Chapter 398

Chapter 398
At São Paulo International Airport.
Gabriela walked through the busy lobby, dragging her suitcase with one hand and holding her cell phone with the other.
Suddenly, the phone vibrated.
She glanced at the screen casually, expecting it to be her father complaining about the time. But when she read the sender's name and the content of the message, the world stopped.
\[Daniel\]: Gabriela, sorry to ask this, but can you stay a few more days?
The shock was so violent that Gabriela's brain disconnected from her legs. She tripped over her own feet and fell to the floor.
“Whoa! Careful, Gabriela!”
Lilian's steady hand grabbed her arm at the last second, preventing a disastrous fall.
“That's why you don't use your phone while walking!” Lilian scolded, helping her friend up. “You were about to kiss the airport floor.”
Behind them, Charlie and Dinho exchanged amused glances, stifling their laughter.
“Ouch! Sorry...” Gabriela smiled, a nervous and dazed smile, as she stuffed her cell phone into her coat pocket as if it were a murder weapon.
Her heart was beating like a war drum.
“Did he reply? Did he ask me to stay?!”
She wanted to take out her phone and read it again, to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. But Lilian was glued to her side, and her friend had eagle eyes. If Lilian saw that message, the game would be over.
Gabriela forced herself to walk, trembling with pent-up adrenaline.
“Let's have lunch,” Lilian suggested, guiding her to an Italian restaurant in the corner of the lobby, overlooking the runway. “We have time.”
They sat down at a reserved table. Gabriela was strangely quiet, her eyes wandering, her hand protecting the pocket where her cell phone burned.
Lilian watched her. Her friend, usually a tireless chatterbox, seemed to have been electrocuted. Gabriela's expression was a mixture of panic and suppressed euphoria.
“What happened, Gabi?” Lilian asked, narrowing her eyes. “You suddenly became strange. Did you receive some bad news?”
“Geez, Lilian!” Gabriela let out a sharp, forced laugh. “How do you guess everything? Almost everything, I mean...”
She shook her head frantically, trying to come up with a plausible lie.
“It's not bad news. I just... feel bad about having to leave you again. I don't know when I'll be able to come back.” — The excuse sounded sincere, but her eyes screamed otherwise.
Lilian sighed, accepting the explanation, but her instincts told her there was more to the story.
— I'll miss you too, — said Lilian, keeping her eyes fixed on her friend. — But I have a feeling you'll be back sooner than you think.
Gabriela swallowed hard, feeling the weight of her cell phone in her pocket. If she only knew...
“Yeah, me too. I'm so sad. If you have time, please come visit us. Théo must miss you,” said Lilian, pausing as she remembered something. “Oh, that's right! Gabriela, you should come to his birthday party.”
“Wow! How could I forget that?” Gabriela's smile widened. Now she had a valid reason to return to the country: Théo's party and the opportunity to see Daniel. “You're right, my friend. I never miss his birthday.”
Gabriela felt a wave of joy. She couldn't wait for November to arrive so she could have the chance to win Daniel over.
They continued talking over lunch. Lilian chose pasta with shrimp, while Gabriela opted for something light: pizza. However, Gabriela lost her appetite; her mind was full, wanting to reread Daniel's message.
While Lilian talked, Gabriela's mind wandered:
"Why did Daniel ask me to stay?
Did he decide to give me a chance?" she wondered, smiling foolishly as she chewed her bland pizza.
Later, after they finished, Lilian excused herself to go to the restroom.
To her surprise, Charlie and Dinho immediately got up to follow her. Lilian stopped and turned around.
“You two don't need to worry; the bathroom isn't far,” she said, pointing to the door a few feet away.
However, the two tall men ignored her protest. They continued to follow her, standing guard in front of the women's bathroom door and causing curious glances from passersby.
Gabriela smiled when she saw the scene, but the smile disappeared as soon as she found herself alone.

She couldn't miss this opportunity. She took out her phone and her heart raced when she saw Daniel's message still in her inbox.
“My God! He really replied. Why did he suddenly ask me to stay?”
She read the message several times: Gabriela, sorry to ask this, but can you stay a few more days?
After calming her mind, Gabriela began to type her reply:
Sorry, Daniel. I can't...
She sent the message and was about to type the explanation that followed, but Lilian's voice startled her.
“Gabriela, are you done?” Lilian asked, sitting down in front of her and taking a last sip of juice.
“Yes,” Gabriela replied, smiling awkwardly and quickly putting her phone away.
She felt terrible for not being able to send the rest of the message explaining the reason—her mother's birthday—fearing that the curt reply would give the wrong impression.
“Are you ready to check your luggage and go through immigration, or do you want to stay here a little longer?” Lilian asked, glancing at her watch.
Lilian noticed that Gabriela seemed distracted and tense, assuming she had received some bad news from her family, but decided not to invade her privacy by asking.
Upon hearing the question, Gabriela felt even more guilty. For the first time, she wanted to separate from Lilian as quickly as possible to finish that text conversation.
With a heavy heart, Gabriela nodded.
“I think I'd better go check in, Lilian. I've never flown from this airport before and I'm afraid I'll get lost on the way to the gate.”
“Okay. Let Dinho and Charlie help you with your bags,” said Lilian, getting up and guiding them to the check-in area.
Gabriela took a deep breath, feeling a mixture of emotions.
Saying goodbye was difficult, but lying to her best friend was even worse. She felt bad for not being honest with Lilian about her feelings for Daniel Spector. She knew she wouldn't be able to hide it for long, but she decided to keep it a secret until she was sure that her relationship with Daniel had a future. If he rejected her, there would be nothing to tell after all.
“Girl, it's time for us to part ways again,” said Gabriela, her voice breaking, hugging Lilian tightly. “I promise I'll be here in November to celebrate your birthday and Théo's. Take care of yourself and don't work so hard, okay?”
“Um, yes,” said Lilian, smiling.