"Love Sick" "I met Alex on the first day of college." "She was nothing but a boring voice that kept hammering on with thousands of questions, requests and nonsense." "I was somehow indifferent to her, and I had no idea about what was going to happen." "Don't forget to tell mother to send me some summer clothes by train next week." "I won't." "We'll call you at Mrs. Penes." "It's not Penes, father." "It's Mrs. Benes." "If only I could still catch Cristina." "Bucharest is crazy!" " What floor is this?" "3rd floor." "It's useless." "If they were at home, they'd have answered by now." "I think I hear something." "I wonder if this building is earthquake-proof." "Man, what a climb." " Hello." "Here we are." " Hello, welcome." " This is my father." "He drove me here." " Nice to meet you." "Don't leave them in the hallway." "Take them to the room." "We have two more sacks of clothes and some books, and that's it." " And the desk." " Come on in." " There, with the sacks." " I'll put it in a corner." " It won't bother you." " That eats up a lot of electricity." "If it's a problem, father can take it" "God forbid!" "Why take it back?" "This is a decent home, after all." "Yes, it's very nice." "Can we put these bags into the room?" "Sure." "Over there." "God, what was I thinking?" "Where can you put the desk?" " What do you need a desk for?" " It's just a tiny desk." " It's essential with finals coming up." " Who'll carry it up?" " Will you help?" " We'll carry it up together." "My little girl's a good girl." "She won't cause any trouble." "I've never rented out a room." "But my pills have ruined me, so I have to manage how I can." "That's life." "Alexandra, my girl." "Your mother used to have a great place on campus." "Never mind." "I'm just happy to be rid of the cockroaches I had at my dorms." "God, Bucharest is filthy!" "Let's just carry the desk up, then go and grab a bite." "Take a look, here's what a doctor at the clinic gave me." "Have a look." "He's absolutely useless." "I had a load of tests done, X-rays, the whole lot." "But don't you get them free at your clinic?" " Tests are expensive." " Can we go downstairs for the desk?" "Go, sweetie.." "Use the front entrance." "There's more room." "I thought we might keep the neighbours from seeing you, but what can you do?" "Nothing." "Up." "All set?" "Hey!" "I rang at your door." "I'm Cristina, a classmate of Alexandra's." " You're her father." " Yes." "Let me help you." " Lighter now?" " It is." " Why didn't you use the elevator?" " It's out of order." "Right, they're doing maintenance work." "It's you again." "I have to lock the door." "All kinds of crazies around." "It's not so cool living on campus." "I've never lived on campus, because I'm from Bucharest, but it was tough for Alexandra." "We never told you, but your mother would spend a whole day crying whenever we visited you." "She said you lived in filth." "Kiki, would you ask Mrs. Benes to make some space for me?" "Well, didn't you arrange it?" "Auntie Lucretia!" "At least this is a decent home." "You need the whole closet?" " Just enough for clothes." " Oh, what a mess!" "Auntie Lucretia, could you empty the closet?" "Okay, sweetie." "I'll take the stuff out." "And can you make some room for her books?" "We'll put the old papers in the other room." ""Women's Magazine," "Flacara" from 1966." "Just attracting moths and ants!" "You're lucky Cristina recommended you." "Think I'd be renting, if not for her?" "Will you be leaving today?" "I don't want to drive at night." "That's my brother." "That's what he always does." "Well, Alexandra, if you don't want me to take back some of your clothes," " I should go now." " I'd love to see where you live." "I don't have any family in the country." " Of course, any time." " Kiki!" " What's that guy saying?" " Kiki please!" " Tell him to go away." " I don't even know him." "Why won't you tell him?" "Kiki, come out, please!" "Let's bury the hatchet!" "Sandu, beat it!" "Come near me, and I'll kill you!" "What is this noise?" "Sandu." "We're having a fight." "Look how thick the dust is." "Just a moment." "I think we should settle up first." "I asked Cristina to tell the girl that I wanted the rent paid up six months in advance." " Until October." " How's that?" "May, June, July, August, September, October." " Until November." " November, right." "He made me so angry." "Lucky you came." "How about I finish up here and then we go for a drink?" "Yes." "No." "You go." "Mind that I invited myself to your parents' place?" "Why should I?" "We'll go in summer." "Okay." "We'll talk tomorrow." " Do you want me to pick you up?" " I'm not coming to the first seminar." "We paid six months in advance, so you needn't worry about it." "Will you help me put the books away?" "I'll get a earful from your mom if I'm late." "Come on, I can't do it alone." "You'll be fine." "Man, student life is hard." "But it's nice, too!" "That's French." "Dubois." "Say, this girl..." "Isn't she a bit odd?" "I don't know." "I don't think so." "It was the first night I slept over at Alex's place." "I fell asleep, a bit drunk from too much beer, and I dreamed we were both running in the rain, as if in an obstacle race." "In the morning, I woke up and looked at her." "She was sleeping peacefully." "I could smell the scent of sleep on her, and that's when I desired to see her always, every morning." " I'm leaving, so I don't spoil your plans." " Don't start with that." " I'm talking about your guy Alex." " Alexandra is a girl!" " Oh, yeah?" "Well, I'll just wait and see." " Fine!" " Happy now?" "I understand why you're acting like this." "As Mama said, such wounds take time to heal." "And what did Dad say?" "You can be as ironic as you want, it won't change my feelings about you." " My feelings have already changed." " You