time passed quickly, and her now exhausted grip loosened on me. So, driven by the idea that perhaps I was crushing her by too much mass, I let a glimmer of strength wash over me and got up from her.I hurriedly looked for a way to restore the last remaining shred of dignity, but I did not want to cooperate with myself and ended up remaining silent and ashamed. I gradually placed myself at her side, over what had by then become a pool of dirty water, and did not dare to look at her or utter anything. I was mortified. I was dejected. I averted my eyes towards the lane on which we abandoned our filthy bodies, and was surprised that not a single car had passed by, running us over like porcupines on the side of the motorway. After all, it was a nice bridge in my view, with its old-fashioned charm from wrinkled bricks too damp to still be sticking to each other. Perhaps it was too dimly lit, but I was sure the lights up there were giving much more than the buyers expected. In those moments it was just us. Us and no one else. An event hidden from 7 billion 999 million 998 people. Maybe a couple less, counting the camera hanging from the neck of a lamppost, assuming it was functioning.Either way, I just didn't know how I was supposed to feel at that moment.Out of the corner of my eye, I turned my attention back to her. She held her legs to her chest and wrapped her bony, bare arms around them. I still couldn't understand how she had managed to put me back on the street, barely looking like a living being. <<Are you all right? >> I muttered, in a voice colder and rougher than expected. I mimicked his own position, and felt his gaze settle on me as I sniffled, which caused me to nervously clear my voice in a rather suspicious cough. <<No.>> she replied, a few moments later. I did not reply. I didn't know what to say.<<You were throwing yourself off a bridge. You were going to kill yourself.>> She added.If a few moments earlier she had shown me signs of extreme compassion, at that exact moment, she had turned the tables on me. <<If it upsets you so much, you should have let me die then.>> I shrugged, knowing she was watching me. A couple of seconds and her irises were fixed on me in such an intense way that I could feel them piercing my skull, and as if they were a magnet, I was impelled to cross her face. I was taken aback. Her face was small and somewhat hollow on her cheekbones and cheeks. Her lips were plump, somewhat chapped from the cold, and just slightly asymmetrical. The lower one was much fuller than the other, but on the whole they accompanied well the shape of the frowning nose. The dark, large, empathic eyes. The fine, colourless neck.She was incredibly beautiful. I was enchanted.I hurriedly lowered my eyes in embarrassment, and answer let out a long, eternal sigh that caused me to swallow instinctively. He reached out towards me and embraced me. I did not know what to do. I remained motionless.<<I'm sorry>> she murmured. <<Don't worry>> I looked at the ground.She moved away from me, and wiped away the remnants of my tears with her trembling thumb. I immediately wrapped it with my palm, gripped by inner fright. I did not shake her hand, but stayed with mine on it. <<I apologise to you on behalf of all that led you to make such an act>> she looked at me.The rain did not cease and intrepid drops continued to flow from my hair to my chin, with a frequency I could barely perceive. Was she taking all the blame? I parted my lips, intent on retorting, when she struggled to her feet and extended her hand to me. <<Shall we go? >>I took it. <<Where?>><<To my house>> I arched an eyebrow.<<I know, I know we don't know each other>> she added <<but I wouldn't be able to sleep knowing you somewhere, alone. And then..well, you know, I live quite close>> she hinted an embarrassed smile.I analysed her and thought, 'To hell with it. I pushed myself off the ground too and pulled myself up. I laid myself beside her, and we walked towards her dwelling. We walked in silence the whole way, and I didn't know if she had noticed that we hadn't loosened our grip yet or if she was ignoring it like I was. We let the sound of the rain be the only sound to break the ice between us. That is, if there was anything to break, given the passage of the last few minutes. <<I'm Ethan, by the way>> I mumbled after a while with my eyes fixed on my boots. The front had gutted slightly and the laces were all wet, like everything else, by the way. I expected her to reply something along the lines of 'I know you' or 'I thought I'd seen you somewhere', yet she did not. With her eyes fixed straight ahead, she merely reciprocated the name: her name was Jane. A peculiar name, certainly not from here.I had to admit that my curiosity was stirred, but the whole box in my head was fixed on that damned moment. The gasps, the fear, the darkness. <<Don't think about it, Ethan>> she said, as if she had read my mind. I looked at her. She looked dull, but she was so hypnotic. <<I wasn't thinking about it>> I merely mumbled, looking away from her. <<Yes you were, otherwise you would have asked me "'about what?">>.Touché.About ten minutes later we arrived in front of a real dump. It was four tiny walls, the stucco ruined all over and it looked like it was going to collapse at any moment. <<Welcome to my humble abode>> Jane ironized, raising an arm like a TV presenter letting in the showgirls.