Collin led me up a pair of run-down steps and rang the doorbell. After a few silent, painstaking minutes, the door opened. A petite woman with large eyes and short, curly hair stood in the doorway. Her eyes shined with recognition when she saw Collin. She smiled widely. "Collin! How are you, dear?"

"Who's at the door?" A bulky man with soft facial features appeared behind the woman. He looked at Collin and grinned. "Collin! Good to see you again."

Collin shook the man's hand and gave the woman a quick hug. I stood back, not knowing what to do during their interaction. The couple's reaction to Collin felt drastically different from when we had entered Vito's house. They talked to him as if they were having a family reunion. They quickly ushered Collin in, their arms wrapped tightly around his shoulders.

Collin looked back at me. I hadn't moved from the porch. "I brought a friend with me. Can she come in?"

The woman turned. When she saw me, her face flushed. "Oh, of course! I'm so sorry, sweetie, I didn't see you. Please, come in, come in."

I hesitantly came inside. The woman closed the door behind me, then quickly made her way to a different room. The man and Collin were nowhere to be seen. Not knowing where to go, I followed the woman.

She was in a small kitchen, the fridge wide open. She muttered frantically under her breath, picking up various foods and then putting them back in the fridge. "Manny, where did we put the patties?"

"In the freezer out in the garage!" the man, assumably Manny, shouted from a separate room. With a huff, the woman closed the fridge and left. I sat at the table in the dining room, which was right next to the kitchen. It was a small room that was practically covered by the table itself. It seemed like only the couple lived in the house. I didn't know why they needed such a long table. Maybe they had guests over frequently.

The walls were covered with random stuff: pictures (some appeared professional and others looked like sketches from a three-year-old), hanging plants, strings of lights, pasta necklaces, and ribbons. It looked unorganized, chaotic, yet sentimental.

The woman came back with a small box. The ice clinging on the sides of the box melted and slid into her hands. She placed the box on the counter and started the stove.

She placed a patty on a pan. A loud sizzling erupted and oil bubbled. The woman hummed a pleasant tune. After making one of the patties, she looked over at me. Her eyes widened.

"Oh, hello!" She turned the heat down and gave me a wide smile. "Do you like cheese on your burger?" I nodded. "Are you vegetarian?"

"Oh, no."

"Alright, only one, then." She proceeded to make the rest of the burgers. She continued to talk as she cooked. "I'm so excited that Collin brought someone with him. What's your name, honey?"

"I'm Natalie."

"How lovely! I'm Cece. My husband's Manny." Cece placed all the patties on a plate, grabbed a bag of burger buns, and set them on the table. "Would you like something to drink?"

"Just a water, please."

Cece came back with a cup of coffee and a cup of water. She set the drinks down before sitting across from me at the table.

"Where's Collin?" As kind and gentle as Cece appeared to be, it still felt awkward without having someone I knew in the room.

"Probably showering still," she replied. "The shower's open for you, too, if you'd like."

Collin just walked into someone's house and used their shower? He must have known this couple for a long time. That was apparent from the way he was greeted at the door. Admittedly, I was surprised by their kindness. After my first encounter with some of Collin's associates, I had expected them all to be that way. Cece and Manny, however, just seemed like a normal and gracious pair.

"You can eat now if you'd like," Cece offered. "Manny likes to cut Collin's hair after he showers, so they both might be a while."

"Cut his hair?" I took a plate and slid a burger on it. Cece did the same.

She nodded. "Manny's a barber. Collin comes only a few times a year, and his hair's always so long."

She talked about Collin so tenderly that it made me think about the couple's and his relationship. Were they related? I hadn't assumed at first, for Collin didn't look like Manny nor Cece. They could have been distant relatives, though.

I looked at the art around the room again. My eyes lingered on one image. It was of three stick figures, a small one in the center and two next to it. The figures were all smiling. There was a crooked house in the background and a bright sun in the corner. It was a very childish drawing, one that I surely drew when I was younger, too. It was signed in the corner. I was able to translate the illegible writing: "Collin Reyes."

"Oh, isn't it darling?" Cece sighed. She got out of her seat, took the pins out of the picture I was looking at, and set it on the table. "He drew this for us when he was seven. Oh dear, that seems like forever ago."

The curiosity had itched at me for too long. I had to ask. "Are you guys family?"

"Oh." She seemed surprised by the question. She played with the corners of the picture. "Oh, no. Not related, at least..." She put the drawing back up on her wall. She smiled at me sadly. "How long have you known Collin?"

One day. "Not long."

Her eyebrows raised. "Well, then you probably don't know much about him. A sad story he has, really. Such a kind man doesn't deserve a fraction of what he's been through."

A sad story? Her words sparked my interest. I was going to ask for her to elaborate, but Collin and Manny entered the room. I was taken aback by Collin's appearance. His hair, which had been longer and shaggy, was now cut to a fade and was only long in the front. His facial hair had been cleaned up, too. It was like looking at a completely different man.

His eyes locked with mine, and he gave me a small smile. I averted my eyes, my stomach twisting. I felt my cheeks grow warm. What's wrong with you? I asked myself. It's just Collin.

Manny beamed when he saw the burgers on the table. "Cece, darling, you've done it again! These look marvelous."

"Oh, Manny." Cece giggled. Manny came over, kissed the top of her head, then grabbed himself a plate and sat down. He sat across from Cece. Collin sat across from me. "Oh, Collin, there's a veggie burger there for you, sweetie."

The veggie burger was for him? "Wait, you're vegetarian?" I asked. Collin shrugged and grabbed the patty.

