Siempre te voy a querer

Chapter 137

Isa made her way across the field, checking in with each player to make sure they were feeling good and ready for the next set of drills. She finally reached Edson, who was seated on the grass tying his cleats. He looked up briefly when she approached but quickly averted his eyes, focusing intently on the knot he was making. 

"Edson," Isa said softly, crouching down to his level. "¿Qué tal tu tobillo? Me dijeron que te habías quejado con Manuel." 

Edson paused for a moment, his fingers fumbling with the laces. He didn't look at her, his gaze firmly fixed on his shoe. "Me duele un poco," he said finally, his voice low. "Pero estoy bien." 

Isa tilted her head, studying him. "¿Seguro? Si es más que un poco, puedo avisarle a Manuel para que te revise de nuevo." 

Edson shook his head, his movements stiff. "No es nada. Puedo con esto." 

From a few feet away, Memo was watching the interaction with a pointed look. When Edson glanced in his direction, Memo raised an eyebrow, silently asking, *¿Vas a decirle o no?* 

Edson's jaw tightened, and he returned his attention to tying his cleats, though they were already perfectly secure. 

Isa let out a soft sigh. "Edson, no tienes que hacerte el fuerte conmigo. Si necesitas algo, solo dímelo, ¿ok?" 

He nodded, still avoiding her gaze. "Gracias, Isa," he mumbled. 

She frowned slightly but didn't push further. Instead, she placed a hand on his knee briefly before standing up. "Bueno, si te duele más, no lo ignores, ¿sí? Estoy aquí para ayudarte." 

Edson's chest tightened at her words, the weight of his guilt pressing down on him. He wanted to say something, anything, to make things right between them. But the memory of their argument the night before—of how he had let her down when she needed him most—stopped him. 

Dile algo, his thoughts screamed at him. Pídele perdón. Ella merece eso y más.

But when he finally opened his mouth, all that came out was a strained, "Lo sé." 

Isa hesitated for a moment, then gave him a small, encouraging smile. "Está bien. Nos vemos en un rato." 

As she turned to leave, Edson's fists clenched. He stared after her, the words he wanted to say lodged painfully in his throat. 

Perdóname, Isa, he thought. Fallé como hermano. Como amigo. No quiero que sigas sonriendo como si nada hubiera pasado cuando sé que te hice daño.

Memo walked over as soon as Isa was out of earshot, crossing his arms as he loomed over Edson. "¿Qué pasó ahí?" he asked, his tone both curious and disappointed. 

Edson didn't answer right away, his gaze fixed on the ground. "Nada," he muttered. 

"Nada, mis huevos," Memo shot back, crouching next to him. "Tienes que hablar con ella, güey. No puedes quedarte así. Se nota que te sientes mal." 

Edson sighed, running a hand over his face. "Lo sé, Memo. Pero... no es tan fácil. ¿Qué se supone que diga? ¿Que soy un idiota que no supo estar ahí para ella?" 

"Pues sí," Memo said bluntly. "Exactamente eso. Porque, ¿sabes qué? Ella te perdonaría. Es Isa. Pero si no le dices nada, vas a seguir cargando con esto." 

Edson let out a frustrated groan, knowing Memo was right. But even so, the thought of confronting Isa filled him with dread. He had never felt so ashamed. 

Edson's gaze followed Isa as she walked away, her attention now focused on Julian and Uriel, who were standing a few yards away. She smiled at something Julian said, her face lighting up as if nothing in the world could faze her. But Edson could feel the weight of her hurt lingering between them, no matter how much she tried to mask it with that smile.