Page 1 of A Twinmas Entanglement
1
Solana
Thanksgiving Day 2024
Coming from a Hispanic household, Thanksgiving is usually at lunchtime. So when I glance at the stove and see it’s already 12:30 p.m., I know everybody will be arriving soon—except Delaney is still not finished getting ready.
We invited some of our closest friends to our apartment for Thanksgiving. Delaney and I met them in college when we attended the University of Texas at Austin. We have since graduated this past semester, but we still keep in touch with most of them. I was hired as an athletic trainer for the girls’ basketball team. That’s where I met a couple of them, especially since a handful of them currently play sports for UT. My best friend, Lena Lopez, just got drafted into the WBNA a couple of months ago, but she still comes in a few days out of the week to use our practice gym. Ade and Dane are star football players, and Davian is now the leading scorer for the basketballteam. They, along with girls Adela, Riona, Iliana, and Nereyda, have been celebrating every holiday together, taking turns at each other’s houses. This year, however, Nereyda has invited her older brother and my ex-professor, Elio, to join us. This will definitely be interesting because he’s about twenty years older than us, but I know he’s close with the guys and Lena, so it shouldn’t be too awkward.
“Bebé, c’mon, let’s set the table before everyone gets here,” I shout to Delaney from across the house as she finishes her makeup. I grasp the handles of the turkey rack and place it on the serving platter before taking it to our table.
“I’m almost done,abejita.¡Dame unos cinco minutos, por favor!”she yells. I roll my eyes and continue setting it. Leave it to D to take forever to do her makeup. I specifically told her our friends would be here at11:30 a.m., but it looks like my girl called my bluff and knew they wouldn’t be getting here that early.(I’m almost done, little bee. Give me about five minutes, please!)
The doorbell rings. I drop the paring knife onto the platter and make my way to our door. Looking through the peephole, I see my girls, Adela and Riona, with Davian and Dane coming up behind them.
Opening the door, I say, “Hola, cariños! Welcome, welcome, come in. You guys are the first to arrive. You know D is still getting ready, so grab a drink. Y’all know where the glasses are and the beers are in the fridge.”(Hello, darlings!)
“Hi, babe. You look gorgeous,” Adela responds as she greets me with a hug and kiss. I continue down the line, greeting them with a hug and kiss as they enter the kitchen and grab themselves a drink. Adela grabs a glass and pours some homemade sangria while the guys and Riona grab a beer. Noticing the trays and bowls on the stove and kitchen island, theguys quickly put their drinks down, grab whatever is near them, and take it to the dining table.
“Thank you so much for helping, y’all. I really appreciate it so much. I wanted to have everything ready before you got here, but D and I got a little carried away, and she had to redo her makeup.” I chuckle, winking at them as they shake their heads, chuckling with me.
With the table set, Davian and Dane snatch their drinks and sit beside each other at one end of the table. They are such good-looking men, and their killer skills make them the hottest talked-about brothers for UT’s sports. What others don’t know, though, is that they are boyfriends. Pretty much every one of our friends is. Adela and Riona are sisters and have been dating for a while now. Dane and Davian got together shortly after them. Lena, her sister, and cousins got together last summer, and Iliana and Ade were the most recent siblings who decided to take their relationship to the next level. It might be odd to most to be friends with people in taboo relationships, but Delaney and I don’t care. We love them either way.
“I’m going to check on Delaney and see if she’s almost ready. Give me a second,” I declare, making my way to my bedroom, but I jump back when Delaney pops out from behind the door.
“Hey, baby. I’m done. Is everyone here already?” Shaking my head, I grab her hand and pull her toward the dining area, but the doorbell rings at our apartment. We both go to the door and are met by Iliana, Ade, Nereyda, and Elio.
“Hola, Happy Thanksgiving. Come on in. Everybody else is in the dining area. Lena isn’t coming. She texted and said she was staying home and spending the holiday with her partners,” Delaney states, greeting them with a hug and kiss as I do the same.
“Hey, Elio. Nice to see you again.”
“Nice to see you as well. You have a lovely home, Solana,” he utters huskily. He strides to the table, following aimlessly behind Nereyda like a little puppy dog. The way he’s looking at her makes me think another pair of siblings might be getting together soon.
“So, is everybody ready to dig in? It’s one o’clock and everything is still warm,” I state, looking around the room as everyone nods their heads. Everyone grabs a seat near their partners, while Delaney and I opt for the seats at the heads of the table, opposite each other.
“Can you please pass the mashed potatoes, princess?” Ade asks, gesturing toward his girlfriend and sister, Iliana. She takes the mashed potatoes beside her, and Ade seizes the bowl, pouring a mountain on his plate.
“Save some for everybody,Papi.You can eat more later,” Iliana exclaims, winking. We all laugh at her straight-up innuendo at the table.
“I swear, y’all so fucking cute,” Delaney pouts, gazing at them adoringly. I smile and shake my head at her evident admiration.
“So, is anybody doing any Black Friday shopping this weekend?” Riona asks, pushing her wavy black hair behind her ear.
“Oh, I was looking at the Walmart ad, and they have that ancestry DNA kit for sale. It’s like a buy one, get one, half off. Who do you think would need that?” Nereyda giggles, focusing her attention on her plate while suppressing a smirk.
“Not this again. For the last time, we are not related,” I growl, shaking my head. All our friends have been nagging us to get a DNA test to see if we are related. They think that just because we look alike, it means we must be related.
“It doesn’t hurt to check it out. C’mon, do it for us,” Adela begs, pouting and batting her eyes.
“We’ll think about it, and if we do, we’ll reveal the results on Christmas Eve. Now, enough about that. Let’s talk about something else,” Delaney says, changing the subject.
“Let’s talk about where we’re going to have Christmas Eve?” Dane asks.
“We’ll have it at my apartment,” Elio answers curtly.
The room is silent, but Nereyda smiles and says, “What he means is we’ll host at his place this year. Sorry, myhermanodoesn’t know how to interact with others.”
Everyone laughs, and chatter between the guys overtakes the room. I glance at my girl, and she’s deeply engrossed in a conversation with Adela. The way she smiles, her booming laugh, and her caring nature made me fall so deeply in love with her. I can’t imagine a world without her, but if a DNA test tells us we are related, I think that will change us forever. I just hope our friends are wrong.
