On my way out of the administration building, I decided to visit Catalina in order to get to the bottom of my passport situation.
”Gerald! How you are doing? Everything is working for you good?” She was wearing whatever perfume it was that served to render me stupid and drooling. A short skirt and an ample glimpse of bosom almost finished me off. Almost.
“Okay. I guess. Actually though, I was wondering if we could talk for a minute, in private.”
A flash of concern rushed across her face. The full mouth pouted, the dark eyes narrowed.
“Of course Gerald. Come, let us talk in this minute.” She turned around and headed back into her office. I sat down and she closed the door behind us.
“What is the matter?”
“Well, it’s about my passport.”
“Ah. The passport.”
“I know that I signed something that said that I agreed to surrender my passport to the school for my first year of teaching. But the problem is, I didn’t really know what I was signing when I signed it. I mean, it’s just that if I had known that I wasn’t allowed to leave the country, that I’m sort of being held hostage here, I don’t know that I would have come.”
Catalina nodded, listening to every word. However, I was starting to understand that listening and comprehending were two very different things. I continued nonetheless.
“I guess what I’m saying is that I want my passport back.”
“I’m sorry Gerald. That is not possible. It is just not done. If it is a discomfort to not have your passport, this should have been talked about in Canada.”
“I know, I guess there was so much happening then, that I just didn’t know what I was doing.”
“Gerald. Please listen. Many, many teachers have worked here. Many of them were discomforted as well. But you see this is the rule of the Academy. These teachers, all of the teachers here, are the same as you. Maybe you can discuss with them. You will feel better, no?”
“What if I want to leave? I mean, what if something happens?”
“If an emergency happens, then we will discuss the situation.”
“What if I were to get fired?”
“I’m sorry?”
“What if the school did not want me to work for them anymore? What if they kicked me out?”
“Oh. No. This would not happen.”
“But what if I just stopped coming to work? Or what if I come to work drunk every day? Anything like that?”
“These actions would be breaking the laws of this country. There are very big, how do you say, penalizations?”
“penalties..”
“Yes very stiff penilzation for teachers in my country. Teachers in the private schools are of the highest standard.”
“So if I just stopped coming to work?”
“You would be against the law.”
“And what would happen?”
“You would go to the prison Gerry. Of course, no?” Her dark eyes looked at me questioningly, as if I were suffering some obvious lapse of reason.
“What if I want to travel? Over the Christmas holidays?”
“We are issued to you a travel document. A temporary passport.”
“Canadian? Can you do that?”
“No. A passport from our country.”
“Can I travel freely with that?”
“You may find that it is more difficult.”
“So you’ve really got us by the short and curlies?”
“I’m sorry?”
“Never mind.”
“Is that all of your questions Gerald? I hope that I can make you feel better. Is very normal here. Is the way things are done. You understand no?”
“Yes. I understand.” I rose to leave. Catalina met me at the door.
“You must let me show you my city Gerry. Maybe we can go, yes? I show you all of the beautiful places.”
She was a duplicitous, conniving, deceitful jailer. What the hell was she thinking? That I was going to roll over and take this breach of my rights?
“I’d love to.”
“We will go.”
“When?”
“We make a time. Just us. Me and you. Yes?” She squeezed my hands to her chest. I managed to blurt out an affirmation. She leaned in and gave me a close hug and a kiss on the cheek. Disoriented, drunk, and helpless, I found myself wandering in the hallway. The scream of the kids echoed in the cavernous corridors. I was late for my next class and couldn’t find my keys.
