Page 54 of Hate That Blooms
Cora gives me a sympathetic look and rubs my shoulder. “Aw, Gabs,” she wraps her arms around me. “I get it. You are doing an amazing job. Mireya calling you mama solidifies that.”
I nod, though it feels like a weight pressing against my chest, making it harder to breathe.
The thought of Joaquín still lingers, like an unresolved song that won’t stop playing in my head.Can he really change? Can he fix himself enough to be what I need, what Mireya needs?
Before I can speak, my phone buzzes, cutting through the silence. My pulse spikes when I see the name on the screen. It’s him.
I miss you more than I ever thought was possible. I’m trying. I swear I’m trying. Merry Christmas, Gabriela. Next year it will be the three of us.
I promise.
I put the phone down quickly, suddenly overwhelmed. Cora notices and steps closer. “You don’t have to respond to him right now, Gabby. You’ve got enough going on.”
I shake my head, biting my lip. “I want to... but I don’t know what to say anymore.”
Cora exhales sharply, crossing her arms. “So don’t say anything. Make him prove it to you. I know it’s easier for me to say it to you because I’m not the one in love with him. But actions speak louder. Let himshowyou.”
“You’re right,” I whisper, looking down at the bracelet Mireya made for me, the one thing that feels steady in my hands.
It feels like the world has been tipped upside down. I don’t want to make the wrong decision, but I feel lost in the middle of it all.
Cora doesn’t push me further. Instead, she sits down beside me, her presence a silent comfort. For now, it’s all I can do to take it one day at a time, one step at a time.
Chapter35
Joaquín
New Year’s Eve
“Come on,” Thiago nudges my shoulder from the driver’s seat stuck at a light ten minutes from Cora’s house. “Cora says this is a low-key thing. Gabby is supposed to be here with Mireya. So nothing more than apple cider and champagne for midnight, nothing too crazy. Maybe you’ll kiss her for the new year, you know, start fresh.”
I roll my eyes and turn my head to look out the window. Cora’s parents let her host a NYE party every year, but this year, in order to have Gabby come, she made it kid-friendly. This will be the first time I’ll see her since that night. Weeks, and it’s been fucking Hell without her. I’ve been off work for the season and sitting at home has been a complete shitshow.
I’ve finally found a therapist that takes my insurance and will start sessions with them after the new year.I’m fucking trying.
I know I can’t lose her. I will do whatever it takes.
I let out a breath and speak. “Is Nate going to be here?” Things have still been tense between us after I rearranged his face. But he texted me a few days later, telling me he understood where I was coming from and says he didn’t hold it against me.
“Cora said she invited him,” he shrugs, “but I don’t think he’ll come if he can’t get his dick wet or drink.”
* * *
The car slows as we pull into Cora’s street, a string of colorful lights adorning the houses like a neighborhood celebration. The cold air bites at my skin as I step out, but it doesn’t matter. Nothing matters more right now than seeing her.
“Just... remember what you said, man,” Thiago adds, his voice turning serious. “Don’t fuck this up. You’ve been moping for weeks. She’s been patient, but she’s not going to wait forever.”
I give him a half-smile, rubbing my hand over my face. “Yeah, I know.”
I’m trying. I’m really trying. But all I can think about is Gabriela and how her absence has felt like a weight I can’t shake. Even with my attempts to get my shit together—therapy lined up, focusing on improving myself—it’s her I want. It’s always been her.
We walk up to the door, and I can already hear the laughter and chatter spilling out. The sounds of a small crowd, the kids running around, the smell of something baking in the kitchen. It’s warm, welcoming. Everything I’ve been craving for weeks.
Cora answers the door, her usual grin flashing. She hugs me immediately, and I notice the way her eyes flicker to Thiago, like she’s got something to say to him later.
“Joaquín, you look like you haven’t slept in days,” she teases, her voice light. “Are you sure you’re ready for this craziness?”
“I’m fine,” I lie, but it’s hard to keep the cracks from showing.
