A/N: Sorry, I know it's been a while. I just haven't had the time. I promise, I am going to finish this whole story AND it will be done before season 3 airs. PROMISE!

~ Chapter 8: Isabel ~

For a second after I swiped into the building, I took in the empty halls. There was something spooky about being in a school that was almost completely empty. I knew the principal, secretaries, and custodians were here already, but I was the first car in the teacher's lot. I'd been surprised the first time it had happened, but I quickly realized that was the norm. Sometimes Aaron Normandy, the Gym teacher, got here at the same time as me but that was only if his wife could take the kids to daycare. She usually had to get to work before him.

It wasn't that the teaching staff was particularly unmotivated, but there wasn't much to do over the summer. It wasn't so much a formal education setting as it was an opportunity for students to learn through exploration. Science experiments and nature walks outside and helping out at the grocery store. Honestly, the most structured part of their day was probably music which was unexpected.

"Don't hold the door," Pilar said grumpily.

I pushed the door open more and resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I tried to be patient; every day, I prayed for more patience and understanding for her, but it had gotten old weeks ago.

Mia brought up the rear. She grabbed the door to hold it until Pilar crossed the threshold. She had Pilar's bag and her own bag slumped over her shoulder. "Which way, Mrs. Salazar?" she asked with a smile.

"How many times do I have to ask you to call me Isa?" I asked.

A look crossed her face, but it was gone in a second. When she'd been dating Victor, she'd called me Isa all the time, but it almost seemed like she felt like she'd lost that right when they broke up. After the last couple of weeks, I felt like she earned the right to call me whatever she wanted.

"This is fun. We should just stand here," Pilar said. Beneath her snark, I could see her genuine discomfort.

"This way."

Mia and Pilar followed me to the music room, and Pilar immediately lowered herself into a seat and propped her crutches against a table. Once upon a time, this had been staffed by an actual music teacher; I didn't know exactly what had happened to cause the shift to my program, but I was grateful for whatever it was because I never imagined I'd like working like this. I no longer could imagine my life feeling fulfilled without the kids I worked with. During the year, this room was used for whatever they needed - grade assemblies, play practice, storage, and me the three days I came here. During the summer, I was scheduled to be here every day. Only a fraction of the schools that we worked with had an extended school year, and I got lucky that mine had one. I was even luckier that they had work for me every day through the summer. They called it "Creative Expression" and that was really the best way to describe it.

I'd started doing stations the second or third day of summer when I realized that it was a lot to expect every kid to do the same thing at the same time. During the school year when they had music once or twice a week, it was exciting, but it got old for them very quickly. I thought freedom would result in chaos, and it did, but it was a good chaos. It was the kind of chaos where I saw my kids exploring music instead of being taught it.

Mia placed her bag next to Pilar. "I'm going to let you do your thing," I told her. She was volunteering her artistic abilities today and had made her own station. "The art room is next door. This key will get you in the gray cabinet. I was told you can take whatever supplies you need." It was how I swung this - Pilar and Mia were here as volunteers.

I passed the key to Mia and turned to Pilar. "You've got a choice. You can help them make their own instruments, be with the singers, or work with the piano."

Pilar made a face. "Is there a better option? Can't I help Mia?" I glared at her, and she sighed. "I'll take piano. Can any of your kids even play?"

"The younger kids, no. I mostly focus on getting them to be gentle with the keys. They like to slam down on them. Once we get to the older kids, the ones that choose to play know how to play. There's this girl, Kiki. She's a little younger than you…" I hesitated for a moment before I continued. "She has her struggles, but she's very talented. She might be better than me."

Pilar rolled her eyes. "I'm sure she is." I couldn't blame her for her skepticism. I used to say the same thing to her when I was teaching her piano and… she was never bad at piano, but she also never wanted to learn. I let her stalk away just as Mia came back with supplies. She'd mostly grabbed smocks and seemed to have taken every bottle of glue she could find.

I'd asked only a little about what she was doing with them, but she seemed truly excited for it. She'd warned me it was kind of like art meets science.

I eyed the tables that she started to put plastic covers on. "How much of a mess are we making today?"

Mia shrugged. "It shouldn't be too bad. We're adding food dye and glitter, so I didn't want to take any chances."

I left her be while I finished setting up, though I couldn't help the sporadic looks I shot over. She'd told me that she was bringing most of the supplies, but I hadn't been prepared for those supplies to be flour and a large jar either filled with salt or sugar. I didn't pry because I didn't want Mia to think I didn't trust her judgment; I was just curious.

It actually worked out really well. We ended up splitting every session in two so that every student could make something that looked similar to playdough with Mia and still get in some music time. She worked with them to create mini sculptures and, by the time we took our break for lunch, the shelves in the back of the room were full of creations from our younger kids. Most of them resembled different colored blobs that had been glued together, but there was something really endearing about it all.

"I have to hand it to you. They really love it," I told Mia as we ate. "Where'd you find this?"

Mia grinned. "Veronica wants to start doing some sensory activities with Kyle because all the moms in her mommy and me class looked 'scandalized' when she told them she hadn't been doing anything like that." Mia rolled her eyes. "Apparently some moms in California can be really judgy. There's some woman that is already trying to teach her nine-month-old to play piano. When we FaceTimed yesterday, we spent most of the time looking up activities. We wouldn't do this with the dye or anything like that, but I think we're going to try to introduce him to some of the sensory the stuff when I go to California. Let him watch and feel the dough."

"How old is Kyle now?" I asked curiously. I tried to remember when he was born, but I was blanking.

"Six months," Mia told me. "He'll turn seven months while I'm in California."

"That's gotta be coming up." Pilar's face darkened. I didn't even want to think about what two weeks without Mia would look like.

"Less than two weeks," Mia said excitedly. She seemed oblivious to Pilar's dark mood. "I feel like I've missed so much. I barely got any time with Kyle before they left." She glanced at Pilar. "And I'll be back. You're not getting rid of me that easily."

Pilar looked skeptical, but it was obvious that she didn't want to talk about it. "The older kids come in the second half, right?"

We let talk of California falter and quickly finished eating. Mia had a slightly different setup for the older kids because she was banking on some of them being more independent, so she spent a few minutes rearranging materials.

She wasn't wrong. The needs of the middle and high schoolers were varied, but there were a lot that just wanted to be independent.

I knew I was supposed to be working, but my world seemed to revolve around what I was witnessing in Pilar. I always knew it was there. Pilar was one of those kids who, if you were lucky enough to be let in, was extraordinarily thoughtful.

I'd watched her throughout the day as she hid away the part of her that was irritated to be here. I'd been impressed with her professionalism and compassion, but nothing compared to what was happening right now.

So, it wasn't a surprise when she immediately clicked with Kiki. I'd said the first day I met Kiki that she reminded me of Pilar and here was proof. Here was proof that there was so much more beneath the surface than I could possibly understand.

While they played side by side, the rest of the room seemed to move in slow motion. I could see Pilar's lips moving, but I didn't try to figure out what she was saying. Kiki elected not to partake in the arts and craft activity just as I'd expected and, eventually, they stopped trying to play and simply talked. I saw the fire in Pilar, a fire I always knew was there. It was her protective instincts taking over. Whether that was because she was learning about Kiki or because she sensed a fellow kindred spirit, I couldn't be sure.

The pride that filled me was unmatched.

When our workday ended, Pilar got silent. She didn't say a word to me or Mia while we cleaned up. In fact, the first time she spoke was after we'd piled into my car. "Did you know?"

I looked straight ahead at the school; we hadn't even gotten out of the parking lot yet. "Yes."

"How long does she have?"

"No one really knows, amore." I could feel her eyes on me. "When I started, I was told she'd be here five or six months before it would be too much for her, and she's been here since April. She wants to hang on as long as possible and experience as much life as possible."

