Chapter 23 That Stupid Tension #2
“But laws are made to be broken,” the father of the family says to us, his eyes glued to his kids, who are scampering around.
“When we get here, we set up our campsite, and if the cops show up, you say you didn’t know, you’re really sorry, and you leave.
They don’t usually hand out fines. The important part for us is just to be clean and not light fires… ”
We gather at the beach bar, Las Brisas, which is next door, to figure out what we’re going to do.
Some of us think it’s risky to ignore municipal regulations so brazenly, but others think it’s not that big a deal.
We ask the owner of the beach bar. He tells us the police don’t usually come around here, and as long as we’re civilized, there’s no problem if we spend the night here, put out our chairs, or unfold the awning.
“Anyway, it’s summer, so it gets livelier around here when the sun goes down. You’ll see.”
We decide to stay for a while and see what happens. We drink a few beers and order some incredible calamari, which only makes us hungrier, so we order more, this time adding an order of fried fish and some shrimp fritters. By the time we order coffee, we’re all stuffed, sleepy, and happy.
“I don’t think I’ve ever been this relaxed,” I say, stretching my legs out under the table.
I bump into Marín’s legs. It happens all the time. We’re the two “long legs” of the group, but normally he catches one of my legs and traps it between his knees or makes some joke about whether I’m half praying mantis. Today just:
“Sorry,” I say.
“No problem.”
I side-eye Blanca, but she didn’t notice how cold Marín’s response seemed to me.
She’s looking out at the sea with a cigarette in her fingers.
It’s so weird… I told my bestie that I’ve been lying to her for a year, and even though it made me feel better, I’m still lying, like it’s a crutch my tongue has gotten used to.
The place is great, the ocean is stunning, we’re all together, the vibe is calm, but I’m not relaxed.
“I’m going to open a can of worms no one has mentioned,” Loren says very seriously, “There’s no bathroom here like there was at the campsite, and I’m still sticking to my suggestion that no one use the bathroom in the Imperial Boozer Cruiser.
I really don’t want to deal with any ‘black water,’ babes. ”
“Me either,” Aroa spits.
“So we’ll go to the bar.” Gus shrugs.
“And where are you two sleeping?” Loren asks again.
“Well, in the Imperial Boozer Cruiser,” Gus says swiftly.
“In the car,” Marín corrects him, pretty gravely. “We’ll put the seats all the way back, and it’ll be fine. It won’t be the first time.”
“No,” Blanca says kindly. “You’re not going to sleep there the rest of the trip, Marín. It’s a pain in the ass. It doesn’t matter. Sleep in the RV. We’ll take turns with the beds so Aroa doesn’t always have to sleep on the one in the living room.”
“I don’t care,” Aroa says. “Anyway, I’d rather sleep alone in the living room.”
“And that, pals, is how we discover that elves and nymphs are also antisocial beings,” Gus jokes.
“We’ll take turns,” Blanca insists. “It’s my bachelorette party, and I make the rules.”
Loren, Blanca, Gus, and I cackle. Aroa and Marín look down. Fine, maybe the conversation they had in the car didn’t fix all the unfinished business between those two. What could the problem be?
* * *
“Aroa’s jealous.”
Blanca’s declaration catches me by surprise.
We’re the first to spread our towels out on the beach and sit down on them.
There aren’t many people swimming right now, and while Gus and Loren are lingering over their coffee, Marín is talking on the phone with Noa’s mother again and sending a few emails to his higher-ups.
Aroa took a ridiculously long time getting ready for the beach just to end up saying, “You two go ahead. I’ll be there in a minute. ”
I look at Blanca, surprised. “Jealous? Of what?”
“Of you.” She raises her eyebrows.
“Of me? Why me? Because I live with Marín?”
“I guess we have a hotbed to choose from, but right now what’s bugging her is seeing you two so close to each other.”
“Come on… We’re Siamese twins,” I snort. “He’s acting so weird.”
“That’s because she must have said something to him.”
