We all want to show our best side to that special person. It was almost an instinct that prevented Valeria to reveal her ugly scars to him. However, a contradictory thing it was, he was also the only person she could ever bring herself to be honest with.
“Because I drank too much, I couldn’t defend myself from him. I just wanted to go home. I was so afraid.”
Maybe one day, she’d tell him.
One day when it hurt less… but that wasn’t the moment yet.
She whispered those words in the absolute silence of the hour before dawn, convinced he was sleeping. Then he opened his eyes wide and rolled on the bed to look at her in the face.
“What do you mean?”
Was he a fool that did not put enough attention to what happened around him? Daniel always felt that just doing his part of the job in the company was enough. He was a programmer and did not see it necessary to trouble himself with the administration matters. Moreover, he never thought Will would steal from him.“How could you not notice it before?” His father had asked him.Daniel just shrugged in response.“Let’s not talk about it anymore.”Well, he’d been busy doing his job, and he did go to Cartagena twice in a span of six months. He’d been distracted, and there were few reasons to be alarmed as he kept receiving a good part of his money, but the truth was still the same: he never thought that Will or Lisa (Will’s girlf
Valeria did not sleep well that night. Manu woke up coughing and with a fever around midnight had trouble going back to sleep. His temperature only went back to normal after uncountable cold compresses and a promise from his mother that she would stay by his side.Every time she closed her eyes, however, the worries piled up on her mind.Luz’s incoming message did not help either.[So I was speaking with Mario about our trip to Barranquilla. He thinks it’s okay for you and Manuel to join. So what do you say? Are you coming?][Why are you texting me at these hours?]Valeria thought about it a bit more.[Forget it. I don’t want to know.]
She was totally mad at him.This was the first time he wasn’t welcomed with a hug, and if the strength she used to hit him earlier with that ball wasn’t enough proof, then the way she kept smiling through lunch while giving short answers to all his questions about her new job at the school should be a confirmation.That was alright, he probably deserved it. He was a coward.While questioning his feelings for her, Daniel had lost all courage and avoided talking to her, fearing that he’d give himself away. This was not an option when he was unsure about what his next steps should be, because what if he screwed things up? To Valeria, their friendship was just as important as it was for him, but what if she knew what was going on in his mind?&lsq
Valeria didn’t let go of her chance to tease her mother, who’d finally be free of them for a few days. “Tell Diego we say hi. Or maybe he can also take you somewhere on vacations since you are a free woman again.”Maybe this was a chance to spend some quality time with her son and have them get used to the changes they’d have in their lives.Her mother had recently talked about moving in with her boyfriend. Diego Ramirez lived in the same neighborhood, just 15 minutes away, but as it had always been just her and her mother in that house, Valeria still felt weird knowing this was about to change. It didn’t mean she wasn’t happy for the woman she loved the most in the world. Diego made her mother laugh and feel young again, that was enough reason to like him. He also had grandchildren and treated Manu as one.
They waited outside for a few minutes before the taxi got there. Being next to her unable to help her was an awful feeling, and yet Daniel did not ask for her motives to leave the party. Whatever it was, it was bad enough that she marked the wrong number twice, and kept playing with her leather bag strap, adjusting it time after time for no reason.“Finally,” she gritted between her teeth when the car stopped right in front of the house, but she did not get in until he grabbed her hand and opened the door for her. He could feel how cold her hand was because their fingers were still interlocked when they got into the taxi.“Where are we going?” The driver had asked them, and Daniel gave him Luz’s address, only to feel her grip on his hand tighten and see her shaking her head vigorously.
The dark bags under her eyes when she greeted her reflection in the mirror that morning spoke for themselves. Valeria did get some sleep, but only after Luz came back (and her friend came back not long after Daniel had left, worried about what was going on too), and the two of them sat in the kitchen for what felt like hours. The chamomille tea helped, too.“I can’t believe it.” Luz was startled when Valeria told her the man who’d been asking for her earlier was Manu’s biological father. “So you’re going back because you think he wants to meet Manu? If you say he’s never shown interest in meeting his child before, why would it change now?”“I don’t know, but I’m not going to risk it.”“Is he that bad?”
This felt completely wrong, Daniel decided, as he kept his eyes on his champagne glass and walked away from Monnie’s snobbish group of acquaintances. The food was still heavenly, and his main reason to be there. Years ago it also used to be fun, he thought, when he had friends around.Now, Long Wei was on the other side of the world raising a toddler on his own, only God knew how, because Daniel spent just a few days with Rosa’s kids or Manu, and being the cool uncle was hard enough. Meili wasn’t around either, because she had a child of her own, and-“Hey, Daniel!” The young man waving his hand and walking in his direction was Jamie, the youngest child of the Lee family.He used to tutor Jamie’s older sister when she was in high school, and this man wasn’t but a skinn
The locksmith finished his work, and he heard Emilia under her breath.“All good now… I just have to start looking for an apartment I can afford to pay.”He wasn’t sure why he was still around, he’d only come back because he forgot his wallet on the couch of her living room after the three of them crashed into Emilia’s apartment barely able to walk straight. But she invited him to have breakfast and it did not seem right to leave her alone when she was evidently not okay, despite everything she could have said the night before.“I have a friend who works as an agent and can help with that. I’ll send you his contact.”She walked to the kitchen, and he followed behind, sitting at the counter and feeling a bit unsure of