want us to go through this again?" "I want you to leave me alone and stop giving me a hard time." " Apologizing is giving you a hard time?" " Words are not enough." "If we stop seeing each other, then so be it." "Is that so?" "Why shouldn't we see each other again?" "Because seeing you gives me a bellyache." "And I feel agitated like before an exam." "And my skin turns red." "You're ruining my shirt." "I care about this relationship more than anything." "Right now, I'd give up anything for Alex." "You don't know what she's like." "She's really special." " I'm not interested in what she's like." " Then how about being interested in what I want?" "I don't want you to call me anymore." "I want us to stop." "And if you love me, you'll do as I ask." " So that's what you want." " That's what I want." "Can you promise me that and keep the promise?" "If that's what you want, I'll just disappear." " I asked you to stop making us suffer." "Que dejes de hacernos sufrir." " I got what you said." "The question is, are we prepared to deal with the consequences?" " Hey." "I hope I'm not late." " This is Alex." "Alexandra." "And this is my brother, Sandu." "Where'd you call from?" "I barely heard you." "I was in Kogalniceanu Square." "I took a cab." "What did you two order?" "I'll have tea." "We're sipping from the cup of bitterness." " Does anyone want anything?" " You sit here." "I'll go." " So you wanted tea." "And you, Kiki?" " You said you were going back to work." "Your brother's name is Alexandru, too?" "Why "too"?" "Is your name Alexandru?" " Come on." "Did you two have a fight?" " No." "You both seem upset." " I don't want to make it worse." " We didn't fight." "We made up." "Okay." "Here's something I bought you." "I hope you like it." "I think they're beautiful." "I saw these earrings and thought of you." "I got myself a ring." "What's with the bracelets?" "They're nose rings from Papua New Guinea." " That was mine." " Not anymore." " So?" "When will I see you again?" " On Sundays." " When?" " Sandu." "You're acting tough, aren't you?" "Can I call you on your birthday?" "Bye, Sanda." "That's how you wear it." "It's cool." "What does it look like on you?" "Let's see." "It's cool, but it doesn't go with what I'm wearing." " You didn't like the earrings." " They don't match what I'm wearing." "I really don't feel like going home." "Where can we go?" "A movie?" "Let's have a cake instead." "Feel like it?" " Are you still upset?" " Upset with whom?" " You seem a little upset." " I'm not upset." "I'm happy you came." "And I feel like eating something sweet." " Wow, the old lady's nuts!" " What happened?" "I wanted to boil some water for tea, and she spent 10 minutes showing me how to turn off the tap." "How I shouldn't tighten it too much, because I might flood the downstairs neighbours." "Your folks, that is." " Flood them, for all I care." "I don't feel like going home tonight." "Do you mind if I stayed here tonight?" "Why would I mind?" "Wait a sec, I'll get the tea." "No, forget the tea." "Stay here." "Let me just turn off the cooker, or Benes will kill me." "Oh, you made it, after all." "There you go." "Careful, it's hot!" "You're so diligent!" "You'll make a good wife." "You've got a cool place here." "That's so good!" "Let's just lock ourselves in and stay in for a week." "I'm used to it." "When I lived at my parents', in the summer, I'd spend the entire day reading in the garden." "Didn't you get bored?" "Didn't you want to go clubbing with guys?" "Where are your earrings?" "Don't you want to try them on?" "Check my bag." "I thought about it, and I like the ring more." "Take it." "And you'll wear the earrings." "They'll look better on you." "Your face is rounder." "My ears aren't pierced." "What do you mean?" "All girls have pierced ears." "Haven't you ever worn earrings?" "My, she's never worn earrings!" "They punished her!" "No, they didn't." "My mother didn't want to hurt me when I was little." "And you expect to look good without earrings?" " I can do the piercing for you, you know." " I won't have my ears pierced!" "It won't hurt." "We'll burn a needle with the lighter, dip it in alcohol, and then I'll make a quick hole." "You won't even feel it!" "No, I don't want to." "They won't look good on me." "My face is round, and I'll look like a monkey." "I'd rather admire the earrings on you." " Do you really know how to do it?" " Do what?" "Piercing." "Have you done it before?" "Got a needle anywhere?" "Let's." "There." "If you say you know how, it can't kill me." " Leave some thread on." " I couldn't find any alcohol." " What's the thread for?" " Surprise." "Come on." "Hold on, I can't see." "It doesn't hurt." "Do you have any cotton wool here?" "Hold on a bit!" "Hold tight." " Come on." " No more." "You want to have just one hole?" " I don't want earrings anymore." " Alex, look at me." "You'll be fine." "Tomorrow you'll knock those campus assholes off their feet." "I don't want to knock them off their feet." "What's all this noise?" "Holy Mother of God!" "What are you doing there?" "Piercing Alex's ears." "Go to your room." "Everything's fine." "Cristina, dear, piercing her ears now?" "Couldn't you wait till tomorrow?" " Take this crap out of my ears." " Hold it tight!" "Do you have alcohol?" " Do you need a lot?" "Just to pour a bit on some cotton wool." "God, what got into me?" "You were very brave." "I don't think I'd have been so brave." "Use some alcohol." "Otherwise, it will fill with pus." "Thanks, Auntie." "You've been very sweet." "Now I'll put Alexandra to bed." "I'll see you in the morning." "Put this on." " Does it still hurt?" " It wasn't even that painful." "Oh, that's how you are." "You're acting brave now." "You should've seen your face earlier." "Do you want to sleep?" "Come on, put your