Narrator's POV:
Gabriela didn't take her time to agree to the wager. She stuck her hand out and shook his cold hand with a firm grasp.
"Deal." She let go as he generated a devilish look.
"Gabriela! Is that such a good idea?" Jaquelina looked at her friend with worried eyes.
"Of course it is, since I have some conditions of my own." Gabriela wore a mischievous expression.
"Oh? Like what?" Fernando looked at Gabriela curiously.
"First of all, NO danger will come to our families, or our little town, or to any particular person for that matter. Second, you have to reveal who you are to our parents when we take you back with us and you will live in our town, I don't care where, but you will be a permanent resident of San Angel, Mexico. And thirdly, we won't tell anyone about our little wager, only that we met you just outside of town and decided to bring you back with us." Gabriela looked at him seriously.
"Fine." Fernando scoffed, knowing that if he didn't agree that the entire deal would be off.
"Good, shall we then?" Gabriela held out her hands as Fernando and Jaqueline nodded their heads and followed Gabriela home.
"Mama, I'm home!" Gabriela shouted as she looked around, smelling homemade beans, rice, and chicken, along with homemade flour tortillas.
"Yes! Your mom makes the best food!" Jaquelina screeched as they ran into the kitchen.
"Welcome home mija, sit down. All of you." Maria pointed towards the seats, being somewhat shocked at seeing a boy with them.
"Gracias mama!" Gabriela sat down closest to the stove as Fernando sat next to her, and Jaquelina next to him. Maria served them their food, as the boy was busy looking around the house. And Maria was busy observing him, wondering how they all met, and who this boy was exactly.
"Oh mama, this is Fernando, he's our new friend. We met him on the outskirts of town, he doesn't have anyone he can stay with, he needs someone to look after him." Gabriela had a sad look on her face as Fernando tried to look as helpless as possible, which wasn't too hard.
"Ah, I see, well you're welcome to stay here Fernando, we have a spare room and you can attend school with the girls." Maria had a warm smile on her face, welcoming the boy.
"G-gracias senora. I'd love to be able to stay here." He replied with great respect as Maria smiled at him in agreement.
"But we'll have to talk to Manolo about all this." Maria began serving them their lunch as they all dug in.
"I'm home!" Manolo opened the door with his trusty guitar in hand.
"How'd it go tonight?" Maria asked after giving him a kiss.
"Wonderfully!" Manolo smiled as he put his guitar down, took Maria in his arms and kissed her passionately.
"Good." She giggled as Manolo put her down and they walked over to the couch. Maria made him some tea whilst Manolo put the TV on.
"So, I have something to talk to you about." Maria looked a bit serious, somewhat frightening Manolo.
"What is it mi amor?" Manolo asked as she handed him a cup of tea.
"Oh, well Gabriela and Jaquelina went out on another adventure today, but they brought something back with them." Maria started, staying calm about the whole ordeal.
"And what did they bring back?" Manolo asked, raising an eyebrow as he began sipping his tea.
"It's not as much of a what as it is a who." Maria said as she drank her tea as well, blowing on it gracefully as to not burn her lips or tongue.
"A who?" An uneasy feeling was forming in the pit of his stomach.
"Yes, a boy." Maria said flatly as she drank more tea, stirring it occasionally.
"And what about his boy? Why did he come here? And what does he have to do with our daughter?" Manolo was sitting on the edge of his seat, confused as to how all this was going to affect their lives.
"He's a nice boy, somewhat quiet, he hasn't said much about himself, Gabriela did most of the talking for him. He seems to want friends and needs a place to stay, so I offered our guest bedroom, he'll be living here from now on." Maria stated matter-of-factly as Manolo seemed rather confused, but he knew once Maria made up her mind, there was no going back.
"Alright, I'd like to have a talk with him tomorrow morning then." Manolo finished his tea and helped Maria do the dishes while she served him dinner as they chatted away until they decided to retire.
I have to be quiet. Gabriela tiptoed to the spare bedroom, knowing if she got caught she wouldn't hear the end of it from her parents. Though some of the wood flooring was rather old and would squeak sporadically. She was finally in front of the large bedroom door, it was a red door, with wrought iron bars across the top and bottom with an old fashioned ring doorknob, it always reminded her of a prison door, she didn't know why, she simply knew that the person behind it should be behind bars due to how mischievous he was. As the door slowly creaked open, she quickly shut it and snuck over to the bed and peeked her head over the edge, seeing a large lump in the bed, she has a devilish look in her eyes as she took the covers off, ready to scare the socks off of Fernando, until she found no body, but two pillows hidden underneath, she was confused, looking around the room but found it empty, as she looked over to the window, she found it open and thus she went out and looked up at the roof, finding Fernando gazing up at the stars. Thus Gabriela got a ladder and climbed up, taking a seat next to him.
