The Street of the Three Beds by Roser Caminals-Heath Page A

of deep sleep. The sheets and her clothes were also white. On the right side of the stage the dark profile of a faucet stood out against the background. The “Lullaby” swelled to fill the empty spaces.
    The shape of a man’s large hand appeared above the faucet and began to turn it slowly, repeatedly, until water trickled down onto the floor and gradually made a spreading puddle. When it rose to the level of the bed, the audience drew a muffled exclamation.Then the bed, with the girl in it, lifted and began to float to the surface. Shortly after, out of the faucet slipped a multi-colored transparent fish that was received with wonderment. Others of different species, big and small, followed: flying fish, swordfish, baby sharks. Octopus, slick jellyfish, and miniature sea horses joined in the dance, revolving from end to end of the aquatic stage. Soon the water pushed the bed up until the headboard touched the ceiling. The girl, cradled by Brahms’s music, remained asleep. The audience brimmed with excitement.
    The fantastic fauna kept moving gently, majestically. The stage was bathed in a pale blue tinge, except for a strip at the top the water hadn’t yet reached. With a low gurgle, the water suddenly swallowed the bed and filled the entire stage. A cry rose from the pit but the girl, breathing in the liquid environment like another fish, didn’t wake up. The bed, somewhat tilted, was suspended at center stage. The aquatic ballet revolved around it.
    It was hard to keep track of time. After a while, the man’s gigantic hand reappeared and started to turn the faucet slowly, repeatedly, just as it had before, but now to the right. The first fish that had entered the stage gracefully swished its way back and disappeared up the faucet. Others followed it in a solemn, orderly march. The water began its descent, leaving a dry strip once again at the top. Once the last fish vanished into the faucet, the octopus, jellyfish, and sea horses swam across the stage. The faucet devoured them one by one in the twinkling of an eye.
    As the level of water sank, so the bed levitated downward, swinging hypnotically to and fro, till its legs rested delicately on the floor. Sleeping beauty, gently shaken by the landing, still didn’t wake up. Little by little the water flowed back up the faucet, leaving the stage dry and bright under the limelights. At the last turn of the handle, bed and girl collapsed and were sucked into the small circular abyss. The lights went out,and there was total darkness and silence. When they came on a few moments later, they shone on a stage as bare as it had been at the beginning.
    Applause exploded like a bomb. Some people rose from their seats shouting, “Bravo!” at the top of their lungs. Others remained fastened to their chairs, too astonished to clap; a few, unsure how to react, cast glances at the delirious crowd around them. The girl and three men, probably the director and the choreographers, came out onto the stage and took a bow.
    Albert, Jaume, and Sebastià, faces flushed and eyes glazed over, stood up to applaud. Maurici took his handkerchief out of his pocket to wipe off the cold sweat that trickled down his face. The lump in his stomach tightened up. He didn’t know what was happening to him. He couldn’t figure out why the girl’s disappearing act had upset him so, why those shadows had distressed him more than any real experience. He’d seen it with his own eyes. What couldn’t be, had been. The impossible had happened. Logic was not foolproof. He’d been sitting there, watching the girl, and the girl had vanished. A dizzy spell frustrated his efforts to stand.
    His cousin, noticing he was as pale as a ghost, helped him up and elbowed his way among the crowd that blocked the hallways. Outside, night had fallen and countless stars punctured the sky. With Albert’s assistance, Maurici braced himself against a tree and threw up all