‘Pardon me, I am here. My heart is bursting, I couldn’t live as I was, so I’ve come. Have you read what I put there, on the bench? Do you recognize me at all? Don’t be afraid of me. It has been a long time now; do you remember the day when you looked at me? It was at the Luxembourg, near the Gladiator. And the day you walked past me? It was the sixteenth of June and the second of July. It will soon be a year. For a very long time now, I haven’t seen you at all. I asked the woman who collects for the chairs, she told me that she never saw you anymore. You used to live on the Rue de l’Ouest, on the third floor front, in a new house, you see, I know! I followed you. What was I to do? And then you disappeared. I thought I saw you pass once when I was reading the papers under the arches of the Odeon. I ran. But no. It was a person who had a hat like yours. At night, I come here. Do not be afraid, nobody sees me. I come to look up at your windows from nearby. I walk very softly so you won’t hear, because you might be scared. The other evening I was behind you, you turned around, I fled. Once I heard you sing. I was happy. Does it disturb you that I listen to you sing through the shutter? It cannot harm you. Can it? You see, you are my angel, let me come sometimes; I think I am going to die. If you only knew! I adore you! Pardon me, I’m talking to you, I don’t know what I’m saying to you, perhaps I annoy you, am I annoying you?’
(Source: buonapartist, via feuilly)