"Why is she spending this time in school? If I was dying…" she trailed off. "Right. It's because Georgia is fucked up, and she has to be in school."

I let her curse go. I couldn't blame her for being upset. "How much did she tell you?"

"Enough to know that medical neglect is a thing." Pilar sighed. "This sucks."

"I know," I agreed. "But she's in a really good home now with people that want her to experience as much joy and support as she can while she's here. She's receiving the best possible medical care. It's too little too late, but it's something. Part of that is making sure that she gets to stay with them. Though, she didn't technically need to come here over the summer; she opted into the extended school year. I think she likes coming here."

"It still sucks," she muttered.

I brought my hand to her cheek. "I've told you that my job is amazing, but I didn't warn you about the hard days." I bit back the tears that were trying to escape me. Kiki was a really sad case, but she wasn't alone in that. So many of the kids I worked with every day were angry at the cards they'd been dealt. I was angry right along with them.

Pilar looked resolutely forward. "I feel like if I was her, I'd be pissed off at the world." Pilar sighed. "And she is, but she still tries to make the best of it. When her aide… god, what's his name?"

"Mr. Keith," I told her.

"Yeah. She could hear him whenever he got close and kept swinging out her walking stick." Pilar grinned. "She's funny. I guess she has to be to cope with all this."

I looked up at the fabric that lined the roof of my car. "When I first started here, Kiki told me that she didn't see why her… diagnosis meant that she couldn't enjoy the time she had left. I think her exact words were 'I'd rather be happy and dying than miserable and dying'."

The faintest smile flashed across Pilar's face. "I've spent all this time thinking you were just keeping them busy, but it's so much more than that. Kiki? Your class is a safe space for her. It's the only place that she can acknowledge that this sucks without falling to pieces."

"Is that what she said?"

"Yeah." Pilar was lost in thought for a moment. "Do you think I'd be able to come back?"

I looked over at Pilar. She was looking down at her lap. "I'd have to ask my boss, but I don't think he'd have a problem with it."

She nodded and fell silent, so I drove us home. When we got back, Pilar said goodbye to Mia and started her arduous trek up the stairs without complaint. Pilar hesitated outside her bedroom door after we got in. "Thanks for making me go. It wasn't the worst."

I didn't know that Pilar would ever do what I did for a living, but it warmed my heart to know that she'd enjoyed helping out today.

Pilar came back with me several times over the next two weeks. Each time, her patience and compassion astounded me. It wasn't just with Kiki. She'd shown a profound ability to connect with each of my students. I'd worried that she could be too abrasive and sarcastic, but it seemed that she was able to turn it off. I wondered if it made a difference that she was working with kids whom she didn't go to school with herself.

Once she got her knee scooter, she was so much more mobile with the kids which I think helped her general aura of euphoria. She still had some limitations, and it gave me anxiety every time one of the littler kids treated her scooter like a toy, but she seemed to enjoy her newfound freedom.

I tried not to embarrass Pilar too much, but it was hard when my pride threatened to burst out of me sometimes. But I was cool. Totally cool. Even when Pilar was telling Felix about something that had happened when she came to work with me because she enjoyed it enough to talk about it. I was cool and definitely wasn't listening in while I was cooking dinner. I definitely wasn't turning this into a big deal.

I lost track of their conversation when there was a knock on the door. I quickly wiped my hands with a towel and glanced at Mando. "Are you expecting someone?" He was sitting at the table with his glasses on, probably trying to figure out the same thing I'd given up on earlier. No matter how we budgeted, it would take several months before we'd pay off Pilar's bill. I was really hoping we'd be able to set up a payment plan. If we could work something out, we'd be fine. It would take some time and we still needed to make a few payments for our vow renewal ceremony, so things would just be tight for a while, but it wouldn't be anything like when the kids were younger, and I wasn't working. We weren't living paycheck to paycheck right now.

Mando shook his head. Felix was already here, and to our knowledge, Pilar hadn't invited over any of her other friends. I couldn't help but think back to the last time that someone had just knocked on the door, and I hoped this wouldn't be anything like that. I shivered thinking of the conversation I'd overheard between Lake and Victor. No, I desperately hoped this would be nothing like that. I turned off the stove before I went toward the front door.

I opened it to see Benji. "Hi, Isab- oh."

I pulled him into my embrace before he could finish. When I pulled back, I looked at him. He looked different. I guessed that he hypothetically looked almost the same as when I'd last seen him, but there was something different about him.

"You shaved the beard," Pilar said surprised. Ah, the infamous beard. I'd heard more about that beard in the month before Victor left… I pushed that thought aside. Victor called almost every day when he finished dinner and texted when he didn't have time to call, but I missed him so much.

"And you broke your leg," Benji tossed right back. "Are we saying facts?"

"I thought you liked the beard."

"But Victor didn't." Benji smiled. "He said it was fine, but I could tell. And, if I'm being honest, this looks so much better." He brought his hand to his cheek. "Though it feels weird. I just shaved a few hours ago, and I'm not used to it yet. Do I get to sign it?" He pointed to her cast.

"Well, I'm wildly popular, so it's going to be hard to find a spot," Pilar deadpanned. "Actually, Ryker's been drawing all over it, but Victor staked out a space for you."

Benji snorted. "Got it. Any requests?"

"Did you want to stay for dinner?" I asked quickly before they could get into it.

"That would be great. Thanks," Benji said appreciatively.

"Of course, mijo. We want to hear all about your tour."

"She wants to hear about it. I've heard more than enough for a lifetime," Pilar grumbled as Benji sat down next to her. She accepted a hug anyway.

I went back to the kitchen while Benji, Pilar, and Felix talked.

When I went to tell them dinner was ready, Benji had moved to the floor and was drawing something that I thought I'd seen on Pilar's screensaver on her phone before Felix took over.

Dinner was great. Benji didn't complain once as we hounded him with questions, and he seemed genuinely interested in what we'd been up to. He and Adrian had a whole conversation about Heather. He came into the kitchen while I was doing the dishes. "Would I be able to talk to you and Armando about something when you're done?" he asked quietly. He looked really nervous and, for a split second, I wondered if he and Victor had done something impulsive after their stint with long distance. They'd joked about matching tattoos once, but I really thought it was just a joke.

I got Mando and walked toward the table where Benji was sitting. Pilar was sitting next to him; I looked around for Felix, but he already left. They'd been whispering back and forth but stopped abruptly when I sat across from them. Pilar looked almost as nervous as Benji. Not matching tattoos; please, anything but matching tattoos.

"What's up?" Mando asked as he sat down next to me; I grabbed his hand under the table. Benji shifted in his seat. "I didn't realize you'd be joining us." Mando's words were for Pilar.

"I wanted to be in the loop," she insisted.

"Okay."

"Right, so, uh, yeah," Benji said quietly. He didn't take a deep breath, but it was audible in the silence. "Okay, so here's the thing. I don't know how to do this, but it's really important to Victor, and I know he's scared to tell you."

Oh, God. They got engaged. That was the news he was so scared to talk about, right? It made sense and maybe I should have seen it coming, but Victor always had a good head on his shoulders. Even when he ran, he was responsible about it. This, though? It was the last thing I expected from him.

I forced myself to calm down. Mando was going to have an imprint of my nails in his hand for a long time, but he didn't complain. "You know you can tell us anything," I said softly. For a moment, Benji held my eye contact.

"I went to see Victor yesterday," he finally said. "And he mentioned that the Assistant Coach at UCLA talked to him."

I glanced at Mando, but he seemed as confused as I felt. "Okay. Why would he be scared to tell us that?"

"That's not the part he's scared to tell you. Did you know there's a huge tournament in a little less than two weeks?" He asked.

