“Oh, fun!” Her excitement is laced with a tinge of shock. “I didn’t know you were such a big fan. Your brothers will be so proud.”
I have a big family. Besides my parents, I have twin sisters and two brothers, of which I’m smack dab in the middle. It’s chaos when we’re all together, but I love it. My sisters are both ten years younger than I am, while my brothers are only one and two years older than me. I love to tease the twins about being surprise babies, which they definitely were. My parents were adamant that they were done having children, but a few weeks after returning home from a vacation to Tulum, Mexico, they learned she was pregnant. They were shocked at first but happy. Then when they discovered they were having twins, it took a while for them to come to terms with that.
“I’m sure they will be.” I roll my eyes even though she can’t see me. “I’ve always liked soccer, Mami; I’ve just never been to a game outside of Marcos’ and Rafael’s. Never had a reason to.”
“I know,hijita, just teasing you! How is Norah?” She’s only met Norah once but loved her from the get-go.
“She’s good. She recently started dating one of the soccer players, which is why we were at the game.” I wince. I won’t lie to my Mami about anything,but I really regret saying that. She’s constantly hounding me about dating.
“¡No me digas!” she says in disbelief. “Good for her! I didn’t think she’d ever come out of her shell. Maybe she has a friend for you too, eh?”
I roll my eyes again.
“Mamá, stop,” I beg.
“I was already married with babies at your age,mija…”
Pinching the bridge of my nose, I inhale deeply. The last thing I want to do is lash out at my mother, but this conversation is getting old.
“Yes, I’m aware. But that doesn’t mean I have to be as well. Do you badger the boys like this? Neither one of them is married,” I remind her.
“No, of course not. But that’s because they’re always bringing someone over to meet me, so I know there’s hope for them. I just worry about you, Layla. I don’t want you to be lonely,” she says warmly.
“I’m not lonely. I have friends that I spend time with practically every day.”
Finally at home, I get out of the car and climb the steps to my front door, peeking into the mailbox and finding only cobwebs.
“I didn’t meanthatkind of lonely. I meant theotherkind of lonely. You know, the romantic kind…” Mamá hedges.
I drop my keys. “Are you talking about…no. Please no.”
“I’m just saying,” she starts before I cut her off.
“Nope. Not having this conversation. Also, why are you even thinking about that? What parents encourage their kids to have…sex?”I shudder as I fumble with my keys. Once I’m finally through the door, I set my purse on the small table next to it.
“The kind of parents that know their kids aren’t kids anymore. You’re a beautiful young woman. You should be experiencing life inevery way,Layla.”
My parents have never shied away from showing affection for each other in front of us. They’re very passionate and proud of it.
“¡Por favor, Mami!” I grimace. “Okay, new topic. How are Cori and Jaz?”
I’m referring to my twin sisters, Corisande and Jazmina. Their names were inspired by flowers but could be a mouthful, so my brotherschristened them Cori and Jaz.
Mamá lets out an amused snort. “They’re both fine. Fully embracing being teenagers. You and your brothers were so much easier. These two—ay ay ay. They’ll turn me gray before I turn fifty.”
I laugh because she is absolutely ridiculous. She’s only forty-six and beautiful—doesn’t look her age at all. We’re frequently mistaken for sisters whenever we’re together, and Mami loves it.
“Papá will still love you with a little silver in there,” I tease her.
She sighs wistfully. “It’s true. I think he’d love me even if I went bald and wore a burlap sack everywhere.”
“He absolutely would,” I agree.
I’m not in any hurry to be in a relationship, but I do hope that, one day, my partner will love me the way my father loves my mother.
“Speaking of your Papá, he just walked in the door. Want to say hi to him?”
“Yeah, of course.” It wouldn’t matter if I wanted to or not. She’d still pass the phone to him.
