Archive of Our Own

Sitting in her face mask, Kimiko knew this wasn’t going to be a good day. No, it wasn’t.

The reason? Well, no reason, really. She just had to go to a random christening in Brazil for a random baby, whom she’d never met and whose parents she didn’t even know.

Well, it wasn’t that random. Not really. The baby was Raimundo’s niece, so of course they had to go. Even if they didn’t know his family that well—like, barely or at all—the Wind Dragon had invited everyone along, so she had to go as well.

Sighing, she looked over the outfit she spread out on the mat again. A burgundy body-con dress that really flattered her. It wasn’t bad but she was still nervous because, well, that’d be the first thing Raimundo’s family would see her in.

“God”, Kimiko whispered to herself in Japanese. “What are you overthinking? They don’t even know you’re dating.”

That wasn’t the boldest statement to make exactly because, well, no one did. Even the two people in question, Kimiko and Raimundo, had to go through an exhausting process to have that realization themselves. Well, Kimiko did anyway.

“It’s going to be amazing”, she could hear Raimundo yelling as he came through the door and walked past her section of the room to Clay’s. “I’m finally getting my turn. Finally!”

Clay hummed. “Everyone got to be a godparent before you did, huh?”

“Yeah, dude. It’s bullshit. My cousin Nikki made Joaquim godfather before me—Joaquim, the fourteen-year-old!”

“Heard you the first time, partner. You talking about Dicky Nikki, right?”

“You said it.”

As the two boys talked more about some things Kimiko tuned out, Omi peeked his head into her room, curiously. Dressed up and ready in jeans and a shirt, he gave her outfit a once-over.

“Kimiko, are you auditioning for runway?”

She beamed. “Aw, thank—”

“You’re doing the most here, we’re just going to Raimundo’s house. It’s not that special.”

The smile fell almost as soon as it came on. “Congrats, Omi, you killed my joy earlier than usual today. What do you want?”

“Why aren’t you dressed yet?”, Omi asked, curiously. “Usually by this time you’d be picking out a wig.”

Kimiko nodded. “I can’t decide on if I actually want to wear what I picked out. I feel like I can come up with something better. Also, it’s three more minutes until I can wash my face.”

“If you’re rethinking your getup, please come up with less”, Omi said, judgmentally. “It’s like you’re trying to compensate for something.”

He paused, eyes widening like he got an idea.

“You’re going to try to pick up someone at the christening, aren’t you?”

“Ew no, Omi”, Kimiko said, peeved. “You can’t do that at church…I think.”

“Oh, that’s at a religious place”, the boy said. “I thought it might be a house party kind of thing. Raimundo said—”

“Afterwards”, said boy said, standing in the doorway. He gave the outfit on the mat a look before turning to the girl. “Someone’s planning on being a Victoria’s Angel.”

Kimiko rolled her eyes, while Omi sighed. “That’s what I said. It’s a regular house thing, though, you said that.”

“After church”, Raimundo repeated. “After we’re done there, there’ll be a party at my house. That’s why we packed suits, dude, remember? For church?”

Omi shrugged. “I thought that suit was just for westernized funerals, but okay, whatever. This is going to be a hell of a cultural learning experience.”

“Dude, it’s just a christening”, Raimundo said. “Chill out on the inner anthropologist, okay?”

Before Omi could comment, Clay peeked his head into the room. “Nice but inappropriate dress, Kim, I can’t wait to see parts of you that I have never wanted to see.”

With that pleasant-toned harsh dig, the cowboy turned his head.

“Omi, Master Fung needs us.”

“Does he?”, Omi said, scrunching his nose. “I don’t recall hearing him yell for us.”

“Because he didn’t, partner”, the cowboy said. “He texted me. Told y’all getting him a phone won’t be a good idea.”

“It was a great idea”, Kimiko said, defensively, for more reasons than one. “All my ideas are fucking awesome.”

“No, they’re not and usually it’s hard to avert disaster, but I’m not arguing that now”, Clay said, again looking to Omi. “We need to go, pal.”

Sighing, the youngest Dragon followed the cowboy out of the room, leaving the other two teenagers alone. Using this opportunity, Raimundo pulled the curtain over Kimiko’s room and walked over to stand behind the girl, wrapping arms around her waist.

“So”, he began, dragging out the vowel, gesturing with a nod to the mat before resting his chin on her shoulder again. “I have comments.”

Kimiko leaned back into him, finally making her a decision about her outfit. “Keep them. That’s an Alaïa and Linda Evangelista wore it. I will not be shamed.”

“That wasn’t my intention. Look, no offense to the King of the Cling or anything, may he rest in peace”, he said. “But that’s going to give my Vovó and my Tia Fernanda a heart attack.”

“Why? They don’t know I’m your girlfriend, do they?”

“Well, no, but they’re incredibly judgey of all my friends and—you know what, never mind, you can hold your own”, he said, sighing. “There’s something else that I need to tell you.”

At that, Kimiko turned to face him. That tone was never good when it came out of Raimundo’s mouth.

“Do you need a second to think?”, she asked, though it was more of warning.

“No, I”, he began, gesturing around. “Look, if you—do you think that all lies are bad, period?”

“Well, no”, Kimiko said. “You and I are kind of lying to everyone right now and it’s not all that bad, plus sometimes you need to lie to not hurt people’s feelings.”

She paused, trying to think of a better example. “Like, like, remember those ugly Christmas sweaters Clay gave us last December?”

“When he came back from the ranch, yeah.”

“I told him I loved them and they’re super ironic and shit, but guess what?”

“You hated them, I know”, Raimundo said. “We made a few jokes about how they looked like a unicorn crapped all over them.”

Kimiko nodded. “Exactly. And I never said that in front of him because it’d hurt his feelings, so…”

“So, I don’t have to tell you what I lied about?”

“Well, no”, Kimiko said. “Like, did you commit bank robbery? Armed assault? Did you binge-watch that telenovela you told me about without me?”

Raimundo scrunched his nose. “No, what kind of person do you think I am?”

“Fine”, she said. “Then it’s nothing, so all you’re doing right now is that you’re wasting precious make-out time to talk about nothing. And by the way, you’re dating this.”

“You don’t have to point”, Raimundo said, smirking at the way Kimiko outlined her body. “I know.”

“And yet you’re not kissing me.”

“Wow, girl. Chill.”

At Raimundo’s house, Kimiko discovered that she might have overdone it. There wasn’t anything going on, really other than a family dinner, so the dress she chose turned a few—well, all heads as she walked through the door.

“Kimiko, filha”, Iolanda, Raimundo’s mother said. “You know the christening is tomorrow, right?”

A little embarrassed, said girl smiled. “I know, Auntie. I guess I just wanted to make an impression.”

“You made a very big impression”, Ezequiel, one of the brothers said. “Honestly, I—”

Raimundo gave his brother a look. “Dude. You’re married and you’re old, shut up.”

“I’m twenty-three and I didn’t mean it like that you sicko. That’s an Alaïa, right, Kimiko?”

Scoffing, Raimundo got up and excused himself to the bathroom, leaving the conversation.

“Yes”, Kimiko said, throwing a look at the remaining Xiaolin boys. “Thank you. It’s an original, too, I actually—”

“Hold up, hold up, hold up!”, one of Raimundo’s teenage twin nieces—Gisele or Adriana, she couldn’t remember—said, climbing up the stairs. “You won’t guess who’s here to visit!”

The excited girl then shifted to the side to allow the person hiding behind her to emerge and show themselves.

It turned out the guest was a teenage girl, around their age, who Kimiko knew was Japanese because she just did. On seeing her, Raimundo’s family members had odd reactions.

Marta and Jacinto shared looks while the younger siblings and nieces snickered, Iolanda was beaming, and the grandmother was muttering something under her breath as she looked to the ceiling.

“Rinko!”, Iolanda said, almost immediately, confirming Kimiko’s Japanese theory, before carrying on in Portuguese.

Pausing, the woman gestured as she switched languages.

“—and that’s Kimiko, Clay, and Omi. They’re with Raimundo in the temple in China.”

Rinko understood. “It’s a pleasure. Raimundo’s taking a nap, isn’t he?”

“I’m right here, who’s asking—“, Raimundo began, reentering the room only for an odd expression to spread on his face. For a second, it seemed like he was confused, frightened, and wishing for death all in one go. “Rinko, you made it.”

“I did.”

Both teenagers laughed, a little awkwardly, and talked a little in Portuguese. Curious, Kimiko took that as a chance to load Google Translate to know at least half the conversation.

“Porra, cara, beije sua namorada”, one of the nieces yelled, which Kimiko found incredibly odd. See, Google told her that meant ‘fuck, man, kiss your girlfriend’.

“Well, he’s really going for it”, Clay commented, sounding more confused as time went on. “I bet he forgot we’re all here?”

Intrigued, Kimiko looked up from her phone and its mis-translations and saw something she couldn’t really compute. Her boyfriend was kissing the new girl.

“Raimundo”, Omi called, scandalized. “Rinko isn’t a Xiaolin Dragon; give her some space to breathe. What would Master Fung say.”

“Sorry, I guess”, Raimundo said, finally un-conjoined from the girl but still giving her a well-practiced longing look. “I guess, it’s been too long since I’ve seen my girlfriend.”

Well-aware of her presence in the room, Kimiko smiled. Beamed actually. She played her part well, congratulating her friend and hugging Rinko. She even complimented the girl and joked that she was jealous of Raimundo, with whom she’d kept joking around and being perfectly Kimiko-ish all day.

Everything was different when they got to go and rest in their temporary rooms.

Later that night, the smile all but faded from her face. It was instead replaced by a deep-seated frown that never left until she met prodigal son on the veranda.

