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Thaïs couldn't remember the last time she had been in the same room with all of her family. It was probably when she graduated from college years ago. Her mother's side probably had the least family-oriented people. They could go years without seeing each other and not bat an eye. The check-ins via text message and FaceTime were enough.
The sisters had flown into New York with Thaïs, who had to appear on set with one of her clients. Tori decided to tag along because she wanted to see Lita and Juan and fight for the spot of the "favorite grandchild," though she knew it would always be Thaïs. Aya tagged along just because, and because she hadn't seen her mother in years.
"Is this fucking awkward, or is it just me?" Tori asked Thaïs as they stood in their mother's kitchen.
Thaïs sighed deeply, leaning against the counter. "It's not just you."
Tori and Thaïs had migrated to the kitchen to debrief on the situation thus far. Aya and their mom didn't give each other a warm welcome when they appeared at Teresa's doorstep, just a casual, "Hey, how are you?" and nothing more.
Thaïs brushed that interaction off; she expected nothing less from her mother because that's just how she was. Aya, on the other hand, was more casual than Thaïs would have thought. Or maybe she was just matching their mother's energy. Either way, it wasn't a big deal.
That wasn't where the awkwardness came in.
Tori and Aya were putting together the seating arrangement for the wedding while Thaïs and Teresa put together gift bags for all the guests. During the two hours they had been at the house, Teresa had attempted to get Aya to open up about her life in their time apart. Aya had kept her responses brief, which was out of character because she loved to talk, especially about herself.
"What's Aya's problem?" Tori asked, grabbing a grape from the charcuterie board on the island.
Thaïs shrugged, picking at her curls. "I don't know. Maybe she's just testing the waters."
"Testing the waters?" Tori repeated. "Taya, we've been here for two hours and Aya hasn't said a full sentence yet."
"Well, I don't know." Thaïs rolled her eyes, picking up an apple slice. She nibbled on it before taking an actual bite. Her mind raced with possibilities about Aya, but she didn't want to voice them—all of them would only make an already awkward situation worse.
"We should ask her," Tori suggested casually, like that was the greatest idea in the world.
Thaïs scoffed. "Are you dumb?"
"Not in front of Tía, but we should pull her in here."
Thaïs shook her head. "It would be too obvious that we're talking about momma. She'd come in here."
"She can't beat all of us up. Maybe you and Aya, but definitely not me."
Thaïs held her hand up. "I need you to stop talking."
