When the Stars Align (Anthony Rizzo)

5| Secrets

Kelsey

As May turns to June we continue on just fine. There hasn't been anyone who has said anything to us about our legal status and we've all been super careful. Isaiah and Tatiana stay home and either mow lawns or plant for dads business. He keeps his yard business going and since she owned and ran it he went pretty undetected. The apartment didn't ask for proof of residency which might be a bad thing in this neighborhood but as long as we don't get evicted we should be fine. Trevor was a logger and he comes and goes as the jobs do but he's back for a while to help out around the house. For now we were all pretty safe and able to continue on as we were.

This fine night I get home early enough to cook my family a nice dinner since everyone was home for once. So I slave away in the kitchen trying to not get worked up about his date with Anthony or possibly being found out.

"Mhmmm. You cook just like your mamma" my dad claims as he joins me in the kitchen.

"That is literally the nicest thing you've ever said to me" I tease.

"Damn right" he agrees. He sticks his hand in the bowl of stuffing for the pork chops and I smack his hand away. He laughs as he put what little bit he was able to get in his mouth.

"I'm gonna kick you out if you keep that up" I threaten.

"You can't get rid of me that easy" he teases.

"Don't I know it" I mumble.

"So how have you been? Any fun or exciting things happening in your life" he wonders.

"We got a new night show at the museum" I say.

"That's not what I want to know and you know it" he accuses.

"If you want to know something then the best way to find out is just to ask for it" I remind him.

"Fine.

Isaiah overheard that you're going on a date Friday. Is it true" he asks and I stop. I start to blush as I furrow my eyebrows.

"Isaiah" I mumble.

"So it is true! You're going on a date" he accuses.

"I guess I am" I admit.

"Sweetie, that's amazing. Why don't you seem excited" he wonders.

"He's famous daddy, if I'm with him there's a better chance of us being found out" I explain.

"You haven't told him yet" he whispers and I sigh.

"I told him that there was a fire and we lost everything, he just doesn't know that the only thing keeping me here was gone too" I say.

"Oh sweetie, you have to let him know. If he really cares about you he'll understand" he insists.

"I know he would, but if I tell him this he will never not be able to see it. It'll be on his mind all the time and in his heart forever and I can't do that to him. Just as you didn't marry mom I can't tell him I might be detained, not yet. He'll change and I don't want him to change. I want him to be that vulnerable and passionate man I've come to know" I explain.

"I get it, I really do, but he's going to find out eventually" he reminds me.

"I know, and he deserves to know. But if I want him to be truly happy and if I want to be a part of his happiness I can't let my problems become his. I can tell he's really into me, every time he looks at me he has the biggest smile on his face and it's goofy but it's so cute. He is concerned about my head and he's worried that I don't feel the same way about him. He's seriously the most raw and genuine person I've ever met and I don't want him to lose that innocence because of me" I insist.

"This is life Cici. Lying about it doesn't change anything about it" he says.

"I'll tell him, I promise. Just not yet. I want to make sure I can trust him and make sure he wants to be with me for the right reasons before I break any ground. I can't take back what I say so I don't want to tell him and he end up not being like I thought he was" I say.

"Okay. But I promise that if it's anything like me and your mom he won't care" he insists.

"There will never be anything else like you and mom" I smile.

"You're right" he agrees. "But you're a intelligent kid with a bright future ahead of you. I don't want you holding back because you're afraid."

"I won't daddy, I promise."

I finish making dinner and my dad sets the table. We gather around it and joined hands as we bowed down our heads to pray. After Trevor leads us in prayer we dig in and talk about our days. It's something we always did with mom and I always try to keep as much of her alive. And although it's not the same, sometimes it feels like she is still here with us.

"So I started looking at colleges" Tatiana starts as we dig in and I smile. She was graduating early and she's gotten some scholarships already. She was top of her class and did a lot with the school. I knew she was going to go off somewhere and start changing the world, it just depends where.

"Oh look at you, trying to be a big bad college girl" I smile.

"I'm trying. But it's going to be hard without documentation" she admits.

"We'll figure it out. Where are you going to go" I wonder.

"I've narrowed it down to a few schools, but the only one I've been in contact with is UCLA. And I want to study political science and government. I want to help families like ours stick together in situations like these. I think I could really help people" she insists.

"I love that. If you need anything from me let me know, okay" I ask.

"Yes mam" she winks.

"And what's about you Isaiah? How have you been" I wonder.

"Still waiting to go on that Wrigley tour" he shuns and I blush.

"Right. I'll see when I can get you out there" I assure him.

"Are you going to go text your boyfriend" he teases.

"He's not my boyfriend" I whine.

"Whatever you want to call him" he says.

"If you're going to be mean to me I won't text him" I threaten and his eyes get big.

"Alright alright, I'll stop" he promises.

"Thank you" I smile.