15/10/2025
My youngest son, who's a pilot, called me. "Mom, something's weird. My sister-in-law is home." "Yes," I replied. "She's in the shower." His voice dropped to a whisper. "Impossible, because I have her passport in my hands. She just boarded my flight to France." At that moment, I heard footsteps behind me. "I'm glad you're here." This morning, like any other day, I was rushing to wash the dishes after breakfast. Esteban, my oldest son, had left for work early, leaving the house in silence for my grandson Mateo; that clever seven-year-old devil had also been taken by the school bus. And Araceli, my daughter-in-law, Esteban's wife, had just come up the stairs. Her soft voice reached my mother. "I'm going to take a shower for a while." "Yes." I nodded, smiling. I had barely finished putting away the last plate. When the landline rang, I dried my hands on my apron and walked quickly to answer the cheerful, young voice of IvĂĄn, my youngest son, who filled the line. Mom, I'm just calling to say hello. I had a little free time during a layover at the airport. Hearing his voice was like a hug for my heart. IvĂĄn is my pride and joy, a young copilot always on the go, living the childhood dream of conquering the skies. I smiled and asked him a few things about his flight, how he was doing. He laughed loudly and told me everything was fine, that work was going smoothly. But suddenly his tone changed, as if he was hesitant to say anything. "Hey, Mom, something really strange happened. My sister-in-law is home." I was surprised. I looked toward the stairs where I could still hear the water running in the bathroom. "Of course she is, son. Araceli is taking a shower upstairs." I answered confidently. Araceli had spoken to me less than ten minutes earlier, and she was wearing that white blouse she always wore around the house. How could I have been wrong? But on the other end of the line, IvĂĄn remained silent for a long time, so long I could even hear his breathing. Then his voice became very serious, filled with astonishment. "Mom, it's impossible because I have her passport here in my hand. She just got on my flight to France." I laughed, thinking he must have been mistaken. "Oh, my son, you must have been wrong. I just saw Araceli. She even told me she was going to take a shower.", I tried to explain calmly to reassure him, but he didn't laugh. He didn't answer me like always. He told me in a slow voice, as if he were trying to organize the story in his head, that when all the passengers had boarded, he ran out to look for some papers he'd forgotten and by chance found a passport lying near the boarding gate. At first, he thought about giving it to the airport staff, but when he opened it to see who it belonged to, he froze. The photo was Araceli's. Her name was there, crystal clear. There was no mistaking it. My heart started beating faster, but I tried to remain calm. "Are you sure, IvĂĄn? That passport could belong to someone else?" I said, although a tinge of unease had already lodged in me. IvĂĄn sighed, his voice now a mix of bewilderment and firmness. "Mom, I just went down to the passenger cabin to check if it's her. She's sitting in first class next to a man who looks very rich and elegant. They were talking very closely, as if they were a couple." IvĂĄn's words were like a st:a:b. I froze, pressing my head to the telephone receiver, spinning around as if they were a couple. Impossible. I had just heard Araceli's voice from the floor above. I had just seen her in the flesh in this very house. But just at that moment, the sound of running water in the bathroom stopped. The fourth-floor door opened, and Araceli's voice came down the stairs. Softly, but loud enough to make me jump. "Mom! Who's talking?" I panicked. My heart was pounding so hard I felt like it was going to burst out of my chest. I quickly answered a friend of mine, my voice shaking, and I quickly ran into the living room to avoid Araceli's gaze, who was sticking her head out of the stairs, her hair still dripping. Full story in the first c0mment âŹïž