Page 45 of Third Time's the Charm

“Oh no!” She stepped back, finger back out and waving again. “I know that look. That’s the look you had when you switched the boxes. What are you thinking now?”

I grinned. “Nothing bad. It’s actually really good.”

She pursed her lips. “I don’t believe you.”

“Aw, Conchita. It’s Mistletoe Key. You should always believe.”

* * *

Everything was exactlywhere I remembered it. The blowup screen, the projector, the extension cords, even the popcorn machine.

I didn’t ask for permission, but it was Mistletoe Key. People were pretty chill about fun things happening. I took over part of the main square, inflated the movie screen, set up the projector, and got the popcorn popping right as the afternoon light got dark enough for the movie.A Knight’s Talewas already loaded up, so I let that play first while I dug around for something more current. Mom and Antonio brought a picnic dinner to me.

“Oh, I remember you and Erik jousting in the yard after you watched this with your father.”

“Hey, at least we used pool noodles.” But only after Pop saw us with lumber from the garage and made us switch. “And we eventually moved to the street and used skateboards instead of horses.” Damn, that was fun.

Antonio shook his head. “You had your hands full.”

Ma waved him off. “You don’t know the half of it. Eight kids equals constant chaos.”

“Did you ever want kids?” I asked him, kinda curious.

“Not really. I travel so much and I knew I wouldn’t be the kind of loving presence a child needs. Or, for that matter, a mother needs.”

Ma smiled at him and patted his hand. “Maybe you just knew one day you’d meet me.”

“That was absolutely it.”

I looked away when they kissed.I’ll fall in love again one day. I’ll fall in love again one day.Maybe if I kept repeating that I’d start believing it.

But then Berlin appeared on the edge of the square, eyes trained on the movie. I forgot everything I was thinking about. Her dark hair was braided. She wore jeans and a hoodie. Ready for anything. I watched as she got popcorn and sat alone.

“You should say hello,” Ma said quietly.

I looked from her to Antonio. “What do you think? You’re an outsider to all this drama.”

He looked to Ma then me, then Ma again. “I think you should start listening to your heart.”

My heart was fucking lonely. So I did the only thing that would change that. I sat beside Berlin. “Hey.”

She didn’t move. Didn’t even glance my way to confirm it was me. “Hey. What happened to the Mermaid Squad?”

“The Pirate King.”

She groaned. “Crap. I should check on Cynthia.”

I didn’t feel the need to fill the silence or force a conversation. I wanted to see her, so I came. I saw. Nothing else was needed. It felt right and foreign at the same time.

“How’s the team?”

Okay, I was a little stunned she was talking to me. Willingly. I guess this is what happens when you let someone do their own thing. “The team is good. Solid. We’ve got a good crew and they’re all on board with our team culture.”

“How’s Riley?” She pulled her knees up and rested her temple on them as she looked over at me.

“He’s the same as ever. We live in the same building now, so we’re basically one person.”

She laughed at that.

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