Ars Longa, Vita Brevis

It was one of those sweet dreams that lingers in your memory long after you are awake, giving you sensuous pleasures even when you dwell on it for a moment. Her elegant, young face, with heavy make-ups was so close to my face that she could even hear my thoughts. Now that I think of – her face is an elegant version of actress Jenna Ortega, whose face I had seen last night while browsing movies on Netflix.

“You are so beautiful, so attractive, I am afraid to look at you,” I whispered.

“Even with my crooked tooth.”

She smiles, revealing her lower canine tooth, the one that refuses to line up with the rest of the premolars.

“It’s cute,” I respond.

I ask her to join me for coffee, and she submits to my will. We sit in the cafe, and I start telling her about my life. I don’t ask her any questions, afraid of finding out how young she is. She listens to me, smiling. I tell her about my kids and about my wife. I show her their pictures. Even after knowing about my family, she is listening to me with the same affection, never letting her smile leave her face.

Now, there is a crowd, and I am in the center. She is farther away behind the crowd, but her gaze is still focused on me. Even without looking at her, I sense her pensive look, eager to get my attention. I am busy talking with the crowd, but she is the one reigning in my mind. I can’t look at her or pull her to the center and put her next to me. Even in my dream, I tell myself it’s better this way, I should not give her a false hope, I should not betray her. That’s when I wake up, my whole body still imbued with the joy of being enamored by someone so beautiful, so innocent.