Overpopulation

Ana Ludușan
He entered holding two little children by the hand. I love Romania, peace here, good for my childs. The wife, parents and brothers are dead, the building went boom. From Türkiye came on foot. Want work for my children. After a year go back. They removed a lung, work the kitchen, you know, need to work for my childs, cries. I take him in my arms. Do you have faith? He vigorously nods his head. I present myself with the file and the evidence where it is needed. The clerks pretend not to see me. I put the file on the table and say: You know what a refugee is; I will come back to check on you.

Paul Dârvariu
Come home, Grigore. What came over you? I announced the Police and even posted your photo on the internet. Good thing grave diggers have Facebook as well. One recognized you and informed me about it. What are you doing here? During the day is hot and the sunlight gets to you while the night is cold on this cement. Come now, mommy made some tripe soup for you, just the way you like it. And I made burnt sugar cream as well. Are you coming? I'm not. I just got used to the place. If I leave, another will come and take it from me. See how overpopulated it is? Are you crying, Grigore? Why are you crying? I'm just thinking about the wonderful woman I'm leaving in the hands of another, dear Coca.
 
 Nicolae Popescu
The white sheet burns his retina. He was supposed to hand in the book in three days but he doesn't have the ending. He holds his head in his hands. Ideas are crowding but he can't choose one that he likes. This one is sad; why should the hero die? This one is even sadder; should the hero's girlfriend die? He doesn't want weepy endings; how about making the protagonist teach his horse how to sing? Or should his girlfriend run with the horse? Or should his mom sell the horse? Or his girlfriend to run with his mother's boyfriend? Damn, there are too many characters in the story. He decided: he is going to kill them all.

(Translated by Ioana Bobeanu / University of Bucharest, Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures, MTTLC, year I / Corrected by Silvia Petrescu, coordinator of the translations)