“Cheers!” Maria bumped Shirley Temple glasses with her three best girlfriends from elementary school: Samara, Elena, and Destiny. They sat outside at the back of a restaurant called Tony’s Uncle. It was a grill and a popular spot for people to gather on Friday evenings. The tables were set up in a neat circle. Each one had four chairs and a white tablecloth. There was also a small playground for children and a cornhole game. Maria loved that game when she was a kid. She and Mateo played it all the time. The yard’s grass was emerald green, just like Samara's eyes.
“Congratulations, Maria!” she said. She shook her head of auburn hair. “You’re the first one in our group to get pregnant.”
Elena was over-the-top excited. “Eee! I’m sure your child is going to look just like you and Mateo!” Like Maria, she had brown hair and deep brown eyes. Elena’s hair, though, was straight, whereas Maria’s was curly.
Destiny slammed her with questions. Out of all four girls, she was the most curious. “Do you want a boy or a girl?” She sipped her Shirley Temple. A few strands of her blonde hair dangled in her glass.
Maria straightened the mom cap on her head. She picked up her cold glass, careful not to spill it on the tablecloth. That would be quite a mess if she did. She said, “Well, Mateo wants a little girl. I hope that I can give him one. He’s been working so hard lately.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet!” Elena said. “I’m so proud of you, Maria! Come on! Give Elena a hug!” She and Maria hugged across the table. After letting go, she pulled out her cell phone. Elena pointed the camera at her, Maria, Destiny, and Samara. “Group selfie!” The phone’s camera flashed. Temporarily, Maria saw white spots, but they went away fairly quickly.
Destiny jumped right back into the questions. “So, what was it like to take a pregnancy test for the first time?”
“It was weird, Destiny,” Maria admitted. “I felt so awkward peeing in that cup. The second the positive result popped up, I started to cry.”
“A lot of women react that way,” Samara said. “Trust me. I watch a lot of ‘Finding Out I’m Pregnant’ videos on YouTube.”
Her friends gave her a funny look.
“What? They’re cute!” Samara argued. “I want a kid myself one day.” Facing Maria, she punched her left palm with her right fist. “Is Mateo excited?”
“Um…” Maria stuttered. “He-He’s a little shocked. He’s spending the night with his mom.”
“Ah,” Samara said. “Those two are like two peas in a pod, aren’t they?”
Maria nodded. “Oh yeah, Samara. They are very close, but then again, Mateo never had a dad. Ms. Brook is hilarious. He bought the new house to get away from her, and she followed us all the way here. She lives only a few blocks down from us now.”
The girls choked on their Shirley Temples. They burst out laughing.
Destiny rubbed the edges of her eyes. “She’s really that protective?”
“She’s been like that ever since Mateo was a child,” Maria explained. “There were days when he came to school in bubble wrap.”
Behind her hand, Elena chuckled. “Well, I guess that happens when you’re an only son.”
Destiny took another sip from her drink. The questions continued. She sounded like a toddler. “Is the wedding still on for next month?”
Smiling, Maria said, “Sure is. I just hope that after Mateo’s next mission, he’ll start getting ready. He still needs a tuxedo. I also want him to rest a little bit the week before it.”
Still excited, Elena clapped her hands. “Oh, I’m so excited! My bestie is getting married! We’re going to be the best bridesmaids ever, Maria!”
Maria giggled. She scratched her nose. “I know you will. I did not ask you guys to be my bridesmaids for the heck of it.”
“Are any of Mateo’s friends from the Union going to come?” Destiny wanted to know.
Before Maria could answer, a ringing sound came from her pocket. “Oops,” she said. She pulled out her own cell phone. “I guess I forgot to silence it.” She checked the collar ID. “Oh, what do you know? It’s Ms. Brook.”
Destiny, Samara, and Elena snorted. Ms. Brook never left Maria and Mateo alone, did she?
Maria cleared her throat. She brought her phone to her ear and took another sip from her Temple. “Hello, Ms. Brook. Oh, nothing much. The girls and I are just having some Shirley Temples. Don’t worry. I’m not going to drink too much soda. So, what’s up?”
