+GISELA+
Stepping out of my daily routine, I run into my roommate. She knows where I work, but I'm surprised to see her waiting for me. I won't deny that I'm scared because it's the first time I've seen her, and she's insisting on talking to me at a cafeteria rather than in the apartment.
Could she be asking me to leave her apartment? God, please don't let her kick me out now! She has many opportunities to survive, especially now that she's marrying a businessman - that's what I've heard from her own mouth.
Ah, I don't even have the chance to catch a glimpse of anything. It's all work and work, and exhaustion has caught up with me. I don't know when I'll stop, but my reward might be knowing that my parents aren't suffering from hunger and that they won't be kicked out of their own home for not being able to pay taxes. Ash, it hurts to think about how much of a liar I've become, how I don't have the courage to tell them that I don't have any important job and that I don't make triple what I actually do. God, I can't even afford to treat myself to a cafeteria - I save money by bringing lunch from home.
God, I have to be honest and not complain so much. When I lived in Italy, my parents and I didn't have the opportunities we have now, and I don't think immigrating to another country was ever a bad idea.
"Shall we?" she says, pulling me out of my deep thoughts.
I nod and suggest we go to the cafeteria right in front of us. My intention is to save money on what a good coffee should cost. I can't mess up the monthly payment I always send to my parents.
She smiles and tells me that she'll treat me this time and not to worry about what I might order because what she has to say is a proposal that I won't be able to refuse.
That got me thinking. Her words stuck in my head. As we walk towards the cafeteria, I ask her if her proposal is to cancel our contract because it's clear to me that she'll soon be getting married. With a smile, she tells me not to worry, that she'd never ask me to leave, especially since her future husband will take her to live in his house, and her apartment will always be at my disposal. She'll always be the owner, and I'll be the tenant, well, until I decide otherwise.
That made me breathe a sigh of relief. For the first time in a while, a huge smile spreads across my face. I'm left speechless. I want to scream and thank her for her generous offer. Even though I've been living with her for a few months now, I haven't had the chance to open up and tell her that...oh, I said I wouldn't complain about what I have!
As we enter the cafeteria, we both get comfortable, and she orders some of the best coffee and sandwiches to start with.
This makes me uncomfortable. I don't know what to say.
"Well, uh, can I ask what you have to tell me? I'm sorry for being insistent, but I'm very curious," my voice trembles.
"Gisela, we have only known each other for a short time, and it's not that we don't want to, but we both work, and it's exhausting, not to mention that my boyfriend asks me to stay at his place," she says after placing her bag on the chair next to her. "Please don't be offended by what I'm about to say, I hope you don't misunderstand me, and I'm definitely not that kind of person, but you don't need to tell me about your life, as I've noticed that you work hard to send money to your parents and that..."
"To the point" I don't know why, but I feel uncomfortable with this type of conversation, it infuriates me that she brings up this topic, especially when I haven't given her the opportunity to know anything beyond my personal life—sorry, but you make me a little nervous and uncomfortable, maybe it's obvious to see my situation."Relax, my intention is not to offend you, on the contrary, what I have to tell you is an opportunity for you, it will help you breathe a little easier," she places her hand next to mine, "I'm a person with a good heart, please trust me.""Oh my God, don't scare me," I pull my hand away from hers, my heart continues to race uncontrollably, I feel like I'm going to pass out."Calm down, I'll start now," she takes a deep breath and continues, "you know that my job is to be the secretary of the president of the technology company, and today... I'm sorry, but my boss owns that company, and more, however, he has a small problem to continue being the owner of everything, he must get married."This can't be real, I don't understand what she means. Oh well, now that I think about it, her boss has many problems that he can solve with a snap of his fingers, but I don't understand why it's such a big deal."Lucero, I don't see why you should worry about it, your boss can solve his problems, he has money, power, and intelligence, I don't see why this should be an issue.""The real problem is that he proposed to me, yes, he asked me if I would be willing to be his wife and...""Oh my God, but you're getting married soon!""Exactly, that's what I told him, and he apologized, but I had the audacity to tell him that I had a friend who would be willing to marry for money.""Lucky for your friend, and that's a good idea, since the marriage could be for a certain period of time, well, depending on the demands of the person who is forcing him to marry, I think both of you will benefit greatly, although it's fraud, and it's not recommended to go around spreading it.""Wow... You're good at being surrounded by lawyers, oh, I'm sorry, I'll continue, and it's an inheritance from my boss, unfortunately there's a clause that requires him to get married, and he might have the opportunity to marry anyone, but the truth is, he doesn't want a real marriage, and that's why he asked me. I know... I know, that means I'm lucky, but you know I love my boyfriend and future husband.""I understand," I get up from my chair and go towards her, she's too nervous and could use a hug, "you did the right thing, now your friend is lucky, don't worry about it, you won't get that money, but you will have the love of your future husband.""The problem is that my friend has not replied whether she accepts or not," I stop as I reach out for her, step back, and return to my place.
