Carpe Diem

She picked up the telephone. There was somebody she didn’t know. He called her by name. “Hello, Christine!” he said, “How are you? I would like to meet you again.” “I think there is a mistake” she said frightened. “No, I’m James!” the stranger replied. “We last met yesterday, at the Mall.” She told him she didn’t know anybody named James. “Already?” he asked. “That’s a pity. Good-bye then.” She hung up. He sounded very disappointed. Christine didn’t understand anything. Who was the man that called? How did he know her name? And moreover, she hadn’t gone anywhere the day before. She had been very busy. She tried to remember the people she talked to, but nothing was unusual. The next day, Christine had to go shopping. She went to the Mall. As she was passing through the computers department she was stopped by a man who asked her opinion about a printer. “How did you know that I work to a computer company?” “Well, … I saw you there once.” He answered after a time. Christine helped him with his problem, and then they talked a lot. She gave him her telephone number in case he would have to ask her something. She was surprised to find out that his name was James. But she was sure it was just a coincidence. They had met several times since then. She even invited him once to her office. Something weird happened: as she knew more about James, he seemed he was forgetting many things. Until one day, when she saw him for the last time. He was walking down a street and he didn’t even recognize her. “I am Christine! Don’t you know me?” “No.” he answered indifferently and walked away. She stood a while there and she figured it out. Then she said: “Already?”