I turned 30 today! Yay! Thank you for beta'ing, MsSchneeheide!

Over the past few days, Gloria has become Blanca's favorite co-worker and really, the only one she feels comfortable talking to. Norma doesn't speak and Gina is just annoying, but Blanca has finally found a confidant in Gloria and actually enjoys cooking and serving with her. She's so happy that Gloria worked up the courage to apply for a few jobs. Even if Gloria had looked like she'd just stepped-rather crawled- out of a boxing ring after losing a tiring, painful match, she'd covered her injuries pretty well and had gotten herself some interviews. Of course, Diane hired her right away and being Principal Caputo's ex-girlfriend has its perks. Blanca thinks Karla has helped raise Gloria's self-esteem, too. They've been roommates for a while now, and they will be until Gloria makes enough to rent her own place for herself, her sons, and maybe even her daughters, whenever they're comfortable having her in their lives.

Blanca can also relate to Gloria; they're both survivors of domestic violence and had met their abusers in isolated places. For Blanca, it was the beach and in Gloria's case, Arturo took advantage of the fact that she was trapped in an elevator with him and coerced her into a kiss that unfortunately, left her in a daze and under his spell. At least Blanca had Karla there with her at the ocean; otherwise, her first time would've been on the sand. She can imagine just how scared Gloria must have felt at first.

"You know what I wanna do?" Gloria asks as she scrambles a dozen eggs in a huge bowl.

Blanca turns on the stove. "¿Qué?"

"Open up a club someday."

"Nah, don't leave me here with all the gringas," Blanca says jokingly.

"Well, you'd join me, of course! While I'm on that subject, maybe you and Diablo could try out the salsa class I'm teaching."

"Ay, we know how to dance, chica!"

"Nena, por favor, it'll be fun! You two can show the students how it's done, be my assistants! Some of these kids don't know shit, seriously! Also, they don't wanna pair up, even though salsa is done with a partner!"

Blanca chuckles and folds her arms across her chest. "Puedes bailar la salsa por tu cuenta. What's the real reason you want us there?"

You can dance the salsa on your own.

Gloria sighs and waves her off. "Olvídalo..."

Forget it

"Nah, tell me!" Blanca protests.

"Just this dumb college boy Joel Luschek keeps hanging around the gym where I teach, him flirting with me is making me very uncomfortable! I'm five years away from forty, for heaven's sake. I could be his mother. Cuando comencé, él se ofreció a ser mi compañero de baile para mostrarles a los niños cómo se hace, ¡pero tuve una erección justo en mi entrepierna! Zirconia, his girlfriend, I guess, got jealous and her friend Badison was all up in my face about it."

When I started, he offered to be my dance partner to show the kids how it's done, but he got a boner right on my crotch!

"Gross! What an asshole." Blanca shakes her head and gives Gloria a sympathetic smile. "Dios mío, todo este drama."

"These kids are driving me crazy, Blanca, and I need you!" Gloria clutched Blanca's gloved hands in her own. "Por favor...the only one I can actually stand is Daya."

"Flaca and Maritza didn't want to be in it porque Badison is a bully, and I agree...ella también me intimidó."

she bullied me too.

"Ella intimida a todos," Gloria retorts. "You can't let her stop you from living your life, but I could do with a few friends on my side and not just Daya who keeps getting called the teacher's pet for showing me respect."

she bullies everyone

"Why don't you use those hands to work instead of that mouth to gab, huh, Mendoza?"

"I am, Red! Blanca was talking too, why you pickin' on me?"

"Because..." With perfection, Red plucks a bit of an eggshell out of the yolk Gloria is mixing and washes it off her hands in the sink. "You're not concentrating."

"Lo siento, roja," Gloria mutters sarcastically and Blanca stifles a giggle. Even though the other Latina is thirty-five, Red acts like she's Gloria's bossy older sister. "What you laughin' at me for, Blanca, ¡dejaste que uno de tus pelos sueltos saliera de tu redecilla y entre en los huevos!"

You let one of your stray hairs come out of your hairnet and go into the eggs!

"You both remind me of Nicky. She used to not be able to peel potatoes correctly when she helped me in the backroom because she was thinking about her latest woman of the week." Red shakes her head. "Is that what's going on, you've got men on your minds?"

