by Zoe Glez
After a while, I hear a knock on my door and go to open it, Mickey following right behind me. Lately, he has seemed to become my shadow. But, I think it is because we are hoping it’s John who has suddenly decided to bring us Maddie a day earlier than planned.
“Trey!” I exclaim looking up at the man standing in my front door. If you’ve ever heard of the expression tall, dark, and handsome, well that’s exactly what describes Trey. Plus, the man is a genius and has a heart almost as huge as Mama’s.
“Hey, Laylah, Miguel,” he says, shyly smiling while rocking on the balls of his feet, luggage in hand.
“Oh! Where are my manners? Come in,” I say, moving to the side. Once he’s in, I give him a big hug. “God, I missed you so much.”
Trey works with Luke in Cali. I used to hang out with both of them when I lived there. They make a great team and he is just as amazing a person on the inside as he is gorgeous on the outside. He’s a mix of Japanese with African American with a bald head and the most gorgeous brown eyes you’ve ever seen. The man could be a model if he wanted and give Denzel Washington a run for his money.
“Trey?” Luke asks as he comes down the stairs, not believing whom he’s seeing.
“Hey, Luke,” Trey says with that shy smile of his again.
“Who’s this?” Mama asks. She and the rest of the family are waiting for an introduction of the strange man that the three of us seem to know. I had introduced him to Mickey a while back when I had gone back to Cali to get the rest of my things.
“Mom…” Luke says, clearing his throat and walking towards her. “This is Trey, my business partner.”
Trey walks to were Mama is and greets her by planting a kiss on her hand. “It’s nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Gonzalez. I’ve heard nothing but wonderful things about you.” He smiles at her.
“Well…aren’t you a charming man? I hope you’re not here to take my boy away from me for some job.”
“I wouldn’t dream of it, ma’am.”
“You’re joining us for dinner,” she commands. I can see that she has been enthralled by the Trey charm that every other woman on the planet suffers from. “And, you can call me Mama, everyone else does.”
“He’s actually staying here with us,” I tell her.
“Oh…” she simply says.
Luke introduced Trey to the rest of the family before we settled in for dinner. Dinner was lovely and clear of any drama. Everyone was on their best behavior since Trey had joined us. As soon as everyone left, I told Luke to help Trey get settled in. Before we parted ways, I had to show Trey Maddie’s room. The man is a fan of my work, to say the least.
“Tomorrow, my heaven, our first baby will be here,” Mickey excitedly says once we are in the comfort of our room.
“Tomorrow,” I confirm, planting a kiss on his lips.
Today’s the day and I’m a nervousness wreck. Not only is Maddie coming home today but Luke had told me earlier that he was coming clean today at the family lunch we had planned. I love my uncle, I’ll always love him, but I just wish he would have chosen another night to do this. It’s just that I have no freaking clue how my family will react to his news.
I find myself pacing every single second I’m left with nothing to do. My family has once again taken over our house. This time it was actually with our consent since we wanted to introduce them to Maddie in our actual home.
John is bringing her here and I actually have more control over what happens here than in the main house.
It’s lunch time and there is still no sign of John. Waiting is the worse par. It’s killing me. Then, there is also the fact that Luke is about to come clean. I am a nervous mess to say the least. We had decided to have lunch outside in our backyard and joined all four picnic tables so we can all sit together. I am sitting next to Luke and next to him, in the corner, is Trey. I look over to them and give them a nervous smile.
“Calm down, it’ll be fine,” Mickey whispers in my ear as he takes a seat next to me. I give him a weak smile, which makes him throw an arm around my shoulders and pull me towards him, kissing me on the top of my head. I feel myself calm a little bit.
We had already finished lunch and there is still no sign of John and Luke hasn’t said a word. As soon as the thought comes to mind, I hear Luke clear his throat. Guess we’re getting one thing out of the way.
“Since everyone is here, I want to take this moment to tell you all something,” he announces. I instantly reach for his hand. As I do, I see that Trey is holding his other hand. This makes me smile.
