Chapter 25: Hangout. 

"Hello~! Edward. We're here~!" Manny rang the doorbell at my house after he came with Jay and Gloria.

Wearing a black apron, I opened the door and saw the little family. Gloria was wearing a tight, floral print dress, Jay was wearing business casual clothes, and Manny in his puffy bowling shirt as usual.

"Oh Geez." Jay exclaimed as he saw my attire. I wonder if he was having Mitchell's flashback inside his mind.

"What? I don't want to ruin my shirt." I said defensively. I had tied up my hair into a bun, and was holding a spatula in my hand. I also folded my long sleeve shirt to the elbow to avoid it getting dirty from cooking.

"Are you cooking? It smells good!" Gloria asked after her nose had picked up on the smell.

"Yeah. I'm making a spicy and crispy chicken burger." I replied. "You're not allergic to anything are you?" I asked Manny.

"No. I'm fine with everything." Manny replied.

"Come in. Let's talk inside." I invited them. Jay said, "No need, we need to get-"

"Vamos Jay!" Gloria and Manny had entered the house before Jay could even decline the invitation. Jay lowered his head in defeat and entered the house reluctantly. I hurried my steps toward the kitchen as I was frying the chicken at the moment.

"Phew…" I breathed in relief after the chicken was cooked perfectly as I came back. I could only cook it 2 at a time because it needed to be deep fried and the pan was small.

"That looks great." Manny said as he saw me seasoning the cooked chicken. The chicken was marinated overnight, and was coated in batter before I fried it. The seasoning was only the finishing touch for the meat to give it a certain kick.

"Edward, why did you fight before? Fighting is not good." Gloria asked as after she hesitated for a while. Even though I had already taken off the pain relief patch on my face, some bruising could still be seen.

"You fought someone?" Manny asked with a face full of shock as he sat at the kitchen counter.

"Yeah." I replied to Manny casually before I explained, "Haley's boyfriend…I guess he's an ex-boyfriend now, thought that I was dating her. So he came to ask me about it. His friend got hot headed and tried to punch me, so a fight broke out."

"So. Is it Haley's fault?" Jay asked after understanding the situation.

"No it was not. It was just some boys being stupid." I said to defend Haley.

Gloria became angry. "Why did he come to you? He couldn't talk to his girlfriend himself?! ¡Ese puto loco! (That crazy bastard)"

Jay stopped Gloria as he sensed something. "What happened to the other guys?" He asked to change the topic.

"One got a broken nose, the other one didn't come to school till today." I replied casually with a little hint of bragging as I served the first burger to Manny.

Jay laughed out loud in elation while Gloria admonished him quickly to not let Jay encourage me to fight.

"Ay! Don't do that Jay." Gloria said quickly.

[Jay's Commentary]

"Nowadays, the kids are too soft. Back in my day, we fought with each other on a weekly basis. Bruises on the face were a common thing. In fact, my dad will ask me why I didn't get a bruise sometimes and tell me that a man has to be able to defend himself." Jay said in reminiscence.

"It's a good thing to fight. It'll toughen the kid and prepare him for the real world." Jay said.

"This…is an actually growing boy. Not like…"

[Commentary ends]

"You did good, kid. Do you want me to teach you self-defense?" Jay asked while showing a few boxing moves and glanced at Manny at the same time to arouse his interest too.

"No. I already know how to defend myself." I said and then I turned to Manny. "Do you want to eat it now, or are you waiting for Phil and Luke?" I asked.

"Phil and Luke are coming?" Gloria asked in confusion.

"Yeah. We are going to hangout together." I explained. "I also wanted to ask Phil about some stuff."

"I would like to eat it now as I want to give my mother a taste. Is it okay?" Manny asked me. Jay sighed in disappointment as he heard what Manny just say. Gloria became excited and hugged Manny from behind.

"Oh!! My sweet little boy! My sweet little angel-"

"Mom. You said you're not going to do that here!" Manny quickly stopped Gloria with a horrified voice. Gloria was stunned as she had forgotten her promise with Manny to not do this kind of stuff in front of me.

I smirked and I said, "No need to mind me. I think it's sweet you're taking care of your mother. Gloria, if you want, I can make you some too. I did make some extra."

"Ayy! You're also a sweet little boy!" Gloria said and tried to hug me. But Jay stopped her quickly before she could do so.

"What kind of stuff?" Jay asked.

"What?" I said in confusion.

"What is the stuff that you want to ask Phil.." Jay explained a bit.

"Oh that. I want to see how much this house will sell." I said.

Jay scrunched his brow and asked, "Why?"

"Just in case." I replied. "Jay, you want a burger too?" I asked him to divert the topic.

"Yeah. Sure." Jay said as he had been curious about the smell for a while now. I finished another plate for Gloria and placed it in front of her. She was sitting next to Manny while Jay was standing.

"Edward, why did you learn Spanish?" Gloria asked as she grabbed the burger with both hands.

