15. Marisol
Marisol
T here was no way Marisol was going to leave Snowball alone during her first full day at the house.
Since it was her sister’s idea, Marisol felt it was only right that she call Lola for help—to which her sister replied with a surprised, yet excited scream and hung up.
Marisol took that as a confirmation, so she started getting ready to meet Alice.
Twenty minutes later, there was a knock on her front door. She barely answered it when her sister barreled past her and into her condo, dragging her husband, Javi, behind her. Snowball was in good hands, even though she didn’t seem overly fond of Javi. Must be a men thing.
Smart cat.
Lola pried, trying to get Marisol to talk about her plans for the day.
Marisol told her she had a therapy appointment—which was true—and she needed to run errands.
It wasn’t as if she was hiding Cisco… No.
She was very much hiding Cisco. But not for the reasons people might think.
She wasn’t ashamed of him. She simply wanted to keep this slice of happiness to herself for a little while longer.
However, in the spirit of wo rking on her relationship with her sister, she let her know that she had a date.
It was the wrong fucking thing to say though, because her sister demanded to know everything. Who was he? How did they meet? Had they been out before?
Marisol kept her answers vague, trying to give her as little as possible without lying to her. Thankfully, Javi saved her by reminding Lola that Marisol was going to be late for her appointment if she didn’t leave. Lola was clearly not happy but acquiesced.
After promising to keep in contact, Marisol left the house with enough time to stop for coffee on the way over.
Alice’s office was abnormally chilly when she arrived, but clearly her therapist didn’t agree.
She came out in a knee-length skirt and a short-sleeve shirt.
She was also fanning herself with a makeshift fan created from computer paper.
“Never get old, dear. Hot flashes are the worst.” Alice stepped aside to allow Marisol to walk through. She cursed the thigh-length black dress she wore, wishing she thought to put on a snowsuit before leaving the house.
Graciously, a blanket was awaiting her when she walked into the room. She sank down on her usual spot on the sofa, unfolding the blanket to drape over her bare legs. She was well aware this could quite literally be her comfort blanket for the duration of their session.
“The last time we spoke, you mentioned you were debating going on a date. Did you ever come to a decision?” Alice asked, ever the professional. She wasted no time getting down to the nitty gritty of it all. Marisol appreciated this approach because there was no time for bullshitting.
She still couldn’t believe it was only last week that she went on her first date with Cisco.
It felt much longer but also like no time had passed at all.
Her feelings for him had developed quickly and only grew stronger.
She was both thrilled and terrified. Mostly terrified, but she tried not to stew on that fact for too long.
“I did and agreed to the date.”
If Alice was surprised by this, she didn’t show it, but she did smile from ear to ear. “Did you? And how’d it go?”
“It went really well,” Marisol admitted with a sheepish smile. “He took me to a concert to see a band we both enjoy. It was probably one of the best days of my life.”
“That sounds lovely. Do you plan on seeing him again?”
“I have actually. He helped me pick out things for Snowball.”
“And Snowball is?” Alice asked, reminding Marisol she hadn’t yet filled Alice in on that new development in her life. That was a rarity because she told her therapist everything and practically in real time.
Marisol recapped the last few days. How Lola suggested she check out the shelter during free adoption day, to finding Snowball and how they clicked immediately.
How Cisco came to pick her up and shop for everything Snowball needed.
And finally ending on how they ran into Archie, but the day wasn’t ruined by him. It was still horrific to see him.
“Wow,” Alice said once Marisol finished her updates. “You’ve been through a lot in these last few days. I imagine seeing Archie was hard, especially while you were out with Cisco.”
Marisol couldn’t help but shift uncomfortably.
That moment had sucked, and for a second, she believed Archie had ruined everything.
Hell, she thought Cisco believed the same thing.
Unlike Archie or anyone else in her family, though, Cisco listened to her explain and chose to believe her.
Not only did he choose to believe Marisol, but he also sided with her and promised to help her if Archie became a problem again.
“It wasn’t pleasant, but it didn’t end badly. Cisco came back to my house to put together Snowball’s tower and litter box. We spent the evening together.” She conveniently left out the kiss. She told Alice most things, but there were certain things Marisol wanted to keep to herself.
“I want to circle back to the shelter. You mentioned meeting someone named Stella? Can you tell me more about the flyer Stella offered you?” Alice asked, crossing her legs and balancing her notebook on her lap.
“She gave me a flyer that talked about volunteering. Stella encouraged me to check it out. Said I might be a good fit.” She shrugged.
“Did she specifically say why you’d be a good fit?” Alice inquired.
“Oh, I think it’s because I was able to connect with Snowball. She thought I might be able to connect with other stubborn animals, I guess.”
Alice wrote something down in her notebook. “And what do you think about volunteering?”
“I haven’t really thought about it,” Marisol replied honestly. She had forgotten about the interaction until this moment. “Why?”
“Well, to me it sounds like something you’d excel at.”
“Why?” she asked again, unable to hide her confusion.
“Because it highlights your strength.” Alice must have noticed the confusion written across Marisol’s face because she added, “There’s a lot of organization and planning that goes into volunteering.
