Weeckies: The Double, by Peter Kim

Hello, everyone! It's been a while since I've written another Weeckies and I'm very happy that I've returned to it. For the new readers, Weeckies is the weekly short story, which I normally don't post every week, but I promise I'll try 😊

Anyway, I was recently sent a short story by a publisher named The Double by Peter Kim. I was intrigued by the premise and so I was eager to read it. This Weeckies is all about The Double.

The Double is about an old man named Santiago Cervantez. One night, when he returns home and his wife is asleep, the telephone rings. It is from the police station and the officer informs him that his wife is there. Even though Santiago knows that this is impossible, he goes to pick this person and he is shocked to find that it is indeed his wife, but thirty years younger.

I have to admit that this premise sounds very promising. We never get to learn Santiago's age, but if I had to guess, I would say that he is a middle-aged man. Throughout this story, we get glimpses of who Santiago used to be as a young man and who he is today. He is feeling that his life is quickly passing by, taking every good part away. He is desperate to find something that will keep him alive (in the metaphorical sense) and he finds just this thing in Young Miranda. I found this a very relatable trait, even though I'm not middle-aged. I think that feeling that you could have done better is common while growing up.

A thing that comes up a lot throughout the story is Santiago's irritation with his wife. He has reached a point where he cannot even look at her without feeling angry. He despises who she is and the way she acts. However, this became the reason why I couldn't feel sorry for him. Instead, I myself felt irritated with Santiago for his wife. When you are young and reckless, it is easy to love and to be blind to someone's negative trait. But when you spend years together, you fall into a routine and you throw away every pretense.

Santiago's response to the appearance of Young Miranda to me was unacceptable. I can understand the temptation of starting afresh. After all, she is the same person he got married to. However, because she is the same Miranda she is set to become the Miranda he hates in the future. The solution he finds is something radical (which I will not spoil for you). When he does that, comes his thoughts that bothered me the most. He thinks that with Young Miranda he can change the sofa that got old, and fix the fridge. My question is: what didn't he do those things if they were really bothering him?

The solution, the real solution, to Santiago's problem with his wife would be to sit down and communicate with her. If he was bothered by her dress (which was the only thing that was mentioned again and again in the story), then he should have told her so. He shouldn't have blamed Miranda for changing. Not for once, did he stop to wonder how he has changed, and how Miranda feels about him at this point. He only blames her. And this is exactly the reason why he loses both her and the younger version of her.

We cannot always stay young. While we are growing up we are changing, slowly becoming different people. There will always be regrets, but we should always be aware of the people we have become and appreciate what we have. In general, The Double was an enjoyable read for me and it was surprisingly thought-provoking. If you are looking for a quick read with an interesting premise, you can give it a try.

This was it for this week! What short stories have you been reading lately? Would you recommend one for me to read next?