Post by Dewey on Jul 26, 2008 13:33:11 GMT -5
The first thing Desiree saw when she woke up was Luca Iaconelli’s clothes, draped over the back of her desk chair. She stared at the t-shirt and basketball shorts for a few moments, processing the sight. Then, her lips extended into a comfortable grin. She pulled the bed covers over her head, blocking out the sunlight, wishing to daydream just a few more minutes longer, to think about him and how he felt within a hug and how he sounded when he laughed.
By the time she did wake up, about forty-five minutes had elapsed. She reached for her pink Motorola Razr, glanced at the time (11:12 AM), and flipped open the phone. She was greeted by her desktop picture, a snapshot she’d taken of Luca and herself at a Boardwalk diner. They were eating from the same banana split, grinning like it’d been purchased with a winning lottery ticket. She laughed to herself, and then accessed her text message inbox. She started to punch out a “good morning, cutie!” but stopped midway through, deciding she was being too affectionate. Instead, she padded over to her bathroom and prepared herself for the day.
A little past noon, she was in the Castro kitchen (the townhouse was only one floor), clad in black kitten heels, black dress pants, and a casual black blouse. Her hair was tied back in a long ponytail, only her straight-cut bangs hanging over her forehead, just past her eyebrows. She wore little jewelry, only pearl earrings and a pearl bracelet, but enough pieces of makeup to imply she had a first impression to make on someone. She was in the middle of cracking eggs into a mixing bowl when her mother stepped into the kitchen.
Desiree looked over and smiled. “Ciao, Mami.” She turned her attention back to her breakfast, now adding shredded cheese to the egg yolk.
“Ciao, bella,” her mother replied softly, her face devoid of a smile. Her steps were slow as she walked to the refrigerator, and she paused a moment before opening its door, as if trying to regain the energy she’d just spent. “We have no more orange juice? I thought Papi bought some just yesterday?”
Desiree popped some cheese into her mouth and then fetched a frying pan. “I don’t think so. He bought milk for sure.”
“I’m tired of milk. He thinks it will help with the pain in my bones, but it’s not doing anything.” She closed the door, and opted for a banana from the cluster at rest on the dining table. “Who knows what the doctors will say about my diet today.”
“You have another appointment today? I thought you just went yesterday.” Desiree heated the stove, and then proceeded to scramble her breakfast. “How many times do they need you to go in?”
“That’s what I say. If you ask me, they’re just trying to milk our insurance. Bastardos, all of them.” She paused to unpeel the banana, and then took a bite from it. “Leave the oven on. I want to heat up some oatmeal.”
Desiree obliged the request. She scraped her eggs onto a plate, made toast, and then sat down to eat. “What did they say yesterday?”
“They haven’t said anything that makes sense yet. They’re still running tests. Tests and tests and tests. I’m tired of it. I just want to know what’s wrong so that we can fix it already.”
The younger supplied no comment. She simply continued with her meal, rising once only to pour herself a glass of milk. It was a container of 2% Reduced Fat. Ever since her mother’s sickness spells had began, Mr. Castro insisted that only the healthiest products be kept in their kitchen. He was close to transitioning into Skim milk. And pork had already been taken out of their diet.
“Where are you off to? You’re all dressed up.”
“Oh, I got a job. As a hostess at this Italian restaurant called Bella’s downtown. All the food’s imported from Sicily. The manager is from Catania, too.”
“You got a job?” Her mother frowned. “Why? What do you need a job for? You know we’ll get you whatever you need, Desiree.”
Desiree focused on a piece of toast, to stall for time. Wasn’t it a good thing when a high school student acquired her first job? She shrugged. “I don’t need it for anything. I just don’t want to spend my summer in the house all day. I want to be doing something. I want to meet new people.”
“How much is this job paying? Where’s it at? Is it far from here?”
“Well it’s Downtown, so of course it’s far from here.” Under her breath, she added “Everything’s far from here.”
“You know Papi doesn’t like you going around the city by yourself like you do.”
