Dedicating Every Day to You

Chapter Forty-Four

The doorbell rings, and I jump up from the couch where I've been reading Harry Potter for the millionth time. Today is going to be a fantastic day, I can already tell.

For starters, when I woke up this morning, it was incredibly sunny and already warm. My favorite shorts were clean, and John was making hash browns for breakfast.

Now, I pull the door open, letting another shaft of sunlight into the house. Alex likes to keep all of the windows open until it's almost too dark to see, and so our living room is already bathed in warm and golden light. The person who steps through the door, however, seems to bring even more illumination to the area.

I throw my arms around Vanessa, basking in the warm glow that she carries in with her. Her long hair brushes against my cheek, and I laugh when it tickles my nose. "Hello!"

She chuckles and holds me at arm's length. "Hola, mi bonita! I swear, you must have grown six inches since the last time I saw you." Vanessa herself doesn't look too different. Her hair is still perfectly straight, and she still has her giant earrings and the mischevous smile that tugs at the corners of her mouth.

"No, I haven't grown since school let out." I straighten the shirt I'm wearing- a tank top with a drawing of a giraffe riding a bicycle. "I guess the giraffe makes me look taller."

John walks around the corner from the kitchen, cradling a mug of coffee. He looks utterly exhausted. "Hola, Vanessa."

I grin and walk over to hug him. "We're going to Vanessa's neighborhood today. It's not too far from here, just a short drive and then we have to take a train or two. It's going to be fun."

He ruffles my hair absentmindedly. "Okay, honey. Stay safe, please. I trust you both to look out for each other."

Vanessa slides her manicured hand into mine. "Ready, mija?" The nickname sends a happy little shiver down my spine. If I remember correctly from the meager attention I pay in Spanish class, it means 'my daughter'.

"Ready." We walk outside, and I tip my head back to let the sun's rays run across my face. I honestly can't wait to meet all of the people that she's told me about, to see the world that she grew up in.

********

We step off of the escalator, and Vanessa pushes the glass door open. The neighborhood, Washington Heights, is hot and humid, and the warmth covers me like a blanket as soon as I emerge from the air conditioned subway chamber. I smile and stand on the curb, waiting for Vanessa.

My eyes focus in the light, and I look around. I remember those sidewalk trees, that one with a little heart carved into the corner. I remember the slightly crumbling RadioShack with the broken window- the one they still haven't fixed after almost three years. Every inch of this street, every square of gum-spotted pavement, is as familiar as walking into my own bedroom.

"Wait, you live in Washington Heights?" My voice jumps an octave on the last few words. Somewhere in my brain, nothing clicked before this. Never her mentions of Abuela, never her jokes about life in 'el barrio', none of them made me wake up and recognize it.

I hear a pair of sneakers pounding on the sidewalk, and I look up to see a gangly teenage boy barrelling towards us at top speed. He has a flop of curly hair and a giant smile full of crooked teeth. "Ay, Vanessa! You brought her after all..." He stops and looks at me. "No way. Kathryn?"

"Sonny?" It can't be my old babysitter, but somehow, it is. Sonny de la Vega, one of my best friends. He looks just like he did three years ago, wearing a hoodie and giant sneakers. We had so many fun times together- walking to the park for piraguas, playing tag on the fire escape, bothering the ladies at the salon.