Viva la Revolución
Ship: Suspenders & Pens
A/N: These kids are gonna make Rafa go even grayer
Rafael and Nic sat expectantly on the couch, waiting for the twins. They told their parents they had something they wanted to talk about, and neither had the faintest idea why. Finally the twins came bounding down the stairs, standing in front of the fireplace. They both had small stacks of notecards in their hands.
“Mami, Papi, thank you for coming,” began Lina.
“As you know, we don’t ask for much,” Beth added. “But we’ve had a meeting and made a joint decision for our birthday.”
“Oh?” Nic raised a brow as she and Rafael exchanged a look. “What is this decision?”
“We would like a tv in our room as an early birthday present,” Lina explained.
“And we have a list of reasons why we believe we deserve one,” Beth told them. “Reason one: Because it would be really cool.”
“Reason two: Less fighting over the tv before bed,” Lina added.
“Reason three: we–”
“You’re not getting a tv in your bedroom,” Rafael told them.
The twins looked at each in shock before looking back at their parents. “Why not?” they asked in unison.
“Because you’re nine,” Rafael began.
“We’ll be ten in two months!” Beth argued.
“And,” he added, “it’s hard enough to get you both to do your homework. You don’t need a distraction in your room.”
“Eso no es justo!” Lina exclaimed.
“You’re not getting a tv in your room until you’re in middle school. End of discussion,” Rafael said. “Now go get ready for bed.”
The twins huffed angrily, stomping towards the staircase and up the stairs to their room. They grumbled to each other in twin-lish, their own made up language, and Nic sighed as she watched them go.
“We could have least heard them out,” she said to her husband.
“I didn’t have a tv in my room growing up.” Rafael stood up to get a glass of water from the kitchen. “They can wait a few years.”
Lina and Beth were still upset in the morning, practically giving their father the silent treatment. Their Aunt Abby picked them up for the day to take the twins to a new bookshop that opened in Queens. But secretly they were plotting, and that evening when everyone was winding down for the night, the twins marched into their parents’ bedroom. Nic had just finished brushing her teeth when they entered, and Rafael paused the show they were watching. Beth confidently held out a piece of paper to their father who took it in confusion. Nic walked over to her husband, glancing down at the paper in his hand.
“What’s this?” he asked the twins.
“Ten signatures for our petition,” Lina explained simply.
“Petition?” Rafael asked in disbelief. They nodded. “Petition for what?”
“To get us a tv in our room,” she said.
Beth crossed her arms. “We have the signed support from Aunt Abby, Uncle Sonny, Aunt Bella and Uncle Tommy, Uncle Eddie—”
“—Aunt Liv, Uncle Fin, Miss Carmen, Mr. McCoy–” Lina added.
“You got a signature from my boss?!” Rafael shrieked, looking at the paper and recognizing the signature from the District Attorney. “How?” He looked at his daughters, and Nic bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.
“Uncle Sonny introduced us. We’re very persuasive,” they said in unison, smiling at their father. If he hadn’t seen them do that their entire lives he would be freaked out.
“But we got the most important signature,” Beth told him, pointing at the list.
“Abuelita,” they both said.
Rafael stared at his mother’s name at the bottom of the list. She always spoiled the twins. He shook his head as he looked up at them. “This changes nothing. The answer is still no.”
The twins’ eyes hardened to a glare. “Esto es guerra, Papi,” they told him before walking out of the bedroom.
Nic looked down at her husband in amusement. “I don’t think you realize what you’ve started.”
He scoffed. “They’re nine, and there’s two of them. How much trouble can they be?”
She patted his shoulder. “They’re also your daughters.” She walked back into the bathroom as Rafael looked back down at the petition.
The next morning was oddly quiet as Rafael and Nic woke up. Mariana and Freddie weren’t there to wake them up like usual, and for a moment Nic was worried they were sick. But neither were in their rooms, and as she went to check and see if the twins knew the whereabouts of their younger siblings, she realized they weren’t in their room either. With furrowed brows, they headed downstairs to the living room. It was there they saw the coffee table moved to the side and all four of their children sitting on the floor in front of the couch.
“What’s this?” Nic asked as she walked over to them.