"Sí," Blanca responds right away and directs her attention to chopping tomatoes for the salsa and guacamole. "Pero puedo concentrarme y estoy tratando de hacerlo mejor. I've only messed up once!"

But I can concentrate and I'm trying to do better.

"No," Gloria answers. "I don't even have a crush on anyone!"

Blanca smirks. "Mentirosa. Te gusta Fahri."

Liar. You like Fahri.

Gloria rolls her eyes. "Cállate."

"Girls, just keep working and no more squabbling!" Red tells them and walks away.

"So, confession time," Blanca murmurs when Red leaves them be. "Las chicas y yo estábamos en la casa de Diablo, y Raiza estaba haciendo un proyecto de arte. Ella le dio un abrazo y got paint on his shirt. So...being una víctima de violencia doméstica, I shrieked at her porque Dean siempre me castigaría si las niñas arruinaran sus posesiones. Por supuesto, Diablo no estaba enojado conmigo ni con Raiza, pero the guilt is eating me alive."

The girls and I were at Diablo's house, and Raiza was doing an art project. She gave him a hug...So...being a victim of domestic violence...because Dean always punished me if the girls ruined his possessions. Of course, Diablo was not mad at me or Raiza, but

Gloria wears an understanding expression. "I've spanked my boys before and yelled at them purely out of stress. Ya sabes, todo lo que me pasó con Arturo y el hecho de que somos pobres. They're so little though, and I felt bad for screaming and putting my hands on them, but I know I'm not perfect. I'm just a mom who loves her children and tries her hardest to care for them. You are, too. Kids can be annoying sometimes though, making us want to pull our hair out, and it's normal to be mad at them when they disappoint us, but the important thing is at the end of the day, you love them."

You know, everything that Arturo put me through and the fact that we're poor.

Blanca nods. "I do. Amo a mis bebes."

I love my babies.

"That's true," Red cuts in and they glance up at her. "Just the other day, Tricia accidentally knocked over a glass table while practicing a dance routine and I was frustrated because it was very expensive...she's just twelve and I wouldn't make her pay for it, but I had her apologize to us since we split the money on it. I thought, you know, she could've done something way worse. Speaking of which, if Nicky ever comes home, I'm grounding her for eternity. I don't care that she's a grown woman. Vasily won't propose to his girlfriend. Yuri is still married to Sparkle Tits." They all laugh at this, and then Blanca's worries are forgotten.

The next morning before work, Gloria decides to do some stretching at the gym in a neon pink sports bra and matching pants and headband so she can relax before another long day. She sees Crystal Burset getting off of an exercise bike. "Hey!" she calls out to the other woman.

Crystal smiles and the two ladies embrace quickly. "Hi, are you not doing the carpooling either? Sophia told me that just Aleida and Leon picked up Michael today. You're always with them, so I thought you were sick or somethin'."

Gloria shakes her head no. "Nah, I know you always come here and you gave me a guest pass, so I just decided to attend today. I've had kind of a tiring week, and I needed to loosen my muscles. I been kinda tense lately." They start walking to the mats and roll a couple out so they can stretch.

Crystal sits down, as does Gloria. "Me too...my son is taking mine and Sophia's divorce pretty hard, and he's lashing out. Plus, my ex-wife almost got herself busted for credit card fraud, but then Sister Ingalls stopped her from using it and paid for Sophia's surgery herself, bless her. Still, I just hate that Sophia stole cards from fire victims! Ugh…"

Gloria frowns and does a butterfly stretch, holding onto her ankles and pressing the bottoms of her feet together. She'd always enjoyed Sophia's company, and she can't completely hate her for doing what she did, since Gloria, too, thought there was no other way to earn money for something she desperately needed. Even so, she understands why Crystal and Sophia needed to split up. It's probably also because Crystal would prefer someone with a penis, but Gloria doesn't tell Crystal that. She doesn't know the entire story. "That sucks. I hope you two can still be friends. I'm sure she regrets what she did."

Crystal reaches forward to touch her toes. "She does. I just wish she'd asked for help in the first place. At least she's returning the credit cards to the families and deleting the pictures of the numbers off her phone."

"That's good."

