22. Chapter 22

A/N: Surprise! Bonus chapter for you! I wanted to tie up a few loose ends and set the stage for * sparkles * The Festival * sparkles *

Chapter 22

Bruno fell into his bed as soon as he got home that evening. He slept deeply and well, and was surprised that it was still morning when he woke up the next day. He'd expected to sleep at least until noon. When Bruno came downstairs, everyone else was still at the breakfast table.

"Buenos días," he greeted everyone as he sat, helping himself to the pitcher of juice and an arepa.

"Buenos días," they chorused in return.

And then they watched him.

He ate half an arepa with relish, and then his eyes caught on the portrait of Pedro that had been salvaged and refurbished and rehung in its usual place of honor, and his expression changed. He fidgeted for a moment, and his brows drew together. He glanced at his Mamá, who was watching him with amusement, and didn't realize the other members of his family were practically leaning forward in their seats as well.

"Mamá…" he began quietly, brushing arepa crumbs into a small pile on his plate with his fingers, "I – have – ah - I was wondering - "

"Sí, mijo?" She encouraged softly, a small smile on her face.

His expression changed to one of determination, and he met her gaze. "What – what was Papá's favorite food?"

Her smile immediately fell away into a look of shock – which was mirrored on the rest of the familia's faces.

At the prolonged silence after his question, he shrunk into himself a little bit. "Nevermind. You don't – it's – I just thought - "

Alma reached over to him and put a hand on his. "He loved ajiaco," she said softly.

Bruno looked up in surprise.

She took a deep breath and continued, hesitant but pushing forward at the hopeful looks on all three of her niño's faces. "He loved all soups and stews, really, but ajiaco was his favorite. Sancocho, rondon, sopa de plátano – he loved it all. With arepas or empanadas. Although -" She smiled to herself, and blinked rapidly. "We were not wealthy, and soup goes a long way – so I think he just claimed to love those best because he knew we couldn't afford things like lechona or mamona as often."

Bruno's shoulders relaxed, and his mouth twitched up at the corner. "Huh. Uh - gracias, Mamá."

There was silence, again – and Bruno looked around the table. Everyone seemed to be stunned – both at Bruno's boldness at asking something about Pedro unrelated to the Miracle, and at Alma's willingness to answer it.

It appeared he'd opened a floodgate.

Pepa got the words out first. "What did he do? What was his job?"

"Didn't Señora Guzmán once say he was a carpenter?"

"Sí, but what did he make? Did he work on people's houses? Furniture? Carts? He must have specialized in something - "

"What was his favorite song?"

"Was he a good dancer?"

"What was he not good at?"

"Did he like animals?"

Everyone waited as Alma looked around the table. "Mis niños; mis nietos -" she whispered, realization dawning on her face. "I really – I really didn't tell you all these things? I thought for sure I…." her voice trailed off. "Lo siento. I didn't - "

"It's okay, Mamá," Julieta said softly. "We know it was hard for you to talk about him. About the little things, the details that weren't related to – to his sacrifice. And you were so focused on leading the town and raising us and…the Miracle."

Alma blinked at her plate for a moment, rubbing her thumb over her locket. She looked up and smiled sadly. "What do you want to know?"

Pepa repeated her question, and Alma began to tell them every detail she could remember about the love of her life.

Sofia let herself through the courtyard gate and into her familiar childhood home. The air was humid after it rained for a good portion of the night. It had let up in the early morning hours, and now the sun shone brightly and brilliantly as it rose. The puddles would evaporate before lunchtime.

"Hola!" She called softly, placing the small basket of steaming almojábana she'd made this morning on the table, not wanting to wake anyone if they hadn't gotten up yet. (1) They'd all had such a hard day yesterday, and she hoped her hermana, padre, and sobrina had slept well. Her own niños were still asleep when she left. Minus Diego, of course. It was as though her youngest had a gift of his own – and it was sensing when his mamá was awake. She'd put him in bed with Lorenzo and left him to deal with their son.

