Juked (11 page)

“Tio Daniel!” a little voice squeals, and I see a mass of dark curls barreling toward me. I catch her as she launches herself into my arms.

“Mila,” I say with a smile, hugging her tightly. “How’s mi corazon?”

“I’m four now, Tio,” she says, holding up four fingers so I don’t misunderstand how old she is.

My eyes get wide. “That’s a whole lot of fingers on that hand! You’re practically a grownup!” If it’s possible, her smile gets even brighter. I give her a kiss on the head as I put her down. “Where’s the rest of the family,
mija
?”

“They’re in the kitchen,” she yells as she bounds into a different room. This is the way my mom likes her home: full of kids, grandkids, and noise.

I wind my way through the house to the kitchen in the back, dodging running kids and stopping for hugs. I’m greeted by a chorus of cheers.

“Hey! You made it!”

“Looks who finally showed up.”

“It’s about damn time!”

I shove my brother, Geovany, off a stool before hugging my sister, Erika, and my big brother, Eduardo. Mama takes her time washing her hands and drying them with a towel, knowing I’m making my way toward her through the gaggle of people.

“Mama,” I say, kissing her cheek and picking her up for a hug. At five feet even, her feet come off the floor.

“Put me down,
mijo
,” she chides lovingly. “I’m so glad you’re home.” She pats my cheeks. “Are you hungry? Elizabeth made her famous guacamole and homemade chips.”

“I’m okay right now, Mama.”

“Look at you. You’re practically skin and bones,” she says, giving me the once over. “You need to eat more. How are you supposed to run up and down the field, being so skinny? You won’t have any energy.”

“Ma,” Eduardo chimes in. “He’s been playing soccer for years. He knows how much to eat.”

“Leave her alone, Lalo,” Elizabeth says to her husband. “You know how she loves fattening us up.” Geovany hands me a beer.

“Don’t worry about me, Mama.” I twist the top off and throw the bottle cap in the sink. “I’m saving myself for the enchiladas. You can fatten me up then.” At the reminder, she turns back to her cooking. “Where’s Marlene?”

“She and Julio had to sing at the church today,” she says as a couple of my nephews race through the kitchen, wielding plastic swords. “I’m so proud of those two. You know they’re the worship leaders at their church now? You could learn a thing or two from them.” Geovany and I look at each other. We’re used to this. Any time one of our older siblings gets involved in a church activity, mama acts like we’re complete heathens because we like to date around. In Geovany’s case, it might not be far from the truth. “Don’t think I don’t see those pictures of you in the newspaper with all those women, mijo. And don’t think I’m too old to smack you with my chancla.”

I look at Geovany, who just laughs.

“Speaking of,” Erika says from the stove, where she’s stirring the enchilada sauce. “You’ve been in the paper a lot lately.”

“Really?” I’m playing dumb. I know I’ve been caught with Quincy a couple times, but they don’t need to know I know it. It’s the curse of a sibling relationship in a family this size. To stave off humiliation, you have to pretend you’re not embarrassed. The minute they sense you’re uncomfortable, it becomes their mission to make it worse.

“It’s been the same girl in the pictures three times now,” Erika continues.

“Awwww!” Geovany says laughingly with a fist to his mouth. “Did someone finally get whipped? The famous Daniel ‘I’ll be single forever’ Zavaro finally stuck around for a few additional helpings? Ow!” he says as Mama smacks him on the back of the head.

“Is that the girl’s baby?” Erika asks seriously, and the room goes strangely quiet.

“
Dios mio
. Fine,” I say, caving only because they aren’t going to let up. “Her name is Quincy, okay? We’ve gone out once. That’s it. Stop acting like I’m about to walk down the aisle.”

“Gone out once, and she’s already been in three pictures,” Eduardo says. “The girl works fast.”

Lalo, as we call Eduardo, has always been protective of me and worried about the people who would use me. Normally I appreciate it. This time it pisses me off. “That’s not what she’s about, Lalo,” I say, pointing a finger at him. “She didn’t even know about soccer until the second time I ran into her and that was only because someone came up and asked for an autograph.” He still eyes me skeptically. “Seriously. She’s never even been to a game.”

“Really?” Elizabeth asks as she refills the bowls of tortilla chips Aaron has been munching from.

