Ano 13 Nº 19/2025 – “I hope to see you again” 

Por: Ana Cristina Miranda

Once upon a time, in a city in Italy, there was a theater company where dreams came true—or perhaps nightmares did. 

On August 27th, 2017, Ethan arrived in Italy for a book launch, only to find the event had been canceled. Not wanting to waste the trip, he began looking for something to do in the city. During his wanderings, as he passed a theater, he stumbled upon a poster that read: “Last chance to see a performance featuring a real Faun. Don’t miss it.” Ethan chuckled, amused, thinking it was some flashy advertisement. A real faun? Ridiculous—fauns only existed in legends and fairy tales, he thought. But something inside him was curious to see this charlatan. He approached the ticket booth and asked the man there, who looked no older than thirty, with a long face and a large nose, for a ticket to the show. The man smiled and said, “Tourist, huh? You believe in that?” Ethan replied he didn’t and didn’t elaborate. The man answered that he was lucky because it was the last ticket. 

Ethan managed to get a seat in the front row, which was perfect for him—closer to the stage, giving him a better view of the trickery up close. He also enjoyed good theater, so he was excited. Despite the show starting a few minutes late, when it finally began… – Wow – Ethan found himself whispering 

It was truly breathtaking, he thought. The costumes were excellent, but nothing compared to the faun. It was like magic. He had long golden hair like a ray of sunshine, skin so clear that Ethan swore he could have seen it glow for a few seconds, and eyes as green as emeralds. And of course, his big horns, which stood out to everyone but Ethan. 

Ethan was mesmerized; how could someone be so talented, and how could his characterization be so perfect? As soon as the play ended, he wandered through the streets of city in awe. He had never seen anything so good in his life. The next day, he tried to find out more about the show and the actors on social media, but was frustrated—oddly, none of the cast seemed to have social media profiles. Only a single contact number appeared on the show poster, which he found strange, but he let it go. 

The following day, while walking through the streets of Italy, Ethan accidentally bumped into a man. He recognized him instantly. 

– You! You’re the ‘faun’ from yesterday’s performance – he said with a hint of enthusiasm. 

– I am. – the man replied. 

– What’s your name? – Ethan asked, curious.

– I’m Melvin. – he replied calmly. 

– What an interesting name. Where are you from? 

– Costa Rica. I need to go now—he’ll know I left. 

– Who? 

– Goodbye, Ethan, see you! 

And he left without another word, leaving Ethan alone, curious and eager to know more about him. Ethan decided he’d stay a few more days—or months—in the city if necessary. 

Across the city, in the dressing room, the faun encountered his former captor, a man named Forathor, who looked furious. Just as Melvin was about to speak, the man interrupted him. 

– Where were you? Thinking of running away, perhaps? You know that wouldn’t work. – he said with disdain. 

– No, just exploring the city. – Melvin replied without any hint of emotion. – Go practice! 

Despite everything, Melvin went, holding onto hope that this would end someday. Due to his outings and perhaps fate—or maybe not—Ethan and Melvin ended up meeting nearly every day in the same place, near an ice cream shop painted in pink and light green. It was cute and cozy, and one day, Ethan invited Melvin to have ice cream with him there. They developed a small friendship, until one day, Melvin showed up looking sad. Ethan had noticed it before but never asked, thinking it might be intrusive. But that day, he found himself asking automatically: 

– Why do you look so sad? – Ethan asked with concern. 

– I wish I could tell you. – Melvin replied. 

– You can tell me if you want; I promise I’ll keep it a secret. – Ethan said, crossing his fingers in a promise gesture. 

– I don’t like working at the theater. – Melvin found himself saying. 

– Then why don’t you leave? – Ethan said casually. 

– I can’t. – Melvin replied, anguished, regretting he’d said anything. 

– Why not? Is it about money? – Ethan asked with a tone of concern. 

– No, it’s other things. I think I need to go. – Melvin said, starting to leave. – Don’t go, please. – Ethan pleaded.

– I have to; he’s calling me. If you want to see me, come to the theater tonight. I’ll tell you everything. Goodbye. 

That night, Ethan got ready and arrived early at the theater, ticket in hand. Before entering, Melvin pulled him aside. 

– Tomorrow is my last night in the city. – Melvin said sadly. 

– Where are you going? – Ethan was curious. 

– Far away. – Melvin continued, still sad. – But I’ll tell you why I can’t leave here… – MELVIN, WHAT ARE YOU DOING OUT HERE? GET IN NOW! – Forathor shouted. – Sorry about that, these lazy employees. Come in, make yourself at home. 

Ethan entered, suspicious and worried. Melvin performed, and at the end of the show, he spoke to his captor. 

– Please, set me free. I’m weak; I need to go back, I need to care for the forest. – he said in tears. 

– Stop crying. You’re not leaving—not while I’m alive. – Forathor replied with a grin, then ordered that the faun be locked up. 

Ethan wanted to see Melvin one last time, so when no one was looking, he snuck backstage. He called for Melvin, but there was no response. He searched until he found him imprisoned. 

– What have they done to you? I need to get you out of here. – he said, looking for something to open the lock. 

