Part X
Jogging up the front steps of a Victorian-style home, Letty held up her fist and knocked. A brunette answered the door, brows creased in concern.
"Letty? What's wrong? Is Mateo okay? Are you okay?"
Letty gave a watery smile. "Yeah, we're good."
Remembering her manners, Alex opened the door wider. "Come in."
The house still smelled the same, like cinnamon potpourri mixed with whatever Alex had cooked for dinner. Letty looked around, her goals and accomplishments lining the mantle, side tables and walls. Amateur races she'd won, engine building competitions, even a spelling competition from the third grade. Alex was proud of her daughter and she would make sure everyone knew. Photographs of Mateo, Alex's only grandchild, hung on the walls and sat in ornate picture frames. It made Letty sadder that she'd been the reason that Alex and Mateo had missed out on so much.
"Are you hungry? I made yellow rice and tostones with pulled chicken."
Letty shrugged and nodded. "I could eat."
A few moments later, she and Alex sat at the dining room table, tucking into their dinner. Letty couldn't remember the last time she had a meal that she didn't prepare for herself and her boys. It truly was like coming home.
"What's going on, Letty?"
Sitting her fork down, the younger brunette twisted her hair into her hand and pulled it to one shoulder. Alex could tell she was nervous about something.
"Are you pregnant again?"
"No, no it's nothing like that." Letty assured her. "I just came to tell you that I'm sorry for being a brat. I'm sorry I made it seem like your role in Mateo's life and mine wasn't important."
Alex smiled and covered her daughter's hand with her own. "I've already forgiven you for that."
"But I've never apologized."
"You have a child now. You understand. There's nothing you can do or say that I won't forgive, Letty. You are literally half of me. The only person who's heard my heartbeat from the inside. There is no breaking a bond like that. Your words were hurtful, yes, but that's all they were. I know you and I know your heart, probably better than anyone else. You were hurting and you needed someone to share in that hurt."
"Still, it shouldn't have been you that I hurt. You weren't the one who deserved that."
"I know. Which made it that much easier to forgive you. I've told you your entire life that it's your actions that matter most to me. You, showing up here and apologizing? It shows growth and strength, but also humility." Alex patted Letty's hand and went back to her dinner.
"But I left you all alone. It's just us. You and me. It always has been. Even when Dad was alive. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry."
"I know. You needed your space to figure things out, but I should have been there regardless. You were going through a tough time with the separation. So, I apologize for that."
"You have nothing to be sorry for, Mom. Nothing at all." Letty could feel her tears threatening to fall. She quickly wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. "You took hit after hit after hit, physically and emotionally, from the people who were supposed to love you. How do you survive?"
Alex swallowed past the knot in her throat. "Has Dom put his hand on you?"
"No! No, he would never! Even if he did, he wouldn't live to tell about it."
Alex laughed through her unshed tears. "That's my girl."
"I just feel like there is so much pain that I haven't talked about because I've seen you be strong for your family and I know that's what I have to do for mine."
Shaking her head, Alex negated, "No, you have to do what's best for your family. Are you blind, Letty? You taught me how to be strong, how to stand up for myself. And when I couldn't, you did it for me. It's time that you stop and focus on yourself. Since you were a child, you've had such a nurturing spirit. Always making sure everything and everyone had what they needed. It's time for you to be taken care of. What do you need, Letty?"
"I'm trying to figure that out, Mom. I really am. Dom and I are trying our hand at family therapy."
"That's so great, Letty. I always thought we should've have done it. I mentioned it to your father once, but he was old school. He said we had to handle family problems among family."
"That's how Tony was, too. I think that's what made this so hard. We were so busy trying to keep our relationship together for thirty-plus years like you and Dad and Tony and Carmen. I think we forgot that no marriage is perfect."
"Exactly, because no person is perfect. That's where you have to start. I know it's family counseling, but there's nothing wrong with you and Dom trying individual sessions either, to work on yourselves as well."
That was the sign she needed. Letty had considered going alone. Her mother had only solidified that it was a good idea.
"Thanks, mamÃ."
Alex gave her daughter's hand one last squeeze. "Eat your food before it's cold."
"Yes ma'am."
Toretto Family Market, Tuesday, 12:01PM
"Hey, how's the tuna?" Brian asked, walking into the market, grinning.
"Shitty." Mia responded as she leaned over the counter to give him a kiss.
"I'll take a tuna sandwich."
"No crust?"
"No crust." He confirmed.
"We can be corny too. Look." Dom leaned over like Brian had and Letty laughed as she kissed his cheek.
"Funny." Brian deadpanned.
Mia got to work on his tuna sandwich and Letty cracked open a Corona for Dom.
"Hey," he said, getting her attention. "You talk to Alex yesterday?"
"I did."
"How'd it go?"
"Good, yeah."
"I knew it would."
"Your son has a game tonight. He wants tacos afterwards."
"Taco Tuesday?"
"Mhm."
"Margaritas for mom and dad?"
"Damn right."
"I'll bring the tequila."
"Cool. I'll bring my quick wit and good looks."
Dom grinned. "I can't wait."
Letty's, 6:22PM
"Dance with me."
"No, no, no. I don't remember how!"
"Come on. It's like riding a Toretto." Dom replied. Letty slapped his arm, and nodded at their son who was doing his homework at the dining room table. "I meant bike."
Letty pointed at him in warning, laughing when he pulled her into his arms. Her hands found their way to his shoulders and Dom started to move to the merengue music.
"See? You can't forget what's ingrained in your soul." Dom told her.
