minute." "Be patient." "Sit down." " What did you bring with you?" " Something special." "Sit down." "In here, all the way from Ushuaia," "I brought along your aunt and Mariela." "Don't tease us like that." "Hello, Mom." "How are you?" " Valentin!" " Listen." "Last week I fell ill." "I caught a cold and my throat hurt." " She's sick." " I'm not completely recovered yet." "She's fine." "Look at this." " Let me see." " A cassette." " Do you see that?" " Is the latest technology." "Philips." " Be careful." " Is there more?" "Yes, you can hear baby Mariela as well." " Say something to Grandma." " Is she talking already?" " Just baby-talk." " Listen to that." "Did you hear her?" "Isn't it great?" "Is it for me?" "No, I'm still paying for it." "Is worth at least six bicycles." "Six bicycles?" "I dress up warmly when I go out." "Thank God I have Mariela." "Thank God." " Are you asleep yet?" " Quiet." " Grandma is sleeping next door." " I'll be quiet." "And watch your step." " Shall I tell you a secret?" " Go ahead." "There's a girl at school I like." "Really?" "Whas her name?" " Camila." " Nice name." "Whas so nice about her?" " Her hair and her eyes." " Her eyes?" " Does she wear braids?" " Sometimes." " Shall I help you write her a poem?" " Yes." "Dear Camilita, whenever you're near, I feel queasy and queer." "No, that won't do." "I want a girlfriend." "But your poem will scare her off." "Of course." "Are you going to play soccer tomorrow?" "We'll repair the TV, we'll go to the match," " and then we'll go to church together." " Yes." "Kiss me goodnight." "That night I made my uncle believe that there was a girl I liked." "Since I'm always with my grandma when he comes," "I want to discuss manly things." " Sleep well." " Bye, Uncle." "Thas normal, right?" "That doesn't make me a liar." "The next day it rained and the match got cancelled." "When I went to buy some bread, I ran into Rufo." "He had one of those days when his girlfriend drove him crazy." "I'm having problems with my girlfriend." "Break up with her." "Is not that easy." "Stay with her, if you want to suffer." "My heart is broken." "I'm bleeding." " Have some gin." " What do you know about gin?" "You don't know what you're talking about." "I'm getting very tired of you." "Now I've missed the bus as well." "Always talking!" "Now the bus is gone!" "What do you want from me?" "Only because you kept talking to me." "What are you getting so upset about?" "I imagine Grandpa going up to heaven." "And when he goes there, they embrace him and celebrate." "He won't have any more health problems, because you can only die once." "And when Grandma joins him, they'll be back together again." "What I want to say, is that I think, that when he got there, Grandpa probably thought:" ""How stupid I've been." "I cried because I didn't want to die, and now I'm having a great time." "Why didn't I die before?"" " Grandpa is fine." " Thas what I was saying." "He's better off there than down here with all those problems." "All the trouble at work and with Aunt Silvita." "Wouldn't it have been better if he had died sooner?" "You don't die until your time has come." "What else can you do?" "If you kill yourself, you don't go to heaven." "I didn't say he should have killed himself." "Just that if is so good up there, I'm glad he didn't live any longer." "Is a bit more complicated than that." "But am I right or am I wrong?" "You only go to heaven if you behave well." " Don't bullshit me." " Don't say that." " I'm being serious." " So am I." "Uncle is crazy about the priest, Bernardo." "A few years ago he caused a scandal." "Today I want to tell you about the death of a man." "An Argentinean doctor from Cordoba." "A young man from a respectable family, who dedicated himself to the study of illnesses and their cures." "Physical ailments, the sufferings of the flesh, how to relieve them, fight them and prevent them." "This young doctor could have stayed in his own city, to live a dignified life and enjoy respect and comfort." "In other words, a life without much hardship." "He probably would have been married and would have had children." "He would have been able to provide well for them." "He could have enjoyed watching them grow up, go to university like he did and perform a useful role in society." "But no." "This young man's name was Ernesto "Che" Guevara." "A few days ago he was brutally killed in the Bolivian wilds, because it wasn't enough for him to live in peace and follow the easy path life had held in store for him." "I'm talking about a normal human being who believed in an ideal, and who believed that injustice could be overcome." "Please, don't leave here before you've asked yourselves, in all sincerity:" "Who of you would give, not his whole life, but a year or even just one day, for an ideal, the way that Che gave all he had?" "But just like my uncle said, the priest couldn't change anything." "Everything