– No, you’ll get in trouble. Leave, forget me. I couldn’t leave, even if I wanted to. He has something of mine. I can’t go back without it. – Melvin said, crying. – Melvin, what is it? Tell me, I can help you. – Ethan said, concerned. – It’s something small—a ring. It looks like a crown. – Melvin described the object in detail. 

– Alright, I’ll be back. Stay here. – Ethan said, hurrying off. 

Ethan searched and searched. At one point, he nearly got caught, and with each passing minute, he grew more anxious. He couldn’t find it anywhere. “Where could something so small be?” he wondered. Then he remembered that when he’d entered the theater, he saw Forathor holding something shiny. “It must be with him, but how can I get it?” He thought it

over, then remembered a part of the show where Forathor would call someone from the audience to get a closer look as he tamed an animal—a special number. He decided he’d volunteer, and that’s what he did. When the moment came, he pretended to trip on Forathor, and he saw the ring fall, though Forathor didn’t notice because of the noise of the applause. 

– Got it! – Ethan whispered. – Let’s go. I’m getting you out of here. 

– Please… – Melvin said, glancing around. 

With a tool, Ethan managed to free him. Now, they needed a plan, and luckily, Melvin had prepared for this day, imagining an escape if he ever regained what was his. They needed one more person, so Ethan called his friend Maeve. She arrived so quickly, he thought it might be magic, but there was no time for that. 

– We need you. – Melvin said. 

– Good evening. What do you need? – she asked, clearly happy to help. – Can you distract that man? – Ethan asked. 

– Honey, I can do much more than that – she said, smiling confidently. 

And at that moment, time began to stop, something strange was happening, come on, I can’t hold on much longer. And they went, running as if there was no tomorrow, as if it were the last day of their lives. When the effect passed, they were far from the theater, and when Forathor went to fetch the faun for the performance, he realized that he had escaped. But he soon calmed down; he couldn’t have gone too far, so just in case, he went to search for Melvin’s ring. He became furious when he found the ring had vanished, and in his rage, he ordered them to go after Melvin. However, he had a faster way of doing this than anyone else, so they split up. 

And far away, in a train car they had reached just in time, were Melvin, Ethan, and Maeve. When they heard a noise, they already knew what it was. But before they could think of escaping, Forathor invaded the car. They fought him off and managed to escape once more. This time, it was final. Maeve had cast something on Forathor, causing him to explode. They were free. Then, in the nearest forest, Melvin called Ethan to talk. 

– Thank you so much. – he said, almost crying.  

– You don’t need to thank me. – Ethan replied, hugging Melvin. 

– Now, please don’t be scared. – Melvin said, and he transformed into a faun right in front of everyone.  

– How? How is this possible? – Ethan said, stunned.  

– There are more things in this world than you can imagine, at least there were in my time. Nowadays, you’d hardly find one.  

– What do you mean “in your time”? – he said, curious and cautious.  – I don’t belong to this year; I come from the past, not too distant, but enough so that you and I would never have met. I was captured by Forathor a few years ago. I don’t know how, but he managed to travel through time and ended up exactly in the forest where I lived. Thinking he was just another hunter, I went alone. My friends even tried to come, but I wouldn’t let them, and after that, I never saw her again. When I did see her, Forathor had grabbed me and brought me to this strange land, he said, crying.  

– I had no idea, I’m so sorry, and now you’re leaving. – Ethan said, sadly. He liked Melvin, liked him a lot, but it wasn’t love, at least he thought it wasn’t. He wanted to believe it was just a very strong friendship they had created. Melvin thought the same about Ethan; he knew he loved him, both as a friend and in a deeper way. They had become best friends, and sometimes the bonds of friendship are stronger than romantic love, and they can be more painful too. 

– I say goodbye to you here, right? – Ethan said in a quiet voice.  

– Yes, thank you for everything. You were the best person I could have met during my time here. I hope we meet again. 

They hugged each other, but before Melvin went on his way, he gave something to Ethan and told him to open it only when he was gone. And so, Ethan did. Before Melvin disappeared like magic into the trunk of a tree, Ethan told him he loved him, and saw Melvin shed a tear. As soon as he vanished, Ethan opened the gift and saw a music box, it seemed to be handmade, and on the bottom, it was written: “For the best friend I could have ever found in my life, I hope you never forget me, I love you.” Ethan went home deep in thought, packed his things, and returned to Romania. When he arrived there, he cried, cried so much that his sister and friend thought he was going to die, but he didn’t. Instead, every year, he would go back to the same forest where he had left Melvin, and leave a letter on the tree trunk. Melvin did the same, but the next day. Ethan ended up immortalizing this story in a book and on his blog on the internet. He hoped one day to find Melvin again, and he believed this until his last

days. It is said that the friendship they created was so strong that when they died, they never forgot each other, and there are rumors that they died together, from sadness and longing.

Ana Cristina Miranda é aluna do curso de licenciatura Letras – Línguas Adicionais, atualmente está no 7° semestre do curso, 21 anos, natural do Pará, gosta de contos e histórias de fantasia, terror e romance. Coleciona hobbies como crochê, escrever em seu vlog, e montar quebra cabeças (às vezes). Seu gosto musical é variado, escutando de tudo um pouco, gosta de estudar sobre história, tecnologia e línguas.