Chapter 8
Just as Patricia was about to speak, something unexpected happened. Two children, playing with their skateboards, were heading to the edge of the pool, unaware of the presence of someone in front of them. Realizing the proximity, they failed to stop in time and, in the blink of an eye, pushed Lucia, who was on the edge, straight into the water. The sound of the impact was loud, and the water violently jumped into the air. Patricia froze for a moment, but quickly reacted. Without time to deal with the naughty children, she prepared to jump into the water to save her. However, before she could do so, a figure passed by her at full speed. An instant later, a powerful push made her take two steps back, until she managed to stabilize herself. Looking ahead, she saw that the figure who had quickly arrived was Ramón. Ramón, without a second’s hesitation, took off his jacket and jumped into the water with determination. After pulling Lucia out of the water, he paused for a moment, frowning as he looked at Patricia. “What happened here?” Before Patricia could explain, Lucia, wrapped in Ramon’s jacket, suddenly intervened. “It was my fault, I provoked Patricia and she pushed me into the water. Fortunately, nothing serious happened to me, please don’t blame her.” Her weak, pitiful voice and her trembling body were obvious to everyone. Ramon, hearing her explanation that sounded more like an accusation than a defense, cast a reproachful glance at Patricia. “It wasn’t me, I didn’t push her, it was…” Patricia shook her head trying to defend herself and turned to look for the children responsible for the accident, but when she looked around, they were nowhere to be seen. At that moment, she was speechless. That pause cost her the chance to explain herself. “If it wasn’t you, then who? Me? Or do you mean she fell by herself?” “Patricia, I thought you were just a little capricious, but now I see that you simply lack education.” Those words fell like thunder in her mind. Had Ramon said that? Did he say she was uneducated? She knew that after her parents died, what she feared the most was hearing those words. The kids at school used to tease her by telling her she was a motherless child, and Ramon had always been there to defend her. But now, it was he who used those words to hurt her. Patricia mumbled, trying to say something more, but he didn’t stay to listen and walked off carrying Lucia in his arms. With Ramon gone, naturally the party couldn’t continue. People began to disperse and a devastated Patricia returned home alone. She didn’t sleep well that night, she called Ramon and also sent him messages trying to explain, but he didn’t respond all night. At dawn the next day, Ramon finally returned to the villa with Lucia. “Ramon, I really didn’t push her. It was two kids playing who accidentally pushed her into the water. Seeing them coming,Patricia quickly stepped forward to explain, but Ramon continued without saying a word, simply walking past her without even looking at her. She hurriedly blocked his path and, with reddened eyes, began to speak. “Would you believe me for once? You used to trust me before.” His voice cracking, he finally stopped. In the past, Patricia only had Ramon as her family, and he had given her everything she needed. Whenever something happened, Ramon would unconditionally believe what she said. She once asked him why, if everyone said she was lying, he still trusted her. He replied, “Pati, I raised you, I may not know others, but don’t I know what you’re like?” But now, he was silent for a long while, and then with a gesture, he pushed her aside. “Move aside!” Ramon hadn’t pushed hard, but Patricia stumbled and fell to the ground. Seeing her fall so easily, Ramon was alarmed and rushed to help her, but upon touching her, he felt her unusually cold skin. “Why is your skin so cold?” Her voice revealed uncontainable concern. Patricia stammered without being able to give a clear reason, and he, upon grabbing her hand, was surprised to not be able to feel her pulse. Just as he was about to ask, Lucia, who had been behind him all this time, interrupted: “Patricia, even if you care about me being with Ramon, you shouldn’t pretend to be sick to worry him.” These words transformed Ramon’s concern into anger: “Isn’t it enough that you pushed Lucia into the pool, you also have to pretend to be sick to get my attention? The only way you can get my forgiveness now is by apologizing to Lucia.” The clock on the wall kept ticking second by second, and indescribable sadness filled his heart. Did he really want to spend his last moments in this conflict? With a pale face, Patricia gave up trying to explain herself: “Okay, I apologize.” After standing up and apologizing to Lucia, he looked up at Ramon for the last time. There was only a deep emptiness in his eyes. “Ramon, can you forgive me now?” Although Ramon had received the apology he wanted, he didn’t feel good about it. The young girl in front of him seemed to be suffering