THE WEEKEND THAT CHANGED EVERYTHING 13 - THE CONFESSION

The Confession

It was a Wednesday evening. Pedro was sunk into the armchair with a beer in his hand and the news on TV, the volume low, more like company than information. Juan was sitting on the floor, beside him, with his back against the armchair and another beer. Naked, as always. The scene had something domestic, almost peaceful, one of those nights when Pedro loosened up and the hierarchies dissolved a little in the routine.

"Did you see what happened with the dollar?" Pedro said, pointing to the screen with the tip of the bottle.

"Yes, it shot up again. It's going to be a mess at the company."

"Why? Does it affect you a lot?"

"A lot. Almost all the material comes from outside. The prices are going to go to hell."

Pedro nodded without much interest and changed the channel. They fell into an action movie that both had seen, one of those that doesn't require attention and serves as an excuse not to talk or to talk about anything. They left it on.

"How's everyone at work?" Pedro asked, lowering his hand to Juan's head and stroking his hair with his open fingers, distracted, like someone petting a cat.

"Fine, normal. Adrián is much calmer since... well, you know."

Pedro laughed. A short, satisfied laugh.

"I imagine. He must be a model employee now."

"Yes. He doesn't give me problems. He even helps me with things that aren't his responsibility. The issue was never brought up."

"Perfect. And the rest?"

Juan took a long swig of beer. Too long. Pedro didn't notice, or if he did, he didn't say anything. Juan stayed looking at the screen without seeing it, turning the bottle between his fingers, and felt that something he had been compressing in his chest for weeks was starting to push outward, seeking release.

"Pedro."

"What?"

"I need to confess something to you."

The tone was different. Not much, but enough. Pedro turned down the TV volume to almost zero and looked at him. Juan felt the weight of those eyes and had to force himself not to look down.

"Go on. Tell me."

Juan took a breath. He filled his lungs as if the air could give him courage.

"I like a woman from work."

The beer in Pedro's hand stopped halfway to his mouth, during a second that lasted too long. Then he slowly lowered it and placed it on the coffee table with a sharp knock.

"What did you say?"

"I said I like a woman from work. Her name is Laura. She works in human resources. We've been talking more often for a couple of months, we've had lunch together a couple of times, and..."

"And what?"

Juan swallowed hard.

"And I like her. A lot. And I think she likes me too."

The silence that followed was electric. Pedro looked at him for several seconds without blinking, processing, and Juan could see how his expression changed: from surprise to incred...