DOROTEA - Dessert

     Eyes wide shut. And then wham! (wake me up before you go go) wide open. What a beautiful day isn't it? Outta bed and into the bathroom. I take a long glance at myself in the mirror in front of my bed and realized that, just like everyday in the morning I'm in need of hitting the restroom. My hair, as beautiful as always, my cheekbones. I mean, is it a sin to like one's own face? Besides... it is not like I actually shout it out loud when I'm in front of everyone "Hey, look how beautiful I am!", it is not like that. But I know it and I like my reflection in the mirror. Don't get me wrong, I am well aware the physique one arrives into the world with is more like a gift and less a merit, if anything I was lucky. But god sometimes I walk along the street and see... how would I call it without risk of offending someone in my mind? Less "graceful" people? And I think and I know it's unfair, just how many opportunities I've received just by being more or less (let's be honest, I'm on the side of more not the side of less) pretty. Outta the restroom and into a flashback. As one professor of mine once said:

     "And this philosopher in particular" I believe he was talking about Kant, but I'm at risk of misremembering "was so thorough and logical that even came into a conclusion, as harsh as it sounds, that beautiful is good and ugly is bad" I remember we all in the classroom burst out laughing "You can laugh" Damn, the teacher was hot I just remembered "but if you were walking at night in the city and without knowing you ended up in a dark alley, the kind of alley where Thomas and Martha Wayne would get shot, and suddenly a silhouette creeps out of the darkness what would you do?" We weren't laughing anymore "imagine it was the hunchback of Notre-Dame, I assure you you would jump out of your boots with fear, but if it was Brad Pitt you would sigh before making any assumption at the very least."

     And he knew what he was doing. Meritocracy? Our own merits? Or we were lucky of being born not so poor and not so ugly? Anyway, time to get ready.

     "Hey sugar, good morning" My dad tells me as I go down the stairs, he's watching tv, guess he's not gonna work today?

     "Hi dad, how's everything?" I search for milk in the fridge.

     "Excellent. I decided I'm not going into the office today, I feel kinda sick.

     "What is it?" took a pause from pouring milk to hear my dad, I worry about him, every now and then he gets really sick.

     "My back as usual, nothing serious actually but enough to be a excuse for not going to work today, besides, what would be the point of being your own boss if you can't take these chances to be absent from time to time?"

     "Yeah, I guess you're right" I resume the pouring of milk into the bowl, damn I love milk so much.

     "Also, there's a new neighbor, a woman" I take a quick glance at my father to see if there is something I should be worried about, my dad has never been the cheating or the jealous kind, but I like to be on the watch for these kinda things "Arrived a few days ago and yesterday came to say hi and brought a strange present. But hey, that reminds me, how's your guest list for your party going? You're turning 25 years now, a big event" He pauses the tv, letting me know I now has his full attention.

     "Agh, don't remind me. Tell me again, where is it gonna be?"

     " 'The Green Bean', the owner owes me a favor"

     "Ah yes. I know the place, always forgot. What kinda favor?" He always says things like this which makes him look like he runs an underground business a la Tony Soprano.

     "I helped get her daughter a job with another friend who owed me another kind of favor. Actually isn't she your friend? I think she's called Maria. Blonde, ponytail"

     "Ah yes! Maria, love her. Didn't know you knew her father"

     "Well, hope you invite her to your party then" makes a little pause, I hold my breath, usually when he does this he's gonna ask me for a favor "And speaking about your party, I would like to ask you for something" I let my breath go, I only hope this favor is not as big as some things he's asked in the past.

     "Well, tell me" Almost finished my cereal bowl, preparing mentally to go out.

     "I'd like to take a few seats from your birthday party. We're preparing some kinda competition at work and for the winner I would like to gift them a ticket for a party. Your party" I instantly hate the idea.

     "It is not goin' to be a little awkward havin' these old dudes... -I can see my dad's hurt feelings from a mile ago, he's not old but not so young either "You know what I mean. It is going to be awkward"

     "Yeah I get it, but actually that's the point, Dora" He always calls me Dora when he wants to ask for something "This competition is inside a new branch where there are only people your age. I don't know yet, some of my colleagues proposed it, you know, trying to understand the younger generations"

     "Well, I don't have a problem but isn't it kinda lame to receive as a prize a ticket for a party where you don't know anyone?" I raise my eyebrows, haven't these old dudes at his work think of this? "Mmm... well, this is not big of a town, maybe they ended up being people I know, or even people I invited myself"

     "Yes. But that would only a part of the prize. Your party is gonna be something big and fancy, wouldn't hurt you to welcome some new faces into the mix. Maybe you meet someone" He winks, I roll my eyes.

     "How many of them would be?"

     "Three or four, more or less"

     "Ah yes, no prob" On my way to my bedroom I remember something my dad said a minutes ago "Wait, what did you say of a strange gift from our neighbor? Tell me it's not a pie we won't be eating or such"

     "No, weirder" he turns the tv off completely, I guess it was indeed weird for him. He stands up and gets into the kitchen, where he takes a tupperware out of the fridge, it was black, you couldn't see what was inside and from the look of it it was heavy, so not empty "There. She knocked the door, blonde woman, 35 years old more or less, and said she was new to the neighborhood so she brought a little gift to introduce herself. So she took outta her handbag this "He looks at the tupperware with curiosity" I said she shouldn't have but she insisted and told me she didn't know what we as a family would like, so she brought me this, that anytime I open it it would contain the dessert we wanted most at the moment. So weird. Didn't seem she was joking, so I took it, it feels it has something inside but I am waiting for your mother to open it. You know she's had his encounters with weird little things"

     "Lame" It does sound weird, surely she is just a crazy lady "It probably is a chocolate cake, everyone likes it "I'm off to my room dad, talk to you later".