On My Side

Chapter 10

Paloma stood in a yellow sundress alongside Dr. Gómez and the music and art teachers. They stood before a huge red ribbon with a pair of gigantic scissors. It was time to mark a step forward into a brighter future for their under-funded school. She looked around at her students who were so excited about the new room. They were already planning how to decorate it. One thing they knew was that they wanted bright colors and lots of plants.

Paloma spotted Azul in the crowd. She had quit her job at Telemundo and had applied to Penn State to get a degree in Korean. She would begin in just a few short months. It was still unclear how they would pay for it, but Azul had realized that her job as a junior producer was just that of a glorified personal assistant with no hope for promotion.

Azul was motioning to Paloma to come and talk to her. Paloma mouthed, "I can't", but Azul was undeterred. Finally, Paloma stepped out of the line of teachers and ran toward her sister.

"What was so important that it couldn't wait until this was over?" she asked, vaguely irritated with her sister's sense of urgency.

"You're not going to believe this," Azul began animatedly. "I called the Financial Aid Office to find out my balance, and they said I didn't have one. You know I did all the FAFSA stuff, and I still had $5,000 to cover for this year. But when I called, they said I didn't owe anything," she continued.

"Somebody just messed up. Call back tomorrow and your balance will still be waiting for you to pay it," Paloma said definitively. "If there's one thing I've learned in life, it's that debts never just melt away," she added.

"No, but that's just it!" Azul protested. "They said it had been paid, and when I asked who had paid it, they said they were 'not at liberty to tell' me," she said, complete with air quotes.

"What the actual hell?" Paloma exclaimed. Just then, she saw Dr. Gómez calling her back to her place for the ribbon cutting.

"I gotta go. We'll talk about this later," she said as she patted Azul on the shoulder.

As soon as Paloma slipped back into her place, Dr. Gómez began her prepared remarks.

"We are all here today to celebrate a huge step forward for our school. These kids have faced a lot of challenges, but they are bright and hard-working. They deserve every opportunity in life. And there was an anonymous donor who believed the same thing. I want to thank him today. He is here, but he asked not to be identified, and I will honor his wishes," Dr. Gómez said. "The donation he gave, not only paid for a new wing for the school, but also set up a scholarship program specifically for students from the ESL program," the administrator continued.

Paloma stood shocked. She had not known that part before. There's a scholarship fund for my kids, she marveled. She wondered if the mysterious donor could be a former ESL student himself.

"So, today, we cut this ribbon and walk into a plentiful future ahead of us," declared Dr. Gómez as she and Paloma managed to maneuver the giant scissors to cut the red ribbon. At the very moment that she heard the sound of the ribbon being snipped in two, a radical thought passed through her brain.

"Eunwoo," she whispered.

"What was that?" Dr. Gómez whispered back.

"Eunwoo," Paloma said a bit louder.

"I was wondering how long it was going to take your ass to figure that out," Dr. Gómez said in Paloma's ear. She pointed to the back of the crowd where Eunwoo was trying in vain to hide his 6-foot frame.

The crowd parted like the Red Sea when Paloma began to run toward him. Her ESL students were cheering. Leo yelled louder than the others, "Get it, Ms. G.!" which caused Paloma to laugh. She was still laughing when she reached Eunwoo and drew him in for a warm hug.

"It was you! It was all you!" she marveled. "The new wing, the scholarship --- wait!" she paused. "Did you pay off Azul's balance at Penn State?" she asked incredulously.

"You have to know, it was all for you," Eunwoo answered. "Para, not por," he clarified. "I didn't do it in exchange for you, but for your benefit. I didn't do any of this so that you would take me back. I mean, I hoped you would, but I did it all just to see you smile. So, I'm at peace. I've done what I came to do," he said.

"You damn well better not be done yet!" Paloma scolded. "You'd better be here to tell me that I'm the only woman for you, and that you would be nothing without me," she prompted.

Eunwoo laughed. "Well, I thought that was just a given," he said before wrapping her in another embrace. He swung her in circles with him, making her yellow dress flare in the breeze.

Hoping not to invade their privacy too much, Azul approached. "So, it was you who erased my balance," she said, shaking her head. "You're really something else again," she marveled. "You must have done that to get in good with my dad," Azul surmised.

"Well, it can't hurt," Eunwoo agreed with a grin. "I do intend to ask Paloma to marry me," he added.

"How come this is the first I'm hearing about this?" Paloma protested.

"I was getting to it. I had to see if you would take me back first," Eunwoo defended.

"Okay, we get that you guys are in love! Don't rub everyone's nose in it!" Azul groused. "How come I can't find me a guy like Eunwoo?" she complained. "You don't happen to have a younger brother, do you?" she asked in jest.

Eunwoo chuckled. "Actually, I do," he replied. "Do you want me to make a call and see what I can do for you, Azul?" he asked.

"Well, órale," Azul answered. "I don't know what you're waiting for. Get on that right away, okay?" she urged.

When the ribbon cutting ceremony officially ended, Paloma and Eunwoo got in her faded Civic and drove to the Hollywood sign. They snuggled into the first "O" of the metal sign.

"You know, I could picture a pair of doves building a nest in a nice spot like this," Paloma commented. "Did you know that doves can have the same partner for 20 years?" she asked.

"I hope we last longer than that," Eunwoo protested.

"Well, that's the lifetime of a dove. We will last for the lifetime of a human," she reasoned.

"Ah, well, the metaphor holds then," he answered, relieved.

"Ay, mi pichón," Paloma cooed at Eunwoo.

"What's a pichón?" he asked.

"It's a pigeon, which honestly isn't that much different from a dove," she reasoned. "Mi pichoncito," she whispered in his ear. "Did you know that doves coo and kiss before mating?" she asked rhetorically.

"Well, alright, then," Eunwoo laughed. "What are you suggesting?" he questioned with his brows in a quizzical twist. "Are you suggesting that we perform such a mating ceremony in the 'O' of the Hollywood sign?" he asked with a laugh.

"I'm an educator!" Paloma said in mock horror. "Sir, unhand me this instant!" she teased. "No, but really, do you want to get out of here and go somewhere more private to nest?" she teased.

Eunwoo jumped up quickly, gathering up the blanket they had been sharing between them. He held out his hand to help her out of the dip of the "O". "Let's get out of here! Hurry! Hurry!" he urged as Paloma fell into his arms, laughing.