Mando was the one to answer. "No."

"Yeah, um, Victor mentioned that he hadn't told you."

"I don't understand." I tried to keep the frustration out of my voice, but I felt like I was missing something. "Why didn't he tell us?"

Benji looked at Pilar uncomfortably before he looked back at us. He shrugged. "I don't know," he whispered. He glanced at Pilar again before he looked down at his lap.

"Pilar, go to your room," I told her. I had no idea what he wanted to talk about that he couldn't tell us in front of Pilar, but I wanted to get to the bottom of this, and I hadn't fully ruled out that they impulsively (and immaturely) got engaged.

"But –" she started to protest.

"Room," I said sternly. She was still muttering under her breath when she closed her door behind her. I looked at Benji expectantly.

"Sorry, I don't know how much she knows. Victor wasn't sure, and I didn't want to take a chance." That didn't help at all. "Look, maybe I'm overstepping and if I am, I'm so sorry. I just… I want you there, and I know Victor wants you there even if he says he's cool with you missing it. The tournament's on a Friday and Victor didn't want you to have to take off from work. He wasn't sure if you'd be able to swing it with everything that happened with Pilar and didn't want you to feel bad if you couldn't be there."

I froze. There was something so invasive about Benji knowing this. It shouldn't have felt that way. Benji was a part of our family; of course, Victor would have told him. He would've had to feed Benji some excuse when he didn't go to North Carolina, and I should have been prepared for that excuse to be the truth. I still felt blindsided by it.

"Is there anything I can do to get you there?" Benji asked, his voice breaking through the panic and discomfort swirling together in my chest. "I can watch Adrian, so you don't have to pay Andrew or… I don't know, but I can do whatever you need. If Victor's going to get an offer, he thinks it's going to happen the day of the tournament because that's almost always when the college scouts do it because they see how they perform under pressure or something like that, and I think he'll regret it if he doesn't get to share that with all of you."

It took everything in me for my response to be a deep breath and not an indignant protest. Breath after breath until Mando broke the silence. "We're going to be there. Is this something we need to buy tickets for?"

Benji nodded. "Victor sent me the link so I could buy mine. It's my idea, so I wouldn't mind…" He trailed off. He almost looked nervous. Honestly, if it wasn't really obvious that he was doing this because he was deeply in love with my son, I probably would have been offended.

"That's sweet of you, but we're okay," I told him.

He opened and closed his mouth before he looked down at the table. A silence stretched between us. It was the kind of silence that made me aware of all the small sounds around us: the creak of the chair as Benji shifted; the faint wind outside blowing through wind chimes and making leaves rustle; Mando's soft, even breathing; the steady ticking of Benji's watch that marked every passing second; a faint buzzing that came from outside our apartment that I was pretty sure was someone vacuuming. It felt like it might be endless.

"How much has Victor told you?" Mando asked.

Benji shrugged. "The basics." The word was reluctant, and it felt like he was forcing it through his teeth. Neither of us had to say we knew he was lying. It was written in the way he stared at the table and in the slight frown his lips twisted to make. Maybe the silence broke him a little because after a minute, he said, "it really stresses him out. He feels responsible because he was in charge while you were gone. He made almost enough at the beginning of the summer to cover most of the ER bill, but he didn't know how to pay it and he's felt guilty the past four weeks because he thinks he should be here helping you instead of at this program. I know I'm messing this up and Victor would kill me if he knew I was talking to you, but…" he sighed. "It's really hard to watch him struggle with this and not be able to do anything about it. He's so much better at this than me. When he was out of his element with my stuff, he figured it out, but I don't know what to do here. If I can help and make him less… you know how he gets when he's stressed, then I want to do it. No matter what it is."

"I didn't realize he was so worried about this." I felt like my heart was breaking a little. Mando's hand went to my knee, and he squeezed it. I glanced at him and held his gaze for a moment. I leaned forward a little. "I promise, we're doing okay. Yes, things are tight but not so tight that Victor needs to be worrying and definitely not so tight that you need to help out."

Benji looked uncertain but nodded. "Okay," he said simply. "But, uh, in case it might help, I could watch Adrian or something." He played with the bracelet on his wrist.

"That we will take you up on," Mando said before I had the chance to speak. "Andrew's great, but he can't keep Adrian entertained all day, and he's too young to go in with Isa." I was going to protest, but Mando continued before I could. "And he just asked about you. He's hoping to spend some more time with you."

"Of course," Benji agreed. "I'd love that." He looked pleased. "Let me know when I can help out, and I'll work it out with Sarah."

He sat for a moment, and I couldn't shake the feeling that he still wasn't telling us something. Or maybe I just needed to hear him say that they weren't engaged because as unlikely as it was, I couldn't stop thinking about it. "Was there something else?"

Benji looked at me uncertainly. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you two didn't do anything like get engaged because you were apart, did you?"

Benji started to laugh then abruptly cut himself off. "Oh, you're serious."

"I am."

He bit his lip and looked like he was trying very hard not to look amused. "I promise we did not get engaged." His voice cracked on the last word.

"Then why are you laughing?"

"Because you think Victor would've said yes if I proposed to him," Benji told me. "Victor-" he snorted. "He has this whole plan and marriage does not fit into it for a long, long time."

"Really?" I asked uncertainly.

"Really. He made that exceptionally clear."

"Um… how? How did he make that clear?"

Benji frowned. "You should really talk to him about this."

"He's not here and you are. Please, Benji."

He nodded. "We've, uh, had the talk about it," he admitted. "This morning, actually. Over breakfast." Benji noticeably flushed as he looked down at the table. "We were talking about college next year, and I made a joke that we could go to school as a married couple. I really was joking, but he got really quiet. And, I'm sorry, but this is really weird to tell you."

"Maybe it is," I agreed. "But I'm hoping you won't leave us there."

"Can I at least call him and let him in on this? You're his parents. I can't make this decision without him."

"That seems fair," Mando said. He gestured towards Benji.

Benji pulled out his phone. I saw his eyes dart toward the door as if he considered making a run for it. I didn't know if it was my imagination because he tapped on his phone and within the minute, Victor was on.

"Hey, handsome. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Benji told him. "I, uh, might've done something stupid."

Victor was quiet for almost a minute. "Are you okay? Did you… uh, you know, dr-"

"No," Benji interrupted. I pointedly looked at the table because I wasn't sure how I would've reacted if I hadn't known what they were talking about and, to my knowledge, Benji didn't know that we knew. "I stopped by to see your family."

"I thought that wall looked familiar. What, did you get roped into a game or something?"

Benji chuckled. "No."

"Blink once if they're holding you hostage."

"I suddenly feel like I need to blink. I promise, they're not holding me against my will." I kind of thought we were. "Um, I'm with your parents." Benji stood up and went down the hallway. We could still hear him, but he must've felt like he was getting more privacy. "I'm really not sure how it came up, but we were talking, and I may have mentioned something that we talked about this morning, and I felt like… I wasn't sure how much you wanted them to know."

"How the hell did that come up?" Victor demanded. "Are you okay that they know now? I mean, we didn't talk about telling my parents and you've been so dead set against other people knowing."

"No, not that part," Benji quickly said. "The other thing. About us."

"Oh. Are they there with you?"

"They're in the kitchen."

"Can you bring me to them?"

Benji came back and turned his phone so we could see Victor and he could see us. "Mom," he said exasperatedly. "I know you're nosy but that was a conversation between Benji and me. Remember our whole talk about boundaries and that some things need to be ours?"

"Nosy," I scoffed.

Benji stared at the back of his phone so hard, I was surprised that Victor couldn't feel it. "Maybe… maybe we should tell them," Benji suggested. "Not, uh, everything but a snapshot. You did say you were going to try."