"Maybe we need a massage from Mr. Sex God over there." Crystal smirks and tilts her head toward Fahri, who's shirtless and running on a treadmill. He's so perfectly toned and Gloria blushes as she giggles. His muscles flex and for the first time, she notices how sexy he really is. She continues drawing her right knee to the left side of her chest in her piriformis stretch with Crystal, in case he's to catch them ogling him. She doesn't want him to suspect anything.

"Mmm, I know, right?" Gloria shivers in excitement and fans herself as she imagines Fahri's hands working over her tight muscles and then rubbing lotion all over the rest of her body except for her most private area, of course. "Oh, my...he is built like a Greek god!"

"Such a beautiful man," Crystal murmurs.

Gloria leans into her so she can see him a little better. "So finely sculpted, like he's made out of clay," she gushes softly.

"The big dude upstairs did good on him," Crystal agrees, and they both chuckle. "Do you think he's terrific in bed?" They both do a triceps stretch, pushing their arms behind their backs.

"Oh, yes, I'm sure he's a passionate and gentle lover," Gloria responds as her cheeks heat up even more. She lets her elbows go and hugs herself around her middle. "He's probably the most amazing kisser."

"Girl, I can't believe you're practically dating him. You're so lucky! I get why you haven't locked lips yet, though."

"Well, that was a result of us being so close as kids and then Daya, Katie, and Flaritza matchmaking us years later. I don't think I've ever properly thanked them. I was hella mad at first, in fact! As Elena and Ceci put it, they got into my personal business. Now, I just wondered what led them to do it and how Dios managed to find me this ripped guy with a kind heart in the first place. It was one of my prayers I sent up to Heaven! Smart girls, they are. It's like, they knew Fahri had a thing for me and since I was like his best friend back then, I was the perfect woman for him."

"Yeah…well he's all yours. I'm crushing more on my pastor...our conversations are the best, and he's attractive...but I can admire another man's sturdy, muscular physique every once in a while, right?"

"Mm-hm," Gloria says. "Just as long as you look but don't touch. You ain't blind!"

Fahri slows down and wipes his sweaty face with a towel. He grins at them and steps off his machine. He slings both his black shirt and towel over his shoulder as he walks towards them. "Oh, he just saw us!"

"I hope he didn't hear us," Gloria whispers nervously as she combs her fingers through her hair a few times to make it slightly neater. "Do I look okay?"

Crystal nods her head yes. "You're fine."

"I'm so glad my lipstick didn't fade…and I got my eye makeup…" Gloria trails off when Fahri approaches them. She beams up at him from her pretzel stretch and then gets into a seated position, with her legs crossed. "Hey, funny running into you here! You have a good workout?"

He nods his head yes. "I sure did! What about you ladies?"

"That's fantastic! I was just stretching," Gloria admits bashfully. "Unwinding, ya know?"

"Same, but I was on the bike before that," Crystal lets him know.

"Oh, that's awesome! Well, I better hit the showers before work. See you there, Glo." He winks at her and she presses her lips together, trying to hold back a smile, but she fails miserably.

"You should take a cool one. You look really hot." Crystal facepalms and then Gloria's whole face flushes in embarrassment when she realizes what she'd just said. "I-I mean...sweaty. Not attractive." She gasps. "Not that you're ugly or nothin'...I'm sorry, I dunno how to word it…I ain't trying to insult you…"

"It's okay, I knew what you were talking about. I never take anything you say offensive. That color you're wearing looks so good on you!"

"Thank you! Can you help me up?" Gloria asks, feeling a little more flirty. How this man instills confidence in her day after day is amazing. "I gotta go soon, too."

"Sure!" He reaches his hand down, she grabs it, and then he pulls her to her feet. She pretends to stumble so she can fall into him and feel his naked chest. "Oh, you alright? Careful there," he says as he steadies her. Crystal simply gapes up at them, slack-jawed.

"Yeah...yeah, I'm good," Gloria responds. She wants to lick his abs so badly, but she's just happy that their bare bellies are touching. She and Fahri stare into each other's eyes for a moment. Once she starts imagining him taking her into his arms and making out with her, though, she knows it's time to leave. "Well...bye now!"

"Bye!"

That Friday night, Blanca and her daughters get ready to go to Diablo's concert. Maritza straightens her hair and wears a black skirt with nude tights, platform pradas, a hot pink blouse, and a black leather jacket. Blanca curls her locks and puts on lots of bling, including a matching gold necklace and bracelet, and the pretty black top Maritza had gotten for her birthday and a pair of jeans and tall red boots. They both apply their makeup in the mirror and smile at their reflections. "Wow, Mami, we look hot!"

