His friends were always open about their desires and escapades. But he hid his secrets. None of them knew that he flirted with girls hesitantly and bashfully in the alleys of Abu Kabir. And what was he going to say? There was nothing for him to be proud about. Success always eluded him in any case, since his feelings were always unrequited. And he didn’t tell anyone about the problem, or problems, that had preoccupied him ever since he’d heard Mr. Abdelraziq mention the man called Descartes. It was a problem related to the devil, who tricked him and made him doubt everything, including mathematics, and made him think our entire life was nothing but a dream. And it was also linked to the idea of God the Benevolent, who doesn’t allow for His servants to stray and who rescues them from the gr
