New Girl: Chapter Thirty-One

Rebecca got up early to cook her mother breakfast. Her mother drove her crazy occasionally, but she still loved her. She smiled at her mother as she came into the kitchen.

“You’re burning the sausage, Becca.”

“No, I’m not mom. Go sit down, I’ll have breakfast served—”

“Soon? I hope so. Don’t make it a waste, mija. Groceries are expensive.” Her mother left, and Becca gripped the spoon handle tightly as she turned over the sausage again before putting it on a plate alongside some hash browns and still-warm eggs.

Next, she served some orange juice and bought it to her. Her mother gave her a pleasant smile. Her mother’s smile withered as she looked down at the plate. “You burnt the sausage.”

“Miranda,” began her father, “the breakfast is perfect. You are seeing fault where there is none.” Rebecca smiled at her father for once again taking her side. She was frequently doing this and continued to criticize her food and her.

“Siéntate derecho, Rebecca,” she said as she chewed on her food. Rebecca sat up, and her father gave her a warm smile and complimented her on her eggs and hash browns. Rebecca wished it were Father’s Day. Her father deserved all of her adoration, whereas her mother…not so much,

“Thank you, Rebecca. Breakfast was delightful,” her mother said, unsmiling. Rebecca feigned a weak and sad smile. She knew her mother well enough that the comment was not a compliment.

“Don’t mind her, Becca,” soothed her father once her mother had left the room. “I’ll have a talk with her later.”

“Gracias, papi.” Rebecca picked up her plate and began to wash the dishes and clean the kitchen. She could hear her mother and father fighting again. Her mother debased her while her father protected her. It was times like this that she wished her brother was not away at college.

The phone rang, and she rushed to answer it. Relief flowed over her as she heard her brother answer her.

“Hola hermana! Donde esta mami?”

“En la otra habitacion. Están discutiendo de nuevo.” She heard her brother curse and sigh.

“Are you okay?”

“No.” Rebecca looked down the hallway and tiptoed to her bedroom. “Mom spent the entire morning criticizing my cooking and breakfast while Papi defended me.”

“I should be there.”

“I wish you were.”

Her big brother sighed on the other end of the phone. “Why is she like this?”

Rebecca shrugged as though her brother could see her, then finally answered. “I don’t know.”

“Well, go get her so I can wish her a happy Mother’s Day.”

“Yeah, okay.” Rebecca went to the bedroom and knocked on the door loudly but gingerly. Her parents stopped shouting abruptly and opened the door.

“Fernando is on the phone for you, Mom.”

“Is he?” Her mother took the phone and shut the door in her face. Rebecca just stood there and wished for the day to end.

***

Silvia spent the day with her mother and her stupid boyfriend, whom she hated. He was obnoxious and thought that he knew what was best for her. He wasn’t her father; he never would be and was always presumptuous. He was a big jerk.

“Isn’t this nice?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“You should order a salad,” said her mother’s stupid boyfriend, Gary. Silvia bit back the bile rising from within her and looked around the restaurant. Denny’s was always tacky, trying to look classic while failing miserably with its tacky red color and eagerness to look like something out of the 50s. Except there was no style here.

The booths somehow always looked dirty. Silvia could never decide if the fake marble tables seemed like a sickly yellow and how it classed with all the tacky red upholstery. Maybe it was the smell of the burnt bacon or the smell of grease and fat that filtered the air. Maybe it was everything about the place that just turned her stomach.

It was lunchtime, and on this particular holiday, it was pretty busy. Her gift to her mom would not be causing a scene with the jackass. Still, she would not let him dictate what she could and could not eat. She would order a sandwich on Panini bread. Hopefully, that would shut him up long enough for the day.

“Hey! Are you guys ready to order, or do you need a few more minutes?” asked the waitress with a bright smile.

“Can I get the Mother’s Day lunch special? A baked potato for the main meal and a side of Greek salad.”

“All right? You, sir?”

“I’ll just have the Texas Sirloin, medium rare, with a side of French fries.”

“All right, and for you, miss?”

“I’ll have a BLT on panini bread with a side of onion rings and French fries.”

“Order something healthier,” scolded Gary.

“You’re one to talk,” muttered Silvia under her breath as she returned the menu to the waitress.

“She’ll have—”

“Gary! Let her have what she wants. Today is my day, and I don’t want either of you to ruin it.” Silvia nodded her agreement and sat there, glaring at Gary. He was not her father, and he never would be.

“Okay, I’ll be back with your order soon.” Soon after the waitress left, Gary followed suit to the bathroom. Silvia wished that he would get hit by a car on the way.

“Silvia, give the attitude a break.”

“Tell him to stop acting like my father, and I will.”

“Just stop it.”

“Tell him to stop acting like that, and I will.”

“I really like him.”

