Pepa spent the next several days lying face down in bed with a cloud slowly drizzling rain over her. She barely moved or spoke. What a waste of space.
"Pepa! I made your favorite food!" said Julieta, who had made Pepa's favorite food for some reason.
"But it's not meal time…" Pepa said feebly.
It was the first thing she had to her sister in a while.
"I know, but you're sick," said Julieta. "You need to eat more."
"What makes you say that?" Pepa asked. "Do I look sick?"
"Well, you know how twins can always tell how the other twin is feeling…" Julieta said.
"We're not twins," Pepa said slowly.
"Oh, yeah. That's right," Julieta said.
She laughed nervously.
"Well, you've been like this for a few days now. I hope you snap out of it soon."
She placed the food on the bedside table next to other plates of uneaten food and left the room.
Dolores was standing at the end of the hallway for some reason.
Julieta made eye contact, and Dolores produced a high-pitched squeaking sound.
"OW! THAT HURT MY EARS!" Julieta said.
Dolores did it again.
"Stop doing that!" Julieta said.
Dolores ran away without saying a word.
Julieta sighed. "What is wrong with that woman?"
When she returned to the kitchen, Bruno was waiting for her.
"Hi," he said. "Can I have some food please?"
"No eating outside of meal time!" Julieta said. "You know the rules!"
"But I'm hungry!" Bruno whined. "Besides, it's not like I'm getting fat."
Alma appeared out of nowhere.
"How do we know you're telling the truth?" she said. "You could be hiding a massive gut under that poncho of yours."
"No, I'm not!" Bruno said.
"Let's see, then!" Alma said.
"Uh… nope!" Bruno said, running away.
The next day, it was very hot in Casita for some reason.
"Julieta, where's breakfast?" Alma whined. "We're starving!"
"I don't feel like cooking today," Julieta said with a smile.
"What? Why not?" Alma asked.
"It's too hot to cook." Julieta said, continuing to smile.
"I don't care! You have one job, and that's to cook for everyone! So, do it NOW!"
"I'm very sweaty," Bruno said, entering the room.
"Take off your poncho," said Alma.
"No," said Bruno.
"Yes," said Alma.
"I'M NOT GETTING FAT! YOU ARE!" Bruno screamed.
They began arguing, and Julieta snuck away.
I won't cook anything today, and she can't make me!
As she walked down the hallway, she began feeling colder and colder.
Ah… that feels nice…
She got down onto the floor and enjoyed the cool breeze as she laid there.
Mirabel was searching for her mother at that very moment.
"Mami! Where are you?" she called. "I'm scared. I think that Luisa has gotten even bigger…"
A few minutes later, Mirabel ran into the kitchen.
"ABUELA! MAMI IS DYING!"
"No!" Alma said. "What makes you say that, Mirabel?"
"I saw her lying down on the ground, in the hallway!" Mirabel said. "People don't just do that for fun!"
"Show me," said Alma.
"Okay," Mirabel said, leading her to the exact spot where Julieta was.
But Julieta was gone. In her place, there was a dying rat.
"I don't see anything," said Alma.
"B-b-but she was right here…" Mirabel said.
"Are you saying that your mother is a rat?" Alma asked.
"N-n-no! I'm not!" Mirabel said. "I really did see her…"
"Mirabel! Why have you been saying so many mean things lately?" Alma scolded. "Just yesterday, you told Luisa that her head was too small!"
"I never said that!" said Mirabel. "Why would I? I love Luisa…"
"And now you're lying about!" Alma said. "I've had enough. Go to your room; you're grounded."
Mirabel ran away crying.
"Now… why is it so cold in this hallway, when it's really hot in the rest of the house?" Alma wandered aloud.
She would never find out.
Mirabel bumped into Luisa.
Luisa was indeed both taller and wider than she had been yesterday- just enough for it to be noticeable.
"What's wrong, sis?" Luisa asked, seeming unaware of her larger size.
Mirabel screamed and ran into a random room to hide.
The room was full of sand and rats.
"W-w-what happened to my room?!" she asked.
"This isn't your room," said Bruno, who was just standing there and doing nothing.
"Whose is it, then?" Mirabel asked.
"Not yours," said Bruno.
The two stared at each other in awkward silence for several seconds.
"So, are you here to get your fortune told?" Bruno asked.
"What," said Mirabel.
Alma stormed into Pepa's room. "JULIETA! ARE YOU IN HERE?!"
What an idiot. Why would Julieta be in Pepa's room?
Antonio was snuggled in the bed next to Pepa.
"I love you, Mami," he said.
"Antonio!" Alma said. "Aren't you a bit too old to be snuggling with Mami?"
"No," Antonio said. "I love my Mami."
He giggled.
"Besides… Camilo does it, too."
Sweat was dripping down his face.
Pepa waved a fan over her son, trying to cool him down.
"Mami, I'm hot…" Antonio moaned.
"I know, sweetie. I wish there was something more I could do," said Pepa, waving the fan harder.
Snap!
The fan broke because it was cheap and poorly made!
"Uh-oh…" Antonio said.
"ARGH! STUPID CHEAP FAN!" Pepa growled.
Meanwhile, Julieta was frolicking outside.
"I'm gonna spend the day outside of the kitchen, and nobody can stop me!" she said.
She removed her apron and let it fly away in the wind.
"What a beautiful day! Not a cloud in the sky!" she said.
The heat was intense, and she soon began sweating profusely.
"Not… a…cloud…in…the…sky…"
The sun got brighter.
"IT'S TOO HOT TO LIVE!" Julieta wailed.
