Summary:

La Familia Álvarez arrives for dinner with the Madrigals, and Gabriela gets the surprise of her life.

-o-o-

Written in Gabriela's POV.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Gabriela, are you ready?" I hear Papá call me from downstairs. I look at myself in the mirror. I still look like me, but a little more made up. I smooth down my dress. I'm nervous as hell.

"You already look great, sis," Julián says in a bored tone.

"I know, I just…want to make sure this night goes perfectly for Mamá and Papá." Julián cocks an eyebrow at me as I continue. "It's a big deal for them, especially since if we have the approval of the most influential family here, think of what'll it do for the shop."

"Are you sure you're not stalling just because you're worried about meeting Señor…"

"NO!" I huff. "Stop saying that! I'm not interested." It's only a half-truth. I'm still curious.

Julián laughs. "Whatever you say, mi hermana. Now let's go. They're waiting."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

I stare in awe at the house as we arrive at Casa Madrigal's gates. A young woman, maybe around my age, greets us by the door. This must be one of the two sisters Julián mentioned that came by yesterday. I try not to think about meeting her brother.

"La Encantadora Mirabella! So good of you and your family to come. We're very happy to have you. Please, come in!"

"Thank you so much. It's very generous of your family to have us. Please, call me Elena." Mamá smiles at the young woman. "You must be Julieta, yes?"

Julieta grins. "I'm so glad you remember me!"

"Is…that window shutter waving hello?" Julián asks. We all look upwards, towards a candle that's burning by the windowsill. Julieta chuckles. "Ah, yes, our house is quite magical. It's sentient, but it can't talk. Still very expressive though. Casita loves parties. Don't you Casita?"

The tiles beneath our feet flip in rhythm, making us a "red carpet" to walk on. Julieta laughs. I look around in amazement. "That's our cue. The rest of the Madrigals are waiting for you in the dining room. Shall we go?"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Mamá, our guests of honor are here," Julieta says as she leads us into a very cozy dining room. An older woman, presumably Señora Madrigal, stands up from her seat and walks over to us, clasping Mamá 's hands. "Welcome to Casa Madrigal! I know we've only spoken for a brief moment yesterday, but my family is honored to have you and your family here with us for dinner."

"The pleasure is all mine, Señora Madrigal."

The Señora waves her hand. "Please, no need to be so formal. You may call me Alma." She turns to look at me. "And who is this young lady? Your daughter, I presume?"

"Ah yes. This is Gabriela. She wasn't at the store yesterday, so she wasn't able to meet you." Papá nods at me as Señora Alma studies me. I smile. "Hello, Señora, thank you again for having us. It's so nice to finally meet you." She smiles back and takes my hand. "Thank you, mija. And I, too. Come. Let me introduce you to the rest of the family."

I turn to look behind me as Señora Alma leads me to the table. Papá is holding on to Mamá nervously while she soothes him. My eye catches Julián smirking. Here it goes.

"I believe you've met Julieta, my eldest daughter…" Julieta smiles and waves at me, already seated at the table. Señora Alma gestures toward each family member to introduce me to them. "And this is her husband, Agustín, and their daughter, Isabela."

Agustín gives me an assuring nod. The little girl next to him blushes and tries to hide behind her bowl. I giggle. She's so cute. Señora Alma gives Isabela a look, and she sits a bit straighter, still eyeing me. I give her a small wave. Isabela blinks, and waves back.

"And this is my other daughter, Pepa, along with her husband, Félix, and their daughter Dolores." Pepa immediately stands from the table and walks up to me to give me a huge hug. Her smile shines brightly like the sun that I can't help but feel happy.

"So glad to finally meet you! I adore your mom, I'm a fan!" She squeals. There's a cloud above her head with rainbows on them. Her husband laughs and wraps his arms around her. "Pepi, mi vida, you're surprising her with your rainbows."

Pepa looks at me apologetically. "Sorry. I get rainbows when I'm excited."

"Oh, no, it's fine!" It barely registers on me that she has a cloud above her head.

There's a tug on my dress. I look down to see Pepa and Félix's daughter, Dolores, staring at me with her wide eyes. She reminds me of a little mouse. "Señorita, you're so pretty!" She squeaks at me. I blush furiously. Pepa looks at me, amused.

"Well, thank you, Dolores." I kneel to meet her eye level. "You're very pretty too." This made her smile and she beams at me.

"I like you! You're my friend now, okay?" Dolores says as her parents lead her back to the table.

"You seem to have a way with children, mija." Señora Alma hums. I shake my head as I stand. "Your granddaughters are just adorable, especially Dolores. I didn't expect that."

"Well, they do say children don't lie." She steers me back to the last person she hasn't introduced yet. His back is turned and it looks as if he's trying to shrink himself down into his seat. My palms start to sweat. This is it. "And here is my hijo único, the youngest of my triplets. Bruno, this is Gabriela."

He stands and turns to look at me, and time stops. We stare at each other. Que carajo. A beat and a pause.

"YOU."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Glossary of terms (in order of appearance in-text):

Hijo único - Only son
Que carajo - What the f*ck