Extra 1

Extra 1
After a couple of weeks, Irina had been evaluated, and they concluded that she was really unwell. Pretending had crossed a thin line in her time; she began to mix past stories with ones that had never happened. Her father, distressed by her health, dedicated himself to ensuring she received the best care in the psychiatric hospital. Paying thousands of dollars was one thing, but having the staff there actually do it was another. Meanwhile, Horacio never returned once everyone knew where Irina was, and he was one of the main people who ensured she wouldn't hurt anyone else again.

In the garden of Adler Müller's house, a party was being prepared for the future family member. Emma was reaching nine months and looked like she could give birth at any moment. She looked radiant, had gained a few pounds, which made her look more beautiful than before. Her breasts had grown quite a bit, she had cut her hair above her shoulders, and she tried not to laugh too much at Eda's antics because her enemy at that moment was her bladder, and she wasn't quick to reach the nearest bathroom in the house.

Max, as always, was close to Emma, taking care of every detail and preventing her from overexerting herself, wanting to avoid her getting tired.

"The uncles have arrived!" Gus exclaimed. Behind him were Sasha, Viktor, and Alex, all carrying boxes of gifts. Gus was holding a large teddy bear with a pink ribbon around its neck. Emma smiled and raised her hand to wave. Adler and Eda stood up to greet the guests, and the service staff helped with the gifts. After greeting, they settled at the large table in the middle of the garden. It was decorated in gold and white colors. Max, seeing that everyone was in their places and that the food had just been served, stood up. Emma looked at him with a frown, then understood what he was about to do. He took a glass and made a tinkling sound with a fork to get the guests' attention.

"I want to make a toast," Max began, but he stopped when he saw someone in the distance. Everyone followed his gaze and were surprised to see Horacio, who was holding a box with a big pink bow. Timidly, he approached them.

"Good afternoon, it wasn't my intention to ruin the moment. I was passing through the neighborhood and stopped to leave a gift for the future Müller granddaughter." But no one said anything immediately, making him feel more uncomfortable. Emma stood up and smiled at him, placing her hand on Max's arm.

"Come in, welcome," Max looked at Emma in surprise, and she glanced at him briefly. "Be nice." Then she walked past him to approach Horacio, who hurried to avoid her walking too much. Seeing her large belly, he was surprised. He handed the box to the service staff who came over to take it and place it with the others. "Come in, I'll set another plate at the table."

"No, no, no, I'm fine," he cleared his throat and glanced at everyone who had once been his best friends, with whom he had shared many moments. Looking at Emma, he sighed. "I don't think it's appropriate..." he whispered.

"Come on, stay," Max said, approaching. He stopped next to Emma and kissed her on the crown of her head, then looked at Horacio. "My future wife is inviting you to join us, so you'd better put that butt in the empty chair," Horacio smiled weakly.

"Thank you," he finally said, accepting to join the others.
Sasha pulled out the empty chair for him to sit beside her. When he arrived, she greeted him as she always did. If her best friend had forgiven Horacio, so would she. The others did the same, making the discomfort less noticeable. Adler smiled at him, but Eda was the only one who didn't. Even when he tried to greet her, Eda pretended to ask Emma something. Eda had been in love with Horacio for a long time. Irina had even helped her set up a date to get to know him better, but everything changed when she found out about the betrayal.

"I'll resume the toast," Max began, as Emma finally took her place beside him. She had gotten tired again and felt the need to use the bathroom. "I want to thank everyone for coming. This afternoon, we are celebrating the upcoming arrival of our daughter, Emily Elizabeth Müller Spencer." Everyone applauded. "We are eagerly awaiting her arrival. Everything is new to us, as she is a miracle," Max sighed, pausing his toast. "A great miracle of life, because it was impossible, a one-in-a-million chance." Everyone's expressions softened as they heard him speak with emotion. "And our number one will be among us," he smiled broadly. "So you'll have to help us. We'll need babysitters around the clock." Everyone burst into laughter, even Horacio tried to suppress his laugh.

"The dad is quite the opportunist!" Alex exclaimed jokingly. More laughter followed.

"If I babysit her, I'm keeping her!" Sasha said, laughing, and the others joined in.

"Auntie is the official babysitter," Eda announced, winking at Emma and her brother.

"And also her grandpa," Adler said, laughing with the others.

"Thank you, thank you for being here. We can start eating now," Max said, amused. He returned to his seat and kissed Emma on the crown of her head, then gestured for her to eat, but she wanted to go to the bathroom again. He got up and helped her. Horacio watched every detail of the moment closely. He felt so sad. If it weren't for what Irina had done, he would have had his newborn son or daughter by now. Nostalgia overwhelmed him, and he tried not to dwell on it, not wanting to show his sadness.

"Do you want some wine?" Eda asked, standing beside Horacio with a bottle she had taken from the waiter, using it as an excuse to approach him.

Horacio looked up, then nodded, taking the empty crystal glass. Eda poured him some wine. Everyone else was engaged in their conversations, not paying attention to the two of them.

"Thank you, Eda," he said, then took a sip to wet his throat.

"Do you want to take a walk?" Eda asked. Horacio was surprised, furrowing his brow and looking at the others. "Come on, Emma and Max will take about twenty minutes to return to the table." Horacio nodded, stood up, and followed Eda without saying anything, though he expected her to bring up what happened months ago and perhaps warn him to stay away from her family. He couldn't imagine what else she might want to talk about.

"Eda..." he began, but she interrupted him.

"I want you to know that if they have forgiven your betrayal, I haven't, Horacio." He stopped, and she continued walking through the garden, realizing he wasn't following her. She turned back to him.

"I'm not asking for forgiveness. I know what I did. Believe me, every day when I look in the mirror, I remember every decision I've made, one that hurt the people I love and cared about. And I know I will always be the one who betrayed his best friends," he paused briefly, not taking his eyes off Eda, "and a good woman."

"That good woman was in love with you. She really had strong feelings for you."

"I know, I know, little Müller." She pressed her lips together at hearing him call her that. He used to call her "Little Müller" because she was the younger sister of his ex-best friend. "And now, with new eyes, I can say that I regret hurting you, Eda."