Until I was 3-years-old, my nights were dark. I don't know if the thick darkness gave birth to the three-headed dragons, scary ogres and headless necks from which blood flowed in waves, it is however certain that my grandmother lit a light. The light above the door. That's how I named it. Then my grandma passed away, I grew up, the light went out, dragons became a part of my life, and I learned how to kill them, to suck their blood, to gnaw their bones and then to burp. Today all this magic happens as soon as I close my eyes and fall asleep.
Alina Ilie
We can make uncle Vasilache an acrobat, cause I don't know how he managed to never broke a bone, going from ditch to ditch. Grandma Nela is a juggler, she makes soup and the second course at the same time, and she also has a pie in the oven. Daddy, you can be the clown, you make me laugh even when you're mad, and I'll give you my red nose from when I played Rudolf in kindergarten. And I will sing something beautiful with mommy. We don't have a magician, but we can ask Brer Costică to help us, things always disappear when he appears, he surely attended a magic school or somethin'. And the circus is ready.
Cecilia Fofiu
I am pondering over a technical book, bored, when, in the silence of the reading room, I feel a warm, pleasant breeze. I am picked up by the collar and placed gently on a fluffy bed. I climb through the open dome and see the wings flapping rhythmically. A heron magically carries me above the clouds. Troubled, I hold on to the bindings and admire the splendor of the landscape. I happily recognize the street, the yard and my wife. She's with Nicu on the lounger, arms around each other. I'm shaken, I almost even fell. I'm screaming as much as I can. I want to go down. A hand shakes me frantically. Sir, wake up, you snore too much.
(Translated by Tania Diniță / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year II / Corrected by prof. dr. Nadina Vișan, Edited by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)
Versiunea în română a acestui text se poate citi aici, în rubrica Ficțiuni Reale.