head in my lap." "Hello." " I'm not done yet." " What time is it?" "It's 10:20." "We still have half an hour." "I was thinking we should go see a movie at 11." "You said we'd attend Mihailescu's class today." " We'll go next week." " You'll say the same thing next week." "I don't feel like coming back here to write down more summaries." "What's that?" "The folklore lecture notes." "We have to write a seminar paper." "But that's not your handwriting, is it?" "I got it from the fat girl who wears a lot of makeup." "You smell nice." "What is it?" "I don't know what perfume it is." "I got it from my mother." "I'm wearing Aimez-moi." "Can you smell it?" " I thought that was your natural scent." "Let's take the book home instead." "I'll help you take notes tonight." "But you do the talking for the book." "Don't make me do it." "Mama, Alexandra needs this until tomorrow." "I'll write it down." "But do bring it back tomorrow." "I talked to Sandu." "He sends his love." " He's coming to lunch on Sunday." " Okay." " Bye." " Good luck." "You be good." " What did you lose?" " Nothing." " I don't really feel like going." " Do you want to go to the lecture?" " Why are you doing this?" " Come with me." " Didn't we decide to go to a movie?" " Let's not fight." "But now you're forcing me into doing what you want, and it's not right." "Why didn't you tell me to begin with that you didn't want to go?" "You don't get it." "I came to Bucharest to go to university." "Listen to you!" "So I'm to blame because I want us to be together?" "I'm to blame, because I let myself be influenced by you." "Why do you get angry like that?" "You want us to go to Mihailescu's lecture?" "No." "Let's go to a movie." "No, we'll go to Mihailescu's lecture and take down everything he says." "We can go to the movie at 2:00 o'clock." "Her pen and her two straight hours of diligent note-taking were driving me up the walls." "Out of anger, I'd started making random notes." "I couldn't understand how I'd happened to fall in love with her." "Listen, Alexandra." "If that government department man shows up here, please tell him you're my niece." "I don't want us to get in trouble." " What department?" " Just say you're my niece." "You are like a niece to me, actually, just like Cristina." "I've known her since she was this little." "He could show up when you least expect it." "Just like 30 years ago, when I was here with my Nicusor, who had just gotten back from a conference, and the government guy just knocked on the door." "He wanted to check our papers." "And he wrote me down as a concubine!" "He gave us a fine, and we had to cancel our trip to the Govora spa that year." "And the year after that, Nicusor went back to his wife and left me to pay the bills on my own." "Which is why I bring it up." "My, you're so elegant." "You can tell your parents raised you well." "You're not like those cheap girls I see on the street, who wear pants that show off their bellybutton." "Mrs. Parvulescu has asked me to lunch." "So, we're agreed on that." "You'll say you're my niece, and you're just visiting." "Yes, Auntie Lucretia, don't worry." "I'll see you." "Bye, sweetie." "I'll take that into the kitchen." "Last-minute preparations." "Let's go into my room." " What?" " We need to change your top." "It's a weird room." " What's this about?" " I'm opening a button store." "No, really." "When I was little, I had a friend, a girl I liked a lot." "We used to crawl under the desk, build armies out of buttons  fight each other." "Once, she took a pair of nail scissors, lifted her shirt, and tried to cut her nipples off." " Why?" " I don't know." "She said she wanted to give me a present." "The truth is, her nipples looked like two little hearts." " Why do you have two beds?" "One was Sandu's." "I was afraid to sleep alone." " Cristina!" "Lunch is ready!" "Hello." "Hi!" "I'm so glad you came over, Alexandra." "Sit down." "Give me a hand, please." "Oh, no!" "That's Sandu's seat." "You two sit on this side." "I'm going to the kitchen, I'm not done yet." " So how do you like Bucharest?" " She's been here for over a year." " I lived on the Regie campus." " And why did you move out?" "It wasn't very pleasant." "Girls, you should have seen the state of things in the 70's, when we went to college." "If we managed to get a bed and a table to slice the salami on, we were delighted." "The world has modernized now." "Cristina, what is that greasy bag on the sink?" "I brought it." "It's some eggs and some larded meat from my parents." "They make it very well." "Oh, you shouldn't have, dear." "They sent it for you to eat, not for us." "Please take it back." "Plus, we don't usually eat fatty food." "Cristina, please give it back to Alexandra when she leaves." "Are your parents in agriculture?" "No, my father's a vet, and my mother's a teacher." "They have hens, and last year, father decided to get a pig." "Then I may have met your mother when I conducted school inspections." "We used to do real work back then." "I know this country by heart." "Where are you from?" " From Pietrosita." " Well, I've never been quite that far." " Sandu's here." " Hi." " Sandu, my boy, why don't you wear slippers, for goodness' sake?" " What are you staring at?" " Cut the yapping." "What are you doing?" "Sticking your fingers in the food in front of a guest?" "Better relax, Mama, so we can all eat." "I need to be somewhere at 5:00 o'clock." "Is this the same rotgut we drank last time?" "Why do you call it rotgut?" "You liked it." "You drank half the bottle." "Don't think he's an alcoholic." "He drinks moderately." "He's not an alcoholic." "He just drinks a lot." "Leave the boy alone." "A toast!" "To Alexandra's arrival to Bucharest." "Yes, to Miss Alexandra." " And to my new passport." " What's that for?" "Well, you