Page 6

THEN:

The grains of sand, warm and yielding beneath their bare feet, seemed to sing a melody only they could hear. Sixteen-year-old Isla's fingers were laced with Javier's, the connection as natural as the shoreline merging with the ocean.

"Do you ever wish we could just keep walking?" Isla asked, her voice barely rising above the hush of the waves. "Into the horizon, just you and me?"

"Every day," Javier replied, his eyes glistening with that same untamed joy that danced upon the ocean's surface. "But for now, this stolen slice of eternity is ours. Just you and me."

Isla's heart swelled, brimming with love so potent it threatened to spill over. Here, liberated from prying eyes, she could be who she was meant to be. With Javier, every breath was a silent rebellion against the life of pretense she was shackled to at home. The beach was their sanctuary, where whispered promises weren't muffled by the walls of expectation.

Yet, even as laughter bubbled between them, Isla's mind was ensnared by the thorns of duplicity. The taste of freedom on her tongue was laced with the bitter knowledge that each step taken in bliss was shadowed by an impending return to a fabricated existence. The thought of returning to that meticulously painted lie that her life had become clawed at her insides, a relentless reminder of the price of her happiness.

"Are you okay?" Javier's voice brought Isla back from the precipice of her worries.

"Yes, " Isla replied, squeezing Javier's hand tighter.

It was a half-truth; she was perfect in this fragment of time with Javier but fractured elsewhere. Yet, a fierce resolve burned within her, a silent oath to safeguard the purest thing she’d ever known. Love, she realized, was worth every mask she had to wear, every act she had to perform.

"Let's not think about later, not yet," Javier said, his thumb tracing circles on Isla's palm. The gesture tethered Isla to the present, to the warmth of the sun on her skin, and the promise in Javier's smile.

"Okay," Isla agreed, allowing herself to be anchored in the now, her worries momentarily drowned out by the haven of Javier's embrace.

Javier suddenly sprinted forward, his curly hair catching the sunlight in a wild dance.

"Catch me if you can!" he called back, laughter weaving through his words.

Isla’s heart leaped, and with an exhilarated laugh, she gave chase. Her bare feet pounded against the wet sand, cool water splashing up with every step as the ocean hummed its rhythmic song beside them. The sun kissed her shoulders, and the salty breeze tangled itself in her auburn locks, urging her on.

"Slowpoke!" Javier teased over his shoulder, but Isla was gaining ground, the distance between them closing with each joyful stride.

"I’ll catch you!" Isla retorted, her voice breathless with exertion and delight. She pushed harder, reveling in the freedom of the moment—the sheer bliss of being untethered.

As they reached the pier, Javier turned, and Isla crashed into him, both of them tumbling onto the soft sand in a fit of giggles. They lay there for a moment, side by side, looking up at the expanse of sky above, their hands finding each other once more.

But as the laughter faded, Isla's thoughts drifted involuntarily to the world beyond the beach—the one where her mother sat on a throne of expectations. She felt the weight of it then, the pressure to be someone else, someone who fit into the pristine image her mother demanded. It was suffocating, like the tight clasp of a necklace.

Or a chain.

Javier's hand squeezed hers, bringing her back from the brink of that cold reality. "What are you thinking?" Javier asked, his tone soft, eyes scanning Isla's face with concern.

"About the act I have to keep up," Isla admitted, her voice barely above a whisper, betraying the turmoil that bubbled beneath the surface. "With Marcus… with my mother."

The silence stretched between them as they contemplated the charade. Isla could picture it all: the polite smiles, the demure glances, the way she had to fold herself into the mold her mother had cast for her. It was a performance she had mastered, but every scene depleted a little more of the authenticity she craved.

"Hey," Javier said, propping himself up on one elbow, his curls casting playful shadows across his face. "You're stronger than any facade, you know that? We'll figure this out together."

Isla nodded, drawing strength from Javier's unwavering belief in her. It was a lifeline in her internal struggle—a reminder that she wasn't facing this alone. She would maintain the illusion for as long as necessary, but with Javier by her side, she dared to hope for a future where she could live truthfully, unapologetically herself.