"What are you doing all the way up here?" She asked.
"Can't sleep, I haven't since the day I was born." He shrugged.
"Oh, must be a god thing." Gabriela looked up at the sky as she smiled brightly, trying to count all the stars she saw, suddenly seeing a shooting star.
"Wow, I'm going to make a wish!" Gabriela shut her eyes as she thought long and hard about her wish.
"I guess I can make one too." Fernando wished for the only thing he's ever wanted, hoping it would come true, but knew not to get his hopes up. As they both opened their eyes, Gabriela turned to him, asking question after question about him until she couldn't keep her eyes open anymore, having to sneak back into her room.
The following morning, Manolo and Maria were having a chat with Fernando as Gabriela prepared for school.
"So, where do you come from Fernando?" Maria started the questionnaire.
"Well, I don't think you would believe me if I told you. But I'll tell you anyway, my parents are La Muerte and Xibalba." He said flatly.
"I'm usually with my mother." He added.
"Huh, didn't see that one coming." Manolo began laughing. Maria rolled her eyes as she elbowed him.
"Well, I suppose this has something to do with another bet, I won't ask, just don't do anything to harm this family or anyone in San Angel." Maria looked dead serious as Fernando nodded his head, already knowing the rules.
"Well, it'd be best if you went with Gabriela and Jaquelina to school." Manolo encouraged, as Fernando seemed somewhat excited.
"Go get ready then." Maria smiled as she had Manolo go to the store and get him school supplies. Maria said she'd drop them off later for Fernando.
"Alright kids, have a good day at school, I love you all very much." Maria kissed Gabriela and Fernando just before they left for school.
And just like that, years past and everyone adjusted to having Fernando in their lives, he was quite adventurous and from time to time would get into trouble. And Gabriela was always alongside him, and tagging along behind her would be Jaquelina, trying to catch up.
"Hey, espera!" Jaquelina huffed out as she tried to catch her breath. But Gabriela and Fernando were too caught up in the moment, not paying much attention to her, thus she grew somewhat jealous and insecure, not wanting to be forgotten. As she saw their figures grow smaller and smaller as she was left behind, dust kicking up around her from their running trail, she reached out her hand but knew she couldn't reach them in time. As she stopped and sat atop a large boulder, she couldn't help but feel sorry for herself, tears beginning to roll down her round cheeks. She let herself cry into her folded arms, hugging her knees to her chest as she whished she was more athletic, more adventurous, more courageous, more confident, more like Gabriela. Suddenly she heard a twig snap and pebbles scattering as she shot her head up and looked around.
"Wh-who's there?" She called out as she wiped her tears and spotted an elderly man with a long white beard and an oddly shaped large nose, with moles and liver spots all over his dark skin.
"Please, don't be frightened, I only want to help you." The man said, smiling a crooked smile as she looked at him curiously.
"I heard your wish you see, and I think I can help you." The man offered Jaquelina a necklace with a gold chain and a heart charm, though it seemed to have veins on it with a glowing green color that were hardly noticeable unless looking up close, though the heart itself was a red jewel with gold outlining it, binding it to the chain. She stopped looking at his warts and gazed at the lovely necklace, wanting it for her own.
"Now, now, this isn't for you . . . I mean unless you want to make a bargain?" The man asked.
"What kind of bargain?" Jaquelina slid off the boulder and looked him in the eye.
"Well, this necklace will grant you any wish you want, but it can also blind you of who you really are. A great responsibility for such a young girl. I'm not sure you can handle it." He shrugged, putting the necklace away.
"No wait! I can handle it!" Jaquelina stopped him.
"Oh?" The man looked at her questioningly.
"I can handle it. What is it that you want from me?" She looked at him seriously.
"What I want is for you to win the heart of a certain young man . . . and for you to have an adventurous time in doing so." The man smiled mischievously.
"Oh? And you don't think I can do it on my own?" Jaquelina was rather offended.
"Not with the competition you have my dear. You need a bit of help making a level playing ground." He smiled coyly as Jaquelina lowered her guard.
"It's a deal." She stuck her hand out as he took it, shaking it firmly. He gave her the necklace and went to turn and walk away until he remembered something.
"Oh and by the way, if you by any chance don't marry this young man, then the necklace will loose it's power, and you'll be just as you are. An ordinary girl with no chance of winning his heart." He said rather cruelly as Jaquelina nodded her head, feeling rather nervous as she put the necklace on, remembering her wish and catching up with Gabriela and Fernando.