"Well, my mom is Cuban." I said and I looked at them in anticipation to see their reaction to the burger. It was a habit that I got after living with Nonni for a while. We had always eaten together so it felt kind of lonely to eat all by myself.

"Really?" Manny asked in excitement while holding the burger, but not taking a bite. "So there's another thing we can bond over. Being a son of a latin mother."

"Yeah. Except my mom tried her entire life to become a white woman." I said and urged him to eat. "Go on. Take a bite."

Manny nodded and opened his mouth to start eating, but somebody else interrupted him.

"Ah. So you learn Spanish from her?" Jay asked.

"Nope. She wouldn't teach me anything, nor did she care about her family back in her country. She wanted to hide everything about her Cuban heritage, including her language. So I learned Spanish… to spite her."

I said casually, causing both Jay and Gloria to be stunned. Even Manny who had opened his mouth had stopped when I said that. It was me. I was the one who interrupted him.

"I don't even think her name is her true name." I continued.

Despite me loving the chaos I created in this family, I didn't lie about my mother– Not one bit.

[Gloria's commentary.]

"The fake name. The forgetting of her roots. The not-teaching-her-son Spanish. Why did America ruin another Latin person? WHY!!" Gloria said with anger and sadness.

"When I get to see her, I will make sure to bring my machete with me and teach her a lesson. Latina MOMS never Abandon their son!"

[Commentary's ends]

"Tell me more about your mother." Gloria demanded.

"Okay. if you take a bite first. I'm dying over here to hear the reactions." I said, almost begging them to take a bite.

"Ah. Right." Manny finally realized that he had been holding the burger and took a big bite quickly. "It's great!" Manny said in excitement and took another bite quickly before he could even swallow the first one fully.

"Manny. Eat it slowly." Gloria said and also took a bite on her burger. Just like Manny, she was surprised by the spices and the crunchiness of the chicken meat. Her eyes were dilated, and she enjoyed the spiciness of the chicken meat before she swallowed it.

"Ay! It's good!" Gloria exclaimed.

"Really?" Jay became curious and wanted to try the food too, but his chicken was still being fried. "Try this." Gloria said and fed Jay a bite of her burger for him to taste it.

[Jay's Commentary]

Jay sighed and confessed, "I…was transported."

[commentary ends]

"It's pretty good, but I had better in the club before." Jay said, not wanting to admit that the burger had become his all time favorite burger now.

"Really? Then go eat in the club. It'll take another 10 minutes for your burger to be done." I advised kindly.

"No need to hurry," Jay pulled a chair to the kitchen counter and sat down with the Colombians to wait for his burger. "It'll be better if you have some fries." Jay said.

"Ah. I forgot about that." I said and took out some ready-made fries that I bought from the supermarket and fried them using another pan. As I opened the fridge, the rest could see the fully stocked fridge with various ingredients, desserts, and meals already being prepared inside it.

"What the hell? Did you make all of that stuff?" Jay asked in surprise.

"Yeah." I replied casually.

"Why?" Jay asked.

"'Cause I had nothing else to do at that time." I replied.

"What about your website?" Jay asked. "Is it done?"

"Yeah. It's almost done. I only need to link up the program to the ones my dad used in his office." I replied as I placed a plate of potato fries on top of the kitchen counter. "Then, Claire can start to work, if she ever decides to take the job."

"She STILL hasn't taken the job yet?" Gloria exclaimed in disbelief. Jay face-palmed after hearing the statement, and he wondered if he needed to call his daughter now to talk to her.

[Claire's commentary and flashback]

Sitting on the sofa in the living room of her house, Claire recounted the events of today.

"When I got to the Marina, the usual smell of the ocean didn't bother me anymore. I was…excited.." Claire confessed as she crossed her arms. Her eyes were glassy, and she changed position to lean forward and fiddled with her fingers.

While wearing her sunglasses, Claire fixed her hair back as she got out of the car. There was a permanent smile plastered on her face as she got to know the rest of the crew, shaking hands with a working woman her own age, and she was excited at Edward's future plans for the company that was revealed by Ted.

"I still remember the kid's eyes." Claire said. "There wasn't any doubt, there wasn't any hesitation, no second thoughts. He…believes in me. And based on our meetings a few times last week, he…knows me pretty well. But he still put his trust in me."

Claire said with excitement as she remembered the moment Edward offered her the job. "It feels really great."

At lunch today, she was eating together with the ship's crew, and she ate the packed lunch Edward had packed for her. It also contained a little note for Claire that said, {Have a good day}.

Then, her tone got lowered and depressed. "But if I don't stay on top of my family, I know one thing for sure. That…my family…wouldn't be able to survive."

-Dunphy's house-

"OWW Dad, You're hurting me." Luke whined as Phil was putting on a bandaid on his arm.

Afraid of the repercussions, Phil asked in a begging tone, "Don't tell your mother about this."

"About what?" Luke asked in confusion.

"Good. You don't remember." Phil said hurriedly and threw out the evidence from the magic shop he'd bought a few hours before.