stayed the same." "Is your turn." "Nice throw." "What luck." "I'm lucky at dice, but not with my daïs girlfriends." "One of them was a stewardess." "I got all excited." "A great mother for an astronaut, but then I saw this fatso." "Does she fly alone?" "In a Hercules?" "Hello, my little baby." "Give me a kiss." " Put me down." "I can't breathe!" " Give me a kiss." " What were you thinking of?" " Nothing." "Of space flights." "Tell him he can't become an astronaut in this country." " What do you know?" " She's right." "To be an astronaut you have to be American or Russian." "If you're Russian, you're a cosmonaut." "And maybe when I'm old enough, Argentina will build rockets as well." "You think Gagarin knew he'd travel through space when he was my age?" "You live on the moon already." "I don't care what you say." "Just because you were never a singer like you wanted." "Don't be so cheeky." " Don't talk like that to her." " She started." "First make sure you get good grades." "You see he won't listen, Grandpa." "Whatever you say, Grandma." "Don't be cheeky." "The next day we got up early." "Uncle showed me the best way to make coffee." "Have you met Daïs new girlfriend?" "The blonde?" "No." "Your mother was a brunette." "She wasn't blond, but she was beautiful." "I personally like women with full lips." "Is pleasing to the eye." "Is not just the breasts." "A woman is more than that." "What about the ass?" "The ass is very important." "And that she doesn't cheat on you." "You have to talk in here." "Hello, Aunt." "We listened to you and that made us all very happy." " Grandma's next." " No, I don't want to." "Come on, Grandma." " Hello!" " You don't need to shout." "Here everything is fine." "I guess over there is very cold." "Your crazy husband came by without giving us any notice." "If I'd known he was coming, I'd have made you a bedspread." "Thas all." "A kiss for Mariela." "Stay another day, Uncle." "Don't leave." "Uncle left without having repaired the TV." "But he told me to tell the repairman to change the light inside." " Stand still." " She will notice is in two colors!" "Stand still or I might hurt you." "Who's going to look at the legs?" "This girl might become my mother, she'll think I'm a moron." "Stand straight for a second." "No one's going to look at the legs." "Are you crazy?" "Shut your mouth." "Valentin!" "Is that you?" "And is that you?" "What a nerd!" "The first time I go out with a girl and I make a mess of it." "Thanks, I'll clean it." "Now I've done it again." "She'll think I'm an idiot." "There." "My God, how will I make up for this?" "Here's another piece." "Eat it before it gets cold." "She probably thinks I'm still a little kid." "Grandma says cola won't leave stains." "Don't worry about it." "It won't." "You live with her, right?" "Yes." "My dad told you?" " Yes." "And that your grandpa..." " The poor man." "Never mind." "He died of diabetes." " What grade are you in?" " The third at Bernasconi." "Thas an excellent school." "Very big, right?" "Yes, and in the basement there's a swimming pool with warm water." "Thas where we get swimming lessons." "Do you swim well?" "Yes." "When Grandpa was still alive, he used to take me to a club in San Lorenzo." "Thas where I learned how to swim." " My grandpa signed me in." " Signed you up." "Right." "On the first day, I went to the deep end of the pool." " Wonderful!" " Well... they let me jump in." " What do you mean?" " I didn't know you needed lessons." "Grandpa stood outside the fence, and I got in line for the deep end." "When it was my turn, I jumped in and splashed around so I wouldn't drown." " They fished me out." " They what?" "They fished me out." "They held out a hook and I grabbed it." " I see." " This pizza is delicious." "We get pizza from Independencia, because is nearby." "My uncle loves pizza with onions, and so do I." " Then why didn't you order that?" " No." "No, the onions." "It makes your breath smell." "You don't eat that with a girl." "This one with mozzarella is good too, so don't worry." " Do you want some fruit?" " Now?" " No, after we've eaten." " We can ask if they have any." "What kind of fruit do you like best?" "Apples." " Do you ever see her?" " No, never." "They say she wasn't very well." "I hardly remember her at all." "I was three years old." "Where is she now?" "Still in Buenos Aires, I guess." " Probably where she took me to." " What do you mean?" "We all used to live in one house, with my grandparents." "When they split up, she took me with her." "We went to stay with a strange man." "I think it was her new boyfriend." "Forget it." "She's Jewish." "My dad is right about that." " What does your dad say?" " That they're different." " How do you know that I'm not?" " That you're not Jewish?" "You're kidding me?" "You wouldn't be my daïs girlfriend." "Right." "I'm coming." "How cool." "Have you never seen them?" "Ask your dad to buy you some more." "You