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It took almost all of my willpower not to just turn around again, grab her by the neck, and demand a passionate, consuming kiss from her.

I practically forced myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other, almost as if I were fleeing. Like there was no turning back for me... and there wasn't.

She was too good, too special and sure of her perfection not made for someone like me. I would destroy her even if I had no intention of doing so, but there was too much on my soul for that. Happiness wasn't destined for me and I didn't want to deny her hers.

I could have killed myself just for putting my business card in my pocket, but something inside me just forced me to do it, so I couldn't help myself.

Something inside me was screaming at me not to let go of her and to savor every second of my existence at her side. However, my mind was sharper and more willful than my stupid instincts, and it was thanks to him that I kept walking and eventually arrived at the next intersection, where I reluctantly pulled out my phone, caught in my cynical thoughts.

One look at the bright display was enough to convince me that I was already hoping she would call me.

What kind of a masochist was I... or was I more of a sadist? Should my pain really become hers?

I turned around one last time, but she didn't seem to follow me. She was probably glad to be rid of me and she should be! I would unintentionally complicate her life, but then suddenly, despite all the dark thoughts, an indescribable smile appeared on my lips that even made my heart shine that night.

Isalie... Just the fact that her name meant "tenderness" almost drove me insane. That was a sign, or irony of fate...

Fuck, I was screwed... This tenderness was truly much stronger than my urge to stay away from her.

Full of zest for action and the need for her sweet scent, I was about to throw all my principles overboard and go back to her. I didn't care if she went down with me, because I'd rather live my life in absolute chaos than continue to feel that longing for her that almost made me a true romantic here, under the star-studded sky of Alicante.

But then everything changed...

My cell phone lit up and vibrated in my hand, causing me to stare at the screen in confusion and see my landline number.

Alba knew not to call me when I was out. That was one of our ground rules, so something must have happened... She wouldn't just risk an argument with me like that, much less dare I throw her out.

"Alba?" I spoke clearly, looking up the street exactly where I had come from.

"You have to come home immediately, Milo!", a female, weeping voice suddenly sounded, which I didn't recognize at all. It made me more than just angry that people I didn't know were apparently staying in my house again, but the loneliness was even more shimmering...

"Firstly, do you call me Emilio and secondly, who the hell are you anyway?!" I wanted to know tensely and a little louder, since it must have been some slutty friend of Alba's who didn't like the champagne. She certainly didn't know me and my little patience.

"Sorry," I heard her sobbing into the phone and I was so stressed I wanted to hang up because I hated this whiny behavior and I certainly had better things to do than listening to her cry. Especially when my butterfly was only a few houses away from me, screaming louder with every passing second...

"Listen to me!" I finally said irritably into the phone and pulled myself together not to yell out loud in anger at her high-pitched sobs. "I'm laying now-"

" Alba hurt herself!" she suddenly uttered in a trembling voice and I could already hear from the cell phone how much she must be shaking. "She doesn't want an ambulance or anything! Just you!"

I lost all thought at that moment and hung up immediately, only to look for Hektor's number a second later.

I sent him my location and a WhatsApp message hoping he would find his way to me quickly. Although Alba was just a prostitute and I had absolutely no feelings for her, she was still a person who had been through a lot of bad things and no matter how many times I hurt her for no reason, she was always there for me. So now I had to be there for her too, no matter how much I longed for a passionate flap of my perfection...

If I had known then what was going to happen that fateful night, I would never have even thought of getting into the black sedan that just pulled up.

I would have acted differently because it had changed everything...