Salted Wound

Chapter 30- Nov 10, 2018

Anastacia

I walk around the living room with a broom and sweeper. I cleaned most of the house already and the only thing left is to sweep the living room and the kitchen. Estrella walks out of the kitchen with a glass of milk and cookies. She's wearing a white tank top and I can see her tiny baby bump sticking out. Her hair is completely pulled back into a ponytail and some curly strands stick upward over her head.

    "Since when did Mr. Clean show up at our house?" She teases.

    "Haha. Very funny. Zamari's coming over to work on a project Hayes gave us. Don't you have work to do?" I ask.

    "Geometry, bio, a stupid essay for world history and psychology. Are you guys going over Hamilton, too?" She asks. Ms. Hayes teaches sophomores and seniors this year so Estrella and I have similar topics for English.

    "Yeah. We have to listen to the album and write an essay about it. And you?" I ask.

    "For us, we have to choose a partner and present a couple of songs and their meaning. So it's easier," she responds smiling. I roll my eyes. I don't like presenting anyways.

    "What time is Zamari coming over?" She asks.

    "Noon, I think. He's bringing Amari and mom said she's going to take him and Julian out while Zamari and work on the project. Do you want to stay or hang out with them?" I ask putting the broom on the side.

    "I don't feel like going outside or changing, so I'll stay," she says shrugging.

    "Cool. I think I'm almost done with cleaning and I'm going to go change and I'll be back in a bit," I say. She nods and places the glass of milk on the coffee table.

    "Did you take your vitamins already?" I ask.

    "Yeah, I did earlier," she responds.

I nod and walk down the hall and into my room. I go through my closet and find some yoga pants and a pink v-neck shirt. I go into the bathroom and make two dutch braids that go over my shoulders. My hair is getting longer which makes me happy. I put one coat of mascara and leave the restroom. I peep into Julian's room who is putting away some toys while watching The Lion King on his giant box television. The poor kid knows what a VCR is.

"Hey, buddy, Amari is going to be here soon. Are you ready for the park?" I ask. He looks at me giving me a few nods. He's wearing some navy blue shorts and a green t-shirt with some beat up sneakers. He hides his hair under a baseball hat that's a little too big for his head.

"Is he almost here?" He asks.

"Yeah, in around half an hour he'll be here. Where's mama?" I ask.

"Showering, I think," he responds, going back to cleaning.

"Okay, well, I'll make you guys sandwiches to take to the park. Do you want mayo on yours?" I ask, teasing. I know he hates mayo, and by the way, he scrunches his face I know that hasn't changed.

"I'm kidding, niño. I'll go off and make them and I'll call you when they're here, okay?" I back away from his door and I hear him mutter "yeah" under his breath.

I walk into the kitchen and start taking out the ingredients to make sandwiches and Estrella joins in to help. While making the sandwiches she can't help but eat the ingredients as she stuffs them in the bread.

"If you're so hungry, make yourself a sandwich," I suggest. She rolls her eyes and grunts.

"I just want small tastes. It's this one that wants to eat everything!" She points to her belly. I laugh because somehow I believe that. Strella used to be a patient person while preparing food and would get mad at me for sticking my finger in the mixture for wanting a taste. Now the baby likes to hog all the food to itself.