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"Cooking? Did he really say cooking?" Luigino faintly murmur. 

"He said cooking," I confirmed as I began leafing through a magazine. Luigino had never been a chatterer but today he spoke even less than usual. 

"What time is it?" he asked after a while. "My watch has stopped... maybe he feels weak too..."

"It's four o'clock." I said. 

"Four exactly?" He asked, starting to move the hands of the clock. I looked closer. 

"A quarter past four," I said. 

"Fifteen minutes.. after four," said Luigino, winding up the clock. "Since there is no more hope, we might as well forget about alcohol..." he decided, walking towards the bottles lined up on the table.

After a while, Mary returned: "It's too late for breakfast now," She announced. "We'll anticipate dinner instead."

I don't remember what time it was when Papa, Gianfranco and Herrera arrived. "Mission accomplished," said Papa. But what a bore all those stories with luggage, and thank goodness there was his friend Paco Garay! They really needed a good drink. What were we drinking? Daiquiri? Well then Daiquiri for everyone. Then he said he felt dirty and sweaty. He was going to change, excuse him for "a moment." Gianfranco also said he was going to change.

They returned with a fresh shirt and a rag instead of trousers. I found nothing strange in it. With my umpteenth glass in hand, even if they showed up with a python around their waist. Preferably dead, I wouldn't have been surprised.

But my mother was surprised: "Gianfranco... you're half naked! Go get dressed right away!" and I looked at him shocked. 

"Not naked. I have a sarong. To stay cool" said Gianfranco and added: "We are in the tropics, mom..."