The sound of the suitcase hitting the floor echoed through the studio apartment.Rafael let it drop by the door without a word. He only gave a slight nod when I thanked him, and was already turning toward the stairs, his whole body pointed toward leaving.
— Rafael… — the word escaped me before I could think. — I want you to come in for a moment. We need to talk.
He stopped, but didn't turn around.The silence felt like a no louder than anything he could have said.
— There's nothing we need to talk about — he said at last, voice low and sharp.
My heart raced, but I didn't step back.
— Maybe you don't. But I do. — I breathed deeply. — Please. Just for a moment.
This time, he faced me.His expression was hard, but there was a hesitation buried there, subtle and fleeting.Finally, he stepped inside.
The discomfort in the air was so heavy it felt like it filled the room.
— Sit — I said, trying to sound steady.
He sighed, annoyed, but sat anyway.He sat at the edge of the chair, like someone who wanted to make it clear he wouldn't stay long.
I sat across from him.
— What happened with the robbery at the grocery store? — I asked. — Did they find the culprit? Did you tell them what you were doing that night?
He answered quickly, blunt:
— It's taken care of. I'm not a suspect anymore. You don't need to worry.
— But— — I began, but his coldness cut straight through me.
— I told you to forget that story.
The words hit like a door slamming shut.
He stood up immediately, ready to leave.
I hurried to the door, blocking his way before he could touch the handle.My body was the barrier.
— Then answer me, Rafael. — My voice trembled with anger and hurt. — Everything that happened before I traveled… did it mean nothing?
He froze, hand inches from the doorknob.
— The lookout… — I continued, now almost face to face with him. — Was that nothing to you? Was I just another girl you used and threw away?
Our eyes locked.I could feel my own breath brushing his face.I could see the tension in his shoulders, the visible effort he was making not to fall apart.
And then I saw it:
He was trembling.
He was trembling, but holding himself together with a coldness that looked ready to crack apart.
My heart pounded even harder.Maybe Rosana's ridiculous plan was right — maybe pushing him to the edge was the only way to make the mask fall.
And that was when I realized:This was not the moment to reveal what I had learned.Not the drawings on my wall.Not the childhood threads tying our lives together.
He might soften. He might remember.But if I handed all of that to him right now, he would hide again.Pretend again.
So I stayed there.Feeling his breath mix with mine.For a second, the silence was absolute — suspended like a held-in confession.His eyes on mine.His chest rising and falling too fast.
I could swear he was going to yield.
But then, the break came.
Rafael stepped forward and, without gentleness, took hold of my shoulders.The gesture wasn't violent — just firm enough to move me out of his way.
— Enough, Helena — he said, voice low, almost a growl, but shaken. — Don't push this.
Before I could react, he turned the handle and was gone.
The door slammed behind him, reverberating through the room like thunder.
I stood there, motionless, my shoulders still warm where his hands had been.My breath unsteady.My heart unsure whether it was beating from anger, hurt, or the fear of losing something that hadn't even begun.
Then I noticed what he had left behind on the chair:A small metal object — a key on a worn, faded keychain.
I picked it up carefully, as if it were fragile.
It was shaped like a small metal flower. Old, dulled by time, but still beautiful.I stared at it, feeling the weight of something intimate, something he would never leave behind on purpose.
I hurried downstairs.The steps blurred beneath me.
I found only the landlord in the living room, sitting quietly.I held the key out toward him, embarrassed.
— Rafael left this in my apartment…
He took the key and exhaled deeply.His eyes lingered on the little metal flower before he gave a gentle, melancholy smile.
— That keychain belonged to his mother. She always carried the house keys on it. When she passed… Rafael kept it as a reminder. It's one of the few things he has left of her. He never lets it out of his sight.
A knot tightened in my throat.
— Did he pass by here? — I asked softly.
— He did. — The landlord nodded slowly. — Left like a runaway car. Barely said a word. Did something happen when he took your suitcase upstairs?
I lowered my gaze.
— I asked about the robbery. He got upset. Said he didn't want me involved. I just… I just wanted to know if he was okay.
The landlord looked at me with warmth.
— Rafael is like that. — He sighed. — Looks like stone on the outside, but inside… he feels more than most. Life was never gentle with him.
I waited, quiet.
He continued:
— And don't worry about the case. A few days after you traveled, another grocery store was robbed. They caught the man in the act. He confessed to everything — including the robbery on the corner. Rafael is clear of suspicion.
Relief washed over me, slow and deep.
The landlord rested a hand on my shoulder.
— He will resist you. He will try to push you away.But don't take that coldness too seriously.
Sometimes the ones who act the most distant…are the ones who feel the most.