ask him." "Maybe he listens to you." " Do your love your dad a lot?" " Of course I love him." "Is he nice?" "And you?" "Are you..." "Are you..." "What do you want to ask, rascal?" " Don't." "I'll die." " What did you want to ask?" "Are you in love?" "Yes." "What can I do, right?" "That sounds so sad." "Don't talk nonsense." " May I give you a compliment?" " Go ahead." "You're the nicest girlfriend my dad had." " "My dad has had," you have to say." " I'd like it if you were to marry him." "Really?" "Yes." " What about your mother?" " What does she have to do with it?" "You'd be my stepmother." "Id be like being my mother, because I never see her anymore." "Wouldn't you like to see her?" "Don't you miss her?" "Ask your dad to look for her." "I don't talk about her with him, because it makes him angry." "One time I said, without thinking:" "Oh, thas where Mom lives." "He stopped the car, turned red, and told me to get out and boxed me on my ear." "He said he'd leave me with her, and he actually drove off." "But he stopped the car, and I ran to him and apologized." "The poor man, no?" "Whas the matter?" "Nothing." " Are you crying?" " No." "Yes, you're crying." "Why?" "I'm not crying." "Sometimes I just get a bit sad." "I made you sad." "Don't cry." "Everything is fine." "Leticia." "I won't tell Dad that you were crying." "All right." "I won't tell him what we talked about." "Those weeks were very productive." "All kinds of things happened." "I asked Rufo to give me piano lessons." "He made me take a test and he counted my fingers." "He also examined my mouth." "He tested my teeth, because they're like the piano keys." "Did you see that car?" "I want one like that when I grow up." "What a beauty!" "I also bought the bulb for the TV and tried to repair it." "But as time passed, I began to worry." "Where was Leticia?" "I didn't hear from Dad either." "I can never buy all the things I need." "Is the coffee ready yet?" "Suddenly everything had turned sour again." " Did you burn something?" " Why would I do that?" "You think I'm an idiot?" "You think I can't do anything anymore?" "Here we go." "I made you toast the way you like it." " Your dad called." " Is he coming?" "He wasn't sure." "He is busy with the new job." "He doesn't want to come." "It has nothing to do with his job." "You should know your dad by now." " Tomorrow I'll cut your hair." " Is not that long yet." "Is just uncombed." "Will you give your grandma a kiss?" "Come on." " I got you." "Are you ticklish?" " Stop it." " Shall we play a game?" " You know I always win." "So you always win, right?" "Let me go." "Take it easy, little one." "Very good." "You're doing fine." "Very good?" "I keep making mistakes." "That doesn't matter." "Go on." "Very good." "Listen, you're a musician." "You have music in your veins." "It runs through your whole body." "Here, here, everywhere." "You've only been playing for three weeks." "You want to be Rubinstein already and play Brahms?" " Do I really have talent?" " Absolutely." "You have more talent for music than for being an astronaut." "That won't get you anywhere." "What do you mean that it won't get me anywhere?" " It will get me to the moon." " Sure, to the moon, you bum." "My dad calls me that too." "Sure, because you are a bum." " I want some tea as well." " A cup of tea for Mr. Bum." "Tell me, Rufo." "What?" "The girl you were seeing, is she still your girlfriend?" "She was my girlfriend." "She was." "Incredible that you still remember." "Look." " Do you like her?" " Do you really want to know?" "Of course." "No, she looks like a witch." "Listen, dirty little brat." "You can't play the piano at all." " No more lessons." " It was a joke." "She's pretty." "Don't try being all nice again." "She left me." " She left me and ran off." " With someone else?" "I don't want to talk about it." "I wish she'd left me for someone else." "The worst part is that she left me because she wanted to be without me." "Just like my mom." "She didn't want to see me anymore." "You see?" "It only goes to show that men are more romantic than women." "Do you understand?" "My grandma!" "Your grandma doesn't look very well." "She's always like that." "Lately she's a bit worse, but..." " But what?" " Is probably because of the cold." "She should go see a doctor." "It looks serious." "In the library I looked up everything old people like her could suffer from." "But I didn't understand a thing, so I had to think of something else." " Next." " Thas me." " You?" "Are you on your own?" " Yes." "Come in." "Is probably nothing serious, but it wouldn't hurt to examine her." "Whas wrong with her?" "I don't know." "Thas why I'm here." "But what are her complaints?" "She says she has pain, here." "A year ago her husband died." "That is, my grandpa." "She started talking to herself, and her arms are always trembling." "Don't you have a father and mother?" "Les leave them out of it." "I think