Ch.17

After helping Phil finish building the treehouse, my Dad and I went home as we were sweaty from working all day outside. Time went by fairly quickly as my life was routine at this point, running in the morning with Alex, then volunteering at the hospital, and then practicing our instruments in the afternoon. At night I would relax by playing some video games with my cousin and friends.

Then one morning after my run with Alex my Mom got a phone call from Gloria as I was stretching in the living room. While Olivia was watching a kid's show and drawing on her iPad.

"Gabe! ¡Mirar!" (Gabe! Look!) Olivia said in her tiny toddler voice showing me the drawing she made on her iPad. As I smile down at her and look at the very poor drawing of what looked like a dog.

"¿Es eso Roma?" (Is that Rome?) I say to her thinking maybe she drew our dog.

"¡Sí!" (Yes!) Olivia says as I just nod my head smiling at her.

"¿Está todo bien?" (Is everything alright?) I ask my Mom once she comes back into the living room taking a seat next to Olivia as she continues to draw.

"¿Qué?... Uhm... Gloria solo quería decirme algo," (What?... Uhm… Gloria just wanted to tell me something) Mom says to me while I just shrug not pushing the subject.

Later it seemed my Mom and our family were invited to Jay and Gloria's house for Jay's birthday party. After getting ready for it we all packed into the car heading over to their house. As I thought about my past life's memories of the show that I seemed to be living in, in my new life.

I remembered someone was supposed to ask Alex to prom this past year, a gay guy who wanted to use Alex as a cover. This made me realize that things have changed from my past life's knowledge, meaning maybe Gloria wasn't pregnant. Although, it might be only Alex's life that has really changed, due to me being involved in it.

As we all headed there my Mom finally dropped the news on us all that Gloria was indeed pregnant and she planned on telling Jay today. Though none of us are supposed to say anything or look like we know that.

'So then somethings remained the same…' I think to myself as some of my past life's knowledge has become useless.

We showed up to the party, where Gloria greeted us in Spanish and then dragged my Mom away to talk about her problem in person with her best friend. Meanwhile, I went over to Alex who already showed up with her family. Then I noticed Haley and Dylan were here, with both appearing hungover.

"What happened to them?" I say to Alex while gesturing to Haley and Dylan.

"The two got drunk last night, no idea why," Alex says while rolling her eyes at her sister's antics.

Then Jay showed up as this was gonna be a surprise party, with everyone congratulating him on his birthday. After greeting everyone, Manny dropped the hat about Gloria's pregnancy. That was because Jay greeted Stella like she was his little princess.

"Oh, this little one will be just fine now that she knows where she stands! In the shadow of your new baby!!" Manny says annoyed at Jay's greeting to Stella. Meanwhile, everyone who knew about her pregnancy face palmed internally at Manny's statement.

"Wait, what! Gloria, what is Manny talking about?!" Jay says turning to Gloria with surprise all over his face.

"Eww, gross. I didn't know Grandpa could still do it," Luke says with me almost breaking out laughing, as Alex now looks disgusted to hearing Luke.

"Don't be disrespectful, Luke! Anyone could do it with Gloria," Phil says making Claire glare at him, as my Dad's eyes look like they are gonna bust from his eye sockets.

"I will raise the baby! Since you are too set in your ways!" Gloria says before Jay can really talk hearing this very important news for the first time.

"I come from a very long line of strong proud Latin women whose husbands are nowhere to be found!" Gloria says as my Dad and I share a look, then look to my Mom who is narrowing her eyes at us. Telling us with her look to behave, as we both are about to break out in laughter.

"Are you done?" Jay says wanting to say something.

"Yes!" Gloria says still very much upset.

"Can I say something?" Jay says making sure he can talk without pissing Gloria off more.

"Go on!" Gloria says but is still upset and suspicious of Jay's feelings on the news.

"That is the greatest news I've ever heard. I spent the day hearing what my future had in store for me and I didn't like one bit of it. I felt like my life was ending. And now you're telling me I get to have a new start with the woman of my dreams. I think I'm going to cry. It's going to be great!" Jay says ecstatic about hearing he is going to be a father again, like he is redoing his early adulthood.

Though it appears that statement has hit Claire and Mitchell in a sore spot. Both don't say anything now but will voice their opinions at a later date.

"I'm going to get so fat," Gloria says bringing down Jay's happiness slightly.

"Mostly great!" Jay says finally making my dad and I laugh a bit as my Mom promises punishment later to us with her look.

Summer finally ended, with Luke and Alex still grossed out by Grandpa's doing it, Claire insisted Dylan finally move out of their house and Phil shave his beard, Manny reads something he wrote at poetry camp, and Cam and Mitchell take two weeks in London. As Alex and I finally started to explore our relationship more, though we both didn't take the next big step. Instead, we were only doing 'hands' stuff.

Like that, our second year of high school began, and it was going much more smoothly than last year. Though that may be due to Alex being on her own for once in school, without having to worry about an older or younger sibling. Then the next few months flew by, as November approached.

Alex told me her family was doing a yard sale to raise money for Manny and Luke's Social Studies project. My family thought it was a good idea too, bringing some things they wanted to get rid of. So we all headed over to the Jay's adding more things to their yard sale.

My Mom and Gloria were gossiping, as Claire, Mitchell, and Cam were talking about whatever. With my Dad, Jay, and Phil talking, Alex and I were manning the money station. With Luke and Manny showed everyone the items we put out trying to be the best salesmen.

However, everything falls apart when Manny goes to sell a suitcase he found in their attic. With Gloria getting up and runs over grabbing the suitcase telling them this is not for sale. As Mitchell uses the distraction to grab some jeans that Cam was trying to sell and hide them. Phil then took out Jay's motorcycle for a test drive since he wanted to buy it, riding off up the hill.

"Wana, go somewhere else?" Alex says to me as no one is paying attention to us and I knew what she wanted to do so I agreed immediately.

We disappeared to a park nearby where we found a good spot from prying eyes to make out for a while. We then snapped out of our moment as things began to get heated with us entering 'third-base' as our phones chimed showing someone texted us. It seems both our parents asked us where we disappeared to.

When we got back we were saved by berating of our Moms about our disappearance when Gloria came out with a dummy. Everyone stopped what they were doing to look at Gloria in confusion as she cleared her throat. She then begins to do a ventriloquist act though it was fairly bad. Either way, no one was expecting that as everyone was frozen just staring at Gloria in confusion.

"I to show I was different in the beauty pageant! So instead of knife juggling, it was this! Uncle Grumpy," Gloria says explaining herself and defending her choice in her act at the pageant all those years ago.

"The only difference between a yard sale and a home invasion is he can shoot people in a home invasion!" Jay says coming out of the house while wearing the same exact clothes as the dummy.

"She married her puppet," I say looking between the two and noticing Jay is usually grumpy like the puppet.

This caused Claire, Alex, and even my Mom to break out in laughter hearing me. Though everyone else was confused why they were laughing as I didn't say it loud enough. At the same time, Phil finally came back after being gone for a few hours now, though he looked like he wanted to burn the motorcycle to the ground.

"I don't want your bike Jay," Phil says leaving the motorcycle here and then walking to his car with an annoyed face.

Like that, we all head home and go back to our own lives. Though a few more days go by with Alex calling me in the middle of the night. Telling me that Haley was arrested for underage drinking and her parents are heading over now to get her out of jail. As her Uncle Mitchell went to meet them, their Uncle Cam came over to watch Alex and Luke as they are curious about Haley now as well.