Signal to Noise(18)

“What did you make?” Natalia asked.

“Chicken soup,” Meche’s grandmother said.

“Did you take off the skin from my piece of chicken? You know I can’t eat chicken with the skin on.”

“Yes, yes.”

“I don’t want a lot of rice in my bowl. No potatoes either.”

“You have to have one potato.”

“It’s too starchy. Is it warm? I have to go back to the drugstore for the rest of my shift. Leona is sick again this week.”

Natalia sat across from Meche. Meche looked at her mother, waiting for her to say something to her. Eventually, possibly because Meche just kept staring at her, Natalia spoke.

“How was school?”

“Alright.”

“Do you have a lot of homework?”

“Some.”

There was a systematic indifference to Natalia’s voice. It was a chore doing this, playing the mother-daughter bond. Meche saw her fret in discomfort. Normally she would have simply stepped away, back to her room, and let her mother eat in peace. She did not feel charitable that evening, so she stayed put.

“I saw you walking with that boy yesterday.”

“Sebastian?”

“Yes.”

Meche did not remember if they had gone by the drugstore. Possibly. Their path had zigzagged through the whole neighbourhood as they chased stars which could not be seen in the night sky, hearts filled with promise. A promise which now lay squashed beneath the soles of their feet.

“You say his name like you don’t know him,” Meche muttered.

“Meche, he’s here all the time. Or you’re somewhere with him. You act like you are Siamese twins. It’s not healthy.”

“Daniela is also with us.”

“Yes, that chubby little girl is also not a good role model. Plus, I don’t want you catching something from her.”

“You can’t catch lupus.”

“Well, I don’t know about that.”

“It’s not scientifically possible,” Meche said.

“Never mind. Meche, running around the block with a boy was OK when you were a little girl. You’re fifteen now.”

“And?”

Mama Dolores held up the cloth with the tortillas, but Natalia shook her head.

“I don’t eat tortillas, you know that.”

Mama Dolores set the tortillas down. Meche grabbed the saltshaker and began salting her broth. Her mother shook her head.

“Salt will bloat you.”

“It needs salt.”

“Too much salt is not good for you.”

Meche kept slowly salting her soup, even though she knew now it would be too salty. She felt like making a point.

“What I’m trying to say—and perhaps I’m failing to express myself clearly here, Meche—is that it doesn’t look right to be with a boy so much.”

“It doesn’t look right to whom?”

“Well, Catalina Coronado was telling me she saw you going into the abandoned factory with him the other morning.”

Of course. Catalina Coronado. The neighbourhood gossip, with her sharp, hawk-eyed gaze and her forked tongue. Ready to spill bad news at a moment’s notice and spit venom in your face. She had probably relished the opportunity to tattle on Meche.

“When did she tell you that?”

“She was at the drugstore today, buying some cough drops, and she told me she happened to see you. Meche, you do know what teenagers do in that factory, don’t you?”

They had sex, drank booze, and smoked dope. Meche, feigning stupidity, stared at her mother.

“No, please tell me what they do.”

Natalia did not reply. She stirred her soup with her spoon, carefully inspecting each chunk of vegetable, each scrap of chicken.

“Please, tell me,” Meche insisted.

“You are not a child.”

“No, I’m not. I don’t understand why that means I can’t hang out with Sebastian like I always do. Because Catalina Coronado doesn’t like him?”

“Sebastian’s brother just got his girlfriend pregnant and I do not want a similar surprise, alright?”

Meche did not know that. How had her mother found out? She supposed that was one of the benefits of working at the drugstore, all the little crumbs of information that fell into your lap. But it didn’t matter. His brother had nothing to do with her.

“He’s my best friend,” Meche said. “Grandma, can I finish my food later? I think I am coming down with a cold.”

Meche drifted towards the doorway. She glanced back at her mother. Natalia rolled out a magazine, already busy looking at the ‘10 Beauty Tips of the Week’ and the ‘Most Flattering Skirts of the Season.’ Meche returned to her room and the company of her records.





SEBASTIAN TRIED TO catch up with Meche. She lost him at an intersection, disappearing behind a row of food stands. He did not understand what was wrong with her, why she had not waited for him.

He gave up on finding his friend and continued on his way home, observing the sky and wondering if it would start raining before he got to his apartment. Too late he noticed Isadora and her friends hanging out near a little corner store, drinking soda pop, and immediately felt the desire to dash in the opposite direction. However, they had already seen him, and completely turning around would be too conspicuous. He forced himself to keep on walking, eyes straight ahead.