your grandma needs to be examined." "But she'll have to come here herself." "Thas impossible." "I understand that, but she will never want to come." "Can she walk?" "Yes, but not all the way here." "Look, I've thought of something." "Every day around a quarter past ten she goes to the market." "If you bump into her, then you can say to her:" ""I have to examine you, look at me."" "I can't do that, sweetheart." "Here's a picture of the first communion of a cousin of mine." " Thas her on the right." " Is a very nice picture." "But your grandma has to come here if I am to examine her." "Please, come to the market." "I can't do that." "Out of the question, young man." "Watch where you're going." " Excuse me." "I'm a doctor." " What do I care?" "Let me examine you." "You may have a problem." "Look at me." " There we are." " Did you bring everything?" "Despite a difficult start, my plan was a great success." "Where is it?" "In here." "First they took her bed downstairs." "She was worn out from walking up and down the stairs." "They arranged everything." "They examined her from head to toe." "She wasn't very healthy, but she had nothing serious." "You have to rest and you have to take it easy." "I'll prescribe you a diet to lower your blood pressure." "When you're done, I want that back." "Are you OK?" "Will you take it easy?" "Yes, yes." "Alright." "You can't have any salt, and in the morning just a cup of tea." "A few days later in a thrift shop I saw this amazing painting." "At the bottom there was a card with the price on it." "I decided to take some of the money Uncle Chiche had left behind to buy that artwork for the doctor, out of gratitude for the good deed he'd performed." " How lovely!" " You can hang it on that wall." " On that wall?" " Yes." "Where did you find this marvel?" " How does it look here?" " Yes, it looks lovely like that." " How beautiful and romantic." " It cheers up the consultation room." "Yes, it does indeed." " Come here, Valentin." " Hello, Dad." "Why didn't you call to tell me your grandma was ill?" "She was going to tell you herself." "Are you lying to me?" "Are you lying to me?" "You know how she is." "I thought she had..." "What did you think?" "Who is that doctor you asked to come over?" "You think you can arrange everything?" "The whole family is looking down on me now." "Is that what you want?" "Look at me." "Well?" " Tell me!" " I didn't want to bother you." "How good you are!" "You went out with Leticia, right?" "What did you tell her?" "Think about it." "Try to remember." "Nothing." "Are you kidding me?" "Don't you remember?" "What did you talk about?" "You talked about me, remember?" "You said I was an asshole and didn't let you see your mom." "Now you have no mom and I have no girlfriend, you moron!" "Why do you think I wanted you to meet her?" "What did you tell her?" "Nothing." "That I won't let you see your mom." "You're a piece of shit, like her!" "Whas going on in there?" "Once again." "I'm calm." "What did you tell her?" "Try to remember." " Nothing, I swear." " I won't do anything to you." "But I have to know." "What did you tell her?" "Nothing, I swear." "Don't try to make a fool of me!" "Come back here!" "Little shit." "Is Dad gone?" "I'm at the pizzeria." "Is Dad gone?" "You'll scold me." "Was he still angry?" "All right." "I'm coming." "Kisses." "It was a terrible evening." "I'll never forget it." "I made some matè for Grandma and I kept looking at her." "I was worried about her." "I knew she was fine, but if something should happen, what would I do without her?" "My grandma." "I didn't know whether she was good or bad." "But she was all I had in this world, and I wanted her to stay with me until I was old." "She was sad too." "And I felt I was all she had as well." "I tried to cheer her up, but I was really very down myself." "The poor soul." "She really wanted to go and see Grandpa again." "Traditional or tango?" "I prefer tango." "But I won't sing anything, or you'll make fun of me." "You make fun of me because I want to become an astronaut." "Are you sure you can drink matè?" "If I can't, it means I'm already dead." " Did you give Dad the test results?" " Yes, I did." "What do you have?" "Nothing." "My hears worn out." "And my blood doesn't circulate well." "I'm old." "But it could." "Next week I'm going to the hospital." "I'll believe it when I see it." "You're a good boy, right?" "Will you go and get me some cookies?" " No." " Then I'll get them myself." "If you do, I'm leaving." "I'm going to die of hunger." "All right, never mind." " Does Uncle Chiche know you're ill?" " No." "I'll get better again." "Les leave him alone." "Dad was mad at me for not letting him know." "He was mad because of something else." "Because of what?" " Because you misbehaved with his ex." " His ex?" "He has another one now, with whom he wants to get married." "A ballerina." "You try to raise them as best you can, and look