expect me to leave the country on my bus pass?" "Would you mind not wallowing in the bowl?" "Just put some food on your plate." "I don't want to eat after you." "I don't want to get herpes." "Stop being so sensitive." "I wonder where you suppose you can go with that passport, just like that." "To Pitesti." "Don't be cheeky to your father." "I won't say more." "A guest is present." "You just keep behaving like a brat." "The aubergine salad was very good." "How did you make it?" "I'm glad you liked it." "I add some onion and a bit of mayonnaise, for a smoother taste." "That's a beautiful top." "Cristina has one just like that." "Right?" " Yes!" "I bought it for her." " It is Cristina's." "I lent it to her." "It suits her, doesn't it?" "She's beautiful." "It looks better on you than it does on my sister." "You can keep it." "She used to wear it without a bra." "Why are you kicking me for, mama?" "It's strong!" "That's because you're not used to spirits." " Of course I am." " She's used to everything." "I don't need uppers." "And actually, here's proof of courage." " Cristina, did you do that?" " I did." "You'd better see a doctor." "It's infected." "She doesn't need a doctor." "It will heal completely in a week." "It must be from those trinkets in your ears." "Girls go through hell for beauty." "Then you suffer the consequences." "Put some antiseptic cream on it." " Well, can you pierce holes?" " What do you mean?" "Your phone is ringing!" "Stop nettling each other." "You behave like you weren't brother and sister." " Some Coke?" " No." "Don't open it." "I'll take it to Alex's place later." " As you wish." " Cristina, pass the plate." "I forgot to tell you, I talked to Mrs. Negulescu the other day." "She's arranged for me to stay with a cousin of hers in Switzerland for two months." " Do you want to go?" " Yes, I'm leaving, since I've realised I can't pierce holes." "And you're going with that old lady?" "Cristina, please." "Mrs. Negulescu isn't old at all." "And if it hadn't been for her, Lord have mercy." "Lucky him, he gets to be the boy-wonder at her company." "What other services do you do perform?" "Stop grinning." "You know I hate that." "Stop grinning, you idiot!" "Why do you show off here and talk nonsense in front of everybody?" "You should be ashamed, saying filthy things to your sister." "Stop signalling to me." "I know what I'm talking about." "What signals, Aurel?" "Just relax and sit down." "If you're all done, I'll collect the plates and bring the soup." "Cristina, wouldn't you like to sleep at my place tonight?" "I can't." "I might be in the way." "What if Mrs. Negulescu comes by?" "You'll sleep at home." " Cut the crap." "Are you coming?" " No, I'll sleep at Alexandra's." "You, get up right now and get out." "Get up, where?" "Get up and leave, you bastard." "That goes for you, too." "Alexandra, can you please help me?" "Cristina, you, too." "We would spend most days and evenings together." "We liked to wander aimlessly around those buildings with the plaster peeling off the balconies, like sagging breasts." "I hadn't yet told her how much I loved her." "In fact, I didn't know myself yet how I felt." "Or we would go the cinema and spend the entire day there." "We didn't dare go out." "We took turns sleeping." "All I could remember afterwards was the smell of her skin." "When we were sick of Bucharest, we'd just go to the mountains." "We'd rent a room, lie between some strangers' bed sheets and stare at the passersby." "I would listen to her while lying on my belly, chin propped in my hands, paying more attention to her impeccably manicured fingers, with the well-trimmed nails." "We knew, though, that our break-up would be nothing dramatic, as that was not how we lived then." "We were like crazy kids who knew their life would start some day, so they lived to the limit the time they had left." " Where are you going?" " To take a shower." " Okay." "Will you be long?" " You want to go first?" "I need to be in Victoria St. at 11." "I saw this cool swimsuit, and I asked Sandu to get it for me." "Are you going to be long?" "Why don't you want us to go to the seaside?" "Can't you understand that my parents will kill me if I don't go home?" " You're dying to go to the sticks." " It's not really the sticks." "It's beautiful." "I have a big yard, an orchard behind, and a forest up the hill, even a river where we can swim." "Do the rivers flow with milk and honey?" "Fine, make fun of me." "Are you angry with me?" "It's always like this." "If you cared for me, you'd just come." " Where?" " Okay, forget it." "Do you want your parents to realise we're together?" "There's no way they can." "That's what our vacation will be like?" "Hiding from your parents behind the trees?" " Groping in corners?" " Why hide?" "So your mother will see us when I stick my tongue in your mouth?" "Why are you talking dirty?" "No, really, what kind of vacation is that?" "If groping in front of my parents makes you happy, then we could do that." "I need to pee." "Close the door." "Hi, it's Sandu." "Leave a message." "Today, June 10th, I called to say "happy birthday. "" "Although you no longer love me like I love you, even though you'll call me on my birthday, too." "But love isn't remembering somebody's birthday." "Love is when I can't live without you." "Why do you torture me?" "What are you afraid of?" "Do you want to skin me alive, so I bleed to death for you?" "You're a beast and a jerk." "And I'm nothing but your doormat." "I'm your shadow." "And though I may not be the first one to wish you "happy birthday,"" "You know very well that I'm the only one that matters." "Happy birthday, little robot." "I wish you happiness." "Bye." "I love you." "You can go." "If you got dressed a little faster, we'd have gotten there in time." "You