When Paul answered to his own name
Some mornings open like false doors: you think you’re stepping into your usual routine, but the day quietly reroutes you toward a version of someone you thought you knew. That was the mood hanging in the air when Victor pulled up in front of Paul’s house and noticed a stylish woman waiting by the gate — calm, composed, almost expectant. When he parked, she approached his window as if everything were perfectly normal. — Let’s go. Victor froze mid-blink, trying to align reality with what he was seeing. — Miss… sorry, I think you’re at the wrong address. She laughed softly, the kind of laugh that already knew him. — I’m not at the wrong place. It’s me. Paul. The world tilted just enough to make Victor grip the steering wheel. — Paul… what? She — he — sighed, as if finally delivering a confession to the universe. — My wife saw the pictures from our fishing trip . The girls you guys brought “for company,” the beers, the bonfire… She said that’s no place for a married man. I insist...