FILTHY GHOSTS"When I said martyrdom, it was because it truly was a martyrdom" - Lara resumed her therapy the following day from where she had left off the day before. "I went months without seeing my brother Scot, and the others weren't like him. Each one had their own struggles, they loved me, but not like Scot did. They cared about me, but none of them cared about me like Scot did. The age gap between my other siblings and me was significant, either older or younger, like the youngest one, and she couldn't help me either. She didn't even know what happened when I went to sleep at night, and because of her disability, I had to protect her from him too, from my stepfather. I imagined that it was already so difficult for me, she wouldn't be able to bear it. And before you ask if my mother could help me, let me tell you that she started treating me differently. She no longer had much time for me due to work, taking care of my little sister who frequently had to undergo surgeries and sp
DOMINO EFFECT"My mother took the blame. She called the police and said she had killed her husband because he was abusing the daughters. Dinah showed up and stayed with us for a few days. While my mother was detained, Dinah assured us that she would soon be released, claiming self-defense, but it was a bureaucratic process that would take a few days. However, before she could be released, she did what Scot told her to do. They found her hanged in her cell on the day she was supposed to be set free.Lara continued with her therapy. Each day she seemed stronger, at least physically she was doing better, and she hadn't mentioned leaving or drinking for days.During the time Scot was living on the streets, ever since he left our father's house, since he ran away, he began to dwell in the streets. Every day in a different place, in an abandoned house. He started drinking and associating with drug users. He became dependent on both drugs and alcohol. And as absurd as it may sound, despite m
BIZARRE HIDEOUTSThe days were passing, and Lara showed no desire to leave.On the fifth day after her last therapy session with Patrícia, with Lipe still by her side, they had watched several movies together. They watched all day, and between the breaks from movies and series, they walked around the entire hospital. She said to him:"Tomorrow, I want to spend the day alone, Lipe.""Alone? But I told you it's fine with my work.""I know that, but it's for myself, you know. I want to be alone the whole day, and I kindly ask you to tell our friends not to visit me."Lipe felt as if a cold hand had struck his heart, and he must have shown it in his expression because she smiled and placed a hand on his waist. They were walking in the hospital garden."You can trust me, Lipe. I'm not planning on doing anything wrong. I could have left already. I was discharged days ago, and if I wanted, I could be at home and do something there. I swear to you, it's not about that. I just want to see how
IS NOT FAR FROM DANGER YETLipe wasn't prepared for this. He hadn't even considered it, and all he could do was stand frozen in the shower. Lara took steps into the shower with him, and he swallowed hard, feeling his heart wanting to take flight in his chest.She bent down and picked up the dropped shampoo from the floor, squeezed a little into her hands, placed the bottle back on the shelf, and ran her soapy hands through his hair. Lara washed his hair slowly and patiently. Then she took the sponge, used the liquid soap, and gently scrubbed his neck, one arm, then the other, paying special attention to his hands and fingers. She turned him around and washed his back, his buttocks, his thighs, all without haste. Lipe remained motionless, not moving a muscle, simply obeying her as she turned him from side to side, keeping his body rigid and his teeth clenched. It was only when she, still squatting and washing his shins, pulled him so that he faced her, that he held her shoulders firmly
JUST A LITTLE SIP IS NO GOOD."You nailed it, Larinha!" Murilo said to her at the end of the meeting, and it wasn't just him, everyone came to congratulate her for the struggle and the victory she had been having these days."Oh, I was dying of embarrassment and just blabbering," she said, feeling ashamed. Still under the adrenaline rush of having grabbed the microphone, her heart took a while to return to its normal rhythm."Oh, come on! You spoke very well," Ciça said to her."And soon you'll be speaking with more ease and calmness. We all feel that way in the beginning," Larissa said, and more and more friends came to congratulate her, making her feel good, one of them."So, are you in love, Larinha?" Ciça sat in a chair opposite her, turned the backrest around, and smiled at her."Very much.""What's the lucky guy's name?" Roger asked her."Lipe, his name is Lipe, the one who captured this messed-up heart of mine," she said, and her friends saw the sparkle in her eyes as she spoke
DIFFERENT CULTURE.Frank found Cecilia as she was entering another room to attend to an elderly lady. She didn't see him entering the room."Good morning, Mrs. Gabriela! How was your night?""I was fine, slept well, but I got sad when you entered my room!"He stood at the door, listening to their conversation. Both of them were unaware of his presence, and he took the opportunity to observe. The elderly lady must have been around seventy-five years old, lying in a hospital bed on top of the sheets. She was obese, and there was a wheelchair next to the bed for Cecilia to help her sit."Well, well, I've seen it all. Is today going to be one of those days when you treat me badly? Even though I'm so nice to you?" Cecilia positioned herself next to the lady's bed, placing the wheelchair right beside it with the wheels locked."I'm just kidding, my dear. You brighten up my day." The lady smiled at Cecilia, and as she sat up, she put one arm around the therapist's neck to make it easier to b
RECONNECTWhen Megan reached the restroom, her heart was pounding so hard that a woman washing her hands at the sink glanced at her with concern through the mirror's reflection. Megan felt a surge of self-hatred as she scrutinized her appearance in the mirror. How could she be thinking about whether she was well-dressed, presentable, and if her hair was styled properly at a time like this? She mentally berated herself.She was seeing the man who had kept her sleepless for weeks, the man she had fallen madly in love with at first sight, only to discover after they had slept together in a motel and made Romeo and Juliet-like vows of love, that he was married with children! Damn it, he was a married man and a family man! And now she saw him calmly sitting in a restaurant, having lunch, while her first concern was whether she looked presentable or not. She was a lost case!Fortunately, the woman left the restroom, and there didn't seem to be anyone else in there at that moment, thanks to
YOU DID THE RIGHT THING!When his plump, warm lips touched hers, the sound of the door being opened concealed her moan. Finally, a woman who valued her bladder!"Let's go to my place," Gregory whispered in her ear, intertwining his finger with hers, and she followed him outside. The woman who entered didn't even notice them there, nor did she notice that there was a man present. Megan walked with him, their fingers still entwined. It was only when they were going down the escalator that it hit her. One: she was walking hand in hand with a married man in the middle of a shopping mall. Two: he said they were going to his house?But she didn't want to ask anything. She feared that if she asked any questions, the enchantment would break, he would change his mind, see reason, and by God, the self-proclaimed moralist feared that. She mentally kicked herself. Rolled her eyes internally at knowing that she was falling for it as well, and this time, fully aware! She was aware that she was acco