Sorry for the cheesyness of this chapter
L.L.A.P
~Laces
"I don't understand… why are we eating when we are just supposed to be thankful?" Athena questioned, and Ray shrugged.
"I dunno. It's a tradition that everyone does." He informed. Many people in her family were off planet for Thanksgiving, so Mrs. Colón told her that she could spend her first Thanksgiving with their family.
Athena was sitting in Ramon's room, watching him draw a picture of a grassy plain.
"So you celebrate it with your family?"
"Yep. My dad's family comes over." Ramon nodded.
"What about your mom's family?" Ramon's hand holding the colored pencil froze for a moment, but then resumed.
"We don't talk about them." He whispered. "Anyway, the only family from my Dad's side that comes over is my Titi Norma, Tio José, and my Abuela. It's not really that big, but we have a fun time." Ramon grinned.
Just then there was a knock at the door, and Ramon smiled.
"That's probably them now." He ran downstairs with Athena following behind.
Indira opened the door to reveal a short but fit woman who looked a bit older than Ramon's mom, and next to her was a young man who looked as thin as Ramon. Behind them was a short old woman with a cane.
They were talking fast in Spanish as they hugged and kissed Indira, then moved on to shower their affections onto Ramon.
Athena stood there, unsure what to do.
"Ramon, who is this?" the woman who Athena assumed was Ramon's Titi Norma, inquired.
"This is my friend, Athena. she'll be having dinner with us." He grinned. Ramon's Abuela hobbled over to Athena and smiled at her.
"She looks strong. Not like you." She laughed as she pinched Ramon's thin arm.
"I gained two pounds." Ramon muttered.
"Two pounds, he says." José laughed. "You don't need meat on your bones. Just look at me. I'm thin and I'm fine." he smiled.
"Don't scare the boy. No one would ever want to look like you." Norma laughed.
"Aw, you hurt my feelings." José chuckled as he frowned.
"Despite being scrawny, his face is very much Rob's." Norma pointed out.
"Yes." Abuela nodded, and it was quiet for a moment. This was the fifth thanksgiving without Ramon's father.
Athena observed that Ramon's father was very well loved. His brother and sister, Norma and José, talked about what silly trouble they would get into all the time, and Abuela had a look of fondness on her face when he son's name was brought up.
Athena felt bad for Mrs. Colón when her husband's name was brought up. She became more quiet and her eyes got slightly red.
Ramon once told Athena that after his dad died, his Titi Norma had to look after him for a few months because of how hard Indira was impacted.
"Dinner is ready." Indira stated, and the family made their way to the table.
They all clasped their hands to say grace, and Athena imitated the move, eating dinner with Ramon enough times to know what saying grace was.
Ramon said grace, then afterwards the family started talking.
"Give Ramon the most meat, Indi! Build his strength!" Abuela exclaimed.
"Ma, make sure Indi leaves some of the turkey for the rest of us." José whined.
"Don't forget about Ramon's girlfriend." Norma smiled, and Ramon's face got beat red.
"She's not my girlfriend."
"Él la ama." Norma chuckled which made the rest of the table laugh.
"Definitivamente lo ama."
"Deben casarse."
"Ellos serían tan monos juntos."
"Mi hijo debe casarse con ella. Sería maravilloso."
"¡Mamá! Usted es embarazoso mí."
"Calma, Ramon."
Athena watched as the family interacted, but didn't understand much of what was being said. The family was laughing while Ramon looked embarrassed.
"We're only teasing, Ramon." Norma grinned.
"Yes. We tease you because we love you." Abuela nodded.
"I wished you loved me less." Ramon grumbled, which made the table laugh again.
The dinner was passed out and Athena enjoyed the turkey and cranberry sauce.
"Athena, how did you meet, Ramon?" Norma inquired.
"Oh, well… we were at a museum thing, and he helped me out with something, and then we've been friends ever since." She explained.
"Do you have any hobbies?" José questioned.
"Well… I like listening to music."
"She can sing really good too." Ramon smiled, and Athena's face got red.
"N-no. I'm not very good at singing." She debated, but Ramon shook his head.
"She's lying. She has a beautiful voice." Ramon grinned.
"Guarde esto, Ramon, y ella será su esposa en seguida." José chuckled.
"Tio José…"
"Don't whine, Ramon." Indira stated calmly.
Athena could tell the difference between Ramon's mom and the rest of the family. Indira was funny but she was often quieter than her husband's side of the family. It made Athena wonder what Indira's family was like.
After the dinner was over, Indira started passing out sheets of music.
"What's this for?" Athena inquired, and Ramon smiled.
"It's a tradition we have. Since thanksgiving dinner is done, we sing Christmas Carols." Ramon explained.
"Carols?"
"Yeah." Ramon smiled, but was met by a confused stare by Athena.
"You mean… you don't know Christmas carols?" Athena shook her head, but the family was ready to sing.
"we should sing Silent Night!" Norma exclaimed.
"No, Jingle Bells!" José stated.
"Settle down you two, you know we should sing Away in a Manger."
"I like Rudolph." Ramon smiled, but his request didn't seem to be heard.
"We should let the newest addition to our family pick the first song." Indira smiled, and Athena's eyes widened.
"Me?"
"Yes, what song do you want to sing first?" Athena shifted through the music, looking for something remotely familiar. Her eyes then settled on a song she heard Elvis sing.
"Blue Christmas?" she suggested.
It was quiet for a long moment and Athena thought that she might have done something wrong.
"D-Do you want me to pick a different song?"
"No." Abuela shook her head. "It's just… that was Robert's favorite song." She informed. "None of us have had the guts to try to sing it after he passed."
"We should sing it." Indira stated. "It was Athena's choice, and Robert would want us to sing it."
The family flipped to the page in the song book and started singing.
Halfway through the song, Indira was softly crying while the rest of the family was tearing up. However, at the end of the song, they all smiled.
"We should have sung that song earlier." José stated.
"Remember how Robert used to sing the song so loud and off key?" Norma questioned which resulted in more talking about memories.
Ramon looked over at Athena and gripped her hand, smiling at her.
"Thanks, Athena." he grinned. "Happy thanksgiving."
"Happy thanksgiving."