"Ah, Sofia!" Her papá called softly as he tread down the stairs. "With breakfast! Ah, I love your almojábana. Just like your mamá's, eh?" He kissed his daughter on the forehead in welcome – and - before she could warn him that they were still hot, snatched one out of the basket. He immediately dropped it, and then looked sheepishly at Sofia before scooping it up and setting it on the table to finish cooling, fanning his fingers over it to speed the process along.

Sofia gave him a look, twirling her shoulder-length, curly black hair around her finger. She'd hadn't bothered to put it up yet, as it wasn't long enough to do much more than a simple bun - though she'd have to put it up in a bun soon if the humidity didn't let up.

Papá looked up after a moment, popped the cooled food in his mouth, and shrugged. "Lo que no mata, engorda." (2)

Sofia laughed and set about making coffee, and soon – after Papá had finished his dropped almojábana and another one besides, as Sofia was just setting out the coffee – the two of them heard Lucía and Josefina stirring in the rooms above them.

Sofia smiled at the sound and turned to her father. "How is she doing?"

Papá sighed. "Josefina slept in Lucía's bed last night. I think they were both shaken up. But they also both slept through the night. I am thankful she was found so quickly." He paused and leaned toward her. "Did you know Bruno Madrigal gave her a vision?"

Sofia blinked and leaned back. "He whaaaaat?"

"A vision. I saw the tablet slip out of her bag last night. She said I could look at it."

"Can I see it?!"

Papá left to go upstairs, conversed with Lucía and Josefina for a moment, and then returned with the tablet. Sofia held it in her hands, shifting it first one way, then the other. "Two?" She asked, her eyebrow raised.

He nodded. "We did not get to speak for long, but she explained that – apparently – most visions have two outcomes now. Dependent on the choices of the vision seeker. Apparently, if she had decided not to speak with Juan Valencia and his madre - "

Sofia's eyes widened.

"- then we would not have found Josefina until much later, and she'd have gotten sick. Choosing to speak with the Valencias is what brought about the first outcome. Lucía told her she'd consider their help restitution for the murales."

Sofia pursed her lips. "She got off too easy."

"No I didn't!" Josefina grumbled as she slouched into the kitchen, slumping into a chair and resting her head on the table. "I'm in time out forever. I'm grounded 'til I'm thirty." She paused dramatically. "Buenos días, Abuelo. Buenos días, Tía Sofia."

"Buenos días," they chorused, and greeted Lucía as she shuffled into the kitchen as well.

"Buenos días," she chirped in reply, her expression tired but happy. She kissed them all on the cheek or – in Josefina's case – her strawberry-shaped birthmark. They all helped themselves to coffee and the almojábanas Sofia had brought. "Gracias for the food, Sofi."

"And - you're not grounded until you are thirty, mi fresita," Lucía said firmly, raising her eyebrow at her daughter. "You are grounded for the week. You will only be allowed to accompany me to La Feria de Las Flores. You will sit beside Tía Sofia or one of the Madrigal adults so that you may see one performance of the play. You will sit backstage with me for the remainder of the performances. You may come with me as I go where I need to go during the festival, but you are not allowed to roam the festival with your friends or cousins, and they are not allowed to come here for the next week. If at any point you leave my side without my permission, even for a moment, we will return home and you will see no part of the festival."

Josefina groaned, but Lucía held firm, explaining Josefina's consequences to both her sister and her father, so they were all on the same page. "There will be other festivals, mi amorita. And in addition for being grounded for the week, you need to earn my trust, and your privileges, back. I don't know how long that will take – that is up to you and the choices you make. I need to trust that you will not make dangerous decisions, like attempting to go to San Cristobál alone, or – when a bridge is out – traipsing through the jungle and crossing a river alone."

That morning, before they'd even left the bedroom, she'd patiently, but solemnly, explained to Josefina that her adventure into the jungle was extremely dangerous. She'd hesitated, but shown Josefina the vision tablet, gently explaining that she could have gotten very sick if they hadn't found her in time. Josefina had tried to explain that she wasn't even lost – she knew to follow the stream back to the road - but Lucía said that wasn't the point. The point was wandering around in the jungle by herself was a foolish and dangerous decision, and Lucía tried to explain how much it had scared her and how worried she was for her daughter. Josefina had cried and apologized again, and confessed how heartbroken she was over messing up her Papá's artwork, how desperately she wanted to fix it, and how sad and angry she'd felt that she did not have a padre – how much she'd felt his growing absence in the past few years.

