Page 136 - Orwell, George - Nineteen eighty-four -bilingüe [pdf]

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attentive to his own comfort to choose the emptiest instalaría en la mesa donde no había nadie para
table. With ice at his heart Winston followed. It was evitarse la molestia de verse obligado a soportar a
no use unless he could get the girl alone. At this los desconocidos que luego se quisieran sentar allí.
moment there was a tremendous crash. The little man Con verdadera angustia, lo siguió Winston. De
was sprawling on all fours, his tray had gone flying, nada le serviría sentarse con ella si alguien más los
two streams of soup and coffee were flowing across acompañaba. En aquel momento, hubo un ruido
the floor. He started to his feet with a malignant tremendo. El hombrecillo se había caído de bruces
glance at Winston, whom he evidently suspected of y la bandeja salió volando derramándose la sopa y
having tripped him up. But it was all right. Five el café. Se puso en pie y miró ferozmente a
seconds later, with a thundering heart, Winston was Winston. Evidentemente, sospechaba que éste le
sitting at the girl's table. había puesto la zancadilla. Pero daba lo mismo
porque poco después, con el corazón galopándole,
se instalaba Winston junto a la muchacha.

He did not look at her. He unpacked his tray and No la miró. Colocó en la mesa el contenido de su
promptly began eating. It was all-important to speak bandeja y empezó a comer. Era importantísimo
at once, before anyone else came, but now a terrible hablar en seguida antes de que alguna otra persona
fear had taken possession of him. A week had gone se uniera a ellos. Pero le invadía un miedo terrible.
by since she had first approached him. She would Había pasado una semana desde que la joven se
have changed her mind, she must have changed her había acercado a él. Podía haber cambiado de idea,
mind! It was impossible that this affair should end es decir, tenía que haber cambiado de idea. Era
successfully; such things did not happen in real life. imposible que este asunto terminara felizmente;
He might have flinched altogether from speaking if estas cosas no suceden en la vida real, y
at this moment he had not seen Ampleforth, the probablemente no habría llegado a hablarle si en
hairy-eared poet, wandering limply round the room aquel momento no hubiera visto a Ampleforth, el
with a tray, looking for a place to sit down. In his poeta de orejas velludas, que andaba de un lado a
vague way Ampleforth was attached to Winston, and otro buscando sitio. Era seguro que Ampleforth,
would certainly sit down at his table if he caught que conocía bastante a Winston, se sentaría en su
sight of him. There was perhaps a minute in which to mesa en cuanto lo viera. Tenía, pues, un minuto
act. Both Winston and the girl were eating steadily. para actuar. Tanto él como la muchacha comían
The stuff they were eating was a thin stew, actually a rápidamente. Era una especie de guiso muy caldoso
soup, of haricot beans. In a low murmur Winston de habas. En voz muy baja, empezó Winston a
began speaking. Neither of them looked up; steadily hablar. No se miraban. Se llevaban a la boca la
they spooned the watery stuff into their mouths, and comida y entre cucharada y cucharada se decían las
between spoonfuls exchanged the few necessary palabras indispensables en voz baja e inexpresivo.
words in low expressionless voices.

'What time do you leave work?' — ¿A qué hora sales del trabajo?

'Eighteen-thirty.' — Dieciocho treinta.

'Where can we meet?' — ¿Dónde podemos vernos?

'Victory Square, near the monument.' — En la Plaza de la Victoria, cerca del
Monumento.