Tracy was happy that she made it halfway through her first semester. She was even prouder of herself for keeping it together, even with Joshua's constantly flirting and he even tries to kiss her. She still felt guilty for keeping this a secret for her fiancé. Antonio is outside packing the last of the luggage into the 2011 Dodge Charger. He is excited to head back home to see his mom and dad. He shuts the trunk and turns around. Luna walks up to him.
"Hey girl, where's Tracy?" He asks the puppy.
She tilts her head towards the apartment. Antonio pets her head. He opens the driver's side rear door. Luna eagerly hops into the back seat. He closes the door and tells the puppy; he'll be right back. He heads back inside to find Tracy.
"Tracy?" He asks.
"I'm in the kitchen." Tracy answers.
He walks into the room and sees her emptying the dishwasher. Tracy put the last glass on the counter and closes the door. She puts the glass in the cupboard to the left of the sink. Then she turns around and sees him standing in the doorway.
"Hey, my golden knight, how is the packing going?" She asks.
"Good I just finished, and Luna is ready to go too." He answers.
"Are you sure that it's ok with your parents if we bring Luna?" Tracy asks.
"Yes, my mom loves animals. We have a few horses and a parrot." He says
Tracy forces a smile. Antonio walks over to her. He sees a nervous look in her eyes.
"Mi amor, you're still nervous about meeting my parents aren't you?" He asks.
Tracy nods. He kisses her on the forehead. Then he reminds her that all she needs to do is be herself. His parents will be crazy not to like the amazing, sweet, and kind-hearted girl he has the chance to get to know. Tracy, thanks him for what he said my kissing him passionately on the lips. He puts his arm around her waist and pulls her in closer. Inside the car, Luna is getting restless waiting for her owners. She hops into the driver's seat. She stands up on her hind legs and presses her right front paw on the horn. Meanwhile, in the apartment the young couple jumps as the sound of the horn brings them back to reality. They head back out to the car. Tracy locks the door. They walk to the car and see Luna in the driver's seat.
"I guess she was excited to see the house you grew up in," Tracy says.
"It looks like it," Antonio says.
Luna hops back into the back seat. They get into the car. Their first stop is the Shiba house. They get out, and Tracy tells Luna that they'll be right back. They head into the house. Lauren and Jayden greet them.
"Hey, I thought you were heading to Mexico to see your parents?" Jayden asks.
"We are Jay. Tracy and I were hoping that you would watch the apartment while we are gone." Antonio says.
"We would be happy to," Lauren says.
Tracy gives her the key. They head back out to the car. Lauren and Jayden wave goodbye as their friends back out of the driveway. Antonio turns onto the highway going south ten minutes after leaving the Shiba house. Tracy turns the radio on hoping that the music will help to calm her nerves. Her favorite song starts to play through the car speakers. She looks in the rearview mirror and sees Luna fast asleep. She decides not to sing because she doesn't want to wake her up.
Come on Tracy, just tell him about Joshua. I mean, what's the worst that can happen. He could take back the engagement ring. He yells at me and tells me that he hates me. On second thought, maybe I shouldn't tell him.
They drive thirty more miles till the car starts to get low on gas. Antonio gets off at exit 38. He turns into a Marathon station. He pulls next to pump 6. He turns off the engine.
"I'm going to prepay. Why don't you see if Luna needs to go?" Antonio says.
Tracy nods. They get out of the car. Tracy opens the rear driver's side door. She sees Luna is awake. The puppy has the leash in her mouth. Tracy takes the leash out of her mouth. She clips it to her collar. Luna hops out of the car. Tracy closes the door. She walks Luna around the premier of the convenience store. Luna does her business on the patch of grass behind the back of the store. They get to the end of the sidewalk. A mother with her six-year-old daughter walks up to them.
"Hi, I'm Leah, and this is my little girl Adele. Can she pet your puppy?" Leah asks.
Tracy says yes. Adele lets Luna walks up to her. Adele pats her head. A few minutes later Tracy hears a loud whistle. She looks to her left. She sees Antonio is waving for her to come back to the car. Tracy winks at him.
"Sorry sweetie, but we have to go," Tracy says.
"Bye. Thank you for letting me pet your puppy." Adele says.
Tracy walks back over to Antonio. He opens the door, and Luna hops back into the car. Tracy unclips the leash and sets it down on the floor behind her chair. Antonio closes the door slowly so Tracy's wouldn't get squished by it. They get into the car and buckle up. Antonio starts the car. They get back on the highway. A few hours later they pull into the driveway to Antonio's parents' house. Tracy sees a two-story house. The front porch wraps around the front of the house. The rooms on the second story have a balcony.
"Antonio, it's beautiful," Tracy says.
"Wait till you see the inside," Antonio says.
