Page 69 of The Broposal

“Here, let me help you,” Kenny said when he noticed me trying to get up.

“Nah, I got it,” I said. I didn’t want Kenny helping me with anything else. He helped me too much, and I had nothing to give back. The least I could do was make my own damned coffee. I used my crutches—the ones Kenny wouldn’t let me pay him back for—to pull myself up. I slipped them under my arms and went over to the kitchen to make some coffee, which proved much more difficult than I’d thought. You would think something as simple as making coffee wouldn’t be that hard to do on one foot. It was so much more effort than coffee shouldever take, but it was worth it to not be even more indebted to Kenny.

“You sure you’re up for the party tonight?” Kenny asked. “I’m sure everyone will understand if we cancel.” But it sounded more like he was the one who wanted to cancel. To be honest, I would have loved to cancel. Kenny had told me about his mom’s idea to switch things up and make it a “bachelor party” instead of Thanksgiving, but that didn’t put me any more in the mood to go.

“I don’t know. To be honest, it’d be really nice not to have to move until work tomorrow.” I’d probably be stuck on the couch for the party anyway with my ankle the way it was, but going to Kenny’s parents’ house still meant making my way out of the apartment, down the stairs, to the car, and from the car to their living room. Then again in reverse.

“I’ll tell them we’re not up to it,” Kenny offered, but it didn’t give me the relief I’d hoped for.

I’d been ignoring everyone since I found out about my mom. I hadn’t answered my phone at all, and the only reason I answered for the lawyer was because Ididn’trecognize the number. So I knew not going to the party would just make everyone that much more worried about me, and it’d be that much longer before they’d leave me alone.

Kenny typed away on his phone for a moment before putting it away. “It’s canceled. We’re officially good to do nothing until work tomorrow.”

“Thank fuck.”

After that, Kenny and I spent a couple of hours playingInjusticebefore Luna started barking at the door. Then came the knocking.

The door wasn’t locked, so it opened before either me or Kenny made it over. Elisa and Cedric walked right in, carrying a Crock-Pot full of tamales.

“Surprise!” they both chanted as Cedric set the tamales down on the kitchen counter.

“What are you guys doing here?” Kenny asked, looking back and forth from me to them like he was afraid of my reaction.

“We wanted to celebrate your bachelor party with you! Since getting to us was a problem, we decided to bring the party to you!” Elisa clapped her hands in excitement, and I tried to hide the disappointment on my face. It was a sweet gesture, really. And I had to admit, the tamales smelled good.

Before I had a chance to decide how I felt about it, there was another knock on the door, followed by the distinct sound of a baby laughing behind it. Kenny and I both winced at the sound, though probably for different reasons. I recognized that laugh as Mateo’s, which meant my family was here, too.

Elisa opened the door for them, and Mariana walked in, holding Mateo on her hip. Tía Mary came right behind her, carrying several to-go bags from her favorite local Mexican restaurant. Kenny got up quickly to grab the bags, then placed them on the counter next to the tamales.

Leti came in next with a bottle of tequila in one hand and Tatiana’s hand in the other. Before I could react to the fact that Leti and Tatiana were now seemingly an item, Tío Nacho walked in, fully uniformed in his mariachi getup. All four other members of his band trailed behind him, singing “La Marcha de Zacatecas” at full volume, and everyone danced into formations with their arms, creating bridges for Kenny and me to walk through, as if we were at a wedding reception.

Kenny looked over at me apprehensively, like he was worriedI’d be upset, but I just laughed. That was our families for you. Kenny laughed, too, as he ducked and walked through the barely-four-person bridge. I rubbed a hand down my face but went along with it and hobbled through myself.

Then the band surrounded Kenny and me, and I didn’t know what I was supposed to do. I never knew what I was supposed to do when this happened. The band would surround me and sing to me every year on my birthday, and for other special occasions. Tío Nacho was so embarrassing. By the time they finished the song, my armpit was aching from supporting myself on the crutch, so I went over to the couch to sit down again.

Tía Mary was at my side in an instant.

“How are you feeling, mijo?” She pressed a hand to my forehead, as if grief would manifest itself in the form of a high fever.

“Fine, Tía.”

“Well, anything you need, you know we’re here for you, okay?”

“I know, Tía. Can we not talk about this right now, though?”

“Okay, mijo.” She kissed my forehead. “So, I hear you’re doing the wedding in the middle of December? So soon!”

“Yeah. I was going to call you…” I suddenly felt bad for all the calls I ignored. I really should have told them.

“No te preocupes. Kenny told us everything, and I want to help! He said you still have some wedding planning to do. I want to volunteer my services for the food. I’m happy to cook.”

Kenny walked up just then with a couple of plates of tamales and tacos and shot glasses of tequila. “Actually, my dad wanted to cook…” he started as he sat down on the couch next to me, but when Tía Mary gave him the meanest mal de ojo, he backtracked real quick. “I don’t see any reason you can’tbothcook.”

Leti raised their hand from the kitchen, where they were serving themself a plate. “I got you on the DJ front. You know Angie, from the last show y’all went to? She’s down to do it for free. Plus, I just got ordained, so you don’t need to pay for a priest, either.”

“And obviously your tío and his band will play,” Tía Mary cut in. I laughed. We would barely have to spend a dime. Mary got up to go get herself some food, and Kenny handed me one of the shot glasses, then placed a gentle hand on my knee as I looked to Leti and Tatiana, who were sitting at the table across the room with Mariana and Tía Mary.

“So, you two are dating now?” Kenny asked.

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