La Fotografía que Respira
(The Photograph That Breathes)
Cuando Dolores encontro la fotografía entre las pertenencias de su abuela, sintio un escalofrio que no supo explicar.
When Dolores found the photograph among her grandmother's belongings, she felt a chill she could not explain.
La imagen mostraba a una mujer joven sentada en un jardín que ella no reconocia.
The image showed a young woman sitting in a garden she did not recognise.
Nadie en la familia habia sido capaz de identificar a la desconocida, y su abuela, antes de morir, habia insistido en que aquella fotografía fuera destruida.
No one in the family had been able to identify the stranger, and her grandmother, before dying, had insisted that the photograph be destroyed.
Dolores, sin embargo, decidio quedarsela.
Dolores, however, decided to keep it.
La coloco en un marco de plata y la puso sobre la mesilla de noche.
She placed it in a silver frame and put it on the bedside table.
Aquella primera noche, Dolores se desperto a las tres de la madrugada con la sensacion de que alguien la estaba observando.
That first night, Dolores woke up at three in the morning with the feeling that someone was watching her.
Encendio la lámpara.
She turned on the lamp.
La mujer de la fotografía, que antes habia estado mirando hacia la izquierda, ahora parecia dirigir sus ojos directamente hacia la cama.
The woman in the photograph, who had previously been looking to the left, now seemed to direct her eyes straight towards the bed.
Dolores se dijo a si misma que era una ilusión provocada por la luz tenue, y volvio a dormirse.
Dolores told herself it was an illusion caused by the dim light, and went back to sleep.
A la mañana siguiente, su vecina Consuelo paso a visitarla.
The following morning, her neighbour Consuelo came to visit her.
Dolores le enseno la fotografía y le pregunto si reconocia a la mujer.
Dolores showed her the photograph and asked her if she recognised the woman.
Consuelo palidecio. <<Esa fotografía deberia haber sido quemada hace años>>, susurro. <<Tu abuela me conto que la habian encontrado dentro de la pared cuando reformaron la casa en mil novecientos sesenta y dos.
Consuelo turned pale. <<That photograph should have been burned years ago,>> she whispered. <<Your grandmother told me they had found it inside the wall when they renovated the house in nineteen sixty-two.
Decia que, desde que la sacaron de allí, las cosas empezaron a ir mal.>>
She said that, ever since they took it out of there, things started to go wrong.>>
Dolores no le hizo caso.
Dolores paid no attention.
Pero con el paso de los dias, empezo a notar cambios en la fotografía que no podian ser explicados por la razón.
But as the days passed, she began to notice changes in the photograph that could not be explained by reason.
La mujer, que originalmente habia aparecido sentada, ahora estaba de pie.
The woman, who had originally appeared seated, was now standing.
Su expresión, que al principio habia sido neutra, se habia transformado en algo que se asemejaba a una sonrisa.
Her expression, which at first had been neutral, had transformed into something that resembled a smile.
Y lo que mas perturbaba a Dolores era que el jardín del fondo parecia haberse oscurecido, como si una sombra se hubiera extendido detrás de la figura.
And what most disturbed Dolores was that the garden in the background seemed to have darkened, as if a shadow had spread behind the figure.
Una noche, Dolores fue despertada por un susurro.
One night, Dolores was woken by a whisper.
Al principio creyo que procedia de la calle, pero pronto comprendio que el sonido emanaba de la mesilla de noche.
At first she thought it came from the street, but she soon understood that the sound emanated from the bedside table.
Se incorporo lentamente y miro la fotografía.
She sat up slowly and looked at the photograph.
La mujer ya no estaba en el jardín.
The woman was no longer in the garden.
El fondo de la imagen mostraba unicamente la vegetacion oscura.
The background of the image showed only the dark vegetation.
Es posible que el corazón de Dolores se hubiera detenido durante un segundo.
It is possible that Dolores's heart stopped for a second.
Entonces, sintio un aliento frio en la nuca.
Then, she felt a cold breath on the back of her neck.
Dolores grito y encendio todas las luces de la casa.
Dolores screamed and turned on every light in the house.
Busco la fotografía, pero habia desaparecido del marco.
She searched for the photograph, but it had disappeared from the frame.
Registro cada rincón, cada cajón, cada estante.
She checked every corner, every drawer, every shelf.
No la encontro.
She did not find it.
A la mañana siguiente, llamo a su hermano Aurelio y le conto lo que habia sucedido.
The following morning, she called her brother Aurelio and told him what had happened.
El le dijo que seguramente se hubiera quedado dormida y lo hubiera sonado todo. <<Las fotografias no cambian, Dolores>>, le aseguro con tono condescendiente.
He told her she had surely fallen asleep and dreamt it all. <<Photographs do not change, Dolores,>> he assured her in a condescending tone.
Pero aquella noche, cuando Aurelio se sento en su propio salón a leer el periódico, algo llamo su atención.
But that night, when Aurelio sat down in his own living room to read the newspaper, something caught his attention.
Sobre la repisa de la chimenea, apoyada contra la pared, habia aparecido una fotografía antigua que nunca antes habia visto.
On the mantelpiece, leaning against the wall, an old photograph had appeared that he had never seen before.
En ella, una mujer joven sonreia desde un jardín oscuro.
In it, a young woman smiled from a dark garden.
Y Aurelio habria jurado que, justo antes de apartar la mirada, la mujer habia parpadeado.
And Aurelio could have sworn that, just before he looked away, the woman had blinked.
Key Vocabulary
el escalofrio chill, shiver
la mesilla de noche bedside table, nightstand
palidecer to turn pale, to go white
susurrar to whisper
emanar to emanate, to come from
la nuca nape, back of the neck
el cajon drawer
la repisa de la chimenea mantelpiece, fireplace shelf
parpadear to blink
perturbar to disturb, to unsettle