“What is it, mi niño?” Mama asks looking at him sweetly.
He looks nervous so I tighten my grip on his hand. “Well…you know how I introduced Trey as my business partner? The thing is…he’s more than that. Trey, is also my partner in life,” he finally admits.
“What does that even mean, Lucas?” Mama asks, clearly confused. The rest of the family also starts questioning him, asking him to further explain. I can tell he’s reluctant, but I also see he’s determined to do this, to finally put it out in the open. I couldn’t be more proud of him.
He takes a deep breath. “It means that I’m gay, Mom,” Luke finally confesses, not sugarcoating it one bit.
Chapter Nineteen
I
f someone would’ve told me years ago that this was all it took for my entire family to be in complete and utter silence, I would’ve pushed Luke into coming clean sooner. I swear, if a pin needle were to drop, you’d hear it.
I was eighteen and had just moved to California where I would start college. My second week there, my apartment had suffered a minor flooding. A pipe had broken and I woke up to an apartment full of water that could give the Nile River a run for its money. Due to the current homeless situation I had found myself in, I had called Luke to see if I could stay with him until it got fixed. He didn’t think twice, just told me I could stay as long as I wanted.
I met Trey the same way my family did, as my uncle’s business partner. I could tell from that first meeting that they were really close. I just didn’t know how close they really were. Trey came over almost every night for dinner and I instantly liked him. He was smart, funny, and gave the greatest advice.
Over a week had passed and my apartment still wasn’t fixed. One night, I was planning to be at the library late with one of my study groups and I told my uncle so he wouldn’t wait for me for dinner. We ended up finishing quicker than I thought, so I went straight to Luke’s from there. As soon as I pulled in, I noticed Trey’s car was there. I didn’t pay much attention to it since he was normally there, but when I opened the door I felt like the air was pulled right out of me. My uncle and Trey were in a full-on, steamy make out session on the couch.
Luckily for my eyes and my mental health, they were still fully clothed. No one should ever go through the trauma of seeing a relative have sex.
“Oh my God!” I screeched out.
“Laylah, oh God, oh God. I can explain.” Luke says, jumping off of the couch and coming over to where I am standing, still in shock.
“I don’t think there’s really much to explain,” I tell him, still gaping. For the first time ever I feel like am truly seeing my uncle for the first time, the person he really is. He isn’t hiding from me, that shadow he always has whenever I’ve seen him back at home is gone.
“Oh God, Lai, it’s not what you think,” he says, running his hand through his hair and I could see that he was scared of my reaction. He was afraid he would be rejected by me, by our whole family.
“So you’re gay, big whoop,” I tell him with a smile on my face as I move to the chair opposite of where they were. “Sit down, my children, we need to have a talk about boundaries and doors,” I tell them pointing to the couch they were occupying before I came in.
That night we had a very long talk. My uncle was amazed by my acceptance, not that I was. Love is love. It knows no boundaries, age or sex. Love is blind. Plus, like Mickey had said, you can’t choose the person y
ou fall in love with, it just happens. Looking back now that I know what it means to love someone, I can tell you that they have what Mickey and I have: true love. They had told me they had been together for almost a year and they’re still going strong. Trey was my uncle’s first boyfriend, although he had gone on a couple of dates before.
From that day forward, my relationship with my uncle had grown pretty strong. I had promised him that I wouldn’t tell anyone about his relationship until he was ready to do so, a promise I have faithfully kept. I know this was a hard decision for him to make, but I’m so proud of him for facing his greatest fear. No matter what the outcome is, I’ll always be there for him.
I’ve been trying to gauge Mama’s reaction but I really can’t tell what’s on her mind. I just hope that whatever it is, it turns out to be for the good. She tends to live on old values, but sometimes she can be unpredictable. I hope to God she doesn’t make Luke’s fears a reality. It will completely break his heart and mine.
“Could you please say something?” Luke says in barely a whisper. His pain noticeable.
