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At four years old, Dolores sees her tío Agustín get stung by a bee. He accidentally disturbs a nest, and a whole swarm of bees flies out to defend their hive. The more he swats at them, the more they sting him. Afterwards is the worst part of it to Dolores. Agustín's face is massively swollen in every area where the bees stung him. He barely looks like her uncle to her anymore; he is a scary sight. She cries with sympathy for him, even after Tía Julieta heals his stings.
At five years old, Dolores receives her gift a few weeks after her prima Isabela does. Isabela grows flowers, and Dolores has heightened hearing. It wouldn't seem that their gifts would cause problems for each other, but flowers attract bees. Every time Dolores hears the loud, booming drone of a foraging honeybee, she freezes in fear. Even if it's nowhere near her, it always sounds to her as if it's buzzing right up next to her ear.
At nine years old, Dolores discovers that Isabela has grown an azalea bush by the front door of Casita. Pink and white flowers are in bloom, with bees surely inside every one of them. Dolores doesn't hear any right now, but that doesn't mean they won't come later. She stands a good distance from the bush, wondering how she's going to get in and out from now on. She feels she has no choice but to use the back door if she doesn't want to die—-of an allergic reaction to bee stings or fright, she doesn't know which. Mami gives Dolores a funny look every time she avoids the front door, but she tells herself that she won't die of embarrassment either.
At sixteen years old, Dolores is brave enough to go out the front door, but she still avoids large patches of flowers as much as she can. The sound of a buzzing bee is still all it takes for her to go running back to Casita. She makes the excuse that she has a headache from all the noise she's been hearing. Some days the fear is so strong that she doesn't even go outside—-mainly the days Tío Agustín comes back with his face all swollen up. That sight doesn't scare her anymore. She's old enough to recognize that, swollen face or not, he's still her uncle.
At twenty-one years old, Dolores walks with her youngest brother Antonio back home from school. Buzz, buzzzzz. She jumps, heart racing. It beats as loud as the bee hums in her sensitive ears.
"What happened, Lola?" Antonio asks.
"I just heard a bee, and it startles me," Dolores reassures him.
"Do bees startle you all the time?" Antonio is concerned.
"Sometimes. Not as much as they used to," Dolores admits. "I used to be much more scared. They just buzz so loud, and they're so fast when they sting. Sometimes I worry that if I get stung, I'll have a bad reaction like Tío Agustín." She presses her hands to the corners of her eyes to keep from crying. She can't cry in front of her little brother. She's way too old to cry about such an irrational fear.
"Bees don't fly around looking for people to sting," Antonio says matter-of-factly. "They only get angry if you mess with them while they're eating or if you disturb their house. But if you like, I can talk to the bees and ask them to stay far away from you."
Dolores smiles and gives her hermanito a hug. "You're sweet, Toñito. Gracias."
At twenty-two years old, bees only make Dolores a little nervous. A buzzing sound will cause her to walk a little bit faster, but she no longer gets paralyzed by fear. She remembers the talk she had with Antonio. She doesn't know if it's her brother's request of the bees or her becoming wiser as she gets older, but seeing as they haven't ever bothered her, maybe there's nothing to be afraid of.
Translations:
tío: uncle
tía: aunt
prima: female cousin
hermanito: little brother
gracias: thank you
