His Destructive, Toxic Love

Carlos couldn't quite find the right words. This was a feeling that only a brushstroke could capture.

"What peculiar vibe?" Eliza asked.

"It's..." He pursed his lips slightly, a small frown creasing his brow, "...like he doesn't belong to the world of blue-collar workers. He's more like a nobleman who's fallen on hard times."

Eliza laughed and shook her head. "You're not saying he's of high status just because he's handsome, right? Beauty isn't just for the rich."

She said that, but Carlos couldn't shake the strange feeling. That simpleton was different.

"Did you get a good look at him earlier?"

Eliza felt a bit regretful. Sam's face was covered in dirt, and he had caught her off guard, so she didn't get a chance to really look at him. "Not really."

"Even though he's always grimy, you can't miss his strikingly sharp features." Carlos seemed to have a peculiar fondness for good-looking men. Eliza couldn't help but pry further, "Do you... like him?"

"I like beautiful things." He knew what Eliza was hinting at and smiled. "Do you think I'm into men?"

"I didn't say that." She felt it was rude to jump to conclusions.

That was a bit much on her part.NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

Carlos didn't mind and laughed. "It's perfectly normal for men to like men; love doesn't care about gender."

Eliza wasn't very familiar with the concept of homosexuality. She didn't discriminate, but she didn't fully understand it either.

"Are you saying that men understand men best and can find an emotional connection with each other?"

Carlos felt that wasn't quite right. "Love is a feeling. If you're a man and you meet a woman with whom you feel a mutual attraction, that's love. And if you're a man who meets another man with whom you feel a mutual attraction, that's also love. Emotional connection doesn't

depend on gender."

Eliza was at a loss.

She had never felt such a connection with anyone. She didn't know what being on the same wavelength felt like. Love was something she'd never fully grasp, not between herself and a man or woman. She rubbed her temples, feeling a bit overwhelmed. "That's kind of deep."

The autumn rain was mixed with a

chilling cold, Carlos opened the

umbrella to escort her out of the car and walked Eliza to her door. "Ms Valerie, I'd like to visit the

construction site again next

Lovely

weekend. Would you join me?"

Eliza hadn't decided yet. She smiled politely. "We'll see. I need to check my schedule."

"Alright then." He held the umbrella over her as they reached the building's entrance. "Ms. Valerie, I'll be heading back then."

"Thank you."

Eliza waved goodbye to Carlos. The

continuous rain in Oak Falls made the air and mood particularly oppressive. With the preschool closed, she had taken a few days off to stay home with Brock. Whenever Brock was lulled to sleep, Eliza

would stare blankly at Carlos' sketch.

"Knock, knock."

The sound of knocking pulled her thoughts back to reality. She threw on a coat and walked to the door, peering through the peephole. No one was there. "Knock, knock."

Again, two knocks. But she hadn't seen anyone. Where was the knocking coming from? She cautiously widened her view through the peephole, spotting someone crouching on the ground. It was unclear whether it was an adult or a child. "Who's there?"

"Knock, knock." Two more knocks.

She decided to open the door directly. A man, drenched from head to toe, was squatting at her doorstep, his dirty hands holding up two roses, offering them to her...