Meant to Be Together:
The Story of Paloma and Jacob
[AN: Just to let you all know, this story was written in the summer of 2000, so it's a bit old. The Charity in this story is the REAL Charity, not some stupid fake Zombie or whatever. Jake, Poe, and Jessica are all sophomores as the story starts… but then it progresses and that's what you get to read. =) And remember I did not write the Poe chapters, my friend Kara did, and I believe she's on FFN somewhere… and the chapters are very short in nature, so don't throw your shoes at me! I'll try to get them up as soon as I can, figuring they're so short… okay now read, review, and enjoy!]
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Chapter 1: Paloma
(All Poe chapters written by Kara)
I step off the plane, overwhelmed with the smell of coffee and cigarettes, plastic and perfume. As I look around for my family, I see throngs of teenagers in gothic clothing, skinny blonde models, men with receding hairlines and beer bellies, but no one I know. I'd forgotten how much I missed them all: Mamma, Luis, Theresa, Miguel, Jessica. The dance had taken over my mind those few months in Mexico.
"Prima!"
I spin around, knowing exactly who it is. I turn to see my second-to-oldest brother Luis and I run to him. He cathes me in his arms and whirls me around like he did when I was little. "Weesie!" I cry, hugging him while throwing my other arm around Mamma. "I missed you so much!"
"PALOMA!" My older sister Theresa throws herself at me and we hug. I'm caught up in a bevy of my family members, hugging and kissing. "Mija, you're so thin!" Mamma says. "Mamma, it's because of the dance. In one corps de ballet I lose four pounds. But I'm ready for some good old Mexican food!" I hug my mother again and study her face. She looks so happy, but the little lines that etched her beautiful face when Pappa and Tony went away are more prominent. Soon I'm in Miguel's arms, but I notice a girl standing beside my best friend of all my life, Jessica Bennett. She has blonde hair and hazel eyes. "Paloma, this is Charity. Charity, this is my baby sister Paloma Maria Lopez-Fitzgerald."
"Or Poe. Or Ketchup, Poe-Doll, or Prima." Jessica adds. I throw myself into her arms and hug her hard. "Did you miss me?" I ask her. "Oh my God, did I ever!" I smile at Charity and she flashes me a bright smile. "Wow, Ellie, your girlfriend is really pretty." I say. "Ellie?" Charity asks, looking at Miguel and smiling. "That's what Poe calls me," Miguel tells her. "I remember someone calling me Angel. I wish I could remember who it was. Someone very close to me, but not my mother."
"She lost her memory," Jessica tells me. "In the big fire that killed her mother."
"Theresa wrote about it to me." I say. "Aunt Maria sends her love to all of you, especially to you, Mamma. She loves the dress you sent her, Theresa, and wears it to all of my performances. Luis, she congratulates you on being a great bodyguard to the most eligible heiress in the world, and she hopes Miguel will keep on working at his building stuff."
Luis stands wiever," he groans. I laugh at him and he smiles at me. "C'mon, let's go." I say, and head off with my family back to Harmony.
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Later that day, back in my attic studio/room with the posters of famous ballerinas on the walls, the homemade canopy, and my old toys in the closet, I sit with Jessica and she tells me everything going on in Harmony. "Kay's still trying to get Miguel, he still has NO clue, and Paloma, I still like Reese," she confides. "But he doesn't notice me. Only Kay."
"Do you think you're going to tell him?"
"Not yet. I need your help." "Jessica, let's get out of here. Let's go to the beach." I say. I change into a white dress with light fabric that flutters when I move, like a butterfly's wings, and clings to my curves. My black hair with the slight curl hangs down and my dark blue eyes like my father's sparkle. "Let's go."
The beach is sparkling with moonlight over the dark blue waves, and the tide rushes in softly to lap over our feet. We're talking and looking out into the ocean when I bump into something and fly straight into strong male arms. I look up to see the bluest eyes I've ever seen and smile softly. "Sorry," I say.