GuiTara

🎵~49

🎶My past can't go with me, as I step into my destiny now ~ Travis Greene

●Tara Afua Henrie●

Mexico City, Mexico

Four weeks later

"Ok..." I guided him up. "Oh! Watch you-"

His feet tripped over the short ledge on the ground, but before he could fall, I gripped his arms firmly, pulling him up. "Whoa," I chuckled. "You ok?"

"Yeah," Shaun smiled. "This surprise better be good." He fidgeted with the blindfold for a third time.

I pulled his hand down. "It is, now stop trying to peek. We’re almost there."

Carefully, I led him up the stairs to the huge double doors that served as the main entrance. Refugio and Gael opened them up with wide smiles on their faces. The reception had beautifully been decorated and everyone I'd strictly invited had arrived. Areli, Roberto, Zazu, Maria, Pam, Nando, Keke, Carlos and all the orphanage staff were bursting with anticipation.

"Ok." I brought Shaun to a standstill. "Are you ready?"

His lips curved upwards. "I’ve been ready since you put this blindfold on me."

I giggled, then moved to his back to untie the covering on his eyes. Once the material came down, a loud "Surprise!" filled the entire room.

"What the..." Startled, he took a step forward, gaping at our surroundings and all the guests. "What’s going on? What’s all this for?"

"Welcome to El cielo de los niños' reopening party!" Gael announced.

"Reopening?" Shaun's eyebrows flew up, then he turned to me, seeking an explanation to why his mother’s orphanage—which had been closed down by his conceited father—was now reopening without his knowledge or consent.

I pressed my lips together before saying, "This... was all my idea."

His eyebrows shot up. "Really?"

"Yeah." I shrugged. "Ever since we came back to Mexico, I've had this cloud of guilt drifting over my head and that’s because I know that this place," I gestured around us, "this place means the world to you. You've spent the last eight years trying so hard to keep this place afloat; to keep your mother's legacy alive and that’s why I decided that this place could not stay closed." I pulled out the orphanage keys from my jeans pocket and tossed them to him. "From now onwards, El cielo de los niños is no longer Perez Inc. property. It's officially yours.”

"Wooo!" Our audience cheered behind us.

Shaun's mouth dropped open. "H-how...how did you-"

"I'm not gonna lie, I had to pull some really really, really tough strings." A chuckle left my mouth. "And for that priceless look on your face, it was totally worth it," I smiled. "To help you keep this place running, I've created a foundation—The GuiTara Foundation—dedicated to funding the orphanage and ensuring it stays open, no matter what." 

Shaun’s eyes widened. "Tara, that's gonna take a shitload of money."

"I know." I nodded. "Believe it or not, I earned a lot of royalties from my first album. It’s more than I ever expected, and I wanted to channel it into something meaningful. This orphanage deserves it. You deserve it."