Isla's gaze drifted beyond the shoreline, where the waves kissed the horizon in a gentle embrace. The ocean sprawled before her, an endless canvas of blues that mirrored the depth of her yearning for a life unfettered by deceit. As she watched the seagulls wheeling freely above the water, their cries echoing the wild pulse of nature, Isla felt a pang of envy for their untamed existence.

"Freedom looks like that, doesn't it?" she murmured to herself, the breeze tangling through her hair. With Javier beside her, the world seemed so vast, so ripe with possibility. Yet the thought of home constricted around her heart like a vise, each wave rolling in a somber reminder of the duplicity she was bound to sustain.

Sensing the shift in Isla's mood, Javier remained silent, offering only the reassuring pressure of his hand steadying her while the whirlwind of emotions churned within her.

A memory surfaced unbidden, taking shape against the backdrop of her mind's eye—a dinner not long past and the sharp clink of fine china as her mother had her maid set the table with mechanical perfection. Isla could still feel the weight of her mother's gaze, icy and scrutinizing as if looking for any crease, any flaw that might betray the family's pristine image.

"Posture, Isla," her mother had chastised, her voice the very embodiment of control as she appraised her daughter with an unsparing eye. "Remember who you are, who we are. There is no room for error in this house."

The words had fallen like a guillotine, severing Isla's hope for understanding, for acceptance. As she stood there, rigid and compliant, Isla had known with a sinking certainty that her mother's love was conditional, a currency traded only for obedience and propriety.

"Promise me, Isla," she had continued, the blue of her eyes hard and cold as the ocean depths. "Promise me you will not bring shame upon us."

And Isla had promised, her voice hollow, even as her heart rebelled silently against the falsehoods that shaped her existence. She had smiled and played her part, all the while knowing that the love she held for Javier, bright and fierce and true, was the one thing she must hide at all costs.

Back on the beach, the sun dipped lower, painting the sky in shades of amber and rose. Isla turned away from the haunting beauty of the sunset, feeling Javier's gaze upon her, full of warmth and unwavering affection. In that look, she found the courage to face another family dinner behind the mask for the glimmer of a future where she could be free—free to love, free to live, and free to be the Isla that only Javier truly knew.

Javier's hand tightened around Isla's, a silent promise that pulled Isla back to the present. The weight of her mother's expectations seemed to lift, if only for a moment, as Javier pulled her closer. Waves lapped at their bare feet, a gentle rhythm that matched the beat of Isla's heart.

"Hey," Javier whispered, his voice a soothing balm. "I told you. I am here for you. We'll get through this together."

Isla studied Javier's face—the wild curls framing his features, the fierce determination in his eyes—and something inside her unfurled, a hope that refused to be quashed by fear or duty. She leaned into the embrace, allowing herself to be enveloped by the love that had become her sanctuary.

"I know," Isla replied, feeling the truth of it deep within her bones. "With you, I can face anything."

They stood there, two silhouettes against the ever-changing canvas of the sky, sharing the kind of silence that spoke volumes. It was in these quiet moments that Isla felt most alive, most herself. Yet, the inexorable march of time waited for no one, and the sun's descent reminded her of the world beyond the beach—the world where she played a part dictated by others.

A world that Javier couldn’t enter with her.

Reluctantly, Isla stepped back from Javier's arms, her gaze lingering on the horizon where the last rays of daylight clung stubbornly to the sky. She breathed in the salty air, committing the sense of peace to memory.

"It's time," she said, the words tasting bitter on her lips. "I have to go meet Marcus."

Javier's nod was full of understanding, but the sorrow in his eyes mirrored Isla's own. They exchanged a soft, lingering kiss. As they parted, Isla felt the reassuring pressure of Javier's hand giving hers a final squeeze.

"Remember, love is our rebellion," Javier murmured, courage woven into the very fabric of the words.

"Love is our truth," Isla responded, the conviction in her voice belying the ache of departure.

Turning away, Isla began the walk back, each step heavy with the knowledge of the charade she must continue. But a fierce resolve burned bright within her chest—she would protect this love, their love, at all costs. And with each step, she carried with her the image of Javier standing strong against the fading light, guiding her through the performance she had to give.