The second date for Javier and Emilia entails going to dinner. Emilia doesn't want to be gone too long since Moy would be at home by himself. Esther also made sure Emilia looked cute, so she bought her a white and pink summer dress with lace accents for her to wear. Javier picks her up from her apartment and they go to a new Italian restaurant that had just opened. After sitting down, they both take in the scenery of the restaurant. Wine bottles on the wall, hand-drawn pictures of Italy, and candles on every table. The server comes over and takes their order-- cheese ravioli for him and homemade lasagna for her.
"So, is it weird for you to eat at restaurants?" Emilia asks.
"What do you mean?"
"You're a cook, so I'm sure you could make any of these items if you wanted to."
"I could, but sometimes it's nice to have someone else do it for you."
"What's your favorite recipe?"
"Hmm," he looks at his water glass before answering. "Arroz con gandules y pollo."
"Ah, okay."
"My mom made it growing up and it was always my favorite, so I asked for the recipe and she showed me."
"Did you write it down?"
"Nope."
"But how--?"
"It's a method. Cooking is more about the intention rather than the recipe. As long as there's love involved, and the right amount of seasoning, it's going to be good no matter what."
"Yeah, no. That's a nice sentiment, but I can not cook to save my life."
"Maybe we can change that," his smile appears again and Emilia is hot all of a sudden. The server comes by with their bread and frees Emilia from his gaze. She is thankful for the interruption.
Soon after their bread arrives their entrees.
"Buen provecho," she initiates.
"Buen provecho," he responds.
They tuck into their meals.
"So, could you make ravioli?"
"Yeah, but I would need a pasta machine."
"Oh, that sounds like a lot of work."
"Eh, with one person it is," he gives her a wink and Emilia smiles.
"What made you want to be in the kitchen?"
"I wasn't looking for it, but my pops insisted I work somewhere if I wanted my own money to spend so I started as a dishwasher at Aunt May's. I saw the line and fell in love with the smells, the sounds, the flavors. I said to myself 'I want to cook.' So, that's what I did."
"How long ago was that?"
"Since senior year of high school."
"Wow. You must really like it, then."
"I love it."
A pause ensues and they lock eyes for a moment.
"What about you?" he breaks the silence.
"Oh, I just work at a law firm during the day."
"Okay. I see you. Wanna be a lawyer?"
"Yeah," she responds, lowering her head. He notices her softened tone.
"What's wrong?"
"Nada," tears are coming on strong fro Emilia and she has trouble keeping them at bay. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I'm crying." She gives a stifled laugh to try to stop her tears.
"Está bien," he reaches over and wipes the tears streaming down her face. She is startled by the gesture, but welcomes it. He smiles gently. "I can tell it means a lot to you." Emilia nods in agreement. She dries her eyes and they continue with their meal.
At the end of their entree, the server asks about dessert and Javier orders tiramisu for them to share. On the last two bites, Javier insists Emilia finishes it.
"I think you're trying to get me fat."
"It's only two bites, you'll be fine."
"Okay, but this is the second dessert with you. First, ice cream, now tiramisu. What's next--?"
Before Emilia could finish her sentence, he finishes it for her.
"Brownies."
"What?" Emilia's eyes get wide.
"There's this bakery that apparently has the best brownies ever. I wanna take you there."
"Oh, Javier, that's really nice of you," she is at a loss for words-- again.
"That's only if you want to. I really enjoy spending time with you, so.." his voice trails off and so do his eyes. His eyes now gaze at the wall.
"Yes," she responds softly. "Yes, I want to go with you."
He smiles.
"And what about after that?"
"Maybe we can go see a movie?" she looks into his eyes.
"And after that?"
"Javier, are you asking me out?"
"No, I've already asked you out," he grins. "I'm asking-- quieres ser mi novia?"
Time freezes for Emilia and she is shocked into silence. Did he really just ask her that? Before she even thinks, she responds.
"Sí, quiero ser tu novia."
His smile is wide and she blushes, smiling back. After she finishes the last two bites, they leave and he drops her off.
As she gets into bed, a message from Javier buzzes.
Buenas noches princesa
Buenas noches cariño
That was the first time she had ever called anyone that-- and this made her smile to herself.
Over the next few weeks, summer break would come to an end for Moises and he began his freshman year of high school. Emilia's relationship with Javier has been great, better than what she was expecting. He took her to the bakery like he promised and they also went to see a movie together. On his evenings off, they would hang out if possible and Emilia treasured every moment. This is the first relationship she felt secure in, but she had her doubts. When she worked at the diner, she would act shy around him, but he would steal a few kisses every now and then.