Lucía confessed that she, too, had realized just these past few months how sad and angry she had still been, and apologized for not being more open about her feelings and how she handled them. She reassured Josefina that her feelings were normal and that she was there to listen anytime she needed to talk through them or had questions. Lucía also assured her she was forgiven and that she loved her and nothing Josefina did would ever change that – but that even with forgiveness, there were still consequences for her actions, to make sure she did not forget this lesson and make the same mistake again.

Lucía continued explaining for the benefit of Sofia and their padre. "Until I decide you have earned the privilege again, you are not allowed to leave the house without an adult accompanying you, be it myself or Abuelo or another adult of our choosing. You are not allowed to go over to another person's house unless I or another adult are available to walk you there. And you are no longer allowed to walk to or from school on your own."

Josefina looked very defeated, but Abuelo reached over to ruffle her hair and kiss her head. "Don't worry, mi nieta. 'The Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the child he delights in.' (3) Your mamá loves you, and she cares about your safety and your ability to make good choices. If she didn't care about you, she wouldn't make these rules."

"I was trying to make a good choice. I was tryin' to fix my mistake." Josefina grumped.

Sofia smiled. "I know, mi fresita. Sometimes, though, asking for help when you make a mistake is the best choice you can make. Now you know."

"I wish I knew that yesterday."

Sofia chuckled. "Have I ever told you about the time I found a mistake in one of Abuelo's print jobs?"

Josefina looked up and shook her head. Lucía muffled a snort, and when Sofia glared at her, she pretended to be very interested in her coffee cup.

"When I was about your age – I think I was seven years old – I saw that mi Papá – your Abuelo – had made a mistake in one of the new pamphlets of hymns that Padre Miguel – the Padre before Padre Tomás – requested. I decided to fix it myself."

Now it was Abuelo's turn to snort into his coffee.

Josefina frowned. "Did you fix every pamphlet?"

Sofia laughed. "Oh, no, mi amor. I decided to reprint them. By myself."

Josefina's eyes grew wide. She'd known since she could walk not to touch Abuelo's printing press.

"I got about halfway done putting the letters in when I spilled the rest of the letters all over the floor. As I got down, I snapped the handle off of one of the press levers. And then, I knocked the ink over as I tried to pick up the letters."

By now, both Lucía and Abuelo were avoiding eye contact, and their lips twitched in an effort not to laugh. Josefina was listening with eager ears.

"And did I admit my mistake and ask for help? Nooooo. Not at all. I attempted to clean everything up on my own, and ended up making an even bigger mess. There was ink all over the place, my inky fingerprints all over the press and the floor, a letter had fallen into the gears and gotten jammed in the press, I ruined an entire stack of paper. And do you know what I said, when your Abuelo and Abuela came in the shop and saw me standing in the middle of that mess?"

"What?" Josefina asked, leaning forward.

"The cat did it."

Lucía and Abuelo burst into laughter, and after a moment of shock, Josefina joined them. "The cat?"

"We didn't even have a cat!" Lucía giggled.

"Yes, yes, laugh all you want. I had to help mi mamá and papá clean it up. It took two whole days to get everything cleaned and fixed properly. And in addition to getting into trouble for using the press, I got into extra trouble for lying about it. It took me months to win back Abuelo and Abuela's trust – but I did earn it back. And you will too. That is part of growing up. Some day, you may even laugh about it."

"But not quite yet." Lucía said, sobering, and pulling Josefina in for another hug, squishing her cheek, and giving her several loud kisses. "I'm so glad you're safe, Josefina. Te amo."

Josefina giggled and wiped them off and hugged her back. "Te amo, Mamá." she whispered.

"Now," Lucía said. "Finish your breakfast, querida. You still have school today, and a project to present. I'll walk you this morning."

