Are you not feeling well?" Cecilio's coworker asked.
"I'm fine, thank you," Cecilio said, forcing a weak smile.
He had been gloomy all day. Even his boss noticed and offered him a few days off, but Cecilio refused, insisting he was perfectly fine.
It wasn't that he didn't want rest
he simply couldn't. His mind was a storm, replaying everything that had happened with Rosa.
He hadn't slept properly since the day he saw her again at Toribio's funeral.
Rosa had already made it clear she wanted nothing to do with him, but Cecilio couldn't stop hoping.
There was nothing left to do but hope.
"If I don't hope I'll die"
"Cecilio... Cecilio!! You're spacing out again!" his coworker yelled.
Cecilio blinked rapidly, realizing he had completely forgotten he was taking a customer's order.
This had happened more than once today. I need to get myself together, he thought.
"I'll take it from here," his coworker offered gently.
"Thank you," Cecilio muttered.
If I shut my eyes for a while, I should be fine, he told himself.
But as soon as he closed them, Rosa's voice echoed in his head:
> "If you say you did all that because you cared for me, then it will make me very uncomfortable. Everything you did was for yourself, Cecilio."<
His body suddenly felt heavy. He stopped in his tracks and held onto a table for support.
This shouldn't be new to me anymore, he thought bitterly. I've watched the sky turn dark before. Rosa was never going to change just because I went to jail. I should have known better than to trust my heart.
Tears burned behind his eyes. But there's got to be someone out there to hold on to... Is it selfish of me to still want it to be Rosa?
His head throbbed. His vision blurred like he was underwater. His legs trembled, too weak to carry him anymore.
"This is enough," he muttered. "I can't take it anymore..."
And then Cecilio's eyes closed, surrendering to the darkness.
******
"Doctor, what's wrong with him?" Rosa asked hurriedly.
"There's no cause for alarm, madam," the doctor replied calmly. "He has a psychogenic fever, caused by lack of sleep and excessive stress."
"Stress?" Rosa repeated, glancing down at Cecilio's unconscious body lying pale on the hospital bed.
"Yes. He needs rest,, a lot of it. From now on, he shouldn't be bothered with trivial matters," the doctor said.
"Understood, doctor," Rosa replied softly.
After the doctor left, Rosa sat beside Cecilio. She brushed the hair from his forehead and gently touched his cheek.
"Cecilio, please don't do this to me," she whispered. "I really don't know what to do anymore."
Her voice trembled as she laid her head on his chest.
Parez stood quietly at the door, watching them both.
*****
"It's been three days! Why isn't he waking up yet?" Rosa asked the doctor, her voice strained with exhaustion.
"I can't say when exactly he'll wake," the doctor replied. "His body is weak both mind and body need time to recover. All we can do is hope."
He left the room. Rosa called in the young lady she'd hired to look after Cecilio.
"Did you change the sheets today?" Rosa asked.
The woman nodded silently.
Rosa had rented an apartment for Cecilio. She didn't want to bring him to her own place, but she made sure he had someone to care for him when she was away.
She herself was barely holding up sleepless, restless, unable to focus at work.
That evening, Parez drove her home. Rosa slumped onto the sofa, pulled out a cigarette, and lit it. She took slow, deep drags until half of it was gone.
Her face was calm, but her eyes burned with restrained anger.
"This isn't good for your condition, and you know that," Parez said quietly.
"That's my problem to deal with," Rosa replied coldly.
"Why are you doing this to yourself? Is it because of Cecilio?" Parez asked, his tone sharp.
"If anything happens to him, I'll never forgive myself," Rosa said.
"Forgive yourself?" Parez snapped. "Don't you think you've already done enough that doesn't deserve forgiveness from that man?"
"Do you think I don't know that?" Rosa yelled, her voice cracking. "I want to explain to him!"
"Explain what, exactly?" Parez shouted back. "That you left him when he needed you most? That you didn't care when he was almost sentenced to life for a crime he didn't commit? You ran away to another country
and now, eight years later, you show up at the funeral of a man you never cared about, what excuse are you going to give!!!
You think you can walk back into his life and ask him to forget everything? Rosa, you're a monster!"
"But you know that's not what really happened!" Rosa yelled, her voice trembling.
"But that's what's believable!" Parez shot back. "Do you really think Cecilio would believe you've been watching over him from afar? That you came back because of him? That you've always loved him more than a brother but were just too scared to admit it?"
"Watch your tongue, Parez," Rosa warned. "Don't you dare judge me like you're beyond holy."
"Rosa," Parez said, his voice low and sharp, "I don't know why God sent you Cecilio, but I think He made a huge mistake. Cecilio isn't something you deserve. You had every reason to stay, to face your fears, to love that man even a quarter as much as he loved you, but you refused. You buried yourself in selfish lies. Even Antonio was kinder than you."
Tears spilled down Rosa's cheeks. Her eyes were already bloodshot, as if she had been crying long before this argument began.
"What do you want me to do?" she asked weakly.
Parez stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her.
"Forget about him," Parez said softly. "Cecilio was never meant to be yours. Focus on me. I'm the only one who's always known you,the one one who understands you
who's always been there. Rosa, I'm all you need."
His voice echoed in her head. Rosa slowly raised her arms and hugged him back, sobbing into his neck while Parez gently stroked her back.
"It's okay," he whispered. "I'm right here."