All the others had fallen already. The knight captured the rook at D4, the white bishop set its sight on the black queen in the corner, at H8, while pawns fell, mixing into the mud. The white queen stayed hidden for a while, until the black knight spotted her. The white rook fell last, at the king's feet with a sound as if it were crushed battlements, at B2. Only the two of them remained on the board, their treasure chest empty. They exchanged a sharp glare, shifting their sceptres from one hand to the other. They stood there, motionless, like cliffs, waiting for someone to ring the final bell.
George Dometi
And nothing happened. Everyone stood frozen. Even I didn't dare to make a sound. That coppery bell in the church tower roared, shaking the windows, but nothing changed. Birds chirped, the wind blew softly, and the white, fluffy, deformed clouds passed unbothered across the calm, lazy sky. Sometimes I wonder if others feel the end closer than ever. It was announced yesterday morning by the Jewish, and they don't lie. Nobody cares anymore about the human tragedy. Everyone rattles their lack of love.
Ramona Ungureanu
I thought, I know how these things work, when the storks pass by with their bundles, that's the end of summer, goodbye. So I strained myself as much as I could and clung to August. But my right foot kept moving forward, must be muscle memory, while my left one stayed plated. By December I was practically doing the splits, as if I were a bridge over which whole regiments of seconds and battalions of minutes march. My left leg had already started to shake, but I held on. Snow was falling on my right knee, and a bird flew off from summer, and I called out, Take me with you, I don't want to go back to school.
(Translated by Maria Loredana Constantin / 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.