Crumbs by Miha Mazzini Page A

grinned widely.
    â€˜No, oh no. Let’s say I’m just passing through.’
    The trolley was full.
    â€˜Are you in a hurry?’
    â€˜No’
    â€˜Wait for me then. I’ll just take this and then I can go and eat’
    â€˜Okay,’ I nodded.
    He pushed the hood back onto his face and shoved at the trolley.
    â€˜l’ve got to tell you something,’ he added before he concentrated on flexing and torturing his muscles.
    I stood by the exit and leaned on the fence along the stairs from the gallery.
    The two who were filling the trolley put their shovels against the wall and left. Ibro was hanging his coat and hood on the hanger. I joined him and took off mine.
    The cold outside made me shiver. I felt my back with my palm. My clothes were soaked.
    Ibro offered me a cigarette and lit it with a match. He looked around as if to make sure there’d be no witnesses to our conversation.
    â€˜I’ve fallen in love,’ he said.
    Damn the southerly wind, damn the spring. It’ll fuck up each and every one of us.
    â€˜I saw her today. In the morning. When I was going to work’
    In these situations I never know what sort of expression to put on my face. Even if I’d had a crocodile’s face lbro wouldn’t have noticed it because of his enthusiasm.
    â€˜I already know her name!’
    He leaned towards me and whispered, ‘Ajsha.’
    â€˜Beautiful, yes,’ I said.
    â€˜A beautiful name, isn’t it? If you could only see her. How beautiful she is.’
    I nodded.
    The sweat drying on my back was making me feel colder and colder.
    â€˜You are going to the canteen, aren’t you Ibro?’
    â€˜Yes.’
    â€˜Me, too. Let’s go.’
    We walked slowly towards the brick building. More and more people were going the same way.
    â€˜I’ll point her out to you,’ he exclaimed enthusiastically. ‘You’ll see, she’s terribly beautiful. Even you’ll have to admit it. You who knows everything about women.’
    I looked at him.
    â€˜Who told you that?’
    He was embarrassed. He wasn’t sure whether he’d said too much. He admitted.
    â€˜Selim.’
    He was looking at me with the eyes of a dog asking for forgiveness.
    I nodded. It was all right. In the years of sitting quietly in the bar, alone with his beer, Selim must have seen mewith many women. In many different circumstances.
    We went into the canteen and lined up.
    Ibro kept jumping up to look around. I felt very unpleasant. He was like a pupil who was taking his teacher to see something he’d made and was impatiently anticipating his praise. A rebuke would break his heart. I decided to praise his chosen one without any reservations. If you try you can find something worth praising in every woman. White lies are like small, empty cushions. But lying down on them is still more comfortable than lying down without them. He started hitting me on the back as if he were trying to break into me.
    â€˜There! There she is. She’s eating. Can you see?’
    He pointed to the long rows of tables. Body after body. All in blue coats.
    All similar faces. The ones coming and the ones going, all juggling with their trays. I couldn’t see her.
    â€˜Can you see her?’ he asked again.
    â€˜Yes, yes,’ I nodded and looked around more to please than out of any real interest.
    â€˜She’s a real beauty, isn’t she?’
    â€˜Yes, yes,’ I kept nodding, still not seeing Ajsha.
    The crowd moved, and for a moment I caught a glimpse of the girl I’d flirted with the day before. The one from the nail packing department. She noticed me, too. We smiled at each other. I fell into her eyes.
    Other people hid her again.
    I became aware of Ibro trembling as if he was just about to throw all his clothes off.
    He turned towards me and grabbed me by the collar. Shook me.
    â€˜Did you see? Did you see that!?’
    I didn’t get it.
    â€˜How