"…Pedro nearly fainted when I told him the midwife thought we were having triplets! Ay, mijos – he loved you all so much. He talked to you every day, before you were even born. And he apologized to the two of you he hadn't spoken to individually before." She laughed to herself. "He gave the three of you nicknames – we didn't know if you were boys or girls, of course. But he called you his aguacate, his pomelo, and his papaya. (4) And he was so excited. He immediately began making two extra bassinets, and they matched the first perfectly." Alma sighed, her eyes faraway, a bittersweet expression on her face.

Casita bumped a little clock over to her, and she blinked and shook her head. "Oh, but look – some of us will be late for school if we don't get moving." She paused and looked to Bruno, who had a distant smile on his face. "Gracias, mijo – it was – wonderful, to speak about Pedro again, like that. With all of you. Lo siento for not doing it sooner. You – just ask, if there is anything you want to know. I will try to answer." She smiled at all of them in turn. Pepa was drizzling and had tears in her eyes but she was smiling as she leaned on Félix's shoulder, and Julieta's smile was small but so incandescently happy. Her eyes shone and she had her hands clasped in front of her like a child listening to a fairytale for the first time.

Everyone stood slowly, the spell of Alma's tales broken, and began to clear their plates. Bruno paused and frowned. "What - what were you expecting me to say?"

"Hmmm?" Alma asked.

"Earlier. You were all - ah - watching me…eat. What did you think I was going to say?" He downed the last of his juice and went to balance his glass on his plate.

"Oh...that you were going to start courting Lucía."

Bruno choked on the juice. He pounded his chest with his fist and waved away Julieta's offer of help. It took him a moment, but he recovered. "What?" He rasped.

Camilo rolled his eyes and set his dishes back on the table. "Allow me to refresh your memory, Tío." He promptly shifted into Lucía and grabbed Félix, who was standing beside him. "Oh, Gracias, Bruno," he breathed dramatically. "Gracias for helping me find mi hija." And then he planted a big kiss on his padre's cheek before batting his eyelashes.

"Milo," Félix groaned good-naturedly and pushed him away, wiping the kiss off his cheek and rolling his eyes.

Pink dusted Bruno's cheeks and he glared at him. "Camilo, that is not -"

"Oh, it's exactly what happened, Tío."

Bruno's flush deepened. "Okay, I mean – yes. Yes it did. But – I mean – she – she – I'd just – helped! She – she thanked all of you, too. And – ah - Josefina! Josefina had just kissed me, it wasn't -"

Félix crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Bro, she didn't kiss anyone else."

"That doesn't mean anything." His shoulders hunched up a little bit, and he ducked his head and peeked at them all. "…does it?"

Julieta smiled warmly at her hermanito. "It might. I think - you might want it to mean something. You seem to really care for her, Brunito. And her daughter." Agustín put an arm around her waist and nodded decisively at Bruno, his eyebrow raised in agreement.

Bruno bit his lip. "I mean, I - "

"You've been spending a lot of time with her. And I know it's for the play, but – you're so happy when you're working together, and I can tell it's not just about the play." Luisa pointed out quietly.

"And speaking of the play, you were this close to kissing at that one dress rehearsal," Isabela said, pinching her fingers together.

"You followed her all over town yesterday helping her look for Josefina. Even though you were already tired." Pepa added.

"Didn't you give her a vision without a contract?" Félix said.

"And, you kiiiiiinda yelled at Abuela yesterday for letting you sleep when Josefina was in trouble. Just saying." Mirabel smiled sheepishly.

"I heard Lareina and Señora Rata talking the other day when we were rehearsing. They said that from what they've seen, you would make good mates," Antonio piped up innocently, and Pepa gasped in horror.

"You look like this whenever she comes into the room." Camilo shifted into his tío and his face lit up, before he sighed and his expression settled into something dreamy and lovesick.

"Okay, I do not -" Bruno held up a hand and his tone was defensive and snarky.

"Your heart rate increases whenever someone mentions her, and when you see her it increases even more. After she kissed your cheek, your breathing was irregular for around five minutes." Dolores' voice was quiet but matter-of-fact.

