Dan Banu
Oh, dear God, where do you come from? Who brought you on Earth? he asked, entranced by the girl's beauty and grace. I come from Mars, she giggled. And you should know that after I've drained your youth and kindness, I'll leave just as I came. One day, I'll move on to another body, until I've passed through all my nine lives, she added, no longer smiling. When he awoke, the girl was gone. He searched everywhere, in vain. At the window, a fluffy white cat watched the butterflies playing in the garden.
Ana Maria Dobre-Nir
Dear Erwin, forget about the box. While you were debating whether I'm alive or dead, I found a way. I saw a small black hole and jumped through it, sliding through a strange tunnel of light. When I came out on the other side, I found myself on Mars, which welcomed me as best as it could-with very little oxygen and plenty of solar radiation. I could have explored its mysterious dunes, but, well... where there's carbon dioxide, there's no life. Since then, you two keep arguing, and in a way, I still exist in your box. A paradoxical meow.
Cristina Daniela Dumitru-Pascal
Men come from Mars, women from Venus. And their animals do too. He had Cleo, a stray cat with the airs of a panther, and I had Saphir, my poor mastiff. We liked each other, went out, had sex in hotel rooms to avoid upsetting the animals, then went to a cabin for them to meet. Saphir didn't even acknowledge her, just slept, while Cleo didn't miss an opportunity to irritate him. A simple bark sent her into a corner without the right to appeal. Of course, we didn't stay together. I heard he chose someone with a goldfish.
(Translated by Larisa-Marta Mreană / 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.