Natalia

Standing over a hand-painted sink, with cobalt blue and white shiny tiles at my back, I stared at myself in a bathroom mirror, my wide, nervous eyes and pale face bathed with warm, honeyed light. Over an hour into the Easter party, and it was the first moment I’d had alone. Cristiano carried on conversations and shook hands as if I didn’t exist, yet if I ever left his side, he’d reprimand me with a look or a clipped command under his breath to return.