Antonio’s POV
So here I am. Sitting on the couch while both Manny and Dolores stood in front of me, looking down at. Manny had rage in his eyes, like he wanted, or needed, to punch something. I’ve never seen such emotions in him, and I’m pretty sure he has anger problems. Dolores on the hand had a pity look. It’s obvious she’d been crying and her eyes seemed to apologize and reassure me everything will be okay.
It was just pure silence. No one said a word. Besides the tapping of the leaky sink and Manny’s ragged breathing. My heartbeat went up. I could feel the sensations in my ear while muffling the world around me.
As I looked at the desk, I was reminded of the same envelope the pictures of Mike and I came in. The same color and size that Flaca had used. Seeing as how this one wasn’t addressed to me, I can say it wasn’t mine and Manny didn’t go snooping through my room.
But instead that means that Flaca had printed more copies and gave them to Manny or someone who would give them to Manny. So in the end, who knows how many other people have seen it.
“Manny, I-”
“No! Shut the fuck up! Don’t even speak a single, fucking, word! Do you understand how horrible this is!? You betrayed me! You betrayed us! Your people! Your family! So I don’t want you to say anything! Why did you do this?!” Manny yelled at me.
I stayed quiet, just trying not to cry over what I did.
“Are you gonna answer?!” Manny asked.
“You told me not to say anything!” I snapped back.
“Don’t get smart with me, Antonio! Why did you do this?!”
“Manuel! Just let him talk. I’m sure he has a good reason.” Dolores told Manuel. He stood in front of me and crossed his arms over his chest.
“I fell in love…” I whispered silently.
“What’s that?” Manny asked.
“I fell in love!” I said louder. Manny started laughing hysterically.
“Seriously?!” He kept laughing. I didn’t budge. I stuck to my guns. And Manny soon saw that. “In love! Since when?”
“Since I met him during the race day! It was at first sight!”
“Listen to me, Antonio!” Manny kneeled down next to me, his hands on my shoulder gripping them tightly. “Michael doesn’t love you, okay? He’s just using you! No Jewel like him would date a Saint!”
“You’re fucking lying! Mike loves me and I love him! Fuck the Saints! Fuck the Jewels! I don’t give a shit about them!” I yelled at Manny. Dolores just kept watching, not saying anything.
“Love, huh? I don’t care that you’re some faggot.”
“Manuel! Don’t say that about your brother!” Dolores slapped Manny on the face.
“Sorry.” He apologized to me. “I don’t care that you’re gay! But I draw the line with a fucking Jewel!” He yelled.
“And what’s wrong with that, huh? What exactly is your problem with Jack? Or Michael? Or any fucking Jewel in general?”
“Do you have shit for brains?! The Jewels have been harassing people like us since our people first came here! They formed the Saints to fight the Jewels! They’re all the same! They hate us! They’ll never accept us! I- We hate the Jewels because they hate us! Do I make myself clear?!”
I stared at Manny. His face was red, and his vein on his forehead was on the verge of popping. “Mike isn’t like that. He loves me. He would never hurt me.”
“Antonio. You’re a smart kid. I know you are. Open your eyes and see that Michael won’t be with you forever! He’s a rich Yank who will throw you away when he’s had his fun and move on to someone else!”
I was tempted to tell Manny about our plan to run away and be together somewhere else. But based off how Manny is reacting to just Mike and I dating, I’ll save him the heart attack for now.
I’ll tell him some other time.
“Hold up!” Dolores spoke up. “Manuel. Maybe we should trust Antonio.” She said. Manny quickly looked at her like she grew another head.
“Trust him? He’s been dating a guy for months! How are we supposed to trust him?” Manny asked.
“I don’t know? I just feel it. You said it yourself, Antonio is a smart kid. If he knows what he’s doing, then we should let him.” Dolores gave me a small smile.
“Amor, I’m not doing this today- just- God!” He groaned and started pacing back and forth in the living room. He was muttering to himself while Dolores and I stood watching.
“Are you okay, Manny?” I asked.
“No! I’m not! I promised mama and papa that I would keep you safe. Now I feel like I did a bad job!”
“Manny!” I stood up and went to give him a hug. I held him tightly until I felt him also hug me back. “I’m still alive and well thanks to you. Mama and papa would be so proud of you.” I said.
“But now you’re going to be the center of attention. Everyone is going to know what you did. And everyone will hate you for it.” He said as I felt his tears fall and land on my neck.
“I’ll be fine, Manny. I think I can expect what’s coming.” I snuggled into Manny’s chest. He chuckled deeply a bit and patted my head.
“However…” He said. He then split away from me and went to put on his jacket.
“What? What is it?” I asked.
“Sorry, Antonio. But you hurt us all by dating Michael.” He then turned to Dolores. “Dolores, call up some people and have them come over.” As he slipped on his shoes, he turned to me. “From now on, Antonio, you’re grounded. You won’t be allowed to leave this house. You will come straight home from school everyday. I’ll have some people surrounding the house to make sure you don’t leave.”
“That’s insane!” I protested. “You can’t do that!”
“Actually, I can. Sorry, hermano. But it’s the only way to guarantee your safety.” He opened the door, a gust of cold air entering the living room.
“And where are you going?” Dolores asked Manny.
“I need to talk to Rafa. Then I’ll need to plan a meeting with Jack to discuss all of this.” Manny said. He gave me one last pitiful look before exiting the house.
I guess we won’t be able to run away sooner than we thought.
I just hope Michael is doing okay. And I hope he’s able to defend himself.
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<3