I had no idea what that meant. Benji grabbed his phone and looked at it for nearly a minute. They seemed to be having a silent conversation. "Okay," Victor finally agreed. "What do you think?"

"Well, your mom thought we were engaged."

Victor started to laugh. "Did you tell her that's ridiculous?"

"I did," Benji confirmed.

"But she wanted to understand why it was so ridiculous," I interjected. "You have too much life ahead of you to do something stupid like getting engaged in high school."

That dried up Victor's laughter. "Would it be stupid?" he challenged. "I don't want to get engaged yet, but it's not because getting engaged in high school is a bad idea or because we're too young to make a decision like that. It's because when Benji asks me, I don't want to wait to start our life together. I want us to be in a place where we can plan our wedding and maybe be able to travel and see some of the world for our honeymoon and then figure out when we want to start our family. We can't do that while we're still in school, especially if we might be doing long-distance, or before we've started working. I hope that is enough for you to set aside any possibility that we're going to get engaged soon. We are going to be dating for a long time before Benji can pop the question."

My mind was spinning with so many things, but I didn't know where to begin, so I simply said, "okay. Thank you for telling us that." I climbed to my feet and coughed. "It's getting late. Do you need a ride home?"

"No, I drove here," Benji told us. I honestly hadn't realized Benji even had his license because it felt like they always took the bus or Victor drove. He looked at his phone. "I'll call you back once I get home."

"Kay," Victor said before I heard the beeping that he'd hung up.

I waited until Benji left to turn to Armando. He was still sitting at the table, so I walked up behind him. "So, they're not engaged."

"No," he agreed. He turned to face me. "So why do you look like they are?"

I frowned. "Is this ever going to get easier? Knowing that he's in a relationship this serious?"

"We've known that for a while," he pointed out.

"I know, but then they tell us something like this –"

"Something you specifically asked them to tell you," Mando interrupted. "Ise, we can't keep going down this road. You say you want to know, but then you act like this when they tell you the truth."

I sat down and felt like I deflated. "I just feel like the moment I wrap my head around where they are, they're moving on to the next big milestone."

"That's a good thing. That's healthy," Mando reminded me. I shrugged; I knew he was right, but I couldn't help how unsettled I felt. He frowned. "I can't keep up with you. One minute, you're so on board with their relationship, you're practically ready to officiate their marriage yourself and the next it's like you pulled up the brakes. What's going on?"

I closed my eyes and tried to figure it out so I could give him an honest answer. "I really don't know, but I think part of it is that I see so much of myself in Victor," I said slowly. "I don't regret the decisions we made or the family we have because of those decisions, but I want him to take his time and enjoy this. Hearing that they're already talking about marriage and starting a family reminds me about how much we wanted to jump into those things and how hard it was for us. I just want to know that they're ready before they do something like that because I think we got very, very lucky that we found our way back to each other."

Mando was silent for almost a minute. "We're different," he said softly. "It was a lot of luck that brought us back together, but I don't see Victor and Benji turning out the same way. For one thing, you heard Victor. He wants to be out of school."

"You don't think he'll change his mind?"

"I don't." Mando sounded surprised. "Victor can be impulsive, but he knows what he wants. He doesn't flip flop on his decisions."

"My mom always said that it was a mother's job to worry, and I always told her I wasn't going to be overbearing like that." She let out an exasperated sigh. "I guess you're right. I turned into my mother."

"No," he told me seriously. "Maybe you got bits and pieces of her, but you're different."

I thought back to our conversation from earlier. "Am I?" I wondered. I rubbed my eyes and felt my exhaustion. "I've got to go to bed."

"Isa."

"No. Mando, not tonight." I left him standing there and went to our room. When he came in, I pretended to be asleep.

I couldn't fall asleep. I didn't know what my problem was. Mando was right. One day I was all in and the next, I couldn't wrap my head around it. I wasn't sure why. I loved Benji, and I loved that they were together. It should thrill me that Victor was so certain and so sure of his relationship. Maybe it was because he was only seventeen and conversations like that seemed so adult. I knew I was still working on accepting that Victor wasn't little anymore, but I thought I'd made big strides.

When the answer popped into my head, I felt nauseated. Until just a few months ago, when I pictured him getting married, it was always to a woman. I'd thought about what song we'd dance to and how beautiful his bride would look. I'd thought about how, one day, he'd tell me that they were expecting but that they weren't telling anyone but the grandparents because it was too soon. I'd let go of that image, but I hadn't thought about this new future.

I didn't know what that new wedding would look like. Would they do a mother of the groom dance, or would they opt into a less traditional ceremony and reception? Would they plan it on their own or would they want mine and Margaret's help? Would I be there to merely witness their union, or would I get to be a part of it?

When he was ready to start a family, I wouldn't know how to help him. I didn't know how quickly it would happen. Would they look into adoption or try surrogacy? If they adopted, how quickly would it happen? One of the women that had gone to our church had adopted and it seemed like a lengthy process to find out she'd be getting a child, but things moved very quickly once she'd found a child to adopt. I didn't know if that was the norm or the exception. If they found a surrogate, who would be the father? How would they make that decision? Would they tell us when they were successful? Or would we find out along with everyone else? The idea made me feel insignificant which blended into shame over my selfishness. I couldn't make his future about me.

I shifted and tried to quell my feelings of frustration. Eventually, I gave up and got out of bed. "Finally," Mando mumbled. "Thought you were going to pretend to sleep all night."

"Why are you awake?" I asked. His eyes were still closed, so I wasn't sure if he'd just woken up.

"Because you've been tossing and turning."

I hadn't realized I'd been so restless. "Sorry. Get some sleep."

I ended up sitting on the couch in the living room with Pilar's laptop obsessively looking up as much information as I could about what gay weddings looked like, how adoption worked for gay couples, and details about surrogacy. There were thousands of stories out there. Stories of love, of heartbreak, of discrimination. With every word I read, I tried to picture Benji and Victor. I tried to understand what their story might look like.

I was still hunched over her laptop when Mando stumbled out into our living room. He was going into work early today so that he could take Pilar to her doctor's appointment this afternoon.

"You're still up?" he asked surprised.

"Yeah." I yawned. "I didn't realize what time it was."

He looked torn for a moment. "I'm running late, but I want to talk about this later."

I nodded. "Me too."

He kissed me before he walked out the door. Suddenly, Adrian was shaking me. When I opened my eyes, he was really close and staring at me with wide eyes. Sleep clung to me and made me feel like my head was buzzing. After a moment, the feeling faded, and I sat up. "What time is it?" I asked.

"I don't know, but your alarm has been going off," he told me. It was only when he pointed it out that I heard the faint beeping from my bedroom.

I went into panic mode when I realized that I'd badly overslept. I felt like time moved faster while I rushed to get ready for work.

Armando must've texted Benji about watching Adrian because he was at our apartment a few minutes after I woke up while I was frantically getting ready. Benji gave me a weird look, and I realized I'd been staring as I tried to picture that future I'd researched last night.

I tried to play it off and kissed the top of Adrian's head. "Be good for Benji, okay?"

"We're gonna have a good time," Benji said. "Is it cool if we go out for breakfast?"

"Oh. Yeah, yeah of course. Um, let me just get you some money."

"Don't worry about it," Benji said casually. "I think I owe him breakfast anyway." I was 100% sure this had to do with what we'd talked about last night, and it made me uncomfortable to think of Benji paying for us. "We made a bet in June that he couldn't get Victor to play Monopoly, and he won so fair's fair."

"You got Victor to play Monopoly?" I asked incredulously as I turned to Adrian.

"Yep," Adrian said victoriously.

"How? When? How?" I asked.

"I still think it was cheating," Benji told me. "When you were in Texas, he told Victor that the only thing that would make him feel better was Monopoly."