“Really. She’s a cool girl.”

“But she has a baby.” Erika brings up the one thing I was hoping no one would touch on again. I’ve always said I’d never date a woman with a kid because of the complications and because I saw how hard dating was for my sister Blanca after her divorce. I’m sure I’m in for a lecture when Mama can get me alone.

“It’s her nephew.” I really don’t want to get into Quincy’s personal business, especially since we’ve only been on one date. But now that the cat’s out of the bag with my family, I don’t have much of a choice. “Her sister was killed in a car accident a couple months ago, so now she’s raising him.”

I hear several people gasp. “That poor girl,” Mama says. “Does she get a lot of help from her parents?”

“Her dad is dead, too. Not sure where her mom is.”

“Dios mio,” Mama says, clutching her heart. “You need to bring her here so we can feed her.”

I smirk. “Maybe next time, Mama. Where’s Blanca?” I ask, trying desperately to change the subject.

Aaron breaks away from the chips and guac to answer. “She’s in the other room. We’re having a little trouble with Nicholas.”

“How so?”

He pops another chip in his mouth before answering. “Since he’s been the man of the house for so long, he’s having a hard time letting me step in since we got married. Homecoming is coming up, and he seems to think he’s older than he is and should be able to stay out as late as he wants ’cause he’s a senior.”

Voices rise in the other room. Speaking of Blanca and Nicholas….

Aaron sighs. “I guess I should go in there and help mediate again.”

“I’ll go,” I say, taking a swig of my beer. “I need to say hi anyway. Maybe it’ll distract them from their fight.”

I push through the swinging door in time to hear the last of their argument.

“You are not as big as you think you are, Nicky,” Blanca yells.

Nicholas makes the mistake of getting right up next to her and pointing in her face. “I’m bigger than you.” Before I can step in, Blanca has taken his finger and bent it so far back, Nicholas is on his knees, squealing like a little girl. It takes everything in me not to laugh at how easily my sister can still prove she’s in charge.

“You will not ever point at me like that again, young man. Do you understand me?” she says.

I decide it’s time to break it up before she really lets loose.

I kiss Blanca on the cheek. “Hey, sis.” Her eyes sparkle for a split second before she turns her attention back to her seventeen-year-old son. I grasp him by the back of the neck. “Come on, Nicky. Let’s go talk somewhere.” He stands up, cradling his finger to his chest, and I lead him out the back door.

“Damn, that hurts.” He shakes out his hand. “I didn’t know she could do that.”

We make ourselves comfortable on patio chairs. “You’re lucky it was only your finger. I watched your abuela lead Lalo around the house by his chest hair one time when he mouthed off to her. The Zavaro women are known for playing dirty.”

“You’re telling me.”

“What was that all about in there, anyway?” He pauses before answering. I can tell he’s trying to decide what he wants to say and how much he wants to say it.

“How old were you when you first had sex?” he asks.

I cough on a sip of beer. It takes me a few seconds to pull myself back together. “Damn. I wasn’t expecting that question,” I admit, still clearing my throat. “How does that relate to you fighting with your mom?”

He sighs and looks off into the distance, obviously upset about his mom’s involvement in whatever his sex life is. “I want to go to Galveston after the Homecoming Dance and stay at a beach house with my friends, but she won’t let me. She says I’m too young to be put in a position like that.”

“Okay.”

“But I’m not too young,” he argues. “I’ve been helping her raise Julian and Vanessa since my asshole dad left. You were in high school when you lost your virginity. She acts like I’m gonna sleep with every girl at the party.”

“Wait, wait, wait,” I say with my hands up. “How do you know when I lost my virginity?”

He looks at me like I’m stupid. “Please. I’ve grown up hearing you and all my other tios talking about your escapades in high school.”

He has a point. “Okay, but I think the question is, are you planning to have sex after the dance?” He looks at me with a shit-eating grin on his face. “I take it that’s a yes.” He nods. “I didn’t know you even had a girlfriend.”

“I don’t.”

“So who are you planning on having sex with?”

“Her name is Tamela.”

I wait for more information, but that’s all he gives me. “Okay. How long have you known her?”

“She’s been in a couple of my classes, I guess.”

I wait again. I get the impression he wants to tell me more but isn’t quite sure how I’m going to react. “Are you friends?”

