Re: [AyB. Cris y Mari]
She wasn't madea ice and wasn't that something? The stoicism was melting away a lil. She was still a serious person, huh? Cris could see that. But, she was a person, just like everybody else. And she had a nice smile. Cris avoided thinking anything more than that, if there was anything more than that, 'cause, well, the answer's obvious, ain't it? His smile mirrored hers when she laughed about her sister, but with black brows lifted in sympathy, he said: "Pinching ain't no small thing." More earnestly, he continued: "I'm sorry 'bout that though. A twin must be hard to get away from, huh? Just in general. Mis hermanas, they're all older than me and I could barely get away from them." He didn't mean 'get away' like white people did, huh? Family was family. But, sometimes you kinda wanted your own space, ¿sabes?
Family was always family, even if you never got to know them really. Elisa, for Mari, was prolly half a ghost, half a memory. He scratched under his chin, fingers turned nail-up. Any other time, Cris woulda banked on his charm, huh? He woulda taken that berry she was playing with and had it for himself. But, they were being serious now and he knew she prolly wouldn't like that anyway. His forgotten hunka bagel was nearby, but he pushed himself standing up again. He kept his palm planted on the countertop, elbow locked and shoulder up as Mari went into detail 'bout uninitiated gifts. "Yo sé," he said quietly. His expression was pensive. "I dunno." His dark eyes flicked to meet hers. "Who do you think is right?" Her mami or her papi.
As for the new-bloom smile, Cris watched it unfurl. He smiled back at her—su sonrisa, as Sam called it—, easy. He pouted his lips out and gave another shrug. "I try to stay humble, huh?" He exaggerated a sigh, his grin still framing it. "It's hard." Cris shook his head. Unbidden, the thought came into his head that he should prolly tell her 'bout Emilia. It wasn't that she should know. It was that she'd prolly eventually figure it out. Still, it kinda felt like something you shouldn't say when your dead ex-girlfriend's hermanita was smiling at you, the way sun melted wax, huh? 'Oh yeah, and me and your other hermana? Yeah, we slept together 'cause she looked like Elisa.' Yeah, nah. "Is it just called being cocky with men? You ain't cocky, huh? Just... right." He smiled. "Right?"