angel. | ruby martinez

chapter two

four o'clock in the afternoon, and i was walking to the famous santos hangout.

the house of oscar and cesar diaz.

oscar had later persisted me to come over on saturday, and as much i didn't want it to, the day slowly rolled by, until i had to finally make the walk to their place.

the santos didn't scare me, i'd known most of them for a while.

the group was sitting around in the front lawn, and i spotted oscar, waving.

i waved back, running up to the drive-way and into the lawn.

everyone waved to me, and i waved back. it was a pretty regular occurrence for me to stop by.

"hi, manuel." i waved to my brother, and he nodded, a blunt in his mouth keeping him from speaking.

i turned to oscar, and he pointed behind him, toward the house.

"he's in his room." he stated, and i nodded, waving goodbye before entering the house.

i knew the house pretty well, seeing as i stopped by quite a bit.

cesar's room was at the very far left of the hallway. the door was closed, and i knew better than to just barge in.

my hand rose to knock.

once, twice.

the door opened slightly, only a crack available for me to look inside.

i could see him through the other side. he was sat on his bed, doing what i assumed was homework.

cesar diaz doing homework?

"it's open, if you couldn't tell." he spoke, and i shook my head, opening the door wide enough to get through. i closed it behind me.

cesar looked up, and smiled at me.

"hey, mari." he greeted, confusion on his face. "why are you here?"

"ouch." i rolled my eyes, taking a seat beside him.

he chuckled, continuing to scribble down notes in his notebook he had in his lap.

"oscar told me to stop by and check up on you." i answered, kicking my legs back and forth from the edge of the bed. "he said that he hadn't seen you hanging out with your friends."

he stayed silent, confusing me.

"cesar, what happened?" i asked, and he shrugged.

"i fucked up." he mumbled, almost inaudible. i heard him, though.

i felt like if i asked any further questions, it'd just be nosy and unnecessary of me, so i simply stayed quiet.

"you haven't really talked to anyone all summer, so i'm pretty sure you don't know what happened." he chuckled sadly, laying his pencil down on his notebook, putting his work beside him.

the curiosity caught up, and i couldn't help it when i asked, "what did you do?"

his lips were pursed, and he fiddled with the cross necklace around his neck.

"i told everyone i fucked one of my best friends."

my eyes widened, and i looked up at him.

"cesar.."

"i know! i know! and it's fucked up because she isn't even here! she's at some stupid writing camp, and when she comes back, that's the only thing she's gonna hear from everyone."

i sighed, pulling him in for a side hug.

"you're a dumbass." i whispered, and i felt him nod.

"clearly."

i pulled away from him slightly, "so, why'd you do it?"

he noticeably winced a little, "oscar. he said he was gonna get at her, and i had to say something to keep him away. that was the only thing i could come up with."

i nodded, understanding why. of course, it was a horrible thing for him to say, but he had good intentions. not good outcomes.

"she comes back tomorrow. mari, i'm so scared. i've lost everyone that could've had my back. my two best friends, and soon my third."

i heard the straining in his voice, and hugged him tightly.

"cesar, you gotta tell the truth. that's the only way it's gonna be even remotely okay." i told him, and he nodded.

"okay, okay." he breathed, and he pulled away, leaning against the wall.

"mari?"

"cesar?"

"thank you. you help with everything. you're like my portable therapist." he chuckled, and i giggled, hitting his arm playfully.