She took a deep breath.
“I need time.”
Raúl nodded.
“Take all the time you need.”
He stood, but before he could leave, she spoke again.
“Raúl.”
He turned.
“Do you still love me?”
He looked at her, and for once, he didn’t search for the perfect words.
“Yes. But I understand that saying it doesn’t repair what happened.”
Raquel watched him walk away.
For the first time since their breakup, she didn’t feel that she was watching a man abandon her.
She felt that she was watching someone give her the freedom to choose.
And that was something she had almost forgotten how to trust.
A New Beginning, Not a Perfect Ending
Raquel did not return to Raúl the next day.
Nor did she suddenly forget the pain of what had happened.
They spoke occasionally, first through brief messages and later through longer conversations. Sometimes they disagreed. Sometimes old fears returned. Raquel admitted that she still worried about his motives, while Raúl admitted that he sometimes felt overwhelmed by the difference in their circumstances.
