“I can’t believe this of you, Valeria. Thank God Mateo is a nice young man and he brought you home safely. But how can you come back like that?” The disapproval in her mother’s voice, the disappointment in her eyes, and the words she said at that moment were all a slap in her face.
“I’m sorry.” Valeria lowered her head. “It won’t happen again.”
Entering her room again without saying another word, she waited until her mother’s steps could no longer be heard, and the silent tears turned into strangled sobs.
She did not mean for any of this to happen, but what was she supposed to say now? Her mother was so mad just because she came back home drunk, what would happen if she told her the rest?
The sweet fantasy of the ideal romance had been broken, all of the dates, the smiles and laughter, were reduced to nothing. Grabbing some clean towels, Valeria headed to the bathroom hoping that a hot shower would help her soothe her sore body and her troubled heart.
[I’m going to stop by your house this afternoon.]
[I love you.]
Valeria snorted when she found these messages in her phone, and immediately turned it off. Even if she didn’t know much about the world, or about love, she was certain that a person who loved you wouldn’t do things the way Mateo had. Hiding under the blankets and closing her eyes, maybe it was possible to pretend it had all been just a nightmare.
But it wasn’t.
The memories of last night, when he’d taken her to that stranger’s room and repeatedly ignored her pleads to stop, were tormenting her.
‘I shouldn’t have drunk.’
‘I shouldn’t have gone to that party at all.’
“Vale, Daniel is here asking for you. Don Ricardo is inviting us to have lunch with them today.”
“I’m not feeling well, you can go without me, mom.”
“You’re not feeling well?”
“It’s just a headache. It’ll pass in a couple of hours.”
The last thing she wanted in that moment was to let others see that she was not okay, but she didn’t think she’d be able to put a smile on her face either.
***
“I want to break up.”
Although it was mandatory that her bedroom’s door remained open the few times he came over, her mother was working at the kitchen and would not be able to see or hear a thing of what she decided to talk about that afternoon. Mateo’s expression of disbelief and confusion would have fooled any outsider looking at the scene.
“What? Why?”
She glared at him. “You took advantage yesterday, because I drank too much. I even told you I didn’t want to, but you still…” The words got stuck in her throat and, for a horrible moment, she couldn’t breathe.
“I think you’re overreacting, Valeria.” With a few steps he erased the distance between them. One of his arms encircled around her waist made her tremble, but the cause of this feeling now was very different from what it used to be. “You are my girlfriend. This is just what couples do, isn’t it?”
“No.” She took a deep breath and pushed him away. “I don’t want to see you again.”
He frowned, and the face that only one day before she’d found handsome transformed in the few seconds that took him to pin her against the wall and slam his fist on the cold clay barrier.
Valeria gasped loudly in shock.
“I think you don’t understand how it works. Who are you to break up with me? I am the only one who decides when this is over.”
“You’re horrible.”
How could she not see him for who he was before?
No, if he did not reveal himself it would be impossible for her to know, because Mateo was charming. He was Prince Charming until he wasn’t anymore.
“I’ll tell my mom.” She told him. “About what you did.”
“Will you?” He smiled, noticing her quivering lips. “Vale, it takes two to have sex. You think your mother is really going to tell you everything is okay?”
The violence in his eyes dissipated. He sighed and removed himself from her, much to her relief.
“We don’t need to fight, princess. Tomorrow you’ll see that you are exaggerating now.” His right hand caressed her cheek tenderly.
Next time it’d be better, he told her. However, Mateo did not leave without reminding her that in the case she dared to speak nonsense again, he’d make sure the school did not admit her the next year, and everyone would know how much of a ‘slut’ she actually was.
That night, and all the ones that came after, Valeria couldn’t sleep until dawn.
***
“You don’t look well at all.” Daniel showed concern at her pale expression the day before flying back home.
Camila had told her that her cousin had just made a mistake, and she’d been drinking too so it was normal for those things to happen. Valeria knew that others would think the same.
Even her mother. Thinking of Mateo’s threat, she didn’t have the courage to tell her either.
Her mother had painstakingly paid her the best school she could afford, this was all she could have good opportunities later on: she had to get into a good university and have the right group of friends. Would all of her mother’s hard work be for nothing?
