Page 53 of The Mob: Shio Cuppacio
“Family?”
“Yeah. We deep as fuck too.”
“Well, I would say, ‘I can’t wait to meet them,’ but I’m not sure that I will. I’m just temporary. Just passing through.”
Neltz gave me another once over. “Nah. If you’re here, you ain’t temporary. Everybody got a job to do ’round here… You’ll figure yours out soon. Eat up. Yo’ stomach keeps on growling. I’ma see you later. Mexi-mami.”
Mexi-mami?
Before I could question the child, he was gone. I was shocked he could tell I was Mexican because most Americans tossed me into the “Latina” box, which technically wasn’t wrong.But Latina could mean a million different things depending on where you from. Other countries might’ve mixed in Portuguese or French over the centuries, but Mexico? We’ve always been Español first. Being from Mexico made me Mexican before anything else. Not every Latino feels connected to that, and not every Mexican fits neatly under the “Latino” label. It’s messy, especially for Americans, who never really cared to understand the difference. For that reason, I made it a habit to specify my Afro-Mexican ethnicity in conversation. The fact that Neltz saw me soeasilymade me even more curious about the grown-acting ten-year-old.
Looking down the hall, I assumed he was going back into the area where the laughter had been. Grabbing my plate and water, I made my way back to where I’d come from, closing the door to shut me inside. I was going to eat, fall back into a sleep coma, and pray that my time here was kind to me, and if it was, that it crept by as slow as a snail. I wasn’t ready to fulfill my mail-order bride duties. America couldn’t be as bad as what the Rodríguezes had up their sleeves for me. At least, I hoped it wasn’t.
“Aye… Get up.”
My body curled up in a fetal position as the thick duvet was snatched from my lower half. Chill bumps appeared instantaneously. It wasn’t that the house was cold, because I hadn’t needed to turn the ceiling fan on. It was that I couldn’t sleep without covers. My body preferred warmth over coolness.
“Aye,” his deep voice sounded, carrying a warning that I could understand even with the sleep fog occupying my mind.
My body wanted sleep, but apparently, the person who was housing me had other plans. I couldn’t feel the sun peekingin, even from behind my eyelids, and it felt as if I’d only been asleep for an hour, so I knew it was way too early for me to be awake.Still, I peeled my eyes open to see what it was I was being summoned for.
Shio.
Standing over me, even at this ungodly hour, he was looking just as good as he had every other time I’d seen him. This time, instead of him being in his suit and tie, he was in shorts that stopped high up his thighs and a matching long-sleeved shirt. The room was dark, so I couldn't tell the color of his attire. Whether it was black, brown, or blue, or whatever the hue, he lookedasombroso(amazing).
I blinked more than a few times awkwardly while reaching for the duvet that was rolled at the end of the bed. Shio quickly grabbed it off the bed, tucking it under his left arm while holding something out to me with his right hand.
“Put this on and come on.”
“Es demasiado temprano para vestirse,(It's too early to get dressed)”I groaned.
“It’s actuallytoolate.” He dropped the clothes on the bed. “Solana?—”
His voice carried a hint of caution. I wasn’t sure how many times he’d said my name from his lips before I woke, so instead of waiting to see if he would call my name again, I sat up in bed. My body was still covered in the spare clothing he kept in the drawers.
The same drawer he had been receiving pleasure in front of.
I shook my head, trying to erase the image heating up my body. It was too early to be turned on, especially by someone I had zero intentions of doing anything with. I was only here to be taught whatever my father thought he could teach me. I shook my head again. My father and his ridiculous decisions were starting to cloud my mind again. The math was off. For someonewho was considered a crime boss, his logic never made sense to me. The one time a man runs his mouth to me, and I actually listen, is the one time my father decides that same man should train me how to be a wife. A wife! Shio didn’t even have a wife of his own to teach me anything.
Dragging my heavy eyelids upward, I blinked a few times to signal that I was now awake. Even in the gloomy room, I could see his dark skin had a slight shine, and I could smell the toothpaste on his breath.
“What time is it?”
Shio, looking down at me with his intense glare, made me reach up and smooth my hair down. I knew it was a mess. Not only had I not tied it back, but I hadn’t done anything to it since the night I went partying. I hadn't washed my face or brushed my teeth since yesterday, and with the way I’d been comatose, I knew there was dried saliva somewhere on my face. Here he was looking like he was ready to tackle the day, while I barely knew what day it was.
“It’s time to get dressed. Handle your hygiene and meet me downstairs.”
Deciding not to give him any trouble, I sat up on the bed. My body begged to sink back into another sleeping slumber, but the way he was glaring at me made it clear my beauty rest had come to a halt for today.Without waiting for me to reply, he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him.
Mira nomás, one decent man in the world. Miracles do happen.
Opening my eyes widely and then closing them again to allow more moisture to saturate my eyes, I exhaled. After taking a beat, I shifted them to the digital clock on the nightstand.
“Five in the morning? ¡Ay, ya, ya! What is wrong with this man?”
Instead of dwelling on how I had never in my life gotten up this early, I swung my legs over the side of the bed. I wasn't sure if I'd properly handled my hygiene because I had one eye open and one eye closed, but by the time I was dressed, I knew I wouldn’t be stepping back into the bathroom, so what I did would have to do. The clothes he dropped on the bed were a deep hunter green ALO set. The leggings, bra, and matching jacket, which I left unzipped with thumb inserts, felt good against my skin, and they fit perfectly, as if he’d filtered through my laundry to guess my size. As I rubbed my hands down the lightweight fabric, I thought about how nice it would be to get back in the sheets before me. I didn’t do anything with my hair, letting it hang loosely down my shoulders. I didn't have the energy to pull it into a top knot, and the strands looked like a mix between a bird's nest and a rat's nest. It was a mess.My mind shifted to the bed again. Slipping back onto the cozy, queen-sized mattress wouldn’t alter my current state. Knowing I didn’t want a gun back in my face, I turned away from the bed in a huff.
Walking down the hall until I reached the stairs that descended, I held onto the wooden rail, careful not to slip in these brand-new socks. By the time I reached the bottom stair and saw what type of situation I’d been summoned into, I turned right back around.
