Chapter 7: When You Love Someone, You Make Room
AUTHOR'S NOTES: This chapter takes place after Bruno and Luna meet the Lachlans and Bruno and Ashleigh start dating. Needless to say, there's a little bit of rockiness with Bruno being a single father and Luna's biological mother giving her up when she was a toddler.)
At first, Luna was overjoyed at having Ashleigh around.
Ashleigh took pleasure in watching Bruno's rat shows, while Luna felt delighted seeing the joy on her Papi's face when he looked at her.
Julieta appreciated the additional assistance with Dolores, Isabela, and baby Luisa, and she also relished the moments of relaxing while Ashleigh and her dad prepared dinner during the Sunday gatherings of the Lachlans and Madrigals.
But most of all, Luna was happy to have a mother. A real mother. One who helped her with learning math-the one 'language' she struggled with-and drew pictures with her... Who told amazing stories before bed and sang the most beautiful lullabies in the world...
But as Bruno and Ashleigh grew closer, Luna felt that she was beginning to be pushed aside and forgotten.
As the couple spent more time together, Luna found that she heard phrases like 'later' and 'not right now' on a frequent basis.
Even when she tried to talk to hertiasabout the whole situation, Julieta and Pepa took Bruno's side and said that Luna needed to give her father some space.
"I know you feel left out," Julieta soothed as she and Luna made arepas in the kitchen one evening. "-but Bruno's just making sure that Ashleigh is the right person for him. He wants to make sure they know each other before she becomes your new mother."
Luna slammed her masa dough onto the table, tears flowing down her cheeks, and cried, "If Papi is just going to discard me like my old Mami, then I don't want a new mami!" She raced out of the room, rushing past Ashleigh and Pepa who were returning from the market, and dashed up the stairs into her room, slamming the door behind her.
"What's going on?" Pepa asked as she placed her grocery bags on the counter.
As Ashleigh placed her things next to Pepa's, she shook her head when she noticed Juli's expression and let out a sigh. "She's upset because of me, isn't she?"
"It's not your fault," Julieta reassured her, cleaning her hands on her apron. "I'll talk to her."
"No," Ashleigh said firmly, raising her hand. "I need to handle this myself." She went up to Luna's room, knocked on the door, and called, "Luna? Can I come in, please?"
"I hate you! Go away!" Luna yelled in anger.
Trying to ignore the hurt caused by the malice in the young girl's voice, Ashleigh closed her eyes and made another attempt. "I understand you're angry with me. But there's something important I need to tell ye." After a brief pause,Casitaopened the door, and Ashleigh entered, noticing Luna sitting on her bed, curled up with her knees hugged to her chest and a look of pained anger on her face.
Once the door was shut, Ashleigh moved a desk chair closer and sat down to face Luna directly. "I'm not trying to take yer Papi away from ye. Bruno and I have been spending more time together because we want to take things slowly, and that's for yer sake. Bruno loves you dearly, Luna. He's worried that our gettin' married might mean you two won't have the same closeness anymore. And that makes me feel like I'm coming between ye."
Sitting back while Luna processed her words, Ashleigh watched as the young girl wiped her tears and sniffled. "Papi was spending more time with you than me," Luna said softly. "And h-he said he couldn't read me bedtime stories... We always read a story before bed. I felt like he was beginning to love you more than me!" With a heart-wrenching cry, Luna clutched the stuffed rat her father had given her for her birthday, holding it close as she continued, "I was afraid Papi would leave me like Mami did!"
"No!" Ashleigh declared as she sat next to Luna and pulled her close. "Oh, my sweet little lamb... Yer Papi will never leave you like your mother did. He loves you dearly, and it would shatter his heart to do that to ye. You are everything to him." After letting go of Luna, she softly stroked her cheek and smiled warmly, comforting her, "I'll never replace you in your Papi's heart. You're his daughter and you're the most important person in his life. But Bruno's heart is big enough for both of us. It's like... Well, likeCasita. She grows and makes new rooms so her family can expand. Bruno's heart is finding room to love me just as much as he loves you, yourtias, andAbuela."
Still holding on to her stuffed rat, Luna sniffled again as she looked up at Ashleigh. "I-I don't really hate you. 'm sorry I said that I wanted you to go away."
Ashleigh waited for Luna to embrace her before she caressed her blonde curls and replied, "I know ye didn't intend to hurt me, my little lamb." After pulling away, she looked at the little girl with sadness and continued, "However, what ye said made me very sad. I've been trying to be yer friend, and to hear that ye hate me..." She placed a hand over her heart and softly said, "That really hurt inside. And hearing you express it with such venom... I understand that you didn't mean it, but often, harsh words can cause wounds that take time to heal. You can't simply take them back. You need to make amends for the hurt you caused."
