Before This Summer Ends (MXM)

Chapter 3

I stir awake to a mouthwatering scent wafting in the air, causing my stomach to rumble, and when I open my eyes the room is darker now and so is the sky. I sit up at the edge of the bed still groggy from sleep, and I reach for the bedside lamp to turn it on before picking up my phone to check the time. It's a few minutes past Seven, and my stomach feels like it's about to eat itself, come to think of it I don't think I've had a proper meal all day.

A lazy yawn slips past my lips as I get up, partly curious to know what's happening downstairs. I eagerly follow the scent out of the room and then down the stairs till I find myself at the doorway of the kitchen. Rosario who is busy stirring the contents of a big pot on the stove flinches the moment she sees me.

"Dios! Noah, you scared me." She lets out a nervous chuckle as she softly pats down her chest. "You're awake."

"Yeah I just woke up," I mumble quietly, strutting over to the stool next to the kitchen island. I don't know what she's making but whatever it is has my mouth frothing.

"Did you have a good rest, Mijo?" Rosario glances up at me, a warm smile making its way to her lips.

"Uhm... yeah I guess..." She nods slowly. It must be weird for her to house me out of the blue, and I can't tell if she's pretending to be okay with it or I'm just overthinking things.

"I know it's going to take a while for you to adjust to this place, but I promise you that you won't have any problems while staying here with me, I'll make sure of that," she speaks up again more softly as if reading my mind. I want to say something, probably ask why she accepted to take me in after all these years. Why did she leave back then if she supposedly loved working for us? How well did she know my mother? But my thoughts are interrupted by the sound of jingling keys followed by the front door opening and clicking shut.

Rosario's face suddenly lights up like she already knows who it is in the foyer. "Sergio, sweetie, is that you?" she yells, turning to face the kitchen doorway.

A low gravelly voice replies "Yeah!" in an instant, followed by heavy footsteps. Soon a handsome young man appears at the doorway with a boyish smile on his lips, and the first thing I notice when I see him is the striking resemblance he has with the boy from the photo earlier.

Then it dawns on me.

'That's Sergio.'

At first, he doesn't notice me sitting there staring, but when he does and our eyes meet, his smile falls, and his lips thin.

"Mijo, welcome home. You're just in time for dinner, we're having a tasty pasta." Rosario announces excitedly, stealing his attention once again before turning back to me. "But first... I hope you can still remember little Noah? You two were inseparable when you were younger." She lets out a small hearty laugh but Sergio doesn't seem so pleased.

He narrows his bright eyes on me, giving me a quick once over. His gaze is flat and unimpressed, and his lips remain pursed. I can't tell if he recognizes me or not, but I on the other hand still can't remember a thing about him, not when he seems to have changed so much from when he was little.

He's much taller and sturdier now. His bouncy curls are now shorter, falling just above his thick eyebrows, his skin is now tanned two shades darker, and his smooth handsome face now has a sharp jawline running at the edges. But his eyes are still the same, bright and intense.