𝐺𝑈𝐸𝑅𝑅𝐴

Chapter 10: Daddy

Cuziema

Andrés has been here for 3 weeks, 5 days, 21 hours, and 43 minutes. 3 weeks, 5 days, 21 hours, and 43 minutes of his constant presence. 3 weeks, 5 days, 21 hours, and 43 minutes that consisted of late-night conversations, movie marathons, novelas, cooking, homemade face masks, and really, really bad karaoke. I never realized how lonely I was once my mom left for work, how quiet and empty the house felt. I almost forgot the feeling. Almost.

"¿Cuándo se va?" Andrés was out buying groceries as I helped my mom fold some laundry.

"Que?"

I sigh, "When is he leaving?"

"No se.." she shrugs, "por qué? ¿Quieres que se vaya?" She glances over to me.

I lay down against her bed, having my hands cover my face. "No se." I don't know. I don't know when I started counting the weeks, the days, the hours, the minutes he's been here for. I don't know when I started to become so accustomed to seeing him every morning when I woke up and every night before I go to bed. I don't know when I got used to his touch; to his spontaneous hugs, the forehead kisses I get before I start my homeschooling, sitting so close to him that he can barely move between me and my mother, falling asleep on him, and just being constantly around him. I've gotten so used to his company, so used to him being here for the past 3 weeks that I've become..scared.

"Dime."

"No se mamí–"

"No, tu sabes. Dime."

"It's just..." I sit back up, intertwining my fingers with each other, staring down at my thumbs. "I don't want him to leave." My mom puts the folded piles of clothes in the basket before sitting next to me. "Everything was fine before he got here. I was fine staying at home by myself. Fine with just spending time with you when you weren't so tired from work. But, after having him here, I realized how lonely I was when you weren't here." I didn't notice I was on the verge of tears until my vision became glossy. I quickly try to blink them away when I look over to my mom who already had 2 tears dripping down her cheeks.

"Perdoname mi vida, perdoname." Her arms wrap around me, my tears escaping along with hers. We hear the door creak open. Andrés leaned against the doorframe, his hands in his pockets as he stared at us. His eyes slightly shifted, looking at my mom. I looked over at her, she nodded her head at him. He lets out a breath before walking towards us, sitting on the other side of me. "Mi Vida," she wipes her tears away, "there is something you need to know."

I look between them, "are you guys dating? Because if so I 100% approve." I looked over at Andrés who was smiling at me.

"No, but yes." He says.

"What?"

"Now, before we say anything there is something you must know."

"Ok...what is it?"

"Tu papí didn't die."

"What."

"He didn't abandon us either."

"Then..what?"

"The day of your due date, some bad people attacked our house. I got shot by a tranquilizer gun and they kidnapped me. Next thing I knew I woke up in a hospital room, you sleeping by my side."

"Holy crap," My mom never told me the story, only that my father had died. But I never expected that. I don't think anyone does. "Where was my dad?"

"Checking on your brothers."

"I had brothers?"

"Have." I look over at André's. He put one of his hands over mine, and the other he placed on my cheek. "I'm your father, Cuziema."