A STRANGE GUY

“ Yes, in my opinion, Maggie should wear the yellow dress. It suits her more than the green one” Even on that festive, cheerful, relaxed occasion Peter couldn’t help but say exactly the opposite of what he thought. Whenever it happened to him, and it happened to him regularly, to say the opposite of what he thought he felt like he was two people in one: one for the others, who he knew so much were never sincere, and one for himself, who had to remain hidden, unknown to others.

So it was when he had asserted that the most appropriate flower for the bridal bouquet was the hawthorn and the dress to wear for a truly elegant bride had to be rigorously black.

To his friends and those who knew him ___Peter was forty years old, lived alone, and had no relatives ___he was considered an eccentric guy, someone with opinions sui generis, often unsettling, but no one suspected that he was led, rather than choosing, indeed almost forced to always say the exact opposite of what he thought.

When Clorinda appeared in their circle of friends someone started to suspect that Peter didn’t say what he thought.

Clorinda was a very beautiful girl, tall, and slender, with big green eyes and red hair. She had impressed everyone, even Peter. But when someone said Clorinda had beautiful legs, he found instead that her legs were too thin and not well shaped. He also claimed her legs were too long in relation to the rest of her body.

When someone praised Clorinda’s eyes, Peter said they were cross-eyed and dull. As for her hair, he said that he found the color unbearable, too showy.

Clorinda’s clothing, young and smart, highlighted her well-built body, but it was far from provocative and even less daring. Peter instead claimed it was cheeky and vulgar.” That girl wears skirts so short that when she bent you can see her panties!”  “ Ah, those necklines with all the boobs sticking out! What a shame!” Everyone remained shocked, to say the least in facing these outings.

The character of the girl was mild and friendly. Peter never missed an opportunity to say that Clorinda was arrogant and full of herself. Peter said often: “ She is always reminding that she has two degrees from Harvard and that she took the baccalaureate at the Sorbonne”

When instead Clorinda had just mentioned her academic qualifications. It was true that she happened to recall, from time to time, Harvard and Paris, but with regard to the life she had spent there, about the friendships she had there, certainly not to brag about her academic qualifications.

Clorinda was also rich, but she didn’t brag about her wealth at all. He, Peter, said that the girl’s generosity towards them was only a way of affirming and weighing her superiority over all of them. “ She gives us her lunches and gifts to remind us that she is rich and can afford what is impossible for us” Peter never missed an opportunity to reiterate, while he too benefited from Clorinda’s generosity like everyone else.

The first to notice ( to suspect) that Petr had fallen in love with Clorinda was Paul, his longtime friend, who in the face of another outing from Peter on the splendid girl ____he had gone out with: “ Also her nose is too long, a sign that she tells a lot of lies” ____had said him: “ And STOP IT, Peter! You, who are always criticizing her, you have fallen in love with Clorinda, come on, admit it! You know how people say: “ THOSE WHO DESPISE BUY”

“ Did you become crazy? Imagine if I could ever fall in love with that one!” Peter jumped up to say, enraged. “ I can’t stand her! I find her boring and arrogant! And physically I didn’t like her either! She is not really my type!”

Paul wasn’t at all convinced ( sure) that Peter had told him what he thought, but he dared all the same. “ Good, very good,” He said” Then you won’t mind if I came forward with Clorinda. You know, I’m very interested in her. To tell the truth I find her irresistible. I would really like her to be( to become) my girlfriend.”

Peter felt like dying at those words. But, as usual, he said exactly the opposite of what he felt and thought. “ Good! Then I wish you all the best in her becoming your girlfriend”

Clorinda became Paul’s girlfriend and the two became engaged.

Peter, even if he felt upset, also desperate, more and more fallen in love with Clorinda, continued only to compliment them on their happy relationship. Meanwhile, he kept hoping for a miracle, that is, that Clorinda would leave Paul and realize that he loved her madly. Oh, how this could happen, given all that Peter had said of Clorinda, is not known, or rather a miracle would have been necessary for it to happen.

Paul and Clorinda decided to get married. Even Peter, desperate as hell as he felt, congratulated them, he said he was happy for their union. He too was invited to the wedding party, where he didn’t show up, surprising anyone. Because ( in fact) on the day of Paul and Clorinda’s wedding Peter attempted suicide by jumping out of a fourth-floor window.

Peter remained between life and death for a long time but he succeeded in surviving. Then he understood that it was better not to say always the opposite of what he thought and he felt.

On Paul and Clorinda’s wedding day he had really wanted to die, but now that he was alive he knew that he had to change his way of behaving, of speaking, of relating with the others.

The others, his friend finally realized that Peter was truly fallen in love with Clorinda, so much so that he had preferred to die than lose her forever. But what they struggled to understand was why Peter had always criticized her, even denigrated her.

 And there was someone who came to think that Peter hadn’t wanted to kill himself, but he had jumped out of the fourth-floor window only to draw Clorinda’s attention, always hoping for a miracle.