Just Breathe

Chapter Seven

Vanessa was struggling to keep her composure, though she wasn't sure why. Her only audience was her husband and oldest daughter. They'd seen her lose it plenty of times. She pulled the car door shut loudly and slumped down in her chair, rubbing at her temple.

Lin started the ignition and gently rubbed his wife's thigh in support. It had been hard for all of them to hear Stella wailing as they left the twins at Lin's parents' for the weekend. She and Seb adored their grandparents but any time her parents were out of sight was difficult. Vanessa could still hear her daughter's cries in her head.

"She'll be fine," Lin assured her quietly. Vanessa just sighed loudly. It had been some consolation that her twin brother had taken her hand and tried to calm her. They had each other and they had Abuela and Abuelo. But it still hurt.

Lin turned and put the car in reverse, knowing his wife's emotions. It was better to get away from the situation and change the subject when she was this emotional. Lia caught his eye, giving him a concerned look. He gave her a quick wink to reassure her.

They drove in silence for a while until Lin finally reached for the radio and found some hip hop.

In the backseat, Lia had her Chromebook open and was using her phone as a hotspot. Luckily it was regular practice for her teachers to post class materials and assignments on Schoology, so she was getting a head start on the day's work. It was a three and a half hour trip, so if she paced herself she could get through most of it. She wanted to enjoy the weekend with just her and her parents. Since the twins had arrived she rarely had time with both at the same time.

Soon, Lia had zoned out. She got into the groove of her work with her earbuds in and knocked out the first draft of an essay and calculus problem set. Before she knew it, they were coasting into Cambridge.

Lia closed her laptop and watched the buildings appear outside her window. Cambridge was so different from New York. It would be a nice change of pace to be in a completely new town where no one would know her. A fresh start.

After stopping for a quick lunch, they arrived at the admissions office for MIT. Lia had seen college campuses before, but there was something about MIT that seemed very scholarly and important. She looked around, knowing she could fit in here. Everyone worked their asses off to get in and wanted to be here.

Vanessa checked the family in at the front desk and they all took a seat in the waiting room. Lin and Lia both pulled out their phones. It wasn't five minutes before someone recognized him and asked for a picture.

Lin happily obliged but hoped he wouldn't be getting requests all day. He was wearing a coat and flat hat to hide himself as much as he could.

Several families arrived over the next fifteen minutes and Lin could feel eyes on him every once in a while. In New York, most people didn't care when they saw him unless he was in the Broadway area. Get out of the city and he was a mega celebrity.

The tour guide introduced herself as a junior chemistry major from New Jersey and welcomed everyone to join her outside. As they gathered Lia could hear whispers around her and could make out words...Hamilton?...Lin-Manuel Miranda? She sighed and crossed her arms.

"Before we start, do we have any alumni in the group?"

Vanessa raised her hand and gave a small smile. "Class of 2004, chemical engineering."

"Wonderful! Welcome back!"

She began the tour and started talking about the history of the school and about the buildings around them.

As the tour progressed, Lia could feel herself getting more and more annoyed.  Some of the other people on the tour were wanting pictures and some of the passing students had also noticed her dad.  Of course she was proud of him and understood why people wanted to meet him, but this was supposed to be her day.  Their day.