Tomás's cousin finally arrived on Saturday morning, just as he was about to head out to search for a new job. He found her on a nearby street, walking with two heavy suitcases and looking desperately in all directions, as if the address she sought was an indecipherable enigma. Upon realizing it was her, he couldn't help but offer a bitter smile: life always seemed to put small doses of luck into the hands of others, while he was left to carry the scraps, undoubtedly a bitter existence.
He approached, and Daniela, relieved, asked him for the address she had been looking for for quite some time. It was ironic, Tomás thought, that even to reach his family's house, she needed him to rescue her. Without saying much more, he guided her home and carried her suitcases to the room they had prepared for her.
"I didn't recognize you, you're quite tall. In less than a year you seem to have become a man," Daniela commented, looking at him with a mix of curiosity and surprise.
Tomás looked away, uncomfortable with her words. He never knew how to respond to such comments. "I guess we all grow in our own time. You're unrecognizable too," he replied in a neutral tone.
Daniela chuckled lightly, ignoring his obvious discomfort. "It's true. Hey, isn't Auntie home?"
"She usually isn't. She leaves for work around seven and comes back at the same time, unless she decides to go drinking with a coworker. She also works on Saturdays and some Sundays. Even when she's home, she locks herself in her room, so I doubt you'll see her much," Tomás explained, in a distant tone, as if describing a foreign routine and not the daily life of his own mother.
Daniela looked at him with some concern. "Wow, that's pretty weird. Well, Mom told me Auntie had been like that for a while, but not to judge her, because she wasn't always like that."
Tomás let out a sigh that seemed burdened with years of accumulated exhaustion. "It was so long ago that I barely remember it. But yes... in those days she smiled a lot."
As he spoke, Daniela approached her suitcase and, without even asking permission, gestured for him to open it. "It must be tough. After all, you're a man. How do you manage to eat? Do you eat out every day?"
"No, I leave food ready at night. In fact, since my mother told me you were coming, I've been leaving three portions. One for each of us. Your portion will be in the microwave or in the refrigerator. Eat whenever you want and don't worry about the cutlery, leave it in the sink. I'll wash them when I get back," he explained calmly, as if it were perfectly natural.
Daniela couldn't help but laugh. "Do you think you're a housewife?"
Tomás gave her a forced smile, finding no humor in the comment. "I guess I've gotten used to cooking. I clean the house on Sundays, if you want to help me."
"I highly doubt it. I'm here to study and nothing else," she replied, sitting on the bed with a carefree air. "I'm not good at doing household chores."
Tomás watched her in silence, realizing that his cousin would be little more than a passenger in that house. That didn't surprise him; in fact, it relieved him a little to know that they would barely interact. After all, he would leave at the end of the year. He walked to the door and, before leaving, he told her:
"I'm leaving now. I have things to do. If my mother asks, tell her I have a shift in the afternoon, so I'll be back late at night."
Daniela responded with a smile, adding no more words.
As he walked away, Tomás reflected in silence. At least Daniela was kind, he thought. Perhaps she wouldn't be much help, but her presence brought a slight breath of life to the house, even if it was just a whisper. And yet, that small change wasn't enough to dispel the heavy cloud he carried.