SHORT STORY POOR WOMAN, RICH MAN
POOR WOMAN, RICH MAN
Automatic traslation from the original story in Spanish. Not checked manually
In a city divided by streets and destinies, two lives ran parallel without their knowledge, marked by inequality and the irony of fate.
In a neighbourhood forgotten by time and hope, lived Marta, a woman with weary eyes and calloused hands. Poverty had been her companion since childhood, and hunger, her constant tormentor. That morning, with an empty stomach and despair gripping her chest, Marta decided to cross a line she never imagined she would: she stole a loaf of bread from a small neighbourhood shop. It wasn’t an act of malice, but of survival. But justice, implacable and blind, caught her quickly. In prison, Marta became just another number, a shadow behind bars, while her neighbourhood remained forgotten, and her story, ignored.
A few kilometres away, in a neighbourhood of gleaming towers and luxury cars, lived Víctor. A man whose smile was as sharp as his business dealings. His wealth didn’t come from honest work, but from shady dealings, from ruining small businesses. Also from weaving networks of influence that reached the corridors of political power. Every day, Víctor grew richer, more influential, more untouchable. His name appeared in headlines that spoke of success and progress, while behind that facade, he ruined lives and dreams as easily as he changed his tie.
Neither of them knew of the other’s existence, but their destinies were intertwined by the same city, by the same society that allowed Marta to end up in jail for a loaf of bread, while Víctor amassed fortunes at the expense of others’ suffering.
One day, while Marta was serving her sentence, Víctor attended a charity gala, sponsored by his company, where he boasted of his “social commitment.” The irony was palpable: the man who destroyed lives with his business now posed as the saviour of the community, while the woman who only wanted to survive paid for an act of hunger with her freedom.
Poor Woman, Rich Man – Short stories series – Copyright ©Montserrat Valls and Juan Genovés