Saturday dragged itself in, gray and rainy. I didn't have classes, but my body still woke up automatically at 5:30, incapable of understanding the concept of rest.
I lay in bed staring at the damp spots on the ceiling of my studio, listening to the sound of rain against the only window I had. It was a day to stay under the sheets, but my fridge was empty and the pile of dirty laundry looked at me with reproach from the corner.
Around noon, the doorbell rang.
I wasn't expecting anyone. No one visited me. I frowned, put on an old t-shirt, and opened the door.
Elena was there, soaked, holding two supermarket bags and wearing a guilty smile.
"I know you hate surprise visits," she said before I could open my mouth, "but my mother made lasagna and 'accidentally' made three extra trays. If I don't bring them to you, she'll force me to eat them and I'll gain three kilos. So, technically, you're doing me a favor."
I stepped aside to let her pass. Elena brought with her the smell of fresh rain and expensive perfume, a scent that clashed violently with the smell of dampness and confinement of my apartment.
"Your mother never does anything 'accidentally,' Elena," I said, closing the door. I knew what was happening. Elena knew I had paid tuition this week and that my food budget was in the red. But she had the decency to disguise her charity as a whim of hers.
"Shut up and eat," she replied, placing the bags on my small table. "I also brought Statistics notes. I didn't understand anything from the second half of the class and I need you to explain it to me. It's the price of the lasagna."
She took off her wet coat and sat on my bed with a naturalness that disarmed me. To her, this dump wasn't a symbol of poverty; it was simply "Lucas's house". She adapted to my world with an ease that scared me.
While I heated the lasagna in my small electric oven, I watched her. She was checking my books, humming a song. She was my best friend, my anchor. But sometimes, seeing her here, so bright and carefree, made my reality seem darker by contrast.
We ate sitting on the floor, using the bed as a backrest, just like we did as kids on the beach.
"Valeria asked about you yesterday," Elena said suddenly, mouth full.
I almost choked.
"What?"
"In the cafeteria. She came up to our table. Asked if the 'intense guy' was going to the faculty welcome party."
"I hope you told her the 'intense guy' has to work."
"I told her you were busy saving the world or something like that," Elena rolled her eyes, but I noticed tension in her shoulders. Friend jealousy, I assumed. Or fear that Valeria would turn me into her new toy to break. "Be careful with her, Lucas. That woman doesn't have friends; she has subjects."
"I'm not interested in Valeria, Elena. I don't have time for power games."
The phone rang, interrupting the conversation. It was a video call. The screen showed "Home".
I wiped my hands quickly and answered, propping the phone against the sugar bowl so Elena could see too.
"Lucas!"
Lili's face filled the screen. She looked tired, with dark circles under her eyes, but her smile was the same as always. Behind her, I could see the kitchen of our house in the village, with the light blue tiles I had helped install years ago myself.
"Hey, kiddo. How's everything over there?"
"Good, good. Mom is on the afternoon shift at the processing plant. She told me to tell you to eat well and not skip meals."
Elena leaned over my shoulder. "Tell her I'm taking care of that, Lili!"
"Elena!" Lili greeted enthusiastically. "So good that you're there! Lucas is a disaster if he's not watched."
"I know, it's a full-time job," Elena laughed.
Watching them interact caused a pang in my chest. They were the two worlds I was trying to keep together: my past and my present.
"Hey, Lucas..." Lili's tone changed, becoming more hesitant. "About the backpack..."
"It's already taken care of," I cut her off, using my big-brother voice, the one that allows no argument. "I sent you the money this morning. Buy a good one, you hear? None of that trendy stuff that breaks in a week. One with reinforced seams."
"But Lucas, it was a lot of money... Mom said we shouldn't..."
"Lili," I said softly. "I handle it. You handle getting A's in Biology. That's the deal. Remember?"
Lili bit her lip and nodded. I saw the glint of tears in her eyes and felt my throat close up.
"Thanks, brother. I promise it'll be worth it."
"I know."
We hung up a minute later. The screen went black, returning me to my dark and silent room.
Elena was looking at me. She wasn't smiling anymore.
"You worked overtime yesterday, didn't you?" she asked. It wasn't a question.
"I did what I had to do."
"You could have asked me..."
"No," I said, and my voice came out harder than I intended. "No, Elena. Thanks for the lasagna, really. But I pay my own bills. If I start depending on you, or anyone, I lose the only thing that's mine."
Elena held my gaze. There was pain in her eyes, but also understanding. She knew my pride. It was my defect and my engine.
"You're stubborn, Lucas," she whispered, resting her head on my shoulder. "But you're a good brother."
I stayed there, feeling her weight and her warmth, surrounded by the smell of lasagna and the humidity of the rain.
I was exhausted. My back hurt from yesterday's shift. My bank account was at zero again.
But Lili would have her backpack. And for today, that was victory enough.