Watching Carmen: The Fifth Look

A/N: Edited as it was being typed in Word... I wonder... Out of all the Watching Carmen posts, I think this is my favorite.

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Carmen was glad that Patricia, her boss, had asked her to open the library the next day, though at the time she´d been angry because she always liked spending the night at Samuel´s after one of their dates, she liked it a lot to wake up cuddled in his arms and if she had to open the place it meant she was going to have to go home.

The woman sighed. “How can you do this to me?” Carmen said under her breath as she climbed the staircase towards the library´s main entrance. She didn´t bother to turn on the lights, she knew the place by heart, she´d been working there since she majored in literature, her family had insisted for her to find what they thought was a better job but she always laughed it off, she loved the place, she wouldn´t mind getting old there.

Carmen had made her goal to read every book in the place, she chuckled as she thought this one more time as her hand caressed the back of the books, she´d left many unread books already. She walked towards the poetry section which she´s been reading; she turned on the lights of that section only and took a book at random. She looked at it. It was a Roque Dalton book, a very raw type of poetry, always talking about the social injustices… Carmen sat in front of the new painting, she stared at it for a moment.

“Are you watching me?” she huffed and started her reading. After an hour or so the lights flickered, it was midnight already. She rolled her eyes; she hated interruptions in her private time. She glanced up to the lamps of the high ceiling when she looked down to her book, she thought she saw the angel in the painting in front of her move, she squinted her eyes and got up walking to the picture. Carmen rubbed her eyes with her left hand, the book on her other hand.

“I´m hallucinating” she mumbled once she removed her hand from her eyes. She turned to go to her seat but she saw a tiny light right in front of the image of the angel, she turned to the picture again as the light grew wider, she stepped back until her back touched the table behind her, the angel from the painting got up as the light seemed to get in him, he walked straight to her stepping out of the frame, leaving empty the painting. Carmen´s eyes were wide. And all coherent thought left her brain.

The woman in front of the empty painting snapped out of her astonishment when the book she was holding hit the floor, it sounded loud for the lack of people, she flinched as I bent to pick up the book.

“Good night” I greeted handing the book; she laughed leaving me at a loss. I smiled “Is something funny?” I looked around, Navitas, invisible next to her was bending protectively around her, the angel´s eyes angry at me for showing myself to a human.

“The painting has come to life, only I could dream of that” she stressed the word I as she took the book from my hand.

“Are you dreaming?” I inquired to her back; she was walking to sit in the same brown wood chair. She sat and put her book in front of her, on the table.

“There´s no other explanation” she said dismissively

“What if it’s real?” I tilted my head; she glanced up at me from her book, huffed and shrugged.

“And now you´ll keep reading a book that if this is a dream you are not really reading and if this is real then that´s so boring compared to an angel in front of you” I reasoned as she kept her eyes on the book, she glanced at me again

“Not an angel, a painting, the author´s imagination”

“Maybe the author did see me, the angel” I said causing her to laugh.

“This is so me –she lightly hit her head with the book- I´m arguing with myself in my mind with the bits of information that Linda gave me a few weeks ago” she sighed. I chuckled because her reasoning actually made sense but also because it said that she had a vivid imagination…but also she seemed very willing to accept she was asleep very quick.

“Ok, angel of the painting –she stared at me as I smiled- let´s have a talk –she motioned to the chair right in front of her, I pulled it and sat- I have things to ask you” she narrowed her eyes

“Alright, let´s talk” I slightly bowed my head

“Ok, first, why did your painter named you Watching Carmen?”

“Because I was watching you”

“Right –she giggled- I´m not your Carmen –she made quotation marks- you´re mistaken, that picture seems pretty old, I wasn´t even born” she rolled her eyes

“I looked at you at the beach”

“You´re confused, angel. Now –she continued her questions- tell me what´s your name, if you have one”

“Caelum” I simply said, she laughed again

“Latin –she smiled- Sky, right, I sometimes am shocked at the creations of my mind, I haven´t thought of that before, Caelum –she seemed to ponder- I like it”

“And I like yours” I supplied, she rolled her eyes

“Show me your wings” she commanded. I stood up and spread a pair of wings from my back, they´re nothing like birds’ are but I guess that´s the closest reference to how they are. Carmen slowly walked to me “Turn around” she said once she was closer, she touched my back, where my wings were connected to my back.  It’s such a fascinating thing the sense of touch. My skin tingled as she inspected my wings.

“You´re like an angel” she said in awe after a while, she was now touching my forehead, my left temple, going down with two of her fingertips to end up tracing my jaw line. I closed my eyes, I wanted to feel the touch but at the same time I could still see her as clear as I was still watching the baby and an angry Navitas protecting her, it was his doing that she thought it was a dream. He´d whispered that to her in hopes that it protected her.

“I thought you said I was a product of your imagination” I said quietly, she chuckled

“You are. I made you good” she stood there just looking at me for a long while

“Who´s your author?” she asked going back to her seat. Once she sat, she crossed her arms over her chest as if daring me

“I can´t tell you that”

“Of course you can´t! –she uncrossed her arms and moved her hands as she spoke- it´s not in my brain since it´s unknown, you don´t know it either”

“Oh, I know –I place my hands on the table, across from her- This was made for you”

“Right”

“Think about it, it found you. I came down to you through the artist paintbrush”

We remained silent.

“I wonder if I´m cuddled on Sam´s arms” she said to herself

“What happened there was real” I informed her of her rejecting of the man

“I know” she interrupted

“And so is this”

“Go back to your painting, Caelum, you´ll be missed if you are not there once the library opens” she sighed

“I´ll keep watching you from there –I smiled- I just wanted to make a miracle for you tonight” I quoted her phrase, her eyes grew with realization as Navitas touched her forehead and she immediately fell asleep.