September 5, 1917

The young couple sit under their tree by the lake, Imelda straddles Héctor's lap as she kisses the young man passionately. Her fingers tangle into his unruly hair, pulling it lightly as Héctor's tongue explores her mouth.

She suppresses the urge to grind against him, since a close call they had by the lake when Señor Cruz nearly caught Imelda on her knees sucking Héctor's cock. They had agreed after that there could be no more public acts, since then the barn had become a favourite spot.

Imelda untangles her fingers from his hair to place her hands on his shoulders, pushing herself away from him.

"We have to stop." Imelda pants. Héctor rests his head against the tree as his lover pulls away, trying to calm himself down. She shifts off of his lap, settling herself on the ground next to him; her legs resting on his knees.

"You have to stop doing this to me mi amor, you're going to send me into an early grave." Héctor chuckles, running a hand through his now tangled hair.

"If you don't learn to keep your hands to yourself, I guarantee I will." Imelda raises an eyebrow at him. Héctor shrugs his shoulders innocently, pretending it wasn't his wandering hands that had gotten them tangled up only moments ago. Imelda nudges Héctor's arm with her shoulder. Héctor grins at her, placing a hand on the back of her neck to pull her to him for another kiss. Imelda hums into the kiss, placing a hand on his chest again. Héctor sighs as he pulls away from the kiss, resting his forehead against hers as Imelda's thumb brushes against the cotton of his shirt.

"When was the last time you washed this?" Imelda furrows her brow, pulling back from him slightly. Héctor smiles at her comment staring at her intently, his thumb brushing against her cheek as he takes in the features of her face.

"Cásate conmigo."

"¿Qué?" Imelda asks shakily, her posture stiffening at the question as she pulls her hand off of his chest.

"¿Te casarías conmigo?" Héctor repeats, placing his hand over hers which rested on the ground now. Imelda goes silent taking a moment to reflect on what he was asking. She knew this day was coming but she thought it would be in a few years from now, not…now.

"Y-you want me to marry you?" Imelda asks slowly, still trying to process the question. "Where are we going to live? We can't live in Antonio and María's cellar when we're married, nor can we live with my parents." Imelda questions.

Héctor smiles at her, removing her legs from him and he stands. He outstretches a hand out to her, offering her a hand which she takes, and he hoists her up from the ground.

"Come on." He says, leading her away from the lake.

"Where are we going?" Imelda asks, her head still reeling from his question. Héctor nearly drags her through the town. "Héctor where are we going?" she asks again as they get closer to the plaza.

"You'll see." Héctor repeats for nearly the fifth time. The young couple come to stand in front of a large gate, a property that belonged to Señor Vargas. Imelda looks over at her lover questioningly as he pushes the gate open, the door squeaking loudly as it swings open. He extends his arm towards the gate, inviting her to go through the gate.

Imelda hesitantly goes through; she remembers the way Señor Vargas used to yell at small children who would sneak into the house that once belonged to his brother. Imelda looks around the courtyard, she takes a step towards the awning resting a hand on one of the pillars. She looks over to the kitchen attached to the awning, this area and the room next to the kitchen would be perfect for a dining room. Imelda smiles at the small well in the middle of the courtyard, it would no longer be a hike to get water.

"I-I've been giving half of my earnings to Señor Vargas since March, He recently transferred ownership to me."

Imelda feels her breath hitch, he bought her a house. Since she had turned 16 years-old many men had shown off with grand gestures in order to win her over, no one had ever done anything on this scale.

"What about a job?" Imelda asks, turning to face him.

"I'll play music…and until Ernesto and I make it I'll work odd jobs." He shrugs. Héctor walks over to her, taking her hands in his. "Imelda, mi amor, mi vida, mi Corazon. Te quiero mucho. I want to spend the rest of my life with you."

"Sí." Imelda says, squeezing his hands.

"De Verdad?" He asks a grin coming to his face. Imelda nods, finding his grin contagious.

"Por supuesto!" She giggles, not even startled by the loud grito Héctor lets out before picking her up by the waist and twirling her around. He gently sets her down, taking her by the hand and leading her through the house.