Maria’s friends’ smiles vanished when she suddenly looked disturbed. “What?” The drink dropped from the young woman’s hand. It spilled all over the nice tablecloth.
The girls leaped from their seats before it could hit them. They held their arms up and surrendered.
“Oh, I’m sorry!” Maria whispered, still listening to Ms. Brook. There was now a huge red stain on the table.
A waiter hurried to it. He and the girls started to clean up the mess.
Maria clutched her phone with both hands. She turned her body so that her shoulder faced them. She removed one hand and twirled a strand of hair around her index finger. She had a habit of doing that when she was scared. “Did the doctor come over? He did? What did he say? Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Are you going to call the Union tomorrow?”
Even though they were busy cleaning, the girls listened. Hearing the word “Union”, they knew the call was about Mateo.
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Maria next ran her fingers through her hair. “Okay, so he’s sleeping now? Sorry? He’s trying to sleep? The doctor’s going to stop by again tomorrow morning? All right. I’ll be there soon. Thank you, Ms. Brook.” She hung up and slipped her phone back into her pocket.
Maria tried to hold back tears. She brought her hands to her face and took a deep breath. Her friends were quickly by her side.
“What’s wrong?” Destiny wanted to know.
Maria removed her hands. She pulled her purple sweater off the back of her chair. She started to put it on. “I’m sorry, girls, but I need to go. Mateo’s come down with a fever.”
“A fever?” the girls shrieked at the same time.
“He’s asked for me,” Maria added. “Ms. Brook says he can’t sleep without me there. The doctor says he’s exhausted.”
Destiny’s questions started to get annoying, but she had so many. “But hasn’t he been working nonstop lately?”
Maria finished putting on her sweater. She flipped up the collar and stood from her seat. “He needs me. He’s my fiancé. ‘In sickness and in health’, remember?”
Destiny cocked her head. “But I thought y’all weren’t married yet.”
“We’re not, but still. Here. Take this for the drinks.” Maria dragged some money out of the purse. She handed it to Samara. “I’ll call you guys later to tell you how he’s doing.”
“Um… Is it possible that we can tag along, too?” Samara asked in a small voice. “You-You may need us, Maria.”
“Are you serious?” Maria said, stunned.
“Yeah! We’re besties, remember?” inquired Elena. “I mean, I hope Ms. Brook doesn’t mind.”
“Oh, she won’t.” Maria glanced at each of her friends. “Gracias, guys.” She and the girls shared a group hug. Just feeling their arms around her, Maria relaxed. She had the best friends in the world. They were literally the perfect bridesmaids.
***
“Hi, Ms. Brook. I hope you don’t mind that I brought the girls along,” Maria said. She gestured at her friends. Behind them, the hot rays of the setting sun warmed their backs.
“Of course, I don’t,” Ms. Brook sweetly said. “Come on in, girls.”
Maria and her friends piled into the house. They smiled sheepishly at the older woman.
She led them upstairs to Mateo’s room. They stopped at his closed door.
Maria took a deep breath. She went inside first. Her tummy flipped a little.
Mateo sat up in bed, with a few pillows behind his back and a wet rag around his neck. He was reading Robert Jordan’s The Eye of the World and was about halfway through the 814-page book. Impressive. Mateo was a pretty avid reader, though. Fantasy was his favorite genre.
Maria approached the side of his bed. She pecked his cheek. “Hello, babe. You reading The Wheel of Time again?”
He nodded, but he said not a word and flipped to the next page in the book.
Maria felt his forehead. “Oh! You do have a fever!”
Mateo removed her hand. He patted it a few times, and then he went right back to reading. “It’s nothing serious. Just a dizzy spell. I’ll be back on my feet tomorrow.” Nevertheless, he yawned when he said that. It was so big that Maria feared the sides of his mouth would tear.
She brushed his bangs out of his face. “But, babe, you’re tired. Can’t you just say ‘no’ to this one mission?”
Mateo shook his head. He set his book down on his lap. “No, I cannot. If I don’t do something, those elves are going to die. I don’t want to be responsible for their deaths.” His eyes landed on Maria’s friends. “Hello, Elena, Destiny, and Samaira. ¿Cómo están?”
They waved. “Hi, Mateo. We’re doing great.” All three girls blushed. Oh, if only Mateo wasn’t getting married. They would take him in a skinny minute.