"¡Totalmente!" Blanca agrees. "¿Estás segura de que estás de acuerdo con cantar en su concierto?"

You positive you're okay with singing at his concert?

"I'm the one who asked, Mami! It's the best way to get discovered."

Blanca purses her red lips and raises an eyebrow. "That's true." She turns around to face Raiza, who's in a yellow long-sleeved shirt, gray sweatpants, and sneakers. A big light purple bow sits in her hair. "Vete al baño one last time before we leave, nena. Diablo will be here soon!"

"I did my last potty already," Raiza insists. "I don't have to go, Mama."

"Go again, por favor. I don't want you to have an accident in Diablo's car or at the concert. You'll hate it, too, it's yucky."

"Okay," Raiza mumbles, much to Blanca's delight. She doesn't want to play strict mom tonight. She just wants to have fun with her children and see her boyfriend and oldest daughter perform onstage.

"That was easy," Maritza says brightly.

"¡Sí! Karla says she's the best little girl in the class, but she doesn't say anything because she can't have a favorite, being the teacher and all."

"Aw, well, I can see her listening to her maestra more than Eva probably does." They both chuckle lightly.

"So, what's been with you all week?"

"What do you mean?" Maritza asks.

"You're acting normal now, but...sometimes, you get this faraway look in your eyes and start smiling and giggling out of nowhere like somebody just gave you the best kiss of your life and you can't stop thinking about it." Also an orgasm, Blanca thinks to herself.

Maritza gasps and her cheeks turn pink. "¡Mami! Now I ain't gonna tell you nothin'!"

"No, I need to know. You got a boyfriend or somethin'? I hope you're being safe and he's using a condom, and that he's treating you right. Espera, are you on the pill? I don't remember-"

"Maaaami, basta ya, I'm sayin' this for real! I...I just have...a tiny crush, is all. Or, I think it might be. I'm not sure if I like this person. Have you ever questioned your feelings about a friend?"

"Sure, there was Diablo in high school. Who are you talking about, though?"

Maritza stares down at her shoes. "I...I think when me and Flaca practiced our kiss, it...it had more of an effect on me than I thought it would've. Like, it's weird, I dunno...but you don't gotta worry about me getting pregnant. No tengo un novio."

I don't have a boyfriend

Blanca cups her daughter's cheek and strokes her hair. "It's fine to have feelings for her, Mari. Sweetie, mírame." Maritza looks up at Blanca. "You know I fully support you, right? So if anyone is homophobic to you, I'll make 'em pay and give you away at your wedding."

look at me

Maritza nods. "Gracias, Mami, pero I ain't comin' out...yet...unless I'm positive. Pero...what does it mean when I feel protected each time she calls me Mari and I fight her bullies, but I'd beat down yours, too, and Raiza's, if she has any...and like, when she hugs me, I feel like nothin' bad can happen, pero también me siento así cuando me abrazas tú."

I feel that way when you hug me, too.

Blanca sighs. "No lo sé, mija, pero como dije antes, los sentimientos son confusos."

I don't know, but like I said before, feelings are confusing.

"That's for sure," Maritza says.

As soon as Raiza comes out of the bathroom, she shows them her hands. "Look, I washed mis manos really good! Miss Karla taught us a fun song about it."

my hands

"Oh, let's hear it!" Blanca exclaims. They all jump on the bed with Raiza.

"Top and bottom, top and bottom, in between, in between, washing, washing, washing...washing, washing, washing, now they're cwean, oh so cwean!" she recites to the tune of Frère Jacques. She sounds so cute singing it and Blanca's heart melts.

"Awesome job, baby sis, you memorized that perfectly!" Maritza holds up her hand and Raiza high-fives her palm.

"You sure did," Blanca concurs and hugs her littlest one.

"Yeah!" Raiza squeals. "She sings it every time we do it."

"That's great!" Maritza says.

The doorbell chimes right away and they go answer it, with Blanca in the lead. She opens the door and lets Diablo in. He looks so good in his destroyed jeans and his black T-shirt shows off his muscles quite nicely. They embrace and share a heated kiss. It's the barest brushing of his lips on hers as though she were the most precious thing he'd ever touched, yet she feels it so keenly, so deeply that shudders ripple through her entire body. "Hola, mi amor," he greets her, and then presses his mouth to her knuckles.

