Hearing her say those words was like taking a bullet. Watching her cry and try so hard to get away from me made my heart shatter."Kazmaria, please don"t tell me that you think that"s true. You know that i"d give my life for you."
She stops fighting me and wipes her face,
"I can"t do this anymore Ricardo...I think I need-"
"Stop. Don"t say it, please."
My voice cracks as I beg her.
"They took you from me Kaz. They knew that Yoyo and I were still a little unsure of each other but you were the common denominator between us."
I pull her as close to me as I can,
"You remember Lucy right?"
"Mhm."
"Well her and your mo- er uh, the woman in white have been working together to drive me up the f.u.c.king wall. She wanted to get you back, she wanted to gather a new batch of a.s.sa.s.sins."
"But Ricky,"
She turn around and faces me. Her curly hair is pulled up into a messy bun and her eyes are red and puffy,
"I just don"t think I can do any of this. I can"t."
"Her body is shaking, is she scared of me?"
"You won"t have to baby,"
I softly kiss her her lips and look her in the eyes,
"For your own safety I asked Yoyo to take you in and he agreed. I love you Kazmaria, and I never wanna see you hurting again...that"s why you should just go with him."
Her expression changes,
"What?"
She pushes me off of her,
"Why would I wanna leave? If what you"re saying is true, then I wanna stay."
"W-what? You can"t be serious."
She puts her hand over her stomach and looks at me.
"It"s true, isn"t it?"
She slowly nods,
"I don"t want our baby to not have a father. I want to be a family Ricardo."
I pick her up and embrace her.
"I"m a dad. I"m a dad!"
She hugs me back, but I let her go,
"But I think it would be best of you left. This is no life for a pregnant woman."
"You"re asking me to give up my life Ricky! How am I supposed to do that?!"
"You"re not giving anything up! You"re beginning a new life! One with you"re real family."
"You are my family Ricky, you"re my husband!"
"It"s for her own safety."
"No Kaz, I was. We can"t be together, not if I wanna keep you safe."
"You don"t get to decide that Ricky! I can handle myself-"
She suddenly bends over while holding onto her stomach,
"Kaz!"
I rush to her side and help her sit on the bed,
"This is exactly what i"m talking about. I love you Kazmaria and I want nothing but the best for you and this baby, but we both know that if you stay i"ll only be endangering the both of you."
"But what about what I want?! For 19 years I was in a cult, brainwashed into thinking that insane woman was my mother! It wasn"t until I met you that I ever truly felt happy...i"ve been through so much s.h.i.t, both mentally and physically but all I want now, is to be with the one I love."
"Please Kaz, this is way more complicated than you think. I"m just trying to be reasonable."
"Por favor, Ricardo, ya no puedo soportar la idea de estar sin ti. Estoy cansado de estar tan solo,"
(Please, Ricardo, I can no longer bear the thought of being without you. I"m tired of being so alone,)
"f.u.c.k. She knows that I love hearing her talk in my language."
She slides closer and puts my hand on her waist, the other on her thigh,
"C"mon mami, you know what you"re doing to me."
"Ricky,"
Her voice is low and seductive. Her eyes scanning mine and subtlety glancing at my lips.
"Llévame a la ducha."
(Take me to the shower.)
"My beautiful baby i"d love to but unfortunately that"s not what you need."
She clings onto my shirt,
"But, I think I can make an exception for a bubble bath."
"Well how about you go draw the bath while I get ready."
I kiss the top of her four head,
"Just one bubble bath, then we circle back to this conversation."
"Fine, but I want lots of bubbles."
"Coming right up."
I head for the bathroom and turn on the water. I light a few candles and make sure to grab her favorite scented body wash, jasmine and rose. I haven"t ever used this giant tub because I never really had a reason, but it won"t matter...I won"t be here long.
"Okay Kaz, i"m almost done in here!"
"Kay, i"ll just be another minute. Why don"t you go ahead and get in."
"You sure? I"ll wait for you."
"Yeah go ahead, i"m on my way."
I undress and step into the tub. The water is just the right temperature and the bubbles are piled high.
A few minutes pa.s.s while I wait for her. There"s an uneasy feeling in my gut...like something"s off.
"Kaz? You coming?"
No response. I grab a towel and wrap it around my waist. When I leave the bathroom I see that the room is empty and that there"s a note pinned to the door,
"Ricky, I need some time to get my mental stability back. I have to leave for a few weeks, maybe even months. I can"t say that i"ll be back but just know that our baby will be safe. You mean so much to me but you"ll never understand what i"ve been through. Please don"t hate me,
-Kazmaria"
"She left...she f.u.c.king left me."
I can"t believe that I thought she"d just agree to all this. How stupid of me, but this is for the best. I rip the note up and put on some shorts. I grab my phone and dial Carlos"s number,
"Yo? What"s up?"
"She left me Carlos..."
"Who Kaz?! Aw s.h.i.t man, how you feeling?"
"I don"t care anymore, just tell the movers that I expect them here today."
"But I thought that-"
"No, i"m not spending another second in this d.a.m.n house. We move today."
"I"ll have Fernando get it together. We"ll talk later."
The call ends and along with it my happiness. I know that all good things must come to an end, but I was hoping that if I tried hard enough, that I could hold onto it a little while longer.
"Goodbye Kazmaria."
I take off my ring and toss it behind me. This would be the last time I would ever set foot in this room ever again. The legendary Hernandez Mansion would now be empty, and the once lively people who lived there would all be gone.
As I walk down the hall my first memories of Kaz replay in my mind. The first kiss we shared, the day we moved together. The first time she showered with me. But my favorite memory, the one that keeps running through my head: that day at the beach house when she first said that she loved me.
I take one last look at the mansion I once held so dear and head towards my car.
"She chose to leave Ricardo, you have a new life ahead of you. Get her out of your mind."
I pull out of the driveway and start my new beginning, one that should"ve started a while ago; one without her.
The End