3:40 PM - The Rodriguez’s Residence
It was a five minute drive from Amora's school to his parent's house. He listened to Amora tell him about her day and all the new things that she and Uncle Noel did. How she wasn't friends with Henry anymore because her NEW friend, Selene, didn't like him because he farts a LOT.
"And that is soooo disgusting! Selene even says so!" Amora added.
"Well, Selene sounds like a smart girl, but you know everyone farts." He chuckled under his breath as he made the last turn that put him on his parents street. Noel turned to him with an exasperated look on his face. He wasn’t a major fan of farting or discussing anything that generally had to do with the human body he found to be repulsive, especially when discussed so casually.
"HUH!?" His little girl exclaimed from her booster seat. "Even Abuela?"
"Yes, but if you tell her I told you that no more cookies for you before bed." He looked in the rear view mirror in time to see Amora make the motion of 'zipping her lips' while she stared out the window of the houses passing by.
“Really, man?” Noel looked incredulously at him from the passenger seat of his Jeep. Freeman snorted. “You want to see me hurl, don’t you?”
"Hey! We’re almost to Abuela's street!"
"We sure are." Noel replied, grasping at anything that meant a change of subject. He was still staring at Freeman, shaking his head.
"YAY! I can’t wait to see Abuela and Papá!!" Amora stated as she started counting off each person on her tiny hand that was suppose to be at his parents house.
"Daddy, will Bisabuela be there, too?"
"I would expect so, bebita."
Freeman pulled into the driveway and put his Jeep Cherokee in park. Sliding out of the drivers seat, he made his way around the the back door, Noel had already opened it and was whispering to his daughter, but stepped back as soon as he saw Freeman. He raised his eyebrow at his brother before turning to help Amora unbuckle her five point harness, lifting her out of the back and setting her on the ground. Her feet had barely touched before she was off on a run towards the front door.
"ABUELA!! PAPA!! WE’RE HERE!" She yelled as loud as she could while opening the front door.
He could hear his parents already crooning over their only Grand Daughter before he even shut the back door to the hummer. He had to mentally prepare himself for the onslaught that was going to ensue as soon as he walked passed the threshold.
‘"MOMO!" Sophia had squealed. "Mommy! LOOK! It’s Momo!"
Faye turned around just as Amora reached her, wrapping her tiny arms around her legs. "MOMMY!! MMM! I missed you so much, Mommy. When are you coming home?"
Faye was visibly shaken, but Freeman made no move to remove his daughter or to add to the situation. He merely slowed his pace even more so while grabbing items from the grocery list that he and his daughter had made before they left the house.
"Please, Mommy!" Sophia exclaimed, tugging on her Mother's blouse. "Please can we go home and be with Amora and Daddy!"
"Girls.." Faye reached down and picked up Amora, kissing her on the forehead. Lingering longer than she normally would have. Freeman yearned to kiss those lips again. To hold Faye in his arms, but she chose to leave them. She chose another man.
He knew he was being childish. Eli was Sophia's biological child, but she was HIS daughter. He'd raised her. He'd been there through Faye's entire pregnancy. He'd was the there the day Faye brought Sophia into this world and he cut the cord. HE signed the birth certificate. He'd vowed to always take care of them both that day. He even bought an engagement ring, but the night he planned to purpose...
"Freeman?" His mother called from the doorway, shattering his inner thoughts of that day. "Hijo, ven el interior de la cena está lista ahora no hacen esperar abuela!!"
"Sí, sí, estoy viniendo!" he sighed and pushed away from the car. "Que va a estar allí hasta que yo venga ¿no es cierto!"
"Si lo que necesita para darse prisa." Slapping her hand against her hip. "La abuela quiere hablar con usted!"
Freeman wrapped his arm around his Mother's shoulders and kissed her on top of her head, "Te amo mamá!"
"Oh!" His Mother playfully swatted him with the dish towel she was carrying and headed inside with Freeman following behind her. "Cerrar la puerta detrás de ti!"
“I swear, she says she has no favorites, but…” Noel widened his eyes at Freeman, before turning to follow their Mother inside their parents home, which Noel currently lived. He’d had a roommate and both were renting a flat in Simifornia, but for whatever reason he moved back here and his Mother didn’t think it was her place to ask her grown son any questions. If it’d been him, she would have been all over him for answers like bee’s on Honey.
Freeman turned and eyed Jaymie’s old house was finally occupied by new owners. A little blonde girl, with shoulder length curly hair was running through the front yard, a golden lab hot on her heels. Not want to be caught staring, he turned and headed towards the front door. Upon entering he saw that his eldest brother, Carlos, was already seated at the table and his sister-in-law was helping his Mother in the kitchen. Amora was sitting on his Father's lap showing him the book she drew at school on Friday for learning the letter, "W." His Abuela was sitting at the opposite end of the table on the right watching everyone around her. Not wanting to startle her, Freeman cleared his throat before entering the room and stopped to kiss her cheek.
"Hola Abuela."
"Oh mi nieto no está," she patted his hand and pressed it to her cheek. "Tenemos mucho que discutir!"
@charsimatic