Wrapping herself in the blanket she’d bought tighter, Kimiko pretended like she hasn’t seen anyone. To anyone passing, she looked pretty normal. Dressed in simple pajamas and a blanket, face perfectly neutral.

Those who knew her, though, would feel the simmering anger her energy displayed.

Sighing, Raimundo walked closer to her, clearly planning on saying something. He opened his mouth then shut it and sighed again. After much deliberation, he finally said something.

“I’m thinking of getting a new tattoo while we’re here”, he began, characteristically ignoring the obvious. “I was thinking like a knuckle tattoo, you know. Like on this knuckle I’d have ‘forgive’ and on the other I’d have ‘me’; what do you think?”

Kimiko took a quick look at his knuckles, which he’d moved as he explained, and clicked her tongue.

“No, you got it wrong”, she said. “The ‘me’ should be on one finger, specifically the middle because that is exactly what you should do.”

“Dude”, Raimundo began, sighing. “I—”

Kimiko cut him off with a pleasant smile. “Oh, I’m sorry for my manners! I forgot to introduce myself; I’m your girlfriend.”

Raimundo grimaced. “Kim, please don’t.”

“Please don’t my ass, you, you man!”, she said, holding her palm in front of her face. “You kissed another person in front of me, the only person you’re supposed to be kissing.”

“Wh—why”, he said, nodding at her gesture. “Why are you waving your hand in front of me?”

“I’m trying to show you the metaphorical ring, dude, don’t ruin it”, Kimiko said, rolling her eyes. “I can’t believe you made a whole thing about commitment and now you’re two-timing me—”

“Kim—”

“I wasn’t finished!”, she whisper-yelled. “You also have a thing for Japanese girls, apparently.”

Momentarily confused, Raimundo cringed when understanding dawned on his face.

“I resent that you even think that about me, I don’t—"

“I mean, now it makes sense”, Kimiko continued, ignoring him. “Keiko told me about this, and I told her she was stupid. And then there was that whole thing with the pink—”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, he groaned. “Stop it; that was a low point for me.”

“Low for you”, she said. “It was awkward as hell for me and now it’s even worse because it turns out you’re—”

“I apologized and that comment was in poor taste. I know better now.”

Though sighing after the pause, Raimundo said nothing and so did she. After a beat, though, Kimiko crossed her arms and gave him a look.

“So, just to confirm, you’re only a cheater.”

“No”, Raimundo said. “Remember when I told you I lied to you? You said, if it wasn’t a big thing then…”

Kimiko gave him a look. “You having another girlfriend is a big thing.”

“No, you don’t get it”, he said. “Rinko and I are just friends, but the thing is—remember when you said we shouldn’t tell anyone we were dating?”

She pursed her lips. “Who did you tell?”

“My mother”, Raimundo confessed. “I was talking and I rambled and I accidentally mentioned I had a girlfriend so she interrogated me.”

“And?”

“And I told her about you…like, generally, but then she kept asking for more information, so I told her my girlfriend’s Japanese.”

Realization dawned on Kimiko’s face. “So, she assumed it was the Japanese girl next door.”

“Basically yeah.”

Crossing her arms, the girl considered it a little. The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like just a bad miscommunication but—

“You used way too much tongue in that fake kiss”, Kimiko said. “I mean, okay, I guess I can put up with the charade for the two days we’re here, but you have to tone it down.”

Raimundo shrugged. “It would look fake, though.”

“Yeah, I do not care”, she said, nodding. “It’s just kind of important to me that I don’t have to see you tonguing someone else, so please…don’t.”

Nodding vehemently, the other warrior waited for a few seconds before he shrugged, desperately trying to evade the awkward tension.

“You know, this is kinda like the perfect dancing-on-the-roof weather, don’t you think?

Kimiko allowed him a smile. “Really? There’s no music, though. And don’t tell me you have some on your phone; you know no one can slow-dance to trap music.”

“Well, we can always try, can’t we?”, Raimundo said, shrugging and giving her a smile. “You know I deadass love you, right?”

She smiled back. “As you should.”

“I don’t understand”, Omi said again, giving Clay a look as the boy paced around their guest room. “Can you maybe explain it again?”

Clay huffed, patience quickly running out. “It’s clear as day. Look, do you remember that day with the hickey?”

“No”, the Water Dragon said, intrigued. “I’d very much remember a day with a hickey.”

“C’mon, that day when Rai had this hickey when he woke up?”, Clay said, urging his friend to remember. “And we were making fun of him and having a laugh and then Kimiko mentioned seeing him sneak out?”

Omi nodded. “Ah, okay, I remember but wasn’t that like two years ago?”

“It was”, the cowboy said, victoriously grinning. “Raimundo and Kimiko have been sneaking around for two whole years, partner.”

“Yeah”, the younger boy said, sheepishly. “I’m going to pass on that one.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s a load of horseshit, Clay. You know better.”

Clay rolled his eyes. “It’s a completely dependable theory and you’re not even gonna humor it?”

“Yeah, basically. Look, they’re not only our teammates”, Omi said, looking him in the eye. “They’re our friends and I, for one, don’t think they’d hide news that important from us for this long a period.”

He paused, scoffing.

“Also, you and I both know that Lava Girl and Jason Mendoza from The Good Place won’t exactly be the best hiders out there.”

“I see your point”, Clay admitted, nodding. “But you have to see mine somehow. Doesn’t it make sense?”

Omi titled his head. “Sociologically speaking, I guess two good-looking people in their age-group might get the idea, but…how, when, and where, I don’t know.”

“Forget about the how for now”, the cowboy said, shrugging. “We don’t know that, but we do know when and where.”

“Really?”, the Water Dragon said, as his friend nodded. “Ew.”

“Not like that, like…whenever we go karaoke, they both sing the same Rihanna song.”

“Not convincing.”

“Fine, then what about last Halloween when they ‘accidentally’ dressed up as Gomez and Morticia Addams? You really think that was just a coincidence?”

“Considering they both love those films then yes. Clay, this is literally how coincidences work.”

Clay huffed. “I didn’t wanna do this, but okay. Like a year ago, Kimiko brought each of us a pair of earplugs, right?”

“A considerate a gift as any”, Omi nodded. “Because I asked her to get me a pair like hers and she didn’t want to leave you out, so that disproves your—”

“It wasn’t for our comfort, per se”, the cowboy said. “It was so they don’t, uh, disrupt our sleep, if you follow my drift.”

The younger boy grimaced. “I follow it and I resent ever giving you the time to explain it. Clay, what you’re suggesting is…”

Wincing, the cowboy nodded. “I know, but doesn’t it make sense?”

“No”, Omi said. “Why would it make sense? You don’t even have proof.”

“I do”, Clay said, embarrassedly avoiding his friend’s eyes. “One time, I had trouble sleeping so I decided to listen to some white noise—you know the kind where it’s a compilation of calm sounds on the beach, it’s amazing, the narwhals—”

“You’re missing the point”, the younger boy said, urgingly. “Again.”

“Sorry”, the cowboy said. “Anyway, so I took my earplugs out and, um, I kinda, sorta heard some things.”

“You mean, like…”

“Yeah, pretty much. It honestly was the most disgusting experience of my life.”

Omi scrunched his face, giving his friend an unconvinced look. “Aha, sounds like it, but you know what? I’m not going to hear it.”

Getting off his bed, Omi stretched and put on his house slippers before making his way to the door.

“Hey”, Clay said, feeling insulted. “Where are you going?”

Omi gave him a look. “To get something to eat. And to find Kimiko, so I can share with her your stupid theory.”

“O—”

“Relax, obviously, I won’t”, the younger boy said with an eye-roll. “It’d have made her laugh, though.”

Though he’d never have believed Clay’s theory, not for a million years, Omi couldn’t not think about it as he left their shared room. The cowboy was blindly convinced in what he thought that it was rubbing off on Omi.

Deep down, the youngest Dragon knew that if he did share the theory with either one of his other teammates, they’d laugh and make their jokes about it and then they’d all move on but Clay was adamant so that was off—wait, was he seeing what he was seeing, for real?

“Kimiko?”, Omi asked, snapping out of his thoughts, surprised.

He’d been on his way to the kitchen, so that meant he’d pass many rooms. The twin nieces’ room where Kimiko stayed wasn’t one of them. Raimundo’s, however, was and that was where he’d found her.

“Kimiko?”, he repeated, getting the girl’s attention. That didn’t seem like the right thing to do, apparently, because Kimiko’s eyes widened and relaxed immediately as she tried to act normal.

Key-word: tried. Omi didn’t miss the fact that, though she hid it well, Kimiko was a bit flustered and jittery. She was also smiling now.

“Hey, Omi”, she said. “You’re up too.”

The younger boy nodded. “Yeah, early bird gets the worm and all that. What were you—why were you in Raimundo’s room?”

“Nothing really”, Kimiko said, shrugging casually. “I borrowed some money off him a week ago, but he wouldn’t take it back—you know how he is—so I decided to pay him back without telling him, so he won’t make it a big deal.”

Nodding, Omi made like he understood when in reality, his brain was definitely going into over-drive. “Yeah, yeah, I get it. So…I’m gonna go to the bathroom now.”

“Okay”, the girl said, giving him an odd look. “I’m gonna get something to eat.”

With their plans seemingly made, Omi and Kimiko parted ways in the hallway. The former ran all the way back, but not to the bathroom, no, but to the boys’ current bedroom.

“You’re right”, Omi said, panting as he shut the door behind him. “They’re sneaking around.”

Although pleased, Clay was a little confused. “How in the—”

“I saw Kimiko outside Raimundo’s room, sneaking out”, the younger boy explained. “I asked her what was up and she said she was returning some money she’d borrowed from him because that was the only way he’d take it.”

