El Niño Garcia {An Isaac Garcia FF]

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We're all sitting at a big table, waiting for the event to start. Well, all except Cole, who's nowhere to be found. Jackie keeps looking over at the seat beside her, where he's supposed to be. Alex watches her, stopping what he's saying.

To be honest, I think Alex is a great guy, and he's treated Jackie pretty well. I know she does like him, but I can just tell she feels something for Cole too, maybe even more. As her sister, I want her to follow her heart and be happy, but I don't know if there's a way to do it without someone getting hurt.

Isaac almost inhales his dessert. "That was good." He looks around like he wants more. I avoid eye contact because it's too good to share.

Cole stumbles in, gets a glass of wine, and sits down. He's obviously drunk already.

"Maybe you should stick with water, Cole," Alex says cautiously.

"Maybe you should keep your opinions to yourself, Alex," he shoots back.

"Maybe you should both quietly eat your dessert," Jackie says, "for your mom's sake."

"Stupendous idea," I chime in.

Isaac reaches for Lee's dessert with his spoon. "Can I please have some? Sharing is caring."

"No," Lee says, pushing his arm away.

"Let me have a little," he says. I look at my cup. I sigh. The things he makes me want to do.

"Here, have a bite of mine," I offer. He smiles at me, melting my heart.

"Thanks, Cali." I nod. He takes some. "You're the best." He reaches for another spoonful, and a giggle escapes from me.

"Don't overdo it," I say.

Cole slides his across the table. "Have mine, I'm not hungry."

Isaac's eyes light up. "Thank you both for your amazing generosity." He happily starts eating Cole's.

A man comes on the podium and starts introducing Katherine and her award. I see Cole take a sip from another glass of alcohol I have no idea where he got from. Jackie gets stressed seeing this, but Alex holds her hand, trying to calm her down.

We all clap as Katherine comes on stage. She starts talking, and Cole says loudly, "She sounds good up there."

"Cole, pull yourself together," Will says.

Cole stands up, and when Jackie tries to stop him, he laughs, saying, "Jackie, I gotta hit the head. You can fill me in later, unless you wanted to join?" He stands up, and Will tries to reach for him, but Cole pulls his hand away. He stumbles into the caterer, and there's a crashing sound as the waiter drops the glasses on the ground. "Why are you walking around in the middle of her speech? She's trying to talk," he says, again, loudly, interrupting Katherine. I can see her getting nervous, and I feel so bad.

She finishes her speech, and there's applause. Will goes up to get Cole out, and Jackie tells Alex to help. He says no, so she goes herself. Cole's arguing with Will, but when Jackie comes, he stops and they all walk outside.

After a minute or so, Will walks back in, looking upset. I wait for a second, then decide to check on Jackie and Cole. I hurry out, to hear Cole say, "I wish you had never come here." Jackie's face drops.

"Yeah? Well, I want my family not to have died!" She walks away, and Cole calls out for her in regret. I hold out my arms, and Jackie hugs me. After a second, I keep an arm around her and we head inside.

Oh my god, Cole.

-----

A few weeks later, Jackie, Grace, and I are picking outfits for the county fair, and talking about Jackie's boys. I mean Alex and Cole, and specifically about what happened on the award night.

"Maybe he said that, like, a boy tugs on your pigtails because he actually likes you," Grace offers.

"I hate that idea."

"I mean, I do think Cole likes you. I just, like, get that vibe," I say.

"Whatever, I'm with Alex. I think," she says.

"Go talk to him. Oh my god, wait." Grace pulls out a pair of cowboy boots. "These will fit you," she tells Jackie.

She squints. "I don't think I could pull those off."

I look at them, taking a drink of my water. "They're kinda cute. Can I borrow them?"

Grace squeals. "Yes, please! Isaac will love them."

I nearly choke on my water. "What?"

"What?" She replies.

I squint my eyes at her. "Nothing..." I take the boots. "Ooh, I have a jean skirt I can wear, a brown shirt, I think, and- Oh my god. I'm gonna borrow Isaac's leather jacket!" I run downstairs to where Isaac is playing video games with Alex. "Isaacc, can I borrow your leather jacket for the fair?"

He looks at me quickly. "Yeah, of course. I mean, it's basically yours."

I laugh. "You're the best."

-----

The next day is the rodeo, and Alex does well. Jackie has her interview the day afterwards. That's the day of the concert.

She leaves, and I go around, hanging out with Grace and Kiley, with Nathan and Skylar, which didn't last long because it felt like-well, it was third-wheeling, and sometimes with Isaac and Lee.

We go on so many rides, and I have the time of my life. Isaac pretends not to be scared for some, but the way he grips the seat suggests otherwise.

Finally, we all head over to the ferris wheel, and Isaac sits with me. As our seat goes up, I take photos of the sunset, which has pink and orange hues, setting the mood. The bright lights from the rides and the warm air perfects everything. "It's so pretty, look!" I say. I turn to see Isaac looking at me instead, a serious look on his face. "What?" I say, giggling nervously.

"Cali, I have to tell you something."