Cinco de Mayo
Disclaimer: I do not own "Cristela" or its characters. This is only done for fun and the only profit earned is reviews.
Note: A little something to celebrate Cinco de Mayo and the awesomeness that is Cristela!
Just a short little story to add to the collection. And I hope to write more soon.
I'm not Latina so I don't really know too much about traditional celebrations but I did some research and hopefully nothing seems too outrageous here. Feel free to correct me if I misrepresented anything.
This is set before the bar exam and before Cris starts going out with Ben.
Hope you like it!
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"Well, well, big day today for you people, isn't it?" Mr. Culpepper greeted cheerfully.
Accustomed to his way of speaking, Cristela took no offense. "I'm going to ignore the 'you people' part of your comment, sir," she said with a grin, "but nice of you to remember. Look at you, being more aware of other cultures and traditions."
The boss grinned back before entering his office. Cristela began to arrange some documents on her desk when Josh came in.
"Any plans for Cinco de Mayo?" he asked as casually as he could, trying to hide the eagerness in his voice.
Ever since he spent Christmas with Cristela's family as well as attended a quinceañera, he was keen on being even more involved. He hadn't mustered the courage yet to ask Cristela out officially but he hoped that he would have the perfect opportunity soon.
"Wow, is it just me or is everyone really culturally aware today?" Cristela teased, "As it happens, we're having a little fiesta at home to celebrate. Henry and Izzy are going to be in full traditional costume for their school's parade and Amah's preparing a real feast."
"Sounds awesome," Josh remarked, again trying to sound completely casual. But Cristela was on to him.
"You're welcome to join us, if you want," she told him, "we're gonna have tamales, among other things. Many other things. We don't use the word 'fiesta' lightly. So this is your official invitation."
"We're not joking this time?" Josh asked uneasily.
"Not joking," Cristela reassured him, amused by his embarrassment.
"Then, I'd love to come!" the other intern replied, finally letting his eagerness show.
"Fair warning," Cristela added, "you may be about to really understand what 'la vida loca' means."
True enough, when Josh arrived at the Hernandez residence, it was in a state of utter, colorful chaos. Daniela and Natalia were fussing over Henry and Izzy's costumes while Felix and a mariachi band-costumed Alberto were lifting various objects and rearranging the furniture for the feast. Cristela was in the kitchen, preparing some of the food to be served.
Some loud music was playing so the rest of the family had to shout over it to be heard. Angry and agitated voices filled the air and conversations were held in both English and Spanish. And despite Josh's claim that he had been diligently studying Spanish, he didn't understand most of what was being said because everyone was speaking too fast. There was the occasional "¡Ay!" and some not so pleasant words about Juanita Canales and her family's celebration (this came mostly from Natalia).
It was a few moments before someone even noticed Josh's presence. And when they did, the whole family erupted in cheerful welcome (except for Alberto).
"It's Josh! It's Josh!" Natalia cried with uncharacteristic glee, grabbing Josh's arm and dragging him inside. Daniela greeted him warmly as well.
"Can I help in any way?" he offered.
"Oh, no, no, you're our guest," Natalia objected.
"But you could help Cris in the kitchen if you want," Daniela suggested slyly.
"Sure," Josh replied and proceeded to the kitchen.
The table was already filled with a wide variety of dishes, some already cooked and the rest still being prepared by an industrious Cristela.
"Hey, you made it!" she said, greeting Josh with a smile.
"Yeah," said Josh, "and it's really something out there!"
"What did I tell you? La vida loca! Escape while you still can!"
"No way. This is a lot of fun and I'm really glad you invited me. We never do anything this festive in my family."
"If my festive you mean stressful then you must be lucky," Cristela said wryly.
"You're the lucky ones," Josh said, "now, how can I help? I promise I won't mess up any tamales this time!"
"Don't worry, I'm sure you'll do fine," Cristela reassured him as she instructed him on how to be useful. Soon, he was practically her assistant and he enjoyed every moment of it.
He was tempted to say again how much he loved spending time with Cristela outside of work but he couldn't find the right moment. So he contented himself with simply being there, and he was honored to be sharing in a traditional celebration.
"You sure the rest of your family doesn't mind my being here?" he asked Cristela after a while, "Alberto was giving me some funny looks."
"Alberto always does that, don't worry about it," Cristela replied with a roll of her eyes, "Besides, at this point, you're practically a member of the family."
"Thanks," Josh replied before adding to himself, "And hopefully, I'll be an official part of the family someday."