7

...Manuel...

After my first mass and the two hundred photos I had to take with each family, I said goodbye to everyone and went to the usual room to leave the alb and stole in place. Everything had gone perfectly well, my nerves dissipated when I saw the little ones with their parents. I left everything in their respective places, went to my room to get my cell phone and went out again, Maria swept the aisle between the rows of seats, while Belen took care of the altar. I thanked them for their work and left the parish. Basilio was going to take care of the rest and I could take the afternoon off, I decided that the best thing to do was to walk around the neighborhood, try to get a little further from the train station. I started walking, along the same street as the previous time, but this time without paying too much attention to the streets I was passing, this time I wanted to get lost, I had the time to do it at my leisure.

I walked a couple of blocks when I found Gabriel and another guy I hadn't seen before. He had a completely opposite aesthetic to Gabriel, he looked like a rocker, although I wasn't quite sure. Was he new to the neighborhood? It was odd that he didn't go to the parish.

—Good morning, Gabriel.

I said approaching, he turned quickly and looked at me with a serious face for a few moments, then smiled.

—Good morning, Father. This is Facundo, a friend.

—I am Manuel. I haven't seen you around the parish, are you new?

—No, I stopped going to church. But I'm sure you've seen my mom, she always goes.

—Maybe. —I smiled.

—Are you going to try walking again, Father? —asked Gabriel.

—Yes, I wanted to see what's beyond the station.

—Business, you know, it's a tiny place —said the other boy—. Do you want us to act as tour guides?

—I don't want to bother you guys, I'm sure you have something to do.

—No, nothing, Father, let's go.

He smiled and looked at Gabriel, who had suddenly become mute. The latter only nodded. The three of us walked down the same streets we had passed two weeks ago, this time I was entertained by the banal conversation we were having. I realized how different Gabriel and Facundo were. The first one hardly spoke and, when he did, he did it shyly. The second one kept talking as if he were a radio on. He was quite an extroverted and funny guy. I hardly noticed when we had arrived at the station. We stood on the crosswalk at the station to wait for a train to pass, while Facundo explained which side I should take it from when I wanted to go somewhere. The tour continued through Del Viso. They took me to different places and showed me where the San Cayetano parish was, a place where many of the Sisters who were in the parish I would soon be in charge of were cloistered. We walked in circles for a long time, they pointed in different directions to show me what I should know now that I was residing there.

—Shit, it's already two o'clock and we haven't had lunch.

—My house is nearby, we can go there for lunch. —Said Gabriel before looking at me—. Would you like to come?

His somewhat low tone of voice reminded me of boys when they are so embarrassed that they barely open their mouths to answer.

—I don't want to disturb your family, Gabriel.

—My parents work all day. Please accept. —Her cheeks turned slightly red—. Well... if you have time, of course. I don't want to cause you a problem with Father Basilio either.

—Well, if it's not inconvenient for you or your family, let's go.

I smiled at him and put a hand on his shoulder. I wasn't sure if I could do something like this as a priest, but I didn't want to refuse his invitation, not to mention that I would have some more time for us to talk. The three of us returned the same way we had gone, talking quietly. Facundo said goodbye at the corner, a block before Gabriel's house. He remembered the address perfectly, almost as if he had come the amount necessary to memorize a road and be able to go down it with his eyes closed. Then we continued walking to Gabriel's house, where he invited me in and led me to the dining room.

—Please make yourself comfortable, would you like to eat something specific?

—Whatever you want to cook, Gabriel, no problem.

I smiled at him as I settled into one of the chairs. He soon began to cook, going back and forth from one side to the other. I looked around the house, from where I could see the living room where there was a large armchair in front of a coffee table and a television. The walls were decorated with religious images and family photos.

—What about your parents?

—At work, I'm usually alone until the evening when I get home from school or when I don't have to.

—What do you do?

—My dad is a mechanic and my mom is a nurse in a small clinic nearby.

We were silent again. He put a glass of water in front of me without even asking me, I smiled at him as a thank you noticing his red cheeks again. I thought it was cute that he was so embarrassed around strangers. He was like a little boy.

—Do you have a girlfriend? —I asked, taking a sip of water.

—No, I want to focus on my career.

—You are very responsible, you might meet a girl just like you at some point.

—Yes... it can be...

—Can I help you?

I asked standing up as he began to set the table, but he shook his head as he waved me back to my seat. I obeyed him, but I didn't want him to do everything.

—I don't mind helping you.

—He is the guest, Father, I must attend to him. Besides, I'm almost finished.

He finished setting the silverware and turned his attention back to the kitchen. Silence again between the two of us. A few minutes later we were eating lunch facing each other. In front of me he had put a plate of rice with minced meat and cheese, it was a simple meal, but it looked and tasted too good.

—It tastes very good. —I said, putting food in my mouth—. The girl who marries you is going to be very lucky.

He grimaced as if he didn't like the comment too much, lowered his head, tasted his food and nodded with a small smile curving his lips. We ate in silence for a few minutes until Gabriel started a conversation. He would only ask banal questions or tell me about his career, I could almost see myself in him when he talked about what he would study in the priesthood. He gave me tenderness, I felt him almost like the child I was. The after-dinner conversation was the same, he was a pretty funny guy when he let loose.

—How did you decide to enter the priesthood? By the way you can call me "Gabi," my friends always call me that. —He fiddled with his napkin—. So?

—I entered because my grandmother instilled religion in me when we went to live with her. My dad abandoned us and we ended up in her house when I was six years old.

—I didn't know...

—It doesn't matter, Gabi, it was a long time ago and it helped me to know my vocation. I have to thank him and God for that.

—It must have been difficult.

—We never felt the absence, nor was he a very present father in our lives. One day he left and my mom had to go back to my grandmother's house. Anyway, it was a good childhood," he nodded. What was yours like?

—Good, happy. My parents always instilled in me the teachings of the Bible. None of them are from here, but they came because it was a place similar to where they lived. They are from the interior.

I nodded, opening my mouth to say something, but I felt my cell phone vibrate in my pocket. I took it out and looked at the screen, it was a message from Maria asking me where I was. I figured it was time to go back to the parish, I was sure Basilio was looking for me for not having lunch with them.

—Sorry, Gabi, I have to go.

—Yes. —He got up. —I'll see you at the evening mass.

—Aren't you going to the missionary meeting?

—I have a job to finish, but I never miss mass.

He smiled getting me to smile too. He walked me to the gate and showed me how to close the gate, although it was no science really. I said goodbye to him and left, closing the gate behind me. I walked back to the parish without much encouragement. I would have liked to stay a while longer talking to Gabriel, it had been a good time with him. I felt a connection that, until now, I had not felt with anyone else in the neighborhood. God had put him in my path for a reason, I was sure that's why I had met him; that's why I had ended up in this parish in the first place. 

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