I bit my lip to hide my laugh. "Alright then. I have to get going. Have fun." I gave Adrian a quick hug before I called, "have a good day, mija. Don't forget that you have an appointment this afternoon. Your dad should be home at 2 to take you."

An indistinct grumble came from Pilar's bedroom.

When I got home from work, the apartment was quiet. "Adrian?" I called. I checked his bedroom and found it empty. Benji must've taken him out. I wished he'd told us. I reminded myself that he probably didn't think of it.

Mando got home an hour later. "Where's Pilar?"

"She wanted to see Felix, so I helped her up there."

"I'm guessing she didn't get the news she wanted."

Mando shook his head. "He thinks two more weeks. I hope he's right."

"Has Benji texted you? I got back and he and Adrian weren't here."

Mando's eyebrow scrunched up. "You didn't check your phone?"

"What do you mean?"

"He's been texting us updates and pictures all day."

I pulled out my phone and was shocked when I opened the group text between Victor, Benji, Mando and me. "I didn't see any of these." I swore, I didn't get any notifications. I wouldn't have ignored one from Benji.

Armando was right. He'd been sending us updates all day. From pictures of them at breakfast to Adrian befriending a duck to… it looked like they were at the zoo. He'd certainly kept Adrian busy and entertained all day. "Oh. They look like they're having fun."

Mando let me scroll through the messages I missed for a couple of minutes before he said, "about this morning."

I jumped to my feet. "I think I need to get started on dinner." I wasn't surprised when Mando followed me in.

"Don't avoid this. You were up all night. What's going on?" For a minute, I busied myself with getting out different ingredients and pots. He put his hand on my shoulder. "Talk to me."

I let my hand cover his and closed my eyes. I didn't know how long we stood like that until I finally said, "I spent all night looking up how a gay couple could have a baby."

"Why?"

"Because I think that's what freaked me out so much yesterday. Victor has this whole future with Benji planned, a future I'm so excited for him to have, but I don't know where I fit into it."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean… are they going to have a mother of the groom dance at a wedding where there are two grooms? Am I going to get to be part of them starting a family? Mando, I spent my whole life thinking about what that would look like. I thought about how he might ask you for advice before he proposed and how he might tell us we were going to be grandparents, and I knew exactly what I was supposed to do with that future." I brought my other hand up to his. "I know that future is never going to happen; it's not like I'm holding onto it, but I miss knowing what it would look like. Last night helped, but I… I feel like I'm already being left out of his life."

"You're not being left out," Armando reassured me. "Neither of us are. I don't know what it will look like either, but I'm sure we'll be involved."

"How can you know that?" I demanded.

He was quiet for nearly a minute. "Maybe I don't know it, but I hope we will be." He turned me so I was facing him and dropped my hand. "You need to trust Victor. We're important to him."

"Not more important than Benji."

"We're not more important, but we are just as important." I wasn't sure I believed that. "You really thought about all that stuff? Victor proposing and a mother of the groom dance?"

"Yeah. You've never thought about that with Pilar? About a young man asking you for your blessing?"

"No. I was too busy worrying about her having a boyfriend to think about what comes next." Armando frowned. "When she brought home Erick, I never saw them together forever, you know. Even Felix, I'm not sure. They're so young."

"Felix is only a little younger than Victor," I pointed out.

"I know, but Victor's different. I know Felix has been through some stuff, but it still feels like he's so young. With Victor, I've always been able to see it."

"And what has that looked like?"

"It doesn't matter what it looked like before. Now, it just looks like him and Benji."

"So, you think they're in this?" I asked. "You think Benji's the one for him?"

"I know they're going to give it a fighting chance," Armando confirmed. "They're in high school. Who really knows what's going to happen next year or while they're in college or after they graduate? There are a million things that could come between them, but I believe that they're going to fight their hardest to make it work."

"Do you think they can?" I hated to ask the question, but I wasn't sure if they'd really thought this through. "Do you think they can take four years of long-distance if they go to school in different states? Can they handle everything that could happen between now and when they're ready to get married?"

"Look at what's already happened," Armando pointed out. "It's not like everything has been perfect for them."

"They were together," I argued. "They got through those things together. I know they're in love right now, but things change. What if their jobs force them to be apart?"

"I think they can do it. It's rare, but it happens. Why not them?"

"I hope you're right," I said softly. I truly did. If Victor and Benji didn't work out… I didn't want to think about how hard that would be for Victor. It would be hard for all of us.

Mando looked thoughtful. "At PFLAG a few weeks ago, Casey told us that Jordan got engaged."

"Good for her," I said. I meant it. I'd only met Casey once, but she was one of the sweetest people and spoke the world of her daughter. "Casey must be over the moon."

"She's pretty excited," Armando said. "But we got started on this whole conversation about how there's a whole world of life that happens after someone comes out. I found myself thinking 'when Victor and Benji get married'. When not if. Maybe that will help you too. Thinking about it as a when."

"When they –"

A door slammed, and I abruptly cut myself off. I left the kitchen to see who'd gotten home. "What's going on?" Pilar asked. "Why are you just standing in the doorway?"

Benji was standing a few feet away from her with an indecipherable expression on his face. "I, uh, just got back with Adrian."

"Then where is he?" she asked.

"He ran to his room." He didn't meet our eyes as he said, "he was great today. I'll see you Thursday."

Just like that, he left. I had no idea how much he overheard.

I began to think he'd actually just gotten back because he didn't bring it up when he watched Adrian on Thursday and, by the time Saturday rolled around, a new distraction pulled my focus from it.

I'd been staring at my phone for nearly an hour, trying to convince myself that I didn't need to call my mother. "She might not even answer," I repeated for what must've been the twentieth time. Adrian was sleeping over Jeffrey's house, and Pilar was upstairs with Felix, so we had the perfect opportunity to get this done without distraction.

"You'll never know if you don't try." He didn't even look over anymore. He had his glasses on and was consumed by some spreadsheet that he'd noticed a discrepancy on at work and was trying to figure out where it came from in the hopes that he wouldn't have to go in tomorrow to fix it.

I sighed. "What can I even say to convince her to come?" It was a rhetorical question, so he didn't try to answer me. There may be nothing. I was almost positive this was an exercise in futility, but I needed to try.

I closed my eyes and pressed the little phone icon near my mom's name. I put my phone on speaker because I knew, in the unlikely event she answered, he might need to prevent cyber bloodshed.

My mom's phone rang and rang and rang. "Told you so," I muttered.

I was about to hang up when my mom answered with a curt, "Isabel."

"Hey, mami," I said. I wondered if I sounded as wary as I felt. There was a long silence while I waited for her to say something, but I guess she didn't feel a need to exchange any kind of pleasantries or small talk. "I know you said you couldn't come to our vow renewal, but Mando and I were really hoping to celebrate this special day with you."

She scoffed. "I was there for your first special day. I don't see how me flying out to Georgia just to be belittled for my values-"

"Your values?" I interrupted. "If you are referring to the ones that specifically target my son."

"Yes. And his vulgar lifestyle you are willing to turn a blind eye to."

I looked up at Mando and shook my head. "I can't do this," I told him. "I really want you there, mami, but not if you're going to be like this. One day, you're going to look back and regret that you let yourself get in the way of being there. Victor is amazing. He's kind and sweet and responsible and, yes, he's gay. And you know what? His boyfriend is amazing. They love each other, and I think that is the most important thing. So, fine. Don't come. It's not our loss. It's yours."

I hung up without waiting for an answer. I was still breathing heavily when she called me back. Armando reached for my phone and answered her. "Kata," he said evenly.

"Where's Isabel?" she demanded.

"She's right here," Mando answered.

