Pride and Preference

by Mia Rodriguez

  Benita nodded. “He's one of the nicest people I know.”

  “Really?” Eloisa blurted out before she could stop herself.

  “Sometimes, people don't know how to take him,” Benita murmured gently.

  “You've got to admit that he’s somewhat hard to get to know.”

  “Eloisa, you've got to understand that Dario lost his parents at a young age and had to take over the family business when most people that age are still trying to find themselves. He didn't have time for partying and making youthful mistakes. He had to become a man in an instant.”

  Eloisa grew pensive. “That must've been difficult.”

  “I agree with you that maybe he doesn't have the charms of a man who has a lot of practice in socializing, but he's true blue. You can depend on him being who he is no matter what. He won't pretend to be different, he’s not a phony, and he’s always truthful.”

  “There's a lot to say for honest people.”

  “Eloisa, you just said a mouthful. And you're wrong about him being hard to get to know. Only at the beginning is he that way. Afterwards, you'll realize he's easy. No other friend will be more loyal or more there for you than him.

  Chapter 20

  When Ralph Cola drove up to Doña Chona's house, Eloisa hoped nothing was wrong with Chencha. The recently slightly secretive Chencha had blurted Ralph Rodent at one point in their conversation and then had quickly changed the subject. Eloisa was certain her best friend was suffering in her loveless marriage. Now Ralph was at her doorway. What did he want? Even Doña Chona looked out the window with a puzzled expression on her face. As he walked in the house, he cheerfully carried a manila envelope in his hands.

  “I've got such a surprise for you!” Ralph blurted. “For poor people like you Longorias, Christmas came early.”

  “Caramba, what are you talking about?” burst Doña Chona.

  “Upon going over the figures, I found there was a mistake in the mortgage of the home,” Ralph announced.

  “A mistake?” asked Doña Chona, gulping loudly.

  “What is the mistake?” questioned a worried Eloisa.

  “Stop looking so scared. It's a good surprise,” he asserted.

  “Caramba, tell us the surprise, Ralph, before my nerves explode!” declared Doña Chona.

  “You're paid out,” he stated. “You own this raggedy old house free and clear.”

  “What?!” burst Eloisa.

  “Your note is paid out. You don't owe anything. In fact, I've got the title to your shabby house right here,” he stated as he handed Doña Chona the envelope.

  “We're paid out?” questioned Eloisa, her throat squeezing shut with emotion.

  “You now own this home in full,” he asserted. “Of course, it’s not like owning my country club palace, but at least you don’t have to make any more payments.”

  “Caramba, I thought we had five more years to go,” remarked Doña Chona, puzzled.

  “No, not according to my new figures.”

  “But—” Doña Chona started to say.

  “Doña Chona, are you going to look a gift horse in the mouth?” Ralph questioned sternly.

  “No,” murmured Doña Chona, shaking her head.

  “Take the title and frame it. I'm telling you that you're now the full owners of your home.”

  “Thank you, Ralph!” burst Doña Chona.

  “Yes, thank you.” reiterated Eloisa.

  “I've got to go. Like I said, it’s not a mansion, but it’s still a home, congrats,” he said as he stepped out the door.

  A stupefied Eloisa sat down on the sofa, her face in complete amazement. Doña Chona plopped down next to her and put her arm on Eloisa's shoulders.

  Doña Chona squeezed her in a hug. “You know what this means, mija? You can start working part time at your job. Caramba, next semester you'll be able to go full time to school!”

  “I can finally finish,” murmured Eloisa, tears streaming down her face.

  “Yes, you can finish. Great, great caramba!”

  That evening, Doña Chona had a special dinner to celebrate this most fortunate turn of events. She cooked her specialty pipian from scratch, using actual pumpkin seeds and a special sauce to give it the tangy taste her family loved. When Carmela arrived home, she found a note stuck to the screen door.

