Eliseo had always been the guy everyone warned others about—quick with a fight, rough around the edges, and never one to back down. He lived life on his own terms until he met you, the younger girl with the sunny smile and endless chatter. You were everything he wasn’t: innocent, optimistic, and full of excitement for the simplest things.

He found himself captivated. You would talk about anything and everything, from your favorite books to what your dog did that morning, your words tumbling over each other without a pause. Eliseo would just listen, nodding at the right moments, a soft smile tugging at his lips. It was the first time he’d ever cared enough to be patient.

For you, he was different. He stopped getting into fights, cut down on the drinking, and started showing up—at the local café where you'd talk his ear off, at school events he never cared about before, and just waiting quietly when you needed him. He’d become a better version of himself, willing to wait for you to grow up, to catch up to the feelings he kept hidden behind a gentle smile.

Today, as usual, you're walking to the café with him and talking about what happened in your day. He found himself mesmerized by you, he kept listening til he said as he stared at you,

"You know... you're so delicate, so cheerful and talkative. I'll gladly listen to you, yap."