Pausing, Omi gave Clay a look.

“She actually said ‘you know how he is’, Clay.”

“That ain’t right, though”, the cowboy said. “The two things Raimundo would never say no to are gossip and money.”

“I know!”

“See, partner?”, Clay said, victoriously. “I told you so and I have every right to gloat right now.”

Omi wasn’t paying the cowboy any mind, though. Instead, the youngest warrior was pacing the length of the room, getting angrier as time went on.

“Two years?”, he was saying. “Two years they’ve been sneaking around, desecrating the temple—”

“Erm, I wouldn’t go as far as desecrating”, Clay said.

Omi rolled his eyes. “Really? Where do you think they’d been going all this time?”

“On the bright side”, the cowboy said, erasing that sentence from his memory. “We know about them and they don’t know that we know!”

“Yeah, we know”, the younger boy said, unimpressed. “And? Where’s the information here, I don’t get it?”

“Partner, we can now mess with them. They kinda deserve it too, y’know, with all this shit they’d been pulling.”

“Keep talking…”

Growing slowly more annoyed by the second, Raimundo rolled his eyes and kissed his girlfriend again.

“Like this?”, he asked, pulling away.

Kimiko scoffed. “No, too much—”

“Too much what?”, Raimundo asked, incredulously. “I didn’t even use tongue this time!”

“You were being—well, I can’t describe it”, she said, vaguely gesturing. “Like, try doing something simple like this.”

Puckering up, Kimiko made a kissing sound that was over as soon as it happened. Scoffing, her boyfriend gave her a look.

“No offense, but that’s like the fakest thing I’ve ever heard”, Raimundo said. “That’s not a kiss, we both know that.”

Giving him a once-over, Kimiko scooched away from him on the bed, a frown making itself clear on her face before fading away. He was being way too argumentative for no reason again, not that she was going to let him succeed.

“You know, it’s funny”, Kimiko said, chuckling. “It sounds like you really wanna kiss her.”

“I don’t want to, I swear, but I—we just need authenticity, you know”, Raimundo said, scooching closer to her.

Rolling her eyes, Kimiko turned on her side, giving him her back. Truth was, she wasn’t even that mad. Just lightly ticked off because he wasn’t telling the truth and she could tell. They were beyond that, honestly.

“You can say she’s a good kisser”, she said after a minute. “I won’t be pissed, like, sometimes we all need a change of pace. It’s been a while either one of us has kissed someone else.”

Raimundo clicked his tongue. “She’s not, like, better than you.”

“Stroke my bruised ego, why don’t you?”

“I’m not kidding, though—like, she’s decent but she’s not you.”

Kimiko snorted. “Wow, good line, Ryan Gosling, but still, fuck you because I’m still sure you’re not telling the entire truth.”

She left it at that, letting him know all at once that she wasn’t buying this failed Rom-Com act and that she could very easily see through his bullshit. Just like she always did.

After a minute, some rustling on the sheets let her know that Raimundo had gotten up, which was slightly concerning until he returned and lightly pulled her to face his side.

“Here”, he said, pointing to one face in a frame photo that was previously on the dresser. “See this photo?”

“It’s your family”, Kimiko said, nodding. “Some of them, I guess. What were you doing?”

Raimundo shrugged. “I guess we had something, so we’d thrown this cookout or some shit, but anyway, see that little girl? Rinko.”

Doing a double-take at the photo, Kimiko zeroed in on the face Raimundo pointed out. It was a little girl, Japanese, in some over-sized sweats. Next to her, she could even more easily pinpoint a little Raimundo.

“She’s been your neighbor since forever then”, Kimiko said. “So, you were always close.”

Raimundo shook his head. “Not just close.”

Pausing, he gave her a sheepish look, scratching his jaw to hide his nerves.

“Until I left for the circus”, he began. “I had this insane crush on her, like, I was only eight at the time, but I couldn’t get her off my mind. And then, of course, she started being like more super-hot and shit every time I visited home.”

Raimundo paused, biting the inside of his cheek.

“So, I guess that’s why I’m overdoing it, you know, because I’ve always wanted to kiss her.”

Though she’d considerably deflated, Kimiko smiled. “See? It’s that easy.”

“I pissed you off, didn’t I?”

“No, you piss me off when you do things like leave an empty milk carton inside the fridge or don’t let me pay for you when you’re broke”, she said. “I’m not pissed now.”

Raimundo prompted, unconvinced. “But you’re still mad?”

“Not for anything rational”, Kimiko allowed. “Like, I get it so I’m not going to make a big deal of this, but I guess I’m just upset it’s not all just a well-acted script, you know.”

She paused.

“So, how long has this been going on? The whole pretending schtick?”

“I can give you two answers to that”, Raimundo said. “They’re both true but I don’t think you’ll like either.”

Kimiko tried for a smirk. “Try me.”

“Okay”, he said. “About three months ago, when I told my mother.”

“And that’s the first answer, what’s the other one?”

Raimundo sighed. “We’ve been pretending to date for about a year.”

That was enough for Kimiko to momentarily lose all powers of speech. She blinked twice.

“Did you say a year or was I imagining it? You’ve had a fake side-chick for an entire year, Raimundo? Why?”

“I’m glad you asked”, he said, though he didn’t sound one bit glad. “We’re all heading to college soon, right?”

“Yeah, and?”

“And Rinko wants to go to this Japanese college but her parents won’t let her because she’d be far away and they worry too easily.”

Kimiko raised an eyebrow. “She’s a whole Japanese Brazilian, dude, she definitely has family in Japan. Like, today she actually kept talking about her relatives.”

“I know”, Raimundo said. “But she only had her grandparents there and one of them died and the other moved to Tampa to live with her uncles.”

“Moved to Tampa?”, she said, biting her lip. “My condolences, but what does that have to do with you two fake-dating?”

He sighed. “Rinko told her parents that I got early admission to that same college on, like, scholarship grounds, then she ran her mouth to make it convincing so she said we planned it together because we’re dating.”

Pausing, Raimundo shrugged.

“That’s actually why my mom asked about who I was dating a few months back. She’d had this stupid fight with Rin’s mom so they weren’t speaking but then they made up and her mom told my mom we were seeing each other.”

Another pause.

“So, she needed confirmation. And because I’m an idiot I basically gave it to her.”

Kimiko patted him on the back. “You are an idiot, dude, but your idiocy comes from a good place.”

She paused, smiling.

“Honestly, if you didn’t listen to that stupid hero complex you have and tried to help her I’d know something was wrong with you.”

“Thank you…I guess.”

“You’re welcome, I guess.”

A pause. “Why didn’t you tell me, though?”

“Because”, Raimundo began, a little embarrassedly. “Well, for a good chunk of this whole thing, you and I were broken up and when we got back together, I didn’t—I didn’t know how to begin that conversation. And I really didn’t want you to think I was playing you.”

Processing the information, Kimiko rolled her eyes and nodded. “I’m not upset. I can so see how your brain worked that out, so fine. But next time you have to do something like this just give me a heads up.”

“Will do.”

Even though she’d said she wasn’t that upset and meant it, Kimiko was clearly still a little down about the whole thing.

Biting the inside of his cheek, Raimundo waited for a second before going for a hug the girl really needed at that moment. After breaking the hug, though, he went for another kiss.

This one took a little time, which in turn made the couple break apart short on breath.

Clearing his throat, Raimundo couldn’t help the arrogance in his tone. “So, like this?”

“Oh, definitely not”, Kimiko said, smirking. “Like, not for her anyway.”

With that, the girl leaned in for another kiss that didn’t quite happen. A series of obnoxious knocks made the two teenagers break apart, sharing a nervous look at the possibility of someone walking in.

“Who is that?”, Kimiko whispered.

Scoffing, Raimundo whispered back. “How the fuck should I know?”

“Can’t you tell by the knock patterns, you dolt?”

“I’m not a knock pattern expert, dude, lay off. And find somewhere to hide.”

Getting up, Raimundo approached the door slowly, giving his girlfriend enough time to hide. Turning around to see no one on the bed now, he opened his door with a pissed off expression clear on his face.

“Well, isn’t this an odd couple?”, Raimundo commented as he saw who it was at his door.

Omi rolled his eyes while Rinko shrugged and walked in and made her way to the bed, flopping down. The former, though, stayed in the doorway, giving his friend a rightfully suspicious look.

“What do you want, Big Head?”

Seething momentarily, Omi crossed his arms and kept his gaze focused. “What were you doing in there just now?”

“I was napping”, Raimundo said, raising an eyebrow. “Why?”

“Nothing, it’s just we heard some very strange noises while we waited”, Omi said casually. “It’s like someone was in there with you.”

Managing to keep his poker face on, Raimundo shrugged, gesturing to the room.

“I was alone”, he said. “I was listening to this podcast, though, so maybe that was it.”

Rinko snorted, unconvinced. “Since when do you listen to podcasts? You barely started documentaries a year ago!”

“I don’t have to advertise everything that I do”, Raimundo said, walking back to his bed before laying down. “O, you need anything now?”

Shaking his head, Omi gave his friend another look, before scoffing as he saw him pull a surprised but giggling Rinko on top of him.

“For heavens’ sake, at least wait until I’m out of earshot”, Omi muttered, quickly shutting the door and walking away.

Hearing the final click of the door, Raimundo broke the spontaneous kiss and sighed.

“You can come out now”, he said. “He’s gone.”

The closet door creaked at first before Kimiko fully opened it and got out it, stretching as she analyzed the scene in front of her.

“So, I just came out of the closet. Again”, she said, smirking. “And the first thing I see is my boyfriend’s fake girlfriend straddling him on his bed. Yup, this isn’t weird or anything.”

