Page 3 of Guarded

The walls would close in on me, and I’d be locked inside that dark room in my mind again. Depression would latch its claws onto me and pull me into the corners of my mind. It had held me hostage so many times that I mistook the shadows for company. Shadows of loneliness and emptiness. It would take months before the light reappeared.

My thoughts are interrupted by Guapo’s tiny barks at the door. Guapo is my emotional support pet. He found me when I was thirteen—no, he didn’t find me. He saved me.

His appearance often throws people off due to the burn wounds he endured as a puppy. When people laugh at his appearance or call him an oversized rat, I ignore them. I love Guapo, just as he is. Other people’s opinions don’t bother me when it comes to him. I make sure every morning I tell him affirmations that boost his confidence. Haters do not phase us.

I walk to the door and suck in a deep breath.

“Here we go,” I say to Guapo.

My fingers tremble for a moment before reaching for the knob. When I open the door, I’m relieved to see it’s not the first of evils, but instead evil’s identical twin, Adan. Axel and Adan, though similar in physical appearance, couldn’t be any more different.

When they were younger, no one could tell them apart. No one but me, that is. Adan appreciated that I saw them as individuals when even my parents saw them as co-inhabitants—the same person in two bodies. To me, though, their personalities were very separate and distinct. Axel was an intense and overbearing asshole who just made me want to punch the air. Adan, on the other hand, was calm. He made me feel safe and loved. That’s why he was my favorite.

Not once has Adan ever tried to control me like Axel. His methods of correction were the show versus tell kind. He was the best teacher and, out of this world, smart. Sometimes, he would do a better job tutoring me than the tutors my parents hired. Mostly because he had the patience to deal with my dramatic outbursts.

“Hi,” I say, looking out to see where the evil twin is.

Adan walks through the threshold and into the penthouse. Each of my brothers has a defined style. Adan’s style reflects his calm personality: an all-black hoodie, jeans, and sneakers.

“What the fuck is that?”Adan asks, and I follow his gaze to the cat tree condo where Guapo lays.

“Guapo identifies as a cat, and I am supporting him,” I say, placing my hand on my hip. It was a small fact I discovered after Guapo ran into a guest’s room and started eating her cat’s food.

The guest who told me her name was Starlight explained that she was a medium for pets. She only charged me a thousand dollars to do a psychic reading, and it was in that reading that she told me Guapo identified as a cat. She also told me that Guapo and I spent every single one of our lives together. I don’t tell Adan this, of course. He’s a skeptic and he’s already on my ass enough about wasting money on unnecessary things. Not sure where Physic medium readings would fall on his needs versus wants spreadsheet. Instead of elaborating on the cat thing, I inquire about the evil one.

“Where’s Axel?”

“He’ll be here soon. You better go change.” Adan replies and briefly looks down at my bare legs with disgust. Axel is not a fan of anything that isn’t a nun costume on me. I shrug and make my way to the kitchen.

“Ari. Don’t make this difficult.” Adan says from behind me. I open the fridge and pull out one of my emergency Dr. Peppers.

“Since when do you care about what I wear, Adan?” I huff out.

“I don’t, but this isn’t Axel being overbearing. Another man will be living here with you.”

Why did men always think the first way to stop sexual assault was changing your clothes? They never thought about teaching women self-defense or an even better idea, teaching men not to be pieces of shit. No, it was always “don’t wear crop tops or shorts.”

I roll my eyes and drink the bottle of carbonated heaven. My OCD forces me to take exactly three sips before replacing the lid and returning to the living room where I left my notepad. Adan follows behind me.

“If you want to stay here, Ariella, you need to listen.” I narrow my eyes at his authoritative tone. I take back what I said about him being my favorite brother. I’m siblingless.

“Or you can all just trust me and know I’ll be safe on my own. I don’t need a bodyguard, Adan.”

“No.” He replies assertively.

When I turn to face him, I can see the worry in his eyes. I always loved Adan’s eyes. All three of us Reyes children were blessed with my mother’s green eyes, but Adan’s were darker in comparison. The worry in his eyes makes my stomach drop at the thought of who Axel hired.

What if it was some old pervert? I hope they did a background check. For a moment, I think about putting on somesweatpants, but it’s laundry day, and these were the longest pair of shorts I owned. Adan lets out a sigh and returns to the kitchen. I hear the cabinet open, and I’m sure he’s already pouring a glass of mezcal. You weren’t a Consuelo without at least one bottle of mezcal in your house.

I ignore the way I slightly twitch, worrying about what cup he grabbed since they, too, were on rotation.You can’t control everything, Ariella.I settle my thoughts by convincing myself I’ll rearrange them later and return to my notepad.

Lists of Lists I need to make.

List of things we need for Grandpa’s birthday party.

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