Manuel chuckled, "Alright. And I know you will. See you soon, Audrey.", and Audrey smiled, "See you soon, Papi.", before disconnecting and putting down the phone, and then smiled at Marina, "Let's give you a good burp before you take a nice nap, huh?", twerking her nose with a forehead kiss.
Marina cooed and babbled as Audrey left Tia Maria's office, and so, after using a portal bracelet within Audrey and Bucky's guest bedroom, later on, after Audrey explained everything to Tia Maria, and Bucky, Preston talked with the couple, agreeing to the idea of the plane, and will let them know when it worked.
Indeed, with some steady and easy hoops to jump through, with Preston's illusion of his old self, a plane off the Detroit place of Whitmore Industries was soon rented, and able to fill up Audrey's extended relatives of the Detroit Ramirez shop the next afternoon, with passports checked and approved, and it landed upon a small, local airport near Durango, Mexico, the Ramirez hometown, with no problems, and thanked the plane staff before it departed back to Detroit, America.
With family relatives using cars and such picking up everybody, they all got to Durango shortly after evening came upon the land, with family soon talking excitedly and catching up and making dinner for the happy reunion, and after an appropriate stern warning to Bucky not to overwhelm Marina too fast after a breastfeeding session and such, Audrey reunited with Manuel happily.
In Spanish, like habit, "Oh, Audrey, look how much you've changed yet so the same as last year! You truly are a beautiful young woman, and with a fine man and a lively baby...", Manuel happily complimented as he hugged his youngest daughter.
"I missed you so, Papi! If you're anxious to see your granddaughter, she's down there with Bucky off the terrace in the side garden, she couldn't get enough of the water fountain.", Audrey chuckled wryly, and Manuel grinned, "Oh, naturally! I better meet my little granddaughter...You know where your and her room is...I hope you could convince her to come out to the dinner table after your talk...".
Audrey nodded, "Maybe, but it might be a long talk, Papi...It's going to be okay, Papi...", reassuring her father with a kiss to his temple, and Manuel nodded, "I hope so...", before kissing his daughter's cheek with a smile before leaving her, heading straight to where she said about Bucky and Marina.
Audrey took a deep breath and headed up to where Nena's room was. She took another deep breath before she knocked on the door, "Nena?". There was no answer. "Nena, are you there? It's me...", she was hoping that Nena would answer before there was a few footsteps and the sound of the door unlocking.
Audrey saw Nena peek through the door, her dark brown eyes widening with tears as Audrey saw that there were signs of tears like Nena had cried every day, not looking well as she looks terrible, despite keeping routine of hygiene and such.
"Audrey...", Nena spoke in Spanish, "I...am I dreaming?", and Audrey shook her head, "No, you're not. I'm home, sissy.", with a smile as she answered her in Spanish, and so it is in their native language for this talk as she realizes it.
Nena sobbed, pulling her in, closing the door, hugging her, "Oh, Audrey! I missed you so much!", and Audrey shushed her, rubbing her back, "I missed you too, Nena...It's okay, I'm here, Papi was so worried about you...".
Nena froze, and sniffled, "I know...I...I just can't face him...What if he thinks I'm a disgrace, a freak?", and Audrey frowned softly, "Nena, you know Papi loves all of this family, heck, Tia Rosalie may be colorblind, but he loves her too! What happened, Nena? He told me that you quit...I know you, you always fought to the finish line, proving men wrong about you, that you were making girls and women inspired by you!".
Nena pulled back, rubbing her arms, walking to the bed, drawing her knees up, looking like a helpless, little girl again, looking scared and tired and ashamed, "You...You would hate me...", and Audrey snorted, "Hate you? Come on, we're sisters, you can say anything to me! We literally revealed our secrets and all like best sisters forever all our lives since we were little!", reassuring her with a warm and wide smile as she sat next to her, rubbing her back.
"I know...But this is different...I...I messed up, Audrey...I...I don't know when exactly how long ago, but maybe a month ago...I was dreaming, and I was in this place every night...with this woman...She was blurry and everything, but her voice, gods, it was like unique...I watched her grow up...I started to notice things...I wanted more, like to hug her when she cried, to listen when she ranted, to smile when she laughed...I became a watching friend in a way, seeing her enjoy life, with things becoming a bit more clear here and there...That was when I saw her...She was this cute, wispy thing, with eyes so bright like the ocean, the skin...gods, it's like sweet chocolate, yet lighter in shade, and when I saw her in her clothes...Damn...it was when I realized that I wanted to actually kiss her! Me, Audrey, wanting to kiss a woman!", Nena explained and ranted in a tearful, emotional, ranting way, with Audrey watching and listening.