said you had to meet up with your brother." "Aren't we going together?" "I thought you wanted to go by yourself." "Do you want us to go together?" "Didn't I say we would?" "I'll take the opportunity to ask him to buy you something nice, too." "I don't know..." "Whenever I see your brother, I want to run away." "I promise we won't be long." "You're amazing." "Could you be any more late?" " I'm not late." " We're late because of me." "It's not you." "As if you didn't know her." "Let's go." " Did you get my message?" " I thought we had agreed on something." "Now I see you've changed your mind." "I don't know what to say." "I can't wait for you to make up your mind." " We're close to the finishing line." " Let's not talk here." " Whatever." " That's it." "Want to check out the clothes while I try the suit on?" "Go ahead." "I'll wait." " Hello." "Getting bored?" " I'm not really a fan of shopping." " My sister is the world champion in it." "I once waited for an hour for her to decide on a pair of shoes." "Weird tastes." " I like her." " She's very special." "That's right." "Cristina." "Cristina?" " What?" " Are you done?" " Just a sec!" "So?" "What do you think?" "Awesome!" "Let me get it for you." "Seriously, it really suits you." "Come on, girl." "What do you think?" "I don't trust him." "I don't know." "It's a bit over the top." "It's the thing now!" "Actually, you're right." "If one bead goes, they all go." "Just get it." "It's beautiful." "I'll go pay." "Straight ahead, and to the right at the end." " Much further?" " No, nearly there." "I'll be right back." "I'll just drop these." "I'm at the address." "I'll be waiting." "Communicate, 47." "I'm already dizzy." "I haven't eaten anything today." "It's Beck's." "It's good." "You won't get a headache." "We'll drink this and go to sleep." "We'll wake up early tomorrow." "Aren't you sorry we're leaving?" "You're being silly." "Why would I be sorry?" "I've been thinking." "My place isn't so great." "What matters is that nobody will trouble us." "You're right." "How stupid were we not to think about this before?" " Think of what?" " Everything." "Did I tell you about this dream I had last night?" "I dreamt we moved into my dorm room, but the dorms were different, and we had a cat." "And one day somebody knocked, and you opened the door." "There was this guy." "Sandu, probably." "No, not Sandu." "Some weird guy." "I have no idea how to describe him." "Anyway, he walked in." "Said he'd kick us out if we didn't get rid of the cat." " Must be the superintendent." " Probably." " Go on." " What?" " What happened next?" " Nothing." "The cat ran away between his legs." "But we didn't mind." "We were sure it would come back." "It was a stray cat." " Strays usually do come back." " Yes they do." "Shall we?" "Tomorrow I'll come up for you when I'm ready." "Here are some sandwiches  coffee." "I couldn't find the flask anywhere." "It's too much stuff!" "What's in there?" "Some cheese." "God knows what they'll feed you there." "I don't have room." "We'll just stop somewhere for food." "Stop eating all that junk." " Daddy's here." " Ready?" " Did you take my keys?" " Yes." "I took your keys." "Great." "It won't start without the keys." " Did you check the oil and the gas?" " Didn't you check?" "Now the car's your responsibility." "Take care of it." "Mama, the mobile doesn't work there." "I'll call you." "If Sandu calls..." "Daddy got some low-fat cheese." "Please." "I'm not taking it!" "I checked the gas and oil." "There's more to a car than wheels and a steering wheel." "Duly noted." "Bye!" "Drive carefully." "Have fun!" " What are you doing?" " Benes asked me to make tea." " What happened to you, Auntie?" " I'm bedridden, sweetie." "Look at me." " What happened?" " My feet won't obey me anymore." "We need to go now." "But what exactly hurts?" "I felt a sort of weakness here when I got out of bed." "I'd have fallen down if I hadn't leaned against the wall." " But you didn't fall." " No, I came here to watch TV." " Bless you." " Take a Diclofenac." " Will it do me good?" " Yes." "Go on, sweetie." "I talked to my nephew, and he'll come to take care of me." " Going for long?" " Until the beginning of August." "I'll see you when you get back." "If you don't find me dead." "Don't worry." "You probably just ate some bad food." " Maybe the mackerel?" " The mackerel!" "Of course!" " We're off." " Turn the light off in the hallway!" "It'd be great if she croaked and we lived here alone." " This old lady won't die." " Leave it on." "What the hell?" "In two hours, I'd hear all about Alex when she was little." "I could almost see her, awkward, shy, dreaming about the future." "This housed the cultural centre and a supermarket together." "A kind of mall." "Now it's a dance club at night." " Turn right." " Here?" "Yes." " This is Cristina." " Hello!" "Welcome!" " Hi." "Welcome home, baby." " Nice to meet you." "Welcome." "Come, Petrica." "Let me help you." "Come on, girls, let's go inside." "Petrica, we're going inside." "Get the luggage." "That's it." " Have you two eaten anything?" " Yes." "Rozi, get some food for the girls." "They had a long trip." " We've already eaten." " Actually, I'd love some coffee." " Of course." " Thank you." " How was the journey?" " Fine." "Took us about two hours." " When did you leave Bucharest?" " At 11." "But around Targoviste I drove in circles a bit, because of the one-way streets." " Didn't Sandutsa co-pilot you?" " I did." "Well, the road from Targoviste isn't the best." "Potholes and so on." " Are you cold?" " A little bit." " I'll start the fire." " Kiki will sleep in my room." "Cristina." " We prepared the guest room." " Never mind, Petrica." " Leave it to them." " They'll be more comfortable." "It's okay." "The cabbage will be ready in half an