Lucy’s words linger in the air between us, a punctuation mark to the absolute whirlwind of a day we have experienced so far. The sunlight causes the perspiration still holding fast to her silky smooth scales to glisten. She continues gazing at me with brimming confidence as she awaits my response. I take her hands in my own and give her a loving smile. “I’m really happy to hear that. And… even more so, I agree with you. You really were amazing today.” She blushes as she glances down at my form against hers. “You weren’t too bad yourself, tiger.” I shake my head as my ears redden. “No- I mean, thank you, you too, but… that’s not what I meant. Today. Everything. At the clinic, at the park… you were phenomenal.” She draws in a slow breath before giving me a warm smile. “You helped me get to where I am.” “But you’re the one that got there. Yes, I gave you some nudges and my support, but you couldn’t have done what you did today if you didn’t have that strength in you.” “Anon…” She nuzzles her snout beside my neck as she embraces me. I wrap my arms around her in return, gently rubbing her back. After a moment of snuggling, she speaks up again. “That boy… at the park. I still can’t believe that.” I let out a puff of air in solidarity with her disbelief. “Unreal that he’d not only slip away from his chaperones but also get through that safety fence. It’s a miracle you were there to save him.” “In that moment… I… ah, never mind. It’s stupid.” She shakes her head as she attempts to discard her thought. I lean back to meet her eyes. “No, go on. What is it?” She sighs. “I dunno. I… saw Naser in that little boy. My mind shot back to when we were children, when… when the accident happened. When he fell…” I stroke Lucy’s shoulders in reassurance. “That wasn’t your fault, Lucy.” She nods. “I know. I… still wish I could have stopped him. If I had seen what he was going to do, I would have tackled him to the ground. I just… didn’t see him do it. He was there one moment, and then gone the next.” Her eyes moisten slightly, but she presses on. “I feel like God gave me another chance… to make things right where I messed up before, you know?” As I consider her words for a moment, she scoffs at herself. “I told you it was stupid.” I place a hand on her cheek. “I don’t think it’s stupid at all. I’ve… well, I still haven’t necessarily come around to the whole ‘God’ thing, per se, but… when we were at the viability clinic, sitting and waiting for Dr. Larson, I prayed for the opportunity to have a healthy baby with you. I’m not sure if it was just a token gesture or sincere, but I prayed, and… a few minutes later, we got our good news. Maybe it’s not so far-fetched to say Big Guns Upstairs is doing some work.” Lucy’s lip quivers as her receding tears begin to reemerge. “Oh, Anon… I was praying for it, too… you have no idea how hard I was praying.” I give her a smile. “I had an idea, based on how quiet you were being. Plus, you know, the whole ‘closing your eyes and folding your hands’ thing is a bit of a give-away, too.” She giggles and swats my chest with the back of her hand. “Oh, I was not doing that!” I feign indignance. “Calling me a liar now, are you? What would God think of such baseless accusations, huh?” “I think He’d back me up that you’re being a dweeb.” Hard to argue with God. She snuggles close to me again and lets out a sigh. I stroke her hair before I speak up again. “So… where do you want to start with our friends?” Lucy shifts her head slightly as she considers the question. “Well, as ready as I feel to reconnect, I still think I shouldn’t overdo things and try to bite off more than I can chew. Maybe… we can meet with Rosa first? If she’s available sometime in the near future?” I shrug. “If she isn’t in the process of giving birth, that is. Want me to shoot her a message on Faceboop?” She gives a nod and allows me to slide out of her arms to sit on the edge of the bed. I glance down at my nightstand. The spot where my phone should rest is vacant. I cock my head, but before I can ask the question Lucy answers it for me. “Pants pocket.” I look over my shoulder at her. “Alright, listen here, Professor Xavier-” She giggles. “You did the same thing before. When we… first tried for a baby.” Her cheeks begin flushing red again, and my ears follow suit. Hooboy, okay, let’s focus here, Anon. Taking the few steps to the foot of the bed where our clothes lie in a tangled heap, I retrieve my phone and slide back into bed next to Lucy. She immediately weaves her arms around me and rests her head next to mine, watching my phone as I unlock it. She grins warmly when she sees my backlit wallpaper, an image of the two of us from our wedding day. Both of us wore smiles so wide you’d think we would never see a day of hardship. Though we’ve certainly had tough times, it’s all been worth it to be with this woman. I tap the icon for Faceboop Messenger and scroll down the very short list to Rosa’s name. I bring up our empty conversation history, greeted by a prompt to “start typing here”. I’m no super technological wizard, but even I’m not so retarded that I don’t understand where to type a message. I click the box and begin: Rosa [ Hey Rosa, it’s Anon. I was wondering if you might want to meet up with Lucy and I sometime? If you’re not busy, that is. Hope to hear from you soon! ] I hit the “Send” icon, launching the little green paper airplane on its jovial journey across the screen to indicate the message was successfully communicated. I take a breath through my nostrils and turn to Lucy who still remains perched on my shoulder. “Well, that’s that. Once I get a reply, I’ll be sure to-” The phone begins vibrating in my hands. Startled, I turn back to the device, greeted by a large image of Rosa and her husband… their profile picture, I think. Is she… wait, is she calling me? Through Faceboop? I don’t- I clumsily click a large green button under Rosa’s picture. Her profile image is