Mini zgodba iz vrta / Tiny Story

Odpravil se je na balkon, da bi preveril kaj se dogaja na cesti pred hišo. Pred pogledi ga je ščitila gosta krošnja češnje, ki je segala čez balkon do strehe in tako poskrbela, da je ostal skrit.
Ni se trudil, da bi si ogrnil haljo ali nataknil copate. Rad je imel svežino jutra in hladna tla pod stopali. Sredi pregretega poletja je bila to razkošna osvežitev.
Potisnil je balkonska vrata in stopil v zavetje češnje ter se ozrl za glasovi, ki so prihajali od spodaj.

»Prosim te, pojdi. Zdaj nimam časa, odpravljam se v službo. Od tam te bom poklicala.«

Moški glas, ki je sledil, je bil globok in bil je preveč oddaljen, zato ni mogel razločiti besed. Presneto, pozabil je natakniti slušni aparat.

»Ne! Prosim te, pojdi. Pojdi.«

Tokrat je zaznal paniko v glasu.
Skozi krošnjo je lahko videl le pisano rožnato blago. Je to soseda Janice? Vedno je nosila pisana oblačila. Ni bil prepričan. Stopil je korak bližje ograji. Obregnil se je ob tisto trapasto reč, ki jo je njegova žena obesila med veje češnje. Zazvončkljalo je in otrpnil je. Pisana oblačila so se izgubila pod krošnjo. Vedel je, da je pogovora konec.
Nekaj časa je še stal na balkonu, nato se je obrnil in odpravil v kuhinjo.  Pristavil je za čaj ter vzel škatlico s svojo tedensko razporeditvijo tablet.

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He stepped out onto the balcony to see what was happening on the road in front of the house. The dense canopy of the cherry tree shielded him from view, its branches stretching over the balcony all the way to the roof, keeping him hidden from prying eyes.

He didn’t bother putting on his robe or slippers. He enjoyed the freshness of the morning and the cool floor beneath his bare feet. In the middle of a sweltering summer, it was a luxurious relief.
He pushed open the balcony door and stepped into the shelter of the cherry tree, listening for the voices drifting up from below.

“Please, just go. I don’t have time right now. I’m leaving for work. I’ll call you from there.”

The man’s voice that followed was deep, but he was standing too far away to make out the words. Damn it, he’d forgotten to put on his hearing aid.

“No! Please, go. Just go.”

This time, he caught the panic in her voice.
Through the foliage, he could see only a flash of bright pink fabric. Was that his neighbour Janice? She always wore colourful clothes. He wasn’t sure.
He took a step closer to the railing. His foot brushed against that ridiculous thing his wife had hung among the cherry branches. It jingled softly, and he froze.
The bright colours disappeared beneath the canopy. He knew the conversation was over.
He remained standing on the balcony for a while before turning back and heading to the kitchen. He put the kettle on for tea and picked up the pillbox containing his weekly medication schedule.