Number Forty-Seven

Carla cuts her hand. She washes dishes at home. She goes to the clinic. She gets a number: forty-seven.

Carla skærer sig i hånden. Hun vasker op derhjemme. Hun tager på klinikken. Hun får et nummer: syvogfyrre.

The screen shows thirty-one. The room is full. A man reads a magazine. A father holds a baby. A teenager looks at his phone.

Skærmen viser enogtredive. Rummet er fuldt. En mand læser et blad. En far holder en baby. En teenager kigger på sin telefon.

The numbers change slowly: thirty-two, thirty-three, thirty-six. They do not go in order. Carla waits.

Numrene skifter langsomt: toogtredive, treogtredive, seksogtredive. De kommer ikke i rækkefølge. Carla venter.

After one hour, the screen shows forty-seven. Carla goes in. The doctor looks at her hand. "It is small," he says. "Clean it two times a day."

Efter en time viser skærmen syvogfyrre. Carla går ind. Lægen ser på hendes hånd. "Det er småt," siger han. "Rens det to gange om dagen."

Carla leaves. The room is almost empty. The teenager is gone. The baby is awake.

Carla går. Rummet er næsten tomt. Teenageren er væk. Babyen er vågen.