Curls [H.S. A.U.]

Curls: Chapter 13

Arabella

"Mami, we're coming over for dinner."

"You're bringing the white boy? Yay!"

I sigh at my cell phone. Harry is in the shower and he's going to be ready any minute. I push the earrings into my ear. "Would you quit calling him that?"

"Fine fine. Only because you love him."

"Ma! You're on speaker. What if he hears?" I nearly scream over her snickering. What a bitch.

"I'm waiting for babies. Tell him you love him and don't renew your birth control."

"¡Madre! Si no se calla no voy a ir a cenar." (If you don't shut up I'm not going to dinner.)

"Sí es tú. El chico blanco quiere venir y sé que no se puede decir que no a él." (Yes you are. The white boy wants to come and I know you can't say no to him.)

"Te odio." (I hate you.)

"Te quiero, adios." (I love you, bye.)

"Goodbye, Mami."

The bathroom door opens and Harry walks in with just a towel around his waist. A smirk plays his lips. "I love listening to your Spanish."

"How long were you listening?" Panick rises in my throat. Did he hear my mom say I love him? I would die of embarrassment if he did.

My boyfriend presses a kiss to my forehead as he pulls on a pair of boxer briefs. "Not much. Just that you hate someone."

Good. "Good."

"Finish getting ready. We have a dinner to attend."

➖✖➖

"¡Mi querida hija!" (My darling daughter!) Papi shouts when Harry's car comes to a stop and I step out. My heels clack against the driveway as I skip over to my father. Harry stands back, no doubt looking at my bottom in the tight dress I'm sporting today.

"Hola, papi. ¿comó esta?" We catch up real quick and Harry greets my father next. The two dive into deep conversation and I slide into the kitchen to see my mother.

She's a short, plump woman in her fifies. Her black hair is graying slightly and she's gained a few pounds since I've left home for good. I am their last baby, when I left home it crushed her. She was too old to have anymore children and adopting would take too long.

Next option is for one of us to have children.

Roberto enters the kitchen with a special glint in his eye. Looking out the kitchen I see all of my brothers speaking with Papi and Harry.

"¿Lo que está pasando ahí fuera?" (What's happening out there?) I ask my brother softly. He just shrugs. Despite me knowing he's lying I don't push it. Maybe they're talking soccer. Harry loves soccer and I know my family does as well.

Mami tells me to gather the men for dinner and I do as told. "¡La cena está lista!" (Dinner is ready!)

A rush of men and their wives, or fiances, come into the dinning room. Harry enters last so we manage to get seats beside each other. Mami serves the food, pork burgers and yellow rice.

The conversation flows smoothly until dessert. Papi gets it, which is odd because Mami always serves dessert. I look around and nobody else is weirded out by the fact that our father got his fat ass up to get the cheesecake.

"Here you go," my father says as he drops a piece of cake on my plate. His accent is thick when he speaks English and its never failed to amuse me.

"Gracias," Harry mutters as he gets his slice. I dive into the dessert until my fork hits something hard.

Everyone stops eating when I pull out a ring. What's happening? I look around at the smiling faces. I look at Harry only to find him on one knee.

Oh my God I know what's happening!

"Before you hyperventilate let me speak," he says quickly. I nod and down some water. "I wanted to have dinner here to ask your family for their blessing for your hand in marriage. We're young, really young. But I can't deny the fact that I fell for you faster than Romeo fell for Juliet."

"Harry. . ."

"Let me talk," he begs, "please? I just want to tell you that I love you and I need you. I need you to yell at me about leaving dirty dishes in the sink when the dishwasher is only a step away, I need you to surprise me with little presents like new socks from Target or Simsons underwear from Walmart, I need you to wake up next to me everyday."

"Oh my god. . ."

He takes the ring and quickly cleans it off. He looks back up at me, his green eyes shining with hope. "¿Te casarias conmigo?" (Will you marry me?)

I burst into tears. I don't know if it's the fact that I want to say yes or if it's because every time he speaks Spanish to me it makes my heart glow.

"Sí, me casare contigo." (Yes, I will marry you.)

He lets out a breath. He tosses the ring to me and sits back down on his chair like he didn't just propose to me. I stare at him with wide eyes until he bursts into laughter. He pulls my chair closer to him and crashes his lips to mine.

That makes my family finally break into cheers.

"Yes! I will finally get grandbabies!"