Everyone turned to look at her, mouths agape, and she shrugged and made a little squeaking sound.

"Yeah, sis! Can't argue with that!" Camilo recovered first and leaned around Félix to give her a high-five. She gently tapped his palm with her fingers. "He's more swallowed than a bullfighter's underwear!" (5)

"Camilo!" Pepa scolded and he ducked his head and laughed.

"Okay, fine!" Bruno exclaimed, bright red. "I love her! I love her! I love Lucía Moreno-Hernandez! Okay? Is everyone happy now? You've all got that - " he motioned dismissively – "out of your system?"

Pepa's mouth dropped open and she squealed, racing around the table to him, where Julieta was already hugging him. "Bruno!" She pulled him away from her hermana and into a rough semblance of a salsa, twirling him and swaying to an imaginary beat. "Don't worry, hermanito. I'll refresh your memory. This is such good timing! You can dance the night away at La Feria de Las Flores, you can - " she gasped and put a hand over her heart. "You might get your first kiss! Your first real kiss! As sweet as it was, a kiss on the cheek is something anyone could give you." She gave him a peck on the cheek in demonstration.

Julieta covered her laughter with her hand. "Pepa, let him go!"

Bruno flailed for a moment before regaining his footing, and Julieta approached, cupping his chin with her palm, brushing his curls from his face and giving him an appraising look. "Isa," she called. "You'll have to help me do something with his hair."

"What's wrong with my hair?" Bruno yelped and pulled himself away.

Isabela nodded. "Nothing - except it hasn't had a trim in ten years. You should wear the new ruana Mirabel made for you. And one of your newer shirts, that Papá bought for you. I could make you a bouquet to give her." She waved her hand and a bunch of lilacs and pink camellias popped into existence in her palm. Her eyes flicked to his feet and his hands and his face. "We'll give you a little makeover. Nothing crazy," she reassured him. "Lucía already likes you the way you are; we're not changing you. Just – cleaning you up a little. A little trim here, some lotion there – you'll look like you. Just – the best version of you."

"For when you make your move," Camilo teased, shifting into Bruno again and snatching the flowers out of Isa's hand, placing a hand over his heart and holding the bouquet out to Luisa, who was watching the charade with quiet amusement and stars in her eyes. "Lucía, I must confess -"

"Hold on!" Bruno cried as he held up his hands in protest and backed away slowly. "Wha – I said I loved her, I didn't say I was doing anything about it! I'm not making any moves! No one is making any moves! There are no moves being made over here!" He gestured to himself frantically.

The entire family froze and seemed to wilt at that.

"What do you mean, you're not doing anything about it?" Mirabel asked timidly. "We thought - "

Bruno sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I know what you thought. It's just – it's not – it's hard to explain."

Everyone was staring at him with such big eyes and confused expressions. "I do love her. Okay? More than - " he held his hands in front of him, gesturing vaguely. "More than I can explain. And I know - she cares about me – and she likes me, and I know that and I'm happy with that and - "

Camilo narrowed his eyes at his tío, moving his hands brusquely as he spoke. "So, let me get this straight. You're saying – you're attracted…to a woman you love…and she likes you…and that's a problem…how?!"

Bruno's shoulders slumped in defeat. "It's - "

"It's time for you three to get to school," Julieta interrupted quietly, shooing Camilo, Mirabel, and Antonio toward Casita's door. "Go present your projects for La Feria de Las Flores."

"Mamá…" Mirabel protested, looking over her shoulder at her tío, his mouth set into a grim line.

"Don't worry, mi mariposita. We'll talk to him."

"Talk some sense into him," Camilo grumbled. "I thought we were done with all that pining once Dolores got together with Mariano."

"Camilo!" Mirabel chided, and the three children still in school exited Casita – the two older ones bickering and the smallest watching with amusement from the back of his jaguar.

Julieta turned back to the remaining family members. Isabela, Luisa, and Dolores had made quick work of clearing the breakfast dishes and were working on washing and drying them in the kitchen, and Félix and Agustín were keeping Bruno from escaping to his room in the guise of conversing with him.