rapidly replaced by her smiling face taking up almost the entirety of my phone’s screen, and… the light next to my camera flicks on… Oh no. “¡HOLA, An-on! How ARE yo-” Lucy squawks as she dives out of frame, covering herself with a bundle of sheets mid-motion. I curse loudly as I slap at the red “Disconnect” button on the screen, causing Rosa’s voice to cut out and her face to disappear. Lucy turns to me furiously as she holds the sheet against her form. “ANON, WHAT THE FUCK?!” I clap my hands to the side of my head as the phone falls to the bed. “I’M SORRY IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!” She swats me on the arm. “Are you literally retarded?! You accepted a VIDEO CALL!” “I didn’t know what was happening! I don’t use Faceboop!” “We’re lying in bed, nude, and you decide, ‘Hey, this seems like a GREAT time to chat with Rosa face to face’?!” “What do you want me to say?! I panicked!” Lucy buries her face in her hands. “Oh my God, what if she saw me naked?!” I try to console her. “I’m sure she didn’t. She probably doesn’t even realize what happe-” I’m cut off by my phone letting out a quick buzz to indicate a received message. Lucy’s eyes widen as I reach for the device and click the notification. Rosa [ 1:57 PM ] [ I think we had bad connection? The video call ended! ] Below it, an emoji of a crying ankylosaur sheds its pixelated tears in a three-frame loop. Lucy lets out a long breath. “Okay. I think you ended the call fast enough.” I also emit a sigh of relief. “Well, should we call her back? I mean, after we get some clothes on.” “Yeah! Let me fix my hair, too.” Lucy and I both tend to ourselves, performing a quick clean-up and putting on some fresh clothes. After a few minutes, we both head out to the living room and situate ourselves on the couch. As I unlock my phone, Lucy straightens her shoulders and puts on her best smile. I look over to her with a smile of my own and give her a quick kiss on the cheek, causing her grin to widen even further. I tap the “Video Call” button, and a moment later Rosa answers. Her face lights up with a beaming smile as she sees the two of us from her side of the screen. “Ahhh, there you are! So nice to see you, An-on! And you too, Lucy! How are you?!” Lucy gives a little wave. “Hiii Rosa! Nice to see you again! We’ve been well, how have you been?” “I’ve been good! ¡Qué bendición! Lucy, when An-on came in and saw me at the flower shop, I was so excited to hear you two had married!” Lucy blushes. “Thank you, Rosa. I’m very happy.” She leans against me as she says this, bringing the side of her head to mine. I speak up. “Rosa, we actually wanted to see if you might be interested in meeting up. You mentioned that you wanted Lucy to meet your babies.” I pause, then cock my eyebrow as I speak tentatively. “... All… two of them?” Rosa chuckles. “¡Sí, sí! Still only two!” She extends her arms and angles her phone camera down to show her profoundly round stomach underneath her blouse top. “We are expecting any day now!” Lucy’s face reddens further as Rosa continues. “You want to visit with us and meet the babies? Ramón and I are having a family cookout tomorrow, you are more than welcome to join us!” I blink at this news. “Family? Oh, we don’t want to impose-” Rosa cuts me off. “No, no, no, no, no! You are not imposing at all, I am inviting you!” I glance at Lucy who returns my look. She still appears resolute, but I worry that a large crowd of people in addition to us trying to reconnect with Rosa might be a bit overwhelming. However, she doesn’t say anything, simply offering a miniscule nod. I turn back to the camera. “Will there be a lot of people there?” “No, no. Just a small family gathering! I will message you the address!” Lucy chimes in. “Should we bring anything?” Rosa offers a wide grin. “Only your smiles and a healthy appetite! We will have plenty of food!” I turn to Lucy once more who takes a quick breath through her nostrils before replying. “We’ll be there!” “¡Maravilloso! We will see you at noon tomorrow!” Both Lucy and I smile and I speak up. “We look forward to it! And thank you for the video call!” Before she replies, Rosa flits her eyebrows slightly and gives a mischievous smirk. “Thank YOU for putting on clothes this time! ¡Adiós!” The phone emits a *ba-doop* sound as her smirking face abruptly vanishes, replaced by the two text messages in our conversation history. After a moment, Rosa’s address appears below them, followed by a winking ankylosaur emoji. … I do not move. I don’t need to. I already know what’s coming. As I stare blankly at the phone screen that slowly dims in brightness before going black, my peripheral vision communicates to me the shape of my wife’s head. It moves at a glacial pace, rotating in my direction as her eyes blast forth annihilating death rays of pure rage. The beams of molten heat slowly slide across the room, disintegrating furniture and lighting the floor and walls on fire in their sweeping path of destruction. Their target is clear: I accept my fate. As her gaze comes to rest on me, the superheated lasers boring a hole through my skull and melting my brain to oozing gray matter, she whispers: “‘She didn’t see us’, huh? ‘Probably didn’t realize what happened’, huh?” Welp. Guess this is how I die. — The crisp autumn air has abandoned the warmth to which it once clung, replacing it with a chill that forces one to don an extra layer to endure its bite. Thankfully, I managed to survive the ordeal yesterday, though I had to do some profuse apologizing, give some lengthy shoulder rubs and prepare a batch of dino nuggies before I escaped Lucy’s wrath. We even got to give the whole “trying for a baby” thing a few more shots once she forgave my foolish fat-fingering. I cruise down the highway towards the address Rosa sent to us. It takes us outside of Volcaldera Bluffs proper to a suburb about twenty minutes inland. The businesses become more sparse as the