"Dad. Have you picked up the dry cleaning yet? I have a party to go to! I need that dress!" Haley walked into the kitchen and asked anxiously.

Phil scratched his forehead and replied, "Not yet."

"Ugh! And what happened to you?!" Haley asked Luke.

"Dad hanged me upside down.." Luke replied groggily.

"NO I DIDN'T!" Phil said hurriedly. Alex walked in and threw her cello case to the floor.

"What's wrong with you?" Haley asked Alex.

"Honey, why aren't you at your cello lesson?" Phil asked while feeling ominous.

"How could I play the cello, IF THERE ISN'T ANY STRINGS ON IT!?" Alex opened up the cello case and showed the stringless arrow to all. "UGH! Where's MOM!?" Alex turned around to search for her mother in frustration.

"Yeah. Where's mom!?" Haley asked.

As if hearing her children calling her name, Claire returned home and saw the scene of chaos where her childrens were screaming at their dad. That was when reality hit her hard like Truck-kun had hit Edward before this.

[Flashback ends]

"I'm sorry to Ed…but… I will say no to the job…" Claire finally made her decision.

[Commentary end.]

…

[Edward's POV]

Suddenly, the house phone rang after I had served Jay his own burger.

"Hello?" I said after I picked up the call.

"Hello, Ed. I'm afraid Luke and I will be a little late. I need to go to pick up the dry cleaning and send Alex's cello to the shop."

"What's wrong with her cello?" I asked.

"...There are no…strings on it." Phil replied hesitantly.

"Pfff-" I let out a short laugh and said, "Luke can come now right? Jay, Gloria and Manny are already here."

Phil's voice became flustered and he asked, "Why are Jay and Gloria there?"

"I'm making spicy chicken burgers. Ask Claire if she had gotten hers. I did pack her one." I asked.

Phil turned toward Claire who's putting groceries on the kitchen counter.

"Oh it's really good. You better settle everything fast or else it's all going to be gone." Claire replied instigatively as she was still mad at Phil.

"I'll be there as soon as I can." Phil said and threw the phone to the kitchen top before he ran as fast as he could to the car.

"Phil!" Claire picked up the phone and checked if it was still connected. And it was.

"Hey Claire." I greeted.

"C-claire?" Claire was a bit speechless as I was calling her Mrs Dunphy before this.

"How's the job? When are you going to start? I still need to train you before I launch the website," I said.

Jay understood that I was talking to his daughter, and he was wondering what I was going to say to her.

"Ed…I'm sorry…But…"

As I heard Claire was going to reject the job, I suddenly said, "What is it? Claire? Are you still there?"

"Hello? Edward… Can you hear me?"

"Claire?? Did the line disconnect? Anyway, if you can still hear me, come to my house. Bring your children too."

I cut the call instantly after I said that.

"Let me guess. She rejected you." Jay hypothesized after he saw the entire situation.

"She didn't manage to say the word 'no' yet." I said with a sly smirk.

Jay was silent, and then he asked, "Why do you want her for the job anyway?"

I paused for a second and I replied, "Because…She is very dependable. I'm sure she will do a very good job. Most important of all…I trust her."

Jay stared into my eyes, and found no lies in my words.

"Okay, Let's do this. I'll help you convince her. In return, I want to hire you to take a look at Pritchett's closet website." Jay said.

"Deal."

We shook hands on the dirty deal and waited for Claire to arrive with the Dunphy's children.

"What did we miss?" Gloria said after she returned to the kitchen with Manny. They had been looking around the house with my permission. Gloria finally said to Jay, "Let's go. We'll be late to meet your friends."

"Yeah. About that… I had already canceled the plans with them. Claire is coming here, and I need to talk to her about something important."

"Si. Is it about the job?" Gloria asked with an anxious tone. "Did she reject it?"

"Not yet." I interjected.

The doorbell rang, and the Dunphy's were finally here. I received Alex, Luke, Haley and Claire and invited them inside the house.

"Ed, about the call." Claire followed me closely from behind and wanted to talk to me privately first to reject the job offer.

"Claire, you're here!" Jay said and grabbed Claire's hand to lead her somewhere private to talk.

"Come kids. Edward has been working hard to make this for you." Gloria said happily and presented the plates of food I'd prepared. Luckily for me, I marinated enough chicken pieces for the entire extended family – Mitchell and Cam's family included.

My original plan was to let the guests today take them away when they return home, but right now I need to convince Claire to take the job first.

"Hey." Haley approached me. "Did you talk to Dylan today?"

I turned toward her and said, "Yeah. I did. We're friends now."

Alex interjected while Haley was confused and asked, "Why did you call us here?"

"To eat." I replied simply, causing Alex to roll her eyes. " And to convince your mom to take the job."

"Wait. Is she rejecting it? Why?" Alex asked anxiously.

"I don't know, but I'm sure something had happened today for her to change her mind. Any ideas what happened?" I asked the sisters duo.

The sisters turned toward one another, and they said at almost the same time, "Be right back."