"Do you want me to ask your friend if she accepts the marriage proposal?""It's not necessary, as I am standing in front of that person waiting for them to accept marrying my boss for money. That way, she could help her parents and have whatever she wants, everything she wants," she hisses repeatedly, emphasizing the last word."Where? Tell me, where is your friend?" I start looking around frantically. "Wait...why are you talking to me? Why are you mentioning her parents? Wait, you're not saying any names, but now that you mention helping her parents, you mean... No, don't tell me that your friend is...""Yes."No... She can't be serious. I look her in the eyes and I don't believe it. The girl in front of me is proposing that I marry her boss. Do I have a sign on my forehead that says how desperate I am? "Do you consider me your friend?" I question with wide eyes. At the exact moment, I see her nod like crazy, I grab my purse, open it, and in a couple of seconds, I manage to pull out the small mirror that I always carry with me. I look at myself, and I burst out laughing when I see that I don't have any sign that says I'm dying to get more money than I earn. "What are you looking for?" she asks, sounding worried. "Are you feeling okay?" I try to believe that she wants to help me, but a part of me tells me that she's either joking or that she just wants me as her plan B, since she can't marry her boss. No... I need to know why she didn't ask me for something else. Well, she can't ask me to marry her boss and especially not to leave my house! I'll accept if her proposal is a job, but getti
God, I feel caught between a rock and a hard place. I can't even go commit a robbery because I'm terrible at that. "No, I'm sorry, but I don't think it's advisable for me to let you go in the state you're in, especially when I'm the one who caused you to fall to the ground," I say to the man, thinking I had moved away from him, but he's still so close. "Tell me, do you have any problems I can help you with? I'm really sorry about what happened." What? It's not like it's the end of the world. Is he really worried about me? I come to a sudden stop, and before it's too late, I'll make it clear to the big man who, for some reason, affects me with his presence. Once again, I'm close to him, and I tell him that he doesn't have to worry, that the fault could be shared, as I didn't have the opportunity to see the person in front of me, all because of looking at my phone. "Don't look at me like that, I'm telling you the truth." "Why are your hands shaking? Seriously, you should see a doc
What...? You're crazy Gisela, how dare you ask the stranger if he wants to accompany you, it's too obvious that he has problems and I have them too, yet here I am like a stupid waiting for the stranger to be the prince of the story. I shake my head and push away the thoughts from my imprudent consciousness, for now I don't need him to scold me, although he has put me in my place, as I now know what I need to do. "Do you think you could be in danger?" he says in a worried tone, alarming me with his good intentions towards me, I feel like he is not a man who would try to hurt me. "No..." I quickly shake my head, "what I mean is that there is no need for you to stay here any longer, I also have something urgent to do, so goodbye" I stutter, and before I can stop it, my cheeks start to burn and I turn around with a bit of discretion. "Again, thank you, although you didn't have to worry about me." "Hey, wait... please" I ignore his insistent call and like a crazy person, I climb the st
+Omniscient narrator+ For a moment, Adal Müller felt relieved upon hearing from his secretary that the girl he had recommended had accepted and was only waiting for him to indicate the time and place for them to talk and plan their contract marriage. One thing was on his mind - he could use the girl who would be his wife for special events, all for appearances, but he couldn't consider her his true wife. If there was one thing he was clear about with arranged marriages, it was that emotions would eventually ruin it. Adal took a big sip of his whisky as he pondered the pros and cons of the marriage until he suddenly came up with a couple of ideas to establish it in the contract. Without saying a word to his secretary, he went straight to his desk, got comfortable, and quickly took a pen to write down the main rules to maintain absolute control of the contract. A girl who has no feelings for him, who has no sexual desires, who does not fall in love, who always remembers that everythi