  “Mama, someone left this for you,” Carmela informed. “It looks like Lola's handwriting.”

  Doña Chona took the note with a quizzical look. “Why would Lola leave me a note?”

  “Yes, why?” asked Eloisa with sharp curiosity.

  Doña Chona opened the note with a perplexed expression. As she read it, her face exploded in emotion. “Oh no! No! Caramba, how could she?”

  “What's wrong?” questioned Eloisa as she took the note from Doña Chona's clammy hands.

  “What is it?” asked Carmela, worried.

  “Lola has run away with her boyfriend,” Eloisa explained with a tight and shaky throat as she read the note.

  “She did?!” burst Carmela.

  “Caramba, that girl is going to be the death of me!” snapped Doña Chona as she fanned air in front of her face with her hand.

  “Marta!” yelled Eloisa.

  “I'm busy with my homework,” responded Marta from her room.

  “You'd better get over here, young lady!” Doña Chona exclaimed.

  Marta dragged herself to the kitchen with a look of dread on her face.

  “Where did this note come from?” Eloisa questioned sternly, waving the note at her.

  “What is that?” Marta asked meekly.

  “You know perfectly well what this is,” Eloisa snapped.

  Marta let out a breath. “I didn't want to do it. I told her so.”

  “Lola made you put this note on the screen door?” asked Carmela.

  “I told her I didn't want anything to do with it, but she pleaded with me.”

  “Where did she go?” Eloisa demanded.

  Marta shrugged her shoulders. “I don't know.”

  “Caramba, you'd better tell us!” cried Doña Chona.

  “I really don't know where she went. She wouldn't tell me.”

  “You don't know where she went, but do you know who she went with? Who is this boyfriend of hers?” Eloisa questioned.

  Marta shuffled her feet. “I . . . I don't know.”

  “Marta, this is important! Eloisa burst. “You’re obviously lying. Who is her boyfriend?”

  “Tell us who she went with!” demanded Doña Chona with a threat to her tone.

  “Wayne,” Marta murmured meekly.

  Eloisa stared at her in disbelief. “Wayne?!”

  “Yes, Wayne.”

  Chapter 21

  “You mean Wayne is the friend she's been talking to all this time?!” Eloisa snapped.

  “Yes.”

  “Why didn't you tell us?!” Doña Chona retorted.

  Carmela put her hand on Marta's shoulder. “Why did you keep this to yourself?”

  “I didn't know until recently, and she made me promise I wouldn't tell.”

  Eloisa rushed to the telephone in the living room as the rest followed her.

  “Wayne's phone is disconnected!” Eloisa burst as she put the receiver back on the cradle.

  “Caramba, do you know where he lives?” asked Doña Chona with desperation in her voice.

  “No, I don't,” responded Eloisa.

  “What are we going to do?” asked Carmela, tears tumbling from her eyes.

  “I know someone who’ll know where he lives,” murmured Eloisa as she walked towards the door. “Stay here. I need to go by myself.”

  In her car, she violently opened her purse and turned it upside down on the shotgun seat, letting all it contained come stumbling out in a mess. Frantically searching, she couldn’t find Dario’s business card of when he had given it to her with the hand written Mexican restaurant of where he’d be with Benita Alvarez. Eloisa sighed desponde
ntly. The plan had been to call Dario, ask for Wayne’s address, and go get her sister. Now she’d have to go to Dario’s home to get the very important address.

  She told herself to take deep breaths and to concentrate on the road. It wouldn't do anybody any good if she had a car accident. When she arrived at her destination, she braced herself before knocking on the door.

  “Eloisa?” asked a surprised Dario, opening his door.

  “Hi,” she quickly greeted. “May I speak to you?”

  “Come in.”

  From the doorway she saw his uncle and Jacqueline. “I'd rather not. It's a private conversation and if it's not too much of an inconvenience, can you come out here?”

  “Certainly,” he said as he studied her with concern and closed the door behind him. “You don't look well. Are you okay?”