He looks away. “Not really.”

“Are you at least taking her to the dance?” He nods. I’m still confused, so I keep asking him questions, hoping to understand the situation better.

“Let me make sure I have this right. You’re not friends, you may have a few classes together, but you asked her to the dance.” He nods, and I sigh. It’s like pulling fucking teeth with this kid.

“Okay. Then why did you ask her to the dance?”

He has the decency to blush. “Because she puts out.”

I sit back, trying to figure out how to proceed in this conversation. Before I can think of anything to say, Nicholas beats me to it.

“I’m tired of being a virgin. I wanna know what all the fuss is about, ya know?”

“I do know.” I take a deep breath. “But let me ask you a question, man to man.”

“Okay.”

“Does this girl… Tamela? That’s her name?” He nods. “Does Tamela know the only reason you asked her to the dance is so you can have sex with her?”

“I don’t know. I mean, everyone knows she’ll pretty much sleep with anyone, so it can’t be too much of a surprise.”

“But does she know that’s what you’re expecting from her? Because I have to say, Nicky, if she thinks you asked her out because you actually like her, and she finds out at the dance that it’s only because you want to get with her, that’s a really dick move.”

His head snaps up. “Oh, come on, Tio. You’re really gonna go there? I’m not stupid. I’ve seen pictures of all the women you’re banging. You’re with someone new every week. You can’t get mad at me for wanting to do it once.”

I point a finger at him as I choose my words carefully. “Don’t you raise your voice at me, mijo. We may be the same height, but I am way stronger than you, and I’ll happily take your ass down.”

He looks at his hands, clasped in his lap, visibly flustered at the way this conversation is going.

“First of all, just because there’s a picture of me with someone in the newspaper doesn’t mean I’ve ever been with them. It could be a friend, a coworker—hell, someone who happens to be walking next to me on the street. So don’t get caught up in that shit. And second, any woman I’m with,
anyone
I have sex with, it is made very clear from the beginning where we stand. You haven’t taken the time to consider this girl might actually like you. What about that? Are you gonna be the guy that disrespects a girl who has feelings for you?”

“It’s not like that, Tio.”

“It’s not? What’s it like?”

“She’s the school slut!” he yells, sitting up straight. “It doesn’t matter if she likes me!”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” I’m so angry, I throw my beer against the brick wall, making him flinch. “Weren’t you there when your dad used to call your mom a whore and a slut? Don’t you remember that? Weren’t you there when he disrespected her in front of the family? Remember the look on your mama’s face when he did that to her? And now you’re willing to do that to some girl?”

“It’s not the same thing!” he yells.

“It’s
worse
!” I scream back. “You’re believing rumors without any evidence, just like your mama’s friends did, and you know better! You have the chance to take a girl who has been broken down by other guys and show her what it means to be treated right. Show her she has more to offer than just spreading her legs. But instead, you’d rather be like your dad.” His eyes snap up to mine. It’s a battle of wills to see who is going to look away first. “Mijo,” I say gently, trying to calm down. “We all may talk big, but all of us, all of your tios… it’s just talk. I know you want to have sex, but to use some poor girl because she has a reputation? You know how easily rumors get started. Untrue rumors. You know better than to believe rumors are always truth. You’re better than that.”

I stand up to go inside and squeeze him on the shoulder as I walk by. He needs time to think, and I need time not to beat his ass. As I go through the door, I see Blanca standing next to it. There’s no doubt in my mind she heard the entire conversation. I pull her into my arms and kiss the top of her head. “You weren’t supposed to hear any of that,” I say. “That was man talk.”

She sighs. “It sounded more like a man trying to tell a little boy how to act like a man.”

“Something like that. I remember being that age and still a virgin. God, the hormones. I was so horny, my skin practically itched.”

“I’m not ready to have a sexually active teenaged son.”

“I’m not sure you have much of a choice in the matter. All you can do is hope you taught him how to make good decisions on his own.”

She pulls away and pats me on my cheek. “Thank you for saying all that stuff about respecting that poor girl. I hope he does the right thing by her.”

“He will. He wouldn’t still be sitting there if he was okay with his original plan.” We look through the glass and see Nicky staring off into space, biting his first finger like he always does when he’s lost in thought.