“This city is nothing like New York. Nothing. It’s not a big deal. It’s just a job to keep me busy. Plus, Luca could probably give me a ride back home at nights so I don’t have to take the bus or train.”
“That’s another thing,” her mother went on. “Who is this Luca boy? Where do you know him from?”
Why, thought Desiree, did mothers ask questions for which they already had answers?. “From school, Mami. I told you that. He just graduated. We were in a few classes together. He lives in the suburbs near the city. His dad and brother are both in the marines. They went to that military academy, Halifax.”
“Are you two dating or something?”
She looked up from her eggs and toast with an incredulous look. “Oh my God, no! I said we were just friends. We just like to hang out together, that’s all.”
“I didn’t like how you were wearing his clothes yesterday, Desiree. If you knew you were going to spend the night at Gabriella’s, you should have packed things for yourself.”
Desiree sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She wanted to remind herself that her mother was just stressed out from all the hospital visits, but at the same time, she felt the need to assert herself. “It’s not that big of a deal,” she said slowly, each word heavy on her tongue.
“Things like that make a boy think differently about a girl. That’s why your cousin Natalia is getting married as young as she is. Because she made a bad decision, and now has to be a mother at nineteen.”
Desiree rolled her eyes. Too bad Natalia had lost her pregnancy during the first trimester, and that her boyfriend had proposed after the miscarriage. They weren’t getting married because a forthcoming child forced it. They were getting married because they loved each other, because Natalia’s boyfriend was joining the air force and wanted to travel the world with her. No one but Desiree knew about the miscarriage, though. Natalia didn’t plan on telling anyone until it was necessary.
“I just want you to be careful. The boys here in Europe can be fresh sometimes.”
“Well, Luca’s not like that.”
“Your Papi’s also worried about you staying out so late, or at other people’s houses when you have a bedroom here. We need you to be home right now, Desiree. We aren’t here on vacation. These are hard times for us.”
“I know that.” But I’m not going to sacrifice my life, either… Her breakfast only partly unfinished, Desiree stood to her feet, scraped the leftovers into the trash bin, and then set the plate in the dishwasher. “I need to head to the restaurant. My training starts at 3. I’ll call you later.”
She didn’t wait for a reply. She snatched her purse from the dining table and hurried off, inhaling the fresh air once she was outside, as if she’d been suffocating up until that point.
By the time she did wake up, about forty-five minutes had elapsed. She reached for her pink Motorola Razr, glanced at the time (11:12 AM), and flipped open the phone. She was greeted by her desktop picture, a snapshot she’d taken of Luca and herself at a Boardwalk diner. They were eating from the same banana split, grinning like it’d been purchased with a winning lottery ticket. She laughed to herself, and then accessed her text message inbox. She started to punch out a “good morning, cutie!” but stopped midway through, deciding she was being too affectionate. Instead, she padded over to her bathroom and prepared herself for the day.
A little past noon, she was in the Castro kitchen (the townhouse was only one floor), clad in black kitten heels, black dress pants, and a casual black blouse. Her hair was tied back in a long ponytail, only her straight-cut bangs hanging over her forehead, just past her eyebrows. She wore little jewelry, only pearl earrings and a pearl bracelet, but enough pieces of makeup to imply she had a first impression to make on someone. She was in the middle of cracking eggs into a mixing bowl when her mother stepped into the kitchen.
Desiree looked over and smiled. “Ciao, Mami.” She turned her attention back to her breakfast, now adding shredded cheese to the egg yolk.
“Ciao, bella,” her mother replied softly, her face devoid of a smile. Her steps were slow as she walked to the refrigerator, and she paused a moment before opening its door, as if trying to regain the energy she’d just spent. “We have no more orange juice? I thought Papi bought some just yesterday?”
Desiree popped some cheese into her mouth and then fetched a frying pan. “I don’t think so. He bought milk for sure.”
“I’m tired of milk. He thinks it will help with the pain in my bones, but it’s not doing anything.” She closed the door, and opted for a banana from the cluster at rest on the dining table. “Who knows what the doctors will say about my diet today.”