  “I'm fine. I need to know Wayne's address. Can you give it to me?”

  “Sure, but what's the problem?” His eyes kept dissecting her.

  “Please don't ask me,” she murmured, her voice edgy. “I can only tell you that this is an emergency.”

  “Maybe I can help.”

  “It's not your problem.”

  “Let me help, Eloisa. Please.”

  “I . . . I. . . I'm so close to losing it, Dario,” she stuttered. “I don't want to . . . I repeat, this is not your problem.”

  He nodded solemnly. “If you don't want to tell me then it's fine. But I'm going to have to take you to Wayne's home. It's too complicated for just directions.”

  “But you've got guests.”

  “They'll be here when I get back. I much prefer to go with you. Give me a few seconds,” he said with his hand on the doorknob. “Do you need anything, a glass of water maybe, while I'm in there?”

  “No, no thank you.”

  It was only a few seconds until he stepped out again. He led her to his car, and they climbed in. As he pulled away, he made no attempt at conversation. Eloisa was grateful for the silence, so she could place her thoughts in some kind of order. She was relieved that throughout their twenty minute ride, she was able to keep any anxious tears at bay.

  “We're here,” Dario declared, parking in front of a row of run down apartments. Eloisa recognized Wayne's burgundy sports vehicle in front of one of them.

  “You might as well know since you'll know in a few minutes anyway that Lola has run away with him,” she murmured.

  Dario stared at her intently. “I'm going into his apartment with you, Eloisa.”

  “You don't have to. I'll get her myself and—”

  “This is non-negotiable. You probably don't know that Wayne can be a violent man. Unless you tell me you have a black belt in karate, I'm not letting you go in there by yourself.”

  Eloisa nodded. “Okay, come in with me.”

  When they arrived at the door, Dario put his hand on the doorknob and turned it.

  “He always leaves doors open,” Dario informed Eloisa.

  Wayne and Lola sat in the living room watching television as Eloisa and Dario stormed in. Their shocked expressions at seeing the furious intruders quickly changed to indignant rage.

  “What are you doing here?!” snapped Wayne at Dario.

  “Eloisa!” exclaimed Lola.

  “We're going home,” demanded Eloisa.

  Lola vehemently shook her head, making ranting noises. “I'm staying right here!”

  “Yeah, she's staying with me,” snapped Wayne, standing up.

  Chapter 22

  “Is she really staying with you, worthless jerk?” Dario challenged sarcastically.

  Wayne glared at him. “You'd better not even think of putting a hand on me, or I'm calling the police. Assault is a crime.”

  Dario pulled out his cell phone. “Well then, let me call the police for you. Kidnapping is a major felony.”

  “Kidnapping? What are you talking about? She came here out of her own free will,” retorted Wayne.

  “Yeah, that's true! I want to be with him!” declared Lola.

  “But you're still a minor,” burst Eloisa.

  “And there's statutory rape too,” Dario mentioned nonchalantly.

  Wayne’s eyes grew wider. “Statutory rape?! I haven't touched her!”

  “You haven't?!” demanded Eloisa.

  “It's her time of the month,” Wayne stated with disgust in his voice.

  “Let's see what the police have to say about this situation, shall we?” Dario declared as he started pushing the buttons on his cell phone.

  “Wait!” exclaimed Wayne. “Lola, you've got to leave.”

  “But Wayne—”

  “I'm not going to get in trouble because of the likes of you.”

  “But I love you Wayne. I—”

  “Shut up,” he snapped, raising his hand as if he was about to strike her but then quickly came to his senses about them not being alone. Instead, he used his raised hand to fiercely indicate the door. “Get out of here you adolescent skank!”

  Eloisa's hand smacked Wayne so hard he fell to the ground. “Don't you ever call my sister that!” Eloisa demanded.

  Wayne started stumbling up as if he was violently going towards Eloisa when Dario stood in front of him. “You hit her, you're dead,” Dario menaced, growling.