"And there's enough rooms at least ten children!" Héctor says, nearly bursting with excitement.

"Ten?" Imelda asks, her face beginning to hurt from smiling.

"Yeah! Why? Did you want more?" He responds. Imelda giggles at him, running a hand through his hair gently.

"Let's get married first and start with one, Flaco…then we can talk." Imelda stares into his deep chestnut eyes. "Te Amo Héctor."

Héctor cups her cheek in response, running a thumb over her cheekbone and staring back into her eyes.

"Te Amo Imelda. I'm so excited to marry you."

Imelda beams, not fighting back the tears forming in her eyes as she throws her arms around him. The young couple stand in the middle of the courtyard, wrapped in each other's arms not caring who saw them at this point. They were going to build a life together here.

…..

September 14, 1917

They hadn't told anyone yet, only Ernesto knew about their engagement and Imelda had threatened his life if he as much whispered anything to anyone. Imelda was still unsure whether or not to tell her parents about the engagement or get Héctor to ask her papá for her hand first. Maybe Raúl would tell Josefina and she'd be more accepting of the couple.

The young couple had time to decide what would be the right way to tell her parents. For now, they could enjoy being newly engaged without any of the stress.

Héctor had been pleasantly surprised when Imelda had nearly pinned him to the barn wall as he grabbed tools. He was also pleasantly surprised when she fisted his shirt, crushing her lips to his. He pulls away from her affections for a moment.

"I can't stay long, your papá needs the scythes soon." Héctor says, cupping her cheeks and pulling her lips back to his. Imelda hums into the kiss as he wraps his arms around her waist, pulling her flush to him. Imelda withdraws her lips from his, tilting her head up at him to look at him.

"That's probably for the best." She sighs. "Mamá is getting supper ready and needs my help, I barely managed to getaway. So better make this worth it."

Héctor chuckles at this, capturing her lips with hers again his arms tightening around her waist. Imelda's hand rest on his forearms, closing her eyes as she savours the feeling of his lips on hers.

"Imelda!" Josefina's voice breaks them out of their trace. The couple withdraws from one another, Imelda pushing Héctor away with as much force as she possibly could.

"Mamá! What are you doing here?" Imelda questions, her anxiety running rampant as her hands shook beside her body. She had never been so terrified in her life. Josefina narrows her eyes at the young couple.

"Get in the house." The older woman says sternly.

"Mamá…" Imelda falters, beginning to pick at the skin around her nails.

"Ahora Imelda Adelita Herrera y Posada." Josefina says. Imelda looks at Héctor one last time before moving to the door. "Señor Rivera, I want you off my property now. I will arrange with one of my sons to drop off your payment for the week."

"Mamá don't! This isn't his fault, I distracted him." The younger woman defends her fiancé.

"Imelda I said get into the house" Josefina repeats.

"No!" Imelda retorts. "I will not get into the house."

"Melda…" Héctor finally says something.

"Not another word from you Señor." Josefina barks before turning back to her daughter. "I won't ask again Imelda. Inside" Imelda had never seen her mother so angry before.

"I won't go inside mamá." Imelda defines, staring her mother in the eyes. Josefina grabs Imelda by her wrist painfully and drags Imelda forcefully out of the barn. Imelda doesn't resist her too much, afraid of hurting Josefina. The older woman pulls her into the house, jerking Imelda forward as she lets her daughter go. Josefina slams the kitchen door shut, her furious gaze not leaving Imelda as she stands in the middle of the kitchen.

"Do you know what associating with that boy will do to your reputation?" Josefina questions, her anger growing as Imelda stands there with narrowed eyes and her fists balled at her sides.

"I don't care." The young woman counters.

"You don't care? You will when you're 40 years-old and unmarried because no man would marry the woman who was involved with 'hungry' Héctor Rivera. Do you know what his parents were?" Josefina questions, coming closer to Imelda. "His father abandoned them, abandonment breeds abandonment."

"He's not like that."

