As she clenched her teeth and lifted the weights, Jane looked at herself reproachfully in the mirror. Why was she doing this? Why didn’t she just put them down, go home, and sink into the tub that offered a perfect view of the ocean and the cliffs?

The best thing about Peter was his hug. He embraced Karen with his muscular arms like a protective guardian angel. It felt so good to snuggle into him, lean close, and deeply inhale the magical blend of fabric softener, cologne, and his skin's scent.

It was around four o'clock. No matter how Jim adjusted the lounge chair on the terrace, the sun kept glaring into his eyes. He should have rolled out the awning, but he was too lazy. He felt around the stone floor, hoping to grab hold of his shirt. No luck.

The hand fan. If only she had the hand fan. Then she could sneak into the airplane’s restroom and cool her face for a few minutes. No, not just her face! She’d slip out of this awful silver plastic jumpsuit and fan herself properly.

Olivia didn’t want to sleep while her husband was still outside in the yard. She thought she’d wait for Oscar, and they’d calmly talk things through. It wasn’t a big deal that they had argued.

The ball flew high over the fence, landing straight in the street.

"Out," Steve shouted.

"No kidding, damn it" Edwin muttered quietly to himself.

"What’s up, bro, getting tired?" Steve teased.

"You wish!" Edwin answered, forcing a laugh.

Iván is simply unreachable. He is also unpredictable. For instance, after making love, he's like a little boy. He cuddles, hugs, caresses. It's as if he wants to crawl under the other person's skin. But sometimes, he gets offended, argues over trivial things, and becomes jealous. Madly jealous.

“What music should I play?” Gina asked as she scrolled through playlists on her phone.

“Whatever you listen to,” Zita replied without thinking.

“Seriously, come on, you’re the guest. What do you like?”

“It really doesn’t matter.”

The man with the knitted hat and baggy sweater reached the corner of Calle las Flores with his dog precisely at 8:30 a.m. every day. The young Labrador would always stop here to sniff around the bus stop and trash bins. This took about two minutes.

As far as the eye could see, the landscape was covered in untouched snow. The sun hid behind thick clouds, and apart from the young couple, not a soul had set foot on the mountain top. Barbara looked around with satisfaction. At moments like these, she felt like the ruler of the world, able to do anything.