"Yes, I want to apologize for being late. It's not an excuse, but I had to ask for permission from my job and..." She trailed off as she realized she was rambling. "Please, sit down. Would you like some coffee? Tea?" He asked in a nervous tone. "Water, please," she pleaded, having run too much. "You can get comfortable on the couch, and we'll move to the table later." Gisela nodded, walked in that direction, and elegantly sat down on the cushioned couch, crossing her legs. The silky red fabric rose a little, offering Adal a good view of her smooth, athletic legs, or at least that's what her body showed to any pair of eyes trying to delight in them. "Snacks?" He asked politely, trying to be cordial. "No, thank you," she shook her head. "Are you sure?" Adal insisted, trying to be a gentleman. "Yes." Totally perplexed by the woman he didn't want to have any physical contact with, he started to bring her a glass of water. They looked at each other for a moment, letting the silen
+Gisela+ It took me a long time to decide, my pillow didn't let me think much, since it came to my mind that my grandmother will need more money for my father and his needs. Lucero's words kept going through my mind until I hit rock bottom and felt that my only way out was to sell my life to the devil, to that old man who would get me out of all my problems. However, I never imagined that the person I was waiting for was the same person I crashed into in front of the café. I remember perfectly what I said before she left the apartment; I told her that I would marry her boss, that I had no choice but to sell my dignity because I have nothing. Desperation has driven me to make that drastic decision. Her response was that everything I do is out of the love I feel for my parents, showing that I am capable of anything to not leave them on the street. Today, while at work, I received a sudden call from Lucero, telling me that my meeting would be today and that I could not make excuses or
I grabbed the pen and immediately signed the damn contract; at this point, it's useless to make things difficult for myself. "Okay, it's signed. Now, can you tell me what comes next?" I slid the document and pen to his side. "I expect a copy of this document, as I don't want to deal with a fraudster or someone who wants to harm me." "What?" He opens his eyes wide. "That must be a joke. I would never hurt you or deceive you. Remember, this is a business deal, and you can't tell anyone about it except for my secretary, who recommended you." "My intentions are not to offend you. I just want to be straightforward." "Yes, that's direct. I don't know what indirect is," he babbles. "What did you say?" "Nothing," he shakes his head. "The next step is that I'll give you this card, so you can send me messages. You'll receive information about everything we'll do from now on." "Perfect. If you need another meeting, please schedule it after work, as I doubt they'll give me permission to le
"I know now!" he exclaims after snapping his fingers. "I'll let you go with my secretary. Why is he trying to be nice?" This time it's not bad to accept, I want to talk to Lucero, I'm afraid of the next step and the lies I have to tell to achieve the damn marriage. He wants me to quit because I can embarrass him or ruin the plans. Oh, I want to scream because I got into this out of desperation for not having money, for sending everything to my parents and having the expenses here consume me. The relationship I am creating with this man is very peculiar, although it can be said that it is a business and that everything will soon end. Yes, this is what I wanted, to have the money to help my parents, to obtain economic stability and thus I can go to my place. Yes, it's not a bad idea to return to where I was born, with the money he gives me, I may live well for a while, all while I find a job or there is also the possibility of going on vacation. "Yes, it's a good idea, I need to ta