Sofía had mixed feelings about Amanda's engagement. On one hand, she was glad her family had forgotten her sister's outburst. On the other hand, the pain from Pablo Ferreira's rejection resurfaced. If Antony had been there, everything might have been easier, but he was still away on one of his trips.
That week, only two topics were recurrent in the town: the sudden disappearance of Juan Bustamante and the grand wedding everyone was invited to. While Sofía wanted the best for her sister, she also feared the magnitude of the event would overshadow her own wedding with Antony Van Ewen. She missed her fiancé terribly, and Diego's indifference towards her only made her sadder.Óscar Pérez Esnaola had brought several designers and tailors from the city. Given the short time to design and make outfits for the whole family, they would spend a fortune. Sofía loved the dress embroidered with silver threads that was being made at an astonishing speed, though nothing compared to the chests of money Pablo's great-aunt had invested in the party preparations.That day, there were so many guests at the wedding that many had to stand. Both rich and poor wore gala attire, making it almost impossible to distinguish the wealthy from the peasants. For this reason, Óscar advised his family to converse only with people they knew."You look splendid, Miss Sofía," mentioned a young man accompanying the countess.She gave him a coquettish smile and inspected his face. He seemed familiar, and it took a few seconds for her to realize it was Leónidas, the young servant who had worked for her family for years. He looked very different. Not only did he look very elegant in his gala suit and clean-shaven face, but he was also a bit taller than Sofía remembered."Leónidas!" she exclaimed upon realizing who he was, and Pablo's great-aunt smiled, showing her gums.While the adults greeted the elderly woman cordially, Sebastián hugged his friend so tightly that he almost knocked her over. Sofía thought maybe the countess had given the young man a job."For the love of God, Sebastián!" María Esther scolded her son.Sofía couldn't learn more about the woman or Leónidas because at that moment, little María pulled her by the arm. Juan Bustamante's youngest daughter had many strange theories about her father's disappearance and wanted Sofía's help to uncover the truth. Sofía barely listened, but María didn't seem to notice her disinterest.Father Facundo called for silence, and soon after, they received the two couples getting married that day. While Julia always looked beautiful, Sofía was surprised to see Amanda. Her sister wore a modern and daring dress. The corset cinched her waist and accentuated her bust provocatively. She looked gorgeous but perhaps not in a dress suitable for a church. Even the priest blushed when they reached the altar. Pablo, for his part, smiled as handsome and smug as ever.Antony was much better than the criollo, something Sofía forced herself to remember at least ten times during the ceremony. Fortunately, they didn't stay in the church too long. The atmosphere was stifling with so many people. It seemed like the whole viceroyalty was there. The only absentees were Ana, Magdalena, and of course, Antony. Even Simón had attended the wedding, watching Julia from a distant corner.Once in the square, Dr. Medina started what would be a series of emotional speeches. Soon after, the most extravagant party Sofía had ever attended began. Besides the food, wine, and dancing typical of any party, the square was divided into various entertainment segments, and different artists strove to put on an unprecedented show. Sofía didn't know where to look. First, she watched a snake charmer, then a joust with dwarves in armor riding ponies, and finally, a puppet show parodying the French Revolution from a decade ago.She wasn't sure when María Bustamante had slipped away. A quick glance around was enough to realize she was alone and surrounded by strangers. She started feeling uncomfortable with the closeness of the strangers who pressed against her to watch the show."Excuse me..." she said as she made her way through the crowd, giving some elbows and receiving pushes and stomps.She felt like she had been holding her breath until she finally got out. When Diego found her, her eyes were red, and she was breathing heavily. She hugged him as soon as she saw him, and he responded after a moment."Are you okay? Did someone hurt you?" he asked, confused.Sofía let go, embarrassed. Since the night of the kiss, he seemed distant. She didn't want to confuse him or anything, but she missed him a lot. Maybe it was because of that or because her wedding would never be as impressive as her sister's, but she couldn't help crying like a little girl."If someone did something to you, I'll kill them," Diego promised, looking worriedly towards the crowd.Sofía shook her head. She wondered how she could explain to her cousin that nothing was wrong and that she just wanted to be with him in the most selfish way possible. Even knowing