hour." "Better go unpack until then." "Come." " I'm so sleepy." " We'll go drink coffee now." "Forget the coffee." "I'd rather sleep." " How about my room?" " Beautiful." "Like you." " May I?" " Yes." "Dad, there was a lamp here." " I'll bring you ours." " Where's mine?" "Your mother took it when she graded her school tests." " Can you get it for me?" " Sure." "Right away." "Your parents are so nice." "So chilled, like they're on Prozac." "Let's listen to a story." "Let's see what's on the menu." ""The Little Fairy," "Rice Straw"..." "This is the one." "Does the record player work?" "I forgot to ask." "Naturally." "In this household everything is like clockwork." "Once upon a time, there lived an emperor and an empress." "LOCAL FIRE STATION" "Both were young and beautiful." "But both were unbearably sad, because they were unable 2 have a child." "After a long search, they found a clever wizard who gave the empress a powerful potion." "And, one day, the palace resounded with a baby's cries." "We were feeling like two inseparable sisters, spending our holidays at our grandparents' house." "We didn't care about a thing." "We were unaware of jealousy, bitterness or envy." "We wished only to be together." "Let's go." " Cute chick." " My ears are ringing." " Where are we going?" " To the bar, for a drink." " What will you lovely things have?" " Is there a price list?" "No, hold on." "What is there to drink?" "We have everything." "I see you're city girls." "We have all you could possibly want." " Do you want a price list?" " Do you have one?" "Look, "Cristina" is a refined spirit." "10,000 lei." "It's gone up to 12,500." "Let's get that." "What's it like?" "No?" "Then let's get two Beck's." "What about cigarettes?" "Snagov, Carpati, or the foreign ones." "I thought you could only get Snagov in Bucharest." " Do you want a Snagov?" " No, Carpati." "This is the first time I've set foot in a bar here." "It's just awesome." "I want to move to your town." "Everything here is surreal." " And the cigarettes?" " I forgot." " Could you bring them now?" " Right away." " Cheers!" " Cheers!" "This glass has the lip marks of everyone who's ever sipped from it!" "In the old days, people weren't so keen on hygiene." "Cleanliness has made us weaker." "It's smothered our desires." "First, you love a person's smell, and then you go on, building upon that." " How does my skin smell?" " Heavy." " Here you go." " What do you mean, heavy?" "You smell like a flower that is neither alive nor dead, because no one has changed its water for weeks." "You have a sleepy smell, like when you wake up in the morning, and you've been dreaming too long." "Do you like Sandu?" "I mean, as a woman would?" "I mean, he's a handsome guy." "He looks good." " He's my brother." " Brothers and sisters sometimes fall in love." " Just like in René." " Like in what?" "René, by Chateaubriand." "Although a love story like that is hopeless." "This love story you're talking about is hopeless because it's unreal." "If the writer had believed in it, then René and his sister would have had a chance." "But he constructed the story in order to make the character sick with melancholy." "No, you're wrong." "Although he seems doomed, his love for his sister could have evolved like in any normal relationship, if he'd been willing to accept that happiness, just like unhappiness, has several nuances." "You talk as if René were real." "I don't think it's even a love story." "It's just an example of Romantic virtues and the simplistic way those people viewed the world." "Just remember all that crap that Freud would have psychoanalyzed away." "His mother who dies at his birth, and his sister who commits suicide." "And, above all, God dispensing justice." "It's all so black or white." "The love story doesn't stand a chance if the writer doesn't believe in it." "And besides, if you tell this story to a monk, it becomes a confession, and this means that, morally speaking, you've prejudged it, in spite of your deeper feelings." "Get it?" "But, leaving the author's abstractions aside, do you think the relationship between René and Amélie is based on true love or a sick attraction?" "What's your point?" "I was wondering if, however we analyse or judge this relationship, it actually might not be something sordid." "You think like a saint!" "Let's go." "You can't use love to excuse a relationship that's practically obscene." "Well, yes, you can account for the story by its biographical elements, because, from birth, the character lives in the shadow of doom." "And his sister will play a maternal role." "Which eventually leads us to a much older and a more beautiful story." "I like this story." "Do you want to tour Pietrosita by night or play some soccer?" "I used to be good at soccer!" "Look, there's the house." "It's not far." "I guess you're done with romanticism tonight." "You don't care much for Chateaubriand." "Actually, what you like in this story is its very obscenity." "But you can't condemn it because it's based on a noble feeling." "I like their recklessness, the irresponsible way in which they justify their sexual impulses by finding a correspondent for them in the changes of nature." "Is what made me fall in love with you." "There's nothing real about René and Amélie." "I know from experience that things are completely different." "You mean your experience with Sandu?" "Like any relationship, one person can be moral and the other can be immoral." "But this doesn't necessarily make the relationship itself immoral." "Who's the immoral one?" " Sandu." "You have no idea what he's like." "He'd do anything, if it was in his interest." "He'd go to Switzerland tomorrow and leave me alone, if he had it going good." "Nothing else matters." "But you're not alone." "You're with me." "And with