Return to Reality

After breakfast, they parted ways, the importance of their next steps weighing heavily as they took a step back into their daily lives. Javier returned to his room, where Maria sat on the balcony, flipping through a travel magazine.

“Hey, how was breakfast?” she asked, glancing up with a smile.

“It was good. Just had a few discussions about activities for the week,” he replied, nerves creeping into his voice as he tried to gauge how closely she was watching him.

“Planning to join the kids at the pool later?” she queried, voice airy, but her eyes noted every flicker of his expression.

“Uh, yeah, I’ll swing by. I just… got caught in a conversation,” he stuttered, feeling trapped in the tangled web of lies he was weaving.

Maria nodded, still absorbed in her magazine. “Just don’t forget about our dinner reservations tonight. I’m looking forward to it!”

“Right. Dinner. Can’t forget,” he said, forcing the words out as he felt the weight of more deceit settling in his stomach.

Once he stepped out, he made his way toward the beach, desperately trying to recapture the misplaced excitement of that morning, but all he could feel was dread. The reality of his life and choices loomed like a specter in the distance, taunting him with the impending fallout.

Later that afternoon, Javier found his way back to the pool, a protective instinct driving him. As he splashed about with the kids, he stole glances at the distance, where Sharla often appeared—always scoping the area but avoiding direct contact. Watching her was like witnessing a paradox, the two parts of herself at war.

But their sparkling encounters were soon overshadowed by the reality of their respective lives, the invisible ties binding them to their families becoming knots tightening around both their hearts. As he played with his son, laughter ringing clear across the water, a sense of guilt cascaded beneath the surface, fighting through the fun.