LOGINClara has spent most of her life learning how to hide her pain. Growing up in a home where love was often overshadowed by harsh words and emotional distance, she became afraid of vulnerability, disappointment, and abandonment. Her mother's constant warnings, though rooted in love, left Clara terrified of making mistakes and failing the people she loved. As she prepares to begin medical school, Clara hopes the new chapter will give her a chance to become someone different. But starting over isn't as easy as she imagined. Then she meets Daniel online. She isn't looking for love, and she certainly isn't ready for a relationship. But Daniel's patience and genuine interest slowly begin breaking through the walls she has spent years building. Just when Clara starts wondering if she can finally let someone into her heart, her old fears return. Between the pressure of medical school, complicated family expectations, friendships, and her growing feelings for Daniel, Clara must confront the parts of herself she has spent years running from. But love may not be the only thing waiting for her in this new chapter. Sometimes, the hardest battle isn't finding someone to love you—it's believing that you are worthy of being loved without losing yourself in the process.
View MoreClara Hernandez had always wondered whether love was supposed to feel safe.
She wanted to believe it was, but every time she tried to let someone close, fear found its way into the relationship. Maybe it was because of her childhood. She had grown up watching a father who never seemed to know how to show love. His presence filled the house, but warmth rarely came with it. There were more harsh words than gentle ones, more silence than affection. Clara never asked why. Perhaps she was afraid of the answer. Perhaps some questions were easier to leave unanswered than to discover that the truth could hurt even more. So whenever Clara began caring about someone, a little voice inside her whispered: They're going to leave. Don't trust them too much. Don't get attached. And eventually, those fears would become walls. She often wondered if she would ever experience the kind of happiness she saw in other people. “Will I ever be happy?” she whispered one night, looking at the ceiling. She didn't have an answer. The following afternoon, Clara opened her phone simply to distract herself. A message request caught her attention. Daniel: Hey. I hope I'm not disturbing you. Clara stared at the message for a moment before replying. Clara: You're not. That was how it started. Nothing dramatic. Just two strangers talking online. Daniel was different from the people Clara usually met. He didn't rush the conversation. He asked about her interests, made stupid jokes that somehow made her laugh, and seemed genuinely interested in knowing the person behind the screen. Still, Clara wasn't interested in a relationship. She told him that from the beginning. “I don't want anything serious,” she said during one of their conversations. Daniel respected her answer. “I understand,” he replied. “We can just be friends.” For some reason, that made Clara trust him a little more. Soon, their conversations became part of her routine. There was Maya, Clara's closest friend, who noticed the change almost immediately. “You've been smiling at your phone a lot lately,” Maya teased. “I'm not smiling.” “You literally are.” Clara rolled her eyes. “He's just a friend.” Maya smiled knowingly. “Okay, Clara. A friend.” ------- As the days passed, Daniel became increasingly fond of her. He liked the way she could turn an ordinary conversation into something funny. He liked how she pretended not to care when she actually cared deeply. But Clara noticed something else. She was beginning to care too. And that terrified her. One evening, Daniel didn't reply for several hours. It was completely normal. People got busy. Phones died. Life happened. But Clara's mind immediately created a different story. He's losing interest. He's talking to someone else. You knew this would happen. She stared at the last message between them. Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. She wanted to ask if everything was okay. Instead, she put her phone down. Then she picked it up again. Then she put it down. Maya noticed her expression. “What's wrong?” “Nothing.” “Clara.” “I'm fine.” Maya sat beside her. “You don't have to pretend with me.” Those words almost broke something inside Clara. Because that was exactly what she had been doing her entire life. Pretending. Pretending she wasn't hurt. Pretending she didn't need anyone. Pretending she wasn't afraid of being abandoned. And now, for the first time, someone was getting close enough to see through the walls. Clara looked at her phone again. A message finally appeared. Daniel: Sorry, I disappeared. My mum needed help with something. Are you okay? Clara stared at the words. A small smile appeared on her face. But underneath that smile was a realization she wasn't ready to face. Daniel wasn't the problem. Her fear was. And if she wanted to keep people in her life, she would eventually have to decide whether she wanted to keep protecting herself from being hurt—or finally give herself permission to be loved without expecting it to end. For now, Clara wasn't ready.At first, nobody was worried. The mall wasn't particularly far from their house, and Maria occasionally stopped to look at things along the way. Flora assumed her daughter had been delayed by a queue or had met someone she knew. By noon, she had begun checking the time. At one o'clock, she sent Clara to the sitting room to see whether Maria had returned. At two, she started pacing between the kitchen and the front door. "Where is that girl?" Flora muttered, glancing at the clock again. "She should have been back hours ago." Clara sat on the sofa, her attention divided between the television and the road outside. "Maybe the mall is crowded, Mum." "For milk and eggs?" Clara had no answer. Flora picked up her phone and called Maria's number. It rang. And rang. And rang. Eventually, the call ended without an answer. Flora frowned and tried again. This time, the call went unanswered once more. "She's probably talking to someone," Clara offered, although a
Clara kept staring at the photo, her eyes moving between Daniel's face and the girl standing beside him. Maria. Her sister. The same sister whose disappearance had left a wound in Clara's heart that had never truly healed. Why was Daniel standing next to Maria in that photo? And more importantly, what was their connection? Clara brought the photo closer to her face, examining every little detail as though she might discover an answer hidden somewhere in the background. Daniel looked younger, but there was no mistaking him. His eyes, his nose, the shape of his face—it was undoubtedly him. Maria, whose face showed only half, but Clara couldn't forget that bright smile that Maria always wore. A smile that had disappeared from their lives years ago. Clara's fingers tightened around the phone. Could Daniel have been connected to Maria's disappearance? The thought sent an uncomfortable chill down her spine. For years, Clara had tried to convince herself that Maria ha
Daniel sat at the edge of his bed, staring at his phone with an expression he couldn't quite explain. It was Friday morning, and for the first time in a long while, he found himself looking forward to the weekend for a reason other than having a break from work. Clara. Ever since she had agreed to go on a date with him, he had been thinking about how to make their first outing memorable without making her uncomfortable. He opened their conversation and read her last message again. Clara: I'm free this weekend. We can discuss the details later. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. She had agreed. That was enough to make his morning better, but he still needed to decide where to take her. A restaurant seemed too formal. The cinema might not give them enough time to talk. A crowded event would probably make it difficult to get to know each other properly. He wanted somewhere comfortable, somewhere they could have a conversation without feeling as though the e
Clara was woken up by her alarm at exactly 5:00 a.m.The shrill sound filled her room, disturbing the peaceful silence that had settled over the dorm, She groaned, pulled her blanket over her head, and blindly reached for her phone on the bedside table.She managed to silence the alarm after a few unsuccessful attempts."Five more minutes," she mumbled to herself.But she knew better than to fall asleep again. Her classes started at eight, and she still had to shower, get dressed, and eat breakfast before leaving for school. The last thing she wanted was to arrive late on her first week of medical school.With a reluctant sigh, she pushed the blanket aside and sat up.Her room was still dim, illuminated only by the faint glow of the streetlights filtering through her curtains. Everything was quiet. she had no roommate for now, she was paired with a student, whom hadn't resumed for now which made Clara wonder why.Clara stretched her arms above her head before picking up her phone.Sin






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