Rafael pulled up by the departures gate, parking for a minute even though he wasn’t supposed to. Mara hesitated, her fingers curling around the handle, not ready to move.
"You’ll miss your flight," Rafael teased gently, but his voice cracked just a little.
Mara glanced at him, her stomach twisting. "Okay, fine... I’m going."
But she lingered, stepping out only to turn back one last ti. He was still watching her, that stupid half-smile on his face that made her heart ache.
She made it through check-in, pausing at the glass to look back, and there he was. Standing there, hands in his pockets, refusing to leave until she disappeared from sight.
Mara swallowed hard, blinking fast.
And only when she was gone, only when the last glimpse of her was out of reach, did Rafael turn and walk away.
Rafael let the hotel room door click shut behind him, the soft thud loud in the thick quiet.
The room felt different now.
Like sothing had been stripped from it, like so unseen thread had been tugged loose, and the whole space sagged under the weight of her absence.
Her perfu still clung to the air, a faint, sweet thing he could almost taste when he drew a breath. The bed was untouched, but the indent where she’d sat still lingered in the blankets, a shallow ghost of her shape.
He tossed his keys onto the table, the tallic jangle sounding too sharp, too alive for a room gone so still.
Rafael scrubbed a hand down his face, exhaling slowly. The weight of the last few hours was settling like stones in his chest. He could still feel her lips on his. The hesitant tremble of her body lting into his. The brush of her lashes when he kissed her forehead.
And now... nothing.
Just the distant hum of the city outside his window. The cold, blue glow of a lamp was left on.
He dropped down onto the edge of the bed, elbows on his knees, staring at the floor like it might offer answers.
Why does it always feel like this when she leaves? Like so part of him unravels.
He wasn’t the type to get attached. Not like this. Not in ways that hurt. But Mara had carved out a space inside him without asking permission, and every ti she walked away whether to the twins, to Ethan, to her life, it scraped raw.
Rafael picked up his phone, thumb hovering over her contact. He wanted to text her sothing. Anything. Miss you already. Call when you land.
He set the phone down, leaned back on the bed, and stared up at the ceiling. And for the first ti in a long while, Rafael felt... lonely. Not because she wasn’t there. But because she almost was. Because he could still feel her everywhere. And that was sohow worse.
—
Mara leaned her head against the cool window, watching as the city lights blurred into a soft, golden sar below. The plane humd steadily, a low, endless sound that filled the quiet around her but did nothing to settle the noise in her chest.
She closed her eyes for a mont, but all she saw was Rafael.
The way his eyes softened when he teased her. The weight of his hand on the door, firm but gentle. The way he kissed her, slow, like he had all the ti in the world, like it wasn’t a goodbye.
She sighed, rubbing her thumb along the strap of her bag, tracing the places his fingers had touched. Stupid, stupid muscle mory.
The flight attendant passed by, offering a polite smile, but Mara barely noticed. Her mind was already pulling her back to that hotel room. The way she almost said I love you, too but let the words die in her throat because she was scared of what would co after.
And then there was Ethan. God, Ethan. Always in the picture. Always so jagged part of her past she couldn’t neatly fold away. The father of her children. The one who knew every version of her before she knew how to choose better.
But Rafael... Rafael was different. He saw her ss, her moods, her sharp edges, and didn’t flinch. Called her out when she needed it. Held her like she wouldn’t break, but would fight anyone who tried.
A lump rose in her throat as she reached for her phone, even though she knew there’d be no service up here. The screen lit up anyway, his na still sitting at the top of her ssages.
You okay?
I miss you already.
Text when you land.
ssages she knew he’d send, even if she hadn’t earned them yet.
Mara turned the phone over in her hand, pressing it to her chest for a beat longer than she ant to.
"I’m sorry," she whispered, but it wasn’t for the phone. It wasn’t even for him.
It was for herself. Because she wanted to stop running. Because for the first ti, soone didn’t let her walk away, and it scared the hell out of her.
The captain’s voice crackled through the speakers, announcing their descent, but Mara barely heard it. All she could think about was Rafael standing at that glass, refusing to leave until she disappeared.
And so reckless, foolish, hopeful part of her wondered if maybe... just maybe... it was finally ti to stop disappearing.
–
The thick iron doors groaned open, and the stale scent of damp stone and old regrets clung to the air like a second skin. Ethan stepped inside, his jaw tight, his heart hamring against his ribs in a way he hated to admit.
It had been a year. A year and a half since that night. Since the kind of mistake you can’t co back from.
When they told Maria he was here, her face lit up like a child promised a piece of the sky. She turned, brushing dust from the threadbare dress of a little girl cradled on her lap, Isabella. Barely two. Bright-eyed despite the dimness around her, innocent in a world that hadn’t been kind to her mother.
Ethan’s throat tightened.
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