And then...

Let me tell you something peculiar, you wouldn't believe it... And he told his friend everything that had happened to him since he left the office.

Ilarion listened to him calmly until Geo finished his story and then asked candidly ... hey Geo, what does SF mean?

- Did you also go crazy like everyone else? Everybody repeats the same question today! yelled Geo attracting the others' disapproving looks.

- I think you got sunstroke Geo, you'd better go home, take an aspirin, and stay in bed and 'til tomorrow you'll get rid of both the sunstroke and this story... tittered Ilarion, making Geo leave angrily....

I can't figure out what's going on he sulked and got on the bicycle and speeded up home; and what on Earth did I do to Ile to make him laugh at me like that he wailed while pedaling furiously on the boulevard going past his street.

After he arrived, he carried his bike up to the second floor in front of his apartment, unlocked the door and entered. It was cool and he felt better...

He hastily ate something, not even he knew what exactly he was eating, and his mind was troubled by the question which wouldn't disappear ... what happened?... Is it that...?

He headed towards his library, which he was very proud of. He looked anxious at the shelves and felt relieved- his books, his dearest books were there... He took one of them, walked to the armchair and remained stock still- the cover was blank. He skimmed through it and he went totally vexed- the pages were blank. He started to look through all his books and they all were the same... Nothing written, the pages were blank... At last he collapsed sobbing on the scattered books... I don't understand, I don't understand....... He finally painstakingly got on his feet and set at the desk leaning his head on his palms... It seems that SF no longer exists... yesterday everything was alright, but today it no longer exists!!! What happened? All sorts of hypothesis passed through his mind, but none of them seamed plausible and in the end he fell asleep.

He suddenly woke up. It was night and the silence surrounded him. He looked at the clock- it was exactly midnight... He felt that his mind was clear and than a unique statement he had never felt before overwhelmed him. That very moment, he took out a sheet of paper and a pencil and started writing...

Translation from Romanian by Tudy (www.tudy.home.ro)

18.06.2003 Marius Damian