Maria Reyes
As I sat on the edge of the bed, I struggled to find my voice. Darian's words rang in my mind, low and insistent: "Maria, lock your door." The sheets were still rumpled from my recent surrender to unbridled passion. His command to ensure my safety before he left earlier that evening weighed heavily on me; it was a warning I had not taken seriously. Now, the gravity of my mistake felt suffocating and crippling, as I looked at the wreck I had caused in my life.
My bedroom resembled a prison cell, the dim light casting sickly shadows on the wooden floor. The air was filled with coconut oil mixed with my body fluid and shame, the aftermath of my attempt to drown guilt in a fleeting ecstasy.
I couldn't take my eyes off Naomi standing in my hallway, her silhouette rigid against th
