In a Glass House

Doctor Erik had left the office early. He had agreed to make a home visit, something no doctor did anymore. After all, he had moved to this inhospitable part of the state where some concessions were needed. Deep down, he had been dominated by a pressing desire to get to know that strange part of the city where few people went. City? This was far more rural than any other place he had seen. Another motivation was the boredom of everyday life, the same kind of people and everything.

And there he was, on that remote road with an imitation of asphalt, seeing the same landscape for more than half an hour. Low vegetation, flat land that never ended. He hadn't passed any cars yet. Probably he wouldn't find any. Someone had already commented that sometimes two days would go by without a vehicle circulating. According to the instructions he had received, in five minutes he would see a small wooden sign with the inscription “Linda’s Ranch”. He should turn right on a rough, narrow road and go another two kilometers. As Linda had proudly explained, that quasi-alley was already part of the farm. He was looking closely to the right side, searching for the indication, when he noticed a noise coming from the front of the car. He didn't like that at all. In a place like that, a mechanical issue would not be a simple "mechanical issue". The most diverse ideas went through her head. One of them was that the cell phone didn't work there, as Linda had pointed out very well.

 And then, the worst happened. The car stopped at once. It made one last strange noise and stopped working. Doctor Erin started repeating to himself: "No panic, no panic, there is always a solution." Even knowing that not a living soul would pass through there for a long time, he looked both ways in the hope of seeing something or someone. However, it was practically a desert. He sat inside the car, the door open, legs hanging out. He sighed and cursed himself for a few seconds. How stupid! He had no one to blame but himself! He got up and walked about ten meters forward and another ten back. He looked at the immensity of bushes on both sides of the path, and it was all the same. He covered his face with his hands and cursed himself once more. Through the fingers of the hand covering his face, he suddenly seemed to see a flash, a glow. He looked carefully in the direction from which the light had come, but it was no longer there. He was heartbroken at the theft of the little hope he had built up in his mind. Then, he noticed a soft breeze and, with it, the movement of the plants. He noticed that, according to their movement, he could sometimes see the reflection and where it was coming from.

With no other alternative, he decided to walk in that direction. The vegetation was not thick, and he could advance quickly toward the objective. It was about two kilometers away and little by little, the image became clearer. He took the last few steps, and with his heart pounding, there he was. It was a glass house. The vegetation around it was reflected on the walls, making it difficult to see from afar. This was only possible when a ray of light hit its walls and reflected in some direction. For a moment, Erik forgot about his problems. It was something very strange. Certainly, he had never seen anything like it. Although his logical thinking was telling him that there was some explanation, his instinct was filled with fear. There, in the middle of nowhere, stood a building completely made of glass, with no access, no sidewalk, no doors, or windows. After a few minutes of walking around, it became clear that there was no entrance. He then decided to approach the wall that seemed to be the main one, the front of the building. He laid the palms of his hands against it and saw that it was very cold. Carefully, he pressed his eyes to the glass. He got a shock. Inside, everything looked like a normal house. There was furniture, rugs, and pictures on the inner walls, although those were glass too. He was even more scared when he saw that there were people inside. A woman walked around the room, picking up pillows and other objects from the floor. She arranged everything she had gathered with great care and put each piece back in its place. It was then that two boys about 5 years old came out through an inner door and ran towards her. They asked something, and she answered. They clapped their hands as if they had received good news and happily returned to the room they had come from. It was then that a man came out of another room, kissed the woman, and returned to where he had come from. She finally decided to sit on the couch. She put her hands behind her head and appeared to be relaxing. Erik felt he had to do something. He slammed both fists as hard as he could into the wall. He started screaming, but the woman remained completely indifferent. She wasn't hearing or seeing anything. Erik looked around for something more solid to use. He found a rock about the size of his hand. He banged violently on the glass, but the material appeared to be completely indestructible. He looked back into the room. Now the two were sitting side by side, talking. One of the children was playing on the rug. He tried one more time to scream, but nothing happened.

He gave up, sat down on the grass, and put his head back. He was very tired, and his whole body ached. He closed his eyes for a few moments, trying not to think about anything. How much time had passed? He couldn't tell. He was almost asleep when he heard a soft sound, almost like a breeze passing through his ears. He looked back and saw that a sort of oval opening had appeared. Light emanated from inside. He walked carefully and entered. The people he had seen before were no longer there. However, he could hear a woman's voice coming from another room. It sounded like someone he knew. Then he felt a chill. Of course, he did. It was the voice of his wife, who had passed away a few years ago. He thought about going there to see if he could find her, but he was so light he didn't seem to have a body. A peace he had never experienced before enveloped his entire being. And he felt so intensely happy, so powerful, that he couldn't describe it. He no longer remembered the car, his patients, his office, his life, anything. And Erik saw that it was good. Erik didn't want to leave, didn't want to know anything else.

Erik was happy. He, definitively, was never coming back.

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