Chuckling at that, Rinko got off said boy and sat on the bed, giving Kimiko a surprised smile.

“Oh my God”, she said. “You’re the girlfriend?”

Kimiko shrugged. “Yeah, basically.”

“I had no idea”, Rinko said, apologetically. “I thought Raimundo had a girlfriend in China who was not, like, part of the temple.”

A pause.

“Don’t hate me.”

“She doesn’t”, Raimundo said, tiredly. “I told her everything.”

Rinko sighed. “Oh, thank God! I really didn’t know one little lie to my parents would lead us here but here we all are.”

“Tell me about it”, Kimiko said, giggling. “This must be overwhelming, though, the whole pretending thing is like the greatest level of method acting.”

The other girl nodded. “It is! But, you know what, it’s actually kind of a lifesaving thing too. My parents were already bugging me about the whole dating thing.”

She paused. “Like, stop dating this person, don’t even try with that person, oh that’s such a nice gentleman—you know, that crap. So now that I have a “boyfriend”, I don’t have to justify my dating choices to anyone.”

Kimiko could sympathize.

“Tell me about it. My family’s the same.”

“Must be a Japanese thing”, Rinko nodded. “Families are weird.”

“Don’t I know it”, Kimiko said, pleasantly agreeing before she put her hands on her hips. “I was just discussing some ground rules with Rai. So things don’t escalate, you know?”

Rinko nodded. “Totally. What you got?”

“Okay, so I don’t have much”, Kimiko said. “Like, so far it’s just don’t be too intimate, like don’t overdo it.”

“Got it. That’s it?”

“Yeah, so far”, the other girl said. “Uh, I guess I’m gonna leave now…to like get dressed and stuff.”

From his bed, Raimundo gave her two thumbs-up. “Cool. Hey, can you wear that dress from last night? That was hot, wasn’t it, Rin?”

“It was, it really was”, Rinko said, giving her a smile.

Kimiko shrugged, walking to the door. “With the right accessories, maybe and…you’re not coming?”

“Oh no”, Rinko said, gesturing to her backpack, on the floor by the bed. “I’ll just get dressed here.”

“Here?”, Raimundo and Kimiko both asked at the same time, though only the latter continued. “Isn’t that, don’t you want more privacy?”

“Nah, it’s okay”, Rinko said, waving it off. “Besides, his parents and my parents probably expect us to use every moment to hang out so why not give them what they want?”

Kimiko nodded, slowly. “Yeah, just to be sure, you’re not pretending you’re getting dressed?”

“No, I’m not”, Rinko said, lifting the backpack no one had noticed before. “I’ll get dressed in a minute—it’s just a halter and a skirt.”

“Nice”, the other girl said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “That’s nice, uh, so Rai, wouldn’t that make you a tad uncomfortable?”

Before the boy could answer, Rinko butted in.

“Oh, he wouldn’t be!”, she said, laughing. “Didn’t he tell you? They did that all the time in the circus…so did you, right? For those Sheng Gong Wu mission things?”

Kimiko nodded. “Yeah, okay, I guess I’ll leave you to it.”

As the Japanese warrior left the room, slower than the slowest turtle, she hadn’t missed the way her boyfriend sat upright on his bed with a confused expression on.

Yes, this was going to be one memorable weekend.

Omi scowled as he sat next to Clay on the swing in the backyard. He wasn’t particularly upset, just irked. So far, nothing was going to plan.

“She’s not even the teensiest bit bothered”, he said, gesturing to Kimiko standing idly by the fence, texting. “Look at her, just, just enjoying herself in the sun. What kind of emotionless tinman schtick—”

Clay sighed. “Omi, we talked about this before. Just because she acts fine doesn’t mean she is—it’s Kimiko, we know her better than anybody.”

“Not better than Keiko”, the younger boy, grumbled as their friend’s loud laugh reached them on the swing-set. “She’s making her laugh alright!”

The cowboy sighed. “It’ll just take some time, partner. Even Rinko said that.”

In an interesting turn of events, Clay and Omi had managed to get Rinko, the fake girlfriend, on their side in pseudo-terrorizing Kimiko and Raimundo this weekend. It wasn’t their plan, of course, but with them getting a little carried away with their tones…well, thankfully only Rinko knew.

So far, they’d laid down a few stones in the couple’s way and so far, nothing was working.

Omi had had this plan, though, very early on. They just had to make Kimiko play the same game Raimundo was reluctantly playing and watch the fireworks. Clay had a bad feeling about that, though.

He’d had a bad feeling ever since Omi accepted his theory because, well, Omi’s idea of “terror” was cartoonish at best and exhausting at worst.

When he’d first got suspicious of his two friends dating, the cowboy thought maybe one day he’d get a few laughs if he’d cornered his friends with a few questions. Of course, now that he shared the plan with perfectionist Omi, they had to go the extra mile.

Barely a few seconds after, Clay was dragged out of his thoughts by the arrival of the latest Pedrosas at the yard, signaling the departure time to the cars outside.

As the groups split in fours and fives, Raimundo decided to make his entrance, as fashionably late as always.

“I hope I’m as hot as I feel”, said boy said, smugly, one arm around Rinko’s waist. “Who am I kidding? I am as hot as I feel and all you bitches know that.”

Though she’d scoffed and rolled her eyes, Clay could see that Kimiko’s eyes were a step away from falling into heart-eyes territory.

“It was cute a second ago”, she said, putting a hand on her hip. “God, you’re so pretentious, Rai. You’re not a Naomi.”

“Right, culturally speaking, I’m an Adriana”, Raimundo said, giving her an approving nod before turning to the other two. “You guys look nice too…like barely, but minimal progress is better than nothing.”

Omi crossed his arms. “Thank you for the confidence boost, gracious leader. It must be especially chilly all the way up on your high horse.”

“Don’t start a thing”, Clay said, directing his words to Raimundo. “Your sister Marta told us Kim, Omi, and I can go with her and your grandma. You and Rinko will ride with this Charlie Something.”

Raimundo was confused for a bit before he got it. “Who’s Charlie—oh, right, we’re going with Chuchi, so I guess we’ll see—”

“You know, Kimiko”, Rinko began, understanding her cue from Omi’s subtle wink. “Chuchi has an old convertible he remodeled himself.”

Kimiko gave her an odd look. “…Okay, that’s cool. I guess.”

“Isn’t that, like, correct me if I’m wrong, Raimundo”, Omi began, casually. “But isn’t that the cousin you said gets free tickets to any event he wants. Even fashion shows, you said.”

“Chuchi has connections, yes”, Raimundo allowed, confused and uncomfortable. “But—”

“I think you said once that he hanged out with Shakira!”

“Well, yeah, but that was accidental and—”

Rinko interrupted this time, with a pleasant smile. “He’s also single. And interested in cute girls.”

“I, well”, Kimiko began, tensing up and feeling cornered. “Like, good for him, but…I just don’t know, you know. I haven’t met the guy once.”

“He’s driving us, so if you—“

Before Rinko could continue, Raimundo interrupted, effortlessly. “Ugh, Rin, come on now. You’re not just going to let Kimiko date Chuchi. Old boy knows people, but he’s never heard of deodorant.”

“I’ll pass on that”, Kimiko said, relaxing a little. “If that’s how he is, I’m happy to stay single.”

Noticing the sudden relief in Kimiko’s face and the vein Raimundo pleasantly tried too hard to keep from popping, Omi allowed himself and small smirk and shot the cowboy a look.

Clay snorted, for more reasons than one. “I’ll raise my hat to that. Let’s move on, everyone.”

Once in the church, Kimiko realized something. All the people going in and out of the halls and doors were Pedrosas. As in, none of the guests had arrived yet.

Of course, that meant the family took its time mingling and gossiping as they waited. Kimiko herself got included in a couple of conversations when she was just idly passing by, all by older women who wanted to set her up with their sons and nephews. Some even mentioned their nieces when they heard her dating preferences.

Kimiko dodged them, of course. Just because her boyfriend was pretending to date someone else—and boy, wasn’t that a bad time to remember all the Rom-Coms with that premise—didn’t mean she had to pretend too. She wasn’t.

She had no parents to please here and no colleges in foreign countries to fake getting accepted to, so what was the point? Even if she wanted to have some fun by jokingly getting back at her boyfriend, Kimiko wasn’t going to use one of his family members to do so. That was just low.

Sadly, that cousin, Chuchi, was planning on disturbing that reality by all means possible, not that she wasn’t dodging his company at every possible turn.

“Kimiko!”, Chuchi said, annoyingly loud, making it impossible for her to avoid him now. “I was looking everywhere for you.”

She shrugged, awkwardly. “Really? It’s such a…medium-sized church, though, and—um, what do you have there?”

“Drinks”, he said. “It’s just mango juice, obviously. I didn’t know if you wanted alcohol now.”

“I wouldn’t have minded”, Kimiko said, smiling. “So, Chuchi, do you, like, have something to help out with? Some errand?”

Chuchi misunderstood her blowing off. “No, no, I’m all yours. I’m just very curious about you, you know.”

“Me?”, Kimiko said, downplaying herself. “I’m pretty regular, like—”

“You’re a goddess”, the cousin said. “I cannot—like, you’ve seen yourself, right? I’d personally move heaven and earth just to get a smile from you.”

“Well, I wouldn’t say goddess”, she said, more than a little flattered as she tucked a hair back. It might not be such a bad thing to let this carry on for a while. “But thank you.”

Chuchi nodded, smiling. “No problem. Hey, uh, they’re actually playing some music outside. You wanna dance? You must be insanely good, right?”

