Destiny & Distance

83°

—Sweet home, Alabama -I say jokingly, looking at my family-

My mom, sister and I are sitting down on the bench, looking at the men standing away from us, talking. My dad's hand is laying on Chris' shoulder while his hands are on his pocket, both of them looking focused. God only knows what they're talking about.

—Sweet home, California -my mom says-

—Mom! Your English's better than ever, I have to congratulate you -I bring up my mom's newest skills- I think it's the first time you and Chris have talked actually understanding each other

—I'm working on it -she winks at me- Sara and I practice, well, she helps me practice.

—I'm proud, I'm proud

—You better be -she jokes- but still! My granddaughter must know Spanish as well—she needs to know her roots

—Well, actually, her roots are here -Sara corrects her- you mean she'll need to know her mom's roots, or, her maternal family roots.

—Well, that. I just know she'll have more open doors if she's bilingual. Look at you, you've taken more opportunities because you speak two idioms

Sara takes a sip of her cold-looking beer and I feel my mouth water. I haven't had any beer on months now, I feel like last time I drank was with Christopher's siblings... And I'm talking about that time where we hadn't met yet.

—Ohhh, I envy you -I say to my sister-

—If it makes you feel any better, it's cold as The Grinch's heart—you'd really love it -she teases me, winking and taking another sip-

—Are we really dropping the bilingual subject over a beer? -my mom scoffs, making Sara and I laugh-

—Mom, a beer is a beer -I shrug and she rolls her eyes-

The weather is perfect today, the sky is clear and blue, the sun rays are hitting earth harder than ever, turning L.A into some... hot, hot place. I think of changing into a swimsuit and hopping into the pool, but the mere thought of going upstairs and having to change clothes is already leaving me breathless, so I'd rather pass.

I turn to see the two men of my life again, standing beside each other while talking. They're on charge of the grill, I think it's the best way to get these two to talk way more... And it has worked. Christopher tends to be a little shy whenever my dad's around, like, he thinks of everything he's doing and saying—he's really careful, which makes him look cuter.

—I have an Argentinian friend who'd be happy if he knows we're reunited at our own grill -Sara knocks me out of my cloud-

—Yeah, I've heard it's a weekend tradition. El asado.

—When I was at high school, I used to study with and Argentinian -my mom tells us, Sara and I raise our eyebrows-

—Really? -she mouths-

—Really, her name was Rosario, she was blonde, green eyes, beautiful body and lovely personality. I don't know what happened to her, she had to move back to Córdoba and we lost contact. There wasn't any social media back then.

—Imagine reuniting with her again -I fantasize, thinking of my mom running into her on L.A's streets-

—That'd be a hell of a coincidence -she lightly chuckles and looks at dad & Chris- Sara's couple is missing

My mom has a good sense of humour, she's such a teaser. She and dad have this sarcastic humour that not anyone can understand... And I believe that's one of the things that have kept them close after all these years.