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MARISOL's POV
"vamos comer afuera? (we're gonna eat outside?) " the guys were helping me with the last of plates, meanwhile all my brothers did was follow us back and fourth in and back outside. "yeah so could you please move your balls and boots away and put them in the cubby?"
it's the third time i told mateo and ciro and thiago was just now hearing the sternness in my voice so he ushered the two to put them away. "gracias, amor. (thanks, love)"
i love watching thiago grow up.
he's becoming more helpful with the other two as the days go and we're all starting to notice. it'll slowly start making it less of a hassle.
"es todo? (that's all?)" pedri asks with the rest and i nod my head. "yeah you guys can sit i'm gonna help my dad cut the last of everything."
but pedri would never let me do that.
"what no, i'm coming with."
"but i need someone to watch my little brothers. the grill is still-"
"you have three babysitters behind us. i'll help you." i look up at him with uncertainty but i've trusted my friends before, i can do it again. so i grab pedri's hand and yell out before going inside. "watch them for me!"
"LIKE A HAWK!" we'll see about that.
pedri laughs and holds my hand all the way into the kitchen with my dad. "te olvidó el tomate en la ensalada. (you forgot the tomato in the salad)"
my dad spun around and slapped his hand on his forehead. "por eso se miro tan plano! (that's why it looked so plain!)" i hadn't even realized pedri was already washing them and bringing out a cutting board.
"i don't want you to get a cut, i'll do it."
"but i've done this before!"
"well now you don't have to!" will i ever get to as long as he's around is another good question.
i thank him and help my dad get the rest of everything out the oven. "ya llamaste a tu mama? (did you already call your mom?)"
"en la mañana. (in the morning)"
yeah remember when i said he's only ever allowed to use the grill when she's gone? we meant it. "lo que se pierde! (what she misses!)" he's not wrong, he's never burned anything anyways.
"done." pedri says all of a sudden and my dad and i look as his dumps it in the bowl. "que rápido. (how fast)" my dad points out the same thing i was thinking. but pedri doesn't say anything and stands there with a faint smile before i take it out too.
"that's all, right papa?!"
"todo! (everything!)" he yells back with the tray and ciro and mateo immediately prop themselves on their knees on their chair when they see my dad.
"siéntense. (sit down)" i warn quietly but sternly which receives a laugh from my friends.
"go easy on them." pedri tells me and i hadn't even realized his chest was against my back. "but they act like the food's going anywhere." that only makes him laugh and my dad who makes sure everything is off on the grill.
when he makes his way back, i serve his plate and have everyone come after. "gracias, mija (thank you, daughter)"
i pass him and everyone else a fork after they're served and that's where my little brothers start to get in there. "so you tell them to sit down and wait patiently before but now you're letting them eat like this?" gavi asks. "they always do this." as long as they finish their food i think.
"tenga, amor. (here, love)" pedri was second to last before myself as i also tried to pass ciro a napkin.
"at least wipe your face."
"why if it's gonna get messy again?!"
"tiene punto. (he has a point)" my dad agrees from the table which makes ciro stick his tongue out at me. "áselo otra vez, ahí miras que te pasa. (do it again, you'll see what happens)"
i always love to scare him but i could never go that far because he knows when to stop by now, too.
after everything, i finally get to sit down where pedri waits and has the seat out for me. "is it good?" i ask as i take my seat where my friends are eating worse than ciro.
"this is all i've been wanting since you asked us to come over." ansu says in between bites.
i laugh till i hear the worst sound of a knife on the plate.
"siempre te digo que pides para ayuda, mijo. (i always tell you to ask for help, son)" my dad's voice from next to mateo catches my attention but it seems like pedri took it away immediately after. "te lo hago. (i'll do it for you)"
i try not to watch as he does... but i can't help it.
and from the looks of it, neither can my dad as we make eye contact after having all eyes on pedri. i think the only reason we do this is because mateo can be particular of how his food is cut, not so much who cuts it.
so as we wait for the verdict, or in this case, mateo, i saw from the corner of my eye that thiago was feeding the dogs.
"they ate earlier, it's your turn."
"i had to!"
no, he just always chooses to. especially when it's his vegetables because he knows they'll eat anything.
"when they get sick it's your fault." so maybe i do scare them sometimes.
but he finally stops when i look back at mateo happily eating his food, and my dad happier that he is. meanwhile pedri's acting like nothing happened and continues eating. "no escuché que le diste gracias. (i didn't hear you thank him)"
"gracias (thank you), pedri!" thought so.
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"are you sure you don't wanna play, mari?!"
"yeah come play, amor. (love)" as tempting as that is, i'm still full. "y tu (and you), papa?!" but my brothers won't budge. "entre un ratito (in a little bit), okay?" at least now i'd have my dad all to myself for a little while more.
before they came up to us for what felt like the thousandth time, we were having a nice conversation.
"explícalo otra vez. (explain it again)" he says after they walk away.
"todos en españa nacieron escuchando a quevedo! (everyone in spain was born listening to quevedeo!)" i have yet to go into a club that doesn't play sin señal or his session with bzrap.
i'm not complaining though.
"pero tú naciste aquí y siempre te escucho cantando cuando te arreglas, también cuando manejas, hasta cuando— (but you were born here and i always hear you singing when you're getting ready, also when you drive, even when you—"
"okay ya! (okay enough!)" he's made his point. and he's clearly proud after he giggled to himself.
we calmed a little after he looked back out into the pitch and i followed his motions when i saw ciro running with the ball. "sigue (keep going), ciro!" my dad yells for support.
and he does even though thiago is tailing behind. "ya patealo! (kick it already!)"
i really wanted him to score before thiago could take it away from him so he shoots with his left and it hits the back of the net.
he fell over but when he saw it went in, he got right back up.
i didn't actually know who was on whose team, so when i saw pedri running in ciro's direction... and ciro jump right into his arms, everything in me thought it was melting onto the seat. "me miraron?! (did you guys see me?!)" he yells at my dad and i's direction.
we make sure to clap even more than before and send a big thumbs up his way.
but he's still clinging onto pedri.
"no es esto lo que pedri quería? (isn't this what pedri's been wanting?)"
can you tell? because he also can't stop smiling in my direction. "están empezando a aprobar de el. (they're starting to approve of him)" all of them... and seriously this time. "como va thiago? (how's thiago going?)"
way better. i tell my dad that and he nods slowly. "ni me has preguntado si yo le apruebo. (you haven't even asked me if i approve of him)"
"todos sabemos que le adoras! (we all know you adore him!)"
he would literally rave about him before we got together. "pero ahora como novio! (but now as a boyfriend!)"
well... that is a big difference.
so i give him a pleading look, hoping he does and even if he doesn't, that she should take it easy on us. "no te preocupes, si me gusta como tu novio. (don't worry, i do like him as your boyfriend)"
it's almost like someone heard my prayers. "viera gravado tu diciendo eso. (i should've recorded you saying that)" just for future purposes, of course. "no yo solo siempre ha mirado algo en pedri, tengo confianza con él. (no i've just always seen something in pedri. i have trust with him)"
sometimes too much.
i only say this because last week when he was over, my dad was telling him about my unhealthy obsession over kid's coloring books.
they're just so fun and having little brothers who don't even care for them all that much just leaves them for me to complete.
i'm currently working on finishing a wall-e book.
the fact makes me smile a little as we continue to watch them all. "okay, ya vamos antes que vengan preguntando otra vez. (let's go already before they come asking again)"
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bc my love leo won his 8th ballon d'or tonight, enjoy this chapter