Nena sobbed, "I tried to ignore her, but I couldn't help coming back to her, and I was ashamed of actually being attracted to her, and when I was around the few other women in the wrestling areas in practice, I saw things, little things of each woman that made me think of her, or comparing her to them, realizing that she looked so much better and perfect...Then came a weekend...I was at Tulio's house, and we were drinking, playing around with friends from practice, men and women, like always...I must have drank so much to not want to think...then there was this game...something Tulio wanted to try from what an American friend talked about, spin the bottle, with a version of Truth or Dare or such like that...".
Audrey widened her eyes as she kept listening with Nena rocking on and off the bed, "It was silly, innocent, and crazy fun. Tulio was dared to kiss me, and it was when I realized that the kiss wasn't right, like it wasn't passionate or anything, not feeling something like I should, but didn't...And then after a few truths, there was another dare...I remember Tulio daring his sister to tickle me in the closet, and after I laughed, I went to tickle her back in retaliation before we went back, and when I saw her on the wall, I saw my woman on her face...I...I couldn't resist...I kissed her, and then...I was pushed off, her shouting for me not to touch her...calling me a freak...I heard others coming...".
Audrey took a deep breath as she closed her eyes, having a good guess with things there. Part of her wanted to straight up just tell her about Atlantis right there and then for sure; about what it was like there and how their father was accepting of her being a lesbian if that was one of her concerns. Still, it wasn't what she originally guessed, especially when her father said he had thoughts that it was like Rebecca.
Audrey then opened her eyes, seeing Nena look at her anxiously and frightened, and Audrey gave her an encouraging nod, "I'm not leaving you, Nena...What happened next?".
Nena gave a broken sob, realizing that her baby sister is staying, and she whispered, barely speaking over her knees to her face, "I remember accusing and disgusted looks when Tulio's sister told the others, with Tulio trying to stop her, but there was also a resigned, angry look in his eyes as he heard that I was touching her under her shirt and all, even if the kiss was harmless...There was something when I kissed her, but I didn't get that feeling, you know, the feeling where toes curl, and such.".
Audrey blinked as Nena continued, "I really tried to tell him that it was an accident, that I was so majorly and stupidly drunk, while I was hallucinating my woman...not that he knew that, but I knew I m-messed up, and he seemed to accept that, but after some serious dunk in some water, I had a bit of more clearness, and he told me that he respected me so much, but he asked me if I can stop it, and...I told him that I can't...He told me that our other comrades, the others from the association will talk...and we both knew that the manager doesn't want people like me, calling them f-fags...Tulio knew that I worked so hard for the past three, almost four years now, to be one of the best...but he knew sooner or later, the fans will notice...The manager would slander me and the family if I was known to be...Names worse than being a freak or f-fag...Tulio told me that I had to make a choice...I...I never blamed her, my woman...for causing this, it...it was my fault...I...I lied to the manager when I told him why I quit...He was confused and angry especially when it was so close to the championship...I went to pack my stuff from the lockers and such...Someone must have gotten to him when I was in the lockers...He demanded me to get out, calling me a disgrace, a shame to the competition and everything, threatening that he would call the cops...Tulio must have convinced him not to call Papi and such...which I am grateful for...I took the bus, and so here we are now...", with a deep sigh as her cheeks was having tears.
"Oh, Nena...", Audrey wrapped her arms around her. "Trust me when I say that me or Papi would never think those words about you...", she tried to assure her. Audrey was already thinking that clearly Nena was in dire need for a trip to Atlantis. Especially with those dreams, that might have been a whole mate image or something, just that she looked in the wrong direction of where to find them.
Nena gave a sob as she buried her face in her sister's shirt and shoulder, clenching into the fabric as her body quivered, somehow feeling a tiny bit lighter of the burden and shame, and Audrey shushed her, rubbing her back, "It's okay, let it out...I'm here...", comforting her elder sister who felt not like an elder sister, but rather a lost, helpless sister.
Audrey herself was angry at the manager, realizing that Nena's passion of wrestling, her dreams of being an idol for women, it went down into the toilet, yet she chose family over her passion, for Audrey knew that slandering the family would also mean the family shop business, something that their father literally worked for all his life...She doesn't know if the manager already had told people to stay away from the Ramirez shop, making the family lose customers even if they don't know why, even if Nena quit to save the family which is a brave thing to do...Audrey realized why Nena felt like a disgrace, because she caused this to happen...Reputation is different in Mexico than in America, and maybe the Ramirez family shop in Detroit would be fine, but with the fact that Nena had sponsored the family business in her wrestling career for the past three, almost four years, here in Durango, the Ramirez family shop would be in trouble...
