MI MILAGRO, JJ maybank

Chapter 14 - Still into you

It had been almost a week since the party, and the chateau had never been so quiet.

The laughter of the friends, the karaoke sessions organized by Kiara and María, and the Trivial games led by Pope were no longer heard. Instead, all this cheerful sound was replaced by an agonizing silence.

JJ no longer slept there; he was going home with his dad, and each time he appeared with a new bruise.

María didn't hang out with the Pogues anymore; she didn't dare to see JJ again. Every time she closed her eyes, she could picture him—his disgusted face, his eyes filled with fear.

She was sitting on the edge of Sarah's boat when
Rafe snuck up behind her and gave her shoulder a little shake, snapping her out of her trance, he said,
"Hey, can we talk?"

Maria nodded and Rafe sat down beside her, dangling his feet over the edge.

"See, the thing is, after the kiss, you left and came back crying," he said, scratching the back of his neck out of discomfort.

Maria averted her gaze, feeling uneasy. She didn't know how to tell him that she had used him out of jealousy.

"Yeah, but I didn't cry because of the kiss, I promise," she replied.

Rafe looked away. He was too embarrassed to look at her anyway.

"I kissed you and you cried, that had to do something with the kiss," he said.

Maria shook her head and placed a hand on his shoulder to get his attention.

Rafe glanced at her hand and then at her. It was the first time she didn't look at him with pure disgust.

"No, I cried because I was sad and because I had an argument with... well, with someone else. It had nothing to do with the kiss," she smiled kindly. "It was a good kiss!"

"Yeah?"

"Really good, not at all crying material."

"Wanna try again?" I smirked at her playfully.
María lightly nudged his shoulder, smiling to herself.

"Come on, Rafe."

He raised his arms in defeat.
"Hey, at least I gave it a shot."

They both laughed and fell into silence, lost in their own thoughts. It was Rafe who broke the silence.

"Hey, María, listen..." He struggled to say what he had been thinking for a long time. "I know we started off on the wrong foot, and I've acted like a total jerk towards you." María nodded at his last comment, and Rafe looked at her with a playful remorse. "And I regret it. The truth is, I'd like to be your friend. Do you think that's possible?"

Maria stared at him, silent and thoughtful. Rafe had messed things up, no doubt about it. But she wasn't one to hold grudges. She liked to be on good terms with people.

As she debated whether to forgive him or not, Rafe was sweating nervously, his hands getting clammy. He was taking quite a while to respond.

Se didn't know what to say to him. On one hand, Rafe had been a total jerk. He had taken advantage of her several times, never cared about her feelings, and above all, he had treated her found family, her friends, poorly. He had crossed the line with Pope, John B, Kiara, JJ... but who even cared about JJ? Maria had decided that JJ was water under the bridge.

Maria was trying to deceive herself. She cared. Se cared a lot

On the other hand, she had used him at the party the other day. Maria knew Rafe was attracted to her, and she used it to make JJ jealous. In a way, she played with his feelings.