countryside begins to sprawl before us, sprinkled with homes and subdivisions amidst the swaths of trees and hilly grass. It’s not a bad area by any means, just one that I don’t find myself traveling through very often. Lucy sits beside me with a mildly nervous look on her face, glancing at the mirror in the passenger seat’s sun visor occasionally. It might be to check her make-up, or to psych herself up; likely a combination of the two. I gently take her hand in my own, leaving the task of balancing the glassware containing the lemon cake she baked to her other hand and her lap. She turns to me with a smile as she locks her fingers with mine. I quickly glance at her, careful to not take my eyes off the road too long as I offer a smile of reassurance. “You’ll do great today, honey. Rosa’s excited to see you!” Lucy squeezes my hand a little tighter. “I know. I’m excited to see her, too. I just hope there’s not too many people. I’m already nervous enough as it is.” “Well, she did say it was a small family gathering. I think we’ll be fine.” She lets out a slow breath as we take the exit my GPS calls out and travel down a country road for a few miles. As we turn onto the road that houses the red destination pip on my minimap, we drive past several dozen cars parked up and down each side of the pavement. I notice Lucy’s eyes widen and clear my throat. “Erm… there’s… probably several cookouts going on. It is a Saturday, after all.” There were not several cookouts going on. As we slowly roll past Rosa’s home, somewhere in the ballpark of a hundred ankylosaurs of varying heights, widths and ages mill about in the front and back yard, entering and exiting the house in droves as they set up folding table after folding table of food, snacks and drinks. I have to travel a good 250 feet further down the road before I can find a spot to park, despite us being about 20 minutes early for the “noon” gathering. As I put the car in park, Lucy stares ahead, gripping the lemon cake container with both hands. I give her a quick rub on the shoulder; she jumps slightly at my touch but turns to me with a shaky smile. “You gonna be okay, Lucy?” She takes another slow, steadying breath before nodding. I raise my eyebrows. “You don’t have to force yourself if you’re not ready. I won’t be upset with you.” Her eyes brim with determination. “I got this.” I lean over and give her a kiss. “You got this.” As we exit the car, ethnic music can already be heard reverberating across the neighborhood, the familiar combination of trumpets, guitars and pleasant, if indecipherable, vocals making for an enjoyable aural experience. The neighbors must not mind too much because I don’t see anyone wandering out of their homes to shout at the hosts of the ever-growing party. We approach the gargantuan front yard, pausing at the corner where the lawn meets the street. Seated on its behind, an ankylosaur infant no more than a year old gazes up at Lucy and I with enormous red eyes. I glance around, seeing no adult ankylosaurs within fifty feet. I turn to Lucy. “... Somebody left a baby.” The infant has locked eyes with Lucy who stares down at it with intensity for a moment. Without warning, she shoves the lemon cake into my hands and drops to her knees next to the child. “Well, hello there! What’s your name?!” The child bursts out in laughter as it claps its hands and wiggles its feet. Lucy continues baby-talking to it. “Ohh, aren’t you a beautiful baby, yes you are!” An ankylosaur woman strides towards us with a smile on her face. “¡Ahí estás! This little troublemaker, she likes to explore and gets away sometimes!” She scoops up the infant who reaches towards Lucy as it ascends into its mother’s arms. Lucy offers the woman a smile. “She’s very beautiful.” “¡Gracias! You are here for the party? Are you Rosa’s friends?” I nod. “Yep. Is she around?” I crane my neck as I ask this, taking in the dozens of chattering ankylosaurs, all with similar color patterns. “¡Sí! I will take you to her!” The woman who introduces herself as Rosa’s cousin Martina leads us past the horde of similarly-shaded dinosaurs and rows of folding tables covered with growing quantities of food. As I glance around, Lucy and I stick out like a sore thumb, being the only non-ankylosaurs within eyeshot. Lucy pays no attention to the crowd, fixated entirely on the baby in Martina’s arms. She makes playful faces at the child and giggles along with it as it shakes its stubby fingers in Lucy’s direction. At the house, Martina pushes past a crowd of chattering folks around the entrance and pokes her head through the door, then withdraws it to address the two of us. “Ahh, I’m afraid the kitchen is rather full… as is the rest of the house. You would be squeezing to get through! They will come out in a few minutes with food, if you want to wait out here.” Lucy and I both nod, though Lucy doesn’t take her eyes off the baby. Martina takes note. “Would you like to hold little Carolina?” Lucy’s eyes light up as she accepts the offer. Carolina is a rather hefty looking baby given the overall build of ankylosaurs, but Lucy manages to hold the child with no effort. She absolutely melts as Carolina playfully slaps at the tip of her snout, gently bouncing the little one up and down in her arms as she sways left and right. Martina beams at the two of them, then addresses Lucy and I. “¡Fantástico! Are the two of you parents?” Lucy speaks up to answer the question for the both of us. “We’ve actually just started trying for a baby of our own.” I place a hand on her back as her smile widens even further. Gazing at Carolina, Lucy’s eyes emit equal parts love and hopefulness. Martina claps her hands together and cheers. “That is wonderful to hear! They are little blessings! Just make sure to keep an eye on them so they don’t wander off! Speaking of… where is Carlos?” She scans the lower half of the crowd for a moment, seeking a smaller-sized ankylosaur before waving