28

Ever.

I woke up very late today. Yesterday hadn't been easy, and I needed to be well-rested to start the day. The first thing I did when I opened my eyes was to respond to Eleonor's messages, with whom I had been dreaming all night. I can't even believe that even in my dreams, I can't help but be completely attached to her. I won't say obsessed because I'm not. I want her to be free and true to herself without any compulsive control on my part, but I also feel the need to always know about her and protect her at all times.

The truth is, I can't fully describe with words what I felt yesterday when I saw that damn guy taking her away as if she were an object. I think my heart stopped. I can't even remember what was being said at that moment, if there was noise or not if people were looking at me or not. All I know is that I stopped hearing, and only the voice of her repeating in my head, telling me to save her. And no, I'm not thinking of myself as a superhero, of course not. But it makes me feel good about myself knowing that I punched him and prevented him from taking her away.

Although I wasn't a romantic man before, I have always known the value of a woman. I have learned that when they say no, it means NO. That you should never force a woman to do ANYTHING, and it infuriates me when others don't know how to act, how to respect. That's why I can say that something possessed me when I saw my girl completely defenseless being forcibly taken by a stranger who knows if he was a rapist, a murderer, or a drug addict. And I know Eleonor is a very capable woman, strong-willed, courageous, but I am sure that she would have become helpless in a situation that I don't even want to imagine. I know she wouldn't have known how to react, she would have broken down in tears, and just the thought that she was very close to going through a horrible moment where she would most likely be raped and beaten drove me crazy, or rather, that's what made me lose control and hit him as much as I could. I could have spent hours beating him on the ground because I had the desire and strength, but he was lucky that they separated me from him.

I wasn't even aware that Eleonor was drowning in her tears, thinking that I was going to kill him. She was in agony every second, watching me punch another man, and it was only for her that I stopped, only for her so she wouldn't witness that ugly side of me, only for her until Michael made things worse.

Not even two minutes had passed, I couldn't even relax, take a deep breath, or look at Eleonor properly and hug her to confirm that she was with me. He stormed in, relentlessly accusing us, without waiting, without giving us a chance to blink and move on... I didn't have time to cool down, and with the words he said, my fist quickly hit his cheek. From that point on, everything turned into a disaster, and we ended up at Eleonor's parent's house, where other things happened that didn't bother me at all, on the contrary, Eleonor's words were quite painful, for example, her saying that she is disappointed in me, that hurt me too much as if it were directed at me. And the other reason is how she spoke about me in front of her family, giving me my place whether they liked it or not.

I was already comfortable because things have been clarified perfectly, and there are no secrets.

But well, Now I wasn't with Eleonor, but with my mother. After this morning, waking up late at home, having lunch and training, I wanted to entertain myself for a few minutes before Mom left for work.

""That fight last night knocked you out,"" Mom looked at my knuckles. The same knuckles that had been bandaged by Eleonor last night in the kitchen of her house, where all I did was admire how beautiful she was, while temptation ate away at me, wanting to devour her right on any of those countertops that adorned the space." """At least I won,"" I tried to downplay.

""No surprise there,"" she responded before the doorbell rang.

She stood up and went to open the door, a little puzzled because nobody ever visited them. The neighbors next door occasionally, as they attend the same church as Mom, and now, my girlfriend. But I knew it wouldn't be Eleonor; she would have let me know beforehand.

""Good afternoon, ma'am. Is Ever Rutherford here?"" Those were the words I heard coming from the door, so I immediately got up from the couch and was surprised to find that the police were looking for me. Two uniformed men stood in front of my mother with badges in hand.

Mom looked at me, not understanding. I could see the fear in her eyes.

""It's me,"" I said automatically.

""You have an arrest warrant for assaulting Mr. José Márquez, whom you attacked last night, and he's now critically injured,"" one of the officers spoke, looking at me intently and showing me a pair of handcuffs.

""What?"" Mom brought her hands to her mouth, her eyes welling up with tears.

""I'm willing to surrender,"" I told them, showing them my hands to be handcuffed.

""Mom, everything will be fine, I promise you. Call Eleonor, she'll know what to do,"" I told her, kissing her forehead one last time as the police officers took hold of me and led me out of my home to take me to the police station.

It broke my heart to see her completely stunned, shocked, scared, not knowing what to do or how to act. But she remained calm, knowing not to worsen the situation and prevent them from taking me. I expected nothing less; I knew they could come looking for me at any moment, but it was the consequences of my actions.

Actions that I don't regret having taken. That man can face the consequences, and I won't take it back. No one touches what is mine, especially not my girl. Everything in life has a price, and that man paid for wanting to take her away from me.