"Ok, we're here." Gabriela huffed out, as she looked back Fernando, who was hardly sweating at all. Suddenly Gabriela realized one important thing . . . or person rather.
"Jaquelina!" She called out, running past Fernando but she wasn't there.
"Oh no, we left her behind!" Gabriela's voice was shaky and frightened.
"She was slow; she just couldn't keep up with us." Fernando shrugged, not feeling guilty about the situation.
"Fernando, that's no way to talk." Gabriela began running back from the direction they came from, suddenly turning to look back at him seeing if he would follow, but she ended up bumping into a solid object and landed on her bottom with a loud thud.
"Ooff!" Gabriela huffed as she got up, seeing a familiar face.
"Well, if it isn't precious Gabriela." Jaquelina smirked as she crossed her arms, not a drop of sweat on her.
"Jaquelina?" Gabriela questioned, as she looked her up and down.
"That's my name don't wear it out." Jaquelina gave her quite the 'tude.
"You seem different." Gabriela didn't feel this was her best friend that she's known for all these years.
"I feel different, good different. And you, huh, you sure all that sweat is going to win Fernando's heart?" She mocked.
"What? Win Fernando's heart? What are you talking about?" Gabriela was utterly confused.
"Oh you know exactly what I'm talking about little princess." Jaquelina put her hands on her hips as she shook her head at Gabriela.
"Jaquelina, if you're suggesting that I have feelings for Fernando, you're wrong. He's a friend, just like you're my friend." Gabriela said honestly.
"Hmph, we're not friends, we're rivals." Jaquelina said sternly.
"Rivals?" Gabriela looked puzzled.
"Yes, though it seems you're not getting the big picture, so I'll spell it out for you. We rivals in that we both have feelings for Fernando, call them what you will but he can only choose one of us. Got it? And honestly, I doubt it would be you, I mean look at you. Sweating, not feminine at all, and that stench, when was the last time you showered? And no makeup? My my, we are falling behind aren't we Gabriela Sanchez?" Jaquelina teased as Gabriela was looking down at her hands, dirty, cut, and calloused.
"So this is like a game to you?" Gabriela asked.
"If that's what you want to call it, then yes." Jaquelina was becoming impatient.
"Jaq-" Gabriela started.
"Listen, girls, if the two of you are fighting over me, I'm honored but really, all I wanted was some adventure, not watching a catfight." Fernando finally came out and put a stop to all the drama.
"We weren't fighting over you." Gabriela rolled her eyes as she began to walk towards the outer part of town, Fernando smiled devilishly as Jaquelina ran up to him and grabbed his arm.
"Oh Fernando, you're so funny. Hehe." She giggled as he smiled brightly, but was curious as to what got into her.
"Listen lovebirds, why don't you go get a room while I go hunting for treasure . . . on my own." Gabriela said bluntly as Fernando looked somewhat disappointed.
"We're not lovebirds." He protested as Jaquelina pouted.
"Well, whatever you are, just stay away from me." She snapped as she ran in the opposite direction. Gabriela would rather be alone then to have chosen between friends, as well as getting caught up in a sappy love triangle. And that's how it started, Jaquelina and Fernando were always together, though not what he would have preferred, but Jaquelina was like glue, never letting go and constantly flirting with him, and every time he tried to spend time with Gabriela, she blew him off. It went on this way for years, until Fernando finally decided to live on his own, visiting both families, though never seeing Gabriela, who was going to be sent off to Europe for educational purposes.
"Well, my train leaves soon, so I'll be off." Gabriela hugged her parents as they kissed their only daughter goodbye.
"I do wish your friends were here to see you off." Maria said as she wept.
"Mama, don't worry about it." Gabriela brushed off the remark.
"You know mija, it's a lot harder to get through life without friends. It becomes lonely pretty fast." Manolo was looking at his daughter rather sternly.
"Papa." Gabriela looked at him and sighed, knowing he was right.
"I'm going to miss you both." She hugged them again as she got on the train, not looking back, not even to see Fernando running after the train, and Jaquelina running after Fernando.
"Wait!" He shouted, but his voice cut off by the whistle blowing.
"Oh shoot." Jaquelina said in dismay, though not sounding too sincere.
"I really wanted to say goodbye." Fernando felt the hole in his heart widen as he realized the only girl he's ever loved was gone now, for at least the next four years he would never see her again, but Manolo and Maria comforted him as Jaquelina sighed the whole way to their house and thereafter.