Last Kiss Goodbye • Teenage Juice Ortiz

44 - Families

Edited

THE PAST

June didn't think she could ever get tired with this; his lips melting with hers, her leg draped over his, their upper bodies pressed together. One hand buried in her hair, the other had settled high up on her side, his thumb softly pressing against the underwire of her bra. He made no move to go any further, although right now she didn't know if she would have minded if he had. After their first date she'd had a very realistic dream in which he had taken the time to explore her body and caress her breasts; resulting in the drawing he had just found. On the other hand she still wanted to take things slow – all the things Mateo and Emilio had said were still in her mind, making her cautious. She didn't think that Juan would be like them but maybe it was better if they waited a little longer, until they knew each other better.

A call from the bottom of the stairs told them dinner was ready, causing them to end their kiss, however unwillingly. A little out of breath June sat up, she felt the blush creeping back to her cheeks when she caught Juan looking at her. His shining smile made her forget about her appetite immediately; her whole stomach seemed to fill with butterflies.

As she went to leave the room, he suddenly pulled her back and into his embrace, pressing his lips into her hair. "You make me so happy June."

Hesitating, her arms slid around him, holding him tight. He sounded fragile – he felt fragile, and she thought back to the times he had hinted to the difficult situation at home. "Are you feeling nervous about this? Having dinner with my family?"

As she looked up to him, she saw the red glow on his cheeks. "I can't really remember the last time we ate together, as a family, without fighting..." he muttered. "Most days I eat alone, sometimes my mom or Mat joins me. So, I dunno... it feels unreal to be having dinner with your family already."

The corners of her mouth curled down as the look in his eyes told her how much he longed for the warmth of a family. "You're part of this family now too," she said softly. "I know that we might not look like a standard family, but there's a lot... warmth and love." She cupped his jaw with her hand. "Enough for you too." Giving him an encouraging smile, she took his hand and gently dragged him downstairs. They sat down at the table and filled their plates, as June told her mom about the museum where Juan had taken her to.

Her sisters didn't say much, but they couldn't keep their eyes off Juan. June watched as he became increasingly nervous under their stares. April was the first one to abandon her meal and started to ask him questions. Whether he had siblings, what his favorite animal was, what sports he liked. It didn't take long before May joined the interview too and June bit back a smile as he answered all their questions patiently.

"And now you two give that boy a break so he can finish his meal," her mother stepped in after a while, giving Juan a wink. "Before it's cold."

"It uh, it tastes delicious," he muttered.

From the corner of her eye June looked at him. Having Mateo as a brother and Emilio as his best friend, she figured that he must have gotten used to attention, but yet this kind of attention seemed to make him shy.

The twins however had already fallen for his charming smile.

"You want to play games with us, Juan?" April asked the moment he laid down his fork, creating the impression that she had waited for that moment a long time. She stood up and motioned him to follow her. "Come, I'll show you all of them!"

"April, we have barely finished dinner," her mother objected, but the girl didn't hear her; too excited about her new friend. She was already standing in front of the closet, summing up all of the games. Juan's face told her that he wasn't familiar with most of them and June chuckled quietly. She pushed him gently towards her sister and started to clean the table.