what happens." " Whas wrong?" " I was thinking of the music." " What music?" " The music you don't sing anymore." "No, I don't sing anymore." "Why don't you sing me a tango?" "Come on." "That sad one you sing so well." "No." "Come on." "All right, but you have to turn around." "I couldn't sleep." "Rufo still had his lights on." "Is that John Cage?" "Who?" "The colors, the scent of alcohol and cigarettes, the friendship." "I think of the details of that night whenever I want to feel good." " Are you crazy?" " You're tipsy, right?" "Tipsy?" "Rufo was happy." "I was still little, but I realized he needed company." "He wanted to talk and my age didn't matter." "On the contrary." "He gave me the feeling that I was older and more useful." " Taste some." " Are you serious?" " Is good." " Is good, isn't it?" "Does it help you to forget your sorrows?" "What sorrows do you have?" "If you only knew." " Life isn't that easy, old man." " Why not?" " Women are the problem." " You don't say." " Are you making fun of me?" " No, go on." "Is complicated, because my dad and mom are separated." "Remember my father's girlfriend?" "The one who gave me that toy truck." "Yes, I remember." "She was so beautiful that I didn't want to lie to her." " She betrayed me." " What happened?" "I liked her so much, that I told her all kinds of things." "She told my dad everything and he got angry at me." " But she was so beautiful." " What a pity, right?" "Is just like you said." "Men are much sweeter." "More romantic, I said." "You know, women are a necessary evil." "Do you have a mother?" "I had one." " What was she like?" " She was fabulous." "Like a whirlwind." "She was like a kettle, when they put it on the fire." "It sizzles and steams." "It releases enormous power." "She was incredible." "She taught me to play the piano." "She was a musician like me, and she bubbled over with joy." "It came out of her ears." "I can remember the way she laughed." "It echoed through the house, like the voice of an opera singer." "Unfortunately she died when I was only fifteen." "If she had met you, she would have adopted you." " What was her name?" " Berta." "She was Jewish." "Jewish?" " Are you too?" " Am I what?" "Jewish?" "What do you think, with this nose?" "Allow me." "This is psychedelic." "Hallucinatory." "Whas the matter?" "Nothing." "Are you tired?" " Rufo?" " What?" "Is it good to be Jewish?" "Maybe it was the whisky, but that night I got the impression nothing was the way I imagined." "Grownups seemed incapable of telling the truth." "The world could be a different place." "Everything I thought I knew could be wrong." "That night I started counting again." "She wouldn't come for me that night, but one day the doorbell will ring." "Very good, Valentin." "Please, you're distracting me." "Unexpectedly and against all odds, that day I found my true vocation." "After all, traveling through space could be really dangerous." "She took me by surprise." "I didn't know we had to write an essay." "Whas the difference?" "Writing about your family is easy." " Then what were you writing about?" " My family." "What else?" "You have no family." "Very funny." "Come on, les go." "Leticia!" "Who's that?" "What are you doing here?" " Who is that?" " Ricardo, a colleague of mine." " Can we have a talk?" " Sure." "Go on, I'll see you later." " Give me a kiss." " I don't have kisses today." "Listen to me." "I swear I didn't tell him anything." " Swear to God!" " Why are you telling me this?" "You see, you're lying to me." "Valentin, come here." "Please." "I'm being serious." " You're a liar." " I swear I didn't tell him anything." " Then how does he know?" " How does he know what?" "What we talked about." "He got mad." "You betrayed me." " Come on, my love." " Don't call me that." "I'd like you to call me that, but not now that you're a liar." " I thought..." " What did you think?" "That we would take care of each other." "That you liked me." "You think I don't adore you?" "I don't know." "I brought you something." "Hold this." "The toy truck." "And the book." "I have no use for these presents." "Why does everyone always fight?" "And why am I always in the middle?" "I'm tired of being called names, being lied to and being sad." "I made a mistake with your dad." "You don't always know the other person, because you need time to get to know each other." "But you broke up with him because of what I told you." "If I tell you now that I exaggerated and that I made it all up, will you call him and be his girlfriend again?" "It doesn't work like that." "I can't get back together with your dad." "Are you going out with that Ricardo now?" "No, I'm not like that." "I was in love with your father until I realized it was an illusion." "I had imagined something, you see?" "No." "I wanted to fall in love." "Everyone wants someone to be with, and to feel protected and loved." "Finding someone like that isn't easy." "But