Chapter 2.1 Bonus

Juliano

Before

Living in a new country where we would have to learn a new language and start from scratch was something that wasn't in my plans. I've always loved Brazil and the life I had there. I can even say I'm patriotic and love everything about my country, except for the rampant homophobia that exists there.

Despite being a liberal country, Brazil still has very prejudiced thoughts about romantic relationships between people of the same gender, and it was killing Theo. Since I met him, I noticed that our schoolmates ignored him, other students talked behind his back, and he even got beaten up for reasons unknown to me at that time. It was one evening, as I was leaving school, that I witnessed a sad scene that still makes me sick to this day.

Theo was in a room with three guys. Two of them were watching and filming while the third one was intimidating him with hurtful words, but what made me furious was seeing the guy forcing Theo to kneel down while he pulled down his pants.

I remember I got suspended for fifteen days, but I managed to leave the guy with a broken arm and tooth. The other two ran away, but when the report was made with the videos that the idiots themselves left behind, all three of them were expelled from school.

And that's when Theo told me. He was gay.

Just because of that, people wouldn't talk to him, wouldn't come near him, and it broke my heart. His eyes were red, and the tip of his nose was running. His face was shining with tears, and his chin trembled, indicating a new wave of crying.

So I hugged him.

I held him tight, stroking his hair, letting his tears soak into my shirt, which was becoming wet with time.

"Theo, I would never judge you," his body was still trembling, and he sniffled softly. "I would never point fingers at you or distance myself from you."

"I didn't know, Juliano. I was just afraid... I'm sorry."

"I understand, my angel... I've been a victim of accusatory looks too, heard hurtful words, but I try not to let people step on me. I find the strength not to let people take away my peace. Love has no gender, Theo. Love is love, regardless of who you love."

His bright eyes landed on mine, and then I felt all the good sensations he caused me even more intensely. I couldn't put it off any longer, so I pressed my lips against his. He gasped in surprise but soon responded, deepening the kiss and tangling his tongue with mine. It wasn't a reckless or clumsy act; it was a sweet kiss, full of desire, of a love that was still budding but would consume me too quickly.

After that day, Theo and I were inseparable. We lived our romance openly, always the target of jokes and warnings from our teachers, but the love was so intense that nothing and no one could control the desires of our hearts.

After years of dating, Theo's parents, who were always traveling and ignoring their children's existence, found out that their heir had been in a long-term relationship with another man, and that was the end. On that day, they shattered my love.

The cold words dictated by them, the way his mother's hand hit my baby's face, that was the last straw for me. So I took my love away from there, with just the clothes on his back and his backpack with college materials.

Theo lived with me and my mom for almost three years, and seeing that he once again faced failure due to his same-sex relationship, I decided to accept a job offer at the company where I worked. We traveled to Germany in June, where he started his own business with his older sister.

For months, he dedicated himself to the atelier, coming home late and waking up very early. Our relationship had cooled down, and with every problem, Theo closed himself off, got stressed, and it always ended up on me.

Bianca, seeing our weariness, helped me plan a trip to Hawaii. I bought the tickets, made reservations, rented a small island for a day, and packed our bags, but the last thing I expected happened that day.

He looked at everything and laughed. Laughed until he realized it wasn't a joke, and then he got angry. He turned red with a huge pout on his lips before hurting me with his words.

"Travel? What about the atelier?"

"Bibi will take care of it. We've arranged everything. It'll be fifteen days of vacation in Hawaii with no stress or commitments other than being together." I took his hand and kissed it while he stared at me.

"I'm not going," he said, pulling his hand away from mine.

"What?!" I asked, praying that I had heard wrong.

"Juliano, you and my sister are crazy. The atelier is fully operational. We still have a long way to go before we can be stable. I'm not going to leave everything behind to relax on the beach."

"Come on, love, you seem so tired. I did this so you could be happier, more at ease."

"At ease? How can I be at ease when I have no place to call home, Juliano?"

"That's not related, Theo. I'm here for you. We're building our things, our dreams, and..."

"No, Juliano. You are building things, you are paying for this house, our food, our clothing, our transportation, and I am just accumulating more and more debts. It's unfair that you don't receive a disapproving look, a rude word, while I have to bend over backward to please everyone, to become someone I detest to fulfill my dream." He said without giving me a chance to retort, but the hardest part for me came after. "I don't want this trip, I don't want you to be responsible for my expenses, okay? Just leave me alone to work on my business, please."

I didn't react at all. I just kept staring at him until my eyes couldn't hold back the tears anymore. I grabbed my coat, the car keys, and gave him the much-desired peace. It was the first time I left the house, I just didn't expect it to become a routine in our marriage.