A Classical Guitar Dream

The Week Begins

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> Part Eleven - The Week Begins <<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

Two days, or rather a weekend, had passed since their flamenco improvisation session at Carlotta's house.

It was now Monday, the beginning of a new week, and another cycle of school was yet to begin. As usual, it was an overcast, crisp spring day; the winter cold had not yet passed. The colourful clock that hung in the centre of the dining room showed 7 o'clock, and it began to chime.

Carlotta's eyes snapped open; the chiming never ceased to do its job in the morning. She groaned and muttered some not-so-nice words in Spanish under her breath.

Stretching, she hopped out of bed and rubbed the sleep out of her eyes, effectively wiping away all bleariness. Carlotta turned to her chest of drawers and began her morning routine.

(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)

"Hola, Carla! Buenos dias!" Alejandro cried, running towards his sister, his mouth with tomato smeared around the edges, and grabbed her around the middle.

"Buenos dias, Alejandro." She replied, grinning, as she squeezed him back.

"Buenos dias, hermana," Luis said, without turning around. His mouth was full of a thickly buttered bread roll. He was sitting up at the bench, staring intently at a piece of paper set down in front of him.

"I hope tu haven't eaten all the bread, Lui," Carlotta said, crossing her arms.

"Ay, sorry, Carla," Luis replied, swallowing his mouthful. He shrugged his shoulders and looked at her sheepishly. "I had the last one."

"Que?!?" Carlotta steamed, turning red. "Why??"

An awkward silence passed between them, Carlotta still red as the tomato paste smeared around the corners of Alejandro's mouth.

Then, Luis's face crumpled into a grin, and he started laughing. "Ha, tu face! Ay, that was priceless!"

He turned serious and then threw something at Carlotta, which she caught with two hands. It was a fresh bun, slightly warmed, with tomato paste and serrano ham stuffed inside of it.

She stared at him, and he looked back at her, a half-smile on his lips.

"That's your breakfast sorted." With that, he turned his attention back to his food. Carlotta looked at him, and back at the bread, and her face returned to normal, a grin on her face.

Oh, how she loved her family.

(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)

Just as Carlotta had pulled up a seat at the table, next to Alejandro, a cup of orange juice in her hand, Mama breezed in, wearing a cream jacket, and crisp turquoise slacks.

"Buenos dios, mi children." She said, heading to the fridge.

Carlotta looked up at the sound of her voice, and her mouth dropped open when she saw her mother.

"Mama?" She exclaimed, hardly daring to believe it.

Mama turned around and looked at her daughter, smiling. "Ay, I went shopping en Saturday, do you like it?"

"Es.., es different.." Carlotta replied, not knowing what to say.

"Bueno, Mama, I think you look muy bonita," Luis said, grinning.

"Si, pretty Mama, pretty Mama!" Alejandro cried, showing his gappy smile.

"Gracias, Luis, and Alejandro." Mama smiled, smoothing out her jacket.

Carlotta glared at Luis and muttered something under her breath. Luis just grinned and resumed eating.

(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)

A few minutes later, Mama seated herself at the end of the table; her breakfast laid out in front of her. Sighing, she set about eating, picking up her coffee between finger and thumb, and sipping from it daintily. Carlotta watched, fascinated. She could never understand how her Mama managed to eat with such precision.

They continued to eat in silence, just the sounds of munching and crunching. Finally, Luis broke the silence.

"Where's Papa?" He called from the kitchen bench.

"Didn't he tell you, yesterday afternoon?" Mama replied, a confused look on her face.

"Bueno, he did tell us, but Luis had his nose en tu phone, so he wasn't listening," Carlotta said, grinning.

"Que?" Luis replied, throwing his hands in the air. "I was just calling mi friend, seeing if he wanted to audition for the school performance.

"Ha! More like begging him." She replied, smirking.

"Ay, children, stop your arguing." Mama sighed, shaking her head.

They shut up instantly, a guilty look on their faces.

"As I was going to say," Mama continued, relieved. "Papa left yesterday for Spain, as his artwork is being displayed en un gallery in Barcelona."

"En serio??" Luis spluttered, bread crumbs spraying everywhere. "A gallery, en Barcelona? Que bien!"

"Si, es muy bueno, isn't it?" Mama replied, smiling.

"Yes, well that's bien y all, but look at the time!" Carlotta cried, pointing at the clock. "I have to get to school, and it's my turn to take Alejandro to preschool."

Then, turning to Alejandro, she looked at him. "Are you ready to go?"

"Si!" He cried, smiling. He climbed off his chair and stood in front of her.

"Bien, go and put your shoes on," She ordered, and he disappeared around the corner.

"Gracias, Carina," Mama said gratefully. "His backpack and food are ready."

"Bien. Gracias, Mama." Carlotta wrapped her arms around Mama, and Mama kissed her on the cheek. Waving a hand to Luis, who returned the gesture, she sped out of the kitchen, after putting her dishes in the sink.

(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)

"Viene, Alejandro, we have to hurry!" Carlotta cried, practically dragging him by the hand towards the bus stop.

"No, I won't hurry!" He cried, pouting. "I'm tired."

"Si, I know, but if you want to get to your friends, you must hurry!"

"I'm tired. Carry me!" He cried, and Carlotta sighed, weighing out the options.

Finally, she gave into Alejandro, and moved her backpack to her front, and hoisted Alejandro onto her back.

"Yay!" He cried, smiling. "I love piggyback."

She picked up the pace, and tried her hardest to race towards the bus stop, with a heavy 7-year-old on her back.

(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)(-)-(-)

Carlotta trudged towards the school gates, her shoulders groaning in pain. Perhaps trying to run carrying Alejandro and her backpack at the same time hadn't been such a good idea. She reached the school gates, but she wasn't looking where she was going, and she crashed straight into a large figure.

Carlotta caught the person round the middle, and over they both went, landing on top of each other.

"Ouch, cielos, that hurt!" Carlotta muttered, rubbing her head.

"Hey, get off my friend, you idiot!" A voice called, and Carlotta looked up at the angry face of Trey.

Trey Evans, soccer star, popular guy, and notorious bully.