As she turned back to the table, Casita bumped several more comfortable chairs from the sitting room toward the courtyard, and the adults gently guided Bruno to sit.

"Now then," Julieta said gently. "What's going on in that head of yours, Bruno? We want to understand."

"Are you afraid she won't return your feelings? Because - " Pepa began, but Julieta gave her a look and shook her head, and Pepa sighed and rolled her eyes and trailed off.

They sat and waited for Bruno to speak.

Bruno sighed and stared at his hands, working up the courage to discuss his feelings honestly. "Part of it – part of it is that – I don't know if she will. She might. But – she might not. She lost her husband three years ago. She might not be ready for anything else. Mamá's never found anyone else - "

Alma covered his fidgeting hands with her own, rubbing the backs of his hands with her thumbs. "Just because I never found love again doesn't mean Lucía has given up on romance, mijo. We are different people."

"…I know Josefina is still grieving…" His voice trailed off for a moment. "And – I love the way things are right now. I love the way Lucía looks at me and the way she talks to me and – if I – try to push things further than she's willing to go right now, I might lose that."

He groaned and bent forward, rubbing his eyes with his palms and resting his face in his hands, staring at the floor. He waited another moment and then spoke again, his voice quiet and hesitant. "I love her so much I'm okay with things staying as they are. She doesn't have to do or be anything else for me than what she already is and I'd - I'd still keep on loving her."

"But – don't you want - " Julieta asked softly, looking to Agustín.

Bruno sat up, still avoiding eye contact. "I've always wanted what you have," he admitted quietly. "But it wasn't even a remote possibility, before."

"It's a possibility now," Julieta insisted.

"We're not saying you have to propose," Félix said warmly. "You don't even have to confess your feelings. Just – encourage her a little, eh?"

"After all - she might be feeling the same way – unwilling to risk the relationship you have now for something more. What have you got to lose?" Agustín added.

"Lucía - and Josefina." Bruno said flatly. "That's the whole point. Not losing them."

"Do you honestly think dressing nicely and asking her to dance at a festival would cause you to 'lose' her?" Julieta asked, raising an eyebrow at him.

"Don't be stupid, hermanito." Pepa sniffed. "Lots of people dance at festivals; it's not exclusively for romantic partners. Honestly, she'd probably be more surprised if you didn't ask her to dance."

Bruno froze for a moment, as though he hadn't thought of that before. His mouth twitched up into a bashful half-smile and he sat back and rubbed the back of his neck. "Well – I -"

"You know you want to dance with her," Pepa said in a sing-song voice, swaying her shoulders side-to-side. "Just one, at least."

Bruno's smile grew. "I do," he admitted. "I – I will. I'll ask her to dance. But – as for the rest – you'll all let me – ah - do things my way?"

"As long as your way isn't completely excluding the possibility of your happiness just because your relationship with Lucía is a little more complex than most," Alma said firmly.

"Just – stay open to the possibility that she loves you back?" Julieta smiled at him.

He smiled back. "Okay."

When they got to school, Lucía waited outside until the students were let in. There were three main classrooms – one for the youngest students in the primary grades, one for the middle grades, and one for the oldest students in the highest grade levels. There was also a small room used for storage and as a meeting and planning place for the teachers, and a large miscellaneous room used for everything from an indoor place for the younger students to play during rainy weather, to a place for the older students to present projects and perform experiments. Since school had been cancelled the previous afternoon to look for Josefina, there were still last-minute projects being set up before the presentations began, and that is where Lucía took Josefina.

The first thing they noticed was the small group of students surrounding the silleta Josefina's group had made. It looked slightly different than it had before – there was some paint missing – large swatches of the golden-brown paint were gone - but all the paper flowers seemed to still be intact. It was a bit lumpier and a little less uniform than it had been yesterday.

Josefina frowned and looked to her mamá in confusion. "What…?"

Alejandra noticed Josefina first. "Josefina! She's here! She's here, guys!" She yelled.

Everyone turned to face her, and they noticed Juan standing to the back of the small group of students as well. He flushed and looked away at their eye contact.