"How dare you hang up on me?" she asked. "I did not raise you to show that level of disre-"

Mando ended the call. I raised my eyebrows at him. "I hoped that maybe you got through to her, and she was calling to apologize." He sighed. "I'm sorry. I really thought if we plead our case that she'd come around."

"I told you. You don't know my mother."

"You're right," he conceded. "I'm sorry she won't be there."

I shrugged. I thought I'd be more upset about it, but maybe I'd made my peace with it after our blowout in May, or maybe it just hadn't hit me yet.

"I think that means we are officially set. We can call the caterer on Monday to give them the final number," he told me. "Wanna go out?"

"Really?" I asked.

"Yeah. Why not? We haven't gone out in a while." He wasn't wrong. We hadn't been out since before the kids got out of school. There hadn't been time with everything going on.

It was really nice. When we'd been in therapy, we'd regularly made time for ourselves because it had been homework to do that. I hadn't realized how much I missed this. I mentally vowed that we needed to keep doing this. It didn't need to be every other week like it had been before, but we couldn't go this long. Having this time was important; it allowed us to reconnect.

When we got back, Pilar was still with Felix. She was past curfew, so I sat at our kitchen table and waited. When the door opened, Pilar attempted to sneak towards her room, but it was difficult to be subtle on a squeaky wheel scooter.

"You're late," I said. When she turned to look at me, she looked furious.

"I'm like thirty minutes past curfew because it takes me forever to get down the stairs," she grumbled.

I knew there was no point in talking to her tonight. I didn't know if she was late because she was fighting with Felix or what, but when she was this angry, she needed her space. "We'll talk in the morning. Get some sleep."

When I knocked on Pilar's door to remind her that we needed to leave for church early because we needed to pick up Adrian, she claimed that she wasn't feeling well. I pushed open her door and found her cocooned in her blankets. "You can't skip just because you're fighting with Felix."

She sat up. "I'm not fighting with Felix."

"Then why are you acting like this?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Like what?"

"Don't look at me like you don't know," I warned her. "We're leaving in ten minutes. Get dressed."

She was surly when she emerged from her bedroom, and it didn't go away. I honestly wasn't sure what was going on with her. It wasn't Felix because he was over on Monday, and they seemed normal. I would've asked her then, but there was a whole group of people with her.

I didn't get my answers until Tuesday when I got home from work, and Pilar and Felix were in the kitchen.

"Are you baking?" I asked surprised.

Pilar glared at me. "Why?"

"You just haven't done it in a while." Probably not since we moved.

Pilar shrugged. "Dawn's not super happy with me right now, so I'm trying to get back on her good side. She apparently loves banana bread." I wondered if that had to do with her sour mood.

"It's her favorite," Felix confirmed. He was wearing an apron and looked like he was mashing up banana in a bowl.

"Why isn't she happy with you?"

Pilar rolled her eyes. "Because I'm corrupting her son."

"That is not what she said," Felix protested.

Pilar turned her stony expression to him. "Really? Because she said that you were a good kid until you started dating me and that she thought you could do better."

I felt rage flare up in me. "She said that?"

Part of me waited for Felix to say Pilar was exaggerating and, when that didn't happen, I realized Dawn had actually said this. "Did she say this on Saturday?" Pilar pointedly looked down at her bowl before she nodded. "Why would she say something like that?"

Pilar and Felix exchanged a look. "Okay, don't get mad," Pilar started.

"That's not going to make me any less mad, amore." I closed my eyes and braced myself. My mind span with possibilities. Pilar and Felix had snuck out one night, Dawn had caught them together, Pilar was pregnant. I tried to force aside my racing thoughts. Speculation wouldn't help. "What's going on?"

Pilar looked down at the counter. "I'm grounded," Felix admitted.

"Okay," I said slowly. "Why are you grounded? Did the two of you…"

"No!" Pilar said, cutting me off.

"Because it's okay if you did," I said stiffly. In retrospect, I probably should have been prepared for this. At least with Pilar, I was in familiar territory. I knew what she needed to do to keep herself safe. "We should just probably talk about getting you on the pill and you n-"

"Please stop talking," Pilar hissed. "We are not sleeping together." She looked mortified enough that I believed her. It took actual effort to keep my sigh of relief in. I had more time before I needed to confront the reality that I had two sexually active teenagers.

I crossed my arms. "Then talk."

Felix's face crumpled and, for a second, he looked exactly like he had when he knocked on my door in November. I did the same thing I had then. I welcomed him into my arms as he started to sob. I held him tightly. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Pilar gripping the counter as a single tear slipped down her cheek.

The story came out slowly and reluctantly. Felix's suspension, his subsequent grounding that hadn't ended yet because he kept leaving to see Pilar. I wanted to tell him that he should just spend a few days without her, but I could see the desperation behind his eyes and the fear in Pilar's and the suggestion died on my lips. There was something else. Something they weren't telling me.

"I don't understand," I said slowly. "If you've been grounded since May, why did she say this now?"

"Because we asked her about Felix joining us on Friday."

"She said no," I guessed.

"Are you going to make me stay here if I say yes?" Felix asked. It took a second for his words to sink in.

"You were going to come anyway?" I asked incredulously.

"I can't miss this," he told me. "This is a super big deal for Victor."

"Maybe I could talk to your mom," I suggested. It was probably about time that we formally met. I'd only seen her from a distance a handful of times.

"No offense, Mrs. Salazar, but you're not my mom's favorite person. I doubt even you can convince her to let me go," Felix told me. I debated asking but decided otherwise. I doubted Felix would tell me.

"So, the banana bread?"

"Is my last attempt to get her to say yes," Pilar confirmed.

I nodded. My heart was breaking all over again for Felix. Before we could continue, the door to our apartment opened, and I could hear Benji and Adrian talking excitedly. I knew Benji had taken Adrian to the park today.

I was almost grateful our conversation ended because neither of them had expressly asked me not to talk to Dawn, and I knew I needed to. This was bigger than Felix being grounded. Mother to mother, we needed to talk.

I got my chance earlier than I expected. Felix was working the next night to cover a coworker and it was the first time he'd worked nights pretty much all summer. I grabbed Pilar's banana bread on my way out the door.

I knocked on the looming, wooden door, my heart inexplicably racing. "You must be Dawn," I said when she opened it. Pilar had described her to me, but in the year-and-a-half since we'd moved, we'd only seen each other in passing. "I'm Isabel… Salazar."

Her eyes narrowed. "What do you want?"

What did I want? All I could hear were Felix's words: No offense, Mrs. Salazar, but you're not my mom's favorite person. I doubt even you can convince her to let me go. "My son, Victor, he's been away at a basketball program for six weeks. He has this big tournament on Friday. There are going to be college scouts and he might get a scholarship offer. Since Felix is his best friend, we were really hoping he'd be able to join us."

"Felix is grounded," she told me stiffly.

"Yes, he mentioned that. But this is a once-in-a-lifetime thing. Victor-"

"Is not my son, so he's not my problem. Felix is my son, and I say he's grounded."

"But-"

"He is not your son."

Just like that, it clicked. I understood. Heaven knew I'd been there before. I'd felt it when Benji had become such a big part of Victor's life. It wasn't like I'd been replaced, but I knew I wasn't the most important person in his life. I couldn't imagine how much harder it was when someone else's mother became important to your son. Yet, I couldn't make myself feel too bad for her. I understood that what happened had been out of her control, but she was punishing Felix for it. Regardless of whose son he biologically was, I regarded him as one of my own and that was the direct result of everything she'd been through. She didn't help anyone by denying that.

