Álvaro thought my silence was a temporary punishment.
He thought that, after a few days, I would return.
Because for seven years…
I always had.
But this time, he was waiting for a woman who no longer existed.
Three days after my disappearance.
Álvaro Serrano was sitting in his office, staring at his phone.
No messages.
No calls.
No missed notifications.
Nothing.
It was the first time in seven years that he had woken up without seeing my name on his screen.
And strangely…
that bothered him more than he wanted to admit.
His assistant entered carefully.
“Mr. Serrano.”
Álvaro didn’t look up.
“Did you find her?”
The assistant hesitated.
“Not yet.”
His fingers stopped moving.
“Not yet?”
“We checked the airport records. She arrived in the Canary Islands.”
“And?”
“After that… nothing.”
Álvaro stood up.
“What do you mean nothing?”
“She didn’t use your shared accounts. She didn’t use any cards connected to you. She rented a small apartment under her own name.”
Silence.
Under her own name.
Those words stayed in his mind.
Because for seven years, everyone knew me as:
Mrs. Serrano.
Álvaro’s girlfriend.
Álvaro’s future wife.
The woman standing behind him.
He never imagined that I had been quietly building a life where I didn’t need his surname.
That afternoon, Claudia came to his office.
She was wearing the same elegant smile she had worn at the engagement party.
The smile everyone loved.
The smile that made people believe she was harmless.
“Álvaro.”
He looked at her.
For the first time, he didn’t feel comfort.
He felt tired.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
Claudia froze.
“Tell you what?”
“That Lucía knew.”
A brief flicker crossed her eyes.
Only a second.
But he saw it.
“Álvaro, what are you talking about?”
He walked closer.
“Don’t lie to me.”
“She was supposed to come back.”
Claudia’s expression changed.
“Maybe she is just angry.”
“No.”
His voice became cold.
“Lucía doesn’t disappear when she’s angry.”
A pause.
“She disappears when she’s done.”
Claudia looked away.
And that small movement was enough.
Because suddenly Álvaro remembered every strange detail.
The rumors.
The photographs.
The way everyone kept saying:
“Finally, the perfect couple.”
But nobody asked:
What happened to Lucía?
“Did you know about the accident?”
Claudia remained silent.
His eyes narrowed.
“Claudia.”
She slowly sat down.
“Only a little.”
His expression changed.
“What does that mean?”
“Álvaro…”
“Answer me.”
She sighed.
“Diego told me they would delay her.”
The room became silent.
“Delay her?”
“So she wouldn’t arrive before the engagement announcement.”
Álvaro stepped back.
The first real fear appeared on his face.
“You knew?”
Claudia looked at him.
“I didn’t think it would become serious.”
“You didn’t think?”
His laugh was empty.
“My girlfriend was taken to the police station because of something you planned…”
“and you didn’t think?”
For the first time, Claudia looked nervous.
“Álvaro, everything was done because of us.”
“No.”
He interrupted.
“Everything was done because you wanted something.”
That night, Álvaro returned to my apartment again.
Even though he knew I wasn’t there.
He didn’t know why.
Maybe he expected me to magically appear.
Maybe he expected the old version of me to still be waiting.
But the apartment was empty.
Cold.
Silent.
On the table was the small box of letters I had left behind.
He opened it.
The first letter was from seven years ago.
His birthday.
My handwriting was young and full of hope.
“I don’t know if we will have a perfect future, but I know that as long as we choose each other, we can overcome anything.”
Álvaro closed his eyes.
Because suddenly he remembered.
Back then…
he had chosen me.
Not Claudia.
Not his family.
Not his reputation.
Me.
The next letter was different.
Three years later.
A short message.
“Today I waited for you again.”
“I told myself you were busy.”
“I hope one day I stop needing excuses for you.”
His hand trembled.
Because he realized something terrible.
The day he lost me…
wasn’t the day of the engagement.
It wasn’t the day of the accident.
It was much earlier.
Every time he chose someone else.
Every time he assumed I would forgive him.
Every time he treated my love as something guaranteed.
Meanwhile, in the Canary Islands…
I was sitting beside the ocean.
For the first time in years, nobody knew who I was.
Nobody introduced me as Álvaro Serrano’s girlfriend.
Nobody asked about our wedding.
Nobody compared me to Claudia.
I was simply Lucía.
My new apartment was small.
The furniture was old.
The view wasn’t luxurious.
But every morning, I woke up peacefully.
And that was something money had never given me.
One morning, while buying coffee, I received a message from an unknown number.
I almost deleted it.
But then I saw the name.
Álvaro Serrano.
The message was short.
“I know I don’t deserve an answer.”
“But please tell me one thing.”
“Was there ever a moment when you stopped loving me?”
I stared at the screen.
Seven years ago, I would have answered immediately.
Seven years ago, I would have forgiven him before he even apologized.
But now…
I simply typed:
“No.”
A second later, another message arrived.
“Then why did you leave?”
I looked at the ocean.
And after a long silence, I wrote:
“Because loving you became the reason I lost myself.”
In Madrid, Álvaro read those words over and over.
And for the first time…
he understood.
I didn’t leave to make him chase me.
I didn’t leave to punish him.
I left because I had finally accepted something he never believed possible.
That I could live without him.
But Álvaro didn’t know yet…
that Claudia’s betrayal was only the beginning.
Because the person who arranged everything at the engagement party…
was not Claudia.
Someone else had been afraid of Lucía discovering the truth.
And that person had been hiding behind Álvaro’s family name for years.
TO BE CONTINUED…
