𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐘 𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐕𝐄𝐒, Alex Alvarez

sixteen - one valentine's day at a time

•~3rd person P.O.V~•
TRANSLATIONS: SPANISH TO ENGLISH (done by google translate so the translations are probably shit😭)
- none

(based on the episode "S03:E06")
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Maria wasn't sure how or why Alex had gotten grounded, but because of that she wasn't allowed to see him. She could go and hang out with Elena, Penelope, or Lydia at their house but she couldn't talk to Alex. That was Penelope's rule, or else she could keep Alex grounded for longer. Or she could keep Maria away from the Alvarez's until Alex's grounding was up.

It was worse now that it was Valentine's Day. It was her very first Valentine's Day that she didn't dread, her very first Valentine's Day with a boyfriend, her very first Valentine's Day that she actually wanted to celebrate. Instead, she stayed at home reading some of the new books she'd gotten from Barnes and Nobles.

Schneider said he was spending Valentine's Day with Avery, his new girlfriend after he'd given her a Valentine's Day present from him. Alex, Lydia, and Dr. Berkowitz went to a lawn bowling while Elena and Syd had a list of activities to do.

Maria didn't mind, she liked reading, and to celebrate the holiday she read her romance books. It was a better celebration than what she was forced to do in the past, which she didn't really want to remember. So, she always made sure to be busy so her mind wouldn't wander.

"Maria," She flinched slightly, surprised by Schneider's sudden appearance in her room. "C'mon! We're having a party at the Alvarez's!" Maria didn't ask when they decided on the unanticipated party, but the sound of rain and thunder quickly answered her questions.

"Give me a second to get ready!" Schneider flashed her a quick smile and a small nod, closing her door behind him. She quickly pulled on anything that could be related to Valentine's Day, a white shirt with small red hearts on it, blue jean shorts along with bracelets that were either red or pink, and a small pearl necklace.

Apparently the rain had ruined the lawn bowling tournament for Alex, Lydia, and Dr. Berkowitz as well as the fun run for Elena and Syd. So, when they'd all come home soaked in rain with frizzy and flat hair, they'd decided to have a party.

Maria was nervous, knowing it'd be difficult to ignore Alex, and because Avery would be there. Schneider had apparently told her that she wasn't rich, so she couldn't go to his apartment because then she'd know he was rich. Maria didn't have much time to meet her, and she wasn't sure how much Schneider had told Avery about her.

She walked into the Alvarez home, following behind Schneider. She smiled as all the Alvarez's told her a quick hello, and that was when Maria saw her. Avery. She was talking to Elena and Syd, looking at the magazine they held. She gulped, twisting and turning her fingers nervously. She quickly looked up at Schneider, pulling on his arm to let him know she wanted to talk to him.

"What if she doesn't like me?" She asked softly, her eyes stuck on Avery. She was beautiful, a different kind of natural beauty that was admirable.

"That's insane, of course, she's going to like you, look." She quickly looked up at him, a panicked look on her face as he began to tap Avery on the shoulder. "Avery this is my daughter, Maria." Avery smiled at her, and even if Schneider hadn't told her that Avery was a kindergarten teacher she still would've been able to guess it. She had a soft, happy feeling to her, one that made Maria smile immediately.

"It's so nice to finally meet you, Maria." She said, smiling wide and clutching Maria's hands in hers.

"It's nice to meet you too, Avery." Maria smiled, a sigh of relief falling from her lips. Alex watched as Maria spoke to Avery, and it was obvious it was their first time meeting. He was dying to talk to her because he hadn't in so long.

Maria walked around to the kitchen, pulling a glass from the cupboard as she poured apple juice into it. Alex looked around for his mom and found she wasn't paying attention to him, he quickly stood and joined Maria's side.

"Maria," He whispered, her eyes quickly going wide as she recognized his voice, "I know you're not allowed to talk back to me or whatever but I have a solution." He quickly pulled a small notepad from his pocket and then pulled out a pen as well. A goofy smile creased the corners of his lips as he looked at her. "I could talk to you and you can write it down as a response, technically you're not talking to me." He shrugged, pushing the notepad towards her.

She debated on taking it, weighing the options and the possibilities of them getting caught and getting in trouble. She sighed, sliding the notepad and the pin into her back pocket. Alex smiled wider, glad that she was agreeing with him instead of abiding by the rules.

~

After Schneider and Avery left to fix Schneider's hot tub, Maria and Alex sat at the dining table. He'd say something to her, she'd write down her response, he'd read the notepad, and then they'd repeat the cycle all over again.

"Hey, Maria, I have something for you." She furrowed her eyebrows, immediately feeling terrible because she hadn't gotten Alex a thing. "C'mere." He held out his hand as he stood, waiting for her to take it.

She hesitated, her body already second-guessing his loving gesture as a result of her father's abuse and treatment towards her. She shook her head lightly, trying to shake the feelings and thoughts from her head. She lightly placed her hand in his as she stood, allowing him to lead her wherever they were going.

As soon as Alex opened his bedroom door, Maria's jaw dropped. There was a large red basket sitting on his bed, almost half her height, that was red and filled with red roses, candy, books, candles, and other things she liked. What stuck out most was the white envelope sticking out from the top, and as Maria stepped forward she saw "to maria, love alex" scrawled on the front.

"Oh, Alex..." She whispered softly, disbelief clearly written within her voice. Her eyes were slightly wide, her eyebrows raised in shock, as she looked up at him. A slight blush had covered his cheeks as he rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged.

"I know this is your first time celebrating Valentine's Day, at least the way you should, and this was the least I could do." He said nonchalantly, gulping nervously as he glanced at her.

"The least you could do?!" She scoffed, her jaw-dropping. "This is...this is above and beyond anything I've ever seen anyone do for their girlfriend." She added, quickly wrapping her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. "Thank you, Alex, this is amazing. You're amazing." She spoke softly, as his arms wrapped around her waist hesitantly. He never wanted to make her feel uncomfortable, so he was very hesitant when he touched her.

"You're welcome, Maria." He smiled, her words making his heart warm. This was the best outcome of the day he could've ever thought of, and he just couldn't wait till Maria read the letter he'd written to her. It disclosed, in detail, how much he loved her and cared for her and every bit of it was true. Every bit of it.
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A/n: Sorry for the long amount of time without an update and how rushed this chapter is, I discovered the holy grail of chat ai😍
Word Count: 1,301