Chapter five - Friends?

After dinner we 'kids' were excused to the living room while the ' grown-up's ' stayed seated around the table for a cup of coffee.
As we chose our seats, I ended up on the sofa between Catrina and Janie, while Paulo and Lara sat across from us on the love seat. Erin ran off with Joel to show him his room, and I didn't blame him.
The air around me felt hot and awkward and I wanted nothing more than to get out of it, but I knew I couldn't.

Lara was giggling and chatting with Paulo like nobody else was in the room, every so often putting one of her filthy hands on his thigh.
All those empty, sugar-coated words were enough to make me want to gag.

"Your dress is lovely." A voice suddenly spoke from next to me, breaking my chain of thoughts.

I turned my head to face Janie and offered a small smile. "Thank you."
I wasn't sure what else to add, so I awkwardly left it at that.

I glanced down at my dress while fiddling with my fingers. It wasn't anything fancy, just a simple, dark purple dress with short sleeves and knee-length skirt. I wasn't sure if she just said it to make conversation, or because she honestly liked my dress, but she didn't seem like the kind of person who said something and meant the opposite, so I took it as a compliment.

"How old are you?" Janie continued. She spoke with an accent, but I understood her just fine.

"I'm eighteen. And yourself?"

As I made myself more comfortable on the sofa and turned to get a better view of Janie, I noticed for the first time how thin she was.

Thinner than Lara... I thought smugly.

She wore a flowing, floor-length, beige skirt with a long-sleeved, soft pink T-Shirt and flats.
The pink went well with her flawless brown skin, giving it an almost gold-like glow along with the light illuminating from the chandelier hanging above us.
I couldn't quite keep the jealousy from arising again at seeing her beauty. Her hair was so long and glossy, her skin was golden perfection, her body was what I could only dream of--thin, petite and cute.

Why can't I be pretty?

"I am seventeen." She smiled, once again pausing my thoughts and desires.

"I am cuatro!" Catrina cut in, giving me a big toothy grin.

"Cuatro?" I laughed. "I'm not sure how much that is!" I said helplessly, making Catrina giggle.

"It is like this." She confirmed, holding up four fingers.

"Catrina is still very much learning the English language."
Paulo suddenly voiced from across from me, chuckling at his little sister.

"Same as we are." Janie added teasingly.

Paulo frowned. "I thought our English was... on point."
He said the words 'on point' slowly, as if he wasn't sure how to pronounce them correctly or if this was the right sentence to use them in.

Janie burst out laughing, while Lara immediately agreed with him, telling him how well he spoke our language and smiling up at him.

I rolled my eyes, even though I silently agreed. They did speak English well for somebody who hadn't been learning for all that long.
Paulo soon joined in the laughter of his siblings and I couldn't contain the giggles lodged in my own throat. There was simply no way to deny the fact--their laughter was contagious.

The atmosphere lifted after that and it gradually became easier to breathe, and as the evening wore on, I soon realized what an easy-going family the Garcia's were. They were easy to talk too, open and full of smiles, laughter and teasing. I couldn't remember the last time I had enjoyed talking to someone as much as I did that night.
Janie was wonderful and loved to chat about anything and everything, and I could easily picture us becoming friends.

Paulo was sweet and obviously adored his siblings by the way he grinned and joked with them, especially Catrina. It was adorable to watch.

Catrina was a little bundle of adorable-ness, full of childish story's her little heart felt the need to bring into words, unknowingly binding the hearts around her to her own, creating an immediate love for her.

The evening ended so much quicker then I would have ever imagined, and after saying goodbyes and promising to keep in touch, I watched them leave through the front door.

                          ***

Dear Nobody,

Even though today didn't start well, I think it ended wonderfully. I met the Garcia family, and I think I might have made a friend or two along the way. Maybe it's just me, but I hope I'll get to see them again.
Janie appeared to be exactly the type of girl you'd want to spend your time with, making everyone laugh because of her loud contagious laughter.

I really liked her.

I really liked the Garcia family in whole. They just gave off that easy likable vibe.

Lara probably would have had a word with me involving Paulo if I hadn't dashed to my room right after they left, so I'll be awaiting a visit from her any time, telling me what I already know--to stay away from her new toy.

I hope he won't fall for her trap. He seemed too full of life, too innocent to be used like that. Maybe I should have warned him somehow...
Then again, he seemed smart. Maybe he'll see it for himself.

I hope he will. He deserves better.

Well, it's getting late, so I guess that's all for today.

Goodnight, Nobody.

-Genesis

                           ***
Quote:

ʙᴇᴀᴜᴛɪғᴜʟ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ᴀsᴋ ғᴏʀ ᴀᴛᴛᴇɴᴛɪᴏɴ.

***