“How could you do this to me, Lucas? How can this been possible? You’ve always liked girls. This is not how I raised you,” Mama hisses. I catch a glimpse of remorse in her eyes but I can’t really tell.
“Do what to you, Mom? This isn’t about you,” Luke says, pain ruling his voice.
“How could you say this isn’t about me? I raised you and this is how you pay me back?”
“Mama! That’s enough,” I hiss at her. “I will not have you acting like this at my house. This is no one’s fault.”
“The hell it isn’t, Laylah. You knew about this and you didn’t tell me?” she asks, looking at me with pain in her eyes.
“It wasn’t my place to tell you. And quite frankly, after seeing your reaction, I’m beginning to think that maybe I shouldn’t have pushed him as much as I did.”
“There has to be a way to fix this,” the mad woman says.
“There is nothing to fix, Mom!” Luke yells. “There is nothing to fix,” he says more calmly, tears rolling down his cheeks. “I am not broken,” he whispers with such a force that it may have well been a scream.
“Why, Lucas, why?” she asks now, tears streaming down her cheeks. The moment between them is so touching that I can see everyone else in a trance between surprise and pain, tears in their eyes.
“I fell in love. Love is love, whether it is with a man or a woman. Love is blind. You’ve always told me that. Why can’t you accept me for who I am? I need you to be happy for me, Mom. I need you to tell me that you’re not ashamed of me, that you can accept me for who I am and accept the man that I love,” he says between sobs.
And, there she is, breaking her walls. There is the grandmother that I’ve always loved and looked after. I can see her reemerging. She has always taught us to love unconditionally, to always follow what the heart says and to love the people around us, flaws included. Because at the end of the day, we are all human, and we all make mistakes. No one is perfect.
Luke raises from his seat and walks to where she is crying. He kneels in front of her and takes both of her arms in his. “This is who I am. I am still the same man you raised. Please, please don’t judge or condemn me for loving someone who makes me happy, who makes me whole.”
“Oh, Lucas, my sweet, sweet boy,” she says caressing his cheek. “Can you ever forgive an old coot like me? I got so wrapped up in what’s supposed to be right that I lost myself for a minute. I forgot that what really matters is your happiness, my boy. I could never judge you for loving someone. In matters of the heart there are no wrongs. We don’t choose who we love. You could fall in love with a rock and I’ll still love you and be proud of you, my boy.”
“I love you too, Mom,” he says pulling her in for a hug, his voice muffled by his crying.
“I’m so sorry, my sweet boy,” she says kissing his cheek.
After that very emotional moment, Mama went over to Trey and welcomed him to the family. She also asked him to forgive her for her behavior. She then announced that if anyone disagreed with it then they could get the hell out of her house. But, like I said, my family is pretty accepting and forgiving.
We have all moved to the backyard and my nerves are still highly active since John hasn’t arrived with Maddie yet. Everyone was happy and enjoying the conversations they were each having. I have no idea who was talking to whom, but they seemed to know and that’s all that matters. Mickey was once again trying to calm me down. The doorbell finally rings and I feel the bile produced by my nerves rising into my throat.
“It’s time,” Mickey whispers at my ear, kissing my temple.
Please, God, let this go smoothly…
“Can I have everyone’s attention?” I ask so I can warn them to be on their best behavior, but they are too involved in their conversations to listen. I huff in frustration and Mickey whistles for them to shut up.
“Thank you, Dimps,” I tell him once everyone is silent.
“You’re more than welcome, now hurry it up so we can get the door,” he says moving his arm around my waist and pulling me toward him.
“Okay…now that we’ve got your attention,” I turn toward our family who is rudely staring at us. “I want you all to be on your best behavior when we come back.”
“And we just want to say how sorry we are for not telling you about this before. But, to be honest, it was our decision to make and we couldn’t be happier about it,” Mickey adds looking down at me with loving eyes.
“So, if you’ll excuse us, we are going to get the door now,” I finish our speech.
