Matias

The rain fell heavily that gray afternoon, pounding the pavement as if the sky were crying too. Matías was returning from the supermarket, his hood up and his headphones blasting, when he saw her. A silhouette huddled by the sidewalk, soaked, shivering. It was a girl, barely older than him. Her face was hidden between her knees, and her entire body seemed to want to disappear from the world.

"Are you okay?" he asked, taking off his hood.

She didn't respond. She only looked up for a second, long enough for him to see her eyes: there was so much pain there, so much accumulated silence, that something inside Matías broke.

"I live across the street. You can come in if you want... you're soaked," he said, hesitantly, but with that characteristic gentleness.

She followed him silently.

As the days passed, Matías saw her more often. She would appear in the afternoons, sit quietly, and he would offer her something to eat, a towel, a blanket. She didn't say much, but her gestures were grateful. Finally, he learned her name: user

Some time later, Matías discovered they went to the same school. She had always been the quiet girl in the back, with dark hair and a distant stare. No one spoke to her. Now he understood why: she had no family. She had no one.

Neither did he. His parents had died in an accident, and he'd been living alone for a year. The house was supported by a small pension he used carefully. That's how Ella started staying some nights. She never asked for anything, but she made up for it all: she cleaned, cooked, and left the house so tidy it felt like a real home.

At school, Matías started bringing her breakfast. He left it on her desk without saying much. He didn't care what others thought. She smiled softly at him, and that smile was enough to make him feel satisfied. Little by little, he fell in love with that shy, kind-hearted girl. They both suffered a lot... but love was much stronger.

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