“You have another appointment today? I thought you just went yesterday.” Desiree heated the stove, and then proceeded to scramble her breakfast. “How many times do they need you to go in?”
“That’s what I say. If you ask me, they’re just trying to milk our insurance. Bastardos, all of them.” She paused to unpeel the banana, and then took a bite from it. “Leave the oven on. I want to heat up some oatmeal.”
Desiree obliged the request. She scraped her eggs onto a plate, made toast, and then sat down to eat. “What did they say yesterday?”
“They haven’t said anything that makes sense yet. They’re still running tests. Tests and tests and tests. I’m tired of it. I just want to know what’s wrong so that we can fix it already.”
The younger supplied no comment. She simply continued with her meal, rising once only to pour herself a glass of milk. It was a container of 2% Reduced Fat. Ever since her mother’s sickness spells had began, Mr. Castro insisted that only the healthiest products be kept in their kitchen. He was close to transitioning into Skim milk. And pork had already been taken out of their diet.
“Where are you off to? You’re all dressed up.”
“Oh, I got a job. As a hostess at this Italian restaurant called Bella’s downtown. All the food’s imported from Sicily. The manager is from Catania, too.”
“You got a job?” Her mother frowned. “Why? What do you need a job for? You know we’ll get you whatever you need, Desiree.”
Desiree focused on a piece of toast, to stall for time. Wasn’t it a good thing when a high school student acquired her first job? She shrugged. “I don’t need it for anything. I just don’t want to spend my summer in the house all day. I want to be doing something. I want to meet new people.”
“How much is this job paying? Where’s it at? Is it far from here?”
“Well it’s Downtown, so of course it’s far from here.” Under her breath, she added “Everything’s far from here.”
“You know Papi doesn’t like you going around the city by yourself like you do.”
“This city is nothing like New York. Nothing. It’s not a big deal. It’s just a job to keep me busy. Plus, Luca could probably give me a ride back home at nights so I don’t have to take the bus or train.”
“That’s another thing,” her mother went on. “Who is this Luca boy? Where do you know him from?”
Why, thought Desiree, did mothers ask questions for which they already had answers?. “From school, Mami. I told you that. He just graduated. We were in a few classes together. He lives in the suburbs near the city. His dad and brother are both in the marines. They went to that military academy, Halifax.”
“Are you two dating or something?”
She looked up from her eggs and toast with an incredulous look. “Oh my God, no! I said we were just friends. We just like to hang out together, that’s all.”
“I didn’t like how you were wearing his clothes yesterday, Desiree. If you knew you were going to spend the night at Gabriella’s, you should have packed things for yourself.”
Desiree sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She wanted to remind herself that her mother was just stressed out from all the hospital visits, but at the same time, she felt the need to assert herself. “It’s not that big of a deal,” she said slowly, each word heavy on her tongue.
“Things like that make a boy think differently about a girl. That’s why your cousin Natalia is getting married as young as she is. Because she made a bad decision, and now has to be a mother at nineteen.”
Desiree rolled her eyes. Too bad Natalia had lost her pregnancy during the first trimester, and that her boyfriend had proposed after the miscarriage. They weren’t getting married because a forthcoming child forced it. They were getting married because they loved each other, because Natalia’s boyfriend was joining the air force and wanted to travel the world with her. No one but Desiree knew about the miscarriage, though. Natalia didn’t plan on telling anyone until it was necessary.
“I just want you to be careful. The boys here in Europe can be fresh sometimes.”
“Well, Luca’s not like that.”
“Your Papi’s also worried about you staying out so late, or at other people’s houses when you have a bedroom here. We need you to be home right now, Desiree. We aren’t here on vacation. These are hard times for us.”
“I know that.” But I’m not going to sacrifice my life, either… Her breakfast only partly unfinished, Desiree stood to her feet, scraped the leftovers into the trash bin, and then set the plate in the dishwasher. “I need to head to the restaurant. My training starts at 3. I’ll call you later.”
She didn’t wait for a reply. She snatched her purse from the dining table and hurried off, inhaling the fresh air once she was outside, as if she’d been suffocating up until that point.