Sara Ikari Rodriguez
I woke up the next morning with one thought running through my head.
He kissed me.
And I kissed him back.
There were no cameras. No family watching. No press releases or photo ops.
Just Matio.
And me.
And something that felt like a truth we hadn’t dared name before.
I sat up slowly, the silk robe slipping from my shoulder. The morning light spilled in through the curtains, gentle and golden, the
kind of light that made things feel softer than they were.
But my heart was anything but soft right now.
It was a war zone.
Every word from last night played in my head like an echo I couldn’t turn off.
“I don’t want to pretend anymore.”
“Then don’t.”
I touched my lips like I could still feel him there.
Because I could.
And it terrified me.
I dressed quietly,
