At this instant Birklo wakes up. Sometimes the secretary on the bottom floor was mute, or else she would erroneously indicate Mr. Nudel's new location, and Birklo would be obliged to walk through most of the building before getting to the office he was interested in. Occasional variants that did nothing else but add disagreeable elements to the dream. As he reflected on what he was going through, Birklo would make an effort to emphasize the positive aspects of his job. Halls close just to open a little while later, transformed into supermarkets or dance clubs.
Every day there is less work for actors.
But, at the same time, Birklo knew that with these rationalizations he was trying to cover up, without accomplishing it, an unbearable desire for conformity and self-deceit. The situation was increasingly irritating and demanded an explanation. Besides, something intangible kept him convinced that it was a useless move, and that he should search out other avenues. Birklo developed the habit of mentally reconstructing each one of the steps that he had taken since his first visit to the company building. Generally, he did it at night, in the darkness and silence of his room, in order to fill up the torturous and tense wakefulness that followed the ever-recurring dream.