“I’d be up for that”, Kimiko said, allowing the ego boost to continue. “I could use the workout.”

“Let’s go then”, he said, leading her by the hand to the exit. “If you’re staying in Rio for a couple of days after this, maybe we can even—”

“Chuchi!”, an all-too-familiar voice carried over to the exit, as the boy himself jogged closer. “Tia Adelia needs you in the back room. Says it’s urgent.”

“Really?”, Chuchi said, a little dismayed. “I was hoping to dance a little with Kimiko here. Maybe woo her a bit, you know.”

Raimundo nodded. “Oh, I know. Once you get little Twinkle Toes here on the dancefloor, she’ll never leave!”

“We’ll see that when I get back then”, Chuchi said, walking away. “I’ll be back soon.”

Kimiko gave him a smile. “Take your time.”

Turning to Raimundo, her smile turned more than a little smug. Noticing that things were definitely getting more interesting, Kimiko put one hand on her hip.

“Oh my God”, she began, in a pleasant, friendly voice. “You’re so jealous.”

Raimundo cringed. “Of Chuchi? Puh-lease, he’s like knockoff Nikes. I’m the Air Jordan III of people. The black cement one, specifically.”

“Sure, Narcissus”, Kimiko said, still smiling. “So, just to confirm: you and Rinko can kiss but I can’t even talk to the guy?”

“I kissed her one time and I don’t want to do it again and, girl, you can talk and flirt and even kiss whoever you want”, he said, giving her an incredulous look. “Just not Chuchi.”

“Because he wants to date me?”

“We passed like ten guys who want to date you, Kim”, Raimundo said. “It’s just they have basic hygiene and manners. Chuchi, on the other hand…like, if we were just friends, I’d be embarrassed for you.”

Kimiko scoffed. “You’re being way too hard on him. He wears deodorant.”

“What an improvement.”

Though she smiled, the girl pursed her lips as she followed the godfather-to-be around. All the fun and possibilities she’d been thinking off quickly dwindled.

Here she was, feeling less than okay about Raimundo fake-being with someone else, while he was not batting an eye about the reverse happening with Kimiko.

“Your vibe is off, girl”, Raimundo asked, not even turning around as he sensed the growing displeasure. “What’s wrong?”

Kimiko hummed a little. “You’re not even the teensiest bit jealous?”

“Not really”, he said, not thinking much of it. “You know I’m not the type. I’ve got confidence.”

“Your cousin said I’m a goddess with a capital G, that I’m mesmerizing”, she said, confident about getting a reaction. “He said he’d crawl to the ends of the earth for me, like, he’d actually die to get a smile out of me. What do you say to that?”

Raimundo scoffed, turning and leaning back on a wayward pillar. “I’d say I didn’t know Chuchi knew half those words.”

Though he was looking to his girlfriend, about to speak any minute now after rolling her eyes, the godfather-to-be noticed a nearing presence.

“Hey, Rin.”

“I love your outfit”, Kimiko said, sincerely, as the fake girlfriend wedged herself between the pair. “I didn’t get a good look at first but your makeup, especially your eyebrows, is on point.”

Since the other conversation was surely dead now, Kimiko had turned her sight on the other girl. She really had no hard feelings towards her; she was even amused at first by Rinko’s head-leaning on Raimundo’s shoulder. Her patience started wearing thin with all the arm-rubbing, though.

“Thank you”, Rinko said, oblivious to everything else. “I decided to go all out for this, girlfriend of the godfather and all.”

Kimiko smiled, a little strained. “Yeah…”

As the fake girlfriend was practically hugging Raimundo now, whispering something in his ear that was making him laugh a little, Kimiko tried her best to smile and ignore it.

Technically it was nothing, she thought. They were supposed to be a couple so they acted like it. This was normal and she shouldn’t be pissed off.

Not normal, however, was the girl suddenly kissing her boyfriend’s neck, a definite rule break that he wouldn’t know how to easily stop, for more reasons that one.

“You guys look too cute”, Kimiko said, smiling a little. “I’m pretty sure your parents are all buying into it, so can you tone it down?”

Rinko shrugged. “There’s no tongue, though? I thought that was the rule.”

“No, no”, Raimundo said, more than a little relieved at Kimiko’s intervention. “She said we shouldn’t do too much intimacy.”

“So why did you go through with it?”

“What?”

“You let me kiss you like that”, Rinko explained. “You should have used your words.”

Raimundo stammered a little then, sneaking a look at his girlfriend. “I, well, you know—”

“His neck’s his weak spot”, Kimiko said, saving them all an even more awkward conversation. “He forgets his words then.”

She paused, looking around for any change in subject, regretting bringing any up.

It was now thirty minutes after they’d arrived and still no guests have arrived, a stark replica of when they first got here. And that was always something she could complain about.

“Are the guests ever going to arrive?”, Kimiko asked, exasperatedly. “I’m going to grow old waiting.”

Raimundo rolled his eyes. “We’re Brazilian, what did you think? We’d be here on time or something? That’s a universal thing people of color don’t do in general.”

“Shows you don’t know shit”, Kimiko said, smirking. “We happen to be very punctual in Japan.”

“That’s because you don’t have fun.”

“Shut your mouth—”

“You don’t!”, the laughing boy exclaimed. “Only time I saw people in Japan having fun is when they’re on reality shows or in that district you talk about so much.”

She glared. “It’s Shibuya and it’s not like your people are all fun twenty-four-seven. I should know, I’ve been to São Paulo!”

“Ouch”, a previously uncomfortable Rinko whispered, leaning even more into the boy. “That one hurt.”

Raimundo snorted. “That’s stupid. It’s not our fault—”

“Well, it’s not our fault either”, Kimiko said, interrupting. “So, don’t start or I’m never taking you on that journey through the three pillars of Japanese culture.”

“Which are?”

“Samurais, tempura, and Mount Fuji.”

“God”, Raimundo said, a big smile on his face. “You’re so boring.”

Kimiko giggled a little. “You’re so boring!”

Though Rinko was technically in between the two, looking back and forth like this was a tennis match, she hadn’t done anything to stop the two from looking at each other like no one else was in the room.

“Look at you talking like you’re hot shit with that Angelina dress on”, Raimundo said, giving her a once-over.

Kimiko beamed. “I know I am and that’s why you can’t keep your hands off me, can you? Remember last Halloween—”

“Um, I, I have to go”, Rinko said, avoiding their eyes. “Be back in a few.”

Raimundo sighed, watching as the other girl quickly scurried off. “We overdid it, yeah?”

“Possibly”, Kimiko said, not at all sad about the development. “We can leave too, you know, I saw this hidden spot and—”

“Jesus Christ”, he said, glancing around worriedly. “Not in fucking church, dude, that would definitely mean we’re going to hell!”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, but I’m not Christian.”

“I am. Like, I’m Catholic, dude, hell is the worst place we can go”, Raimundo said, raising an eyebrow. “You forgot that?”

Kimiko gave him a look. “Are you choosing Jesus over me right now, Rai? Do you see what I’m wearing?”

“That is a big part of my internal conflict.”

“Well, then now we have to resolve it.”

Failing to hold back their giggles from time to time while keeping their composure, Raimundo and Kimiko nonchalantly made their exit under the watchful eyes of the other Xiaolin pair, both currently exasperated.

“So, they sent off Chuchi and Rinko and now they’re going to make-out”, Omi said, redundantly, an overtone of sarcasm clear in his voice. “Our plan keeps snowballing, doesn’t it, Clay? They’re gonna get it now!”

Clay had a put-off expression for an entirely different reason. “In church, though? I don’t know about Catholics but in our church, that’s just an easy ride to hell.”

“Whatever”, the younger boy said, waving it off. “Let’s focus on the actual plan here. Please?”

“Right”, the cowboy said, blinking himself into focus. “What was this part again?”

“The meddling children part. It’s actually my favorite.”

Clay nodded, not unworriedly. “You know something, little partner? I’m a little worried about you, you seem to be pretty keen on this whole kinda evil-for-a-day gig we’re doing here.”

“I know”, Omi nodded. “I’m worried too but, honestly, I’m having way too much fun to care. Like, fuck Jack Spicer and all that but I get it now.”

So, Clay thought uneasily, that was another unpleasant conversation waiting to be had later.

Right now, all he had to focus on was the annoying his friends plan, so that was what he was going to do because, honestly, it was getting too damn much with this group.

Elsewhere in the medium-sized church, one wandering couple was having too much fun to care about some possible lurking plans. In between all the kissing, though, the fun continued.

“Hey”, Raimundo said, a tad offended as Kimiko broke the kiss. “Why did you do that?”

Kimiko rolled her eyes, smiling. “I don’t know, I mean I’m not hot or anything, so why do you wanna kiss me?”

“You’re mean”, he said. “Can you be nice to me today? We’re christening my niece.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’m not even at my meanest right now.”

“Really? Prove it.”

“‘Prove it’”, Kimiko said, in a poor imitation of her boyfriend’s voice. “Fine, I guess I can kiss you again.”

“Thank you for fitting me in your busy schedule, your highness”, Raimundo said, sarcastically. “So, now—”

The girl snapped her fingers, as if she’d remembered something. “Oh right, by the way, I love the suit so much. Like, I can’t believe you actually bought it on your own.”

“I happen to have good taste”, he said, feeling insulted. “I know where it’s at, fashion-wise.”

“Actually, you don’t know shit, Cargo Pants. What was next before I saved your ass? Galaxy-print tie-dye?”

Raimundo scoffed. “You’re so lucky you’re hot.”

“Oh yeah?”, Kimiko said, smirking. “How so?”

“Well”, he began, punctuating every word with a kiss. “You get to kiss me any and every time you want.”

