The responses ( part II )

For a while both Lina and Matteo didn't pronounce a single word, they stayed there glancing at each other, Matteo seemed like trying to find something in her eyes which would confirm that they were not dreaming, seemed like the excitement in her tone of voice was not enough obvious or convincing.

" Why are you staring at me like that, all stiff and silent? That's good news, " Lina was revealing a huge smile on her face while she was trying to get some reaction from the young boy.

But the reaction was quite comprehensive since such an outcome was quite a surprise.

Usually, the behavior adopted by most people, when they went through a very painful experience like all what happened to those people, like losing someone or something dear to them, being forced to abandon their homes and all that they knew and we're familiar with, is to cut off any relationship with the reality, at least that what Matteo thought. He thought they would rather choose to quit all interactions with others and abandon any kind of responsibilities and close themselves to the outside world while keeping remembering and mourning their normal lives they had lost forever.

And honestly, that was what Lina was thinking, too, how the new citizens would react. They had experienced the most painful and traumatizing trial ever seen in their whole lives, rare are those who would be able to overcome such terrible incidents.

The red night. The tragic night in which all people were witnesses of what was called "true fear", the night where all of them saw their comprehension of the world fading away and the foundations of logic they had used to build their conception of reality crumbling down and collapse.

Lina could understand that some people would be reluctant to start a new life so soon, like, they were, maybe, not yet able to believe to all what happened, or they were just not ready to trust anyone or anything anymore. As, unlike Stainfall's population, they didn't have someone like Jamal on whom they could rely on, a symbol strong enough to make them feel safe, they were all alone when the problems were keeping coming, such a situation would have broadened their depression and their fear as well as their capacity to have faith in this world.

And the combination of all these analyses made them, especially Matteo, wondering why at that moment she read the letters of the refugees, it turned out that they all agreed to contribute to the rebuilding of the society and Stainfall itself. She was expected that at least only 20 to 30% of them would accept her offer. Not to mention that she didn't send the demand to the totality of the refugees but only a part. But regardless, this result, even though it was hard for her to believe in the beginning, made her believe even more that her project could work at the final.

She turned around to face the window on the left. With a slight smile on the corner of her lips, she said, " Thought that humans can only trust in humans when they can no longer count on god ". She leaned on the backrest of her chair and crossed her fingers above her belly like her favorite movie character she used to imitate while Matteo was gazing at her, confused.

" Do you really think so? " he plunged his hands into his pant's pockets.

" What do you want to say " Lina turned back her head and stared at him.

" What I mean is that actually, the situation is totally the opposite of what you have said, " he stepped forward, picked up a letter among the stack, and started to swing it swiftly in front of her eyes as he said, " their reactions exactly show that their faith in God never was such strong before this moment, you can't stand up and walk forward after having been by the life so hard if you don't have something very strong, like faith, to hang on ".

" What do you think would be the attitude of a person who just witnessed an overview of the hell falling upon the earth, " he kept saying to support his argument.

" There would be two... or rather three cases, " Lina responded after a quick moment of hesitation, " either they would bear with it and stand up to face it or they go crazy swallowed by the disillusion or they assume that they are already doomed and there is no way out and fall into extreme depression, in this case, they would either kill themselves or start committing every crime they are willing to and do whatever they want to, we saw the example with the outlaws in every city, or... " she paused and hung her sight on the boy.

"... Or they start doing good deeds in hope to repent and redeem themselves and pray for the mercy and the forgiveness of God, " Matteo ended her claim.

Lina considered his words and finally acknowledged them, [ when you watched the hell coming down to the earth, you have no other choice but to believe in God, otherwise you will lose twice ] she concluded.

She crossed one more time Matteo's serious sight and sighed, " well, you may relax. Whatever their reasons the most important is that they accept ".

Only then that Matteo realized that he had been nonstop frowning for a while. With his hand, he wiped the upper of his face as if he wanted to clean out something on it, and when he finished his face became less shrunken. He scraped his throat and said " well, so what should we do now? " He landed down on the desk the paper in his hand, " do you want me to write and send other demands to the rest of the new citizens? "

Lina thought for a while having two fingers on her lips. She suddenly landed her elbows on the desk, " No I get a better idea, " she finally said.

