Children of the Sun
by D. K. PoohBear99
Disclaimer: I do not own these characters, I'm just playing around with them. The story belongs to me, the characters do not (except the ones I made up). The original story was set in the 16th century, but my story is set in the 20th century.
Summary: Esteban, Tao, and Zia are in high school. Tao and Esteban are both in love with Zia, and Zia is in love with both of them. Esteban and Zia are dating, but her parents don't really like him because he's white. They want her to end up with someone like Tao. Follow our beloved characters as they deal with all the ups and downs of growing up and dealing with real life. Rated M to be on the safe side (may include adult language).
Chapter 1
Esteban
I stared at the chemistry book in front of me, trying to figure out what the heck the teacher was talking about. It seemed all too confusing for me. I looked across the room to where Zia was sitting. She was chewing on her braid and scribbling furiously. I just shook my head. I couldn't believe it had been 5 years since I had met her and our friend Tao when I'd visited Hawaii for the summer. My legal guardian, Mendoza, had wanted to visit Hawaii and I had come along for the ride. I'd been raised by Father Rodriguez over in Barcelona, but he had passed away when I was 12. Mendoza had become my legal guardian since then. I had been a baby when my parents had died, so I had no idea about them. Mendoza didn't like talking about them, so I didn't push the subject.
Zia was almost 16, and Tao was almost 18. They lived in the Indian village on the other side of the Island. Zia's father was the Great Papacamayo, the chief of the tribe. Since Zia was an only child, she would have to marry to take over the tribe, and her husband would become the chief. If she did not marry, it would go to the oldest living relative.
Watching Zia now, I could feel that warm feeling heating up my body. She was so beautiful I sometimes didn't know what to say around her. Her golden skin, dark hair and dark eyes made me melt into a puddle of goo, especially when she smiled at me. I sometimes wondered why she would want to be with a white man when she could have Tao or even any other guy from her village, but she chose me.
Back when we first met, I had been a gangly boy of only 12 and she had been 11. Even back then she had been the most beautiful girl I'd ever seen. Then when she had introduced me to Tao, the three of us had become inseperable. At the end of the summer, when I'd had to return to Barcelona, Zia and I had promised to write to each other. I had kissed her, our first kiss, and it had been magical.
I had begged Mendoza to move us to Hawaii, and two years ago he had finally relented. He had gotten us a log cabin on the island with all the modern conveniences, and had moved his business to the island as well.
My renunion with Zia had been a day to remember too. I still didn't know what she saw in me, especially since her father was dead set against his only daughter running around with a white man. I knew Tao was in love with her too, but she was dating me. If it came down to a decision, I hated the thought of having her choose him over me.
Zia met me in the hallway after class, and I took her books. We started heading for the lockers so we could head home. She loved my car. Mendoza had bought it for me when I turned 16. It was a Ford Mustang, and all American muscle car. I had to laugh at that one, since I wasn't even an American but owned an American car. Back in Spain Mendoza had driven a Volvo, and he'd gotten one over here as well.
"Do you have a lot of homework tonight, or do you want to go grab a bite to eat?" I asked as we headed for the parking lot holding hands.
"I'm starving," she said, sliding closer to me as we made our way through the crowd. Once we were in the car, she climbed in my lap and started kissing me. I had my hand cupped behind her head, securing her face to mine. We were both gasping for air when the kiss finally ended.
"Tao came over last night after you left," she said. "He kept asking how far you and I go when we're alone, mainly he wanted to know if we're sleeping together. Why does he even care?"
"He just wants to know the competition, babe." Not that I wouldn't mind being intimate with Zia, but I wasn't an asshole. I would go as fast or as slow as she was comfortable with. If and when the time came for us to express our feelings that way, I wanted it to be special for us both.
"There's no competition. I don't love him the way I love you," she said, reminding me of her loyalty.
"Well that's good, because I don't love him the way I love you either," I teased, kissing her on the nose. She rolled her eyes and snorted.
Tao knocked on the window, and Zia climbed off my lap as Tao climbed in the backseat. I started the car and headed to the burger joint. I loved Tao like a brother, but he needed a girlfriend so he wouldn't be always hanging out with us when we wanted to be alone.
After we ate, I dropped Tao off first, and then Zia. I longed for the day when I could visit with her in her home, but her parents were very strict with her. Tao's family wasn't like that, they liked me. Tao and I had spent a lot of nights playing basketball or just hanging out.
I was working on my homework when Mendoza came home.
"Did you eat yet, son?" he asked. He called me son even though he was only my guardian. He was more like a father to me than Father Rodriguez had been.
"Yeah. Zia, Tao, and I grabbed food at the Burger Shack."
"I always had a feeling about you kids. I knew you would become good friends."
"Well, Zia and I are kind of more than friends, you know."
"I had a feeling about that too, I saw the way you were with her back when you were just kids. Even back then you belonged together."
"I wish I could convince her parents of that," I muttered.
"They'll come around."
"They have it in their head that all white people are the enemy."
"You have to realize that this Indian and white people goes back centuries. Zia's people come from an old tribe that has been set in their ways for as long as I can remember. You can't change some people's minds no matter how hard you try. It's like that movie West Side Story, the one where the Italian guy fell in love with the Mexican girl and their parents hated each other just because of their race."
"Guess you can't choose who you fall in love with, can you?" I asked, shaking my head.
"Sometimes life's not fair." He patted me on the back before retiring to the den to watch TV.
After I finished my homework, I headed to my room to call Zia before bed. We would talk until we were both falling asleep on each other, and I know my dreams were filled with thoughts of her every night. Tonight was no exception. I drifted into unconsciousness with visions of her in my head.