WARNING

My dear readers

After thinking about it for a while, I decided to risk publishing my books in Spanish in the English version.  It is not my mother tongue so you may find some errors, which is why I ask for your understanding and that you tell me where to correct.  

I hope you enjoy my stories that have been written from the bottom of my heart.  

Thank you very much, welcome to the world of my imagination.

This novel is a product of my imagination, so it is fiction, the conflicts of the protagonists or their way of solving them does not imply that I as a person endorse their methods of conflict resolution. I am against any psychological, physical, cyber violence. If you can't stand situations of arguments or scenes of this kind. Then I suggest you look for another story and not continue with this one.

CHAPTER 1

My name is Sophia Alexandra Madrid Peralta, I am nineteen years old and I study art, throughout my life I have been a girl very protected by my family, I know little of the outside world and that perhaps makes me a little shy person, although I have friends, I am not very given to go out to parties or walks. My life is painting, the only passion I allow myself, for now.

Today I scheduled a meeting with my friends, I left my house on my way to the subway, I didn't want to go by car because on my way back to my appointment, I planned to stay with Mariana, one of my friends with whom I meet every Wednesday to talk. To tell the truth, she is my best friend, the one who knows all my fears, my secrets, even though I have none of the latter.

The meetings between my friends and I, most of the times were extended with a sleepover at the house of any of us, for me those moments were the most wonderful, they were a kind of therapy that we used to tell each other about our plans, sorrows, joys and achievements.

We started this routine when I turned fifteen and they were nineteen and they were really the occasions where I felt free. I am a scared girl, I was always afraid of making mistakes, disappointing my parents and the people around me, to tell the truth I was not happy with my life, I felt stagnant, empty, my life lacked an ingredient that injected vitality, I felt that a different person was in my body, nothing satisfied me except for painting, there if I was myself and where I embodied all my passion.

The first one I met was Mariana, it happened in a park where I had gone with my brothers, from that moment we became friends, we exchanged numbers and now we were a group of five, we had been frequenting each other for four years.

I got off at the station and headed for the exit. I walked quickly through the streets, looking sideways, the night breeze ruffled my hair and an unruly lock of hair settled on my forehead covering my eyes, I brushed it aside and kept walking. The cold sneaked in front of my body and I felt a shiver, my legs bristled because I was wearing them quite bare, however, none of that stopped me.

I adjusted the coat I was carrying to prevent the cold from hitting me again with inclemency. It was almost eight o'clock at night, I was not really used to walk alone in public transportation and even less at that time, but I had taken the risk, this was one of those few occasions when I dared to do it. Many times I dreamed and wondered: How would it be to uninhibit myself and let out that other strong woman who lived inside of me, but that I repressed it so as not to displease others.

I accelerated my steps, while I prayed inside me that my parents would never find out about what I was doing because they would cry out to heaven, they were too overprotective or rather controlling, but I was already used to their attitudes, although I managed to handle my father more easily than my mother, sometimes getting him to allow me to do my will but in insignificant things; although this day's outing was one of those rare occasions when I used that manipulative part that I had hidden deep inside me.

I arrived at the Tasca of the Calrtron Hotel, where I had arranged to meet, it was a really expensive place, with a classic modern style, very typical of Alina De La Torre, one of my friends who had to organize the evening of that week, whose family was one of the most influential in the country, characterized by being sybarites, and who continually flaunted their wealth.

When I entered, the maître d' seated me at one of the tables at the back, gave me the food and wine menus, indicating the house specialties. I took both menus, but still without reading, I ordered a bottle of red cabernet sauvignon and informed the maître d' that I would wait for my friends to order dinner.

When I was left alone I checked my wallet and took out my cell phone realizing that it had discharged, I looked for my portable charger and started to charge it, I had a little scare in my chest and I could not control the anxiety that began to eat away at me and my body trembled imperceptibly to the others. At that moment the waiter placed the bottle of wine on the table and poured me a glass, I thanked him with a big smile.

I looked at the clock and it had been approximately more than fifteen minutes after my arrival and my friends still hadn't shown up or reported back. "God! I hope they arrive quickly," I thought. Although I was not used to ingesting any kind of alcoholic beverages, I don't know what impulse moved me to ask for a bottle, maybe to give the appearance of a woman of the world or whatever, sometimes even I myself was surprised by my own reactions and decisions, even for myself my behavior was quite contradictory.

I looked around the restaurant, the place was really impressive, very spacious, there were a large number of tables occupied. Within seconds, I felt that I was being watched and the base of my neck bristled. I scanned the place with my eyes and when I directed them to the left side, I saw him time stood still for me.

He looked at me too, he was the most handsome man I had ever seen in my life, light haired, tall, square jawed with an incipient beard, Greek nose, with stunning green eyes, long eyelashes, sallow skin, he was a mature man, dressed in a navy blue suit, white shirt and no tie. My pulse accelerated and I felt strange sensations that I could not define, my mouth dried up and I restrained the impulse to run away, I began to breathe slowly and I forced myself to control myself by lowering my head, doing a breathing exercise to calm the torment that had arisen inside me.

I turned on my cell phone and started to check it, while talking to myself saying "Calm down Sophia". I had more than twelve missed calls from my friends and numerous Whatsapp messages and Skype video calls, informing me that the meeting that day had been cancelled due to a family emergency of one of them. My God! I thought to myself surprised that I had had more than half a drink and I was starting to feel a little tipsy, what would I do? My friends were not coming and my parents were gone for several days at their country house, I advised myself to calm down and after a great effort I succeeded.

For now, I thought I would order something to eat and then take a cab to take me home. I averted my eyes again to the attractive man's table and our gazes met, he looked like an animal on the prowl, however, I couldn't help my reaction, my pulse was racing again, I was totally out of control and I felt confused by those sensations I was experiencing.

I raised my hands and ran them through my hair nervously and biting my lower lip, I closed my legs tightly as I realized the reaction of certain areas of my body and feared where all this could lead me.

"Our emotions are there to be felt, but not to dominate our life, nor to blind our vision, nor to steal our future, nor to extinguish our energy, because, the moment they do, they will become toxic." Bernardo Stamateas.