WEST COAST 18+

38.

W E S T C O A S T

Ashton crept into the house, afraid his principal had gotten in contact with his family before he could make it home. He blurts out, "I made one of my friends a cheat sheet and got caught."

Daniela's head lifted at his confession. "What you did was wrong, Ashton. Learn from this and do better," she said, whirling around to retrieve cookies out the oven.

Ashton blinked once, scared of her calmness. "Uh...You're not gonna yell at me?" he asks, ready to run for his life. His book bag was at his feet just in case.

"I'm not in a yelling mood," she answers, sliding the tray on a flat surface. Daniela wasn't happy, but shit, she was doing the same shit in high school. Only difference is she was being passed the cheat sheet. She used the smart kid in school to help her when she was slipping, passing with flying colors. Daniela wasn't excusing him cheating, but she wasn't about to pop a vein screaming at him.

"You're scaring me, Daniela."

"I'm not ya mama. She gotta handle you." Daniela was trying not to give a fuck about a teen who was going to do whatever he wanted to anyway. Besides, his mama should handle the punishment. He wasn't Daniela's son, and she's learned before when Ashton told her to her face to stop acting like his mother. So, she was letting the parents do their job.

"Does this mean I can have company over?" He asks, Daniela bursting his enthusiasm:

"Want me to bitch slap you?"

"I thought you said-"

"You pushing it," she warns him, taking off the oven mitts. Catching a glimpse of Enrique coming in out of the corner of her eye, Daniela brightened, "Good afternoon, my honey boo."

"I told you to wake me at twelve."

She could smell the mint on his breath as he kissed her forehead. "I was busy baking cookies for my gangsta," she cheeses, gesturing to the fresh batch.

Enrique lowered his gaze, "they chocolate chip?"

"Nothing but chocolate chip for my Latin chocolate chip," she stands on her toes to brush her nose against his, Enrique chuckling as Ashton squeezes his eyes tight. "Want me to get you some milk?"

"Nah. The cookies just fine," Enrique said, grabbing one. It was soft because it hadn't hardened fully, but they look too good for him to wait. He chewed, "You ain't fuck em up this time."

"You use too much sugar one time. Can I live?"

"Let me get one," Ashton reached over.

Daniela snatched the pan, agitated quickly. "Mooooove-uhhh. You always begging for something."

"I'm hungry."

"You ain't hungry," she says, Ashton clasping his hands to beg. "Alright, greedy. Here. Damn," picking up two cookies for him to eat.

With Ashton leaving the front door unlocked, Shanti and Britt were able to come in. They trailed in towards the voices, Shanti popping her head in first as Ashton was heading out, "Hey, folks," Shanti earning greetings back.

"Dani, please tell me you are in the mood to go out," Britt says.

"When am I not?" Not sure how her friend would even ask her this. "What's the occasion?"

Shanti replies, "It's a hoe kind of night," Daniela raising her hand to high-five her, but Enrique blocks her.

"You ain't on no hoe shit, or else you ain't going at all," Enrique states, Daniela staring, baffled.