AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Shhh, I’m here.”
Miguel’s arms tighten around me, squeezing me for dear life. He buries his head into the crook of my shoulder, and I let out a shuddering breath. The scent of citrus, sweat, and hay surrounds me, and my eyes fall shut as I let myself inhale everything that is Miguel.
The boy I remember from my childhood mixes with the man standing in front of me, so different and yet the same. In this moment, the past doesn’t matter. Everything that has happened, all the words exchanged, they’re meaningless. The only important thing is that he’s here, and he needs me.
I slip my free arm around his waist. My face is burrowed into his chest, the warmth of his skin seeping through the thin cotton of his shirt.
For a second, it feels like I remember to breathe for the first time since I’ve heard the news, but then I feel Miguel’s body shake against mine.
“Miguel?”
I try to pull back, but he’s not letting go of me. If possible, his hold on me tightens, and that uneasy feeling is once again swirling inside my stomach.
“Is everything okay? Is your dad…”
I don’t let myself finish the question. Becausewhat if he’s not okay? What if something happened and his condition worsened? What if…
“He’s still in the hospital. They wanted to keep him there to make sure he was going to be okay,” Miguel says into my shoulder, his voice coming out muffled. “But if everything works out, we should be able to bring him home soon.”
Home.
He’s coming home.
“Thank God.” I let out a long exhale as my fingers gripped the worn material of his shirt.
Mr. Fernandez was okay.
At least one of us will have both parents alive and well.
“That’s good news, right? If he’s going home, that means he’s doing better?”
“Or maybe he just pissed the nurses off so badly they are more than ready to discharge him just so they don’t have to be in his presence for much longer.”
A strangled sound comes from my lungs as the image of Mr. Fernandez’s grumpy face pops into my mind. I could totally see him annoying the nurses and doctors just so they’d let him leave as soon as possible.
“That does sound like something he’d do.”
“That’s Dad. Stubborn like a mule.”
I knew another man just like that. Not that I thought Miguel would appreciate the comparison. But I could see it. They were more alike than either of them wanted to admit. I think that was part of the reason why they didn’t get along to begin with.
“I’m so happy to hear he’s doing better. When I heard he had a heart attack…” I shake my head. “I was just about to call you, but then you appeared and…”
Miguel pulls back, those exhausted eyes scanning my face. “You were planning to call me?”
“You said you were leaving, and I didn’t know if anybody told you. So, yeah, I was planning to make sure you knew what’s going on.” I shrug. “No matter what happened between you and your dad, you’d never forgive yourself if you didn’t come back, Miguel.”
A lot of things might have changed about Miguel, but at the core, he was still that boy I fell in love with. The boy who loved his family above all else, the boy who’d do everything to make them happy.
Miguel stares at me, different emotions playing on his face.
I look away, unable to stand his probing stare.
There was no sense in making a big deal about this. It’s something any of our friends would have done. Because this is just the way our community was. We took care of one another.
“It was all my fault.” The words are whispered so softly at first, I think I imagined them. I turn around to find Miguel’s gaze fixed on me, but it’s clear his mind is miles away.
“What are you talking about?”