Those are two things you excel at. You’ve also been wanting to meet new people with similar interests as you who aren’t part of your parents’ crowd.
Well, I can’t think of a better start than the people you volunteer with. ”
“So, you think I should volunteer?” Marisol raised a brow. She had not been expecting to talk about this. Hell, she didn’t even consider it, but now the thought had bloomed.
“That’s a decision you need to make, but I think it could be a good way to spend your days.
The last time you did something out of your comfort zone, you got asked out on a date by a guy you are clearly connecting with.
This might be another good opportunity for you.
At the very least, it would give you an excuse for when your mother calls for some last-minute ‘favor.’”
Once again, Alice provided a perspective she hadn’t thought about. Marisol was never good on the spot, and when her mother randomly called for a favor, she had a hard time saying no. Partially because she couldn’t come up with an excuse, and partially because she didn’t want to disappoint her.
It seemed like a selfish reason to start volunteering, but she couldn’t bring herself to feel bad about it.
“I’ll think about it,” she said, falling back on her go-to answer. Commitment was just too…final.
Alice nodded encouragingly. “Have you heard from your mother recently?”
Marisol shifted uncomfortably in her seat.
Slowly, she shook her head. “No, it’s been more than a week since I last heard from her.
” She hated talking about her mother. Her mother was like Beetlejuice.
Say her name three times, and she would be summoned.
She didn’t like hearing from her, but it was worse when she didn’t hear from her.
It made her anxiety spike. It was a lose-lose situation.
“Do you think she’s getting the sense you are no longer interested in giving in to her demands?” Alice asked, not unkindly.
Once again, Marisol shrugged. If her mother saw her now, she would chastise Marisol for her rudeness. “No. I’m sure she’s busy, and I’ll hear from her soon.” Sounded like a problem for a future Marisol.
Alice poked around at the subject for a little while longer, but Marisol wasn’t receptive to her probing. Call it avoidance, but these last few days, Marisol had experienced levels of peace and joy she wasn’t accustomed to. She was unwilling to give that up.
The remainder of the session passed quickly, with neither of them bringing up the topic of her mother again.
However, Alice took a moment to reinforce her suggestion of Marisol volunteering, believing it could be a positive experience for her.
Though unsure, Marisol assured Alice she would think about it.
“That’s all the time we have today, Marisol. Did you need to schedule another meeting this week, or would our scheduled meeting for next week suffice?” Alice asked, pushing off her chair.
Marisol followed in pursuit. “Next week should be fine.”
Alice took the lead, opening the door to the waiting room for her, and immediately stopped in her tracks. “Oh.” Her eyes widened. “Cisco, was I expecting you today? I don’t remember seeing you on my calendar.”
A deep voice that filled her body with butterflies replied, “You weren’t. I’m waiting on her.”
Marisol rounded the corner to see Cisco, dressed in his usual black jeans and a button-up black shirt.
Matching blacks. It was a small detail, but an important one.
From here, she could smell his cologne. It wasn’t overpowering, just a light earthy smell she had come to really like.
Sitting next to him was Tiny, his cousin and the teenager who ran the front desk at his tattoo shop.
“Oh, I see.” Alice smiled, winking at Marisol.
She felt like a teenager getting picked up at home by the boy she liked.
It was…nice. Odd, but nice. “You two have a good rest of your day. I’m going to meet my daughter for lunch.
” She beamed before closing the door behind Marisol, leaving them alone in the waiting room.
Cisco looked Marisol over before meeting her gaze. He smiled, both flirty and sweet. “All black after just adopting a white cat? Brave move, Princesa.”
“You’re one to talk,” she quipped.
“I only look good in black,” he said, though she seriously doubted it.
“It’s true. Otherwise, he’s ten times uglier,” piped up Tiny. Cisco shot her the finger, but Tiny just shot it back. Both of them grinned at each other, the love and playfulness for one another evident.
“Can I have your keys?”
“Hmm?” Marisol asked.
“Your keys, Princesa. For your car. Remember, I’m taking you out?” He ignored the fake gagging from Tiny.
Right. Keys. Date. Marisol searched through her purse before handing them out. Instead of Cisco taking them, Tiny grabbed them. The girl was obviously old enough to drive, but that didn’t ease Marisol’s nervousness about giving her keys over to a teen driver.
Tiny assured her, “I’m the best driver in the family.”
“Only because she drives like a grandma and avoids highways,” Cisco said.
“Shut up.” She flipped him off again before turning her attention back to Marisol. “I’ll be careful. Please don’t make me ride with this idiot again. All he does is talk about you and how pretty you are and how much he wants to kiss?—”
“Okay!” Cisco interrupted. “Always fun hanging out with you, prima, but you gotta go.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m gone. Don’t forget to Venmo me!” she called as the doors slammed behind her.
“I promise she really is a good driver.” Cisco took Marisol’s hand.
She ignored the warm flush that went through her body. “If she crashes, you owe me a new car.”
“I’ll buy you whatever fucking car you want. Now let’s go. I have something fun planned for us.” Cisco didn’t offer further explanation as he led her out of the building and to his car.
“Where are we going?” Marisol’s curiosity got the best of her.
Cisco opened the passenger door for her and said, “Dancing.”
What?!