Though that last kiss was deepening, it didn’t get to last much. At around that time, a few footsteps hurried across the floor, getting closer.

Kimiko considerably paled as she stood up and immediately dragged Raimundo to the small closet inside the room they’d walked in. The minute she shut the door to the closet she faintly saw the room’s door open.

“Shit, shit, shit”, she muttered, smacking Raimundo’s hand away when he tried to hug her. “They saw us! God, this is the worst day, isn’t it?”

“It’s not that bad”, Raimundo said, shrugging casually even though something was wrong with his voice. “Whoever it was probably saw nothing. Calm down.”

Kimiko didn’t seem to register that. “Years of perfectly good hiding gone like that.”

“It’s really not much of a big—”

“It’s so much of a big deal, dude, can’t you see that? They saw us together; can you follow that?”

Though he’d had his mouth open, Raimundo’s retort never came and kept quiet. After the loud childish voices and the footsteps were long gone, he side-stepped around his girlfriend and opened the closet door.

“There’s no one out there, right?”, Kimiko asked, in much calmer tone, only to get no answer.

Confused for a minute, she raised an eyebrow as she realized that, oddly enough, they were fighting and she didn’t really know why.

Crossing his arms and leaning back in his bed, Raimundo sighed and tried to take a quick nap.

The day, which was supposed to be as un-hectic as possible, became just the opposite of that and, of course, he had to shoulder most of the crap.

First of all, Ezequiel somehow forgot his baby and the christening had to be delayed for a while until everyone got here. Then, he himself almost picked a fight with the priest doing the ceremony and, of course, just thirty minutes before that, Raimundo had also fought with his girlfriend.

Well, he thought. That last bit was subjective. See, he doubted she knew he was even upset.

Kimiko freaked out because they’d almost gotten caught making out, but so what? It wasn’t like that was the first time they’d been in a dangerous zone. Honestly, it was even getting old, somewhat.

And it hadn’t been that that upset him, not really. What upset him was the sheer terror on her face at the thought of being caught with him of all people. Kimiko had seemed more than a little embarrassed, too.

Before he could dwell on it even more, a knock sounded on his door and he didn’t even debate whether or not he should answer it this time. The knocker entered, not waiting for a response.

“Yeah, Omi?”, Raimundo asked. “You want something?”

The younger boy shrugged. “No, your mother just sent me to get you, that’s all.”

He paused. “Okay, so I lied. I’m a little worried about you—you look like shit.”

“Considerate wording of choice, O.”

“I learned that from you”, Omi said, smirking. “But really, what’s wrong?”

Raimundo scoffed. “Why should something be wrong? I’m just a little tired, so I needed to lie down.”

“Really?”, the other boy began. “No fever? Light cough? Potential break-up with girlfriend—”

That last bit surprised the older warrior. “Who said anything about breaking up?”

“By Dashi”, Omi said, as if bashful he was caught. “I know I shouldn’t have mentioned it, but it slipped. See, a certain Japanese girl was walking around church in a very angry way, saying some very rude things about you. She sounded rather pissed the fuck off.”

“Well”, Raimundo began, speaking before really thinking. “That’s just on—”

Suddenly, and thankfully, the older warrior realized something very crucial. While talking Omi hadn’t, not once, mentioned Kimiko. Unlike what Raimundo was about to do.

“That’s just what?”, Omi prompted, curiously. “You were talking.”

Raimundo nodded. “That’s just on her, isn’t it? Rinko, you know.”

“Yes”, the other boy said, frowning a little for no apparent reason. “It’s on Rinko, I guess. So, are you coming down?”

“Sure”, Raimundo said, getting off his bed lazily. “I don’t see why not.”

That was sort of a lie. Raimundo didn’t really want to leave his room—or his bed, for any reason whatsoever—but he was admittedly a little curious by Omi’s words. He’d left church on good terms with Rinko, so what changed?

At the bottom of the stairs, Raimundo immediately went for the door leading to the backyard. Scanning the area first, he went to stand by a slightly out-of-place cowboy with the flushed face.

“Hey, man”, he said. “Enjoying yourself?”

Clay nodded. “I get to drink a couple of beers and I’m not even carded, so yeah, pretty much.”

“Great, cool, cool”, Raimundo said, not really listening. “Hey, have you seen Rinko?”

“Sure, I’ve seen—wait, Rinko?”

“Yeah…have you seen her?”

“Yeah, partner”, Clay said, uncomfortably. “She went to the kitchen.”

“Cool.”

Clay nodded, unsure, as the other boy jogged away. “Cool. Disaster is definitely happening.”

Out of earshot and really uncaring, Raimundo didn’t hear the last part, though he’d have ignored it anyway. He made his way to kitchen upstairs, cursing the fact that he came down in the first place, and saw his target.

Sadly, it wasn’t the one he’d had in mind.

Kimiko barely acknowledged him when he went in, nodding at him once, and continuing her raid of the family fridge.

“Hey”, Raimundo began, trying to sound as pleasant as possible. “You’re missing the party here.”

Kimiko shrugged. “I’m not, I was just coming in for a quick break. Besides, one of your brothers said there was some leftover pizza.”

“Yeah”, he said, nodding. “So…here’s something weird. Omi said Rinko was walking around talking shit about me?”

She gave him a look. “Who doesn’t talk shit about you these days?”

Biting his lower lip for a second, Raimundo took his time deciding on his words before he used them.

“Are we going to keep doing this?”, he asked. “I get that you’re pissed.”

Kimiko snorted. “And rightfully so. You don’t get to go all bitchy and freeze me out on a whim and then come back when you’re bored, okay?”

“I didn’t mean—look”, Raimundo said, backtracking. “You wouldn’t get it but—”

“Spare me”, she said, cutting him off as soon as he began. “If I wouldn’t get it, then don’t even begin to mention it. Look, boy, we’ve known each other for a long while.”

She paused, breathing difficultly, like she was trying to not blow fire out of her nostrils.

“We’re not just dating, Rai, we’re friends too and that means you’re supposed to share stuff with me, you know. Let me know when you’re uncomfortable or angry—that sort of thing.”

With a final withering glare, Kimiko took her leftover pizza slice and almost walked out the door before Raimundo stopped her.

“Kimiko—”

“Think about what I said first”, she said, shaking her head. “I know your brain is rusting because of the lack of use, but please, use it.”

Raimundo nodded, taking a few steps into the kitchen as he watched her walk away. That wasn’t at all good and he knew it, before he could think about it any further, though, a wandering cowboy interrupted.

Clay beamed, slightly red in the face. “Howdy, Rai, you find Rinko?”

“No”, the other boy said, sighing a little. “I didn’t but it’s okay, I can just talk to her later.”

“Something’s bothering you”, the cowboy said, matter-of-factly. “I can tell, you get that pouty pageant child look when you’re upset.”

Raimundo straightened up and stopped pouting. “I don’t do that!”

“You do”, Clay said, snorting. “And you’re talking, I don’t forget even when I’m tipsy.”

“Fine”, the other boy said, shrugging. “I’m a little upset.”

Clay nodded, reading a little more into his tone. “Troubles with the girlfriend.”

“Yeah”, Raimundo allowed. “We’re in a difficult patch. Rinko and I.”

“Fighting?”

“I guess you could say that.”

A pause. “I guess you could say I started it too. And I don’t even know why I started it, like I could have just let it go, you know. She’s pretty angry with me.”

“What are you fighting about?”, Clay asked, curiously. “You two go together like pigs and hogs.”

Raimundo cringed. “Not your best but thank you.”

“You’re thanking me”, the cowboy said, raising an eyebrow. “That definitely means something’s wrong. Speak up.”

“I can be polite when I want to”, the other boy said, throwing a middle finger for punctuation. “And I’d rather not say.”

Clay shrugged. “Embarrassing stuff?”

“You could say that”, Raimundo said. In his head, he added something else, ‘for one of us anyway’.

He paused.

“I mean, it’s kind of completely nothing. Just a little thing that happens from time to time, but how sometimes little things snowball into big things and suddenly you’ll just feel suffocated…because you need to let it out, yeah?”

Clay nodded. “I reckon you’re allowed to let what you want be known and all but don’t you think you’re supposed to explain your reasoning too?”

“I guess, I don’t know?”

The cowboy nodded. “Fine but I’m telling you now, don’t dwell on it because you’ll make a big deal out of nothing, okay?”

He paused.

“I mean, it’s probably just a small spat anyway, right?”

Before he could say that he kind of already made a big deal out of nothing, Raimundo was suddenly dragged by his old friend out of the kitchen. He seemed to be in quite a hurry too.

“I don’t want to miss the rest of the party because of your moping, to be honest”, Clay said, giving him a look. “I’d rather watch my Granny Lilly gamble and lose half the family fortune all over again.”

Never late for anything in her life, Kimiko had made it to Raimundo’s room about thirty minutes before he did, which honestly, annoyed her to hell and back.

He was the one who’d texted—well, voice-noted—first and he was the one eager to see her and this was his room and yet he couldn’t help being fashionably late. Huffing, Kimiko flopped on the bed and mentally made a note to mention that punctuality is always a nice thing to have.

Truth be told, Kimiko was a little curious because Raimundo had mentioned he had something so incredibly, undeniably important to tell her. So important their quasi-fight had to wait for now.

If that couldn’t get her intrigued, then she would be lying.

As Kimiko checked her phone for the time again, Raimundo quickly walked in and shut the door behind him, as if on cue.

“You know”, she began, casually. “There’s a high probability you’ll never get a job because you’re constantly late and bosses don’t like that sort of thing.”

She paused, sighing. “Girlfriends don’t like it either, thought I’d let you know.”