“We’re exercising our right to protest,” Beth explained.
Her twin nodded in agreement. “We’re standing up against an oppressive authority.”
Rafael’s mouth fell open as his wife let out a laugh. “When I told you to use your rights I meant when you dealt with a dictator at school or the government, not me!”
“This is something that will benefit all of us,” Lina said, gesturing to Freddie and Mariana next to her. “And we’re not moving until you give in to our demands.”
“Viva la Revolución!” Freddie shouted.
“Viva la Revolución!” The twins and Mariana repeated.
Wide eyed Rafael looked at his wife, but Nic threw her hands up. “Hey, they’re protesting you, not me.” She bent down to look at her children, amusement evident on her face. “Would the revolution like to have breakfast down here?”
“Yes, please, Mami,” Beth replied, nodding.
Nic chuckled. “How about churro waffles?”
“With chocolate sauce!” Freddie requested excitedly.
“Coming right up.” Nic stood up and walked past her husband, patting his chest. “Good luck,” she whispered to him.
The kids sat there all day, opting to have all of their meals there. Rafael was surprised to find Freddie and Mariana so strong in their resolve, and it scared him for the years to come. Already the kids were proving to be a force to be reckoned with. Even when dinner arrived they didn’t budge.
“Alright, this has gone on all day. Come to the table and have dinner,” Rafael told them, arms folded. They didn’t move, Lina and Beth glaring up at him with determination in their eyes. “If you come to the table you can have ice cream after dinner,” he bribed.
Mariana and Freddie looked at each other then to the twins. “I want ice cream,” Mariana whispered.
“Stay strong,” Lina told them.
“Qué haría Dora?” Beth asked her little sister.
A look of intensity came over Mariana at the mention of her animated hero. “Mantener mi posición.”
The siblings nodded at each other before looking up at their dad.
“Comemos aquí abajo,” Beth replied to him.
He sighed heavily, marching into the kitchen where his wife was plating dinner. “Not even ice cream will get them up. What the hell do we do?”
“Give in?” Nic suggested, looking at him. “They’re stubborn like you are. I doubt they’ll move any time soon. And what harm would a tv do? We could always put a parental lock on it.”
“When the twins were born we agreed that any children we have would be allowed to have a tv once they were in middle school,” he reminded her.
“That was before they inherited your stubbornness.” She pointed the spatula at him. “Face it, Rafa. The kids have you beat.”
“Us. We’re supposed to be holding a united front.”
“For things like curfew and dating. In the grand scheme of things a tv is so… trivial.”
After dinner ended they still wouldn’t move. Rafael was close to admitting defeat, and he still wasn’t sure if he was scared or proud of his children.
“You know what? You talk some sense into them since they’re so much like me,” he told Nic. “I’m taking a shower.” He headed up the stairs.
“Have you gotten them up yet?” he asked as he walked down the stairs. He looked over to the couch and his mouth dropped open. Nic was sitting with them now. “What happened?” Rafael walked over to them.
“They really are very persuasive,” Nic told him as she sat beside Beth. “And honestly, I always wanted a tv in my room growing up. I think we should get them the tv.”
He gaped at her for a long moment, all four of the kids waiting for a reply from him. “You win.” he threw his hands up before putting them on his hips. “Me rindo. We’ll get you a tv in your room, but you’ll have to wait for your birthday.”
“Deal,” the twins agreed.
“Does this mean we can leave?” Freddie asked.
“Yep,” Beth told him.
“I have to pee!” Mariana yelled, getting up and running to the bathroom on that floor.
“Me too!” Freddie exclaimed, following his sister’s lead but heading to the second floor bathroom.
“I’ll use Freddie’s bathroom!” Lina said as she and Beth jumped up also to use the bathroom.
“We can shake on it after we get back!” Beth yelled as they ran up the stairs.
Nic and Rafael laughed, shaking their heads at their children. He walked over to where she sat on the floor and dropped next to her.
“Those kids are going to rule the world one day,” he joked, resting his head against hers.
She bumped his knee with hers. “And whose fault is that?”
“Ours,” he kissed her cheek, “for making such smart kids.”
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