Le Tee-shirt

The end of a family lunch. The couple, the children, the in-laws. Coffee arrives.

The man asks for the bill. A twenty-euro T-shirt. Nothing on the table asking to be noticed. But there is something in the way he looks at you: direct, calm, never evasive.

Je me dis qu’il dirige probablement quelque chose d’important. Une grosse entreprise, peut-être une start-up.

He pays and leaves a generous tip. I give him my first name for a future visit. He immediately gives me his.

Un ancien PDG, en tee-shirt à vingt euros. The coffee is finished. We clear the table.