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Marco
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I wake up and sit up in my bed, looking around my room. My window doesn't have curtains yet, not that it matters you can't see in my room anyway. I get up and move across the room and look out the window. Then I see it, and memories flood back into my mind.
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"The hummingbird's wings flap so fast that it sounds like it's telling you secrets in your ear," Mama says, looking up at me. She looks so fragile, and I grab her hand and squeeze it gently. I know that she will lose her battle soon, and it shatters me. "Mijo, mi Amor look at me."
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"Mama, save your energy," I say, trying to fight back the tears.
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"No, Mijo. I need to tell you this. When you see a hummingbird, know that it's me whispering in your ear. I will be telling you that I love you."
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I stand there staring at the little hummingbird that is flapping its wings like crazy. It is at my window for a good minute. It hovers, and I swear that it looks me straight in my eyes. I break down in tears that I can't catch my breath. I look down at my forearm and see my tattoo of two hummingbirds, one is Mama, and the other is me. I wipe my eyes and try to pull myself together. I need this day to celebrate her, not lock myself in my bedroom in wallow in my misery. I went to a dark place when she died, and I don't want to go to that place again. My phone goes off, and it's my brother Mario. He is like another dad to me. I rub my eyes again to remove any evidence of crying. His face pops up on the screen, and he looks worried.
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"Baby boy, you've been crying. I wish I were with you." He says, getting emotional.
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"I had a moment; I'm gonna get through this day. I have to."
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"I'm at Sonia's. I saw Papa before he went to sleep."
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"You're there too?" I say harsher than I intended to.
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"I drove down with Jazmine last night. I know I told Pa that was fucked up that he left you. I wasn't going to come, but Jaz said I'd regret it if I didn't."
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"She's a smart girl. You should put a ring on it," I say, laughing.
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"Calm, down hermanito. I'm not ready yet. Hey, speaking of…Pa said you made friends with twins. Twins? Damn, you got game, bro."
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"Naw, I did meet twins, but I'm only interested in one of them. Sonia met her on Facetime."
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"She told me that she was a cutie, and she showed me her picture." He says, nodding, and he whistles low.
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"Shut up; I got to go get ready. I'm taking Katrina for a ride today. We are going to do the things that Mama would have loved."
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"That's good, Marco. Be safe. If you know what I'm talking about." He laughs and hangs up.
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I get in the shower and get ready to head out. I want to find a place that sells crapes because that was my Mama's favorite. She loved the ones with strawberry and Nutella, and at the end of her life, that's all we could get her to eat when she did. I find my swim trunks and shove a towel and a small blanket in a backpack. I will have Katrina wear the bag on the ride. If I wear it, she wouldn't be able to hug me tightly—any excuse to have her close to me.
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I drive my bike down towards her house, and my goodness, my nerves all over the place. I decide to stop at the store at the corner to pick something up. I get what I need to and place it into the bag, and continue towards her place. I pull into the long driveway and see the red-headed kid from the Café that we went to the other night. What did Chucky say his name was Pete…no? He called him Pimple Pete. I laugh to myself and see Karolina walking out of the house. She has her hair in a messy bun, and she is wearing a tank top and pajama bottoms. I find it strange that she doesn't have a stitch of makeup on her face, which is so not Karolina.
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"Hi, Marco," She says, "This is Peter."
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"Sup, man," Peter says. I now know why he got the nickname Pimple Pete. He is kind of hard to look at. His acne looks like it hurts. I raise my chin to him and shake his hand.
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"Where are you going dressed like that?" I ask, amused.
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"So, I just got kicked out of the house," She says with a laugh, but I can tell it's a fake laugh.
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"No, shit? Why? Wait, do I want to know?" I laugh.
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"I got caught fucking Peter here on the couch by my mama,"
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"Karo! What the fuck is wrong with you?" Pete yells. "Let's go."
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"Oh, Peter, lighten up. I also got kicked out for slapping my mom. So that happened, and I can't take it back."
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"Fuck," I say.
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"Katrina should be ready. Have fun." She says and winks. This girl is too much.
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I don't care how she got kicked out but hitting her mom that's fucked up. Right now, all I care about is getting to spend time with Katrina. I walk up the rest of the way to the front door and knock on it.
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Today is a day of celebrating my Mama with someone that I know she would have loved.
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