A Warm Kitchen on a Winter Day

Chapter Three - 6 Hours and 43 Minutes Until Dessert

Maria silently washed a few pots and pans, as Anna rested her swollen ankles in the dining room. "Katherine, why did you buy the lechon pork belly from H Mart?" asked Rosa, wrinkling her nose.

"I thought you liked H Mart better than C-Town," murmured Katherine absent mindedly as she busily studied the air fryer's instructions in preparation for frying the lechon.

"H Mart is better for produce and non-pork meat," answered Rosa. "I buy pork and fish—other than salmon—at C-Town. For salmon, I use KW Supermarket. But you are not having fish today," Rosa paused as an airplane soared overhead before continuing, "unless, of course, the pork is on sale at C-Town. If it's on sale, it's old. Then I buy it at H Mart."

"The pork at C-Town was on sale," fibbed Katherine as she fiddled with the air fryer's settings, grinning when the cooking indicator remained lit. She slid the lechon into the air fryer, set the timer, and closed the lid.

...air fry the bejesus out of the lechon...

"Why are you using a stainless-steel bowl to cook the pancit?" questioned Rosa.

"Because it was clean," responded Katherine frankly as she focused on her upcoming tasks.

"I use a wok," continued Rosa. "It has a thicker bottom and burns less. Aye, bata, did you use kosher salt in the—"

"Hey mama," said Maria, who was elbow deep scrubbing pots but sensed Katherine's frustration, "Nobody's checked on the kids in a while, and they've been too quiet. Do you mind making sure they're not up to any trouble?" Rosa frowned at the obvious dismissal but left without objection.

"Thank you, Maria!" called Anna from the dining room as she rested her eyes. The front door knocker rang out, startling Anna. "I got it. Probably just John and Thomas returning," said Anna, trundling to and opening the front door.

A bundled up Tita Pony, Tito Roddy, and Father Valencia quickly made their way inside toward warmth. Tita Pony and Father Valencia had both gained weight, a few wrinkles, and silver hair since Imelda last visited, though nothing atypical for seniors their age. Although Father Valencia's gray hair crept in at his temples and roots, exposing his secret dye-enhancements, Tita Pony aged gracefully, letting her natural color, or lack thereof, shine through. Tito Roddy's appearance, on the other hand, miraculously had not changed. He looked as old then as he did before, as if sealed in a vacuum chamber and released once every two decades for a dinner party. His flesh reminded Katherine of pimento loaf—pale pigment dotted by lesions and liver spots—and his unsettling eyes burned and oozed red just as before. Tito Roddy's appearance had prematurely summited Old Man Peak, and with no taller mountain to climb, it waited without aging for other climbers to catch up.

Katherine and Maria joined Anna in greeting the guests. Father Valencia, meek as ever, merely smiled and admired the nativity scene. Tita Pony exclaimed, "Anna, you look 10-months' pregnant!"

"It feels like 11," responded Anna flatly.

"It's a girl," Tita Pony reassured with a smile and wink. "Because you look graceful while carrying the baby high."

"She's right it's a girl but wrong on the reasoning," growled Tito Roddy pointing at Anna's belly. "It's a girl because Anna looks tired, and her skin is splotchy." He gave a wheezing laugh before making a sucking sound. "That's the baby sucking her beauty away."

Anna gave Tito Roddy a look—no doubt wondering how a grotesque gargoyle like Tito Roddy could criticize others—before forcing a smile and wishing them both a Merry Christmas Eve.

"Has your pregnancy been hard?" asked Tita Pony.

"Not too bad. I have some aches and pains, and my feet really swelled today."