“I was talking to Rinko”, Raimundo explained, seeming for once uncharacteristically nervous. “I was planning with her how we’re gonna tell our parents, you know.”

That was interesting. “Tell them what?”

“That we’ve broken up, or like, you know, ‘broken up’.”

“Why”, Kimiko began, confusedly. “Why did you even decide that?”

Raimundo shrugged. “It’s time, you know. Besides, I kind of—I want—”

Pausing, he took a deep breath before he continued.

“I want to tell my mom about you”, he began, sighing. “Not just my mom. My siblings, my tias and tios, my Vovó, my cousins, my friends—everyone. I want to look at you and be able to go ‘yo, that’s my girl’.”

Another pause. “I want to have that dinners-with-my-family type of shit, that friends-telling-us-to-stop-making-out type of shit. And I know that makes me sound like a cheesy old white lady, but I want all that.”

“I don’t want to sound like a total asshole, Rai”, Kimiko began, managing her tone the best she could. “But I want to say something, so are you done?”

Raimundo shook his head. “No, I wanted to say that I know you’re not exactly on board with us going public or whatever but…”

He paused, sighing exasperatedly. “Look, I know you were born to be part of a power couple but would it be that bad to be seen with me?”

“Let’s not do that again”, Kimiko said, a little sharply. “It feels like we’ve been having the same argument since forever, don’t you think?”

“Well, yeah”, Raimundo agreed. “And I don’t think we’ll get anywhere if we don’t talk about it, like, what’s holding you back?”

Snorting, she looked at the ceiling for a second as if sending a silent prayer before getting off the bed and standing in front of the waiting boy.

Kimiko sighed before beginning. “You wanna know what’s holding me back? It’s everything. Don’t get it wrong, you make me so insanely happy it’s actually kind of stupid, but every time I think of someone finding out…”

She shook her head, before adding.

“It just freaks me out because I’m scared it will all change. I mean—like, when you think of me, what do you think? Like, neutrally without all the girlfriend stuff.”

“I think badass, funny, cute, stylish, cocky in the best way, straightforward in the worst”, Raimundo began, shrugging. “Good advice giver, easy to talk to, good company, great taste in music and in boys, best person to play video-games with, sweet but won’t show it.”

He paused. “You’re the best person someone can have for a friend.”

“Thank you”, Kimiko said, before her smile start fading. “I don’t want to go on a limb here and say Clay and Omi think of me the same way, but it might be close. And the thing is—the thing is, they won’t keep thinking of me that way if we tell them.”

Raimundo furrowed his eyebrows. “I don’t follow.”

“Of course you don’t”, she said, tone not vicious at the slightest. “You’re a boy, you get to be whoever you want to be and no one ever judges you, but me? If I openly date you, Master Fung, Omi, Clay, Dojo, everyone—everyone’s going to change their perception of me.”

Kimiko paused, avoiding his eyes. “I won’t just be me. Just a girl, just a Dragon, and all those things you described. I’ll be your girlfriend, the general sidekick, the person who’s always waiting for you because all she does is you.”

There was another pause, coupled with a few more exasperated sighs.

“And since you’re our leader”, she added, embarrassedly. “Every time I get ahead or get a reward or something, everyone will think it’s because I’m with you, not because of my own merit.”

“Kimiko”, Raimundo said, looking her in the eye. “That’s n—”

“Some people might even think that’s why I’m dating you”, Kimiko said. “Because you’re the one calling the shots. And I don’t want that to ever be a thing.”

She paused. “Plus, my cousin Kaori had this boyfriend who was just a friend before and they had the same friend circle, mostly guys too, and once she started dating him, everyone started being super formal with her.”

Another pause.

“And I don’t want either Omi or Clay to ever feel so weirded out they just freeze me out of their lives. I can’t—I don’t want that.”

Silence reigned for a few seconds before Kimiko, panting and incredibly relieved to not be walking on eggshells, cleared her throat and gestured her so far-silent boyfriend to talk.

“I rambled I know”, Kimiko said, shrugging. “But I’m glad to let it out, so I know you’ll be glad to share too.”

Raimundo nodded, coughing a little. “Oh yeah, I know, it’s just…I want to talk to you about what you said first.”

“Later, I’d rather we discussed everything after we’re both done sharing.”

“Okay”, he said, nodding again. “So…this relationship, it feels like it’s only part-time with you and me. Sometimes, I feel like you don’t want me around but then you do and it’s just plain confusing.”

He paused.

“I used to feel like maybe you’re just using me because you’re lonely or anything but recently—recently, I just think you’re embarrassed of me and that’s why you don’t want anyone to know about us. And every time you go into panic mode like it’s the end of the world if we’re caught kinda makes me confirm that.”

Noticing the hesitance, Kimiko prompted him. “And?”

“And I don’t know”, Raimundo continued. “Or I guess I didn’t know why it felt like such a big deal to you if anyone knew about us, but I did always know it made me feel like I wasn’t important to you. Like I’m just a silly phase you’ll once regret you had.”

Nodding at his hands-raised gesture, Kimiko moved closer and opened her arms for a hug her boyfriend readily accepted.

“I—”

Raimundo interrupted. “Can I start?”

At her nod, he sighed, beginning, “You’ll never be just a sidekick or a girlfriend or anything like that, Kim. I can’t promise everyone will think like that but I can promise you that Master Fung and Dojo and Omi and Clay won’t.”

“How’d do you figure that?”

“Because they know you”, Raimundo said, ready for the question. “You’re their friend just like you’re mine, so I know how much they know you and they know you perfectly.”

He paused.

“As for the whole team thing, everyone knows you work hard for everything. Everyone knows that if I had to step down and pick someone else as leader I’d chose you and they’d all agree because you’re just that good.”

Kimiko scoffed, breaking the hug. “And then they’ll all say that of course you’d pick me because you’re not thinking with your head.”

“Then, they’re all stupid as fuck and we shouldn’t listen to them”, Raimundo retorted. “Because you’re an amazing warrior and you and I both know that.”

He paused. “Besides, I think everyone knows you don’t need to date me to get what you want because you have a pretty disturbing ‘I’ll-kill-you-in-your-sleep’ face.”

“Okay, so that makes me feel marginally better, like, I don’t know about Clay and Omi bit but I’ll let it slide”, Kimiko said. “And, for the record, the only thing that embarrasses me about this is…”

She paused, taking a breath before continuing.

“The only thing that embarrasses me about us is that I get so happy around you it’s actually kind of cringey and worrying.”

Raimundo smiled a little. “Really?”

“Duh”, Kimiko said, ticked off and smiling too. “I know you’re too funny for your own good and it physically pains you to not be a bitch for more than five seconds, but I love that about you.”

Happy with how big her boyfriend’s grin was getting, she chuckled and added, “I don’t know if you noticed but I’m kinda into you and you better tell me some romantic shit or I’m spontaneously combusting.”

“I’m glad you feel like a bit of a clown around me”, Raimundo said, sincerely.

Kimiko snorted. “That’s your move?”

“Girl, give me a minute”, he said, chuckling a little. “I’m glad you feel like that because I feel like that too and, if I’m being honest, I don’t think I can ever get enough of you. Like, ever.”

He paused, shrugging. “And if being around you makes me a clown, well, then call me Bobo the fucking Fool.”

“You know oddly this the most romantic thing you’ve said to me”, Kimiko said, leaning in and kissing him. “It’s weird but I like it.”

Raimundo smirked. “So, it’s better than Chuchi’s goddess thing?”

“Marginally, like, it’s at a solid number two. He called me a whole goddess.”

“I’ll take it…for now.”

In the two Dragon boys’ room later that night, Clay paced back and forth across the room for about an hour, full to the brim with worry and questions.

See, Raimundo and Kimiko had been so engrossed in their conversation, they hadn’t noticed the eavesdropping cowboy on the other side of the door.

Clay had honestly been intrigued because he’d known a fight or something of the sort was coming and he’d been, well, a tad curious to see if those two’s couple fights were anything like the regular ones.

So, he listened. And because the door wasn’t that hard of a blocker, he listened well.

The things Clay knew now were these: Raimundo was definitely always late, Kimiko never toned down her tell-it-like-it-is streak for anyone, they’d been going around the same problem for a while now, and they were both insecure about different things.

Clay had immediately regretted eavesdropping because not only was it a total violation of privacy, but because it also shattered a few illusions.

He’d never heard Raimundo sound so unsure or Kimiko sound so defeated and it kind of really irritated him that they were because…they just weren’t!

But Clay couldn’t butt in to tell them that, so he was doing the next best thing.

“Omi”, the cowboy began, an hour of pacing later. “We should cancel Plan Exposure.”

Said boy squinted a little. “I didn’t know we named it but why?”

“Because”, Clay said. “I just, I just don’t think it’s a right idea. We’d be violating our friends’ trust.”

“Can’t violate something you never had”, Omi argued. “Because, as you know, they never told us.”

“I know that, but…look, we can’t—”

“Clay, Clay”, Omi began, making a timeout gesture. “How about you tell me what you found out that’s made you so anxious and I’ll chew the idea around, okay?”

“How’d you know I found something”, Clay countered. “Maybe I had a change of heart?”

“If you did, you wouldn’t be saying it like a question. And nothing can make you change your mind so drastically if you didn’t overhear it.”

“Fine. Omi, I accidentally heard Kim and Rai having this argument in Rai’s room and they talked about a lot of things.”

“Like what?”, Omi asked, a bit worriedly. “They’re not breaking up, are they? Why are they breaking up? I know their relationship is strange to me but that didn’t mean I was going to actively oppose it.”

Clay shook his head, trying to process Omi’s rapid fire rambling. “Okay, they’re not breaking up, but they, uh, they talked a lot about other things.”

