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#16

  *Hi peeps, I added this as an afterthought, I just wanted to say, I don't really know how to speak or write in Spanish and I hope I didn't write anything wrong or offend anyone's culture. Read on:)*

   Our bags were still at the door, and everyone was doing something else, mom and dad were chatting with all the other uncles and aunts and I got caught up in talking. I looked up and noticed Nicole and Pierre staring at me, it was then I noticed the baby balanced on her hip, I was a little bit confused at first, Nicole was twenty two and could have a baby if she wanted but that's not a news I wouldn't hear, then I remembered the baby was uncle Alejandro's son.

  I went closer to play with him, his dirty blonde hair was just like that of aunt Maria but his face was exactly that of his father, I touched his cheek and smiled.

"Hola, Diego," i said and tried to carry him but he refused and held onto Nicole tightly.

  "I don't think he remembers you, you rarely ever visit anymore, unless it's with your parents," Nicole said quietly.

   I hated the way she said it like I had changed so much, I remember when we were all still little, I love being around Nicole, she was like my older sister, she had long brown hair like mine but hers was straight like her mom's, her blue eyes she got from her dad always made her look like she knew everything, I liked how cool she was, she knew a lot of celebrity's name and what movie they acted in, she had met some of the hottest singers and had lots of friends, she was the coolest girl to me.

   Then she treated me like I was a baby ,our age gap seemed so much then  but now it feels little, Leo would have been twenty if he was alive.

   "Lola is too cool for us now," Pierre said.

"Shut up, Pierre," Shawn said and Pierre rolled his eyes.

Aunt Eva's bunch as Leo and I used to call them, Nicole was the eldest, then Shawn who was nineteen and then Pierre who was the same age as me.

   Pierre and I used to be called twins when we were younger, we fought a lot and we were so close we knew each other's secret, he was the only person that knew I kissed one of Leo's best friend, he knew before Leo and my friends at school did but after Leonel's death, I don't know what happened but we fought more and sometimes never settled.

   Uncle Carlos's kids, Xavier, Santos, Samuel and Jahmila stared at me, I could only imagine what they were thinking, I wonder what my twelve years old self would have thought about my older cousins being so tensed, that was Xavier's age if remembered correctly and his siblings were two years apart from each other.

   "Primo Pierre, Abuela said no one should upset prima Lola," Santos said.

  My mind was spinning with guilt, only God knew how I acted around everyone for abuela to make that statement, I made everyone feel like they were walking on eggshells with me.

   "And you just did by repeating what abuela said, idiota," Xavier said to his little brother and slapped his head up.

   "Abuela also said we shouldn't tell prima Lola what she said but you did, lengua larga," Jahmila said and flipped her hair back, she was a miniature version of her Egyptian mom, I would have laughed at what she said but I was too busy thinking about what Pierre and Santos said.

   "Santos, you're so going to get scolded by Abuela," Samuel said and Santos got angry and pushed him.

   The two of them started to push each other, Jahmila who was bent playing with her dog Azúcar started screaming for her parents, Shawn moved closer to try and separate the two just as the parents were coming inside due to the screams they heard, abuela was also coming down the stairs too, suddenly the house was quiet.