Chapter Text
TK rolled up his sleeves as he stepped out of the airport and headed straight for the driver who was holding up a sign saying 'TJ Strand' on it, he could only assume this was for him and not a massive coincidence that there was a TJ Strand who also just landed in Austin, Texas.
"Hello Mr Strand, would you like any help with your bags?" The driver asked politely, placing the card with his name on it away.
"That would be appreciated, thank you." TK nodded and pulled his two suitcases closer for the driver.
"There are refreshments and snacks inside the car and air con to cool you down, I'm sure you aren't used to the humid air yet."
"It's definitely a lot more humid than I expected." TK laughed awkwardly and climbed into the car, letting out a relieved sigh as the cold air hit him.
"Is that a New York accent I hear? What brings you over to Austin, Texas during Summer?" The driver asked as he got into the drivers seat.
"I was searching for something new and challenging to do with my Summer break and I found Mrs Reyes' ad for a ranch hand and I've never done anything like this before so it's definitely going to be a challenge alongside a nice change of scenery."
"The Reyes' are one of the nicest families in Austin so you've lucked out there son."
"Always nice to know that I'm not walking into a horror movie situation." TK laughed and opened a bottle of water.
"The Reyes siblings can be a little chaotic at times but that's all so you don't have to worry about being the naive college kid wondering somewhere new by themselves at the beginning of a horror movie." The driver assured.
"How many siblings are there? The ad didn't go into details about the family, just the job." TK asked curiously, maybe there would be someone his own age he could befriend.
"There's three of them, Camila who is 24, Sofia who is 21 and the youngest is Carlos who is 19, he's definitely the quietest of the three."
"Maybe I can bring him out of his shell now that he won't be surrounded by only his sisters." TK said with a small smile, he was feeling less anxious about the trip the more he learnt about the family.
"Good luck with that, Carlos is a very nice a polite boy but he's also very shy around new people. He still calls me Sir even though he's known me his whole life."
TK smiled to himself, maybe he had more than one challenge this summer.
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"Here you go Mr Strand, the Reyes family ranch."
TK looked up from his phone where he was reassuring all three of his parents that he had arrived safely and hadn't been kidnapped by a family of cowboys.
"Thank you so much, I don't have much on me but I hope this is enough." TK said as he handed a $20 bill to the driver after he was out of the car.
"Oh no sir I don't do this job for tips, I'm just glad you had a nice first impression of Austin."
"I did and that's because of you so please accept my gratitude and this $20 tip." TK said as he offered the money again.
"Thank you Mr Strand, I hope you find what it is you are looking for this summer." The driver said gratefully before getting back into the car and driving off.
"You can do this TK, you're a sociable guy." TK murmured to himself as he picked up his suitcases.
"Maybe stop talking to yourself though, that's a little weird." TK added as he head up the steps and knocked on the front door.
"You must be TJ! You are so handsome mijo, come in!" Andrea said as she opened the door all the way.
"Hi Ma'am this is a beautiful home you have, thank you for letting me stay with you this summer." TK praised as he walked into the house and left his suitcases near the door.
"Nonsense Mijo you are the one helping us out! My Gabriel injured himself at work so he won't be able to keep up with the daily tasks on the ranch and we didn't want our Carlitos getting overwhelmed with jobs." Andrea said as she led TK towards what looked like the kitchen.
"Is he alright now Ma'am?" TK asked politely as he looked around the house.
"He's insisting that he's in perfect health but the cast around his arm says otherwise." Andrea said with a look of fond annoyance that only a married couple could do.
"What's his job if you don't mind me asking?"
"He's a Texas Ranger, I'm just thankful that it's just a broken wrist he came home wrist with how dangerous his job can be." Andrea said as she placed a hand over the cross necklace that laid on her chest.
"I can understand that worry Ma'am, my Dad is a firefighter so I always live with the worry that something can happen to him any moment." TK admitted honestly, this trip will be the longest he's ever been away from his parents without any visits.
"Oh you poor boy, that must be so stressful." Andrea worried and shook her head at him.
"None of that Ma'am business, you can call me Andrea." Andrea added on with a smile.
"I shall try my best to remember that." TK smiled.
"Also my name is TK not TJ, it's an easy mistake to make."
"I'm sorry mijo, I must've written it down wrong after our phone call about this job." Andrea apologised and turned towards the fridge.
"May I offer you a drink or a snack? You must be hungry after all of that travelling."
"I wouldn't want to be a bother." TK said as Andrea pulled out a small platter of sandwiches from the fridge.
"Nonsense I was happy to prepare these and I'm sure the rest of the house will be happy to have these too, it was no bother." Andrea assured and looked up as the door opened.
"Hi Mami, would you like any help with lunch?" Carlos asked as he ran his fingers through his hair trying to untangle his curls that were covered in sweat.
TK stared with his mouth slightly open for a few seconds before he realised what he was doing and held a hand out for who he assumed was Carlos.
"Hi I'm TK from New York, I'm here to help you for the summer." TK said as he tried to not stare at the bead of sweat that was running from carlos neck down to his pecs that were half uncovered by a pair of dungarees that Carlos was wearing.
"Hi I'm Carlos from Austin which you knew already because that's where we are, in Austin." Carlos rambled as he shook TK's hand for a few seconds before realising that he should probably let go before it got weird.
"Well Carlos from Austin it's very nice to meet you." TK said with a smirk, the nerves being replaced with his usual flirty self as he realised he wasn't the most awkward of the two of them.
"It's very nice to meet you too." Carlos said with a smile and TK felt his own smile getting bigger at how soft Carlos' smile was.
"I'm glad you boys are already getting on so well because you'll be working together all summer." Andrea said.
"I'm very much looking forward to it." TK grinned and happily accepted the plate of sandwiches Andrea placed in front of him.
TK had promised his parents and Enzo that he wouldn't get into any trouble this summer but TK couldn't think of anything more fun than causing some trouble with Carlos and his biceps that were bigger than TK's head.