Alejandra ran up and took hold of Josefina's hand. "Come on, Josefina! We have a surprise for you!" She pulled Josefina toward the silleta, and looked over her shoulder. "You can come, too, Señora Moreno! It's for you, too!"

Lucía followed the girls with a look of bewildered amusement on her face. As soon as she and Josefina were positioned in front of the group, Cecilia turned around, took something from Juan's hands, and the whole group shouted "Surprise!" as she proudly held it out to them.

Josefina's mouth dropped open and Lucía gasped.

It was the manuscript.

Not perfect, by any means – there was still paint obscuring large pieces of it, and the pages were curled and tattered – but someone – or apparently, a lot of little someones – had painstakingly taken apart the silleta, pulled out every page with the story and sketches on it, unrolled and cleaned them up as best they could, and taped them back together.

They'd even fixed the silleta so it was still a complete piece – even if it was a little more haphazard looking than it had been, before.

Tears sprang into Lucía's eyes, and she looked at all of the faces looking up at her. "You all did this?" She asked breathlessly, taking it gingerly from Cecilia's hands.

"Well, Antonio was helping find Josefina yesterday but the rest of us kids were too little to do anything to help and then Juan said - " Juancho began explaining –

Juan coughed in embarrassment.

"-Juan said that if we couldn't help look we could at least help fix the book thing!" Alejandra finished, earning herself a dirty look from Juancho.

Lucía blinked in confusion and looked to Juan. "But – how did you know? About the manuscript?"

He shrugged. "I was going to look at the projects in the classroom and – I overheard you. And then you left and I saw a piece of it on the table. And then - "

"-he started pulling a bunch of the flowers off and we found him doing it and we were SO MAD!" Yelled Alejandra.

"-until he told us we accidentally used something we shouldn't have and he was tryin' to fix it," continued Cecilia.

"So we decided since we couldn't help find Josefina we'd help fix the book!" Juancho butted in.

Manuel and Antonio stood to the side, watching the back and forth with quiet interest.

Josefina took the manuscript from her mamá's hand and flipped through it, brushing her fingers over the artwork and words. She looked up at Lucía and her eyes were wide and full of tears.

Josefina threw her arms around her waist and squeezed the life out of her, and Lucía snatched her up and hugged her tightly to her chest, laughing. She set her down a moment later, taking the papers out of her hand and kissing both cheeks. "Oh, mija," she said softly, and then looked to the other children and pulled them all in for hugs. "Gracias, niños."

When she got to Juan, she smiled warmly at him. "Gracias, Juan," she said, holding out her hand. He shook it firmly, and the tips of his ears poking out from his wavy, honey-blonde hair turned pink.

He quickly let go and tucked his hands under his arms and looked away. "De nada," he said gruffly.

"Hola!" Sang Lucía as she entered her home. "Papá! Sofia! Come see what the niños at school did for us!"

Papá and Sofia looked up from where they were talking in the sitting room. "Ah, what's this?" Papá said, adjusting his glasses and taking the ragged pile of papers from her hands.

His mouth dropped open in surprise and a smile broke out across his face. "They fixed it!"

Sofia took it from him and smiled as well, trying not to laugh. "Well, 'fix' might be a strong word," she muttered under her breath.

"Sofi! It was a sweet and thoughtful gesture! And you know who suggested they do it? Juan!" Lucía nudged her on the shoulder and sat down beside her, looking as Sofia turned the pages, a proud smile on her face.

Sofia and Papá exchanged impressed glances.

After a moment, Lucía shook her head, her smile becoming more distant but still affectionate. "Alejandro would have been so mad about the manuscript, but he'd have loved their attempts to fix it." She leaned her head back on the couch for a moment, her face peaceful and content. "Bruno said it was sweet, too. But he had that same look on his face that you had when you saw it, Sofi."

Sofia could not conceal the surprise in her expression, both of her eyebrows raising to her hairline.

Lucía giggled. "You know – the 'I-think-this-is-kind-of-terrible-but-I'm-going-to-be-nice-about-it-anyway-because-it's-sweet' look." She paused. "I asked him what he thought. And you know what he said?"