They get out of this car. Luna is walking next to Tracy. She asks if it's ok if Luna can run around the front yard for a bit to help her burn off all her extra energy. He says yes. They look down and see Luna wagging her tail happily. He tells her she can go play. They watch as she starts to run around the yard. They walk up to the front door. Antonio sees a note taped to it. He read it out loud.
Antonio, Your father and I went to the farmers market. We brought Pablo with us. We'll be back in an hour. You and Tracy just make yourselves at home. We are looking forward to meeting Tracy too. Love, Mom
Antonio hears the sound of Tracy trying to keep from giggling. He asks her what's so funny. Tracy takes a deep breath to calm down.
"You grew up here. You will have no problem making yourself feel at home." Tracy says.
"True," He says
Antonio opens the door. They walk inside the house. Tracy is about to compliment on how amazing it looks. Antonio places his left hand over her mouth.
"Hold that thought until after you the tour," Antonio says.
Tracy nods. He takes his hand away from her mouth. Tracy takes hold of his right hand. Antonio starts the tour of his childhood home. The first stop is his old bedroom. The walls are painted his favorite color gold. The sheets on the bed are the colors of Mexico's flag. On the shelf above the desk is a remote-controlled helicopter.
"Do you think that it still works?" Tracy asks.
"I doubt it," Antonio says.
"Well, so much for that plan," Tracy whispers under her breath.
Antonio asks her what she was planning. She says it was nothing. He knew that when she says nothing, it means that she was planning something. He decides to drop it and continue to show her around. The backyard has a pool, a barbecue grill, a picnic table, even a beautiful flower garden in the far right-hand corner of the yard. The last stop on the tour was the living room. They lie down on the couch in each other's arms. A few seconds later they fall asleep. A few minutes later Antonio's parents Sonia and Marquis come home. Sonia has droopy blue eyes, medium length brown hair, very tall, and light-colored skin. Marquis has brown eyes, black hair, and his skin tone is the same as Antonio.
Luna runs over to them. She knocks Marquis to the ground. Luna starts to lick his face. A few seconds later she realized that Marquis wasn't Antonio even though they have the same personality. Their scents were different, so she stops. She gets off, and Sonia helps her husband up. Luna sits down on the ground. She folds her ears in towards her face. Pablo flies over to Luna. He lands on her head.
"Aw, I think she is sorry," Sonia says.
"Sure looks like it. This must be the puppy our son told us about, so what is her name again?" Marquis asks.
"Yes, and her name is Luna," Sonia says.
Sonia bends down. She starts to pet Luna. Pablo walks up Sonia's arm. Sonia tells Luna that she isn't mad at her. She gets back on her feet. They walk into the house. Marquis puts the groceries away. While Sonia walks into the living room, she walks over to the love seat and takes an old pillow off the top. She sets the floor in front of it. Luna lays down on it and falls asleep a few seconds later. Sonia walks over to the couch. She sees her son and their future daughter-in-law fast asleep. Sonia smiles as she fixes her son's hair. Then she gently takes Tracy's glasses off her face and sets them on the coffee table.
She takes an extra blanket off the top of the couch. She drapes it over them. She leaves the room quietly. An hour later Antonio wakes up from their nap. He notices the blanket which makes him smile. He gets up and wraps it around Tracy. He walks to the kitchen. In the kitchen, Pablo is sitting on his perch. Antonio's parents are talking about dinner. Sonia says is so happy that her son is home, she's going to make his favorite dinner to welcome him home. Pablo flies off his perch when he sees Antonio walk in the room. He lands on Antonio's shoulder. Antonio uses the tip of his index finger to stroke the top of Pablo's head.
"I'm happy to see you too pal. Try to keep it down before you wake my fiancée up." Antonio says.
"Is Tracy a light sleeper son?" Marquis asks.
Antonio nods. Sonia asks her son why Tracy looks so tired. She knew the drive from Pasadena was long, but Tracy shouldn't be that tired.
"Tracy didn't sleep well all last week because of midterms," Antonio says.
"Let me guess, she stayed up late studying," Sonia says.
Antonio nods. Marquis asks his son if he reminded Tracy that all her studying won't do her any good if she is too tired to even take the test. Antonio says yes. Tracy told him that for her intro to animal science class the midterm counts for half of her final grade.
"That may be a good reason for her to do well, but she put too much pressure on herself," Sonia says.
"I know mom. It hurt me so much seeing her pushing herself like that." Antonio says.
Sonia tells her that she knows that. Marquis decides to change the subject. He suggests that they do a little fishing at the pier. Antonio says he loves to.
"Great I'll get the gear, and we'll head out," Marquis says.
A few minutes later they head to the pier. When they arrive Marquis hands Antonio the old fishing rod, he used when he was little.