her." "Want to take your top off?" "I want to see your breasts in the moonlight." "I was really hurt when you went upstairs with your brother." "When?" "When I waited 20 minutes for you in the cab." "Did I do something to make you angry?" "No." "Tonight I'm very happy." "Would you have a breast job if I asked you to?" "You mean have them made bigger?" "Bigger, smaller..." "I just want to know if you would." "Come on, Sanduta!" "Would you like me to have bigger breasts?" "No, because mine aren't big, either." "Come on, would you?" "Maybe, for you." "But I couldn't stand some stranger touching me." "So how did you manage at the gynecologist's?" "Never been." "It's horrible." "It feels all..." "To me, breasts are like accessories." "They're like earrings." "It would have been cool if we had met earlier." "Sanduta!" "There's someone at the gate." "Sandu's at the gate." "I gave my parents your address." "They probably told him where to find me." "Did you call him?" " Go on!" "She's calling you." " It's you she's calling." "I'm not going." "Tell him I'm not here." "Tell him I left for Bucharest yesterday." " Why?" " I don't want to see him." " Hello." " Good day." " Hello." " Hi." "This is my mother." "This is Cristina's brother." " Rozalia Dragnea." "Nice to meet you." " Sandu." "Is my sister around?" "I've been calling her for a week." "She won't answer." "She's here but asked me to say she wasn't." " Very funny." " Really." "She doesn't want to see you." "Okay." "Call her out for a minute." "Kiki, come out!" "Kiki, let's talk!" "Don't make me make a scene." "Come here a bit." " Talk!" " I came to take you to Bucharest." " What for?" " Why'd you turn off your cell phone?" " What if I had important news?" " Like what?" "Like I'm dead, sick, whatever." "Sandu, we had a deal, and you're breaking it now." "You show up here uninvited and blame me for it." "And you dragged that piece of baggage with you." "Mrs. Negulescu kindly let me use her car, seeing as you took Dad's." "That's not the issue." "Why did you came here?" "Let's not stand out here." "Let's go into the house." " Tell me what you have to tell me." " I asked you not to come." " Why are they fighting?" " I don't know, Mother." "Brother and sister, fighting like that..." "Hello." "Excuse me." "Do you have a toilet?" " Yes." " Where?" " Behind the house." " Thanks." "Hope you don't mind." " And who is that?" " Her brother's boss." "Morning!" "I'm in the mood for an omelette with dill and pepper." " You girls had breakfast?" " Yes." "I'm sorry for disturbing you." "We've talked and settled everything." "You'll have to excuse Cristina." "She needs to pack." " You're leaving?" " No!" " What do you mean, no?" " I'm not leaving." "What did you tell me just a minute ago?" "Are you crazy?" "And you're a sick pervert who's lost his control over me." "You think I drove 200 km to the sticks for you to make a fool of me?" "Why did you come?" "Just to stir me up?" "So you'll go, leave me alone." "Get your stuff, or I'll beat the crap out of you!" "Yeah, right!" "Fuck off!" "You know you can't live without me for a month." "Take your old lady and go to cheese-land!" " Get your bags, or I swear to God you're going to get it!" " Who the hell are you?" " Stay out of this!" " Mind your own business." " Who the fuck is this?" "Kiki, why am I a pervert?" "Speak up, so they hear you!" "Was I the first to grope your cunt, or was it you who grabbed my dick?" "Come on, say it!" "Who was first to have touched my dick?" " Swearing in my yard!" " Don't touch me, you fucking peasant!" "You're calling me a peasant in my own yard?" " Get out, you pervert!" " Your daughter is the pervert!" "With all her sweet airs, she's just a lesbian, fucking my sister!" " What was that?" "I'm Cristina's brother, you asshole!" "Don't you touch me!" "Excuse the fuss." "Look at you." "How could you stoop so low?" "You couldn't get any lower." "Let's go." " Cristina!" "Please!" " Let's go, I said." "Now!" "Kiki, come out." "They're gone." "Leave me alone." "Come on, please." "I can't." "Leave me alone." "Sandutsa, baby, who are these people?" "She's Cristina." "And he's Sandu, her brother." "I know who she is." "What I want to know is how on earth you got to know such people." "You're our little girl, and we trusted you." "I didn't do anything." "We thought you'd be a good girl in Bucharest." "Not make friends with bad people.." " I can't take it anymore." " You've made a spectacle of us!" "Leave her alone now." "That's enough." "We raised you as best we could." "You went to Bucharest and had your ears pierced for earrings." "Why, Alexandra?" "Just tell me why." "I don't get it." "Why?" "I'll pack." "Petrica, let's go downstairs." "I'll go now, or he might do something crazy." "Do you want me to come with you?" "No, I need to go." " Are you free?" " Yes." "Where to?" " Lipscani." " Get in." "I can't go into Lipscani." "Where will I drop you?" " I'll think about it and let you know." " Okay." "Can we make a detour through Drumul Taberei?" "I can make a detour on the highway, if you want." "It's not my money." " Where in Drumul Taberei?" " Poiana Muntelui, I think." " Hello, Auntie Lucretia." " Hi, sweetie." "What happened?" " I'm back." "You scared me to death." "I heard a noise at the door, and I thought it was thieves." "I said hello loudly." "Didn't you say you'd be back in a month?" " I'm back." "Good." "Your room is as you left it." "I never touched your things." " Has Cristina come by?" " No." "I'm waiting for her too to tell her I nearly died because I took a Diclofenac like she told me to." "I had melaena." "I was lucky my nephew came by and took me to the hospital, or else..." "I have some stuff to put in the fridge." "Sure, go ahead." " So you were in the hospital?" " No, God forbid!" "If I get