Heer
The days following our conversation felt like a turning point, but not in the way I expected. I had hoped that after Carlos made his promise to fight for us, everything would magically fall into place. That the weight we had carried for so long would suddenly feel lighter. But the truth was far from that.
The next few days were filled with quiet tension. We were still navigating the storm we had just acknowledged, and the silence between us felt different now—less suffocating, but more uncertain. Carlos's commitment to trying wasn't the instant fix I had envisioned. Instead, it was a long, grueling process of peeling back layers, of opening up old wounds that neither of us had fully healed.
I had thought I understood Carlos's darkness, but standing beside him now, I realized just how deep it ran. I could feel it in every glance he gave me, every quiet moment when he seemed lost in thought. He was battling something inside himself, something that I wasn't sure I could fix, no matter how hard I tried.
I could see it in the way his shoulders slumped after long phone calls, how he retreated into his work as a means of escape, just as he had done before. But this time, it wasn't as easy for him to hide. He wasn't shutting me out as much as before, but he wasn't fully letting me in either.
It was frustrating. And it hurt.
I spent my days in the mansion, trying to fill the silence with small distractions. I started working more closely with Carlos's business, hoping it would bring us together, at least in some small way. But every time I looked at him, I saw the same haunted expression in his eyes, the same uncertainty.
I couldn't fix him. And for the first time, I wasn't sure I could save us.
One evening, after another long day of tense meetings, Carlos came into the living room and sat on the couch across from me. He was tired, his face etched with the fatigue of a man who had been carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders. But tonight, there was something different in his gaze—something more vulnerable.
"You've been distant," I said softly, my eyes searching his. "We agreed to try, Carlos. But it feels like we're still miles apart."
He sighed deeply, rubbing his eyes as though the weight of his thoughts were too much to bear. "I know," he admitted quietly. "I've been... I've been trying to push past everything. To just move forward, but it's not that simple. There's so much... baggage. Things I've done that I don't know how to explain."
"I don't need you to explain everything," I said gently, my voice unwavering. "I just need you to be with me. Now. Right here. I need you to let me in, even when it's hard."
Carlos looked at me, his eyes dark with a mixture of pain and longing. "I'm scared, Heer," he whispered. "I'm scared that if I let you in, I'll lose you. I don't know how to love you without destroying everything."
I felt the sting of those words deep in my chest. He was so afraid of loving me. So afraid of how much it could hurt.
"Carlos," I said, my voice gentle but firm, "I'm already here. I'm already loving you. You're not going to lose me. But you have to let me in. We have to do this together."
For a long moment, there was nothing but silence. Carlos just stared at me, as if considering my words, weighing whether or not to let go of the fear that had been holding him back. Then, slowly, he moved closer, his hand reaching for mine. The touch was tentative, like he was testing the waters, unsure of where this would lead.
"I don't know what the future holds, Heer," he said, his voice raw with emotion. "But I'm willing to fight for it. For us."
I squeezed his hand, feeling the weight of his words. There was no guarantee of an easy path ahead. We both knew that. But we also knew that we couldn't go back. That the choice had been made. And no matter how hard it got, we had to move forward, together.
"I'm with you," I whispered. "Always."
Carlos
The weight of her words settled on me like a warm embrace, and for the first time in a long time, I allowed myself to feel something other than fear. I had been running for so long—running from my past, running from the man I had become, running from the idea that I could ever be good enough for her.
But Heer was right. I couldn't keep running. Not anymore.
It wasn't going to be easy. There would be days when I wanted to push her away, when I wanted to crawl back into my shell and protect her from the mess I had created. But I couldn't. Not anymore. Because the more I fought against the love I had for her, the more I realized that she was the one thing in my life that was real. The one thing worth fighting for.
"I'm scared too," I admitted, my voice barely above a whisper. "But I'm done hiding. I'm done running."
Heer smiled then, a small, hopeful smile that made my chest tighten with something I couldn't quite describe. It was a mix of relief, gratitude, and—if I was being honest—love.
"I know," she whispered. "And I'll be right here with you."
Heer
As we sat together in the quiet of the living room, holding each other's hands, I realized something that made my heart swell with hope. No matter how broken we were, no matter how hard the road ahead seemed, we weren't alone in this anymore.
The future was uncertain, and there were no guarantees. But we were choosing each other. Choosing to face the darkness together, to face the past together, and to build something new.
And maybe, just maybe, that was enough.