Chapter 5

And finally, the day of the trip arrives. The group interacts from the beginning. New friendships appear that can last for the rest of their lives. People exchange information and expectations. The couple André and Marta were going to the Pantanal for the third time. They were contagious in their cheerfulness and charmed everyone with their wonderful stories of contacts with the riverside peoples of that region.

Jorge was a professional fisherman; while the others would be going on various sightseeing tours, he had rented a boat with a local guide and was going to dedicate himself to his passion, fishing.

Luciana got to know each one of these people and felt close to them. But she soon realized that not everything was perfect, as she noticed that one person called Vanderlei traveled with them. He spoke very loudly, intruded on private conversations, wanted to beg for a snack, especially from the elderly, who were more susceptible to his melodramatic stories without meaning.

After the first stop at a great roadside restaurant, everyone settled in for a nap after lunch, but Vanderlei stood in the corridor between the front seats of the bus. Helinho asked him to sit down, because it was the recommendation of the traffic laws. Vanderlei then, said that he would make a quick announcement to the group before taking his place. "I'm the smartest person in this group," he boasted loudly and irritatingly. People looked at him without understanding anything and he continued.

“I have proof of what I'm talking about. Look at what I have in my jacket pocket. That's right, folks, it´s the restaurant's salt shaker. I took it for myself. With security cameras and everything, no one beats me,” He laughed a lot, displaying a common glass and plastic salt shaker. Some people were outraged, others decided to ignore him. No one shared, or even understood, his twisted sense of humor. Finally, after more insistence from Helinho, he went to sit down, feeling victorious. Helinho whispered to Luciana:

“He's not dangerous, just silly. But let's keep an eye out”, while he was going to warn the other guide, Vilma, about his opinion, Lu sighed and thought that after all, in this area of work, the the hard times could be called Vanderlei times.

...

It was understandable that people opted for road access to Pantanal. That trip alone was stunning. Along the way, wonderful discoveries were made by the tourists and the bus driver always stopped for people to film or photograph the landscapes up close and enjoy this universe of colors, sounds and exuberant vegetation.

People in the Pantanal region were exposed to more than 450 species of birds and more than 1000 species of butterflies. In this beautiful way to get there, it felt as if these little creatures came to pick them up and guide them to their paradise.

Luciana came to understand why some NGOs were so dedicated to conserving this universe. A true ecological sanctuary, the Pantanal was recognized as a world heritage site.

Helinho and Vilma took turns passing on this valuable information. When Vilma made the announcement that they were officially on the soil of the Brazilian Pantanal, everyone applauded. The colors of the landscapes had become more pronounced. They looked like the paint palette of a very inspired painter. Everything multicolored, flowers, foliage, feathers of charming birds.

Luciana could not stop photographing. Helinho was filming everything and was going to give her a copy of the film later.

...

At Sweat Drop everyone was celebrating Renato's victory in a local jiu-jitsu championship. Now he was going to start hard training for the state title. It was exciting. The students greeted him through the corridors. The boys punched their fists in his lightly and the girls clapped their opened hands in his hand. Some daring ones gave him a hug. Renato found himself searching the gym, looking for Luciana. Funny how he wanted her hug. He wanted to share the victory with her. But he hadn't seen her in ten days.

Wow! He realized that he had been looking for her every day and was disappointed in her absence. She was so focused on the treadmill, it looked like she was walking towards happiness, very determined. And in Corpus Body classes, she worked so hard. She was beautiful even when she tripped on the mat and was a little out of pace. He couldn't take his eyes off her, it was as if he needed to memorize her features.

But Renato noticed that she had not gotten along with his friends. She didn't stay after classes to chat. He had already memorized her registration form, but he was thirsty to know more, to know her better.

When he finally figured out that maybe she had dropped out of classes, even though her package was semiannual, he immediately went to speak to Neuraci.

“Did the student Luciana Carvalhares drop out of gym classes, Neuraci?”

“No, Renato. She traveled to the Pantanal as a tour guide. She will be there for 20 days.”

“Wow! My dream is to visit the Pantanal. I didn't know she worked with traveling.”

“She studies tourism at college and works at Panta Trip travel agency. She asked me for an exercise program to have more resistance on the Pantanal trails.”

“I did not know about that. I never talked to her.”

“Ah, it´s understandable. You were overwhelmed with Bruno's classes. Now that you've hired Eric, you'll have time to socialize more, without having to run from one class to the next.”

“Neuraci, when Luciana returns, please, offer her one more free month in her training package. It is not her fault that she needed to travel for work. Please let Arlete know.”

Renato was always surrounded by lean girls who admired him. This was good for his ego, as it is better to be liked than hated. But he did not feel a connection with any of them. Everything was fun and superficial in those contacts, but without any deeper feelings. However, Luciana caught his attention in a different way. It was like if something inside him had instantly recognized the need to be with her.

He wanted to share his ideas, interests and even ambitions with her. He felt as if she could understand him and return his feelings. Although they had never spoken, it was as if their intense looks had showed the world to each other. She did no

Renato did not have a rational explanation for this choice, as he had known her for a short time and they did not have a relationship yet.

But in his heart he already knew that they would. His heart recognized that this girl could be the ideal partner for his life. Without even realizing it, he began a subconscious count of the days left before her return.

And time seemed to pass very slowly.