"Oh, yeah? Riding a Toretto is ingrained in my soul, huh?" She murmured when Dom pulled her close to dip her.
Letty let Dom spin her to his left, and was pulled back into his arms just as the song was ending. His face was centimeters from her own and his eyes fell to her lips and back up.
"Your words, not mine." His deep voice seemed to drift slowly down her body causing an ache right between her thighs.
"Eww, are you two going to kiss?" Mateo asked.
"I'm sorry, did our son just say 'eww' to us?" Letty asked Dom, rounding the table to stand to Mateo's left.
"Y'know, I think he did." Dom replied. "He obviously needs to be taught a lesson." He made his way to the right of Mateo.
"Oh, there's no doubt about it." Letty pressed kisses to one cheek while Dom did the same to the other. Mateo tried to contain his laughter, but failed miserably. His small arms came up and he pushed against either of their chests in an attempt to get them to stop.
"Okay, okay! Stop!" He shrieked through laughs.
"What do you think, mama? Has he learned his lesson?"
"Yes! Yes! I learned my lesson!" Mateo assured them.
"He says it, but I don't know if he means it." Letty said and they assaulted him with more kisses. When they finally let up, Mateo was laughing so hard, his stomach hurt.
"Serves you right." Dom told him.
"Go wash your hands."
Mateo cleaned up his homework and put his things away before heading to wash up for dinner. Dom helped Letty the table and as Letty brought the food out, he started making margaritas. Letty walked back into the kitchen to retrieve the salsa that she forgot and witnessed Dom dumping half of a tequila bottle into her blender.
"Jesus, what are you trying to do? Get me drunk?" She joked.
"That's exactly what I'm trying to do, Letty. And I'm honestly insulted that you had to ask."
"If I wake up hungover, I know who I'm hunting down."
He chuckled and turned on the blender.
Mateo stuffed himself on soft-shell tacos, packing away four before Letty reminded him that there was dessert as well. He also had a slice of tres leches cake that Letty had made from her mother's recipe. Dom couldn't figure out where it all went. He still had room for more before Letty cut him off to shower before bed.
Together, she and Dom cleaned the kitchen, tucked Mateo in and made their way to the garage with the entire blender of margaritas. It was a cool evening, a nice breeze floated past them, cooling Letty's warm skin. Alcohol always made her body temperature rise.
Letty popped the hood of her car and took Dom's drink from his hand.
"So," Dom leaned under the hood and started tinkering away at something, "how's Alex these days?"
"She's good. She seemed a little sad, but I'm hoping to change that."
"What kind of sadness?"
"The kind that comes from loneliness."
Her wistful tone caused him to look up at her before turning back to the car.
"It's my fault if she is lonely. She only had me and Mateo, and I took him from her."
"You didn't." He stood to his full height. "Mateo and Alex talk all the time."
"What?"
"Yeah, they FaceTime and text. I only know because I saw a call coming in from his phone once." Dom shrugged. "You were the only stubborn one."
Letty tilted her head in agreement. "I think I was just taking my frustrations about you out on her. So I apologized. She forgave me."
"What frustrations about me?" Dom inquired.
"Just what we talked about in therapy so far. How I kind of felt like you weren't taking my feelings into consideration."
He nodded, waiting for her to continue.
"She thinks that I always feel like I need to be the protector and the provider and the one who makes sure everyone is okay."
"She's not wrong." Dom turned back to the car. "Sometimes it's hard trying to do something for you."
"Hard? Why?"
"Because most of the time, Letty," he strained to reach something, his arm turning, "you've already done it yourself."
Letty drank from the cup, knowing she probably shouldn't have had anymore.
"You knew that when you met me."
"Yeah, but when you married me, your shit became our shit. You don't have to carry the weight of the world on your own."
"You're one to talk."
Dom retrieved his cup and drained the remaining contents. Letty poured another.
"Guess we both have issues with compromise."
It was an hour later when Letty and Dom found themselves sitting in the backseat of her car. Letty had her back against the door, legs stretched out and her feet in Dom's lap. His head leaned against the back of the seat, reclined comfortably, and his hand stroked the sliver of skin that peeked out from between her skinny jeans and socks. They were drunk laughing at something that Letty said.
"Man, my dad almost killed me when he saw that empty condom wrapper." Dom laughed.
"Hey, at least we were being safe."
"That's what I said but apparently it was the wrong thing to say."
"I could tell that he knew. I swear it took two weeks for him to look me in the eyes again. Poor man avoided me like I had the plague."
"I wish he would have avoided me. Everything I did after that was wrong. If I stayed out late, the first thing he asked me was 'you think you're a man now that you deflowered Alex's daughter'?"
"Deflowered?" Letty cracked up at that.
"That's what he called it."
"Aw man," Letty wiped away a laugh-tear, "that is good material."
"He came around though. Finally. He could tell you had me wrapped around your little finger."
Letty held up her pinkie finger and wiggled it. "Still do."
Dom gave her a brilliant smile. She reached over and pressed her fingertips to his face, letting her hand slide down the rest on his chest. Dom held her hand there.
"I haven't seen that smile since Havana. You were happiest there."
"I told you, it was you. You make me happy. Wherever you are, that's where I'm the happiest."
Letty knew she shouldn't do what she was about to. She knew the alcohol had taken over her ability to reason logically, but she also understood that there was no reasoning when it came to Dom Toretto.
So, she leaned in, taking his face in both of her hands and pressed her lips against his. What began with hesitation, ended with assurance that they were in this together. When Letty pulled away, Dom held her face close, searching her eyes for any ounce of reluctance.
Finding none, he kissed her again.