2. Strangesituation

—Hello Alicia, I’ve arrived! —said Guillermo, s琀椀ll confused.

—What happened to you? You seem weird, and your hair is uncombed.

—Why is your hair like that, dad? —Ludovico asked, while Jazmín laughed at his look.

—Did you not feel the wind? I barely got home…

—I think I heard some wind but with so much work to do I didn’t no琀椀ce —Alicia responded.

Before dinner, Guillermo went to the bathroom. He could hear music from far away. He washed his hands, face… and the music kept going. He got out of the bathroom and went to have dinner with his family. It wasn’t frequent to hear music in that neighborhood.

—Where is the music coming from? — Guillermo asked.

—What music? Ludovico and Jazmín asked at the same 琀椀me.

—The only music playing… — said, Guillermo. Alicia and the children looked at each other in surprise.

—Guillermo —said Alicia—, I can’t hear any music. Even though Guillermo could s琀椀ll hear it, he didn’t say anything else; he was exhausted from work and a li琀琀le confused by the windstorm. That night he went to bed earlier than usual. The following morning, the music started early. It was Saturday and Guillermo didn’t have to go to work. He went to make breakfast while paying a琀琀en琀椀on to the music. Various instruments were playing, like the ones from a philharmonic orchestra.

—Good morning, Alicia —said Guillermo, giving her a kiss.

—Hi Guillermo, how are you today? — Alicia asked, worried.

—Very good, said Guillermo. I have woken up to this beau琀椀ful music and I feel fantas琀椀c.

But when saying this he was surprised by Alicia’s worried face.

—What’s wrong, love?

Alicia just looked at him, worried.

—Are you going to say again you can’t hear the music? —Guillermo asked, skep琀椀cal.

—I can’t hear anything Guillermo, just a dog barking, some cars passing by, and birds, nothing else. You may be stressed. You should take a break, and it wouldn’t be bad if you saw a doctor.

Guillermo hesitated, maybe it was true he had to see a doctor. He had been spending too much 琀椀me doing the same thing at work, waking up very early and arriving home rela琀椀vely late. Doing the same things, that, with repe琀椀琀椀on, were losing meaning.

Then, he remembered a word game he used to play as a child. One had to repeat a word un琀椀l the syllables lost order, and it transformed itself into another word. He was trying to remember…

—I think they were two syllables words that if changing the order, they formed…

—Guillermo —Alicia interrupted—; you are not well. I know a doctor that could help.

—Guillermo, please come into the doctor’s o昀케ce — called the secretary.

The wai琀椀ng room had chairs, one next to the other, and some iron and glass furniture decorated by jars with plas琀椀c 昀氀owers and other metal ornaments. On the center table, there were also one or another fashion, clothes, and TV people magazines.

In the wai琀椀ng room, a TV airing a show about the world’s most luxurious automobiles.

For a moment, Guillermo stopped hearing the music.

—Good a昀琀ernoon, come in —the doctor called. Guillermo greeted him and took a seat. While he was si琀�ng, he took no琀椀ce of the big books the doctor had on a shelf.

The music was s琀椀ll there.

—Tell me Guillermo, what brings you here?

— I’ve been listening to some music since yesterday. I arrived home from work listening to it, however at home no one else can hear it.

—Can you hear it, doctor?

—I can’t seem to no琀椀ce it —He paused and asked—: how have you been feeling lately?

—Okay, I mean, I have been a li琀琀le 琀椀red from work but now that it’s the weekend, I feel alright; by the way, this thing with the music more than worrying me, makes me happy.

—Tell me —asked the doctor in confusion— when did you start no琀椀cing the music?

—Yesterday when I arrived from work, there was so much wind… I believe it started right a昀琀er a wind gust when I had to grab myself from a tree not to 昀氀y away. That moment seemed to last forever… then the wind stopped, and I started listening to this music.

—Everything seems to indicate that you su昀昀er from post-trauma琀椀c stress. —Due to Guillermo’s confused face, the doctor con琀椀nued explaining it—: This happens when one lives an extremely di昀케cult experience emo琀椀onally. So- me琀椀mes the body reacts provoking symptoms like the ones you have right now. Please sit on the examina琀椀on table so I can check you.

Guillermo sat on the examina琀椀on table, and the doctor checked his eyes, ears, listened to his breathing… everything appeared normal.

S琀椀ll, he could hear something else, something like humming. It seemed to come from Guillermo’s head.

The doctor came closer to his head and with great surprise, he heard the music!

He didn’t know how to tell Guillermo. At that moment, Guillermo no琀椀ced the doctor’s concern.

—What’s

going on, doctor?

—Mmm… well, I have to say I can hear the music you seem to hear… the noise comes from your head— he took his 琀椀me to say it, s琀椀ll skep琀椀cal.

—I don’t understand —Guillermo thought. He wondered how the music could come from his head; although that could explain why he was the only one who could feel it.

Inthemean琀椀me,thedoctorwassearching for something in one of the drawers of his desk. He grabbed an object from the drawer and came closer to Guillermo. It was a thick magnifying glass.

Without saying a word, he gently grabbed with one hand the pa琀椀ence’s head, and with the other held the magnifying glass.

He could not believe his eyes. He had seen strange things throughout his years of service, all types of diseases and unknown symptoms he had to study from his big diagnosis books, but never had he seen something so unique as what he saw that day on top of Guillermo’s head.

In between Guillermo’s hairs were 琀椀ny people, so small you could barely see them with the help of the magnifying glass. Each of them had an even 琀椀nier musical instrument. It was very di昀케cult to see the 琀椀ny violins, 昀氀utes, cellos, trombones, drums… there were all types of instruments, even a piano.