"Dad, I can't believe that you kept it all these years," Antonio says.
"Of course, I did son," Marquis says.
"I remember it was bank sea bass right dad?" Antonio asks.
"Yes, son." Marquis answers.
They bait their hooks and cast them into the water. Ten minutes go by, and Marquis notices that his son is silent.
"Got something on your mind, son?" Marquis asks
"No, dad, I didn't want to scare the fish." Antonio answers.
"Antonio, I'm your father. Please talk to me." Marquis says.
Antonio takes a deep breath. He sets the pole against the railing. He turns to face his father.
"I think that something else has Tracy stressed out beside her classes," Antonio says.
Back at the house, Sonia hears a scream coming from the living room. Sonia leaves to investigate. She walks into the room. Tracy is sitting up on the couch. Sonia sits down next to her. Tracy looks over at her. Sonia sees that Tracy's face is drenched in a cold sweat and tears are rolling down her cheeks.
"Honey, let me guess bad dream," Sonia says.
Tracy nods. Pablo flies in with a towel. He gives it to Sonia. She uses it to dry her face off. When she is finished, she sets it on the coffee table.
"You want to talk about it. I'm a very good listener." Sonia says.
"Now I know where Antonio gets his good listening skills from you Mrs. Garcia," Tracy says.
"Tracy, you can call me Sonia. How does a cup of ginger tea sound?" Sonia says.
"Nice, thanks," Tracy says.
Tracy picks up her glasses and puts them on. They walk to the kitchen. Tracy sits down at the table. She waits patiently until the tea was ready. Five minutes later Sonia sets the tea kettle on the table. She pours two cups of tea and hands one to Tracy. She picks up her cup and sits down. Tracy drinks a few sips before she says a word.
"I dreamt that Antonio took away, the engagement ring," Tracy says.
"Why would you dream something like that?" Sonia asks.
Tracy scoots in closer to the table. When she sits back down, her phone butt dials Antonio. Tracy looks down into her tea. A teardrop splashed down into her drink.
"Because I'm a horrible person for keeping a secret that this guy in my English comp Joshua has flirted with me from him. I know he is going to hate me. I just know it." Tracy answers.
Sonia sets her tea down. She walks over to her and pulls her into a hug. Back at the pier Marquis hears his son's phone going off. He asks Antonio to take the call so that the ringtone won't scare the fish. Antonio takes his phone out of his pocket. He sees Tracy's picture on the screen. He answers it and hears Tracy and Sonia talking.
"Tracy, I know my son won't hate you. How long has this Joshua been flirting with you?" Sonia asks.
"Ever since we met when he was handing out pens and giving directions to new students," Tracy answers.
"Haven't you tried to tell him to stop?" Sonia says.
Antonio brings his phone closer to him. Marquis knew that listening in was wrong. He curious about the situation, they stand quietly and continue to listen.
"I haven't told him out loud, but I have given him all the nonverbal cues in the book." Tracy answers.
"You have to verbally tell him to stop. I mean, haven't you noticed what all of this added stress is doing to you?" Sonia says.
"Of course I have, but I thought he would have moved onto some other girl on campus by now." Tracy answers.
"Why is he even doing this? Did he even see the engagement ring on your finger?" Sonia asks.
Tracy says yes. She tells Sonia that he thinks that the ring was either a birthday gift or a family heirloom. Sonia says the only way for either of those ideas to be true the ring had to be on the other hand.
"I can't believe that some other guy is flirting with the love of my life," Antonio shouts.
Back at the house, Tracy hears what Antonio just shouted. Sonia lets Tracy go, Tracy stands up quickly and takes her phone out of her pants pocket. She looks down and notices that it had a call in progress. She sees that it called Antonio, so she hangs up quickly. Then tosses it down on the table just as quickly as she ended the call, the phone spins around on the table for a few seconds before coming to a stop in the middle of the table, Sonia sees more tears rolling down Tracy's cheeks.
"Everything is going to be ok, please don't cry," Sonia says.
"No, it's not; tell Antonio that I'm sorry," Tracy says.
Tracy turns around and runs out of the room. Sonia calls for her to come back. Tracy didn't hear her and kept on running. Back at the pier Antonio hangs up his phone and puts it away.
"Sorry dude, I know you wanted to go fishing so we could catch up. Right now my fiancée needs me." Antonio says.
"It's ok son you head back home to find out where Tracy went. I'll pack up and meet you back there as soon as I can." Marquis says.
Antonio thanks him and runs back to the house. He bursts through the front door and goes to the kitchen. Sonia sees her son trying to catch his breath.
"Mom, do you know where Tracy is?" Antonio asks.
"No, sweetie, I don't I'm sorry." Sonia answers.