My fingers dig into my thighs. Thing is, I should have been there earlier so this never happened in the first place.
My phone buzzes repeatedly from our family group chat checking in on Dahlia. It hasn’t stopped since I told them about her hospital visit, although Dahlia has remained silent until now.
LILY
How’s it going?
S.S.
Never been better.
Dahlia attaches a photo of her broken arm that makes my stomach churn.
ROSA
Dahlia!
LILY
Add a content warning next time, freak.
She adds three green-faced emojis after.
MAMI
How are you texting right now?
S.S.
One-handed.
LILY
The talent.
S.S.
More like boredom.
RAFA
Nico wants to know if he can draw something on your cast this Sunday.
S.S.
Sure.
The night goes by painstakingly slow as I wait for Dahlia, giving me plenty of time to mull over my selfish decision to leave her all alone.
I told myself a hundred different times that I don’t care about Dahlia—that any romantic feelings I had toward her died long ago—yet here I am, making myself sick over how she got hurt because of me.
Truth is, I do care about Dahlia, regardless of whether I want to or not.
Caring about someone isn’t the end of the world, I tell myself.
Except Dahlia isn’t someone.
She is so much more.
The thought has me jumping out of my chair. Instead of sitting around and stewing in my thoughts, I end up raiding the vending machine and purchasing a few wraps from the cafeteria. I like being useful, and everything about today has me feeling the complete opposite.
After another hour, Dahlia walks out of the two doors with her left arm wrapped in a purple cast and a reminder card for an appointment booked four weeks from now.
Relief hits me instantly like a wrecking ball to the chest.
She’s okay.
Of course she’s okay, you dumbass. It’s a broken arm, not open-heart surgery.
“Hey.” She fidgets with a loose thread on her sling.
“Nice color.”
“It’s my favorite.”
I know. I grab the plastic bag off the floor and offer it to her.
“What’s that?” She stares at the offering like an armed bomb.
“Food.” My right eye twitching speaks louder than any words.
She sifts through the bag. “Why would you get me—Mini M&M’s!” The childish squeal that comes out of her makes my mission to find it totally worth it. “I haven’t had these in years.”
“Why not?” I can’t imagine her going a week without some, let alone years.
Her cheeks flush. “Filming diet and all that fun stuff.”
“That’s stupid.” Based on the weight she has lost, she could use all the M&M’s money can buy.
Her eyes roll. “I wouldn’t expect you to understand.” She attempts to rip at the plastic wrapper covering the tube. Despite her struggles, she refuses to ask me for any help, so I pluck the container from her hand.
“Give it back!” She tries to swipe it back with her good arm.
I hold it up above her head and tear the plastic off. To spite her for being difficult, I pop open the cap and pour some into my mouth before passing the container back.
She peers inside the tube. “You ate almost half of them!”
I reach inside the bag and pull out the second tube hidden beneath the turkey wrap and a bag of chips.
Her gasp of surprise feels like a victory. “You got me two? Why?”
“They were on sale.” The lie comes out easily.
“If you keep doing things like this, I might end up thinking you’re a nice guy or something.”
“We can’t have that.” I reach for the bag, only for her to sidestep me.
“Never mind. Your reputation as an asshole is alive and well.”
“And don’t you forget it.” I turn and head toward the exit while shielding my smile from the one woman who always finds a way to bring it out, whether she knows it or not.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Julian
I park my truck beside Rafa’s beat-up one and hop out. Unlike me, my cousin doesn’t live on the lake. Instead, after his divorce, he chose to purchase land at the top of the farthest hill away from town, where he could have a fresh start away from any prying eyes.
My mom used to say people do weird things once they make a lot of money, and I never understood what she meant until Rafa started fostering unwanted farm animals and being one with the land after Hillary left.
I swear, the man is one step away from signing up for one of those competitive wilderness shows.
“Fina told me you took Dahlia to the hospital yesterday.” Rafa cuts to the chase as soon as I walk through his front door.
“Did you invite me over here to hang out or for an interrogation?”
“A mix of both.” He tucks his hands in his front pockets.
“At least you’re honest.”
He shoots me a look before walking away.
The style of his house is completely different from mine—it feels warm and lived-in, with its oak floors and Nico’s artwork hanging on every wall. The paint colors were chosen by Nico, with each room matching a different pair of my godson’s glasses.
Not my cousin’s smartest design choice, but one made out of love nonetheless.
I follow behind him, only to take a detour toward the classical music playing from the conservatory. Nico sits at the piano with his nanny and music teacher, Ellie. They play in tandem, perfectly in sync as their fingers fly across the keys.
Ellie’s body sways to the music, making her blonde hair shift with the melody.
“Did you get lost on your way to the kitchen?” Rafa says.
Ellie hits the keys all wrong, making the most horrific noise.
“I wanted to say hi to Nico.”
“Tío!” Nico slides off the bench and runs toward me. His coordination is a bit off because of his eye condition, but he jumps into my arms with all the momentum he can muster.
“Hey, you.” I ruffle his hair before tipping my chin toward Ellie. “Nice to see you again.”
She rises from her seat. “Likewise.”
“Is Rafa making you work on Saturdays now?”
“Not usually, but he inconveniently forgot to tell me he needed my help today.” She doesn’t bother hiding her annoyance.
Ellie never gets flustered. I’ve watched her be thrown up on by a sick Nico, get kicked in the stomach by one of Rafa’s goats, and twist her ankle during a hike, but I’ve never seen her look like this.
I spare my cousin a glance, only to find him glaring at Ellie. I’m not sure what’s wrong with him, but he needs to figure his shit out and get himself under control before he scares her away like he did all previous nannies. Whether by playing instruments together or learning to read braille, Ellie stands apart from the others with how she goes out of her way to help Nico and support him with his retinitis pigmentosa diagnosis.
Nico still values his independence like every normal eight-year-old kid, but sadly, it is only a matter of time before he completely loses his sight, a reality that has been stressing Rafa out as my godson’s vision worsens.
“Sorry you had to cancel your date.” Rafa’s face might be blank, but his eyes remind me of two burning coals.