how much he loved her, she missed their friendship, their conversations, and even his hugs."Diego, here you are! Shall we keep dancing?" asked a girl behind Sofía, who felt like her heart stopped."Maybe later. I'm tired," he excused himself.Sofía heard the girl leave but didn't dare to look at her."Would you stay with me, please?" she asked almost tenderly."Of course. Tell me what's wrong," he insisted.She wiped her tears with the back of her hand and then clung to her cousin's arm."There are too many people, they almost crushed me watching a puppet show," she explained, though that wasn't the only reason she was so upset.In truth, she didn't understand why she was behaving this way. It was very embarrassing, and fortunately, Diego didn't judge her; on the contrary, he made her feel protected."If you want, I can accompany you to see another show," Diego suggested, watching his cousin, who still clung to his arm tightly."No, unless you want to see something. I just want to be with you," she admitted.He seemed surprised, and Sofía couldn't help feeling somewhat guilty. She was going to marry Antony and didn't want to give Diego false hopes. However, she hadn't seen the Englishman for a long time, but the distance from her cousin, whom she saw daily, was what weighed on her soul."We could rest on the church steps until the crowd thins out," Diego added."Yes, that would be nice," Sofía agreed, letting her cousin guide her through the crowd until they reached their destination.Once they sat on the stone steps at the entrance, Sofía let go of his arm to sit down, feeling cold on the side of her body that had been in close contact with him."Does it bother you that Pablo Ferreira married Amanda?" Diego asked, avoiding looking at her."No, well... a little, but not too much," she admitted, feeling bad as soon as she did."Do you love him?" he continued, eyes fixed on his shoes."No," she responded sincerely.Saying it out loud was revealing, even to her."Can I do anything to make you not sad?" he asked, this time looking up at Sofía, whose eyes were once again filled with tears."It's just that..." she began to say, then shook her head, lost in thought.She felt bad and selfish. She couldn't demand Diego's company and affection in return for nothing. Keeping him by her side only broke his heart, and she couldn't keep pretending because she realized how much he loved her. But even so, she wasn't ready to let him go. She felt lonely without him and missed him terribly."You know I'd do anything for you," he insisted, capturing a tear running down her face with his thumb."I don't want you to be far from me," she admitted sadly."I'll always be there for you, at least as long as you want me around," he promised.That wasn't true. Soon she would marry Antony, and their friendship would be just a beautiful memory. It was crazy to think everything could be like before."It won't be like that. You love me the way a man loves a woman, and I'm going to get married. You might soon meet some girl. Everything will be different... Everything is different now..." she said, crying.Diego hugged her tightly, and she stayed there with her face buried in his neck and shoulder until she stopped sobbing."Everything will be fine," he promised without letting go.Although she knew it wasn't true, Diego's soft voice and the boundary his arms created with the hostile reality comforted her."It's not fair. You don't deserve me being so selfish. Maybe you should go back to dancing with that girl," Sofía suggested, though she wished with all her heart that this hug would never end."You're not selfish... Well, maybe a little, but I wouldn't prefer to be with anyone else right now," he said, sighing."I don't want to hurt you, but I don't want to lose you either," she added."You won't lose me," he promised."You'll meet someone and forget about me," she insisted, letting out a whimper.Diego pulled away enough to look her in the eyes. He still had his hands on Sofía's arms."There won't be anyone else," he said seriously."I can't ask that of you... I'm going to marry someone else," she insisted, her cheeks burning.For the first time, she felt genuine fear about marrying the Englishman. He was handsome, well-mannered, and very wealthy, but at that moment, she would have traded it all to keep living at La Rosa with those she truly loved."Don't you want to marry Van Ewen?" Diego ventured."The truth is, I don't know. Sometimes I do, and other times I don't. You must think I'm crazy. I don't even know what I want," she admitted."I don't think you're crazy. Maybe you're a little confused," Diego ventured. He was about to say something but stopped and hugged her again.Her cousin was right. Sofía was very confused. The wedding had made her realize she no longer felt anything for Pablo, that maybe her love for the Englishman wasn't as strong as she used to think, and that Diego was the kindest and most selfless person in the world. It hurt to hurt him, but she couldn't let him go, even knowing how hard it was for him to stay by her side.