He started to nod off. His head rocked back and forth a few times. Every time he tried to shake himself awake, it happened again. Finally, he just shut his eyes, and his head dangled in front of his chest.
Maria removed the book from his lap. She helped him onto his pillows. Disturbed, she scurried to her friends. They held her close.
“Sorry, girls,” Ms. Brook said. “It’s his exhaustion. How about I pop some popcorn, and we can have a sleepover?”
“Ooh! Yes! Yes!” Elena said, clapping. Ms. Brook was seriously the best mom ever.
***
Mateo was not used to just sitting around. It made him feel useless. Besides, it was against the Ranger Code to do nothing when lives were at stake. He decided to leave early for his mission–2:00 a.m. on Saturday.
Mateo tossed his covers off. He swung his long legs over the side of his bed and pushed himself to his feet. Stumbling, he fell back onto it. A few trickles of sweat ran down his temples. He tried again. He rose to his feet–a bit more gently that time. Nodding to himself, he scurried to his closet. Mateo opened it and pulled out his ranger uniform. He changed quickly. He slipped his boots on and tiptoed to his door, grabbing his magic rope from his overnight bag in the process.
Mateo snuck into the hallway. He shut his door behind him. He did not want to wake Maria, her friends, and his mom. He rested his hand on his rope. Mateo opened the front door and stepped outside. Little did he know that he had woken someone… his mom. Well, it was more she was on her way to his room to check on him when she caught him. With a suspicious look on her face, she followed him.
A warm, summer breeze gushed through Mateo’s hair. He headed over to a street light. Reaching into his pocket, he dug out a walkie-talkie-like device. Mateo turned it on. He pressed Missions on its home screen. He read his newest one over. Okay, so it looked like the elves had some sort of lung infection. At least he knew what he was dealing with.
Mateo prepared to take his rope off his belt, but his mother’s booming voice startled him: “Mateo! What are you doing?”
“Snap!” Mateo moved quickly. He uncoiled his rope and tossed the hook up the length of the street light. It caught the lantern-like light. He called for a gust of wind. Before his mother could catch him, it escorted him up to the light. Mateo sat like a cat on it. He set his hands in front of him to help with balance. The moon’s rays shimmered over his shoulders.
Ms. Brook stopped at the base of the light and peered up at her son. “Get down here!”
“No thank you,” he replied. “You’ll yell at me.”
“Sam heck I will! You’re going to fall and break your neck!” Ms. Brook crossed her arms. Her foot started to tap. “What’s this all about, anyway?”
“I’m not going to let those elves die, Mom!” Mateo rubbed the sweat from his forehead. “Why won’t you just let me do my job?”
“Because you are exhausted!” Ms. Brook yelled. “I swear, if you don’t get down here when I count to three, young man, you’re grounded!”
Mateo scoffed. “I’m not a child anymore, Mom.”
“Then stop acting like one! One! Two!” It was always scary when a mother started to count. Mateo was nervous, but he still refused to come down. At “three”, he rose to his full height–6’2–and placed his hand on his hip. “I’m sorry, Mamá, but this is my job. Not yours. Take care of Maria and the baby for me until I get back, okay?”
“Mateo!” It was too late for Ms. Brook.
Mateo snapped his fingers. The gust of wind returned, and it chucked him into the sky. He catapulted away from his neighborhood and up toward the full moon. His fever was almost completely broken. Therefore, he had fun with his ascent.
Mateo burst through a couple of low-lying clouds and soon found himself gliding over a blanket of them. Billions of stars shimmered behind and above him. The wind pushed him forward. Mateo referred to his device to figure out which compass direction he needed to follow. With a huge grin on his face, he twirled on the air currents. He always wished he could fly one day and that he would not need to rely on his magic to do so. He had no idea where the interest came from. All he knew was that the gift of manipulating nature came with being a Pinta Park Ranger. If he wanted to keep his title, then he could not say “no.”
Clenching his fist, Mateo held it in front of him like Superman. The wind picked up, allowing him to move faster. To all of Pinta Country, he announced, “Don’t worry, Elvin Village! Ranger Anthony is on his way!”