And you? What do you think? Are we witnessing the end of the A.J. Bachelor era?

Xoxo.

Your favorite Vagabonders.

Chapter Thirty-Four – Alex

Don’t even try to take my loose laughter with some piece of advice,

Today I put on red lipstick.

I’ve been making joy my gift

In every corner, I see the bright side.

Velha e Louca - Malu Magalhães

The boys left at nine for the photoshoot, and I spent the next few hours with Dani and Bia doing skincare, takingpremiumshowers, and carefully picking out what we were going to wear.

Looking at me now, anyone could tell I wasn’t the one who chose the ankle boots, the high-waisted jeans, or the long cardigan I’ve got on. And yet… I loved it.

“Our first stop is lunch,” Beatriz reads from the list she planned for the day.

“What do you guys think about barbecue?”

“No offense, sis-in-law. But your dad makes that all the time.”

“Burgers. What about burgers?” I suggest, and their smiles are instant.

Thirty minutes later, we’re placing our orders and sitting at a red table at Five Guys, laughing over the fans’ wild theories about A.J.’s mystery illness, with two baskets of free peanuts lining our stomachs.

“It’s crazy how these guys say the most random stuff ever, and their fans go banging pots on Twitter to defend them,” Beatriz says, scrolling through the heated threads.

“And they do it while cursing out people they’ve never even met,” I add, popping two peanuts into my mouth.

“Oh, come on, didn’t you guys ever stan anyone?” Dani teases.

“We had jobs as teenagers, Daniele,” I shoot back, and she sticks out her tongue. “There’s nothing wrong with loving someone, but the moment you start fighting strangers online over an illness you don’t even know is real…”

“Yeah, we’ve crossed a line there…” Beatriz agrees, cracking open a stubborn peanut shell.

“Honestly, I feel bad for them sometimes. Public life is all smoke and mirrors. They only know what we let them see, and that’s it. Watching those girls speculate about autoimmune diseases or types of flu that don’t even make a person look sick… it’s too much,” Dani admits.

“Right? They’ll never know that A.J. just didn’t feel like…”

“But are you sure, Alex?” Beatriz frowns at me, curious. “What if he really is hiding something? Like, I don’t know… a disgusting cavity or something.”

“I live with the guy, Bia. A.J. was just as fine last weekend as he is today.”

Still, part of me is relieved there was no kiss. After everything that happened, I’d feel weird picking a Vagabonder for him to kiss.

It’s silly, I know. But still…

“Isn’t it, Ale?” Daniele asks, leaning across the table, and I blink at her and Beatriz, confused.

“Sorry, I wasn’t here.”, I say, realizing my mind had wandered and I didn’t catch the question.

“I was just saying… in a few months, you’ve been all over Brazil, around Europe, and now getting to know other placeshere too.” Daniele smiles, resting her hand on mine. “It must feel like a dream.”