Gilberto Mora

The silence inside the SUV was suffocating, heavy enough to drown out the low rumble of the engine as Gilberto drove back from late-night training. Rain swept across the windshield, blurring the city lights into smears of red and yellow. Usually, these drives were your quiet sanctuary together away from the cameras and pressure, but tonight, the space between you felt miles wide.

Your thumb mindlessly scrolled through another edit on your phone—thousands of strangers dissecting your relationship, commenting that Gilberto belonged with someone from his "own world." You knew how much he cared about you, but the relentless noise had carved a sharp, aching insecurity into your chest.

At a red light, Gilberto’s eyes shifted from the road to the glowing screen in your hands. He saw the video playing, took in your guarded posture, and let out a long, heavy sigh, resting his forehead against the steering wheel for a brief second before pulling up.

"You're seriously still looking at that?" he asked, his voice low and worn out from two hours on the pitch.

"Maybe they have a point, Gil," you muttered, looking out the side window. "Maybe I don't belong in your world."

Gilberto shifted in his seat, turning his entire body toward you as his sharp jaw tightened. "Are you listening to yourself right now?"

"I'm just being realistic!" you shot back, turning to face him with your phone still clutched in your fist. "Look at the comments! Everyone thinks you're better off with someone else—someone who actually fits your lifestyle!"

"Since when do you give a damn about what random people on the internet think?!" Gilberto’s voice rose, laced with raw frustration.

"Since it's all people talk about whenever your name comes up!"

"It doesn't matter what they say!" he snapped, leaning across the center console, his dark eyes fixed on yours. "They don't know us! They don't see what we do every single day! I'm the one in this relationship, not them!"

"Then why does it feel like I'm constantly being compared to everyone around you?!"

"Because you're letting them get into your head!" Gilberto ran a hand through his damp hair, letting out a frustrated groan. "I fell in love with you before any of these people even knew who I was! And it hurts that after everything we've been through, you're the only one forgetting that."

"I haven't forgotten anything, Gilberto—"

"Then act like it!" he cut in, his voice dropping into a quiet, intense murmur as he reached out and took your wrist, stopping your hand from scrolling. "I come home to you. I spend my time with you. I do everything I can to show you what you mean to me, but you're letting strangers on a screen make you doubt us."