“What are you talking about?” It comes out sounding somewhere between incredulous and angry at the thought that it could be true.
“I heard her get out of the RV last night too, and she took too long to just be going to the bathroom. She called Marín and threw a shit fit.”
“Aroa throwing a shit fit? I don’t think so. She’s a light being.”
“Look, still waters…run deep.”
“What does that mean?”
“I dunno.” She shrugs and looks out at the ocean as she pulls another cigarette out of her beach bag.
“Ever since yesterday I can’t stop thinking about why they broke up.
We’ve never pressured them to tell us. I didn’t because…
Well, I don’t know. Maybe because I thought that what they were hiding made Marín look bad and I didn’t want to know.
You know how it is; we’re different with our partners than we are with our friends.
I didn’t want something that happened between them to affect my relationship with Marín. So I let it go.”
“So what about now?”
“Now I’m starting to think part of the reason they broke up is you.”
I shoot her a curious look. “Me? The same ‘me’ who’s been permanently friend-zoned by Marín?”
“That’s changing. There’s definitely a vibe… Something between you and Marín. I’m not just saying that because it’s what you want to hear. I can see it. He seems tense. He’s acting…all manly around you. Not like a friend.”
“Come on, Blanca. Even if that’s true, which I desperately want to believe”—I put my hand on my chest—“this is Aroa we’re talking about. She does yoga at dawn, she’s beautiful and…”
“And all of us, no matter who we are, beat ourselves up for what we’re not.”
“What do you mean?” I wrinkle my forehead.
“Look, you’re gorgeous, tall, you have that kind of style you’re born with that makes every outfit look like your signature, you’re fun, brave, smart… You graduated with honors from your master’s, and you went to a super-fancy bilingual high school, but you open beers with your teeth!”
“I’m starting to feel a little uncomfortable.” I laugh.
“That’s what I’m saying. When I look at you, I think you have so much going for you that I’m jealous of, but when you look in the mirror, you see something else.
You think you’re some slob, you feel intimidated by Aroa because she’s blond and pretty and she seems like a fucking fairy doll, but she…
doesn’t see it like that. We all have insecurities, no matter what we’re like.
And mine, like how my thighs rub together when I walk and my stretch marks on my tummy, aren’t any more important than yours.
They’re just…mine. And Aroa, babe, is jealous of you. ”
“Have I been getting too close? Is it obvious?” I start getting freaked out.
“No. That’s not it. Although, I have to admit there’s something different from how you two always are…
Something’s changed, but it doesn’t have to be a bad thing.
She’s jealous about how close you’ve always been with Marín, how he only listens to you when we’re all talking, how he uses you as an example for everything, how you make stupid plans and his sister adores you. ”
“Gema doesn’t adore her”—it’s a fact, not a secret—“but that’s only because she hasn’t really put much effort in. That’s not a criticism, by the way. Some people just don’t know how to talk to teenagers and they try…”
“Coco, Aroa is obsessed with Marín. Think about it for a second. She doesn’t talk about anything else; she doesn’t think about anything else.
How long has it been since she’s told us about an audition?
Do you know what her brothers are up to?
Because I haven’t heard her talk about them in centuries.
Not even any anecdotes about the foreigner she lives with.
She doesn’t call us to go out anymore, she doesn’t ask us about our lives, or if you dare try to tell her something, she always just brings up Marín. ”
Blanca shuts up suddenly, and I realize Aroa must be coming over.
She doesn’t say anything. She drops her towel, smiles tightly at us, and heads to the sea, where she dives right in without asking if we feel like going swimming.
Blanca and I give each other a significant look.
It’s true. It’s been a long time since she’s talked to us about anything besides Marín…
and I get it, by the way. When you’re hung up on someone, his name is always on the tip of your tongue. Everything is related to him.
* * *
It’s a pretty chill afternoon. Swimming, sand, and a few beautiful photos Loren snaps when no one’s looking. There are no cackles or races. We’re not playing. Everyone seems to be in their own little world.