Sublokator

Sylwia's piercing scream tore me from the bathroom. Without drying myself off, I jumped out of the shower, throwing on only a robe and sliding on the floor, running to my room. Sylwia, my cousin, was standing in the middle of the room, showing no signs of harm.

"Are you crazy?!" I asked, my heart leaping into my throat at the sound of her scream.

Sylwia silently pointed to the corner of the room. I looked where she was pointing, but there was nothing of note.

"Have you been drinking today?" My question went unanswered.

"See for yourself, don't be silly!" Sylwia finally found her voice.

"Well, I look and I see the wall! You're hallucinating, woman!" I said, tapping my head.

"What hallucinations! Come over here and you'll see for yourself!" she said, still staring at the corner. Intrigued, I approached and finally understood what she meant. Standing by the door, I couldn't see the side of the wardrobe. And right there, on the side of the wardrobe was... a spider. The sight itself sent a shiver of revulsion through me.

"Damn! What a monster!" I expressed my opinion, but I didn't move. We stood there in silence, like two pillars of salt, staring at the spider. It was disgusting! Almost as big as the palm of your hand, dark gray, with eight thick legs. It was large enough that you could almost see its eyes and what looked like fangs.

Sylwia leaned closer to the spider. She frowned and studied it intently for a moment.

"That's her!" she finally announced. I looked at her in surprise.

"You can see it's her from here? I didn't know you had such eagle eyes!" I said, but couldn't resist a little sarcasm.

"Are you crazy! You think I know how spiders differentiate between the sexes?! Now you've probably gotten worse! But look how smooth her legs are!"

Hearing this, I became truly concerned about Sylwia's mental state. She'd had some tough exams at university recently, but they wouldn't hurt her that much.

I didn't want to argue with her, so I leaned over and looked. Sure, his legs were smooth, but I still didn't see the connection with the spider's gender.

"So what if they were smooth?

" "What?! If it were a guy, the spider would be hairy!

" "Maybe he shaved them?" I followed her train of thought.

"A guy?! He shaved them?! That's impossible!" Sylwia stated with conviction.

"Why?

" "Have you seen a guy shaving his legs?" Sylwia nodded sympathetically.

"True, I haven't," I agreed.

"You see, that's why it has to be her."

Silence fell again; the spider also didn't move.

"You know, but that doesn't change the fact that we have to finally get rid of this... person," I said, starting to feel cold.

"You're right..." Sylwia agreed with me. "But who's going to remove it?

" "Sure..." I knew the pleasure would be mine. After all, the spider was in my house and technically belonged to me.

I sighed. I wasn't a spider lover, but what could I do? Sylwia was a guest, and it wasn't polite to expect her to throw the spider out. So I reached for the long-handled broom, which, fortunately, had still been in my room since the last cleaning. Thus armed, I attacked the spider.

"Just don't kill it!" Sylwia worried about the spider's fate. "After all, it's alive and quite large for a vermin..." She grimaced.

"Relax, I don't kill spiders," I said, and gathered the intruder onto the broom. I walked over to the windowsill. I pushed the broom out the window and tapped the sill a few times.

"So what? Did it fall?" asked Sylwia, who hadn't moved from her spot.

"I guess so..." I replied, straining my eyes, as darkness had already descended upon me. I pulled the brush back in, but there was no sign of the spider.

"But close the window, it might come back," Sylwia added. I preferred not to argue with my cousin and dutifully carried out the order.

The rest of the evening passed without any similar incidents. The following days

were no different. The spider incident faded into oblivion. Until one morning.

I was rushing to prepare breakfast. My dentist appointment wasn't pleasant, and I wanted to get it over with as soon as possible. There wasn't much time left until the appointed hour. I had no appetite; coffee with milk was enough for breakfast. I reached for my mug, and... it immediately fell from my hand. On the back of the plate sat... a spider. It looked like an acquaintance from a few days ago. This time, our encounter was brief. The mug fell with a loud clatter onto the tiles and shattered into smithereens, and the spider, taking the opportunity, fled under the cabinet. I stood for a moment, paralyzed, partly with fear, partly with disgust.

It looked like it would make its home in the kitchen for good. I didn't want to search for it under the cabinets. And yet, face it again. Oh no!

I gave up on coffee and left the kitchen. I preferred that my dad, or eventually my mom, stumble upon it.

The spider, however, didn't show any signs of life for days afterward, though I tried not to be alone in the kitchen.

The bombshell detonated one Sunday afternoon. I'd just returned from walking the dog. And in the kitchen doorway, I almost collided with my dad. In his hands, he proudly held a large jar with a spider inside.

In my dad's hands and in the jar, the spider posed no threat to me. Instinctively, I moved away to a safe distance.

"Have you ever seen such a beautiful specimen?!" Dad marveled at the sight of the spider. He turned the jar and examined the creature from all sides. I simply felt sorry for the spider. I'd forgotten that Dad used to love spiders. In the collecting sense. He killed them and pinned them to a special board. Unfortunately, he had to say goodbye to his collection after the wedding; Mom wouldn't compromise with Dad's passion for anything in the world.

This specimen, however, reawakened his old passion. I felt sorry for the spider; after all, it was almost an old friend and, after all, a living creature. Mom came to my rescue.

"Don't even think about it!" She seemed to be reading Dad's mind.

"About what?" Dad feigned surprise.

"You know what! The spider should be thrown outside; that's where it belongs, not on the board!" Mom was adamant.

"I didn't even think..." Dad tried to defend himself.

"You did! Throw it away, now!" Mom finally got angry, stomping her foot. She had always been an energetic woman and stood her ground.

"Now... now..." Dad gave up arguing and went to the terrace to throw out his favorite species.

With a heavy sigh, he tapped the jar on the floor several times until the spider left its confinement and hurried away from its temporary place of captivity, as far away from him as possible. Dad, on the other hand, watched the spider retreat with a look of nostalgia on his face. When the spider disappeared around the corner of the wall, Dad sighed again and shuffled back into the apartment.

It was sad to watch them both. A terrified spider, one anyone could crush with a boot, yet inspiring fear and revulsion incomparably greater than its size, and an aging man who still, deep down, couldn't come to terms with the passage of time. For him, the spider had become a symbol of youth and the dreams of that period, dreams he never tried to fulfill.

Many days that followed followed a well-worn path. Nothing interrupted the grayness of everyday life. Every morning I woke up, with work and a few distractions, which weren't really anything out of the ordinary either. Nights in my own bed, followed by a good night's sleep after reading a book or watching a movie. The gray humdrum of life...

That evening I couldn't sleep; I tossed and turned. The full moon illuminated the entire room, and light from the hallway streamed in through the open door. I stared at that bright crack. My mind went blank. Sleep wouldn't come, and time flew by. I could still hear my dad bustling about, fond of late-night snacks, from the kitchen, and the sound of water splashing from the bathroom. Apparently, my mom was relaxing in the bathtub. It must have been almost midnight, and I was still staring wide-eyed at the bright crack. Suddenly, something moved on the floor, in the beam of light. At least I thought so, because the movement lasted a split second. I stared intently at that spot...and I was right. An old, familiar...spider was creeping into the room. My reaction surprised me. Because, strangely enough, I was happy to see it. I've decided not to kick him out of the apartment anymore. Too bad, I'll have a roommate in my room. After all, spiders are supposed to bring good luck, and you can never have too much of that...