Strangers

When I crossed the bridge and saw the woman in the black coat waiting for me, I knew nothing I wrote in my piece could tell the truth of that week.

For months I charged strangers, until a girl called to lose her virginity with me. That afternoon, I understood almost everything.

I only wanted something temporary while I finished high school. I never expected those late-night voices in a virtual world to teach me so much about desire.

When I saw the message in my inbox, I had no idea that saying yes would lead me to an afternoon with two strangers in the park and the most intense night of my life.

I looked down when I saw my skirt was shorter than was prudent. I crossed my legs on the stool and, before the cocktail even arrived, I could feel two pairs of eyes fixed on my cleavage.

I’d promised her a different kind of anniversary gift. What she didn’t know was that my surprise was waiting on the other side of a hole in the wall.

Marina was already dripping when she demanded the second round: both men at once, with no barriers, while the action movie still played in the background.

When I pulled back the curtain to look in the mirror, she was there, leaning against the wall, looking at me like she already knew what would happen next.

I’m not the kind of girl who sleeps with strangers in a club bathroom. Or I wasn’t. That night in Barcelona, a short skirt and a mistake changed everything.

I crossed the palace threshold wearing a golden mask and with my heart racing. That night, masked hands awaited me while he watched from the shadows.

When Marcos closed the apartment door and asked whether they were going to sleep with their “new partner,” the four of them fell silent and said everything.

He’d had four days of bad luck until he walked into a seaside bar and saw her sitting alone, with curves that said more than she did.

I went to that party alone, thinking I’d dance for a while and forget. I never expected Diego or what came after to change my night completely.

She wore fishnet stockings and a black skirt. I stood two meters away playing the stranger while he devoured her with his eyes from the floor.

Marcos controlled her from his table, one finger on the app and his eyes fixed on her. Every time he pressed the button, Clara had to bite her lip to keep from moaning.

Lucía went upstairs with four women and closed the door. I stayed at the bar with their men. No one imagined what was about to happen in that booth.

When I pulled up his phone and saw my own image on the screen, I knew there was no escape. Or that’s what I told myself.

I always knew I wanted to surrender completely to someone. What I didn’t know was that someone would be a huge stranger who hit me by mistake.

I was about to close the app when the tap came in. Three hundred meters. Close. Too close to ignore on a Sunday with no plans.

I needed diapers for my daughter and didn’t have a peso. When the American offered me money, I told myself it would be just once. I had no idea what would come next.