admitted to a hospital, I'll die on the spot." "My longest stay in a hospital was in the 70's, when I had my stumps operated on, because I could barely walk anymore." "Otherwise, I'd have been finished." "Say, what should we do about the money?" "Didn't my father pay until October?" "He did, but I took you off the maintenance costs list." " Put me back on the list." " And then?" "Take you off it again?" "Why take me off?" "My mother gave me some pie." "Would you like some?" "My sugar might go up." " But you're not leaving again." " I'll stay here until the deadline." "You can stay here past the deadline." "Aren't you going away on vacation again?" "I don't know." "I watched you when you were here." "You're a good girl." "You never brought boys over." "And if you commit to paying the money right on time every month, then I can give you a discount." "I'll think about it." "I know it's expensive for you, but I can make it a bit cheaper." "You and little Cristina are such nice girls, and I'm happy with you." "I'll think about it." " Hello." " Hey." "Are you alone?" "You're going to die in this stench." "I'm a country girl." "I'm tough." "Stop saying you're a country girl." "You're not." "What are you making?" "Chicken with vegetables and kiwi sauce." "Where did that come from?" "A TV guide." "I was sick of all that crap." "What crap?" "It's good." "So, what have you been up to?" "What have I been up to?" "I don't even want to remember." "It's been a nightmare for me." "I had to stay with my brother, put up with his moods." "You know he's difficult." "Do you realize how terrible it would have been for him to go God-knows-where and miss out on all his chances of ever doing anything?" "Anyway, he eventually calmed down." "Good to know it's all right now." "I was worried for a while." "I thought I'd hear from you, that you'd ask how I was doing." "I'm not blaming you for not calling, but your indifference hurt." "You'll be surprised to know that I did look for you." "I came after you to Bucharest." "I went to your brother's and to your parents'." "Didn't your mother tell you I asked about you every day?" "Almost." "Anyway, it doesn't matter now." "I haven't been talking to my parents." "We had a nasty fight." "You could have called me." "I wanted to see you." "Well, it doesn't matter now." "You're right." "What matters is I'm back." "And we can pick up where we left off." "There's nothing to pick up." "I packed your things." "I put them in some plastic bags in the room." "Why are you acting like this?" "There they are." "Don't act like this." "I told you I had things to deal with." "I'm sorry." "I really am." "Maybe I was wrong." "I know I was wrong." "I should have called you, but Sandu had gone berserk." "Let's make up." "Please." "I don't trust you anymore." "I know you lied to me, and you'll keep lying." "You're incapable of honesty." "You have no idea what it was like." "Is Benes home?" "Want to go somewhere to talk?" " There's nothing to talk about." "I thought about everything for a long time." "I was an idiot." "Everything was so clear, and I, because I loved you much too much" "I love you, too!" "Why are you so angry?" "A month ago I was in bits." "It was you who left me." "How can you say I left you?" "I had some problems." "I told you..." "You'll always have these problems." "They surround you like a mist." "And now you want us to break up?" "You want me to suffer too?" "Why do you want to leave me, if you know it hurts?" "Please go away." "I can't go!" "I don't want to!" "I don't believe you." "I don't believe you really want us to break up." "Do you want me to beg forgiveness?" "I promise, no, I swear, this won't happen again." "You want me to go down on my knees?" "Look, I'm going down on my knees." "How can you say it won't happen again?" "You look into my eyes and carry on lying." " Can't you see it?" " Please" "You broke my heart, don't you get it?" "I'm all empty inside." "I don't have anything." "None of the things you tell me will make me feel better." "I want to forget you." "Pick up your things and leave." "If I leave now, I won't come back." "What kind of a threat is that?" "You won't come back anyway." "You're incapable of being honest." "I've been honest with you." "I told you I loved you, and I did love you." "I still love you." "When I came with you to your parents' house, do you think I lied when I told you all the things I told you?" " What did you tell me?" " Have you really forgotten?" "There's nothing to remember." "I couldn't come for you after all that happened there." "I had to set things straight, so it'd be easier on us afterwards." "So you wouldn't have to suffer." "What happened didn't matter at all." "You know very well that's not true." "Just get your clothes." "This hurts me too much." "Now what do I do?" "Should we not see each other again?" "Do you want me to promise you that?" "Okay." "While you're here, I'll move in with Sandu." "If you don't want us to see each other again, then we won't." "I promise you, and you'll see, I'll keep my promise." "You want everything to end here, like this, as if nothing happened." "As if you say you'll forget and really believe you will forget." "I thought you'd understand what I wanted, what I was doing." "I did everything so we could be happy, to be together." "And now you're telling me you don't want us to be together." "That you don't want to see me." "Then, we're not going to see each other again." "Ever again." "Take your clothes." "To most people, we were just a couple of good friends who couldn't find their place in this world, and only a few thought they knew the truth about us." "But we were the only ones who actually knew the naked truth:" "That we had no idea what had just happened, but that it was something rather beautiful."