a hand. “Ah, I’m sure he’s fine.” I raise an eyebrow. First, Carolina is sitting in the grass next to the road, and now this Carlos is just somewhere unknown? I hope Rosa keeps a closer eye on her kids than her cousin. Carolina begins fussing a little, prompting Lucy to hand her back to her mother while giving a sad little smile. “Thank you for letting me hold her, she’s absolutely gorgeous!” “Ohh, it’s no trouble at all! I’m sure you will be a wonderful mother!” Lucy’s cheeks redden at Martina’s words; I rub the flat of her back a bit to offer my agreement with the sentiment. Martina bids us farewell as she heads off to mingle with other relatives. She had informed us that virtually everyone here is extended family: aunts, uncles, parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, cousins, second cousins, third cousins, cousins with some amount of removal, the fella who sells them cilantro at the local farmer’s market… and then there’s us. Despite our lack of blood connection to Rosa, everyone treats Lucy and I warmly and hospitably, shaking our hands, giving big hugs and exchanging names and pleasantries with us. One particular elderly ankylosaur woman in a wheelchair beckons us over, giving both of us an enormous, toothless grin as she extends her shaking arms to embrace us. She says something to us in the mysterious foreign dialect of their people, of which Lucy and I know practically none. We politely smile and nod in our ignorance before a younger family member steps over to us and translates. “She says you two make a beautiful couple.” Lucy glances from the teenaged boy to the matriarch, her smile doubling in size. “Um, gracias!” The old woman emits an adorable giggle. “¡De nada!” After a few minutes, the door to the house swings open and a parade of ankylosaurs march out, each holding plates, trays and bowls piled high with mouth-watering cuisine. The food finds its way to vacant positions on the near-collapsing folding tables, quickly being swarmed by the younger family members who are yanked back and scolded by their parents for not being patient. Amidst the seemingly endless parade of food-wielding family members, a familiar form emerges, precariously managing a heaping tray of taquitos in her arms. She uses her gigantic belly to act as a third hand in balancing the dish. As she moves towards one of the few remaining openings within the mountainous spread, she catches sight of Lucy and I. “AAAAIIIIEEEEE! An-on! Lucy! ¡Bienvenidos, bienvenidos!” She slaps the tray down, sending one of the roughly six hundred taquitos plummeting to its demise on the grass below. She glances at it for a moment with an annoyed huff before turning back to the two of us, lifting her hands far above her head as she waddles towards Lucy. She accepts Rosa’s embrace, looking down at the beach ball of a stomach as it approaches. “Rosa! My goodness, you look like you’re about to pop!” Rosa laughs at this. “You should have seen me when I was pregnant with twins! I could hardly walk, they were such a hefty duo!” The word “twins” makes Lucy’s eyes light up. “They are asleep right now but I’m sure they’ll be up in a few minutes. I will introduce you after lunch!” As she turns to me with her arms extended, she looks down at the lemon cake in my hands, grinning as she scolds me. “No, no! I said we would have enough food! You didn’t have to bring this!” Lucy comes to my defense. “I insisted. I didn’t want us to come empty-handed, after all.” I add to her statement as Rosa envelops me in a hug. “Lucy is an excellent baker, her lemon cake is absolutely bananas.” Rosa steps back from the welcoming gesture with a look of confusion. “Lemon cake, or banana cake?” I cock my head, then stumble over my words, realizing the confusion. “Erm… uhh, oh! I mean, it’s lemon cake. I just said it’s ‘bananas’ like-” Rosa giggles. “I’m kidding, estúpido. Of course I know the saying.” Lucy joins in laughing at my fluster. We just reconnected with Rosa in person thirty seconds ago and they’re already ganging up on me. I shake my head as Rosa accepts the lemon cake from me and passes it to another one of her gorillion relatives who carries it over to the dessert table. She turns back to us. “Thank you both for coming. We will get started with lunch in just a moment.” With this, she surveys the still-growing crowd, sucks in a deep breath, and bellows out in an ear-shattering voice I hadn’t heard since high school: “¡ATENCIÓN! WE WILL BEGIN LUNCH AFTER BLESSING!” She gestures towards the two of us. “THESE ARE MY FRIENDS FROM HIGH SCHOOL, AN-ON AND LUCY! THEY WILL JOIN US TODAY, SAY ‘HOLA’ TO THEM!” Almost as though it was rehearsed, nearly a hundred voices all exclaim “¡HOLA!” in our direction. Lucy and I are still recoiling slightly from the sudden onset of tinnitus caused by Rosa’s booming announcement, but we offer meager grins and an awkward wave to the smiling crowd that encompasses us and the lunch spread. Rosa makes us flinch a second time with another bellow: “¡RAMÓN! ¡ORACIÓN, AHORA!” The man I recognize as her husband from the flower shop steps forward and removes his cap. The handful of family members who also wear hats remove them as Ramón begins speaking. I don’t understand most of his words, only catching a few amidst the slurry of rolling R’s and rampant conjugation. As he approaches what is likely the end of the prayer, Rosa nudges him in the side with her elbow and flicks her eyebrows in our direction. Ramón glances towards us and, with a smile, does his best to offer an addendum in our tongue: “Ehh… and, thank for friends of Rosa! En ésta casa, todos somos familia.” Though I don’t catch the full meaning of his last sentence, the word “familia” carries extra weight with it. It might be the way Ramón emphasized the word, or the way Rosa and her entire extended family beam at us after the prayer is concluded, but something about it felt meaningful. Genuine. I can’t help but