"I know that," I said sharply. "But with all due respect, Felix is a member of our family. He has been for a long time. Even before he lived with us while you were getting help. You may want to pretend that he's not because it makes you feel guilty or jealous or whatever you're feeling but that doesn't change that we were there for him. How dare you make him choose? That kid loves you. You are the most important person on the planet to him. He shouldn't have to sacrifice his relationship with you because you're –" I cut myself off. "All I'm trying to say is you need to let him live his life. He grew up last year. More than he should have. You can't change that by treating him like a child." I took a deep breath. "You're right. You're his mother, and I sincerely am not trying to take your place. I couldn't if I wanted to because Felix loves you so much. I hope that, as his mother, you will let him go to a tournament that means so much to my whole family. Including him."

When it became clear she wasn't going to say anything, I took a step closer. She flinched like she thought I was going to punch her. "Whatever you choose, don't you dare tell my daughter that she isn't good for your son. Pilar got Felix through the hardest time of his life. She has been by his side through all of this. Do you know how special that is? Most sixteen-year-olds wouldn't have been able to handle that, but she has and continues to help him. She is a good girl, and I don't care what you are going through, you do not talk to her like that." I passed her the bag. "Pilar made this for you. Banana bread. She thought you might like it."

I turned around without waiting for her acknowledgment. I didn't know if it was enough, but I felt weirdly relieved. As if I finally got out something I needed to say. I supposed I just destroyed any chance of Dawn ever liking me but that didn't feel as important as making sure that Felix and Pilar were supported.

When Friday came, Felix was at our door bright and early. I didn't ask if he had permission to go. It was better not to know. I still felt guilty. I would've been furious if someone hadn't told me what my kid was up to. I'd been there before.

My worries completely disappeared when Dawn knocked on our door. "You forgot this," she said to Felix gently. I didn't know what she passed him, but she rested her hand on his shoulder for a moment. "Have fun."

"I will. Thanks," he said.

"Isabel," she greeted.

"Dawn," I said casually. "We'll have him back after dinner."

She nodded toward me. "Thank you." She stood there for a moment before she coughed awkwardly. "I need to get to work."

"It's her anxiety," Felix quickly said. "She gets like that when she meets new people. It's really not about you."

Dawn must not have told him. "Your mother seems wonderful. I'm so thrilled you convinced her to let you come."

"She actually decided it herself. I think she's starting to forgive me." I really should've told him the truth, but he looked so pleased, I couldn't do it.

"Right. Mando, are you ready?" I called.

"Is Benji here?" he called back.

"Not yet." No sooner had I spoken the words, then there was another knock on the door. "That'll be him."

Armando came out. He looked good. He wasn't dressed up exactly, but he was a little more polished than he usually got for work and that made a big difference. I let Benji in. "His roommate texted me that they just woke up. Victor's getting impatient with him because he's getting ready really slowly. They're gonna get some breakfast. He's going to stall until I text him that we're there. Apparently, Victor wants to get there early." Benji rolled his eyes. "Who am I driving?"

"Why are you driving?" Pilar asked confused.

"Because we're bringing Victor home afterward," I told her.

"I thought he wasn't coming home until tomorrow. That's what he told me at least." Pilar looked confused. "Like, he told me that this morning."

Benji chuckled. "Yeah, but parents can take their kids after the tournament today. He just said that because he doesn't know you'll be there."

"Are you sure he's going to be ready to go?" I asked.

Benji flushed a little. "Positive." He glanced at Adrian. "He's just going to have to pack the clothes he left out for tonight and tomorrow."

I didn't ask how he knew.

"Felix and I can ride with you," Pilar offered.

Benji's phone buzzed. A smile crept across his face as he read it and quickly sent something back. "Kay. Ready?"

We didn't hit any traffic until we got to Athens and then we seemed to slow to a crawl. I tried not to let my excitement show. It had been a long six weeks, and this felt like it was just prolonging the torture.

Adrian cheered when we got to the campus. As much as I'd missed Victor, I knew he missed him even more.

Benji, Pilar, and Felix were waiting outside the gym for us, and we went in together. There were only a handful of other people here, so our group really stood out. "They're leaving the cafeteria now," Benji said. He was actually beaming. "He's going to be so surprised."

"I'm impressed you kept this from him," Armando commented. "I wasn't sure you'd be able to do it."

Benji shrugged. "It wasn't easy, but he's been distracted." His eyes were on the door across the gym, and I knew the exact moment that Victor walked in purely by the smile that spread across Benji's face.

I followed Benji's gaze to see Victor stopped dead. His face contorted into a little 'o' and for a moment, he just stared. Then he ran. I wasn't going to lie and say that it didn't please me that Victor ran right past Benji to give me the first hug. It wasn't a competition, but he did choose me, so… yeah. When he pulled back from our hug, he immediately moved on to Armando and then Pilar and then got to Adrian. They whispered back and forth for a minute before Victor embraced Felix.

"I can't believe you're all here. Don't you have work?"

"We figured we could use the break," I told him. "And when Benji told us you might be getting the big offer today, we wanted to be here."

Benji snaked his arm around Victor's back and kissed his cheek. "Mia's coming later," he told Victor. That was news to me. "She said she loves you, but she loves sleep more."

Victor chuckled. "Seems fair. Oh. This is Jared, my roommate. Jared, this is… my mom and dad. My sister, Pilar. My little brother, Adrian. And my best friend, Felix."

I'd heard Victor talk about Jared several times throughout the summer. He really seemed to care about Jared. "It's so nice to meet you," he said as he shuffled on his feet. "Victor's told me so much about all of you."

"It's all lies," Pilar assured him.

"Yo, Salazar! Nichols!" A tiny boy ran over to the group. He was dressed similarly to Victor and Jared which was the only indication that he was older than he looked. I would've said high school was an ambitious guess, but he must've been a rising senior. "Chris wants to run through some of our plays and Luke says and I quote –"

"Please remember that my little brother is here," Victor interrupted quickly.

The boy seemed to notice us for the first time. "You must be the infamous Salazars."

"Infamous," I repeated.

"Victor's told us so much about you; I feel like I know you all,"

"He's exaggerating. This is Ian. He thinks he's a comedian." Victor couldn't hide his smile.

"I don't think I'm a comedian. I know I'm one," Ian retorted. "I was serious about practice. I think it's hitting Chris."

"Okay. You two go ahead. I'll be there in a minute." Victor grabbed Benji's hand and pulled him around the corner of the bleachers.

Benji came back by himself a few moments later, and we found our seats. There was a lot of downtime in between Victor's games and a break for lunch. The only time we saw Victor was at lunch. I wasn't sure exactly what he was doing, but he was almost always huddled with the group of boys he played with as they watched the games.

Victor's team came in second. It wasn't necessarily surprising. They were playing against an entire team of kids that made Victor look short. Victor started to walk toward us but was intercepted by a tall man in a crisp suit. I recognized him immediately. We'd talked with him once Victor's freshman year when he called Victor's coach and told us Victor should seriously consider playing basketball in college, and then Pilar had helped me look him up online. Victor had seemed interested, and it wasn't like that was the first time he'd talked about UCLA. After that phone call, he'd seemed to dive into the process, but it had fizzled out when we moved.

I didn't know if this was the moment, but I rushed toward Victor and took my place at his side. The coach turned to look at me. "You must be Victor's mother." He held out his hand to me.

"Mom, this is Coach Trevor. He's one of the Assistant Coaches at UCLA."

"It is so nice to meet you. I'm Isabel Salazar."

"You should be very proud of your son."

"We are so proud of him," I confirmed. "He's a remarkable young man. If you think his talent is impressive, you should see his grades."

He laughed. "You don't need to pitch him to us. We are well aware of his accomplishments." He pulled an envelope out of the inside of his suit jacket. "I know I spoke with you earlier in the summer. We discussed some areas that I wanted you to work on." Victor nodded. "You're not perfect. Far from it, but you took my advice seriously and that was obvious in the games you played. More than raw talent, we look for someone that can handle receiving critical feedback and adjust their training accordingly. It's one of the most valuable skills in collegiate sports, and you clearly have that skill. I've been authorized to reward one scholarship while I'm here, and I am so pleased to offer it to you."

