WHAT DOES THIS MEAAAAANNN JOSE RIZAL WHAT DOES IT MEAAAAAN???
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I like to think its because he thinks highly of Clarita since she is the first person in a while that has showed Elias a true act of kindness despite coming from a higher class.
And since she is Ibarra's significant other (another man he thinks highly of despite feeling bitter from the boat debate and before he found out about his ancestors) maybe he was hesitant to bring the portrait in order to not to drag her in to the dirt Ibarra is getting in to this point of the story
Basically, he just wants to protect her 🥺🤧 (another thing to add on my list of why elias is an interesting character)
Now that I think about it, I wonder if that would have been a parallel to Salomé if she got her own chapter (kasi magiging sila sana pero ayaw ni Elias kasi sa past niya tsaka fugitive siya baka madamay si Salomé or something? Idk i might be remembering it wrong)
Ooor i could just be thinking too deeply and Elias was just like "srsly?? This bitch and his gf?? istg" i'd like to think its both because when i read chapyer 23 even i felt like elias was kinda jealous of all the upper class filipinos just having a good time and ibarra and clarita being bf and gf on the boat probably doesn't help lmao
Anyways yeah Elias and Clarita lives in my head rent free i need more of them
