I lay there staring up at the sky before I take out my phone and dial her number.
“Hello.” She answers on the first ring.
“Hey, Isa.” I groan as I try to sit up from the ground.
“Manny? Is everything okay? You sound weird.”
“Yeah. Hey, can you open your window?”
I see her move to the window, unlock it, and stare down at me.
“Manny? What are you doing?”
“I’m coming up,” I say, but it’s not me, it’s the false bravery of the Modelos.
I stand up and sway slightly before catching myself. Shaking it off, I walk back and stare at the distance between me and the tree. Come on, you Dawson’s Creek motherfucker.
I take off running toward the large oak tree outside her bedroom window. The speed picks up beneath my feet, and my heart is pumping when I launch into the air for the closest branch. When I reach out, I feel nothing. Just air slippingbetween my fingers before I’m back lying flat on my ass. Pain explodes through my back.
“Holy shit, Manny, are you okay?” Isa says from the window.
I groan and feel the ache in my body. The fall sobering me up quickly, I roll and push myself to my feet. I stare the tree down one last time, close my eyes, and run towards it again, launching myself into the air and grabbing the branch. Every muscle in my body works to pull me safely up until I can reach the next branch. I repeat this several times until I’m directly under Isabel’s window. Her eyes widen in surprise.
“Well, that was impressive,” she says.
Fuck you, Dawson.
I reach across and latch onto the windowsill. Using my back muscles, I pull myself up and crawl through the window.
“Ayegüey,” I say, catching my breath once I get inside.
“What the hell are you doing?”
“I needed to see you,” I reply.
Isa is staring at me with wide eyes. She’s in a pair of cheetah print shorts and a black tee. Her hair is wet and pulled up in a bun, and her face looks... shiny? I’m not sure if that’s real or if it’s Modelo vision, but either way, she looks hot to me. I want to touch her. Kiss her. Feel those bare legs wrapped around me.
I stalk towards her and grab her hand.
“¿Me extrañaste?” I ask.
“Your breath smells like beer.”
“And something… smells like menudo,” I say, taking in the smell.
I sniff her chest, searching for the floral scent. Why was I smelling menudo? Were the Modelos still playing tricks on me? Something smelt... beefy. I lower to my knees and pull her center towards me, making sure it wasn’t that.
“Manny, stop! It’s not that. It’s the beef tallow,” she says, pointing to her face.
I stand up quickly to stare at her, and the smell returns.
I’m not sure what she said or what the hell she put on her face, but I roll with it because she’s laughing. And that smile. That fucking smile.
“Esa pinche sonrisa de traviesa.” I groan, grabbing her hips and pulling her into me.
Dropping my face to her neck, I find a small trace of that fruity scent I had been searching for. I take a deep breath of her to block out the beef, whatever she put on her face. Under my hands, her bare skin feels soft. Her body softens in my embrace, and she wraps her arms around my neck.
“That’s the borracho talking,” she says playfully.