In the past, a boyfriend from a privileged family seemed like something on her favor, and now it was the menace that could potentially destroy her life if he wanted to. She’d lose her reputation, her friends, her school (and certainly all other good schools she could try to get into), all because of that person’s whim.
Daniel had been right saying she was a child. He’d been right about everything.
And now that his honey eyes were on her, waiting for her to talk, she wished the words would come out of her mouth, because if there was one person who would surely tell her it was not her fault, someone who would help her find a way out of this, that person would be Daniel.
‘But how can I let him know?’
‘I don’t want him to ever know.’
This was her shame, and above all, she wished Daniel continued seeing her the way he had always seen her: an innocent little sister, his dear childhood friend.
So she swallowed up her pain and smiled for the first time in days.
“I’m fine. I just feel we didn’t spend much time together this time around.”
“True. Next year, we definitely have to go to Bocagrande again.”
They would have a good time.
“Rosa’s baby will also be huge by then.”
“I still can’t believe I’m about to be an uncle!”
A comforting thought lightened up her spirits as Daniel kept talking.
As days and months passed by, nothing ever stayed the same. She hoped, too, that Mateo would be long gone from her life in a year. That way, she could just completely forget about him and the nightmare.
‘Misfortunes never come singly.’ Why did she remember her grandmother, dead for more than ten years, more than ever these days? Abuela Juana used to repeat this a lot, whenever she talked about the family’s curse, and then she’d lock herself in the bedroom every day to pray for hours. Valeria was sure her grandma went through every bead of the rosary more than once. Maybe she, too, preferred to pray in solitude so no one would come and talk to her.On the long sunny days in the city, Valeria did not feel like leaving her bedroom when she had no reason to. She went to school, visited her friends when they invited her to hang out, and she’d laugh and have fun for a while… but then she’d be back home, feeling more lonely than ever and wishing for her misfortune to be over. For Mateo to leave her alone.
“What are you doing here?”“Just hanging out with friends.”“You’re not old enough to buy alcohol.”Daniel chuckled at the exchange between the two siblings, finally getting Meili to acknowledge his presence.“Hi, Dan.”“Hey, long time no see. You’re getting prettier every year Mei.”“I know.” The young woman smiled. “Would you please tell my brother to mind his business and let me be.”She’d come with her friends, but to her bad luck, ended up in the same bar where her brother was.&
Her mother named him Manuel, after Valeria’s grandfather.“Hi.”The child had been sleeping but woke up as soon as she entered the room, his big eyes staring at her with curiosity.Green eyes. If only he didn’t have those green eyes, she might be able to look at him. Or that was what she told herself. The truth was, the color of a baby’s eyes could change as he grew older, but even if the boy’s eyes weren’t green, Valeria would still stay away.She didn’t hate him. She thought she would because she certainly hated him when he was growing inside her. However, that was pointless now. Manuel was not at fault for his biological father being a fucking bastard. Still, she couldn’t bring herself to care as she should, either
“I’ve heard you are traveling during the holidays. So, you won’t be around for my party?” The woman batted her eyelashes coquettishly. At least, it was her attempt to do so.Daniel cleared his throat.“Ah, thanks for the invitation… but I’m visiting my grandparents.”“You must really like it there, you go every year.”They had just bumped into each other in the market, there was no need to make conversation beyond some polite greeting.“I guess so. Then… see you around, Monnie.”He didn’t like Monnie very much. However, her new year’s parties were famous and when they were teenagers it mean
“When Uncle Daniel comes, can we go on a picnic again?” Manu asked, standing right by her side on the boudoir as she tried to choose her lipstick color.“Of course. I will not have work until next month, so I can stay here with you.” She ruffled his hair. “We’re also going to the park and I’ll teach you how to ride a bike, what about that?”She’d managed to buy the bike for the kid some months ago, but it had stayed in a corner of the living room ever since because he did not want to ride with the training wheels…“Really?” Manu’s face lit up, full of excitement.“Yes. Now, your grandma and I have to go out for a moment, can you stay at Ana and Ale’s house to play with them?”
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.]