Manny swiftly changed the topic, asking Collin about what he'd been doing since the last time he had visited. I listened in, but my mind was too preoccupied with my own thoughts to pay attention. Why hadn't he told me that he was vegetarian? It wasn't that big of a deal, but I felt like it was an important detail. Was he so committed to keeping everything about himself a secret that he couldn't even tell me his basic dietary needs?

I finished eating early and excused myself to take a shower. Cece kindly offered to place a pair of clothes on the bed that I was going to sleep on that night.

Once I closed the bathroom and started the shower, I let out all of my frustration. My thoughts spilled out all at once. Why didn't Collin tell me anything? I understood concealing secrets and personal information, but basics like allergies or being vegetarian didn't seem like a big deal. How about what he liked and disliked? Favorite music, color? I didn't know anything about him. In fact, for the hours we spent in the car together, we should have known everything about each other by now.

The warm water fell lightly on my skin, soothing me. The longer I was in the shower, the more my anger seeped away. It seemed to slip down the drain with the water. My thoughts grew more rational. Collin and I had only known each other for a little over twelve hours. Surely that wasn't enough time to form a relationship with someone. I had just gone through so much today—more than I ever had in my lifetime. All of the stressful events I had endured made today feel more like a week. It felt like I had known Collin for much longer than I had.

I finally turned off the water and dried off. I had fully calmed down by then. I wrapped a towel around myself, threw my wet hair into a messy bun, and ventured down the hallway.

There I realized that Cece hadn't specifically told me which room was mine. She just told me that it was down the hall. There were two rooms to choose from. I picked the one with the closed door. It appeared empty, and there was a pair of pants and a shirt on the bed. Hey, lucky guess.

I grabbed the clothes and changed in the small bathroom attached to the bedroom, just in case Cece came in to tell me something. It was only half of a bathroom and I could hardly move in it. I quickly put on the clothes so that I didn't have to suffocate in there for too long.

Cece must have snagged Manny's clothes, for the shirt and sweats were way too big on me. I tied the shirt with a hair tie and pulled the string as tight it would go so that the sweats would fit my waist. I rolled up the cuffs, too, so that I wasn't tripping over my own feet.

I jumped back in shock when I opened the door. Manny was standing in my room with his back facing me. I instinctively grabbed the doorknob of the bathroom.

"Wha—what are you doing here?" I asked.

Collin turned around, looking just as surprised as I felt. "You're in my room."

"What?" I looked down at my baggy clothes. They were similar to what Collin was wearing. "Oh."

The corners of his lips tugged. I looked away, my cheeks growing hot. An awkward silence lingered between us.

I wasn't planning to bring it up, but since we had a chance, I wanted to clear the air. "Why didn't you tell me that you were vegetarian?"

He was silent for a moment. "I didn't think it was that important."

Seriously? "But it kind of is, don't you think?"

He didn't respond. I would have been annoyed, but all of my anger had dissipated in the shower. Now I was just exhausted and strangely calm.

"Look," I held back my laughter, unable to process that I was about to lecture a grown man, "Oregon is a long trip. We're going to be together for quite some time, so I...I just wish you'd tell me more, you know?"

Again, he didn't reply. I tried again. "I'm sorry that I've been questioning you so much. It's just..." Just that friends usually open up pretty quickly. After our experience at Vito's house, I assumed that we were way past being acquaintances. Apparently I was mistaken.

Finally, Collin spoke. "You remember your flat tire from last night?" I nodded. Of course I remembered, though I was confused as to why he was bringing it up. "I walked to a town close by to find some tools to fix it. Someone offered to take me where I needed to go, but I didn't want to. He drove over and changed your tire instead. It's your car, so I think you deserve to know."

I stared at him, stunned. He had an opportunity to leave with someone else and he didn't take it? When he had first left at Modesto, I had assumed that he just didn't want to be around me anymore. Now I didn't think so. He wouldn't have gone through all of that trouble of helping me if he didn't care.

"Thank you," was all I said.

"I'll try to..." he looked up at the ceiling as if he'd find what he was trying to say up there, "open up a little more, if that's what you want."

"And I'll not ask you so many questions." I reached out my hand for him to shake. He smiled and took my hand.

"Alright."

I left his room feeling happier and more relaxed than I had all day. I went into the other room that I had decided between earlier. Cece was in the room folding a pair of clothing on the bed. She turned when she heard the door open, her eyes widening when she saw me.

"Seems like you found yourself something to wear." She smiled. "Wonderful. Your clothes are in the wash, they should be ready by the time you leave tomorrow."

"Thank you." I looked around the room. There was a king-sized bed set in front of the back wall and a desk on the other side. There was a photo wall above the desk with images of Cece and Manny at different events. Their wedding photos, a prom photo, them traveling, and more.

The photos sparked a thought in my mind. It would be strange for a couple in a small house to have three bedrooms. Could this be...?

"This isn't your room, right?"

"Oh, yes, it is," Cece replied.

"What? Where would you and Manny sleep?"

"You don't need to worry about us, dear. I'll take the couch and Manny has a cot he'll set up."

I shook my head. "You take your room. I'll take the couch."

After a short while of arguing, Cece finally gave in. She gave me a spare pillow and blanket from a storage closet. I helped her set up the couch for me to sleep on. When she was content, Cece finally stopped messing with the couch and let me sit down.

"Thank you so much," I said, "for everything."

"Of course! Anything for a friend of Collin's." Cece smiled kindly. "Goodnight, dear."

She walked down the hallway, leaving me alone in the living room. One by one, Cece turned off all of the lights, leaving the house pitch black.

Hey guys! How do you like Cece and Manny? Do you think staying at their house was a good idea? What do you think is going to happen tomorrow?

If you liked this chapter, try to vote for it with food! Whether you're eating it or not doesn't matter, just try! Stay cool!