I found you." "If I hadn't gone looking for you, you'd never have come looking for me." "I did want to see you." "But you just said you felt you're always in the middle." "You're right." "Maybe your mom..." "How shall I put it?" " What?" " I know she loves you..." "You don't know anything." "Maybe not." "But I'm a woman as well." "There are things a woman feels and knows, which a man doesn't." "So why doesn't she want to see me?" "Why does she make me sad?" "One day she'll tell you why, and you will understand." "How do you know?" "Why wouldn't she love you, sweetie?" "Now I had someone else in this world." "That weekend, the fruit man let me ride along with him." "But I only thought about Leticia and that she'd be my friend forever." "When she told me I was beautiful she looked at me with happy eyes." "How wonderful that life could suddenly change so much." "Sunday, Grandma didn't feel well and we had to rush to the hospital." "I wanted to stay with her, but they sent me home in the morning." " Grandma's ill." "Please come with me?" " Whas wrong?" "I don't know, but she didn't feel well." "There are no telephones in Ushuaia." "Do you know the company your uncle works at?" "How about some other relative?" "My dad will be here soon, won't he?" "I haven't spoken to him." "I don't even know your father." "Is there a problem between you?" "Well, he was really mad at me." "Don't worry about that." "Fathers are like that." "But a crisis always brings the family together." "I will teach you an oriental technique practiced by the lamas." "Put your hands together like this." "Fold your fingers like this." "Now move one hand up and the other one down." "Now bring that one up and the other one down." "A little faster." "It relaxes you." "Do you feel your eyes relaxing?" "Now call your Grandma." "Your dad will tell you everything's fine." "Is this the TV thas broken?" "Is the only one." " Whas wrong with it?" " No idea." "Les have a look at it." " Shall I get the bulb?" " Did you buy one?" "No, I'm a friend of the family." "What?" "But it was just a check-up." "At what time?" "Six." "Yes, I have the number." "I'll let them know." "I already know." "I was listening." "Leave me alone now, I want to sleep." "You go on." "I'll see you at home." "I have to go somewhere else first." "After a few weeks I already felt, les say, a little bit better." "Dad talked to Roberto's parents and I could stay with them for a while." "I didn't know for how long." "They were very nice to me, but they weren't my mom and dad." "I had to do something." "I often visited my old neighborhood." "Dad had put the house up for sale." "I didn't like that." "It meant I'd never live there again." "There even was a chain on the door." "Sad, right?" "Never again." "That part of my life was over." " Hey, kid." " Me?" "Yes, come over here." "Yes?" "Sit down, kid." "There's a lady." "She left this with me." "I had to give it to you." "What lady?" "Your mother." "Where is she?" "Where did you see her?" "She's doing fine." "She said she heard about your grandma." "And that she loves you a lot." "Who are you?" "I just had to give you this shirt." "So you're her boyfriend." "Listen, kid." "I used to go out with your mother." "I still see her once in a while." "What else do you want to know?" "I want to know why she doesn't want to see me anymore." "Listen." "Your mother has suffered a lot." "I always come here and watch you walk by." "And I always tell her how you're doing." "She's doing better now." "But your daddy..." "Your dad treated your mom..." "She was doing very badly." "I mean..." "She was so afraid your dad..." "I mean..." "She was scared to go out on the street." " I mean..." " Stop it." "Your mother is crazy about you." "She'll always be your mother." "She..." "She's making herself pretty again and wants to feel good." " And strong, you understand?" " Tell her I want her the way she is." "And that I don't have a place to live anymore." "And that we could live together, wherever she wants." "Will you tell her that?" "Are you listening, mister?" "Hi, Leti." "I feel better now." "Saturday at three at the Union on the corner of my old street." "A big kiss from me too." "I wanted a family of my own, so I put a new plan into motion." " Leti!" " Hello, Vale!" "I thought you were never going to call me." "Sorry, I was busy." "Look, there's Rufo, my piano teacher." "Come, les join him." "May we join you, maestro?" "Yes, yes." "Yes, of course." "Some things turn out well, others turn out badly." "All in all, life's a crapshoot." "They are not my parents, more like my aunt and uncle." "They're still together and they love each other very much." "A month later Armstrong landed on the moon." "He had beaten me." "What can you do?" "At least I was a bit happier on this planet now." "I had decided to become a writer." "At least I had enough material for a story" "Even if it is just a little one." "Right?"