Stranger

Nora

I was thirteen years old and I was being left with babysitters. Obviously, I was capable of taking care of myself, but because I was still on punishment, Lin and Vanessa had asked his parents to come watch me, Sebastian and Francisco. I wasn't happy about it. They were off to some dinner party, all dressed up, and I was stuck at home hanging out with my grandparents.

"The boys both go to bed around 8, but if they're getting cranky, feel free to put them down earlier," Vanessa said as she fastened her earring. "Nora's not allowed to watch TV or use a cell phone."

"Or leave the house," Lin added, looking quite dapper in a black suit and bowtie. He did clean up nicely. I had never seen him in anything but a t-shirt and jeans.

"Got it," my grandfather said, as he tickled Francisco's belly. I knew they'd be happy to spend time with their grandsons, but they wouldn't be sure what to do with me. It was probably going to be really awkward. Lin kissed his mother's cheek and they were both out the door.

I sat, curled up, in the recliner, picking at my nail polish. This was going to be boring.

"So, Nora, do you want to pick out what pizza place we order from?" Luis asked me, pulling open a drawer where they kept all the take-out menus.

"Sure," I said, glad to have something to do. I looked through all the pizza flyers and decided on Fresco's. Luis let me make the phone call and I felt important giving them his credit card number. It would be delivered within half an hour.

"So, Nora," Luz began. "Lin was telling me how good you are with the boys. Have you ever babysat before?"

"I guess I've looked after a few neighborhood kids, but I never got paid for it," I said. People in my neighborhood looked out for each other. If someone had to work, they could just send the kids across the street for a while. It had happened countless times.

"I know Sebastian is enjoying having a big sister," she said as Luis handed over Francisco. "And this guy will be a fan as well I'm sure."

"Lin taught me how to change his diaper," I told them.

"You shouldn't have said that," Luis joked. "Now you're on diaper duty the rest of the night. Even if he does a #2."

Luz rolled her eyes and smiled. "We wouldn't make you do that, sweetheart," she assured me. "But some help at bedtime would certainly be great."

For some reason, I didn't mind Luz calling me sweetheart. That was just something grandmothers did. It felt strange to suddenly have another set of grandparents. My mom's parents were across the country somewhere. They might even be dead by now for all I knew. We didn't hear from them much. All this attention all of a sudden felt good and bad at the same time. Is this what a functional family felt like?

"Can you tell me something embarrassing about Lin?" I asked, smiling. "Like, something he did as a kid?"

"Oh, plenty," Luz assured me. "He used to record himself with a video camera performing broadway songs. It was completely ridiculous."

"Do you still have the videos?"

"Of course!" She said. "He's put a few up on his Twitter feed I think, but some of the more embarrassing ones are locked in the family vault."

"Will you show me sometime?"

"Of course," she winked at me. "Everyone deserves to have a little dirt on their parents."

The rest of the night was surprisingly fun. We played with Sebastian and Francisco, and Luis was hilarious. I scarfed down tons of pizza and soda. Then I helped with bedtime by changing Francisco into his new diaper and pajamas, then read Sebastian a bedtime story. When they had both gone to bed, I wandered out to the living room, where my grandparents were relaxing with some wine.

"How about a movie?" Luis suggested, turning on the television.

"I'm not allowed to watch TV," I reminded him. I'm not quite sure I pointed that out.

"This is what grandparents are for," Luis told me. "They let the grandkids get away with things. Besides, we're guests and we'd like to watch a movie. You just happen to be here."

I smiled and snuggled into the couch. They let me choose the movie, so I picked A Wrinkle in Time. As the credits rolled at the end, I sat up and stretched, then announced I was going to bed. Luz insisted on giving me a good night hug, which I accepted. I climbed into bed that night feeling like I'd somehow landed in a real family.

The next morning, I woke up to the sounds of the piano and Sebastian laughing out in the living room. He was probably playing with Lin. I turned over and rubbed my eyes, then sat up and stretched. After a trip to the restroom, I appeared in the kitchen, where the rest of the family was already up. Strange...I was starting to think of the Mirandas as my family.

"Hi, how was last night?" Vanessa asked from where she was frying eggs.

"It was good," I said as I took a seat on one of the bar stools. "We had fun."

"Good," she said. "Luz said you were a big help at bedtime. Thank you."

"No problem," I said. "How was your dinner thing?"

"Oh, it was fine," she told me. "We've been to dozens of those things, but it was fun. I'm always glad to get out of my heels at the end of the night though."

"I'll bet," I said.

"Do you like your eggs sunny-side up or scrambled?" She asked me.

"Scrambled, please," I said.

"Just like Lin," she commented. "Hopefully you don't drown yours in salt and pepper like he does."

"Are you talking trash about me?" Lin asked as he walked over to the kitchen. He put a hand on my shoulder and gave it a squeeze.

"Oh, just making fun of the way you eat your eggs," she said, pouring a serving of scrambled eggs onto a plate. She passed it to me and gave me a fork as well.

"How come she gets hers first?" Lin complained, reaching over to steal a chunk from my plate.

"Manners, Lin-Manuel," she chided him.

"Now we know who her favorite is," he joked mockingly, walking over to Vanessa. He planted a kiss on her cheek but she swatted him on the butt. They were so cute together.

___

Later that night, Lin and Vanessa must have had sympathy for me because they let me sit and watch a movie with them. It was already late, and I started to drift off to sleep. Close to the end I woke up and realized I had somehow ended up with my head rested on Lin's right leg with a blanket over me. I decided I didn't care and drifted off back to sleep.

The next thing I knew, I was aware I was being carried. I stirred slightly and I heard Lin gently shoosh me. He set me down gently on my bed and tucked me in. It felt nice to get tucked in. I turned over on my side as Lin sat on the edge of my bed. I felt him gently kiss me on the temple. I finally found out what it felt like. It was nice.