wear a big grin in response, and Lucy fares similarly, blushing at the kind words. Rosa claps her hands together and shouts, “¡Vamos a comer!” We need no translation; the tables are rapidly besieged by hungry ankylosaurs who begin piling their paper plates high with delectable ethnic cuisine. Lucy and I make our way to the makeshift line that has formed and is being honored by at least a handful of people, but with the amount of delicious food covering the spacious yard there’s zero risk of the two of us going without. Our own plates adorned with mouth-watering delights, we head to the numerous seating tables. Rosa waves us over as soon as she notices us, having reserved the seats across the table from her and her husband. “Ah, Lucy! This is my husband, Ramón!” He offers a wide grin and shakes Lucy’s hand, speaking after swallowing his mouthful of food. “My name Ramón!” “No, no! It’s- ahh, never mind.” Rosa shakes her head, clearly not in the mood to continue Ramón’s education. “Anyway! Lucy! How have you been? It’s been too long, my friend!” Lucy smiles. “I’ve been good, Rosa. It has been too long.” Rosa returns the smile. “You two are still in Volcaldera Bluffs?” “Yes, we have a house a few blocks away from my parents. It was a… wedding present from them. The down payment, at least.” At her words, I feel my ears redden slightly. I’m still amazed by Ripley and Samantha’s generosity. Rosa chuckles. “Ahh! It is good to have family close! As you can tell, they are always happy to drop by when there is food and good company to be had!” I interject. “Yeah… I was a little surprised to see the turn-out when you had mentioned it would be a ‘small’ family gathering…” “Sí, si… I am a little disappointed at the turn-out, too. We should have had more!” Rosa sighs, completely missing the point I was trying to make. “Well, what do you expect? Many are on vacation to warmer climates. Uncle Francisco isn’t here, either… shame, he is usually the life of the party! His temper gets him in too much trouble!” Lucy speaks up. “Oh, no… is he okay?” Rosa smirks. “Oh, he’s fine. He’s just in jail for a bit while they work out the case. ‘Aggravated assault’ and ‘destruction of property’ were the charges, I think. I’m sure it will work out though, he’s a sweetheart.” I absent-mindedly gnaw on an enchilada; despite almost everything on offer being vegetarian, there’s no shortage of flavor and texture in the wonderful array of dishes. I stop mid-chew as I notice Lucy looking intently in my direction. My eyes meet hers as she seems to be attempting to transfer some psychic thought into my brain. I glance around, unsure of what she’s trying to get me to grasp. Sorry, honey, but I was not paying attention. These enchiladas are too good. Lucy lets out a small huff and turns back to Rosa. “Um… it wouldn’t have been a traffic altercation of some sort, would it have?” She shrugs. “Sí. He loves that truck almost as much as he loves his wife and kids! It was too bad how he let his temper get the best of him. At least nobody got hurt, but the other man’s car… destruido.” Lucy continues glaring at me. I still have no clue what she’s trying to communicate. I give her a small shrug as I take another bite, lost in my own little world of heavenly deliciousness. Lucy speaks deliberately and without breaking eye contact with me. “Wow. That’s so weird. Isn’t it, Anon?” I swallow my food and turn to Rosa. “Uh… yeah. That’s crazy.” I take another bite of my enchilada as Lucy rolls her eyes and pinches the bridge of her snout. I assume I’ll get yelled at about something later, but we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. Yummy enchilada time. We make a bit more small talk as we continue enjoying the vast array of ethnic cuisine. As we arrive at dessert, Ramón fetches two plates of sweets, one for himself and one for his very pregnant wife. Both plates have a slice of Lucy’s lemon cake on them, and as Rosa takes a bite of it she melts, praising Lucy for her baking talent. Lucy blushes at the compliment, waving her hand in an attempt to downplay the achievement but tickled fancy by the adulation all the same. At some point, I realize I’ve got a dopey grin on my face as I watch Lucy and Rosa chatter away, almost as though no time at all passed between high school and now. They weren’t exactly close friends back then, especially with Lucy’s somewhat prickly demeanor when she went by a different name and gender identity, but seeing her with Rosa today you’d think they were best buddies reconnecting after an extended absence. I get a tingly feeling as I realize what’s happening: Lucy is finally doing what she said she’d do, and she’s doing it herself. I’m not twisting her arm, nor am I shielding her fragility… I’m simply here with her as she’s mending her bridges. Lucy notices me smiling at her and returns it with one of her own. Before we can speak up again, an odd sort of muffled chirping noise emanates from one of Ramón’s pockets. He withdraws a small, white radio and places it on the table. It takes the device sounding off again for me to figure out what it is, and the identity of its sounds. The tinny fussing of a pair of babies causes Rosa to perk up and begin the slightly laborious task of standing from her chair. “Ahh, that would be the twins awake from their nap. Lucy, would you like to meet them?” Lucy’s eyes immediately go dreamy. “Yes. Very much so.” With a smile and a beckoning gesture, Rosa invites us to follow her towards the beautiful two-story house in the center of the yard. We weave through the still gigantic crowd of family members until we make our way through the front door. The inside of the house is quite a bit more peaceful than it was earlier with only a few people roaming around and chatting. Rosa leads us upstairs to the room containing her little ones. As she quietly opens the door and steps in, the quaint nursery makes Lucy emit a longing sigh. She gazes at me