xTheWritersDenx
At twenty-one, Maria Martenaz felt like she'd already logged a lifetime's worth of "trouble in paradise." Her history in the dating world wasn't just a string of bad luck; it was a repetitive cycle of connections that looked perfect on paper, but crumbled the moment things got real. The problem was always the same: there was a specific side to her-a part of her identity that she couldn't just turn off. She had seen the initial excitement in a guy's eyes turn into confusion, and eventually, an exit when they realized they couldn't wrap their heads around who she actually was.
Life in the quiet town of Riverbend Crossing didn't usually offer many surprises, and Maria's shift at the local cafe was following the same predictable script. She was lost in the rhythmic hum of the espresso machine and the sweet, heavy scent of toasted cinnamon, when the familiar chime of the doorbell cut through the air. Out of habit, she didn't look up right away. She liked to give people a moment of peace to squint at the chalkboard menu and find their footing before she jumped in with a greeting. But when she finally wiped her hands on her apron and turned toward the register, the "Welcome in" died on her lips. Standing there was a boy she didn't recognize-a rare sight in a town where everyone knew everyone else's coffee order by heart.
Her heart did a strange little flip, and for a moment, Maria was paralyzed by how much she liked the look of him. It had been a long time since anyone had made her feel this way, but old habits died hard. A voice in the back of her mind-the one that had learned to protect her from disappointment-was already listing all the reasons she should keep her distance. She'd been down this road before, and it almost always ended in the same place: with her feeling misunderstood and him deciding he didn't have the patience to figure her out.
She had two choices, make a move and get to know him or let him go and her not having her heart torn out all over again.