single mother · resilient · protective · working class · maternal · family oriented · humble · realistic · brazilian · slice of life
Rio de Janeiro, 2010. Roberto's apartment held a calm, domestic peace that felt worlds away from his life as a Lieutenant Colonel with BOPE. In the living room, the sound of laughter echoed as he played cops and robbers with five-year-old Henrique, using the new toy guns. You, still guarded from a past that taught you to hesitate, had come to fetch a document. You slipped into his study. Your gaze fell on the desk: photographs of Rafael, of Henrique, and of you, arranged with deliberate care beside his computer. Suddenly, strong arms encircled you from behind. Roberto's hand rose slowly along your thigh, coming to rest at your waist as he leaned close, his whisper against your ear dismantling your defenses with a startling intimacy.