for a moment with a wide smile before following Rosa into the room, immediately setting eyes on the side-by-side cribs containing the twins. She lets out a kind of jittery giggle of delight as the two babies wiggle their limbs and gaze up at her with eyes the same reddish color as Rosa’s. Lucy swoons. “Awwwww, they are the most adorable babies I’ve ever seen!” Rosa giggles, pointing first to the baby on the left, then to the one on the right. “This is Hector, and this is Amelia. They are wonderful and very calm.” Almost in response, Hector makes a babbling noise as he extends his stubby arms towards Rosa while Amelia sneezes, blinking in surprise from the sudden expulsion of snot. Rosa patiently wipes Amelia’s face with a small cloth, sniffing the air slightly as she does so. “Ah, I believe they need changing.” She glances at Lucy who continues fawning over the duo. “... What do you say, Lucy? Want some practice?” Lucy immediately accepts the invitation and scoops up Amelia while Rosa handles Hector. The smell is made more apparent by the infants’ transport to the nearby changing table, causing me to involuntarily reel back on my feet a bit. I’m excited to be a father, but Lord have mercy can babies generate some intense odors. I watch as Lucy deftly handles Amelia’s changing, glancing at what Rosa does with Hector for some guidance but working with an almost practiced hand. As far as I know, Lucy’s never changed a baby before, but watching her work… you’d think she was an expert. She moves with grace and precision, minding everything that needs minding with the delicate task, all while wearing a beautiful smile. God, she’s going to be such a wonderful mother. After the soiled diapers are disposed of and the two women wash their hands, Rosa gestures towards a pair of rocking chairs. Cradling Amelia in her arms, Lucy takes a seat at one while Rosa glances at me. “Don’t think just because you got off the hook changing today that you will never have to change one! You can’t have Lucy do all of the work!” “Oh, I know. I’ll probably need more practice than Lucy did, though.” I offer the second rocking chair to Rosa, thinking it would be impolite to force the very pregnant woman to stand. She accepts, but before taking a seat thrusts little Hector into my hands. Though I’m initially shocked, I technically have a little baby-holding experience already from when I held Patty a few weeks ago. I put my arm under his behind and the other at his back to support his weight as he peers at me with his big red eyes, letting loose a string of incomprehensible syllables in my direction. As I gently bounce little Hector up and down in my arms and Lucy slowly rocks back and forth with Amelia, Rosa beams at both of us. However, Lucy’s expression quickly falls, shifting from her peaceful smile to an intense frown. Rosa notices, trying to meet Lucy’s eyes as she casts her gaze downward. “Lucy, is everything okay?” Lucy’s lip quivers as she speaks with a cracking voice. “Rosa… I’m so sorry…” Rosa glances at me, unsure of what caused the mood shift. I merely nod my head towards Lucy, indicating Rosa should keep talking to her. I anticipated this moment would come eventually. Rosa turns back to Lucy. “Sorry for what? You haven’t done anything wrong.” Lucy inhales sharply as her tears begin falling. “In high school… I was awful to you. I… I stopped being friends with you, all because of what happened at prom… even after you did so much for me and Naser.” Amelia shifts slightly in Lucy’s arms, nuzzling up against her neck as she peacefully drifts back to sleep. Lucy’s sobs catch in her throat as she tries not to disturb the baby with her sounds. Rosa leans over and places a gentle hand on Lucy’s shoulder, offering her a kind smile. “Silly girl, what do you mean, you stopped being my friend? You are here, aren’t you? Why would I invite someone who isn’t my friend into my home and allow her to hold my baby?” Lucy turns her remorseful gaze up to Rosa. “But I-” Rosa cuts her off. “But nothing, mi amiga. You have nothing to apologize for. We were high schoolers, hardly even adults.” She sighs, looking away. “If anyone should be apologizing, it is me. The plan to get you and Naser to be friends again worked so well, I thought it would work a second time. But… it did not.” She glances back over at Lucy with remorse in her eyes. “I’m sorry for the trouble I caused you back then, and for this burden you have been carrying.” Lucy lets out an exasperated sigh through her tears. “Damnit, why is everybody else apologizing to me? I’M the one who fucked up!” Rosa draws in a slow breath through her gentle smile. “‘For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.’ You know this verse?” Lucy casts her eyes downward again, nodding as she sniffles. “Perhaps none of us are blameless here. But I do know that Raptor Jesucristo forgave our sins when he was crucified on his cross of stone. Of course I forgive you as well, Lucy.” Lucy’s shoulders heave as she lets out another sob, still carefully cradling the now sleeping Amelia in her hands. Rosa stands from her rocking chair with a huff due to her size and extends her arms towards Lucy. “What do you say, my friend? Do you forgive me as well?” Lucy nods again as she rises from her chair and enters Rosa’s embrace. Her preoccupied hands can’t return the gesture, but she accepts Rosa’s hug as she sobs. Rosa glances in my direction. “You, too, An-on. Get in here.” Realizing I’d simply been standing here and observing all of this unfold, I step forward, being equally enveloped in Rosa’s arms as I hold Hector. Rosa, Lucy, Hector, Amelia, the very nearly born Isabella, and me… huddled together in the nursery of Rosa’s home, the six of us embrace as we mend three years of bottled up hurt and broken friendship. Rosa may have never considered Lucy to not be her friend, even across all their time apart… but now Lucy and I can confidently call Rosa our friend