Page 140 of Something in Between

“No, Daddy.” I hang on to him, which makes him soften. I’ve always been a Daddy’s girl. “Thanks for letting everyone come hang out.”

Royce arrives early. He’s beaming and partially hidden behind the second-largest bouquet of flowers I’ve ever seen.

“Hi, baby,” I say, trying to kiss him without getting petals in my face.

“Am I late?” he asks.

“No, you’re right on time.”

Familiar faces fill the house. It seems like everyone I know is here. Coach Davis. Mrs. Garcia. My cheer girls. Lo and her posse. The student council. The math club. The California Scholarship Federation kids. A few guys from the football team.

Dad harrumphs. “Help your mother in the kitchen.”

Mom calls to me like clockwork. “Neneng!I need your help. You have to take these platters out to the table. You can’t let our guests starve. Haven’t I taught you any better?”

I wave to Dylan and Julian as I cross through the living room. My brothers rock out in front of the band while Kayla dances next to them. She thinks they’re hilarious, and I’m so happy to see her smiling and laughing. It seems like the past year has been so tense that often our laughter was forced. Not now. Not today.

I can’t think of anything I’m not grateful for.

The kitchen is filled with the usual mountain of food. Mom is teaching Mrs. Blakely how to stuff and roll lumpia while Lola Cherry and Millie sit together, telling stories about their long, crazy lives. Olivia is rolling around the living room on her scooter, a little dangerous given the size of the room (tiny) and the crowd (large), but no one seems to mind. Mason is still in that rehab center in Utah.

The other day Mom found out from some friends in the hospital that the “big donor” who wanted all the undocumented workers fired was none other than Congressman Blakely. It’s funny—he was part of our crisis, but he fixed it too. Things come full circle. With Royce’s help, I was even able to put the book of stories together and print a few copies for the patients.

Not to mention, when I thank Congressman Blakely once again for what he did for my family, he mentions that he was able to sway the judge with Senator Lauren Silverton’s help. As a high-ranking Democrat, she pulled some strings of her own. “I get by with a little help from my friends,” he says with a wink.

I watch as Lola hooks him with her cane and pulls him over. “I have a question for you,” she demands.

Surprised, Congressman Blakely takes her hand. “Well, aren’t you a beauty?” he says.

Lola raises her eyebrows. “Why, thank you.”

“What do you want to talk about?” he asks. “Health Care? Social Security?”

“Why would I care about that?” Lola shrugs her shoulders like she’s confused. “I want to know about the other good-looking congressmen! Are any available?”

Millie laughs with Lola.

As he passes by the table, Dad pats Royce’s dad on the shoulder. “Be careful with that one. She’s worse than a teenager.”

Congressman Blakely looks helpless.

“What do you need help with, Mom?” I ask.

“Get that thing out of the refrigerator,” she waves.

I twist around to reach for the fridge. “What thing?”

“That thing!” she says.

“Ay!”I say. “You can never say what you mean.” I start to open the door, waiting for more instructions, when I see a small package labeled with my name on it. “What’s this?” I take it out. It’s light.

Mom comes over and hugs me. “Don’t you know what to do with a gift?”

I look around. Mom and Dad are smiling. The music is blasting. I tear open the package. Inside is a small box. I lift the lid to find a gold ring with a deep red stone. It’s a class ring. The center is engraved with the Stanford Tree.

“Mom! Dad!” I yell. “Thank you!”

I look at Royce sitting next to Lo’s friends. He winks at me. “Look on the inside,” he shouts out over the music. “I told them to engrave something.”

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