Lucrecia y Rodrigo estaban perdidamente enamorados. Sin embargo, Lucrecia sabía que su padre detestaba a Rodrigo, porque era un muchacho de bajos recursos económicos.

Se acercaba el día del amor y de la amistad, el 14 de febrero, y Rodrigo y Lucrecia acordaron verse cuando ella saliera de su clase de tejidos de lana. El paseo por el campo estuvo cargado de pasión; y cuando llegó el momento de la despedida, Rodrigo le dijo a Lucrecia:

— Esta tarde voy a pedir tu mano.

Lucrecia caminó hacia su casa, tarareaba la canción "Si nos dejan, nos vamos a querer toda la vida, si nos dejan, nos vamos a vivir a un mundo nuevo".

La felicidad de Lucrecia era evidente; su madre carraspeaba como queriéndole decir que se controlara, pero ya el padre tenía la certeza de que su pequeña, era una mujer. Salió de casa, dando un portazo a la puerta y lanzando maldiciones.

Cuando se hicieron las 4 de la tarde, Lucrecia se bañó, se puso su vestido colorido, se pintó los labios, se recogió el cabello y se asomó a la ventana. En principio, tenía las manos entrelazadas sobre el alféizar y lucía una sonrisa que no podía contener.

Pero las horas pasaban y Lucrecia comenzó a impacientarse; entonces dejó la ventana sola y abrió la puerta. Se sentó en el sofá de la sala a tejer una bufanda para su amado, y cada cinco minutos se asomaba para ver si Rodrigo venía.

La tarde se tornó noche y Rodrigo no apareció, Lucrecia sentía dentro de sí un vacío indescriptible; su sonrisa se convirtió en una mueca de dolor que no podía ocultar ante la mirada de nadie.

Los días, las semanas, los meses, incluso, los años pasaron galopando sin que Rodrigo diera señales de vida. La gente comentaba que se había ido del pueblo, pero Lucrecia no creían en nada de lo que escuchaba; ella tenía el presentimiento de que algo extraño le había pasado. Algo terrible.

Una noche de invierno, el padre de Lucrecia llegó borracho a casa, se había ido al bar a tomar hasta embriagarse y perder la conciencia. No pudo subir las escaleras que conducían a su habitación, así que se quitó los zapatos en la sala, abrió su camisa, se aflojó el cinturón y se tiró en el sofá. En la madrugada, Lucrecia comenzó a escuchar unas voces, y se despertó. Caminó hasta la sala y vio a su padre, quien en medio de su pesadilla decía: "No debiste haberte metido con mi hija. Por eso, te mato".

Desde ese día, Lucrecia viste de blanco como si esperara a Rodrigo para casarse. Todas las tardes se asoma a la puerta, mira en lontananza, reza un Padre Nuestro y le jura Rodrigo que lo va a amar por siempre.

Lucrecia and Rodrigo were madly in love. However, Lucrecia knew that her father detested Rodrigo because he was a boy from a poor family.

Valentine's Day, February 14th, was approaching, and Rodrigo and Lucrecia agreed to meet after she finished her wool knitting class. Their walk through the countryside was filled with passion, and when it was time to say goodbye, Rodrigo told Lucrecia:

"This afternoon I'm going to ask for your hand in marriage."

Lucrecia walked toward his house, humming the song "If they let us, we'll love each other forever, if they let us, we'll go live in a new world."

Lucrecia's happiness was evident; her mother cleared her throat as if to tell her to calm down, but her father was already certain that his little girl was a woman. She stormed out of the house, slamming the door and muttering curses.

When it was 4 p.m., Lucrecia took a bath, put on her colorful dress, applied lipstick, tied her hair up, and looked out the window. At first, her hands were clasped on the windowsill, and she wore a smile she couldn't suppress.

But the hours passed, and Lucrecia began to grow impatient; so she left the window unattended and opened the door. She sat on the living room sofa to knit a scarf for her beloved, and every five minutes she looked out to see if Rodrigo was coming.

The afternoon turned into night, and Rodrigo didn't appear. Lucrecia felt an indescribable emptiness inside her; her smile turned into a grimace of pain that she couldn't hide from anyone.

The days, the weeks, the months, even the years, galloped by without Rodrigo showing any sign of life. People said he had left town, but Lucrecia didn't believe anything she heard; she had a feeling that something strange had happened to him. Something terrible.

One winter night, Lucrecia's father came home drunk. He had gone to the bar and drunk himself into oblivion. He couldn't make it up the stairs to his room, so he took off his shoes in the living room, opened his shirt, loosened his belt, and threw himself down on the sofa. In the early morning, Lucrecia began to hear voices and woke up. She walked to the living room and saw her father, who, in the midst of his nightmare, was saying, "You shouldn't have messed with my daughter. That's why I'm killing you."

From that day on, Lucrecia dresses in white as if she were waiting for Rodrigo to marry her. Every afternoon she looks out the door, gazes into the distance, says the Lord's Prayer, and swears to Rodrigo that she will love him forever.