"Hola, guapo," she responds, beaming. She strokes his stubble. "You shaved?"

"Yeah, I was starting to look like a caveman."

Blanca giggles. "I like you either way."

"Gracias." They pull away from each other and then he waves at Maritza and Raiza. "¡Hola, chicas!"

"Hey," Maritza says with a polite grin as she bumps his fist with her own. "How are ya?"

"I'm great, pumped for the concert!"

"¡Yo también! I love music! Like, everyone does, but singing in front of a crowd is so my thing!"

"Oh, sí, tu mami told me about the play, how was your audition?"

Maritza beams proudly. "Flaca and I both did fabulously! It's gonna be an amazing experience if we get the parts!"

"Congrats, I hope you do!"

"¡Gracias!"

"Hello, Mr. Diablo!" Raiza pipes up as he kneels down to her level. She beckons him forward and leans into his ear. "Pweeeease don't hurt my mommy, okay?" she says in a not-so-loud whisper. "You hafta treat her special because I don't want her to cry no more. It makes us sad."

Blanca and Maritza exchange a tearful smile at the little girl's words. "I'll make your mami very happy," he assures Raiza. "The three of you are safe with me."

"You pwomise?" she asks, spinning around in a circle. She holds out her tiny pinkie finger. "Member, don't break it when you make it!"

"Sí, lo sé," he tells her, nodding. He crosses his heart and hooks his pinkie with hers.

"Yaaaaay!" Raiza claps her hands. "Mama, you gots to marry him! I wanna be the flower girl!" She jumps up and down. "¡Por favor, por favor, por favor!"

"That will be such a fun wedding to plan with Flaca, oh-em-gee!" Maritza squeals. "Pero, hermanita, let's not get ahead of ourselves. They've only dated for like, not even a week."

"Mm-hm, someday!" Blanca winks down at Diablo, who smirks back at her.

"Peek-a-boo!" he says, covering his eyes and opening his fingers partway. Raiza just giggles and copies him. "Alright, don't forget your lovey before we go bye-bye!"

Raiza runs to get it and Diablo stands to his full height. Blanca just stares at him, mesmerized at how good he is with her cherubs. She understands it'll take some time for Maritza to get used to him, although she seems to be already. It's just awkward for teenagers to say much to the person their parent is dating. Blanca has had plenty of experience with that; she doesn't remember uttering a word to Chad. Even so, he'd still thought he could tell her what to do. She presses her lips together and just beams at Diablo, trying to keep her tears of joy at bay.

"¿Qué pasa, sweetheart?"

What is it?

"Nada. Eres realmente bueno con mis hijas."

Nothing. You're just really good with my daughters.

"Gracias."

"¿Dónde está Laronne?"

Where is

"In the car, he didn't wanna walk in the cold more than he had to."

"Oh, alright."

Raiza skips over to them and grabs Blanca's hand just before they depart. She's so full of energy.

As soon as they get there, Diablo lets them backstage and sets up. Raiza bangs one of the drums with her hands repeatedly and enjoys the boom noise she keeps making. Maritza holds the microphone close to her mouth. "Testing, testing, one, two, three."

"It works!" Blanca states.

"Good thing I checked, though!"

Blanca and the girls shake hands with Diablo's other band members, Weevil and Sonya. They seem like nice people, and when Maritza tells Blanca in Spanish about Sonya's serious underbite, Blanca puts her finger to her lips.

"Seriously, has she ever heard of braces?" Maritza whispers.

"Chica, cállate, por favor," Blanca hisses. Red insults her enough already, in defense of a young man named Ilya who frequents her bakery, whom she sees as a son. "¿Recuerdas lo que te dije antes sobre no chismear sobre tus compañeras?"

Remember what I told you before about not gossiping about your fellow women?

"Fine."

Maritza goes back to behaving herself once the concert starts, though. Blanca, Raiza, and Laronne go to buy food. She pays for the hot dogs, nachos, chips, and soda they're asking for. Even though Diablo and Maritza are in the concert, Blanca picks up something for them, too.

"What about H20?"