"What I think we should do," Ashleigh continued, "is spend some time getting to know each other-just the two of us. Because I hope that someday you'll find a place for me in your heart too."
Sniffling again as she gave Ashleigh an incredulous look, Luna said, "You still want to be my friend?"
"Of course I do," Ashleigh assured her. "Because I know that Bruno and I hurt you just like you hurt me. We need to learn how to come together so we can all be a family someday."
X
"Maybe I should go up and talk to Luna," Bruno said after Julieta pulled the fresh arepas off of the griddle.
"Bruno, she's scared," Juli said softly. "Luna understands how much you care for her, but I believe there's a part of her that will always worry about being left behind again. With the amount of time you and Ashleigh are spending together, Luna feels as though she's being neglected."
With a look of utter incredulity, Bruno dropped into a chair as he asked, "And how long have you known how my daughter's been feeling about this?"
"A few weeks," Pepa replied as she took the family plates to the table. "Juli and I figured you and Ashleigh needed some space. But really, I think you should have done more to make Luna feel included. If you get married, Ashleigh becomes Luna's stepmother. I think your daughter should have a say in that, don't you?"
Wishing he could glare at his 'middle' sister more directly, Bruno frowned and said, "In case you've forgotten, I've only been in relationships with three women my whole life-including Ashleigh! And dating as a single father... this is all unfamiliar territory for me. I'm trying to prioritize Luna's needs, but I can't get to know Ashleigh properly if I always have my daughter with me." Hiding his face in his hands, Bruno muttered to himself for a bit before lifting his head. "I've never shared this with anyone... but when Luna came to live with us, she needed me to stay in her section of my room for weeks. If she woke up and I wasn't there, she'd cry until she saw me. Juli, I realize that Luna has anxieties about being abandoned. I've been working for years to reassure my little girl that I won't leave her. I just... I'm still figuring out how to balance my life with hers."
Hearing new footsteps coming into the dining room, Bruno straightened up as he heard Luna sniffling as she approached him. "Are you alright,corazon?"
"Ashleigh and I were talking," Luna explained, climbing into her father's lap and hugging him. "I thought you were going to leave me like my old mami did."
Wrapping his arms around his daughter, Bruno felt tears welling up as he murmured, "The only time I'm every going to leave you for good, moonbeam, is when yourAbueloPedro comes to take me across the river. And that's not going to happen for averylong time."
"Papi?" Luna asked in a shy voice as she pulled away. "Is it okay if Ashleigh reads me stories sometimes? Or takes me shopping or to the park?"
"I think that's an excellent idea," Bruno approved, nodding. "And Ashleigh's a really good cook. Maybe she can teach you how to make some things?"
Luna looked from Ashleigh to her father before whispering in Spanish, "Can you help me make Ashleigh a stuffed toy? So I can tell her I'm sorry for saying that I hate her?"
Making a note to talk to Ashleigh about her conversation with Luna, Bruno nodded as he toyed with Luna's curls. "We can start working on that tonight after dinner," he replied, also in Spanish. "What kind of animal do you want to make for her?"
Giving Ashleigh a sneaky smile before murmuring in her father's ear, she said, "A little lamb."
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A/N:I am planning out the next few stages of this story and could use some reader input.
While the next few chapters will focus on Bruno and Ashleigh's relationship and their eventual marriage, I am looking to up the drama level and am trying to decide how high to crank the old Angst knob.
Low level angst-Luna develops alopecia. Since tousling his daughter's curly hair (Think Mirabel's hair, but blonde) is one of the ways Bruno shows Luna his affection for her, this would be a pretty emotional problem for both of them. (Luna thinks that Bruno will stop calling her 'moonbeam' if all her hair is gone)
Medium level-Mirabel is born blind due to a genetic disorder. Julieta gets PO'd at Bruno when he tries to help because Mirabel didn't choose to be blind and Bruno did.
High level-Luna's alopecia develops after she is diagnosed with leukemia. Bruno starts freaking out and he desperately wants his Gift back so he can know that Luna will be okay. (I also have this scene in my head of Isabela, Dolores, Mirabel, and Luisa all having a slumber party in Luna's bathroom after Mirabel hears her primathrowing up one night after a difficult chemotherapy session)
So, that's what I'm trying to figure out, folks. Please chime in with your thoughts and opinions.