Chapter Sixty-Five
The Oasis
Summer 1924
The proposal.
S he had left again, promised to be back, and he promised to be here. But he missed her more than he could even say. He missed the way the world felt when she was around. Brighter and a little more alive.
Finally, it was summer again, and she came back. But this time, Carlos dared to hope. He wanted more than just summer with her, more than just stolen days. He wanted her every season and every tomorrow he could have.
The day came when he finally dared to ask the question that had been on his mind.
“Marry me,” Carlos said as she turned around.
Catalina stood by the water, the soft pink of her dress catching the golden hues of the setting sun. He was kneeling on the grass by the place that had always been theirs. The ring he had carved for her in his hand. In the center of it was a small rose quartz stone.
Catalina didn’t move. Her breath was shallow as she let herself feel it. The way his love wrapped around her. How safe and whole she felt when he looked at her like she was his entire world. Because she was.
She closed her eyes as she imagined a life with him. Every morning waking up to his handsome face, every night falling asleep in his arms. A simple, beautiful life, which was what she wanted. She blinked, taking a step back. “I…I can’t,” she whispered, and the breeze that always danced through my trees paused, waiting.
The air shifted as he pushed himself up to face her, confusion shadowing the hope that had been so bright in his eyes. “Why? I don’t have much to offer right now, but I promise to make you happy.”
“You can’t give me what I need, Carlos.” She turned her back on him to shield herself from her own feelings.
My leaves rustled faintly, trying to fill the void.
“What does that even mean?” Carlos asked.
She forced herself to meet his eyes, even though it hurt. “Sebastian asked me to marry him.” She swallowed hard. “And I said yes.”
But she didn’t tell him that her parents had promised her to him years ago, sealing her fate in a pact she hadn’t agreed to. The Guzmáns were powerful, and her family believed this union would elevate them even further. Catalina wasn’t asked what she wanted. She wasn’t given a choice.
The words were heavy, shaking the ground beneath them. My trees leaned closer, and my roots trembled with the weight of the love unraveling between them.
“But I thought you loved me.” He looked down at the ring in his hand before looking back at her.
“I do, but love isn’t always enough.”
The breeze stirred again, carrying her words but unable to soften them.
“I’ve been saving. I can buy us a house—not much, but it would be ours. I can take care of you.” He stepped closer, the desperation in his words breaking me. “You don’t love him.”
Her tears fell silently, soaking into the earth, into me. “I’ll learn to love him one day,” she whispered
Their love unraveled in front of me, spilling out like water that couldn’t be held.
“Don’t do it, Cata,” he pleaded. “Don’t throw this away. Don’t throw us away.”
She shook her head, her tears flowing freely now. “I have to. I’m not like the birds, Carlos.”
His throat worked as he swallowed. He understood that this wasn’t her decision, but it didn’t make the pain any less. She turned to leave, but his voice stopped him.
“Cata, wait.”
She froze.
Carlos closed the distance between them. He reached for her hand and placed the ring in her palm. “I want you to have it.”
Her eyes met his, filled with unshed tears, telling him everything he already knew. She was hurting as much as he was.
He cupped her face in his hands as he memorized her features one last time. “I love you,” he whispered. “I will always love you, Cata.”
A small, broken sob escaped her lips. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. She kissed him back, and they poured everything they felt into that kiss. It wasn’t rushed or demanding. It was a desperate goodbye.
When he pulled away, her teary eyes met his.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered before running away. Her footsteps faded beyond my trees.
Carlos stood there frozen under my oak, their love lingering in the space between us like a wound. My branches swayed gently, trying to comfort him. I wanted to hold them together, to keep their love from unraveling, but I couldn’t. All I could do was watch as their bond splintered.
Sometimes love wasn’t enough. Maybe the world was asking too much of two hearts that were just learning to be brave. Maybe in another lifetime, she’ll be brave enough to choose him. Until then, I’ll hold this for them, the love, the ache, the memory, until the day they find each other again.