Where the Streets Have No Name

Chapter 33

The Cullens arrived two days after their counterpart. They were by no means ecstatic about their first born tying the knot in obvious haste, but they were somewhat more accepting of the inevitable, and they came bearing gifts.

During the family dinner that night, which facilitated a somewhat icy introduction between the Cullens and the Morenos, Carlisle announced that as the parents of the groom, they were going to buy a house for the couple. A start up home in a city of Edward and Carmen's choice. It would be a wedding present.

Edward was pleasantly surprised. He didn't expect such a generous gesture from his parents after he had disappointed them so miserably.

"Thanks, Dad, Mom. Wow, I don't know what to say," Edward began as he searched Carmen's face for her reaction.

Carmen was adequately surprised too, but she collected herself quickly and presented an appreciative smile. "Yes, thank you very much. That's very generous of you. It would really be a lot of help. In fact, we were just looking for a permanent place here in the city," she said.

Elvira chose this moment to weigh in her thoughts on the matter. "I agree, it's very generous of you, Carlisle. It's not that Hector and I don't have the means to buy them an easy passage for the future. We just don't believe in rewarding our children for making mistakes," she said and turned her attention back to her food in a nonchalant manner.

A very awkward silence descended on the table. Carmen's face turned a bright shade of red. Carlisle attempted to ease the tension by changing the subject. "Hector, I hear you're running for mayor in Edison. That must be a lot of work. Tell us about your campaign."

Before Hector could make any kind of retort, Carmen hissed under her breath, "¿Mamá, porque me tienes que avergonzar delante de ellos?"

Elvira feigned surprise as she replied back in the same language. "¡Oh!, mís disculpas, no pensé que te estaba avergonzando. Lo siento," she said. "No te preocupes, estas personas te odian ya. O no puede decir?" she added theatrically.

Edward watched with horror as Carmen pushed back her chair and made a hasty excuse to leave the table.

"Excuse me, I... I need to... Uh... I'm sorry..." She disappeared in the direction of the lady's room. Edward sat dumbfounded, wondering whether he should go after her, hoping it would be Elvira who would take the initiative since she instigated the whole episode.

When Elvira made no move to follow her daughter, Edward shifted in his seat uncomfortably. He looked at his parents for guidance.

Esme silently nodded her head, signaling him that he should go after his fiancée.

With a tired sigh, he followed Carmen's trail, effectively bringing the first official Cullen-Moreno gathering to an early end.

*"¿Mamá, porque me tienes que avergonzar delante de ellos?"- ("Mama, why do you have to embarrass me in front of them?")
*"¡Oh!, mís disculpas, no pensé que te estaba avergonzando. Lo siento," - ("Oh! My apologies, I didn't think that I was embarrassing you. I'm sorry,")
*"No te preocupes, esta gente ya te detestan. ¿No te dás cuenta?"- ("Don't worry, these people already detest you. Or can't you tell?")

Thank you Lulabelle98, HeidiJoVT, and Dinx.

Thanks to BlueSkies0825 for stellar translation work.

Thank you dag21 for catching my errors. You are awesome, bb:)