Audrey pulled back slightly to look down at Nena, "Sister, I'll be by your side, but we need to tell Papi...He needs to know...", and Nena shivered, whispering as she glanced at Audrey, "But he'll hate me...He may not hate me for who I am, but what I did...he will hate me for that...It's Papi's dream, Audrey, all of this under where we're living on!", with a sob.
Audrey bit her lip, wanting to tell her everything, but it was better to probably let her hear it all from their father's mouth than her own. "He won't... I promise you...", Audrey told her. "Trust me, I know it. You... you may not believe me right now, but I promise you, I know almost exactly what he would say, and it isn't what you have been dreading.".
Nena looked at her, speaking softly, "You p-promise to stay by my side, Drey?", and Audrey nodded firmly, "Yes, Nena, I swear, like I have been, right here with you.".
Nena sniffled, wiping her tears, taking shaky breaths, seeming to take a bit to think before nodding with a deep breath, "O-Okay...Let's go before I change my mind...", fighting the urge to change or doing anything else to stay away as she shuffled slowly off the bed, with Audrey helping her, holding her hand as they came out of her room.
One of the cousins were relieved to see Nena out, and despite having a small, weak smile at the cousin, Nena kept silent while Audrey asked him to go get Manuel while the girls will be in his office, and he nodded, heading off through the hallway, while Audrey kept squeezing and holding Nena's hand, heading into the office, taking and squeezing seats together before the desk as they waited.
It felt like forever to Nena as she got more anxious and nervous, but it was only two minutes of Manuel getting the notification and practically running all the way to the office at a quick sprint, and he was beyond relieved to see his daughters together, his heart breaking to see his eldest daughter looking terrible, and he went to close the door securely and well, but not locking it, not wanting to trap his daughter, giving her the choice to get out of the office if it gets too much.
Manuel, fighting the urge to hug and kiss and hold his Nena as he realized that something serious needs to be told first, went to sit equally in his desk chair, "I'm so glad to see you out of your room...I'm sorry that I had to defer to your sister, Nena, but I...I didn't know what else to do...I want to listen, I want to hear, I want to help you, Nena, but I can't, if you can't tell me what's wrong...".
Nena shakily gulped, breathing nervously, and felt Audrey's other hand rubbing her back, "It's okay, Nena, you can do this...I'm here. It's only Papi...", and Nena gave her a small, thankful smile, taking a deep breath, and looked up to look Manuel in the eye cautiously yet hopefully, with slow pauses and shaky emotions, she managed to tell her story, taking a long time.
Manuel said nothing that whole time as he just let Nena continue to speak until she was finally finished. There was a short time when nothing was said as everything went quiet before Manuel stood up... and walked over to hold Nena tight, "Honey... I'm so sorry you worried that I was going to hate you or anything like that...".
Nena's heart skipped a beat as she couldn't hold tears back, "You...You don't hate me, Papi?", and Manuel replied, "No, I never will hate you, for I love you so much, honey, and you are one of the greatest gifts this father would ever have, and I know your mother loves you too. After all, if she was here, she would tear something awful in that manager's face...", with a chuckle.
Nena gave a small giggle as she smiled, remembering the few years of her mother she had, as her mother would bat a whisk at anyone who dares to sneak a bite into her tamales or cookies before they were even set out to the table, as Audrey snickered with a smirk, remembering those faint memories too.
Manuel replied, "There's that smile I know...", smiling warmly, and shared a glance with Audrey who nodded, and then he looked back at Nena, "And as for your personal situation, I can help you, and no, I would never dare to ask to stop it, but I know how to help you in a way where you can be yourself without judgement. Do you remember when I left you and Tia Maria and the others to be in charge of both shops while I went to help Audrey's man in conjunction with Audrey for the project of the prosthetic?".
Nena nodded, "Yeah...You said that it was a trip to some classified place where the people had a science/medicine society combined with a welding company that made prosthetics possible, not that I haven't seen Bucky's prosthetic hand and all, but it was a really major success.".
"Well... let's just say it's less of a classified place and more of a place you'd never believe me if I told you. I honestly barely believed it myself at times and I've been there!", Manuel chuckled as Audrey smirked. "Of course, you have to thank your sister for a good chuck about that since she went through hell to reach and save it...".
Audrey smiled, "It wasn't just me, Papi. After all, saving and protecting a city took many people, and we still are to this day.", and Nena blinked in surprise and confusion, "A city?".