each other. He signaled at Joanes to take a seat.
“I think you and I ought to talk things through a bit more calmly.”
Joanes sat down.
“I went too far,” began the professor, also taking a seat. “I shouldn’t have asked you for the phone in front of my wife. It was tactless, and I’m genuinely sorry. But I’m sure you understand that both my wife and I are under serious pressure. I apologize. We’re all human, right?”
He smiled at Joanes as he said this. Then he wiped his palms along his pant legs and tried to straighten out the creases, which were considerably faded from the day’s wear.
“How’s your wife?” asked Joanes.
“I gave her a sedative, and she’s sleeping a little.”
“I’ve tried to get ahold of a telephone for you, but the owner of the hotel swears the network’s overloaded. He has personally offered to lend you his phone later, once communications are back up. He promised me.”
The professor took a deep breath and slowly let the air out.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
After a pause, the professor said, “You were a student of mine.”
“That’s right.”
“Could you remind me when?”
Joanes reminded him, and the professor wrinkled his brow trying to remember.
“I’m sorry. I don’t remember you. A good number of you passed through those classrooms. I hope I didn’t make things too hard for you. I know that neither I nor my course had a very good reputation among the students.”
“I didn’t have any trouble passing. In fact, I was crazy about Numerical Analysis,” said Joanes with a sheepish smile.
“You liked it? A lot? Well . . . it’s not often you hear that. Where do you work now?”
“I run my own business. Air conditioning units.”
The professor frowned.
“Air conditioning.”
“That’s right.”
“What’s your business called?”
Joanes told the professor, who shook his head.
“I’m not familiar with it.”
Joanes gave him a few more details, like the brands he used as his suppliers and the names of a few big clients—health care centers, banks, and supermarket chains, most of them from back when he’d shared the running of the business with his friend.
“Sounds like things are going remarkably well,” said the professor. “I’m really pleased for you.”
“Can’t complain.”
“I’ve never worked for myself. I imagine it must be very gratifying. Above all when business is booming.”
“Without a doubt.”
“Would you say you’re satisfied?”
There was a pause before Joanes replied, “I’m sorry, I don’t catch your drift.”
“Satisfied with your professional life. With the decisions you’ve made.”
“Of course I am. Very satisfied. I make my own decisions.”
“That’s important to you.”
Joanes gave a firm nod and added, “A lot of people would like to be in my position.”
“I don’t doubt that for a moment. Especially since things are going so well.”
Joanes nodded again.
The professor removed his glasses and rubbed the lenses with his shirttail. Then, as if he were merely thinking out loud, he said, “Before, in the room, I was under the impression that you were in some sort of trouble. That is, professional trouble. Something about your insistence on keeping the phone.”
“I’m waiting for an important call.”
“Yes, that much was made perfectly clear. But when you said that it was important, I imagined it was something crucial.”
“Precisely.”
“But now you’re telling me you’re the owner of your own business, so I suppose this ‘crucial’ refers to the fact that the future of the business depends, to a great extent, on this phone call.”
Joanes didn’t say a word.
“And yet, you’ve just told me that your business is thriving.”
“I’m waiting for a call from an important client. But my business doesn’t depend on it.”
“I see. But it is sufficiently important a call for you not to lend me your phone for even a minute.”
“I’m
“I think you and I ought to talk things through a bit more calmly.”
Joanes sat down.
“I went too far,” began the professor, also taking a seat. “I shouldn’t have asked you for the phone in front of my wife. It was tactless, and I’m genuinely sorry. But I’m sure you understand that both my wife and I are under serious pressure. I apologize. We’re all human, right?”
He smiled at Joanes as he said this. Then he wiped his palms along his pant legs and tried to straighten out the creases, which were considerably faded from the day’s wear.
“How’s your wife?” asked Joanes.
“I gave her a sedative, and she’s sleeping a little.”
“I’ve tried to get ahold of a telephone for you, but the owner of the hotel swears the network’s overloaded. He has personally offered to lend you his phone later, once communications are back up. He promised me.”
The professor took a deep breath and slowly let the air out.
“Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
After a pause, the professor said, “You were a student of mine.”
“That’s right.”
“Could you remind me when?”
Joanes reminded him, and the professor wrinkled his brow trying to remember.
“I’m sorry. I don’t remember you. A good number of you passed through those classrooms. I hope I didn’t make things too hard for you. I know that neither I nor my course had a very good reputation among the students.”
“I didn’t have any trouble passing. In fact, I was crazy about Numerical Analysis,” said Joanes with a sheepish smile.
“You liked it? A lot? Well . . . it’s not often you hear that. Where do you work now?”
“I run my own business. Air conditioning units.”
The professor frowned.
“Air conditioning.”
“That’s right.”
“What’s your business called?”
Joanes told the professor, who shook his head.
“I’m not familiar with it.”
Joanes gave him a few more details, like the brands he used as his suppliers and the names of a few big clients—health care centers, banks, and supermarket chains, most of them from back when he’d shared the running of the business with his friend.
“Sounds like things are going remarkably well,” said the professor. “I’m really pleased for you.”
“Can’t complain.”
“I’ve never worked for myself. I imagine it must be very gratifying. Above all when business is booming.”
“Without a doubt.”
“Would you say you’re satisfied?”
There was a pause before Joanes replied, “I’m sorry, I don’t catch your drift.”
“Satisfied with your professional life. With the decisions you’ve made.”
“Of course I am. Very satisfied. I make my own decisions.”
“That’s important to you.”
Joanes gave a firm nod and added, “A lot of people would like to be in my position.”
“I don’t doubt that for a moment. Especially since things are going so well.”
Joanes nodded again.
The professor removed his glasses and rubbed the lenses with his shirttail. Then, as if he were merely thinking out loud, he said, “Before, in the room, I was under the impression that you were in some sort of trouble. That is, professional trouble. Something about your insistence on keeping the phone.”
“I’m waiting for an important call.”
“Yes, that much was made perfectly clear. But when you said that it was important, I imagined it was something crucial.”
“Precisely.”
“But now you’re telling me you’re the owner of your own business, so I suppose this ‘crucial’ refers to the fact that the future of the business depends, to a great extent, on this phone call.”
Joanes didn’t say a word.
“And yet, you’ve just told me that your business is thriving.”
“I’m waiting for a call from an important client. But my business doesn’t depend on it.”
“I see. But it is sufficiently important a call for you not to lend me your phone for even a minute.”
“I’m
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