No creo que sea grave

Story

Es de noche cuando el teléfono de Paula empieza a llamar. Es su madre. Paula sabe que algo pasa, porque su madre nunca llama tan tarde. "¿Mamá? ¿Qué pasa?" La voz de su madre es muy pequeña. "Hija, he estado en el médico hoy. Me han hecho una prueba de sangre. Tengo miedo." Paula deja todo y se sienta al lado de la cama.

It is night when Paula's phone starts to ring. It is her mother. Paula knows something is wrong, because her mother never calls this late. "Mum? What's the matter?" Her mother's voice is very small. "Love, I went to the doctor today. They did a blood test on me. I'm afraid." Paula drops everything and sits down beside the bed.

"Cuéntame, mamá. Con calma." Su madre habla muy rápido, sin parar. Dice que el médico ha visto algo, que tiene que volver para otra prueba, que ahora no puede dormir. "Y si es grave, hija? ¿Y si es muy grave?" Paula escucha cada palabra con cuidado. Después, habla con una voz tranquila. "Mamá, no creo que sea grave. De verdad. Dudo que sea algo serio."

"Tell me, Mum. Calmly." Her mother speaks very fast, without stopping. She says the doctor saw something, that she has to go back for another test, that now she cannot sleep. "And what if it's serious, love? What if it's very serious?" Paula listens to each word carefully. Then she speaks in a calm voice. "Mum, I don't think it's serious. Really. I doubt it's anything serious."

"Pero el médico tenía una cara muy seria," dice la madre, y Paula sabe que está cerca de llorar. "No llores, mamá. Por favor, no llores. Una prueba más no quiere decir nada malo. Es imposible que el médico lo sepa todo con una sola prueba. Por eso quiere ver más." La madre para un momento. "¿Tú crees?" "Sí, lo creo. No pienso que sea nada. Quizás sea solo cansancio. Llevas mucho tiempo cansada."

"But the doctor had a very serious face," says the mother, and Paula knows she is close to crying. "Don't cry, Mum. Please, don't cry. One more test doesn't mean anything bad. It's impossible for the doctor to know everything from a single test. That's why he wants to see more." The mother pauses for a moment. "Do you think so?" "Yes, I think so. I don't think it's anything. Maybe it's just tiredness. You've been tired for a long time."

Su madre sigue nerviosa. "Por la noche pienso en cosas muy malas. Veo cosas en mi cabeza que..." "No, mamá. No pienses en eso ahora," dice Paula. "No es bueno. Mañana, cuando estés más tranquila, hablamos otra vez. Pero esta noche no digas eso, no pienses en lo peor. Tu corazón está fuerte. Yo lo sé." Paula siente algo dentro, pero no deja que su voz pase el miedo a su madre.

Her mother is still nervous. "At night I think about very bad things. I see things in my head that..." "No, Mum. Don't think about that now," says Paula. "It isn't good. Tomorrow, when you're calmer, we'll talk again. But tonight don't say that, don't think about the worst. Your heart is strong. I know it is." Paula feels something inside, but she does not let her voice pass the fear on to her mother.

"Necesito que me escuches, mamá. Voy a ir contigo a la otra cita. Tú y yo, las dos. No vas a estar sola." La madre se queda en silencio un momento. Después habla más despacio, y Paula sabe que ya está mejor. "Gracias, hija. Lo necesitaba. Tú siempre sabes qué decir." "No es eso, mamá. Es que te quiero y no creo que sea grave. Las dos cosas son verdad."

"I need you to listen to me, Mum. I'm going to go with you to the next appointment. You and me, the two of us. You won't be alone." The mother stays silent for a moment. Then she speaks more slowly, and Paula knows she is better now. "Thank you, love. I needed that. You always know what to say." "It's not that, Mum. It's that I love you and I don't think it's serious. Both things are true."

Cuando la llamada termina, la madre dice que va a dormir, que va a dejar el teléfono lejos de la cama. "Cuídate, mamá. No pienses en eso esta noche." "No, hija. No voy a pensar en eso." Paula se queda con el teléfono en la mano un momento más. Quizás llore un poco, ahora que su madre no la ve. Pero mañana va a estar fuerte otra vez, porque su madre la necesita. Y porque, de verdad, no cree que sea grave.

When the call ends, the mother says she is going to sleep, that she will leave the phone far from the bed. "Take care, Mum. Don't think about that tonight." "No, love. I won't think about it." Paula stays with the phone in her hand a moment longer. Perhaps she cries a little, now that her mother cannot see her. But tomorrow she will be strong again, because her mother needs her. And because, truly, she does not think it is serious.