Philosophical Letters: The Mirror & Monster

 

I was seated comfortably inside an historic pub hit by candles. A man asked me to sit in front of me and I nodded. In his eyes there was something strange, it was something familiar.

Intrigued, we started talking about frivolous things like football, he wasn't interested in any team except the national team.

We completely agree.

At the end of my third point I started to talk about myself, starting from my favourite writer Fyodor Dostoevsky.

The old man told me that his favourite novel was Anna Karenina, his regret was that this beautiful woman committed suicide because of the non replicable love, he spoke to me using my words a very strange situation. After a while he told him who he was, he smiled at me without saying a word, me too due to my throat was dry, to freshen it I ordered another pint of beer. I felt drunk now I was completely in his hand, nothing happened except for my pride which wouldn't accept talking being a completely drunk stranger.

He had also ordered the same beer and was looking at me in silence, his face showed no emotion, just like mine.

We spoke about everything, his replies were online with my expectations, it was like speaking with a mirror with myself but more older.

We drank five pints of beer. We were more than drunk; at some point he shouted to him a very offensive phrase: no emotions, no anger in his old face.

The alcohol has changed my behaviour dramatically. I felt an irresistible need of offend him, he wasn't a puppet made of plastic. He was a human like me, he must react to my offences, nothing.

We got the sixth pint, we got up and I poured all my beer in his face, I saw him look down, and he put the beer on the table. Instead of throwing it at me he grabbed a handkerchief to wipe himself and then sat back down smiling.

The old man finished to drink the beer and we ordered the seventh pint.

I decided to go to the toilet, my true intention was to hit him with a punch, I did it and I felt the same pain. After a while I noticed that the shadow beyond me disappeared, I raised my eyes and the old man disappeared too, but his shadow remained, it was mine.