“Good for you. That doesn’t mean I have to like him, only that I have to put up with him.”

“Silvia, I mean it. Now, he’s coming back, don’t start anything.”

“That’s what phones are for, Mom,” she said, pulling out her cell.

***

Lucita boiled the lasagna sleeves. Her special sauce was already done, still simmering on the back burner. Her phone vibrated, and she smiled when she saw the text from Lucas. She skimmed the text and smiled. He was thinking of her and missed her. A bright smile fell across her face as she texted him the same. She couldn’t wait until the next day when she could wrap herself in his arms. He was gorgeous, fun to be with, and his eyes were wow! She really missed him, only after two days.

“Lucita, is dinner ready yet?”

“Just about. The noodles look just about done. So give it like five minutes, I think.”

“Did you add salt to the water?”

“Yeah.”

“Obviously not if it’s taking this long.”

“Not everything boils quickly, mom.”

“Ugh,” exclaimed her mother, entering the kitchen, “go sit down, I’ll finish. You’re messing everything up.”

“No, I’m not!”

“Go!” screamed her mother. Lucita resisted the urge to slap her or say anything. She bit her tongue.

“Whatever.” Lucita wasn’t going to fight today. She wasn’t going to run away. No, Lucita would just sit down, watch TV, and text Lucas. Today, she was not going to exhaust herself over her mother. It was Mother’s Day, so she might as well let that woman win.

***

Rebecca was so glad that the day was over. She opened up her window and crawled up. To her shock, Silvia was already up there, waiting for her. The look on her face was one of concern.

“Was your mother bearable today?” she asked, helping her up.

“No. She was the same. I think a bit worse.”

“Damn. Why is your mother so insane?”

Rebecca shrugged. “How was your day?”

Silvia’s eyes rolled, and the concern on her face faded to agitation. She was pissed. “Ugh, don’t even get me started! I was with my mother and her stupid boyfriend. He is such a freaking jerk! And he really needs to stop acting like he’s my dad.” Silvia shifted a black bag onto her other shoulder. Rebecca hadn’t noticed it until now and stared at it, puzzled.

“What’s with the bag?”

“Oh. I found another emergency ladder, and I thought we could hook it up above Lucita’s bedroom.”

“Oh! Well, that’s cool.” Rebecca looked around. “How are we going to hook it up without attracting noise?”

“Who cares. People can hear us, but we haven’t been reported so far. I don’t think people care that we’re up here. Besides, it’s not like we’re about to throw a party. Now come on, let’s go.” Silvia walked off, leading a slightly perplexed Rebecca, who continued to look around warily.

After a little walk over the tile roof, Silvia stopped, leaned over the railing carefully, and peered into the bedroom, hoping she was right and at the side of Lucita’s. Looking in, she saw Lucita sitting there, her knees pulled up and her head down. It looked like she was crying. Silvia tapped her fingers on the screen to grab her attention. Lucita jerked up and stared at her, confused. Silvia removed the screen and handed it to Rebecca. Lucita opened the window and wiped away her tears.

“What the hell, Vee!”

“Hey, um, I’m going to hook up something right here, okay?”

“Um, what?’

“A ladder.”

“To get to the roof?” Silvia nodded. “Are you insane!”

“No, but you look like you could use someone to talk to. If I hook up the ladder, we can talk.”

Lucita rolled her eyes and rubbed her nose while she shrugged. “Okay, sure, whatever.” Lucita stood back and wiped her tears. The ladder rolled down, and Silvia drilled in the screws as quickly as she could, looking around warily.

Lucita stuck her head out the window and looked at her for confirmation, still wary about this whole thing. Silvia waved her up. Lucita swallowed and looked down at the stone ground. She was three floors up. If she fell, she would probably die.

But death wouldn’t be so bad after the day she had had, so she grabbed the ladder and climbed out her window, sticking out one foot after another, closing the window just enough so her cat wouldn’t get any ideas.

Silvia helped her up, as did Rebecca. Rebecca smiled sweetly at her.

“That was scary,” said Lucita, smoothing out her shirt.

“Yeah, but it’s fun. Now, are you okay?”

Lucita shrugged. “My mom is…she overreacts, so we fight a lot.”

“Does it get that bad,” asked Rebecca, sitting down.

“Yeah, I run away from time to time. You know, that day I wasn’t at school, well, I was at Cyrus’s cause the night before I ran out. We fight, so I leave.”

Silvia nodded understanding, and Rebecca just stared at her, feeling some of her pain. She understood what she was going through.

“I get it,” muttered Rebecca. Lucita just stared at her. “My mom likes to insult me a lot. She’s just mean lately.” Lucita sat next to her and nodded. She didn’t say anything; nothing needed to be said, so she sat there with her friends and looked up at the sky.

“Ya know, this is nice.”