It's a Wednesday night at the diner, and the crowd is a little slow. Emilia is grabbing drinks for another table when a customer walks in. He sits at one of her tables and she walks up to greet them.
"Hi, welcome to Aun--" she stops mid-sentence upon seeing that it's him. Isaiah Rojas. She gathers herself quickly. "Aunt May's."
"Hey, Em."
"Hey, Isaiah. What are you doin' here?"
"Thought I would stop by. I go back to Baylor next week, so hitting all my favorite spots before I leave."
"Oh. Well, what can I get for you?"
"Just a strawberry milkshake," he smiles.
"You sure that's all?"
"At least for now. Might get hungry later."
"Alright. Be right back."
Emilia turns around to make his shake and sees Javier through the ticket window. Great. She quickly makes his shake and serves it to him, then begins to bus empty tables. Emilia makes every effort to avoid talking to Isaiah in hopes of not making matters worse for her and Javier. Isaiah soon finishes his shake, pays and tips Emilia, then leaves. She had never been so relieved.
Emilia and Javier close the diner for the night. While walking to their cars, Javier inquires.
"So, who was the milkshake guy?"
Ugh. Here we go.
"Someone I went to high school with."
"That's it?"
"Yeah. That's it. No, we never dated."
"Hm," Javier isn't convinced and this unsettles Emilia.
"'Hm' what? Why would I lie to you?" her tone rises.
Javier raises his hands. "No dije nada."
"You didn't have to," she opens her car door and gets in, then pulls off shortly after.
Agitated, Emilia enters her apartment and hears Moy playing his guitar.
"Moy, you should be in bed," she knocks on his door and opens it. He continues playing and she sees tears falling down his face.
"Hey, qué pasó?"
"Nothing," he sniffs, continuing to strum. Emilia sighs and sits on the bed next to him.
"Is it school?"
"Yeah, I guess," he avoids eye contact.
"Are your classes fine?"
"Yeah," he remains short with her.
"Well, you know you can tell me anything, right?"
"Yeah," he repeats.
"How about I grab some donuts before school tomorrow? How does that sound?"
Moises nods his head, placing his guitar back in its case.
"Okay. Well, get some sleep, okay? Love you," she kisses the top of his head.
"Always. Love you," he gets under his sheets and she turns his lights off, closing the door behind her.
Emilia changes and gets ready for bed herself. She checks her phone. No messages. She huffs and gets under the covers. She hoped her relationship wasn't already getting rocky.
The next morning, Emilia wakes up and sees a message from Javier. Even more importantly, she notices the time. Moy was catching the bus in less than thirty minutes and she promised him donuts. She dashes out of her bed, throws a jacket on, and races to the nearest donut shop. She buys two glazed and two chocolate glazed and hurries back just in time to give him his treat.
"Are you still in your pjs?"
"Yeah, but I got the donuts. That's all that matters."
Moises hugs her before grabbing the donuts and taking a bite out of one.
"Thanks, sis!" he says with a mouth full.
"Have a good day at school!"
As he walks to the bus stop, she closes the apartment door and sighs. What a day already.
She gets dressed and finally reads the text message.
Sorry about last night, I shouldn't have assumed anything
She replies.
It's okay. Yo entiendo
This makes Emilia feel better and she continues her day.
By the weekend, Emilia is back to feeling secure in her relationship. Her and Javier hung out at a park and had a mini picnic Thursday night. She never felt so in love with someone. It's Saturday night and she is off from the diner. Emilia promised Moy he could spend the night at a friend's house, so she stays home and is watching a telenovela. She is in the middle of watching an intriguing episode when her phone buzzes. It's from Esther.
Sorry girl
There is a picture attached and Emilia opens it to find Javier cozied up next to one of the servers outside of the restaurant.
"Hm," was all she could say.
A/N
yeahhhh he's the bad guy nowww :/ but fear not! plenty of other plots twists coming up!
translations:
arroz con gandules y pollo- rice with beans and chicken (classic Puerto Rican dish that is suuuper good)
buen provecho- the equivalent of "bon appetite"
nada- nothing
está bien- it's okay
quieres ser mi novia?- do you want to be my girlfriend?
quiero ser tu novia- i want to be your girlfriend
buenas noches- good night
princesa- princess
cariño- dear/honey
no dije nada- i didn't say anything
qué pasó?- what's wrong?/what happened?
yo entiendo- i understand