Chapter 26

I sighed loudly, feeling his hand slide up my arm, sending shivers through my body, all while he never stopped looking at me.

“Ahhh! Joshua, stop being an idiot!” Bianca’s screams brought us back, making me pull away and jump out of the truck in a panic.

What’s wrong with me? What was I thinking, almost kissing him?

It was the stress and memories, that’s all! I repeated to myself, trying to believe my words and forget what my body was feeling.

“What happened, Bianca?” Marcos asked, his voice thick and fierce, slamming the truck door harder than necessary.

“This idiot pretended there was a snake!” she yelled at Joshua, who sneakily scooped her up and ran toward the lake. “I’ll kill you if you do this!” Her threat hung in the air as he jumped into the lake with her.

Watching it all just made me miss everything I’d lived in this place.

Somehow, my heart felt warmer since learning the truth behind what Marcos did. It was like the hope of having something good and true again had sparked inside me.

“You’re not going in?” Marcos’ voice was close enough to pull me from my reverie, but I refused to look at him, not wanting to see what I’d find in those eyes or risk getting hypnotized again.

“Can’t get the stitches wet. You?” He didn’t seem tempted to go in, and with those heavy shorts, he definitely wasn’t jumping in. I knew him well.

“Nah. Not in the mood to swim today,” he replied, but I was focused on the scene ahead.

Bianca was laughing uncontrollably, like she used to years ago, her lightness and authenticity still radiating. It was magical to see Bi be herself with Joshua, without needing to act or pretend, unlike me with everyone I’d crossed paths with these past years.

“She seems really happy. That’s so rare these days, especially in a relationship like theirs, with the distance,” I murmured before I could stop my big mouth.

I sounded like a bitter old lady whining about other people’s relationships.

“He’s good for her, even if I carry the weight of the world every time he goes back for another tour. Just the thought of something happening to him and Bianca suffering drives me crazy,” Marcos confessed, sitting under a tree.

I looked at his gaze, lost in the scenery. He was always like this—too worried about helping everyone around him, doing whatever it took to ensure the well-being of those he loved.

“You don’t have to carry all that alone. You need to share that burden with someone,” I murmured, already regretting it as I remembered he had someone: Carla.

I was the only one alone in this story, searching for where I fit after all these years.

“You didn’t have a boyfriend?” he asked, surprising me with his directness. “After the one your mom told me about. No one serious?”

I tried, I really did, but no amount of willpower could make me relax on a date, let alone in a relationship.

“No,” I said honestly, even if it sounded pathetic. “I tried, but I guess it wasn’t meant to be.” He just nodded in agreement.

We sat in deafening, awkward silence for several minutes, like two strangers forced to be alone.

The only sounds were the couple’s laughter and the lake water splashing with their play.

I wished I could go back in time, erase all the wrong decisions we made, and start over.

“How was it when you came back? How was fitting in again?” I asked, giving in to curiosity. “You weren’t gone as long, but I imagine a lot had changed.”

He looked at me, searching for the right words, studying my face with such interest it unsettled me. If anyone had ever read my expressions so well, it was Marcos.

“Not much had changed. I was the one who’d changed most, and dealing with that, accepting the new Marcos, was the hardest part,” he explained, straightforward with his feelings. “I didn’t know how to do it at first—how to fit in. Conversations weren’t about things I knew, people had no idea what I’d been through.” Marcos continued, his gaze fixed on mine, as if baring himself without shame because he trusted me. “It took a while to rejoin friend groups, go to parties, but nothing was the same. It never will be.”

“That’s what I’m afraid of,” I blurted out too quickly. “What if I can’t get used to this place again? What if I can’t fit in? Or worse, what if I can’t help my dad?”

I was determined to leave my half-life in São Paulo and live a full one in São Fernando, drastically changing everything I’d done all these years.

But there were so many uncertainties that made me question if this was really the best choice.

“Hey, hey. That’s a lot of ‘what ifs.’ How about taking it easy and figuring it out slowly?” he advised, a comforting smile on his lips.

His eyes urged me to talk, open up, and trust again. It was a familiar yet entirely new path.

“My biggest fear is not knowing who I am,” I took a deep breath, gathering courage to continue. “I spent too long clinging to truths that have now crumbled, revealed as lies. I don’t know who I’ll be without those convictions.”

I’d shaped my way of life and judgments based on what I suffered with Marcos, becoming a completely different person.

Now, I could never go back to that teenager with unshakable faith, nor could I stay the bitter person who trusted no one.

“That’s not entirely bad. I’m sure I’ll love meeting the new Emily,” he murmured, a wide smile brimming with affection. “Pleasure, Marcos Almeida,” he said, extending his hand.

That’s what I needed—to learn from everything happening and change for the better. That’s what it means to be a walking metamorphosis, always evolving.

With them all around me, I could face whatever came next!

“Pleasure, Emily Carvalho,” I said, shaking his hand, taking a bigger step toward my new life in São Fernando.

Marcos pulled my hand, making me yelp as I lost my balance. Luckily—or unluckily—I fell into his lap. Maybe it would’ve been better to

hit the ground than be so close to him.