Sofia made a curious noise, encouraging her to go on.

"He said he thought Juan made a better effort at restitution than his madre. And he asked how Josefina was doing. He was worried she might have mixed feelings about seeing the manuscript repaired. You know – it wasn't like it was before. And how she thinks of and remembers her papá is changing. I thought that was very insightful. He said she inspired him to ask about his own padre. He told me a little bit about him – about Pedro Madrigal. It was good to hear; I'm glad he shared it with me. He was so – so – so wistful and proud." Lucía waved her hands before her, searching for the words to explain.

"I told him from what he'd told me, he seems to take after his padre. He liked that. But I don't think he really believed me." Her smile faded slightly and she shook her head. "Anyway, I'm going to talk to her about it after I pick her up from school, and she has a snack. About her papá, of course. Not Bruno's."

She beamed at Sofia and Papá. "We've got to get ready, Papá. Remember we're doing one last run through of the play – minus Camilo – because he's at school. Of course, he doesn't really need the extra practice." She laughed. "He's good and he knows it. Bruno was grumbling about his cocky attitude last week after practice."

She stood and stretched. "I'm going to put the manuscript back – on a higher shelf, this time – and then we can leave. Okay?"

Papá sat back, rubbed his chin thoughtfully, and smiled. "Sounds perfect, mija."

Sofia and Papá watched as Lucía walked out of the room.

As soon as she was out of earshot, Sofia turned to her padre with wide eyes and inclined her head toward the door. "What was that?" She asked, her voice low.

Papá raised his eyebrows, amused, and shrugged.

"I mean – I knew she loved him. As a friend. I mean, I love him. He's a sweetheart. Have you seen him with Diego? He plays up his 'hombre rata' persona and it cracks Diego up. Adorable." She whispered fondly, and then shook her head to get herself back on track. "But – did you hear the way she was talking about him? Did you hear the way she talked about Alejandro? She hasn't been that comfortable talking about him realistically since he died! And what was that – did I hear that right? She showed Bruno the book before she showed us? She's going to him for parenting advice? Is there something going on there that I don't know about yet?"

Papá chuckled softly. "Mija, I think there's been something going on there for weeks now. But sometimes – as I suspect is the case for Bruno - late blooms are also slow to unfurl. You've said it yourself. Lucía has taken great strides these past few months in healing. I think that has coincided with her growing feelings for Bruno Madrigal, but she's been so focused on piecing her heart back together she doesn't realize that his fingerprints are on it now, as well."

Sofia thought that over for a quiet moment, and then snorted. "They're not just on it, they're all over it. Does he - " She paused, contemplating. "Oh he does. He likes her too, doesn't he? Should I say something?"

Papá raised an eyebrow and peered at her over his glasses, his face skeptical. "And did your madre telling you she thought you and Lorenzo were in love help? Or did it cause you to dig in your heels and deny the inevitable for another month?"

Sofia blushed.

"It was a very difficult month for all of us," her padre laughed, and then patted her knee. "You may be different, mija, but my two daughters are not so different in this regard. Let her continue to heal and love again on her own timeline, mi querida. Que será, será." (6)

1) almojábana – a savory bun-style cheese bread, often shaped like a bagel and eaten for breakfast or as a snack.

2) Lo que no mata, engorda – "That which does not kill, fattens." Basically the Colombian equivalent of the 'dirt don't hurt' or the 'five-second-rule' – even if your food falls on the ground, the worse thing that will happen to you if you still eat it is that you'll get fat.

3) 'For the Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in' – Proverbs 3:12; Jose Hernandez was paraphrasing the Bible verse

(4) His aguacate, his pomelo, and his papaya – his avocado, his grapefruit, and his papaya

5) Él está mas tragado que calzoncillo de torero! – He's more swallowed than a bullfighter's underwear. Colombian figurative language meaning he's totally head over heels in love.

6) Que será, sera – what will be, will be

– Also, in the bouquet Isabela made for Bruno earlier - lilacs symbolize first love or the start of love and pink camellias symbolize longing.

You all are awesome and make me so happy. :D Thanks for your support! God bless you all and have a great weekend.