Chapter 17

Emily - YEARS AGO

It had been a few days since things had calmed down a bit for Marcos. The end of the year was approaching, and with it, my vacation. I wanted to spend as much time as possible with him before I had to move to the neighboring town for college. Of course, my parents weren’t thrilled with this decision—they always thought I’d follow Fernando’s path and go to São Paulo—but they understood that Marcos was too important to me to just leave behind. I took a deep breath in the car before jumping out and grabbing the snacks I’d made with my mom.

“He’s going to love the surprise,” she said, encouraging me.

I walked hesitantly toward the entrance of Mr. Silva’s auto shop, where Marcos worked. I’d already spotted him from a distance, his pants hanging low on his hips, his tank top and arms smeared with grease, his head buried under the hood of a car.

“Good afternoon, young lady!” Silva greeted me as soon as Mom drove off, drawing everyone’s attention.

“Good morning, Mr. Silva. How’s everything going?” Marcos lifted his head so fast I worried he’d hit the hood. When his eyes landed on me, they shifted from surprise to anger in seconds, then he went back to his work, as focused as before.

“Everything’s fine around here. And with you?” Mr. Silva glanced from Marcos to me but chose not to comment, which I appreciated since it was already humiliating enough that Marcos was pretending I wasn’t there.

“I brought snacks. The heat’s brutal, and you guys must need a break more than anyone,” I said, trying to sound as upbeat as possible to hide my insecurity.

“Don’t even get me started, girl. Come on, everyone, a break won’t kill us,” he said, leading me into the shop. The two other men working there dropped their tools quickly and gave me grateful looks, but Marcos didn’t budge.

I opened the cooler bag and pulled out lemonade, sandwiches, and pie while they helped themselves. I focused on the lively conversation they kindly started with me, ignoring the tension. Mr. Silva and Henrique were old acquaintances, born and raised in São Fernando like most of the town’s population, but Pedro was an odd case. He came to town for short stints, and no one ever knew why. All sorts of rumors floated around—fugitive from the law, married man taking a break, rootless drifter. Small town, when there’s no gossip, people make it up. Still, he seemed like a good guy.

“Alright! Back to work, you two. No slacking,” Mr. Silva ordered playfully. It was amazing how that little old man could inspire both fear and affection at the same time. “But you, young lady, can stay as long as you want,” he said, giving me one of his rare smiles.

I thanked him, busying myself with cleaning up the mess we’d made, then took the leftovers to store in the tiny kitchen. It had just a fridge, a table, and a microwave on top, and I doubted more than two people could fit in there at once.

“What are you doing here?” Marcos’ voice sounded close, though I hadn’t heard him approach.

“I brought food,” I said, waving one of the still-wrapped sandwiches without turning to face him. “There’s still some if you want.”

“Emily,” he growled, signaling that my excuse wasn’t true.

“Why are you so mad that I’m here?” I exploded, turning to face his scowl.

“I’m not… You said you were going to the lake.”

“I changed my mind and decided to visit you. What’s the problem with me being here? Your boss didn’t mind, so why are you so irritated?”

“That shameless old man must be loving you here, pampering him and the others. But this isn’t your place, Emy. You’d never come here if you didn’t feel you had to.”

“Are you going back to that nonsense about me being from another world and blah, blah, blah?” He sighed deeply and cracked a smile. He’d apparently given up trying to make me understand that. “You’re going to have to tell me what’s going on in that head of yours, Marcos. I can’t guess,” I said as he stepped closer and touched my arms.

“I just don’t want you to think you have to fit into my world for us to work. You don’t need to try to blend in with my friends, Emy.”

“Are we dating or not, Marcos?” I didn’t wait for his answer. “I’m not here to blend in. I just want to spend more time with you.”

“We were going to see each other tonight, like every day,” he tried to persuade me, his hands tracing my waist and sliding to my hips.

“I wait all day to see you for an hour or less until we’re both exhausted, and I spend the whole week counting the hours until Sunday so we can spend more time together,” I burst out in a torrent of words. “So if it’s Saturday and I don’t have prep classes, I’d rather spend the day with you here at the shop, watching you tighten bolts and get covered in grease, than go to the lake.”

Marcos looked at me, resigned, almost embarrassed. That was my guy—the bad boy who got shy when someone showed him affection. I wondered if his mom had treated him with love and care growing up or if he’d always had to be so grown-up and independent. Marcos never let anything slip that hinted at his vulnerabilities.

“I love you, you know?” he whispered in a husky voice, and I hugged him, letting go of my urge to keep arguing just to prove my point.

His days were hellish, running from here to home to make sure Bianca was safe, showering, and seeing me for a few moments before nearly collapsing from exhaustion. Even my parents started helping out when they realized the struggles he faced raising his sister, keeping his drunk dad out of trouble, working, and still being a nineteen-year-old.

“But don’t get too used to it. I’ll have to escape your grumpiness sometimes,” I murmured against his chest, not caring at all that he was dirty and sweaty. “Now come eat.”

I spent the afternoon chatting and watching the men work, occasionally helping by grabbing a tool or moving a car for them. Seeing Marcos lighter made me ecstatic, and I wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Henrique cracked a joke about how the pitbull was calmer around his owner. I laughed, but I knew I was one of the few people he could count on in that moment of his life, and just being there to listen meant a lot. I only hoped he’d realize I was there to listen and face everything by his side, no matter how tough things got, as long as we could be together.