We practically run inside the house to get the door. All that’s going through my mind is that if the person who was ringing our door bell is not John with our baby girl, I’m going to go ballistic. I really don’t think we, I, can wait any longer.
Sensing my uneasiness, Mickey opens the door. As soon as he does, tears are in my eyes. My little Maddie is finally home and she looks as cute as ever with her golden locks pulled up in a tight ponytail and her pretty flowery sundress. As soon as she see us, she sprints straight to us, hugging us both on the legs, making my heart melt.
“Mommy, Daddy!” she screeches, making the tears flow out of my eyes faster.
“Oh, pretty girl, I can’t believe you’re finally here with us,” I say picking her up and kissing her cheek before giving her a tight hug. I reach for Mickey and he quickly joins our hug, giving our daughter a kiss on the top of her head.
“Why you crywing, mommy?” she asks me, reaching for my tears, which made my sob fest worse.
I give a soft laugh and tell her, “I’m just so happy you’re finally here with us Maddie. These are tears of joy.” I pull her tighter to me and kiss her temple.
“She’s all yours now. Congratulations on your new daughter, mom and dad.” John says, clearing his throat, a glint of happiness in his eyes.
“Thank you,” Mickey and I say at the same time.
“I’m just glad she’s in good hands,” he says with a nod. “I look forward to seeing ya’ll soon at the orphanage. Have a good rest of the day. I promise to bring the papers once they are finalized.” With that, he leaves our home.
We spend another couple of minutes alone with our daughter. I was really glad, yet surprised, that she had quickly taken to calling us mom and dad. Then again, when I think about it, it shouldn’t have come as a surprise after all. The three of us had always have a close relationship. It would only make sense for us to quickly get on the family wagon. For the little time we’ve known each other, we have always seen her as a daughter and she has always seen us as parental figures.
“Okay, baby girl, ready to meet the rest of the family?” I ask her after we explained to her that she would get to meet the entire family today. She was really excited when she found out she had two uncles and grandparents, and bunch of great uncles and second cousins to meet. But, I could also see that she was nervous about it, so I reassured her that sh
e was safe with all of them and that they will love her as much as Mickey and I love her.
Without further ado, we each grab one of her hands and walk outside together, united as a family. It comes to no surprise to me when we get outside and they’re in full chatter and don’t really notice us, or the newest addition to our family. The newest baby, our daughter.
Mickey clears his throat and everyone turns their attention to us in questioning, they still don’t seem to acknowledge the tiny person between us. “Everyone we would like you to meet a very special someone,” he says kneeling next to Maddie, catching their attention.
“This is Maddie, our daughter,” I say following Mickey steps and kneeling too. “Maddie, this is our family, your family,” I say smiling at her.
“Hi,” she shyly whispers with her thumb in her mouth.
“You two adopted?” both of my parents said.
“Yeah, we did,” we both answer back with proud smiles.
If I thought they were completely silent before, I’m pretty sure they are all dead now. I can’t even hear their breathing. But, I do catch Luke and Ari grinning at us and looking at Maddie in wonder. Our baby girl really is precious, just like an angel. Our angel. The silence is broken up by the sound of Mama sobbing.
I sprint to where she is and softly ask, “What’s wrong, vieja?”
“You two are the kindest people I know. I’m just so happy you took a second chance at parenthood and decided to give that wonderful kind of love you both have to such a wonderful little angel,” she says with her one of a kind smile.
I see a tiny shadow reaching us and notice that it’s Maddie. She reaches her hand up to Mama’s cheek and wipes some of her tears off, just like she did with me. “You crywing ‘couse you happy like mommy?” she asks her.
“Oh, come here you little angel,” Mama gives a soft laugh and picks her up onto her lap, giving her a hug and kiss on the cheek. “I’ve got a feeling that you and I are going to be the bests of friends, Madison.” Then, she gives her the greatest gift of all, her one of a kind angelic smile, the only one capable of curing souls.