"I'm not wasting money on agua," Blanca responds, showing Diablo's son the small plastic bottles of water she'd stashed in her bag.

His jaw drops. "Whaaat, you sneak things, too?" he asks softly.

"Buddy, I'm a master at being crafty." She messes with his hair and he ducks, but still walks close by her. She won't hold his hand since he'd be embarrassed by that, and it's not like he's so little he'd get lost in a crowd.

Laronne grins. "Cool!"

"Sissy tiny like an ant!" Raiza exclaims, since they're way up high and just now going down to their front row seats.

"I know, bebé, pero eso es sólo porque estamos muy altas."

that's just because we're way up high.

She nods in understanding. "Ohhh!"

Blanca picks her up. "I'm gonna carry you down since it's dangerous otherwise. Laronne, hold the railing so you don't trip." She abides by her own advice and Laronne follows her actions.

"Wookie, Mama, pretty neons!" Raiza points at the flashing pink, blue, and purple lights as they join the audience. Maritza and Diablo will be much easier to watch now. She's happy that Diablo had gotten them in for free.

"I see that!" Blanca chucks her little girl under her chin and kisses the top of her head. She turns to Laronne. "How you doin', sport?" She wants to engage him in conversation since Diablo is doing the same with her daughters. It's only fair, and she'd like him to be comfortable with her dating his dad and being around in general.

"I'm good. I'm on the basketball team and I scored ten points in our last scrimmage!"

"Awesome!"

"Mommy, Dora found cookies!"

Blanca looks over at Raiza, who's making the doll hold a small packet of Oreos. "She did, huh?"

"Yeah! Can we have them, puh-weeease?"

"What you rummaging around in my things for, huh?" Blanca tickles Raiza's tummy and she begins giggling. She nuzzles noses with her baby girl to show she's not really mad and hugs Raiza close as she swipes the Oreos. "That's dessert, honey. After dinner, we all can have one."

"Oh...okay!"

They all start eating and they get excited when Diablo's band starts playing. Blanca cups her hands around her mouth and cheers for her man and her girl. He's as excellent a drummer as Maritza is a singer. The lyrics are quite morbid, but they're incredibly beautiful and Maritza's voice is so melodic, even when she's shouting so aggressively about being young and reckless and dying as a result. After their meal, they stand up and start jumping up and down to the beat. Blanca swirls her hair all around as she swivels her hips with her hands raised in the air, displaying the rock symbol, thumbs holding her middle and ring fingers while her index and pinkie fingers are sticking upwards. She twirls Raiza and Laronne as the three of them dance happily.

"You gotta shimmy, girl, shake those sillies out!" Blanca shows Raiza how to do it. "Laronne's got it down! Yesss!" She high-fives him and then Raiza copies his moves as best she can. It's adorable.

"I'm so outta control, I got the devil in my soul, and he's deep insiiiiide...I don't even have horns or a tail, just real long nails, don't even ask me, I don't know whyyyyy!" Maritza screams as she finishes the last song of the night. Diablo tops it off by pounding on his drums and cymbals with wooden sticks several times.

Afterwards, Blanca pulls Maritza in for a hug. "You both did so great!" she compliments them. "I'm blessed to be surrounded by such talented individuals."

"¡Gracias!" they say in unison.

Maritza appears to be shocked and she glances between Blanca and Diablo with a wide grin. "Y'all are gonna make it," she predicts.

"Hope so," Blanca murmurs.

"So do I, my darling!" Then, Diablo gathers Blanca in his arms and kisses her full on the mouth. She melts and swoons in his embrace. Once again, she'd had such a wonderful family night. She's getting pretty used to it, and she loves her new life. She wants it like this forever.

Finally, Blanca and Diablo get to go on their group date with Karla, Ramón, Alison, Hassan, Aleida, Leon, Lila, James, Lida, Vasily, Gloria, and Fahri at La Fontana's on Saturday evening. They're dressed to the nines. They get a table and order drinks, then a huge pizza, plate of fettuccine with Alfredo sauce, and Caesar salad to share. Gloria and Fahri had gone with them since Gloria feels more comfortable in a group, even if she already knows Fahri won't hurt her. According to her, she'd done it more for her kids than herself. She's staring at him dreamily and leaning into him whenever he speaks. They touch hands a few times and it's obvious they're doing some heavy flirting between her piña colada and his Scotch. Blanca can't blame them; she and Diablo had been the same way before their first kiss.