again. As we separate from the hug, Rosa offers to take both babies, one in each of her burly arms. Her finesse is impressive, though not unexpected given her build. She glances at Lucy and nods towards a box of tissues which Lucy utilizes immediately to clear the tears away from her face, doing what she can to salvage her make-up. Rosa glances at the still sleeping Amelia and the dozing Hector, shrugs and places them back in their cribs. “I guess they need extra nap time today. It will give us an opportunity to go mingle more with the family! Come downstairs when you are ready, I’ll introduce you around!” With a smile, Rosa makes her way out of the room, closing the door all but a crack. Lucy lets out a sigh as she tosses the tear and make-up stained tissues in the nearby waste basket. I step towards her, sliding a hand across her shoulders. She immediately leans into my embrace as I speak. “You did great today, honey. I’m really proud of you.” She nuzzles her snout against my shoulder. “Thank you, Anon. I’m… I’m relieved she accepted my apology.” I glance down at her, meeting her still damp eyes with my own as I raise an eyebrow. “Did you think she wouldn’t? I mean, if she was mad at you, she’d probably have thrown her shoe at your head.” Lucy giggles at this. “True! I remember ‘Angry Rosa’ from that day in detention. The way she looked at you when you fell into those flowers? I thought a blood vessel might actually pop from her forehead!” “And who, exactly, was I covering for? Do you remember whose fault it was that I ended up in those Middlemist Red Camellias?” She glances away and laughs nervously. “Hehe… uhh, oh! We should get back to the party! Yeah!” I chuckle softly as I nod in agreement. Lucy gazes at the sleeping infants once more before we leave the room. We step into the narrow upstairs hallway and Lucy carefully brings the door back to its nearly closed position. As she turns towards me, I slide my hands across her hips and pull her closer to myself. Surprised, she glances from my arms back up to my face; I give her a loving smile. “You know what else I saw in there? I saw you being a mother again.” At this, she averts her eyes as her cheeks flush. She can’t keep back the grin that works at the sides of her mouth. “Anon, stop. I didn’t do anything special.” I pull her closer. “You did. I watched you handle that little girl as if she were your own, with gentleness and love. You are going to be the best mother in the world.” Her eyes meet mine again and she lets out a sigh of longing. “Anon…” She closes her eyes and leans forward. My heart thumps in my chest the same way it did when I was a teenager going in for my first kiss with her. I slowly bring my lips closer to hers… “Perdón.” Our eyes fly open as we spin towards the source of the voice. At the top step, an ankylosaur gentleman glances from Lucy to me. I fumble over my words. “Ahh, umm… uhh, sorry, we-” He clears his throat. “Baño.” Lucy and I both flatten ourselves against the walls as I point towards the open bathroom door near the end of the hall. He sidles past us, turning himself sideways to fit his widened form past our relatively slender ones. His clubbed tail brushes past my knees as he completes the maneuver, giving us both one last suspicious look before he closes the door to the bathroom. Lucy immediately lets out the breath she’d been holding. “OH my God, that was sooo embarrassing! Anon, what were you thinking?!” I balk. “Me?! You’re the one that leaned in!” She balks back. “You were the one who got all handsy with me!” “Okay, let’s not get into who was putting the moves on who…” She shakes her head, unable to fight back her laughter as she grabs my hand and leads me downstairs. In the kitchen, Rosa picks up two pitchers of lemonade, noticing us as she turns our direction. “Ah, there you are! Would you mind grabbing some ice from the freezer, please?” We acknowledge her request, hefting several bags of ice from the seemingly bottomless freezer attached to their kitchen refrigerator before following her back outside. The party hasn’t seemed to die down at all, the only difference being the now nearly empty food tables and the widened radius of partygoers, many of whom have moved on to various conversation circles and lawn games. A buzzing sound above head brings my attention up to a small drone that scoots left and right in the air, a nearby ankylosaur teen piloting it as several other children huddle around him clamoring for a turn. After Rosa sets the pitchers of lemonade on the refreshment table while Lucy and I refill the ice basin with the bags we hauled, she leads the two of us around for more introductions. The dizzying number of names I’ve been told today rattle about in my brain, filling me with a twinge of guilt as I realize I’ll remember approximately none of them by the end of this party. All the same, Rosa’s family is nothing but hospitable and kind as they warmly greet us and lovingly accept us. The sun starts to lower in the sky, finding its way past the horizon sooner and sooner each evening as the colder months soldier onward. The crowd finally begins to dissipate, albeit slowly, as family members bid one another farewell until next time. Having found seats again, Rosa and Lucy happily chat with one another, continuing to catch up on lost time. At one point I had worried out loud that the two of us were hogging Rosa’s attention all day, to which she merely waved a hand and laughed. “I see mi familia all the time, but the two of you reconnecting with me? This is a special day indeed! This party may have been a celebration of my family, but you two are my guests of honor, and now you are part of my family, too!” This, of course, made Lucy’s cheeks redden as she smiled at Rosa. My ears also flushed slightly at the comment. It reminded me of some Bible story I had heard ages ago about a runaway son who returned home, disgraced and broken, only to be warmly