Vengeance From The Past

la's

te my best effort to stay composed. "Just give me anoth

he clatter of the kitchen beyond the office walls still humming behind us. The door was slightly ajar,

ted your work. But this? This is beyond repair. The man you insulted is on

ain rippling through my chest. "An

sted about it online. Do you understand wha

gusting man."I couldn't show how angry I was at the mo

et me f

N

rlier that night. Chef Márquez wasn't just my boss; he was the one who gave me my first real o

ngs from the locker. Secu

air too thick. I nodded, blinking fast to keep the tears at bay. I

ffice, my shoes echoing on the polished tiles

said

, rehearsed frown. Like she was sad. I

ef's coat, now stained with flour and garlic oil, hung limp inside

rom my g

d been so f

ag, zipped it shut, and stood for a long m

to the alley, the metal door slamming

r a moment on the sidewalk, staring up at the glowing letter

t had once he

ld and untouchable. Like I

I wiped it away angrily. I could

ent, papá's debt- it all came from my salary. I didn't have a backup plan. I

ed to tell them

n't even know. A stranger with

l Cas

ound. What kind of person destroys someone'

one b

as E

an

ened as my pulse raced,the

ita. Are yo

mpty street. "Not yet

tonight," he said. "I miss you.

t tonight. I'm... just really ti

. "Everyt

. But I forced a smile into my

. I'll see you tom

hispered and

t my pain but then I remembered I have my famil

t. Streetlights blurred through my tears. The

nish my shift, go home, kiss Emilio ¡#hello, and maybe watch t

the weight of failure pressi

lifeline. People passed me, cars honked, laughter spilled from a n

e lived on the third floor of a cramped walk-up with crack

elf. Maybe mamá would have a solution. She always did.

in the door and

am

ans

t was on, and I could hear faint rustling

am

he couch and moved qu

when I

ft m

art s

á's bedroom, the d

Then a familia

o

very breath shallow and straine

was Emilio Shirtless. Hovering over some

him shifted... a

f the weight of the world

Mam

y f

ent still, as if my bo

rembling, as my mother and my fiancé

am