Trafika Europe 14 - Italian Piazza

Lessons in Torture and Seduction

player. “Wow, can it get any better than that?” They both laugh. I think perhaps I’m imagining things. I can’t be hearing them talk about a patient who’s been beaten up. I could just walk by and ignore them but something stops me in my tracks by the vending machine, l ike I’ve fal len into a trance. “Excuse me,” I say to the male nurse with a tone that suggests I’m real ly lost, “can you tel l me where the exit is? I think I’m lost.” “You’re in the maternity ward here. You have to go back the way you came, fol low the arrows for Internal Medicine and just before the entrance to Internal Medicine, you’l l see signs for the exit.” I don’t know why he addresses me with the informal ‘tu.’ “Thanks, you’ve been very kind, sir,” I say, but I don’t move. “You don’t understand?” “I was just considering whether I wanted to buy a bottle of water.” “Wow, now there’s a thought for you,” says the other guy, who doesn’t recognize me even though he’s probably seen me 100 times. It ’s better that way. His attempt at humor is interrupted by a l ittle

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