welcomed back by his father. He expected punishment and scorn, but only received love and acceptance. I glance from Rosa to Lucy; all this exposure to Godly sorts is rubbing off on me… and it’s kind of nice. The time arrives for us to say our goodbyes. I offer to help clean up but I’m met by polite hand-waving from Ramón and the other ankylosaur men who assist him with clearing the dishes and collapsing the folding tables and chairs. Rosa wraps me in a big hug as she bids me farewell, then does the same to Lucy. “It was so nice to see both of you again. Let’s plan to do something again in the near future!” As she steps away from Lucy, she glances down at her own enormous belly. “Well… maybe after this little one joins us!” Lucy gives Rosa a warm smile as her cheeks redden slightly. “Hopefully Anon and I won’t be too far behind you…” Rosa beams. “I know you two will be wonderful parents! I wish you both the best of luck!” She turns to me with a wink. “Not that you’ll need it.” Lucy and I make our way back to the car, satisfied with the lovely day we got to enjoy with Rosa and her family. As we buckle up and begin our journey home, Lucy reaches over and takes my hand in hers. “Thank you, Anon.” I raise an eyebrow. “What did I do?” “Just… thank you… for everything. You’ve been nothing but good and supportive to me.” I run my thumb across the back of the hand I hold. “Hey, you’ve made me the happiest man in the world. The least I can do is give you my love.” She gently kisses my hand. “And you have mine in return.” My heart flutters at the gesture. However, before I can muse any further about the things we’ll get to do together once we’re home, an accident on the side of the freeway catches my attention. A relatively nice sports car seems to have collided with… a pickup truck… “... HOLY SHIT Rosa was talking about that guy I drove past downtown.” Lucy turns her attention from the accident to me, realization of my stupidity quickly dawning on her. “Are you joking? It took you THAT long to realize?! Did you not see me looking at you when she brought up her ankylosaur uncle who was in jail for totaling a guy’s car?!” “I didn’t know what you were trying to tell me! You just stared at me like I was a dumbass!” “You clearly ARE a dumbass!” Ouch. But also, very true. We finish the trip home with me sustaining a little more playful verbal abuse from my lovely wife who simply has to capitalize on any moment of weakness I show. Aside from being a little embarrassed at my own cluelessness, I’m not upset by her jovial taunting. Her sassy attitude that comes out from time to time reminds me of the firecracker she was back in high school. Though her overall disposition has mellowed significantly over the past three years, I adore seeing this side of her resurface. As I pull into our driveway, she gets one last jab in. “Glad you were able to remember where we live.” I roll my eyes as I put the car in park. “For the last time, those enchiladas were really good. I accept no blame here.” She giggles as we exit the car. “Hey, even with as much as I enjoy dino nuggies, I don’t turn into a buffoon when I eat them.” This causes me to pause, look in her direction and raise a very accusatory eyebrow. “... I don’t! I love me some dino nuggies, but I…” She pauses, realizing she’s backed herself into a corner. “... Okay, maybe I see your point.” We laugh as we make our way into our home. As I close the door and feel the pleasant central heat wash over me, I slide out of the light jacket I’d been wearing. Glancing at my watch, a thought occurs to me. “Oh, tomorrow is Sunday.” Lucy slips out of her own coat. “A second brain cell joins the party!” I swear, this woman. “Yeah, yeah… uhh, are we doing church in the morning?” She pauses, the playfulness falling away from her face as she turns to me with a slightly concerned look. “Are you… happy going every week like this? … With me?” I give her a nod. “I’m warming up to the idea of church in general, but I always want to be with you.” She steps towards me, sliding her hands around my waist as she pulls herself close. She squeezes her form close to mine; as I put my arms around her, I feel her tremble slightly. “... I was… worried…” It takes me a moment to realize why she’s acting this way before it dawns on me: the last time we went to church together was after our fight, and before… I tighten my embrace to soothe her shuddering. “You’ve got nothing to be worried about, honey. I wouldn’t be offering to go with you if it was only to keep you happy, that would be disingenuous of me to do.” I pause for a moment before trying to lighten the mood a little again. “To be fair, my one good brain cell has a little trouble picking up on some of the bigger concepts in those sermons…” This causes Lucy to giggle into my chest before I continue. “... but I enjoy going, and I want to keep going. Not just for you, or your folks… but for me, too.” Lucy looks up at me, places her hands on the sides of my face, and brings me into a kiss. Her arms slowly work their way over my shoulders and drape across my back as she loses herself in the loving gesture she initiated. My heart flutters again as I reciprocate, demonstrating my returned affection in my passionate response. As we separate and gaze into one another’s eyes, we both attempt to say “I love you” at the same time, causing us to smile warmly at one another. I put my forehead against hers. “After church, what do you say we discuss our battle plan for stage two of ‘Operation: Reconnect’?” Lucy giggles. “A battle plan? Yes, sir!” Her eyes shift from a loving gaze to a seductive one as she moves her snout next to my ear and whispers, “But right now, I want you to tell me what a good mother I’m going to be again.” While her breath was already enough to get my engine going, her gentle nibble on my ear lobe instantly sends me into overdrive. I can barely choke out the words past my excitement. “Yes, ma’am!”