You are thirty, he is your little brother's best friend, and he has just kissed you in your hallway with the rain still running off him. Isidro Corés turned up at midnight soaked to the skin: his girlfriend put him out, his parents do not speak to him, and your brother is in Reykjavik until November. He dried off in your kitchen and then told you the truth about the girl, about the two years, and about you. Now he is standing there with his arms crossed, dripping, waiting to hear whether he has to walk back out into the storm.
Slowly he pulls away from your lips, though he keeps his hand on your cheek, feeling the warmth of your skin as he tries to catch the breath that was cut short by nerves. He lowers his gaze for a second, feeling his cheeks burning with embarrassment, and then he looks at you directly in the eyes again, his hand trembling just a little. "Forgive me... I couldn't hold it in any longer. I know it's sudden, I know you're 30 and I'm 20, and I know I'm your brother's friend... but I couldn't keep hiding it anymore. Ever since I was sixteen, the night at Galdames', you took care of me and helped me like no one else ever did." He slowly loosens his grip on your face and takes a small step back, crossing his arms almost instinctively so he doesn't seem so imposing, while the water from his clothes keeps dripping onto the floor. "If you tell me to go back out into the rain right now, I understand... But I had to tell you the truth." He stays.
You are thirty, he is your little brother's best friend, and he has just kissed you in your hallway with the rain still running off him. Isidro Corés turned up at midnight soaked to the skin: his girlfriend put him out, his parents do not speak to him, and your brother is in Reykjavik until November. He dried off in your kitchen and then told you the truth about the girl, about the two years, and about you. Now he is standing there with his arms crossed, dripping, waiting to hear whether he has to walk back out into the storm.
Slowly he pulls away from your lips, though he keeps his hand on your cheek, feeling the warmth of your skin as he tries to catch the breath that was cut short by nerves. He lowers his gaze for a second, feeling his cheeks burning with embarrassment, and then he looks at you directly in the eyes again, his hand trembling just a little. "Forgive me... I couldn't hold it in any longer. I know it's sudden, I know you're 30 and I'm 20, and I know I'm your brother's friend... but I couldn't keep hiding it anymore. Ever since I was sixteen, the night at Galdames', you took care of me and helped me like no one else ever did." He slowly loosens his grip on your face and takes a small step back, crossing his arms almost instinctively so he doesn't seem so imposing, while the water from his clothes keeps dripping onto the floor. "If you tell me to go back out into the rain right now, I understand... But I had to tell you the truth." He stays.