"How do you know?" Josefina asks, pinching the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. "Luis Rivera was a deadbeat and Héctor will be exactly like him." Imelda knows better than to argue with her if she was going to win this. But Imelda knew Héctor was nothing like his father.

"Mamá please." The young woman pleads.

"Go to your room."

"Mamá…"

"Now. I will not bother your father with this right now. You will not leave your room until I say so." Josefina says, turning away from her daughter to go back to preparing supper.

Imelda turns away from her mother, coming to the bottom of the stairs. She looks up them and then to the front door, debating to do as she was told or to run. She decides it would be best to choose the former. She goes to her room, shutting her door behind her. The young woman sits on her bed, tears threatening to fall.

She peels off her boots, throwing them towards the door before laying on her bed. She doesn't care if she messes up her hair, she finally allows herself to shed the tears that had been threatening to spill. She was going to fix this, she had to make this right. She thought of ways she could fix this before drifting off to sleep.

…..

Imelda wakes to a knock on her door, she sits up in her bed as her door creaked open to reveal Oscar.

"Mamá says it's time for supper." The young boy says in a quiet voice. Imelda nods in response to her younger brother, who leaves the doorway shortly. She grabs her hueraches from the bed and puts them on. Imelda stands from her bed with a sigh, she had to face this.

She walks down the stairs silently, her heart pounding in her chest. She wasn't ready to face her parents. Imelda takes her regular spot beside Raúl and Felipe, Josefina puts the carnitas on the table quietly.

The dinner table is quiet with the exception of the occasional question asked by one of the twins, which was often met with a short reply by Josefina. With the exception of the prayer before dinner Raúl was unsettlingly quiet, he stared at his plate for the entire meal. Throughout dinner Imelda periodically looks over at her father, she had never seen him like this. Only once when she was seven-year-old, and he caught one of the farmhands stealing from them. Imelda clears the table of the dishes and washes them, trying to put off the impending conversation. She warms up well water on the stove, waiting for it to almost come to a boil before pouring the warm water in the basin.

She hums her song quietly as she washes the plates. Imelda manages a smile as she thinks about the first time Héctor sang it for her. She clears her throat as she feels tears threatening to form, shutting her eyes to make them dissipate. She wasn't going to cry.

"Imelda." Raúl's voice makes her jump, she looks over to see her father standing in the doorway of the kitchen. Imelda nods stiffly, wiping her hands on her apron. She unties her apron and hangs it on the hook by the backdoor. The young woman sighs before walking out of the kitchen to the hall and then into their sitting room.

Josefina stands by the window, her arms crossed and her jaw set. Raúl sits in his chair in the corner, tapping his finger on the armrest.

"Papá…" Imelda begins but is silences when Josefina raises a finger to her.

"Tranquila." Josefina says. "Tu padre esta hablando."

Raúl runs a hand through his hair, messing it up as he scratches the back of his head. His hand comes around and begins to rub the stubble along his jaw.

"Your madre has told me what she saw tonight between you and the Rivera boy."

"You like Héctor." Imelda responds, only for Josefina to raise a finger to her again. Imelda sighs, getting really frustrated at her mother holding her finger to her.

"I did. I like him until he took advantage of his job here and took advantage of you."

"It wasn't like that. He didn't take advantage of anything or anyone." Imelda says, ignoring her mamá's finger. "It was my choice; he was nothing but respectful."

"That may be so, but he still acted on his affections without asking our permission."

"If he had asked your permission would have allowed him to court me?" Imelda asks, picking at the skin around her nail, hoping that she could salvage this.

"Of course not." Josefina speaks up.

"Josefina." Raúl says sternly, looking at his wife then back to his daughter. "It's not about that Mija. Héctor has no future."

"What do you mean?"

"What will he do for a job Imelda?" Raúl questions. "He's a good man, but he'll never make a living playing music. He will die penniless and hungry."

His words stabbed Imelda. How could he think so little of Héctor?

"Imelda you're going to be 18 soon. You don't have time to be wasting time with Héctor. You should be allowing a more respectable man to court you now." Josefina interjects.

