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chapter six; lando, ━━━━━━
IT CATCHES HIM BY SURPRISE AT HOW QUICKLY he's becoming more comfortable with Cleo. He didn't know how to describe it but there was this immediate sense of solace and tranquility he felt whenever he was around her. He felt like he could breathe; something that he'd felt like he's rarely done since his father's accident. But with her even the most minuscule of moments shared between him helped distract him from those overbearing worries. He's vulnerable with her and expresses his emotions in ways he's never done before. Talking to Cleo always offers him some relief in knowing that there's someone he could talk to about feeling overwhelmed by everything, his enjoyment of being around her might also attest to the fact that she's undeniably beautiful.
When they arrive at the taco stand, there's a few other people perched at the benches eating and conversing. Cleo follows behind Lando as he approached the small window on the truck; where's there's a fairly chubby man standing in the kitchen lathering toppings and condiments onto a plate of tacos.
"Yo, Manny!" Lando clamors in greeting as they approach closer. The guy — Manny, looks up at the sound of his name being called and smiles, using a white towel that was draped over his shoulder to wipe away the sweat that gathered on his forehead. Then reaches over and grabs his quart container and takes a large sip of his drink.
"Lando! I haven't seen you in a while, I was starting to get worried." Manny proclaims, preparing the last accommodations to the plate of food before pressing down on a small bell and calling out the person's name. He greets and thanks the customer when he walks up to grab his food before averting his attention onto Cleo and Lando.
"I've been around, just been busy with school and everything." Lando shrugs, nudging his chin at Cleo to gesture her to follow him as he lead them towards Manny's window. There's a lingering aroma of food that has her mouth salivating at the smell, her stomach growling causes both Lando and Manny to look at her.
Manny chuckles as he wipes at his sweaty brows again. "Ah, it sounds like your girlfriend is hungry, amigo." He reaches somewhere besides him and grabs a pamphlet, extending it out towards her. "There's a few new things that we added to the menu; Huevos Rancheros which is just a fried egg with a tortilla and rice, a new breakfast burrito, steak nachos and shrimp tacos." He explained, listing through the items as Cleo read over the menu.
Lando gauged a curious look over at Cleo, realizing that she hadn't immediately corrected Manny's inadvertent faux pas. She does however, look up at him and smile before handing Manny back his menu. "I'll take the beef burrito."
"I'll take one too and two of those street tacos."
It's only a brief wait as Manny cooks the food, fifteen minutes later they're occupying one of the benches sliding athwart from each other as they sat down. Lando grabs his small containers of condiments, lathering the spicy red sauce all over his tacos and squeezing the remnants of the juice from the lime over the tenderized meat before he picks it up and brings it to his mouth. He takes a hefty bite out of the taco; immediately tasting the deliciousness of the corn tortilla, the grilled and thoroughly seasoned meat, and the spices from the toppings and condiments.
