Despite his tired mind and heart, Diego couldn't fall asleep. The faint moonlight illuminated his brother, who was breathing peacefully, tangled in the blankets. The young man got up, trying not to make noise so as not to wake Sebastián. He left his room and walked almost blindly through the dark hallways that led him to the living room.
He was surprised to find Sofía there. The dim flame of a candle chased away the room's shadows, and his cousin, dressed in a robe, was engrossed in reading a book."Hello," he said almost in a whisper, yet it startled the girl."Diego, I mistook you for a ghost!" she exclaimed in a low voice."Am I that frightening?" he joked, approaching the sofa."You're adorable, but I was reading a horror story," she confessed, making room for her cousin to sit."What are you doing reading ghost books at this hour of the night?" he asked."Don't you know anything about horror books? They're much scarier if you read them at night," Sofía added, lying back with her head on the armrest of the sofa and her bare feet on Diego's lap."I don't know much about horror books. Why don't you read to me?" he requested, tenderly stroking one of Sofía's ankles."Alright, but if you have nightmares, it'll be your fault," Sofía warned playfully."I'll take the risk," he agreed."Once upon a time, there was a very old mansion surrounded by hundreds of blood-red roses. For decades, many families had tried to live there, but they never stayed long. The townsfolk claimed something strange happened there, but no one could give a clear explanation.One day, an important family moved into the house. They were foreigners and brought many dreams and hopes with them. What they didn't know was that the spirit that ruled the house planned to get rid of them. It hoped to scare them away so they would never return, allowing it to rest in peace until another unwanted guest interrupted its slumber.The ghost blew hard and manipulated the bare branches of the old oak to scratch the window of the family's two children. Its attempts to scare them weren't enough, and the father hung velvet curtains.Then the ghost sharpened the thorns of the roses with the sole purpose of harming them. Indeed, when the youngest of the family went to pick a rose, she pricked her index finger, and the ghost tasted her blood for the first time. At that moment, its plans changed because, although it had been content to scare them away before, it now craved more blood.Day by day, the ghost of the rose mansion manipulated objects and time to harm the family. It was a very clever ghost and made everything that happened in the house seem like simple accidents or illnesses. The more it harmed them, the stronger the spirit became.On a cold morning in May, the little girl encountered the ghost slowly draining the life from her parents as they slept. She begged it to stop and let them go. At first, the ghost refused, but after considering for a few moments, it offered the girl a deal: her life for her family's. She accepted without understanding how high that price would be.Days passed, and everyone's health improved. No unusual events occurred for several months. One afternoon, the father announced he had found a job in another town and that they were moving. Unfortunately, the ghost hadn't forgotten the deal, and neither had the girl.The little girl found herself alone with the specter and begged it to let her leave with her family, but a deal is a deal and cannot be broken. The branches of the rose bushes wrapped around the girl's body. She could feel the thorns like daggers piercing the skin of her arms. She tried to scream, but the rose petals entered her mouth, preventing any sound from escaping her throat or air from reaching her lungs.Her brother arrived just in time to see the girl absorbed by the rose bushes. Along with the flowers, the ghost vanished with a disturbing smile. The boy screamed and cried, but there was nothing he could do. His sister was gone forever.The girl's body was never found, and no one ever believed the boy's story. The family moved away and continued with their lives. As he grew older, the boy understood that, like the story, roses are painted with blood," Sofía read."Is that how the story ends?" Diego asked, somehow imagining himself as the boy in the story and Sofía as the girl."Yes. Did you like it?" she asked, sitting up and massaging her neck."No, it was horrible. The ending is so sad. Why didn't the boy offer a deal to save his sister?" he complained.Sofía giggled."The little girl sacrificed herself for her family. I like the story. I don't see why men always have to be the heroes," she acknowledged."It's just so sad, and she regretted it later," he insisted."It's an anonymous collection of stories Amanda gave me, so sorry, but you can't complain to the author," she said, amused by Diego's indignation over a simple story."I'm just saying that even though she made a deal with the ghost, she should have had a chance to back out somehow. I'm sure they could have found another solution if her family helped. She should have told them... You'd tell me if you regretted marrying Van Ewen, right? I mean, you don't have to do it if you don't want to. I'd find a way to help you," Diego said, struggling to meet Sofía's surprised gaze."Are you comparing Antony to a ghost?" she said after a few seconds and started laughing."No, of course not," Diego looked away towards the candle flame.Now he regretted saying that. He felt like a complete idiot. Sofía seemed to notice and stopped laughing."I'll be fine with Antony. I'll miss you a lot, but I promise to visit you whenever I can. I promise you'll never lose me," she added, gently placing a hand on Diego's arm.He looked back at her face. Did Sofía really not realize how much he loved her? Was she so blind to ignore all the signs? Or did she just enjoy playing with his feelings in such a cruel way?Diego decided to risk having his heart broken once and for all. He was tired of skirting around the truth cautiously. If she truly felt nothing for him, then he would try to tear her from his mind and heart, even if part of him died with her memory.With his heart clenched in fear, he placed his hands on Sofía's arms and pulled her towards him. He felt the warmth of her lips for the first time. She didn't reject him, but she didn't return the kiss either. He pulled away a few seconds later. He could see the confusion in her eyes."What are you doing, Diego? If Antony finds out about this, he'll kill you. This isn't like you. I'd better go to sleep. We won't talk about this again," Sofía concluded and left, leaving Diego alone and ashamed.