UNEXPECTED JOURNEYS

The next day he was not able to go to teach at the university; his students missed him, especially Liz and Ximena. Although Ximena had another matter that tormented her, she wanted to tell Liz about it to unload her concern.

"My friend, I have a problem of the maximum."

"Ximena, let me guess: is she pregnant by the professor?"

"No, not that; we didn't do anything at all, yet, and who knows if this weekend, because he invited me to his farm in the city of Melgar."

"Lol, you're going on an all-inclusive plan."

"Ha-ha-ha-ha, but I'm afraid."

"You're not even a little girl."

"I haven't been with a man for a long time."

"Ximena, I don't know how you can live like this, and how long has it been?"

"I've never been with a man; I'm so ashamed to tell you that."

"I can't believe it, my friend, you're giving me a hard time; you were or are married."

"That was a farce; we didn't even kiss with that man, or well, I guess we did, but we didn't make love or anything like that; it was something that was agreed upon by my parents and his grandfather."

"What happened? Was he gay?"

"No, I guess not; he was an idiot, let's leave it at that."

"I heard you needed to get married"

"Yes, Liz, I needed it urgently. I'll tell you later. But first, I'll tell you what I have between my chest and my back that makes me uncomfortable, that makes me feel like I'm splitting in two. "

"It's that the teacher is going to break you in two this weekend."

"You saw that in the Muzo mine there was a landslide; that was on TV."

"Your mines, Ximena; you have to say my emerald's mines."

"The mines belong to the government, my company simply has the concession to exploit them; my father got the administration; that's why I have to take care of them; besides, my disgusting uncle created many problems with the community, things that I have had to cure; now this accident makes everything worse; a minister has already hinted that they could take away our concession."

"Your turn is to hand out money; Ximena, that's how things work in this country and in many others."

"Liz, yes, of course, although the government also sent a renowned detective to investigate—he is named in the media every time; he is called ´Das´, and he emailed me yesterday that he had found some evidence that the collapse had been provoked by someone, and he was following the clues of the culprits. I was checking my inbox, and I got an anonymous email that left me stunned. It said that if they continued investigating the collapse of the mine, the next one that would have dirt falling on me would be for tons; they attached a catalog of coffins and funeral bonds, and some of those things made me very worried."

"Ximena, of course I understand you; you should move; I heard that they found some cars full of dead people near your house; it is strange that, although they took their documents and cell phones, they left the money and jewelry; please, friend, for whatever you want, go live with me and let's hire some handsome bodyguards, but don't forget to go this weekend with the handsome Angelo or Professor D."

"Liz, I have a concern; I forgot to ask you, why is it Professor D?"

"It's dough; it's a kind of flour; I heard he likes to make pizza a lot; I think so."

"I hope so; as long as it's not the flour that goes up the nose, everything will be fine; Liz, you know, I can't stand people that have to do with drug trafficking."

…

The expected weekend arrived, and Ximena felt fear and indecision. She did not feel capable of going with a man alone for a weekend, although it was true that she was no longer a teenager, at only 24 years old, a time when she still considered herself young but not a girl. It was hard for her to prepare herself for what that meant; it was impossible to consider that this man would not try to touch her, and that with that? She was already going over time; all her friends had already had many relationships, most of them since they were fifteen years old. She lay down on the bed, pressing her face against the pillow, just imagining Angelo naked; it would be delicious to see his naked body and even more to feel it; maybe she should try it, although it should not be so easy; they were not even boyfriend and girlfriend, just a few kisses, although her failed, unconsummated marriage had taught her that waiting is desperate; She laughed when she realized what she was thinking like a little girl, she stood up looking at herself in the mirror and said to herself,

"Ximena, you're already a woman; it's time for this body to discover what it can do and feel what a man can do to it; it's time to calm its cravings, which it only calms by keeping busy or with cold showers; what if it has cobwebs or is hard, and you can't get in? I must go and take advantage of it, In case he wants to be respectful, I will take the initiative and rape him; I will take off my innocent suit, or my nun suit and disguise myself as a cat in heat; I will leave Bogotá a virgin; and I will return knowing how it feels to taste the sweet dessert to which the rich and the poor have access."

She got ready, was well-dressed and perfumed, she packed bathing suits, three changes of clothes, and all her beautiful underwear; she got excited when the phone rang, and it was an unknown number. "It's Angelo," she thought, but a sharp voice told her otherwise.

"Miss Ximena, we need you urgently at the Queen Sofia clinic; I know I shouldn't tell you this over the phone, but what happened is that your parents were brought because they suffered a car accident."

She almost fainted, her mind went blank for a few seconds, and then a flood of memories came to her, how her biological parents had died in a car; she remembered that dreadful day when she survived with her sister; when her parents crashed into a wall but were already dead, some guys in green uniforms shot at them from a motorcycle; the memory was cut by the symbol of a rifle.

"Mrs. Ximena, are you okay?"

The shrill voice on the phone brought her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, ma'am, I'm on my way to the clinic,"