Enrique Viramontes is a Mexican immigrant who has come to Los Angeles in search of a better life.
Marshall Cromwell is a returning war veteran who has come home but leaves his small town to become an actor.
At first, the two get off on the wrong foo...
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Marshall
I layed in my bed that night tossing and turning. The idea that Enrique was down the hall from me terrified me. He was now in the area where I am myself.
Seeing him tonight, moving his body and dancing, really rewired my brain. Enrique’s body moved smoothly. His grinds were perfect and so was his body. I could imagine my fingers running along his toned chest as he heaved hard breaths.
I opened a window. It was getting way too… hot in here. My throat began to go dry so I journeyed to the kitchen to get a glass of water. I stared out into the night sky, seeing the searchlights dancing around.
I turned my head to see Enrique asleep. His breathing was steady and his chest moved up and down. His lashes brushed on his eyes. He wore a smile on his face. He must be dreaming of something nice. Wonder who is in it.
Realizing how weird it was for me to stare at a sleeping person, I exited the living room and went back to bed. I should just sleep it off.
Wait! I kissed him!!!
I stayed up for a few more hours thinking about that kiss. I felt more feelings at that kiss than I did with Casey. Fireworks launched through my body. After I kissed him, I chose to try and ignore it and not bring it up. It must’ve worked because he also didn’t bring it up. I hope he didn’t feel uncomfortable with it.
The next morning, I woke up to the smell of something sweet. I stood up and stretched, flexing my muscles. I was currently shirtless and only had nighttime pants on. I caught a whiff of something in the air. A sweet aroma. It encompassed me while I sat there trying to figure out what it was. Deciding it was time to get up, I hopped out of bed and made my way to where the smell was coming from.
Walking down the hall, I could hear whistling coming from the kitchen. I saw the couch where Enrique was sleeping the night before was empty. All the blankets were folded up neatly. I turned and peaked into the kitchen.
There he was, whistling while making coffee. He had a plate full of bread.
“Oh, you’re awake!” He said. He turned and saw me. His eyes trailed down my body.
“So are you.” I said. I approached the table and sat down.
“I’m used to getting up early. I didn’t want to wake you so I made breakfast.” He beamed while pointing to the coffee and bread.
“What is it?” I said. He brought the plate over and set it in the middle of the table. I looked at the pastries while he poured coffee into two mugs. The pastries were different colors. They were round and had this hardened sugar on the top of it which was cracked all over the surface. Some of them were pink, white, and brown.
“Pan dulce. Conchas, to be exact.” He said as he set the mugs in front of me and himself. He sat down, admiring as I looked at the sweet delights.
“What does that mean?” I asked.
“Pan dulce is sweet bread. Very common from where I’m from. These specifically are conchas. They’re called like that because they kinda look like shells.” He finished.
“Try one.” He said. I looked up at him and then back down at the bread. A bright pink one caught my attention as it sat in the middle of the pile. I picked it up and smelled it. It smelled nice.
“Aye, por favor! Just eat it!” He said while laughing. I took a bite out of it and was met with a pleasant taste.
“Mmm. This is amazing!” I said while chewing the bread. Enrique gave a satisfied smile and he too began to eat one.
We spent that morning eating and talking. Enrique told me about his cooking skills and how he plans to cook more. I was delighted to hear this. I offered to buy ingredients so he could cook more. I think I ate about half a dozen of En’s breads.
“I’ll go and fix the spare room.” I said after washing the dishes.
“Need any help?” En asked from behind me.
“No. You’re the guest. Let me do it.” I said.
“Fine. I’ll go buy groceries.” He said.
“There’s a market down the street. Here, I’ll give you some money.” I said. I pulled out some bills and handed them to him. He left within a few minutes.
I entered the spare room. I had a few items in here but not too much. The house came furnished meaning this room had everything in it. I began working and removed my spare clothes. I found the jewelry and felt like I didn’t need to hide it. I know there are some prejudices out there about people like Enrique. But getting to know En, I now know that those assumptions are false. Because En is amazing.
My opinion on other people has changed ever since I met Enrique. I’ve grown to accept others and judge them based on their character. And I’m thankful for that.
The front door opened and I knew En was home. I walked into the kitchen and he was facing away from me.
“Hey. How was it?” I asked.
“F-Fine. Apples we-re on sale.” His voice quivered. He’d yet to turn around. Something was up.
“Are you okay?” I asked. I began to get closer to him.
“Yeah. Fine.” He said but I knew he wasn’t. I got closer and was behind him.
"Turn around.” I said. He let out a ragged breath and slowly turned around.
He stood there as his left eye was bruised.
“What happened?! How did this happen!?! Are you okay?!?” I asked as I grabbed his face and brought him closer. While looking at his face, a few tears escaped his eyes.
“I was at the store. Some guy came up to me and started yelling at me. I tried to talk him down but then he punched me.” He said.
“I’m sorry. Gosh. I should’ve gone. I’m so stupid!” I said. He grabbed my wrists.
“Calm down, Marsh,” My heart jumped when he said that. “It’s not your fault. You didn’t know this was going to happen.” He said. I stopped and went to my freezer to grab a bag of frozen peas. I approached him and put the bag on his left eye.
“Are you okay?” I asked as he put his hand over mine. Our fingers touched and my urge to entwine them was strong.
“Yeah. Are you?” He asked.
“I guess.” A few moments of silence. “Come on. I have your room ready.” I said.
I led him through the house, our house now.
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it's been three days since i turned 18 and i already want to die.
