Thorns

37 - Rai

Some of my Cuervos friends were also around. Some were nice to Whitney, others weren't, and none of those said a word. Carlos was still lookin' at us like we committed some crime – yeah... funny, right? Still, what surprised me more was the fact that Santiago came to the dinner as well. And he got up from my abuelita's side to kiss Whitney's cheeks.

"Mi amor!" The very frightenin' man in the black suit smiled at her "What on earth are you doing in a fiesta Mexicana?!"

"Hi, Mr. Medina." She greeted, smilin' all nicely to the man "Well, I came with my... boyfriend."

He looked at me and crooked an eyebrow. I saw his smile, and I knew for the way he pressed his lips together, that he was about to laugh.

"Well, well... So this is the pendejo that was givin' you a hard time..."

I frowned at Whitney, but she just smiled at Santiago, her cheeks blushin'.

"You know the family?" Whitney asked Santiago.

So... she didn't know who he was?

"Yes, you can say so." Santiago smiled, and then looked at me "Happy to have your brother back?"

"You can say so. – I muttered, my hand tightened on Whitney's "Let's go, Whit. Dinner is gonna be served at any minute."

"Ok. We'll talk later, Mr. Medina" Whitney smiled at the Cuervo himself.

The dinner went well. I knew Whitney was havin' a good time for the way she smiled and that she was glowin'. Nacio and Tito came to talk to her many times, so did Santana and my dad. Carlos avoided her, as mi primo Jorge. They only talked to me when I was away from Whitney like she was a spy or somethin'.

"I mean, how does she know Santiago?" My brother grunted, by the bar "She's probably involved with some shit, too, mi hermano."

"Don't be stupid, Carlos." I grunted, takin' my beer and rollin' my eyes "Look at her! If she was any more innocent, she'll be a nun."

"What da fuck are you talkin' about?!" My brother grunted, standin' in front of me "Are you enamorado with that white bitch?!"

"Don't talk like that." I warned him, my hand tightens in the mug "She's my girl. So back off and keep your fuckin' mouth shut."

"Well, your girl will get you into trouble."

"Oh really? And why is that?" I groaned at my brother.

"She'll want things. She'll need things you'll never be able to give her." My brother assured me, and I swallowed the rest of my beer hard "You're tellin' me to look at her? Oh, I looked, alright. She wears designer clothes. She's from a good family, rich and successful. You really think she'll choose you?"

"She already did, mi hermano," I told him, even though it wasn't exactly true.

"Oh yeah? What about when she goes to college? You think she'll be stayin' with you?" He grunted, and that... yeah... it hit me right in the gut "You think she'll still choose you? No, my brother. She'll choose some other rich and spoiled college dude. 'Cause he'll be educated. And you'll just be another punk."

And he left. Jorge kept quiet all the time, but when he followed my brother, he looked at me from over his shoulder and said the worst words he could:

"He's right, you know? She won't choose you forever."

Yeah, thank God you got family to support you when you need it, right?

"So how does Mr. Medina know your family? I mean, I know he does a lot for the community. But still..." Whitney was sayin', while we walked down her neighborhood, at night, hand in hand.