A Sketch by Jean-Pierre Martinez
The landlord is behind the counter. She arrives. It’s the same woman from the first scene.
Landlord – Have you come back to propose to me?
Her – It hasn’t been ten years yet…
Landlord – Five.
Her – And you still remember me?
Landlord – I told you, I have a good memory for faces… Yours is one that’s hard to forget. Still no Calvados?
Her – I won’t be needing it anymore. At least, I hope not…
Landlord – That’s good to hear.
Her – Do you remember? You read my horoscope to me…
Landlord – “You will give your heart to a stranger.” (Pointing to the newspaper) It’s in today’s paper again.
Her – They often reuse the same phrases.
Landlord – This time, it’s under the love section.
Her – They weren’t wrong. I have a date with him.
Landlord – Here?
Her – In five minutes.
A moment of silence.
Landlord – Did you meet a stranger on a dating site?
Her – He’s my ex-husband. We got divorced a few years ago.
Landlord – Ah yes… So, not exactly a stranger…
Her – We lived together for ten years, and during that time, I felt like I was living with a stranger. However, it was I who didn’t know myself, and I was the one who wasn’t doing well.
Landlord – Why now?
Her – He had a heart transplant a year ago.
Landlord – So you thought that with a brand new heart…
Her – When he found out he was sick, he didn’t tell me. Things weren’t going well between us already. He didn’t want me to stay with him out of pity, I suppose.
Landlord – And you left him…
Her – He told me he had met someone else…
Landlord – But that wasn’t true…
Her – He had a fifty-fifty chance of survival. He didn’t want to make me a grieving widow…
Landlord – He preferred to make you a happy divorcée… And so, he survived…
Her – I work at the hospital… I found out by chance that he had a transplant. I called him… I asked him if he wanted to see me again.
Landlord – Hoping that his brand new heart would start beating for you again… Be careful… in your terms, that could be called therapeutic stubbornness!
Her – Do you think you can’t love the same person twice?
Landlord – Well, you can marry the same man twice, and you can divorce the same woman twice.
Her – He’s not quite the same man anymore. As you said, he has a brand new heart…
Landlord – Not brand new, not exactly… The one it belonged to before might have already been very unlucky in love.
Her – In the end, you’re even more pessimistic than I am.
Landlord – I’m jealous, that’s all. I told you, you’re someone unforgettable….
Her – I hope he hasn’t forgotten me either… (On the verge of tears) And that he has forgiven me…
He puts his hand on hers to comfort her.
Landlord – Have confidence in yourself.
She turns her gaze towards the café window, facing the public.
Her – There he is… My heart is racing…
Landlord – As strongly as when you first met him?
Her – Much stronger…
Landlord – Let’s hope his heart doesn’t give out now, that would be such a shame…
Her – You know what, I’ll take that little Calvados after all.
He pours her a glass, which she drinks in one gulp.
Landlord – You’ll be fine.
Her – Thank you.
She presses his hand one last time and walks away towards the public to meet her ex-husband.
Black.
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A sketch from the collection Open Hearts
Link to the collection for free download (PDF)
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