"Mija!" I wake up to the lovely yells from my mother. The sudden noise makes my body jump and wake up immediately. It gives me flash backs to when I was in high school and my mother would yell at me every Sunday for me to go to church. And that's what's happening now.
"Mija you need to get ready for church" she comes into my old room and opens the window. My parents are very religious so even though I'm a grownup with a grownup boyfriend we still need to sleep in different rooms.
"Okay" I mumble feeling myself sinking deeper into my bed.
"Mija get up, get your boyfriend and let's go to God's house" My mother is the most religious person in our family. My father and my brothers only goes to church for my mom's sake.
"Okay mamá" I reply and slowly get up.
I hear her fumbling in my suitcase before sighing.
"Mija you haven't brought any church clothes" she says and goes to my old closet.
"I brought my nice jeans" I say into my pillow and I can almost hear my mother aggressively shaking her head.
"You're going to thank Jesus for your life in jeans?" She says followed by a "no".
"Mamá" I say and turn to lay on my back to I can sense what she's doing in my closet. I'm sure she'll find a white fancy dress for me to wear as she has bought many dresses for me over the years.
"I go make breakfast" she says and kisses my forehead. It's no secret that my family is Mexican and I kinda stand out like the easiest where's Waldo picture. But my family loves me unconditionally. Normally Mexican moms have a soft spot for their sons but with my mother it's the opposite. Maybe it's because I'm the youngest and only girl but she has always had a soft spot for me.
"Thanks mamá" I say as she leaves my room to go make breakfast. Bringing Hiccup to my childhood home at first make me nervous but now I'm more relaxed. He's the first boyfriend I bring home to meet the family so I had no idea how they were going to react. Luckily, I think it all went well.
As the sun is staring directly at me I know I need to get up and so I do. As I sit up on my bed I notice the white dress at the foot of my bed. It's a white lace dress my mom bought me for Christmas. She always wanted a daughter but as she typically says she got 6 sons instead.
And buying me dresses haven't made me more of a girly girl.
But despite my inner tomboy screaming no I still put on the dress. It falls down on my body like a white waterfall. I calm my messy morning hair before going to wake Hiccup up.
I run to the other side of the hall and slowly open the door to my brother's old room. It still has his old soccer posters on the walls. I tiptoe to the bed before jumping on Hiccup.
"Good morning" I yell as I lay on top of him. He wakes up immediately and yelps in pain.
"Good morning" he whispers in pain. His arms wraps around me and he pulls me down to lie besides him. He spoons me and whispers in my ear:
"I love you"
Hiccup is a hopeless romantic I've known this since our first meeting. So telling me that he loves me randomly has almost become a routine.
"Love you too sleepy head" I turn around and push him off the bed.
"Hey is that the way you want to treat yours truly" he says with a pouty face. I laugh as a response and help him up from the ground.
"Come on my mom made breakfast" I say and drag him out of bed.
Breakfast at my house is always chaos. My mom makes a mountain of food since my 5 brothers eat like a couple of hungry lions. Hiccup and I walk downstairs to greet the other.
"Morning" I say as we enter the living room.
"Morning Mija, ready for church" my dad is sitting on his chair with a large cup of coffee in his hand.
"Ay Mija you look beautiful" My mom splurge and kisses my cheek.
"Thanks mom"
We all eat breakfast in somewhat peace. My uncle, the storyteller that he is, is telling Hiccup about my graduation party. The whole street was partying till the sun came up.
After breakfast Hiccup sweetly offers to help with the dishes but my mom refuses.
"Go enjoy your coffee" My mother seems to really like Hiccup which makes me very happy as he has become a very important person in my life. And even though three of my brothers still try to act tough around him the rest of my family loves him. I'm sad my oldest brother, Juan, couldn't be here. But he moved a town away to work as a mechanic for one of his friends.
As I help my mom with the dishes a thought strikes my mind.
"Mom do we have enough car space to get to the church?" My uncle of course has his cab and my dad has a truck that can hold 5 people but we're still a seat short.
"Your tío is driving me, your father and your cousins to help set some stuff up at the church, so Diego is driving you, Hiccup and your brothers" she explains and hands me a pan to dry.
"So who gets to walk?" I put the pan in the cabinet beside the oven before grabbing the baking pan my mom quickly hands me. She's a pro and I can't keep up with her.
"Hiccup. I thought he needed to feel the real Missouri spirit" My mom says jokingly.
"Nothing better than walking on the highway" I continue the joke.
"No Matías got a motorcycle so he's riding that, even though I told him Jesus don't like to ride death machines he still loves to ride that thing" she says and sighs. All my 5 brothers wanted a motorcycle but my mom forbid all of them to buy one. Matias has always been the rebel of the family so it's no surprise he bought a motorcycle.
"Oh Matias" I laugh as I can imagine the anger he got from my mom when he bought that.
"Yes I pray every Sunday he doesn't get in an accident" she says worriedly.
"Aww mamá he's a good driver" I say remembering him trying to teach me how to drive a car. I know how to drive but haven't gotten my driver's license yet since I've always filled my free time with studies.
"Yeah yeah" she replies and turn off the sink.
"It's not easy having children Mija" my mom says out of the blue. I put the last plate in the cabinet before turning my head to her.
"It's like having your heart running around in the world" my mom is a very strong woman. All my life she's been my strong female role model but she's incredibly sensitive when it comes to her children.
"Mamá" I grab her hand as a tear runs down her cheek.
"I'm just so happy you're okay. I can't loose you" her arms wraps around me as she hugs me close. My mom is the best hugger in the world.
"I'm okay" I say to calm her down and when we pull apart she seems to be okay.
"Astrid" she says seriously "I know you think religion is silly".
"Mamá" I say trying to defend myself but my mom cuts me off.
"It's okay didn't believe in God either when I was younger" and close my mouth and listen to my mother's story.
"But when you have kids you know there must be something bigger than us. And when you almost loose a child that's when you're ensured there's a God" she kisses my forehead before holding me close. I close my eyes and hug her.
"En la enfermedad y en la salud estamos aquí el uno para el otro" I say and my mother smiles "that's what you taught me".
"Gloria, mi amor, we're leaving" my mother gives me one last kiss before leaving with my father.
Now it's just me, my brothers and Hiccup in the house. But when I go to the living room to find my boyfriend he is gone. I go upstairs hoping my brothers haven't decided to have a brother to boyfriend talk with him.
I walk to my brother's old room but he's not I. There. The room is still dark and the sun is trying its best to get trough the curtains. I walk across the room to let the sun in. The sun lights up the room and turns the cave into a living space. But that's when I notice something catching my eye.
Hiccup's darks blue passport is lying open on the dresser. He had tried his best not to let me see his passport picture when we were at the airport. But it's not the Eagle or bad passport picture that catches my eye. It's the name on the passport.
Hiccup Horrendous Haddock.
As children, most of us were instructed that lying is bad and that we must never lie. We were admonished when we strayed too far from the truth. When people lie to us, we view them unfavorably and treat them accordingly.
And now Hiccup's lie is out in the open. Astrid knows, how do you think she'll react?
Spoiler for next chapter:
"I need you to sign a contract about your future in Haddock industry"