Last Kiss Goodbye • Teenage Juice Ortiz

85 - Thanksgiving

With an affectionate smile Mateo watched his brother lying stretched out on the new couch, half of his face sunk in a cushion. His mouth was slightly open, giving way to soft snoring sounds. Something he'd never dared to do in their mother's house, afraid to get lectured. 

Taking Juan away from a home where he couldn't even lie on the couch when he was exhausted, had been his priority for a long time. But he was young, he hadn't been sure if he would really manage to do it and he had also been afraid that Juan didn't want to move in with his brother. He had always been sensitive to what other people thought of him and his family, even when he pretended not to care. 

Nevertheless, he had succeeded. He had been able to rent a spacious apartment and Juan had wanted nothing more than going with him. It did him good, knowing their bond was so strong Juan took any shame for granted. 

It had been some busy days. Lorraine had bought the building they had visited a few weeks ago and they were in the middle of executing their plans. Apart from that, he had also worked on the house. Although he had more time at his disposal than his little brother, Juan didn't want him to do a lot without him. It was their house, he wanted to fix up the place together. After all, he would live here for at least two years. Emilio, Riley and June had came over to paint the walls, which had sped the process up and right now everything was almost finished. 

Nevertheless the days had been long, which caused Juan some stress. Mateo believed his brother pulled through very well. The conversation he had with ma hadn't been easy, but Mateo was proud of him daring to face her. He himself hadn't said a single word to her — he wouldn't know what to say anyway. 

The oven beeped, waking Juan up. Sitting up straight, he rubbed his eyes. 

"And... The couch's lyin' well?" Mateo asked, smirking. 

A pink tinge spread across Juan's cheeks. "Sorry," he muttered. "I should have set the table while you were cooking."

Mateo shrugged his shoulders. "Had to wait until the food was ready anyway. Don't wanna hear you say sorry in this house, kid." He pulled a face. "I'm not ma."

Juan chuckled, jumped on his feet and looked more energetic instantly. Mateo headed to the oven to take out the baking dish while Juan pulled back a chair and flopped down. 

Dinner was more relaxing than it used to be. They used to have dinner with the two of them a lot of times, but there had always been some restraint because they didn't know if ma'd show up, ruining their moods. The times that Juan had to eat all alone were over as well; now he no longer had to deliver pizzas he could schedule his working hours himself. Finally, his brother seemed to have some stability in his life, and the look in his eyes told Mateo that it was quieter in his head too. 

"Next week it's Thanksgiving, huh?" Juan started, right before he shoved a bite of lasagne in his mouth. 

"Uh-uh." The corner of Mateo's mouth curled up. "Your first celebration with your future family in law." He winked. 

Juan smiled and nodded. "Hannah asked me to invite you too."

It took a few seconds before Mateo understood he was talking about June's mother. Lowering his fork, he frowned his eyebrows. "What?"

"She wants to meet you."

Mateo huffed. He was happy for his little brother that he got along well with June's ma, but he didn't have some hole in his heart that needed to be filled. He didn't like parents — and they didn't like him either. 

"Why?" he asked gruff. 

Juan shrugged his shoulders. "She knows how much you mean to me." Hopefully, he looked up to Mateo. "I can't even remember the last time I celebrated Thanksgiving with you. It would mean a lot to me if you'd come."