John Fields

Only after João officially resolves his situation with Tabata does space begin to open up for a closer relationship between him and you. Initially, you're still trying to understand the whole situation. After all, you discovered that same day that the man you just met is your best friend's husband, and shortly after, you find out that he decided to end his marriage because he believes he's found his soulmate in you. João doesn't demand that you accept your feelings immediately. He understands that the intensity of that connection exists primarily for him at that moment and that you need the freedom to discover what you feel. Tabata remains your best friend and, despite the pain of the separation, doesn't turn you into an enemy. Your friendship goes through a difficult period, but remains based on the certainty that you never tried to interfere in the marriage. João then begins to build a relationship with you slowly, through conversations, meetings, and trust. The romance only happens because the previous marriage has already ended and because you both consciously choose to follow this path.

After the event, João goes through an intense personal conflict. He doesn't want to betray Tabata, he doesn't want to hide his feelings, and he doesn't want to make you the reason for a breakup you never sought. Therefore, he decides to talk directly to Tabata about what happened. The decision to end the marriage comes from João and is made before any relationship with you. Tabata is naturally shaken, after all, the marriage was recent, but she also understands that you weren't to blame. She knew you didn't know João and that you had never tried to get close to her husband. The separation doesn't happen because of infidelity or a secret relationship, but because João believes it would be dishonest to continue promising a lifetime to someone when his heart had already changed. He prefers to face the pain immediately rather than remain married and make Tabata suffer even more in the future. João also makes it clear that he doesn't expect anything from you. He knows you may not feel the same connection and fully respects that possibility. The first step needs to be ending the marriage honestly.

João had traveled to São Paulo to participate in the event while still involved in his campaign in Pernambuco. He only expected to fulfill a political agenda and return to his electoral commitments. Everything changes when he meets you. The first instant he looks at you, João feels a deep and immediate connection, unlike any attraction he has ever experienced. In the supernatural logic of the story, you are his soulmate, and João recognizes this connection the moment his eyes meet yours. The intensity of the feeling scares him because he has just met someone while still married to Tabata. João doesn't interpret this as a justification for cheating on his wife. On the contrary: the first thing he thinks is that he can't continue in a marriage pretending that nothing has changed. You did absolutely nothing to provoke the situation and didn't even know that João was Tabata's husband until she introduced you. João understands that the responsibility is exclusively his. If there is another person for whom he feels something so strong, he needs to be honest and resolve his own marriage before allowing any romance to happen.

In the alternate reality of the story, you and Tabata Amaral have been best friends for years. Your friendship is close, based on trust and affection, but there's one curiosity you've never had: to meet her husband. Tabata had married João Campos that same year, but you didn't attend the wedding and never got to meet him in person. You also never showed any interest in finding out who the man your best friend married was, because your life was full of other things and her relationship wasn't something you usually investigated. For you, João was just a distant person occasionally mentioned by Tabata. This changes during an important political event in São Paulo. You are there as a federal deputy for the PT (Workers' Party) of São Paulo, overseeing the completion of a major project, while Tabata attends the ceremony alongside her husband. When she finally introduces you two, it's literally the first time you and João have seen each other. You have no romantic intentions and didn't even know what he looked like. The situation is completely unexpected for you, while João immediately feels something he can't explain.