immensely, as if she was about to cry at any moment. Her expression was gloomy, and after a long silence, she finally said coldly, “Let it not happen again!”He still trusted her. He replied, “Pati, I raised you. I may not know others, but don’t I know what you’re like?” But now, he was silent for a long while, and then, with a gesture, he pushed her aside. “Move aside!” Ramon hadn’t pushed hard, but Patricia stumbled and fell to the ground. Seeing her fall so easily, Ramon was alarmed and rushed to help her, but upon touching her, he felt her skin unusually cold. “Why is your skin so cold?” His voice revealed uncontrollable concern. Patricia stammered without being able to give a clear reason, and he, upon grabbing her hand, was surprised to be unable to feel her pulse. Just as he was about to ask, Lucia, who had been behind him all this time, interrupted, “Patricia, even if you care about me being with Ramon, you shouldn’t pretend to be sick to worry him.” These words turned Ramon’s worry into anger, “Isn’t it enough that you pushed Lucia into the pool, you also have to pretend to be sick to get my attention? The only way you can get my forgiveness now is by apologizing to Lucia.” The clock on the wall kept ticking second by second, and indescribable sadness filled her heart. Did she really want to spend her final moments in this conflict? Her face pale, Patricia gave up trying to explain herself, “Okay, I apologize.” After standing up and apologizing to Lucia, she looked up at Ramon for the last time. Only a deep emptiness remained in her eyes. “Ramon, can you forgive me now?” Although Ramon had received the apology he wanted, he didn’t feel good about it. The young girl in front of him seemed to be suffering immensely, as if she was about to cry at any moment. Her expression was gloomy, and after a long silence, she finally said coldly, “Let it not happen again!”He still trusted her. He replied, “Pati, I raised you. I may not know others, but don’t I know what you’re like?” But now, he was silent for a long while, and then, with a gesture, he pushed her aside. “Move aside!” Ramon hadn’t pushed hard, but Patricia stumbled and fell to the ground. Seeing her fall so easily, Ramon was alarmed and rushed to help her, but upon touching her, he felt her skin unusually cold. “Why is your skin so cold?” His voice revealed uncontrollable concern. Patricia stammered without being able to give a clear reason, and he, upon grabbing her hand, was surprised to be unable to feel her pulse. Just as he was about to ask, Lucia, who had been behind him all this time, interrupted, “Patricia, even if you care about me being with Ramon, you shouldn’t pretend to be sick to worry him.” These words turned Ramon’s worry into anger, “Isn’t it enough that you pushed Lucia into the pool, you also have to pretend to be sick to get my attention? The only way you can get my forgiveness now is by apologizing to Lucia.” The clock on the wall kept ticking second by second, and indescribable sadness filled her heart. Did she really want to spend her final moments in this conflict? Her face pale, Patricia gave up trying to explain herself, “Okay, I apologize.” After standing up and apologizing to Lucia, she looked up at Ramon for the last time. Only a deep emptiness remained in her eyes. “Ramon, can you forgive me now?” Although Ramon had received the apology he wanted, he didn’t feel good about it. The young girl in front of him seemed to be suffering immensely, as if she was about to cry at any moment. Her expression was gloomy, and after a long silence, she finally said coldly, “Let it not happen again!”The clock on the wall continued to tick by second, and indescribable sadness filled her heart. Did she really want to spend her final moments in this conflict? Her face pale, Patricia gave up trying to explain herself, “Okay, I apologize.” After standing up and apologizing to Lucia, she looked up at Ramon for the last time. Only a deep emptiness remained in her eyes. “Ramon, can you forgive me now?” Although Ramon had received the apology he wanted, he didn’t feel good about it. The young girl in front of him seemed to be suffering immensely, as if she was about to cry at any moment. Her expression was gloomy, and after a long silence, she finally said coldly, “Let it not happen again!”The clock on the wall continued to tick by second, and indescribable sadness filled her heart. Did she really want to spend her final moments in this conflict? Her face pale, Patricia gave up trying to explain herself, “Okay, I apologize.” After standing up and apologizing to Lucia, she looked up at Ramon for the last time. Only a deep emptiness remained in her eyes. “Ramon, can you forgive me now?” Although Ramon had received the apology he wanted, he didn’t feel good about it. The young girl in front of him seemed to be suffering immensely, as if she was about to cry at any moment. Her expression was gloomy, and after a long silence, she finally said coldly, “Let it not happen again!”
