Work Text:
"Petra" you say, surprised. She has stopped by your house the day after Thanksgiving and you're happy to see her.
You blink at the realization, still unused to being happy at Petra's presence rather than worried at the implications of her visits like before, and invite her in on autopilot.
She smiles at you, wide and sincere, and comes in, one hand curled over her belly and the other at the small of her back to help keep her balance.
She's wearing a loose, white dress that has red and pink flowers stitched across the edges, and her hair is loose around her face, falling in golden waves. She is altogether another person than you expected when you first met her, warm and motherly and sweet, and she asks you about your day as you gather your thoughts enough to lead her to the living room couch.
"Yeah, I've been good," you say as she gets comfortable. "Mateo is with Rafael right now, so I've been trying to catch up with writing." She nods as you talk, attentive, and you talk more than you mean to, about the writer's block you've been having lately and problems you've been having in class, and she is so understanding. She cringes a little as you talk about the MASTITIS, but powers through it.
You ask her about how she has been feeling about her pregnancy and how things are going with her mother now out of jail, despite how much you dislike Magda. It was important to Petra that she have her mother with her through her pregnancy, to not be alone with Milos, and you feel like you made the right decision in spite of your misgivings.
Petra talks about her morning sickness and her mother and how Milos left to Europe, and you feel like she is holding something back but you don't prod. Your relationship with her is still new, and you don't want her to feel like she has to tell you anything she isn't ready to share.
An hour passes as you talk with her, then another, and you invite her to stay for dinner. She pleasantly surprises you by offering to help cook but admits she doesn't have much practice.
You guide her through molding the masa for sopes and laugh at the flour she has on her nose, wiping it off with the back of your hand without thinking. She smiles at you, eyes crinkling, and you feel time pass a little more slowly as she keeps eye contact with you and kneads the masa in the bowl. You snap back into time with a jolt as the oil in the pot pops, and you flip the sope over to cook it evenly.
Alba and Xiomara arrive shortly after you both are finishing up with the cooking. Petra sets the table, and Xiomara stands next to you as you mash the beans, looking between you and Petra with a raised brow. You shrug like it's no big deal, but when you look up at Petra placing a plate in front of Alba as she attempts to make small talk with her, your expression softens to something more intimate, less casual, and you're suddenly aware of how pleased you are that Petra is there. How right it feels.
As you serve everyone, you make sure to mention that Petra helped make the food, even though it's obvious by messy front of her previously snow white dress, and she modestly says thank you and credits you when Alba and Xiomara compliment the food, but her cheeks have flushed red and she sends a happy smile your way at the end of the meal.
When she leaves, you walk her to the door where she asks you, suddenly flustered and unsure, if you want to do this again sometime. It sounds like she's asking you out on a date and it makes you smile and of course you say yes.
For a moment, after you hug goodbye, you both remain in each other's space and stand quietly looking at one another and the moment is pregnant with possibility - but then Rafael honks as he pulls up, waving first at you and then hesitantly and curiously to Petra, and the moment is gone.
She excuses herself and says bye one more time before she leaves, and even when you have Mateo in your arms, you feel the missed moment poignantly. Rafael asks about Petra and you answer distractedly and wonder if Petra is still up for your date.
You needn't have worried: Petra texts you less than half an hour later with plans for the following day, and you confirm immediately and smile to yourself as you get ready for bed.