Matteo remained quiet waiting for her to go on her explanation.

" A public announcement, " she firmly said. " We will gather all the people living in this town and in a speech I will directly ask the new citizens to join us in our journey to reconstruct a reasonable society and be official and active citizens ".

When Matteo frowned Lina, immediately, understood that there was something wrong with her plan, or at least, elements of it that were bothering him. " What's wrong? " she asked.

" Oh, nothing " he exclaimed. " I was just wondering if a public proposal will not be a bit too time-consuming? " Matteo remarked, " don't forget you know? We don't have time to waste ".

Lina sighed soothingly as what she thought being a mistake was not really a big issue, " no it's the opposite, a public proposal is the fastest way to ask them to join us, " she started to explain, " this time we were lucky as the answers came all at the same time, but if we want to reproduce the same scheme and send letters, the new citizens may tend to take more time to think about it before they inform us of their decisions. Moreover, if we assume that the majority would be favorable the group effect may, unconsciously, influence them to accept ".

Matteo rose slowly his hand to indicate to Lina that he had a question, the latter made a soft move with her hand to tell him to go on. " Will the public proposal not have the same effect? Not ignoring that there is a probability for the group influence to have the opposite effect, " he paused, " it's a gamble ".

Lina shook her head, " it will be different, I mean it will work out, " while she was carrying on talking she turned her chair to the right, " first, there will be a little more pressure since I will directly give a time limit of one day to respond and secondly the fact that there are already a few parts of them who already accepted the offer, during the speech, they will unconsciously start to persuade the neighbors to not waste the occasion to join the us ".

Slowly the boy started to get the scheme, " when someone is sure to make a good deal the most of the time his first reaction is to share it with the others, right? " he asked to know if it was really what she was intending to use.

She nodded, " yes it's exactly that. With this method we can be sure to have a positive response directly on the next day ".

" So, should I organize it right now or you want to do it another day? " he asked.

Lina stood up from her chair, " what? no, you do it right now, " she said while she was moving out from the desk, " the earliest would be the best, don't forget that as you said we don't have time to waste ".

He nodded and moved aside to go sitting on his offhand desk to write the announcement.

While he was busy with it Lina's thoughts suddenly go toward his boyfriend, she was wondering if he already arrived in the first city they decided to start with. She was also asking herself if she must call them to be informed or just waiting for him to call her instead, she knew that they could talk with the neighbors' cities only once a day so they had to use that single call wisely, which meant that the most logical decision was to wait for him to call her despite what her heart was saying.

While he was tapping, Matteo once rose his glance toward her and noticed her dreary mood. He could easily conclude that it was linked with Jamal however he couldn't find the right thing to say to cheer her up. He ended up saying the first thing in his mind, " if you immerse yourself deeply into the work you may think about him less frequently ".

She slowly turned toward him and responded with a weary voice, " I would rather prefer to go back home to masturbate in waiting for his call ".

Matteo restrained himself from laughing and he asked her with a hand in front of his mouth to hide his smile, " do you miss him that much? "

She ignored his amusement and returned to sit down on her desk and resume the work, one hour later they finished to redact and print the announcement. Matteo arranged the heap of papers in a bag and carried it to go hang them everywhere in the city, he had plenty of time before 1 A.M when people would start leaving their homes to walk on the streets so he didn't have to hurry.

When he was leaving the office he turned back to Lina and asked her, " will you stay here waiting for his call? "

She leaned her head on the palm of her right hand with the elbow on the desk and nodded slowly. " Don't worry I'm not intending to play with myself here ".

" That's not what I wanted to say... or at least not the only thing I wanted to say, " he paused " you should go to see Natasha, she may be able to comfort you ".

" I will after she finished to teach to the lads how to throw punches ". She waved her hand when Matteo was leaving the office and laid her head on the desk when he closed the door behind him.