I open my eyes. It's still night. The trams can be heard, the day is starting slowly. I get up, another day, the same plummet. This job drains me of strength. I make coffee, pet the cat. It's cold in the house. I get dressed and leave. I open my eyes. I can hear the trams. I'm cold. The cat's meowing. I make coffee, get dressed and leave. I open my eyes. I have to leave again. I open my eyes. It's quiet. Sun gets through in the window, the cat purrs beside me. It's warm in the house. The smell of coffee surrounds me. I smile and fall asleep.
Elena Mihaela Hristodorescu
Two Gods had Magdalene in this life. One was up in Heaven, always looking after other things, other people. The other was her husband, Gheorghe. She could hear his harsh voice: My God, you lazy bitch, I better not come to you now. She looked frightened at the house. The man was sleeping on the porch with his fists doubled. She looked at the mole's corpse and her eyes lit up as a mix of understanding and madness. Don't kill, she whispered. She straightened her body mauled by bumps, grabbed the hoe, and set off confidently for home.
Camil Popescu
It's a hard frost, I just awaked and people have gathered outside, waiting for me to thrust my head out of the burrow so they can have a good day. Last year I had a cold for a month that I thought I was dying. Luckily for me, it as Getuța to raise five hills around me to keep me warm. Who the hell goes out on this weather, bro. Look at them, they're waiting like idiots instead of minding their own business. Let me pull my fur down and show it to them, to bring them to their feet. Hey you all, look at this. Spring is here.
(Translated by Florina Georgiana Țîncu / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year I / Corrected by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)
Versiunea în română a acestui text se poate citi aici, în rubrica Ficțiuni Reale.