"Well, no responsible man would want me now." Imelda jokes, without really taking the time to process what she just said. The young woman looked to her mamá, who was looking back at her with wide eyes.

"What do you mean?" Josefina asks, her voice barely above a whisper. Imelda doesn't respond, swallowing heavily as her heart pounds in her chest. Josefina cries out, collapsing on the couch. Imelda would've thought her mother was in pain if the woman hadn't raised a hand to her.

"Jesucristo Imelda!" Raúl growls, nearly scaring the young woman; she had never heard her father take the lord's name in vain.

"Do you realize what you've done, you stupid girl." Josefina spits. Imelda waits for her shame to overtake, but it doesn't. The room goes silent, tension high as a knock echoed through the house.

Josefina stands from the couch briskly as she marches towards the door. Imelda's stare remains on Raúl as Josefina opens the front door.

"I told you I don't want you on my property." The older woman's voice carries to the sitting room.

"Lo Siento, Señora Posada…but I wish to talk to you and Señor Herrera." The guest's voice carries. Imelda spins at the sound of Héctor's voice, she takes one step forward before her father is beside her; his arm blocking her from going any further.

"Josefina." The older man calls. "Let him in." Josefina looks at her husband as if he had grown an extra arm, before reluctantly stepping aside to let the young man in. She closes the door as Héctor walks through the threshold, holding his straw hat in front of him.

"Imelda go sit and be quiet." Raúl says Imelda knows better than to argue and sits on the couch which faced the scene before her. Héctor stands in front of her father, standing tall but his nervousness clear in the way he was fiddling with his hat while Josefina stands behind the young man. "Why are you here Héctor?"

"Señor Herrera, I have come here tonight…to ask you something."

"Que querias preguntar?"

"I've come to ask your permission for me to marry Imelda." Héctor says without taking a breath. Raúl sighs, running a hand over his stubble again as he regarded the young man.

"How do you expect to support yourself and my daughter?"

"I'll work any job I can until I become a successful musician."

"Still with the music Héctor?" Raúl questions. "Even with a wife, you wouldn't be willing to give it up? So, while my daughter starves in Santa Cecilia you can go gallivanting across Mexico and eventually maybe, America."

"Anything I make on tours I will send to Imelda. Everything I make in the plaza and on odd jobs will go to Imelda."

"And when you two have children? If a child were to be produced as a result of your sin?" Josefina interjects, standing beside her husband.

"There's no child." Imelda stands from the couch, unable to remain quiet any longer. Josefina's head snaps back to Imelda, silently telling her to sit back down. Imelda complies, biting the inside of her lip as frustration courses through her. Why didn't she get a say?

"My wife is right." Raúl sighs. "Héctor, you are a fine young man. But you have no means of taking care of my daughter or any future children. I knew and respected your father, but I also saw what his lifestyle did to you and your mamá. I don't want the same for my Imelda."

"Your daughter won't starve!" Héctor exclaims. Imelda looks at him shocked, she had never heard him raise his voice like that. She looks at her father once more, eyes pleading with him. The room goes silent as Imelda's parents stare at the young man.

"My answer is no Héctor." Raúl repeats. "Go home and leave my property." Imelda controls every emotion building in her. Héctor looks at her once more before nodding. Her heart sinks as he turns away from her and leaves. Imelda stares at the floor, trying to process everything that just occurred.

How could she be so stupid? To tell her parents about her indiscretions and to actually think they'd agree to her and Héctor marrying. She wouldn't marry if she couldn't marry him.

Raúl and Josefina turn back towards her and in that moment, Imelda had never felt so small and helpless.

"Go to bed." Josefina says, clasping her hands together. "We'll decide how to handle this later."

Imelda stands from the couch, her brows knit together as she stares at both of her parents. She pushes past her parents to head upstairs to her bedroom, locking her door behind her as she collapses in her bed. There was no fixing anything now. Her parents had spoken, and she doubted she'd ever be able to see Héctor again. She buries her face in her pillow, allowing herself to sob in grief and frustration; at her parents and at her own stupidity.