Valiente

Jealous stepsister

The next day at school, Stephanie was jealously complaining to her friends about Margarita getting so much praise and attention.

"She's barely in the USA—let alone this school—for two days, and she makes me look stupid," Stephanie muttered. "She's always making me look bad and ruining everything."

"Always, Stephanie?" Macy asked. "Was it really Margarita's fault that you mistook blue food coloring for a bath oil, causing your skin to turn blue for a month? She wasn't even here in the United States yet."

"And what about that night of the meteor shower?" Crissy recalled. "Was Margarita responsible for the thunderstorm that night?"

Stephanie was pretty shocked at those questions. "No," she replied.

"Then don't blame Margarita for whatever goes wrong," Crissy said. "It's not like she wants you to look stupid."

"Who wants to make Stephanie look stupid?" Margarita's voice rang out.

Stephanie jumped at the sound of her stepsister's voice. "Margarita, what's up?" she asked.

"I was on my way to zoology when I heard you say that someone wants to make you look stupid," Margarita said. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, I'm fine," Stephanie lied. "Thanks for your concern."

"No hay problema," Margarita smiled. "I'll see you in music class." Then she took off.

"Does she have to talk in that hoity toity accent?" Stephanie asked.

"English may not have been her first language, Steph," Macy said. "Spanish is the native language of Mexico."

"Whatever," Stephanie sniffed. "It's bad enough she's making Jenny and me look bad in front of Esteban Prescott. We don't need her making us look like idiots."

The rest of the week went by, and now it was Friday. School had just finished, and Margarita was with Esteban and Cristobal.

"How do you like school in the United States, Margarita?" Cristobal asked.

"It's just fine," Margarita smiled. But then she sadly said, "But to be honest, I really miss Guadalajara. There was always a lot to see there."

"I'm sure you'll have plenty to see in Sunflower Bay tomorrow," Esteban said.

"That's right," Margarita remembered. "We're going on a road trip around town."

"I'm sure there's something in Sunflower Bay that you'll love just as much as what you loved in Guadalajara," Cristobal grinned.

"Well, I do have to go shopping for a dress to wear to open the festival," Margarita smiled. She had no idea what to expect in the festival.

The next morning, the family was ready to go on a road trip around Sunflower Bay.

"Are we all ready to go?" Jacob asked.

"Ready, Granddad," Stephanie smiled.

"Where's Margarita?" Nancy asked.

"Mija, are you ready?" Jesus called.

"Ay vengo, Papá," Margarita called back. She came downstairs and said, "I'm ready."

"Then let's go," Nancy smiled.

The family got into their car, and off they rode. Soon enough, Nancy parked in a parking lot, and the family walked around, wondering what to see.

"Oh, a dress shop," Stephanie squealed. "Mother, can we go in here please?"

"Well, we do have to find an outfit for Margarita to wear for the Hispanic Heritage festival," Nancy smiled.

"I'll take Jesus to see the book store," Jacon said.

"You got it," Nancy said. She and her daughters entered the dress shop.

"Wow, this is bigger than the one in my hometown," Margarita said.

"There's the makeup supplies," Stephanie smiled.

"Want to see the makeup, Margarita?" Nancy offered.

"Well, I'm not a fan of makeup, but I'm willing to see the nail polish," Margarita said.

Margarita, Stephanie, and Nancy looked at the beauty supplies. Stephanie really loved the lipsticks, and Margarita was interested in the nail polish. She didn't know which color she liked best. The girls looked at the dresses, and Margarita found one she liked: a long purple sleeveless dress that had lighter purple gauze ruffle/flounces along the neckline and a matching sash around the waist.

"Beautiful choice, mija," Nancy smiled.

"Purple is my favorite color, and it's the color of Epilepsy Awareness," Margarita sighed.

"The search is over," Stephanie beamed. "I have found my nail polish choice: Popularity Peach. Jenny Park wore it for prom last spring."

"What's this prom?" Margarita asked.

"You don't know what prom is?" Stephanie screeched. "Man, you have a lot to learn."

"Stephanie," Nancy scolded. She turned to her stepdaughter and said, "Margarita, prom is a high school dance held in the spring, mostly near the end of the school year."

"Wow, that's interesting," Margarita said. "My high school in Guadalajara didn't have a prom."

Nancy glared at Stephanie for yelling at Margarita for not knowing what prom was without knowing why. Margarita continued to look at the nail polish, and she found the one she wanted: Amethyst Purple.

Later, in the afternoon, the family went home. Margarita put her dress in her closet and sat on her bed. She saw the music box and a photo of her mother. She opened the music box, and as it played, she looked at the picture of her mother. The past decade had been tough for her, and it was even tougher knowing that she was the one who found her mother in bed. Margarita had gotten better at looking happy when she was aching deep inside.