It's the lack of sunlight spilling out of a cracked window that wakes her, and the scratchiness of overstarched sheets that compels her from the bed, and the...sheer emptiness of the sparse guest room that makes her dress quickly and not look back as she pulls the door to. It's the echo of her slow, careful footsteps down the hall, and the absence of morning chatter pouring from every room.

There's a roof over her head, and the smell of fresh coffee and eggs and a welcoming hug from a good friend when she enters the kitchen.

And she's grateful. Truly.

But it's not...hers.

The window across the room is open onto the town, and there, she finds hers, visible but distant. As they had been for so long, as she had made them, holding on so tightly they had nearly suffocated. Even now, the desire to pull each of hers close and never let go is so strong her arms ache with missing them, and all she can do is hug herself with a sigh.

"Alma?"

She turns find Lorena holding a hot cup of coffee out, watching her watch them. Lorena smiles gently. "You aren't going to eat, are you?"

Alma sips politely at the coffee and shakes her head. "I need to be with them." She turns back to the window to watch her daughters and their husbands try to unstick themselves from the ground, feeling her back and legs twitch sympathetically at every wince. Her son stands off to the side, surrounded by the children, as expected.

"He was always good with los sobrinos." Lorena observes.

"Mm."

"Is he back...for good?"

Alma closes her eyes and breathes in deeply, willing the fragrance of the coffee to give her an answer. "I...I don't know."

"And come to that, where has he been?" Lorena's nostrils flare a bit as she joins Alma at the window. "For an entire decade? Did he even stop to think about what it might to do to yo – "

"One thing my son is not is 'thoughtless.'" There's steel in the slight emphasis on the words my son, and she sets the half-empty mug on the counter and gives her friend a sharp look. "Whatever else you think he is."

Lorena doesn't apologize, but neither does she pursue the conversation any further in that direction.

The sun and the family have fully risen by the time she collects herself enough to join them. She leaves with a brief word of thanks to her hostess and sets off to be with them.

Hers. All hers.

She leans into the utter chaos of her niños y nietos clamoring around her for a hug or a kiss in welcome. Bruno stiffens in surprise and doesn't fully relax into her embrace, but he throws an arm awkwardly around her and allows her to kiss him.

"How did you sleep, mijo?"

He snorts. "There's a reason we insisted you go to the Guzmáns." He turns his head with a slight pop and a wince. "You?"

"Lorena has been very gracious."

"So about as well as I did, then."

She'd forgotten how well he could read her. The abrupt sense of normalcy seems to have surprised him, too. He stares at her for a long moment.

"Abuela?" She looks down toward the slight tugging on her sleeve.

Toñito reaches up for his hug. "I'm hungry."

A low rumble of sympathetic laughter passes around the family, and under its cover, Bruno retreats. She lifts Toñito up onto her hip, hiding her disappointment in a broad smile.

"What shall we do for breakfast then?"

Julieta says, "We'll probably have to stick with things that don't have to be cooked for a bit. Fruits, veggies, maybe some cured meats if we can afford them."

Pepa blinks at her sister. "For twelve people, that's still a lot."

Camilo looks flabergasted. "Fruits and vegetables!? No meat!?" He swoons and falls dramatically onto his hands and knees. "Just go on without me!"

Dolores eyes him critically then sits on him. "Looks like it's just eleven, Tía!" She calls sweetly over her brother's attempts to shake her off. "That should help!"

"Get off!"

"Or you can give Toñito the extra food since he's still growing!"

"I'm still growing! I'm only fifteen! Get off me before I –!"

Félix rolls his eyes and separates his eldest children before they can begin an all-out brawl in the middle of the yard, much to the displeasure of his youngest who had nearly toppled out of Alma's arms with the giggles.

"Oh-kay!" Julieta plucks Antonio out of her mother's grasp and points at Camilo, Luisa, and Agustín. "Troops! With me!"

She lines everyone up, giving Toñito to Luisa, who hefts him up on her shoulders and smiles when he laughs. Camilo and Agustín fall in behind her.

She pauses briefly to raise her eyebrows at Bruno, who shakes his head rapidly and takes a step back. "I don't think the town and I are ready for each other yet."

Julieta and Pepa exchange a small frown that Alma knows is also on her face when she catches Bruno's eye, and he looks away quickly.

Pepa keeps a close watch on her sons until the parade to the market has to cross over the bridge. She turns back to everyone else. "Now what?"

Six heads swing in her direction. She takes a deep breath, casting an eye over the ruined house. "We make a plan. We rebuild. From the ground up."

A/N: Hope everyone has a good week. As always, I would love to hear your thoughts! -WW