<<You live... here?" I asked shocked. She merely nodded. <<Inside is better, I promise>> she let slip a grin, bringing the key closer to the lock and turning it with difficulty to open the door . <<I haven't been able to work on the outside yet>>.I said nothing about it, although I began to reason that not even my waiters lived in similar conditions. I went in and took off my shoes at the entrance, which she also did before turning on the lights. I stood still and shrouded in darkness as I waited for her to head for the switch, and as soon as she turned it on I saw her house. It wasn't bad at all, actually. For its condition, of course. It had a minimalist style of decoration, but it lacked nothing. On the contrary, the quality of the furniture, the decoration of the walls, the perfectly intact plaster, were all respectable and almost compensated for the horrifying exterior. But the thing that caught my attention was a particular corner of the living room: two steps away from a medium-sized window adorned with a long crack touching the corners of the second and fourth quadrants, there was a pile of crumpled papers and canvases scattered here and there. Dirty brushes touched the parquet floor, books rested on them, works seemingly complete. Jane was supposed to be a painter.<<Lovely>> I commented. She nodded proudly, not even noticing where I was pointing my interest, but I noticed her confidently. She rested her tiny hands on her hips as if what she had built was a boast. Then she turned towards me. <<Come in, please. I'll go get you something dry to wear>> and walked away. <<Do you mind if I take my socks off? I wouldn't want to get your floor wet>> I asked her, raising my voice so she could hear me on the other side of the house. <<Of course! I'll get you a pair>>. I looked around, searching for signs of a male presence in the house, yet it all seemed too feminine and singular. Women's shoes in the shoe rack, nothing on the coat rack but my jacket. But then I went back to that corner. I couldn't take my eyes off it. So I took a couple of steps in that direction, ignoring the icy contact between my skin and the wood. I focused on books with singular covers, and tried to read the title of a few volumes, but they were written in completely different languages from each other, and I could barely decipher one of them: 'the physics of the perplexed'. Jane returned, with a spare in her hands.<<Unfortunately, I don't have much, but these should keep you warm. You can take a shower in the bathroom, while I cook you something good>> she handed me what she was holding. I was so stunned and intrigued by everything that I just took the stuff and did as he said. <<down to the right>> I heard.I opened the door to the fateful room and was greeted by a small bathroom. The walls were entirely of fake marble, clearly hand-drawn. I had to admit it was impeccable. Everything was neatly kept, the toiletries neatly arranged on the shelves and in the toothbrush holder there was only one. She lived alone. I undressed completely, taking care not to throw my filthy clothes in bulk, and went in.As soon as I stepped into the shower stall, the thought arose that I would have to put my soaked pants back on, deducing that she was not provided with men's clothing, and I ended up washing with the annoying and constant thought of wetness on dry skin. Risking dying of hypothermia from the thirty seconds of freezing water apart, I managed to take a warm and comfortable shower. I used the towel he had brought along with my clothes and as I was drying off I glanced at what was on the pile of things. A long-sleeved shirt in a soft grey, a pair of sweatpants that were definitely too baggy for both me and her, the socks she was talking about and...oh dear. A pair of boxer shorts. On the plastic I read in big letters 'offer 3 women's briefs +1 men's boxer shorts for free'. I turned it over in my hands and looked at the label: 60% cotton. Thank you discount shops. I immediately slipped them on and with them everything else. Dry and comfortable I felt much, much better. Once I was done, I opened the door and a delicious smell immediately intoxicated my nostrils. I reached the kitchen and found Jane struggling with the cooker, busy preparing something <<I-I did>> I said so softly that she might not have heard me <<thank you>>. Instead she turned and smiled at me, then placed a small pot on the table <<Ramen with vegetables. Come, have a seat. Give me your things too, so I can wash and dry them. Tomorrow they will be ready>> I nodded and pulled out my phone from the pocket of my jeans, which I placed next to some sauce. Being careful not to drop anything, I held up my stuff and accompanied her to avoid her holding my underwear. I let her take me to a sort of closet where she kept a washing machine and a dryer. They looked old but seemed to be working properly. As she inserted the detergent and I put the load in I asked her instinctively <<do you have a boyfriend?>> <<no>> she replied. <<Why do you keep men's clothes at home, then? Do you often have guests? >> I prayed for the correct answer.<<no>> he answered again, giving me a dirty look. She seemed to have suddenly switched off. <<sorry, I didn't mean to be inappropriate>>.<<I wear those things in the house. I like to be comfortable and men's clothes cost less and are better. The one I gave you I purchased yesterday, I've never worn it>>. I nodded <<I understand..>> I suddenly felt everything tighter, especially my trousers.<<Don't you wash?>> I just couldn't keep quiet.<<Of course, I'd pour you some food and go>> she sighed.<<What if I'm a bad person, and I hurt you?>> I ignored the slight twitch in my hand.She turned her head and stared into my pupils.<<Why, are you a bad person?>> she countered.<<I could be..>>