#9:

The next day, I was having lunch with Yunior when Matt sat down at our table.
"Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded as I dug the tip of my spoon into the rice pudding.
"Why didn't I tell you what?" I asked confused.
"Why didn't you tell me that a guy tried to stab you?" Matt whispered and Yunior's spoon fell from his hand.
"What?!" Yunito whispered.
"Nothing happened," I explained, trying to calm my friend down.
"When was that?" Yunior inquired.
"Friday".- I answered.
The expression on Yunior's face was one of pure horror.
"Why didn't you tell me anything?" Matt demanded again and at that moment I looked at him with hatred.
How do you dare? I thought. How does he have the face to come and play nice when he knows everything so well?
In the hours after I returned to Uni, I had thought and thought my brains out over what had happened until I came to the conclusion that it was best for everyone to stay as far away from the Montalvos in general and from Matt as possible. in particular.
Yes, he had made a move on me and even paid for my pineapple pizza, but that was no reason for me to risk my skin. After all, Mark terrified me. I came to think that he was a psychopath or something. Besides, I had enough with the studio until the wee hours of the morning, I wasn't there to add more drama to my life flirting with Matt because really, the boy I liked was another.
"I thought you knew." I replied dryly.
"No. I found out this morning."
"Rosy, this is dangerous."- Yunior whispered.
I compressed my lips.
"I know." I looked away from Matt and focused on my friend.
"Perhaps…you should consider…" he tried.
"No." I answered firmly.
"Being so stubborn will only get you into trouble."
I bit my tongue to keep from releasing the stupidity that filled my mind at that moment.
"I already am anyway." I'm dealing with a murderer, remember? Who assures me that going home is the solution? They have always been right, I am a mediocre student but I am not a coward, there is very little left to finish and I think I fell behind enough with the month I lost.
Yunito sighed deeply, placing her soft hand on mine as she searched my gaze.
"You know you can count on me, right?" he asked.
My face and ears burned.
"Yeah, I know," I answered with a half smile.
"Yeah, sure, but..." Matt protested, obviously annoyed at not being the center of attention. "Where were you when she was in danger?"
I didn't let the situation escalate, the last thing I wanted was to cause a fight in the middle of the hospital dining room.
That's something you don't care about, Matt, but if you need to know, Yunito returned to his town on Thursday morning after the watch. Trust me, if he had been around, he wouldn't have needed your help.
****
"Are you okay? "- Lizet whispered, while we wrote the evolutions of the afternoon.
"Yes, thanks Lisie.
"You must be careful, Rosario, all of this…"
"It's very dangerous, I know."
"I'm just saying..." The girl bit her thumbnail, looking at me cautiously. "You may not know it, but Amalia was involved in very shady things.
And now she tells me?
Lizet trembled slightly, looking at me. Moving closer to me, whispering to both of us.
"People say she was a prostitute."
I wrinkled my forehead.
"Really?"
"Yes. I overheard her talking to Mildred, once. She told her that she had a business on her hands and that if it payed off as spected, she would make it out of the country."
I spent the rest of the afternoon turning my mind over what he had told me. Remembering the early mornings that Amalia had gone from record to record. For years, I watched her go in and out of shorter and shorter relationships until she started with Mark in the first term of this last term. In addition, he always lived well beyond his means. It was noticeable that his parents are decent and hard-working people, but not capable of giving him the dinero necesario para costearse esa vida nocturna desenfrenada que llevaba y las ropas que se compraba.
money necessary to pay for that unbridled night life that he led and the clothes that he bought.
When the river sounds... it's because an orchestra sank, so the rumors could be true and that would explain many things.
Maybe Mark discovered that she groped with others for money and that's why they had the argument I saw, besides, almost always a girl who is dedicated to these things has someone who is the one who gets her clients, you call them pimps or pimps... believe. Perhaps, she refused to give him the money that corresponded to that person and…
"Hey, Rosie. Do you want me to be your guard partner?
I had been so deep in my own thoughts that I almost didn't catch Yunito's words.
"Huh?"
"What if you want me to be your guard partner?"
Right at that moment all the blood left my face, Yunior not only offered to help me but his presence would also serve to protect me, but there were several inconveniences... the least of them was called Mildred and she was shooting me with her eyes.
She was Yunito's guard partner and it was no secret to anyone that she was interested in a closer… relationship with him. One that included the exchange of bodily fluids... and I was very afraid of "Mister X", yes, that's what I started calling the sinister guy with the knife but at that moment I was more afraid of Mildred, who was standing right behind him and seemed ready to gouge out my eyes with her nails if I dared to accept my friend's proposition.
On the other hand, if I accepted, Yunior would be in danger. What if the killer ended up hurting him in his quest to get to me?
"Yuni, I seriously appreciate your intention... but it's not necessary. The residents are going to take turns helping me on the remaining watches.
"Are you sure?" he asked, noticeably disappointed.
"Yes don't worry. I'll be fine."
I showed all my teeth in a smile.
"Ok."
Mildred sneered at me, and I kept my expression as neutral as possible. I had been hiding my feelings for years and I didn't want my nerves to betray me, because if she came to suspect that I also liked Yunior, for her, gouging out my eyes with her nails wouldn't be a big enough retaliation.