"So, another family night, huh?" Alison wonders aloud, and Blanca nods.

"Oh, hell yeah!" Diablo responds.

"It was fun!" Blanca chimes in.

"What'd you guys do anoche?" Gloria wants to know. She props her chin on her fist and smiles at them.

"We went to the stadium where Diablo's concert was held and Maritza was singing there, too. Raiza, Laronne, and I danced all night long to the music and it was an absolute blast watching mi amor y Maritza in his band!" Blanca answers.

"Amo que me apoyes, mi amor. Y sabes que siempre te apoyaré," Diablo promises her. He gazes at her lovingly and she can't help but beam and bore her eyes into his. They play footsie under the table and laugh together at the same time.

I love you supporting me, my love. And you know I will always support you.

Aleida winks at them and then joins hands with Leon, who's across from her. "Sounds like things are getting serious!"

"Kinda does, yeah," Leon concurs.

"Yeah, but no pressure to get hitched!" Karla says quickly.

Lila smirks. "None at all."

James taps his beer bottle with hers. "Agreed."

"Someone should definitely pop the question," Lida mutters, eyeing Vasily.

"I'm waiting for the right time!" he protests. He takes a slurp of his vodka soda with ice and gulps it down, and she does, too. She has the same alcoholic beverage.

"Speaking of which..." Ramón gets up and goes around to where his wife is sitting and drinking wine. He rests his hands on Karla's shoulders and bends down to kiss her cheek. She smiles and turns to peck his lips. He scoots her chair back a little and goes on one knee as he gazes up at her with an adoring expression. Blanca is confused since this looks like a proposal, but they're already married. The others are also perplexed.

"Mi amor, what are you doing?" Karla wants to know. Coming to a supposed realization, she claps her hand over her mouth and tears glisten in her eyes. "Ay...it's happening!"

"What?" Blanca asks. "Aren't you-"

"Shh!" Alison hisses and mimes zipping her lips.

Wordlessly, he pulls a white box out of his pocket and holds her right hand in his. "Querida, I've known you since we sat next to each other in English almost two decades ago. When we struck up a friendship and then decided to be more than pals, I was over the moon, and I could tell you were, too. We're destined to be together for eternity..." He opens the box and reveals a shiny diamond ring, similar to the one Karla is wearing on her finger, but somehow, more sparkly. It probably glitters under the sun. "So for our twentieth anniversary of us, you know, being together, including the time we dated, will you, Karla Diana Adilene Córdova, do me the great honor of being my wife...again?"

"Yes! Yes, oh, god, yes!" Karla cries, and tears run down her cheeks. "We'll renew our vows! I'm engaged a second time!" She and Ramón make out passionately for a few seconds. "Oooh, our son will be the ring bearer!"

"Definitely!"

Suddenly, Blanca gets it. They're trying to re-create their proposal because she wasn't there to witness their wedding. She laughs and her eyes are wet, too. She can't believe they'd actually do this. She throws her arms around Karla, who's admiring her new piece of jewelry. "¡Oh, muchas gracias!" she squeals.

"¡De nada!" Karla squeezes Blanca's hands. "You're my maid of honor, of course! I'd also love it if Maritza was one of my bridesmaids and Raiza our flower girl!"

"You're going through the ceremony, too, you're so sweet!" Blanca exclaims. She fans herself. "We'd certainly be down for that! The girls will be so excited!"

"Oh, yes!" Diablo pumps his fist in the air and brings it down. He grins at Blanca. "We can dance together."

"I can't wait!" Blanca practically shrieks and then giggles.

"Us, too," Gloria says, gesturing to herself and Fahri, who looks just as enthusiastic about this. "We gonna do some tango and salsa, if you wanna be my date to the vow renewal, that is!"

Fahri beams. "I'd love to!"

"Cheers to Karla and Ramón!" Lida announces. "I also wanna make a toast to Blanca, Diablo, Gloria, and Fahri for finally being able to make this special occasion!" Everyone raises their glasses or bottles and then clinks them together.

Thank you for reading and reviewing, VeraRose19, A Star In My Universe, Juliette45, and MsSchneeheide! Also congratulations Caitlin (A Star In My Universe) for being my hundredth reviewer!