Chapter 1
Marco
I go down the stairs and see my Mama making tortillas. I smile at her while she makes them. The smell of the burning edges just the way I like them. No one else wants the edges burnt like I do. She turns and looks at me, and I can feel all her love feel my whole soul. She opens her mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. I got her to touch her, and she fades away into ashes.
“Mama, please don’t leave me. Mamá no me deje. ¡Por favor!” I scream out, crying. I hear a voice in the distance.
“Marco, Marco, wake up, Hijo, you’re dreaming.” The voice says. I open my wet eyes up. I’m lying in the back seat of our SUV and look at the face of my father. He has his tears streaming down. “I miss mama too so much.”
“It’s all good, papa. It was just a dream.” I say while climb over the seat to get upfront with him. I look at him, and the look of concern guts me. “Pa, seriously, I’m fine. I’m just sad that we are moving. I will miss everyone.”
“You could have stayed with your sister Sonia. She said you could stay as long as you wanted to.”
“Pa, no, I need to be with you and help you out. Plus, who wants to live with newlyweds? That’s gross.”
“Okay, I don’t want to think of that either.” He shakes his head, and I laugh. “Hey, an hour before we get to the town, you ride your Harley the rest of the way. Si?”
“Hell, yes!” I say.
I look out the window looking at the sun come up over the mountain tops — the blues, purples, and pinks of the skyline with scattered clouds hypnotizing me. I think back over the last year and how it was a blur and how everything changed. I’m the youngest of six kids. I guess you can call me the whoopsie baby, but I am here nonetheless. My brothers and sister are all scattered all over the country, and I chose to stay with my papa. He gets so lonely, and I want to take care of him. I was supposed to graduate last summer, but my mother got diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, and I missed a lot of school to spend time with her. Every moment was precious, and I’m glad I did it. Shit, you can’t get that time back. We are moving to a small town in California called Paso Robles from Connecticut. I said my goodbyes to all my friends. Before my mom got sick, the girl I was dating came by to say goodbye and tried to get me to have sex with her. Fuck her. She left when I needed her the most. I told her to get lost.
My dad’s job moved him here, and I’m proud as fuck of him. He came from nothing to making huge moves. He was born in Mexico and came to the US when he was months old. He worked his ass off, taking care of all of us. We were a crazy bunch. Our house was always so loud, and I loved it. I get lost in my thoughts again, and I feel a hand on my shoulder. I look over and see my dad smiling.
“What are you smiling at, loco?” he laughs.
“Just excited to see what the next chapter brings us,” I say, realizing that he has pulled over. “Hey, how long have you been staring at me?”
“A while,” he admits. “You ready to pull your bike down?”
“Let’s do it!” I say. I grab my leather jacket and black helmet from the back seat.
I help my papa take the bike off the rack attached to behind the moving truck. We put it on the road and do my checks, tires check, gas check, gages check. Ready! I look at my papa, and he has this big grin on his face. He grabs me in a huge hug. It’s moments like this that I will never take for granted.
“Be careful, Hijo. Pay attention to everything.”
Si Senor,” I say with a nod as I put on my helmet.
“There is a diner in town we stop there to eat breakfast.”
“Sounds like a plan,” I say as I start my bike. I love the roar of the engine. My papa pulls ahead of me and follow behind.
I love the feeling I get riding my bike. It’s pure adrenaline, and feeling the wind against your back is fantastic. I am ready for much-needed change, and I only hope it’s ready for me.
