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Usually, Aubrey wasn’t this nervous on a date with Kel. But it was his first birthday they would share as a couple and that made everything so much more… Well, nerve-wrecking? self-aware? She couldn’t find the exact word that would describe why she was anxious, she just was.
She looked to herself in the mirror of her dirty bathroom again. Her face was still flushed, but everything seemed in place: she was still getting familiar with the new lilac locks that complimented her old pink locks (Mrs. Nogueira-Lopez insisted that her hair was prettier in black… oh heck, she was going to see the lilac for the first time!), but the hairstyle she did with the help of Kim made sure everything was perfect, straight without any messy strand of hair.
She made sure her dress was elegant… Even though they would only go to eat churrasco in the park.
…Maybe she should change back to a regular shirt and skirt…
“Aubrey!” She jumped upon hearing her mom from the living room. “Kel’s here!”
“I'm coming!” She quickly picked up Kel’s gift that she had put next to the sink, put inside her purse and sprinted to where her mother and boyfriend were.
Kel, as always, was a ray of sunshine: smiling and chit chatting with his mother-in-law, even if she was tired and only nodding, as always. He was already used to how everything was full of garbage thrown on the floor (he even went there and helped clean up stuff from time to time) and made sure no one felt ashamed of it, even though Aubrey and her mom would occasionally still be a bit uncomfortable.
“Hey, Aubrey!” Kel kissed her forehead. “You look amazing!”
In the corner of her eye, Aubrey saw her mom having a small smile on her lips.
“She does.” Mrs. Müller agreed. “Oh, and Happy Birthday, Kel.”
“Thank you!”
“Let’s get going, then?”
“Sure, everyone’s in the park. Bye, Mrs. Müller.”
“Bye, mom!”
They held hands as they went walking to the park. Aubrey was quiet and fidgeting her fingers on her purse.
“You seem… nervous.” Kel broke the silence.
“Oh… I am.”
“Why?” He seemed confused. Aubrey sighed.
“Because it’s your first birthday since we started going out.”
“Hey, you’ve celebrated like what… 10 of my birthdays already?”
“Yeah, but not like this… With only your immediate family.”
“Be happy then that my tios, tias, primos and primas couldn’t get a plane ticket all away from Brazil and Mexico to arrive today! But beware… You’ll probably meet them soon enough on Christmas.”
“That doesn’t make me feel better!”
Kel laughed and hugged her.
“Don’t worry. They’ll all love you as much as I do.” He kissed her quickly. “Come on, before your aubergine gets cold!”
♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧♧
They arrived at the park. Kel’s mom and Sally were sitting on the wooden bench and Kel’s father was grilling burgers, meat and vegetables. Hector, already really old and full of white fur all over his face, was sleeping on the shadows that a nearby tree did. The wooden table was full of snacks.
“Aubrey, honey! I’m so glad you came” Mrs. Nogueira-Lopez hugged her tight. Kel and Hero definitely learned from their parents on how to be affectionate. “Wow, you painted your hair again! It’s pretty but I miss your black hair so much… And why don’t you start using glasses and not contact lenses?”
“Mãe…” Kel started, with a serious face.
“Oh sorry, I’m not trying to be rude. Come on, sit down! Filhinho, I bought your favorite drink.”
“Aubwey! Look at my new doll!” Sally excitedly showed what looked like a fusion of a fish and a teenager.
“It’s really pretty, Sally.” Aubrey messed up her hair and Sally smiled widely, showing some missing teeth.
“Hey, Aubrey! I made you the aubergines you liked, although I’m not very good and cooking vegetables…” Mr. Nogueira-Lopez smiled at her, waving.
“It’s a shame Hero couldn’t come. He would love spending time with us.” Mrs. Nogueira-Lopez sighed.
“Maybe next year when he graduates, who knows.”
“Yeah, that’s right… Let’s forget that, it’s your day today after all, meu filhinho.” She squeezed Kel’s cheeks. Aubrey felt relieved. She had her problems with Kel’s parents and their favoritism towards Hero but at the end of the day, they loved all of their three children.
“Oh, Kel, I almost forgot.” Aubrey picked up her gift from her purse. “Happy birthday!”
“You shouldn’t have…” He said, only to be polite. His face was guilty of screaming ‘yay! presents!’
It was two gifts. The first one was a small sewed plush Aubrey did herself of an Orange Joe: His head was the shape of the can and his body was smaller and orange. The second gift was a small vase with a cactus in it.
“Aubrey! I loved it!”
When he smiled she knew that she didn’t need to be anxious. But Kel was wrong, that wasn’t like his previous birthdays: it was so much better.