Ano 05 nº 038/2017 – Fortune Cookie

Autor: Anônimo

               Being a musician was never enough for Sarah. She was already 26 years old and in her mind at that age she must had found success on her profession, but something was never at the right place. Something was always missing in the relation between her music and her painting. – Maybe, they will never fit together. – a thought that discouraged her, while waiting for the bus near 7 o’clock in the morning. Every day was exactly the  same: same old bus at 7, same shy “hello” to Mr. Watson, the bus driver; same lunch at Mr.’s Liu Chinese Restaurant, same fortune cookies saying “You are awesome”, “Believe in yourself” and the same day of work trying to find a new inspiration to paint after rush hour. She was never late, after all. She couldn’t even think about something else but her work and her artistic dilemma. – Maybe they will never fit together – she thought again, going back home.

               One day, doing the same things as always, Sarah finished her lunch and took a fortune cookie – Not this one, my dear, I think the one on the left will be better.- Said Mr. Liu, with a worried expression in his old face. Sarah felt that something was going wrong, and this feeling had just grown when he insisted – Please.- When she took the cookie, her hands were trembling and she read the message – Your life is in danger. Say nothing to anyone. You must leave this place immediately. Repeat: say nothing.” A feeling of anguish took her, relating the message with Mr.’s Liu expression. Something was really going wrong. – Will I die today? Oh, my God, I can’t die without reaching success on my work. – And left the Restaurant as quickly as possible. As she passed through the door, she saw a bus and called out for it, entering fast and stumbling on bus stairs.

– Are you ok? – Asked a familiar voice. It was Mr. Watson. The same Mister Watson, but not the same as she had seen every morning. She never noticed that he was young and that he had those deep blue eyes lying at her there, on the ground, with many paintings spread around the bus floor. -This work is amazing – He said with a smile, helping her to catch them and then continuing his itinerary while she seated on a bench at his side. – You know what this images remind me? One of my favorite songs – And started to play them on the radio. They talked and talked for some hours and then she suddenly remembered the message of the cookie. – Wait. – She said, when they were passing again for Mr.’s Liu Restaurant. – I think I have to talk to a friend here. He was worried about me and now I’m worried about him. Could you leave me here, please?

– For sure. – said Mr. Watson – Sarah?

– Yes? – said her looking back

– What do you think of going out for dinner tomorrow?

– Well… I think It’s ok. – She said with a shy smile.

– Don’t forget to say hi to Mr. Liu for me. Bye!

               Sarah wasn’t understanding a thing, thinking that the old Chinese man had played a trick on her, and how Mr. Watson deep blue eyes and favorite song fitted perfectly with her painting work. She entered the Chinese restaurant still trying to figure out what was the relation between the fortune cookie’s message and what happened at the bus. She knew Mr. Liu very well and asked him why that message was sent to her:

– You knew it would be me reading that message?

– Of course, I did. Mr. Watson asked me to give you the cookie, because he knew you would be here… and feeling scared, take anything to get out of the place quickly, like a bus. His line passes around that time in this Avenue – Said the old man, laughing;

– But you said my life was in danger, and…

– And It was. – Interrupted him – You always lose an important part of your life when you forget to live just living.