I'd never seen Victor smile as brightly as he did in that moment.

"What kind of scholarship?" I asked. I didn't want to burst Victor's bubble, but UCLA was expensive.

Coach Trevor scrunched up his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, how much of his education will it cover?"

"UCLA is division 1," Victor said quickly. "All basketball scholarships at that level are full scholarships."

I didn't know that. "You're offering him a full scholarship?" I confirmed.

"Yes, ma'am. It will cover the cost of his tuition. Any additional scholarships he procures can go towards room and board, and we can work with him to get him set up with work study as well. The offer is contingent on you being accepted into UCLA. Make sure your essays are solid, and it shouldn't be a problem," Coach Trevor explained. "If you apply ED, you should hear back by the beginning of November."

"I thought the application said December 15th." I glanced at Victor. I hadn't realized he'd looked into the application process,

"That's the latest they'll release decisions, but Admissions tries to work with us. November 10th is our signing day, and once you are admitted, you will receive a Letter of Intent to sign which says that you are committing to playing for us for at least one year. If you don't hear from admissions before there, you'll sign with us in April. This –" he held up the envelope "will give you a breakdown of your scholarship terms and will guarantee it so long as you continue to meet the standards and expectations of UCLA and the Men's Basketball Program. There is also a waiver, so you won't have to pay your application fee." He paused for a moment and took in our expressions. I was pretty sure I must've looked dumbstruck. "I know this is a lot to take in. What are your thoughts?"

"I think," Victor started. "That I can't believe this is actually happening. I've wanted to go to UCLA since I started thinking about college." He hesitantly reached toward the envelope and looked at it as if he'd just been handed the holy grail. Perhaps, that's what it felt like to him. When Coach Trevor offered him his hand, Victor shook it. "Thank you so much. I can't begin to explain what this means to me."

"This may surprise you, but I have an idea," he said softly. "Reach out if you have any questions."

"I need a minute," Victor muttered to me before he ran out the door closest to us.

I didn't know where he was going, so I couldn't try to follow him. "Where'd he go?" Armando asked when I rejoined them.

"I don't know."

"I think I do," Mia said softly. She wandered out the door, and I stared after her surprised.

"How could she know?"

Nobody had an answer for me. It was several minutes before Victor rejoined us. "Mia had to leave." Victor's eyes were bloodshot as if he'd been crying. "Did you tell them?" he asked. I shook my head. The envelope in his hand was open now, so I knew he must've read it. "Right, so, uh, yeah. That –" his voice cracked. "That…" he trailed off again before he shook his head. "I got the scholarship."

It was hard to make sense of anything as it seemed everyone tried to speak at the same time. Except for Benji. He looked uncertain; proud but uncertain. He stayed quiet through all of the congratulations and demands for more information and hugs.

When everyone had exhausted their questions, Victor sought out Benji. Victor suggested that he and Benji head over to his dorm to finish packing and asked us to meet him there. He used Pilar as an excuse, but it was obvious he wanted to talk to Benji. I didn't know if they took the scenic route, if they stopped to talk, or if they walked exceptionally slow, but we arrived at Victor's dorm nearly fifteen minutes before Victor and Benji got there. Benji was right. Victor was almost entirely packed, and before we knew it, we were saying goodbye to Athens.

Having Victor home was different now. Maybe it was because he was back at work and was trying to make time for all the people he hadn't seen in weeks, but it almost felt like he was gone just as much as when he'd been at UGA. I thought he also tried to be gone as often as possible because he'd gotten used to the freedom he'd experienced while he'd been away. Whatever his reasons, I missed him even now that he was back.

Which was why I jumped on the chance when he asked me and Armando if we'd get dinner with him and Benji.

I had no idea what to expect. They waited until we were nearly done eating to tell us why they'd asked us out.

"We're only going to do this once," Victor started.

"Technically twice," Benji pointed out.

"But only once with them," Victor tossed back.

I glanced at Armando, but he looked as confused as I felt.

"What's going on?"

Victor clasped one of Benji's hand in both of his. "We wanted to talk to you about something." I held my breath. He and Benji exchanged a long look. "We talked a little about uh, you know, us and we realized… well, Benji realized that you have to live our future with us even if it's in an indirect way. We don't want you to feel like you're being left out of our future."

I looked at Benji. "You did hear us."

He nodded. "Yeah. I filled him in on everything, and we both agreed that you deserved to know a little bit."

"Not everything," Victor interjected. "And we need you to be okay with that. Some things we have to keep for ourselves, but Benji's right. I've, uh, been putting off talking to you about this. I even put off talking to Benji about it."

"Why?" I didn't plan to ask the question, but it came out.

"I guess because I wasn't sure how to talk about it. Straight couples have about a million playbooks they can follow for their future, but there's no rule book for us. And part of me wasn't ready for it to be real because I wasn't sure if you could handle it being real. Maybe I was just projecting. I dunno."

I didn't know what to say to that because I knew he was right. I definitely hadn't been ready for it to be real. I hoped I was ready now.

"What changed?" Armando asked curiously.

"He got in his accident. I know it doesn't make sense, but it just made me feel like I didn't want to wait to talk to him. Almost like planning for the future would guarantee we'd have a future. I mean, I know that anything could happen, but still. I didn't want to put it off any longer. So, I stopped making excuses, and we had a long talk."

"We don't have all of the answers you want because some things, we're going to need to figure out as we go along," Benji added.

"And for the stuff that we have figured out, some of it has to be ours. It's not because we don't want you to be involved. We do. You're an important part of our lives and when we're ready to take those next steps, we want you to be a part of it," Victor told us.

"What can you tell us?" I asked.

I hadn't expected there to be so much. They'd talked about who was going to be in charge of the proposal and had actually fought over who would be in charge – Benji had relinquished asking Victor to prom if he could be the one to propose. He couldn't propose until they'd both graduated, and Victor found a job. Victor would prefer for them to both be happily employed but I got the idea that he was flexible with whether Benji was working. They did say that Victor's job would come first and then Benji would find something close by, so there went my fears about them doing long-distance after college. They'd talked about the actual wedding and had tentatively talked about where they would have it geographically. They said it would depend on if we were still living in Georgia and, even then, they might choose to have it near wherever they were living. That was the most they could tell us about that chapter of their life.

After their wedding, they were going to go into money saving mode and were going to start the process for adoption. They didn't dismiss the possibility that they might have a baby who would biologically be Benji's one day (because Benji was the Campbell's only child), but they wanted to start with adoption. They'd been pretty vague when we'd asked how many kids they wanted. Benji's exact words had been, "we'll figure that out as we go along. We don't want to think of a number that we have to reach; we want to be able to think about when our family is ready to grow. Maybe we'll find that two kids complete our family or maybe we'll find that one of our kids will take after their dad and will ask their parents for a baby brother every year until they find out they're getting their wish."

He nudged Victor who smiled. "Whoever that is, they sound adorable."

It was adorable. He'd cried when we told him we were pregnant with Adrian and then he went around telling everyone he knew that he was going to get a little brother.

When Armando and I got home, Armando squeezed my hand. "You okay with all of that?"

"Yes. When all of this life starts happening for them, I know they want us to be a part of it." I froze for a moment because my words hit me.

He'd already noticed. "You said when."

"I said when," I confirmed.

A/N: I am sure the process of Victor being awarded a scholarship isn't accurate, but I honestly couldn't find any information about how athletes are awarded scholarships. I tried to incorporate the few facts I could find, but almost everything I read was about how students qualify to get scholarships and not the actual process of gifting them. #ITried