The silence was profound; the tension almost palpable. She could feel her heart racing while she stood there, frozen in her silent stance between Rafael and Alex. Their gazes weighed on her. Across from her stood Rafael, regret and longing swamping his eyes. Alex stepped closer to her; voice just above a whisper, confusion and betrayal written across his features.
"Lila, what's going on?" Alex said.
Lila couldn't help but burst out with words. "Alex, it's not what you're thinking. We were just talking."
Bianca narrowed her eyes at Rafael. "Is that true, Rafael? Because it doesn't look like just talking to me."
Rafael then held Bianca's hands and took a deep breath. "Bianca, I really have to tell you something. I have been feeling all trapped in this relationship—I have these feelings for Lila, baby. I can't just shake them away anymore."
Bianca's face twisted with anger and hurt. "How could you do this to me? We're engaged, Rafael!
Alex turned to Lila, his face a mix of pain and confusion. "And you, Lila? Is this true? Do you feel something for him?"
Lila felt tears welling up in her eyes. "Alex, I. I am so sorry. Yes, it's my feelings for Rafael."
Alex stepped back, his countenance falling. "I thought we were working things out. I thought we had a chance.
"I'm so sorry, Alex," Lila whispered, feeling the weight of her guilt.
Bianca felt her anger surging. "You people are so incredible—both of you! Rafael, I thought you loved me. We were supposed to build a future together."
His voice was firm, but Rafael's eyes were full of despair. "I did love you, Bianca. Things just changed in time. We changed. And now I know who I really want to be with: Lila."
Bianca's face contorted, and she spun her heel to the left, walking away with tears streaming down her face. Alex just stood with his shoulders bent in defeat. Shaking his head, he followed Bianca and left Lila and Rafael behind on the beach.
The waves crashed all at once on the beach to fill the void of silence between them. Rafael stretched out and gently took Lila's hand in his. It was warm and reassuring to touch.
"I am so sorry for all the pain this has caused," he said, his voice whisper soft. "But I couldn't go on lying to myself or to you."
Lila nodded then, her heart bleeding. "I am too, Rafael. I never wanted to hurt anybody. But neither can I go on denying what I feel for you."
He drew her into his arms—gentle, like the fitting of two pieces of a jigsaw. "We'll figure this out, Lila. Together."
And so they stood, wrapped in each other's embrace, under the blinking starlit sky, at ease in their hearts.
Next morning, Lila dressed, noting how an irrational feeling of relief and loss mixed in her chest. It was of her own making, but the price was too high. She wanted to speak with Alex, to give him some sort of closure, to try saving some kind of friendship from the ruins of something that had meant so much to them both.
She finally found Alex sitting in the resort's café, nursing a cup of coffee. His eyes rose to her approach, and they were red-rimmed and tired.
"Can we talk?" Lila asked softly.
Alex nodded toward the seat opposite him. "Sure."
Lila took a deep breath to sort her thoughts out. "I'm so sorry for everything, Alex. I never wanted to hurt you."
Alex let out a heavy sigh and raked a hand through his hair. "I know, Lila. It still hurts. We have been through enough, and I thought we had a future ahead."
"I did too," she replied, her voice trembling. "Somewhere in the middle of all this, we lost each other, and I found something with Rafael that I didn't even know was missing.".
Alex nodded, his eyes downcast into his coffee. "I understand, really. It's just. painful."
"I know," Lila responded, her own voice charged now with emotion as she reached across the café table to take Alex's hand in hers. Only sorrow breathed from her voice. "And I hope, someday, you can forgive me. And someday, we can still be friends."
Alex could do little more than offer up a slight, sad smile. "I'd like that, Lila. It'll take some time to adjust to it all, but I'd like that."
A weight seemed to lift off Lila's shoulders. There was nothing between them now except quiet as they sat in silence, knowing each other without words. It was a little comfort.
At about the same time, Rafael was also sitting down for a hard conversation of his own. He heard Bianca by the pool and walked to stand beside her. Her face was a mask of angry hurt.
"Bianca, can we talk?" he asked gently.
She turned her face up to his, her eyes crackling with pain. "What did you expect me to say in response to that, Rafael? You've made your choice."
"Yes," Rafael replied low, his voice still husky with his emotion. "But let me tell you something—I never wanted to hurt you, Bianca. I loved you once. And I care—"
Tears pricked at Bianca's eyes. "If you're trying not to hurt me, then why did you have to fall for someone else?".
Rafael heaved a deep sigh. "Sometimes things are beyond our control. Feelings change, people change. I wish things had been different, but what could I do? I mean, I can't make myself feel something if I don't."
Bianca shook her head, whisking the tears away. "I just. I thought we had a future."
"We did," Rafael replied softly. "But it wasn't the right one, not for me or you. I hope you find it with someone who will make you truly happy.
She glanced sideways at him as she spoke. "I hope so."
Rafael stood, working through the weight of his decisions. He knew it was going to be a long way ahead, but with Lila by his side, he knew he could stare into the face of whatever lay in store for them.
Day by day, Lila and Rafael managed to get along through their new relationship, whereby they learned a bit more about each other with every moment spent together. That first awkwardness started melting away, slowly developing to become something deep and real. They wandered at the resort, shared meals, and spent hours talking about many hopes and dreams that they had.
One evening he took her hand when they were apart at a beach, watching a sunset, and he fixed his eyes on hers.
"It's going so quickly, but I'm just glad we have found a way to keep up with it, together," he spoke firmly, quite sincerely.
She smiled, wholehearted. "So am I, Rafael. After all, I wouldn't change a thing.".
He leaned back for one more kiss on the lips and turned away, fading into the background. He plopped his torso, and with that action of nature, this world left only the two of them, bonded with love that stood all trials of life.
With stars finally showing through above, Lila had the feeling that it was just the beginning of her journey with Rafael. They are tolling a horn of sorrow and struggle in their way, but together, they know to take in whatever is put in front of them coming out of the future.