“Like?”

“Like why they’re hiding their relationship”, the cowboy said. “Apparently, Raimundo wants everyone to know but Kimiko doesn’t.”

Omi was confused. “Because she likes her privacy?”

“Because she doesn’t want to not be a part of our group”, Clay corrected. “And she doesn’t want everyone to think she’s just dating Rai for nepotism purposes.”

The other boy sputtered. “Who would even think that? Kimiko’s a great warrior and we’re never shutting her out because she’s our friend.”

“I know”, the cowboy said, exclaiming a little. “And that’s what Rai said but I don’t think she bought it.”

Omi bit the inside of his cheek. “You don’t think—we’ve never implied anything like that, did we?”

“No, I don’t reckon we have”, Clay said, shrugging. “But maybe one of us said something and she took it as an implication…I don’t know, I just wish I could tell her that’s not right.”

“Maybe we should do that”, Omi said. “I mean, we’ve been fucking with them a little with the whole Rinko’s over-affection and Chuchi’s pestering thing so they must have caught on.”

Not willing to break the boy’s illusion by telling him he was awful at being evil-for-a-day, the cowboy shrugged. “I don’t think so, partner. They didn’t seem to notice it at all.”

“Well, we must expose our plan, ironically enough”, Omi said. “So we could tell them we don’t give a damn if they’re together even if it’s mildly gross.”

A pause.

“Don’t you think so, Clay? Or do you have another solution?”

Clay pursed his lips. “I have no solutions, Omi. If we tell them we know they’ll know we eavesdropped and tried to expose their best-kept secret. If we don’t, then maybe they’ll think we’re incredibly judgmental people forever.”

He paused. “It’s an ethical conundrum.”

“It isn’t, really”, Omi said, raising an eyebrow. “I grew up in a temple so I could tell you a thing or two about ethical conundrums and that’s not one of them.”

“Right”, Clay agreed. “It’s a friendship conundrum. And we can’t solve it.”

The younger shrugged, after a beat. “Nothing’s unsolvable. We’ll figure out a way, I know it.”

“I sure hope you’re right, partner. I really hope so.”

Later that night, after the teenage warriors were done packing for their last night, they went down to have their last dinner with Raimundo’s family. Some of the family that were still in the house, at least.

It was a quiet event, considering the after-christening party broke some expectations, but no one was complaining. If they were, then at least they could always be happy they weren’t in Raimundo’s shoes in that moment.

Even though the table (and neighboring chairs, and coffee tables) was littered with smiles and friendly chatters from the few siblings, cousins, and nieces present, the Dragons could vaguely tell their leader was really getting it from his mother.

“Por favor, saiba que eu não acredito que a merda que você disse sobre separação seja mútua”, his mother, Iolanda, was saying, tone a mixture of anger and shock. “Ela parecia arrasada, Raimundo!”

Said boy was trying to alleviate her, not that it was working. “Mãe, você não sabe o que—”

“Nem fale comigo”, his mother said before turning to the other warriors with a smile. “So, what did you guys think of your mini-vacation? You like it?”

Clay almost choked at the tone change but smiled. “Yeah, yes, Mrs. Pedrosa. Personally, I think Brazil is lovely and I’d love to come back again.”

“And I’d love to have you back again”, the woman said, cheerily. “But if you call me Mrs. Pedrosa again, we’ll have a problem. Clay, I told you it’s Tia Lola.”

She paused, turning to Omi with a smile. “And you, I wouldn’t mind if you slipped up and called me Mãe. You remind me so much of Jacinto at your age, it’s unsettling!”

“No, no, tia”, Omi said, flushing a little bit. “I think I’m…I’m fine.”

Raimundo rolled his eyes. “You’re embarrassing him, Mãe. Can’t you tell?”

“My intention is good”, his mother said, giving him a look. “And I’m still not talking to you.”

She gave Omi one more smile before she turned her sights on Kimiko.

“You didn’t say anything today, filha”, the woman said. “Tell me, are you enjoying yourself?”

Kimiko nodded, tucking a hair behind her ear. “I’ve been having fun, auntie.”

“Really?”

“Yes and oh, by the way, before I forget the church yesterday—that was beautiful, congrats again!”

“Thank you. I mean, these kids are making me older by giving me grandkids but I’m still happy.”

A pause. “So…did you see anyone cute yesterday? You know, I love playing matchmaker so if you did, I’d be more than happy—”

“Oh, it’s okay, you don’t have to go through the trouble”, Kimiko said, sneaking a look to her friends as she said the next part. “I actually have boyfriend.”

“You do?”

Raimundo nodded. “Yeah, Mãe, he’s a lovely guy. You’d love him if you met him.”

After the dinner, the teenagers hurried upstairs to the rooftop because they’d never been and according to Raimundo, they’d be a bunch of idiots if they missed it on the last night.

He’d also mentioned he had something important to share, so that was always interesting.

“So”, Omi began the minute they stepped onto the roof. “What did you want to tell us?”

Kimiko sighed. “That’s not how anyone starts a conversation, Omi, we didn’t even sit yet.”

“Fine”, the youngest warrior said, crossing his arms as he and the others took their seats. “We’re all sat now, so can we talk?”

Raimundo rolled his eyes. “Fine, so as you guys know, Rinko and I broke up.”

“Yeah”, Clay said, shrugging. “It’s a shame, she seemed nice.”

“She is”, Raimundo said, nodding. “She’s so nice she decided to tell us that you two kind of knew about us for a while.”

“Knew what?”, Omi said, feigning surprise. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, who’s ‘us’?”

“Us”, Kimiko began, with an expression that said she wasn’t buying it. “As in me and Rai. And don’t pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about.”

Raimundo clicked his tongue. “Rin said you two have been fucking with us for a while, so let me just say that as your leader and your friend, I’m disappointed as fuck you didn’t learn shit from me.”

He paused, moving his judgmental gaze across both boys.

“If you want to fuck with someone with a secret girlfriend”, he said. “You hire someone to pretend they’re their other significant other and you hire an actor so they make it realistic.”

Another pause. “You plant fake texts, photoshop old photos, misplace underwear, lipstick-on-a-shirt-collar, you know, that kind of thing.”

“Got it, Rai”, Clay said, slowly. “Next time we try to expose your relationship we’ll go about it the diabolical way.”

Omi shrugged. “I mean, Raimundo, you’re kind of right and all but we need to talk about why you two hid this from us.”

“We hid it from everyone”, Kimiko began. “Because, for the most part, we didn’t really know where we stood. Like, we’ve officially started dating a few months back.”

Raimundo agreed. “We’ve had a few setbacks but it worked out. The thing is, well, we didn’t know how it would have been taken if everyone knew.”

Clay and Omi shared a look, both knowing there was more to that than was being said.

“Is that it?”, the latter asked, curiously.

After giving her boyfriend a look, Kimiko shook her head. “No, actually, there’s something else. I know you’re going to think this is stupid but I was a little worried.”

She paused, taking a quick breath, and let Raimundo hold the hand she was not gesturing with.

“I was a little worried you two, specifically, would start seeing me differently. Like, you’d choose sides and you’d choose his and I’d be left behind. I know it’s ridiculous but…you know.”

Clay nodded. “You’re right. It is ridiculous. Why would you even think that?”

“Yeah”, Omi said, adding his own chagrined voice into it. “If anything, we’d have chosen you over Raimundo!”

Raimundo smiled, though his voice was completely deadpan. “This is not tapping into any of my insecurities, please carry on.”

“I was making a joke”, the youngest warrior said, rolling his eyes. “But my point still stands; you’re our friend and we love you. We’ve been through a lot together, so the fact that you think we’d just drop you is not only ridiculous, it is plain stupid.”

He paused, smiling. “And Kimiko, if there was anything I admired about you, it’s that you’re not stupid.”

“Omi’s right even if he’s tactless”, Clay said. “You guys, both of you, will always be our friends, no matter what you two decide to do on your own. You never drop family, y’know.”

At that, Raimundo held one of Kimiko’s hands with both of his and smiled.

“See? I told you so, didn’t I tell you so? I know how our friends are.”

“Okay, so you won that one”, Kimiko said, trying and failing to hold back her smile. “Don’t gloat.”

“Oh, I’m so gloating.”

Omi coughed a little, drawing everyone’s attention back to him. “So, how did you two even get together?”

“Like, officially?”, Raimundo asked. “Or how it all began?”

“The second one.”

“Remember the day my cat died? I think I told you guys about Mimi before.”

Clay nodded. “The cat your mom named after Mariah Carey. Yeah, sure.”

“Yeah”, Raimundo said, smiling fondly. “It all started that day, when…”

Thirty minutes later, Raimundo and Kimiko, who’d joined in a few minutes later, wrapped up their story.

Interestingly, Clay and Omi hadn’t been bored one bit at the cutesy couple act that sometimes popped up, though they’d cringed a little at various moments. Case in point was this one. After they were done with the storytelling, Kimiko found her way into her boyfriend’s arms, using his stomach as a head pillow.

“You know, guys”, Raimundo began, a big smile still on his face. “I’m really happy, like I’m home with everyone who’s important to me and I finally got to share one secret that’s been overwhelming to hold back. Today’s a good day.”

He paused, thinking about something for a minute.

“I should tell my family about this, don’t you think? Like, now before we leave tomorrow and—”

Among all the protests and sputtering, the youngest of the teenagers managed to make his voice the loudest and the most heard.

“Uh, no”, Omi began, as if Raimundo was a three year-old. “If you share this development now, they’ll definitely think you’re a specific fetishist.”

Turning her face upwards, Kimiko gave her boyfriend a victorious look. “Thank you, that’s what I said!”