  Wayne nodded furiously as he glared at Eloisa and then at Lola. “You might as well know that I only gave you the time of day to avenge your stupid sister dumping me!” he snapped.

  Dario’s eyes ignited in flames as his hands became tight, gnarled fists. “You worthless idiot—” Eloisa rushed between them. Wayne dropped to his knees in back of Eloisa, fretfully cowering down.

  “He’s not worth getting your hands dirty with his blood,” Eloisa muttered.

  Lola sobbed as she grabbed her bag and rushed out the door. “Let's go!” she exclaimed, over her shoulder.

  In the car, Lola, Eloisa, and Dario quietly stared straight ahead as Dario drove. When arriving at Dario's home, Eloisa handed Lola her car keys.

  “I'll be there in a few minutes,” Eloisa told her as she walked with Dario a few steps into the driveway.

  Dario gazed intently at Eloisa. “You don't have to.”

  “Have to what?” she asked.

  “Thank me.”

  “How do you know I'm going to thank you?”

  “I know you well enough,” he murmured with a smile.

  Eloisa nodded. “I hate it when you're right. Thank you, Dario.”

  “I told you it wasn't necessary.”

  “And I'm telling you that it is,” Eloisa burst. “A good turn deserves a thank you at the very least.”

  “Then I accept your thanks.”

  “You were pretty awesome today.”

  He chuckled, his dark eyes firmly on hers. “I much prefer your compliments to your dislike of me.”

  Eloisa smiled. “Dario, I don’t dislike you. Not anymore.”

  Dario’s eyebrows rose. “You don’t know what a relief that is to me.”

  In Eloisa's car, Lola sat sobbing. Eloisa quietly climbed in, started the car, and pulled away. Instead of driving home, she parked at scenic drive. People admired the sights as the city glittered before them. Eloisa didn't know if she liked it better during the day when she could see El Paso clearly or during the night like at the moment when the city sparkled in its own majestic way.

  “Why are we here?” Lola questioned with curiosity on her tear stained face.

  “We need to talk,” answered Eloisa.

  “Can't we just go home?” Lola snapped. “I don't want to talk about this.”

  “We're going to talk about it whether you like it or not.”

  “Whatever you say, commander,” sneered Lola.

  “Do you resent me so much, Lola? Have I been such a bad sister to you?”

  “You're so bossy!” Lola retorted. “You're not my mother or my father, Eloisa.”

  “I know that, Lola.”

  “Then why do you act the
way you do?”

  Eloisa sighed deeply. “Because I don't want you to end up miserable. Look at what you did today, for goodness sake.”

  “If you hadn't shown up, I'd still be with him!” Lola snapped. “We’d still be together!”

  “You want to be with a man who calls you a skank?”

  “Well . . . no.”

  “You want to be with someone who only wants to use you for revenge?”

  “No,” Lola murmured, her sight dropping to the car floor.

  “You know what would've happened to you? You would've ended up a pregnant teen-ager like our cousin Donna. You tell me, how happy is she taking care of a tiny baby that cries all the time and needs everything from her?”

  “She doesn't seem too happy,” grumbled Lola.

  “And where's that boyfriend she was so in love with? Where is he?”

  Lola shrugged her shoulders. “No one knows.”

  “He left her holding the bag. Meanwhile, she's had to give up her youth. Give up parties, proms, and freedom. Is that what you want?”

  “No.”

  “You can always have babies later, but this time in your life passes fast. Why would you want to throw away your youth on a jerk who’ll take everything from you and leave you with nothing but problems? He’s a loser, Lola.”

  “I love him,” she murmured almost inaudibly.

  Eloisa groaned loudly. “Because you think you love him you'd let him do whatever he wants with you? Treat you any way he wants? Walk all over you?”

  “No,” she murmured meekly.

  “Do you love us, your family?”

  “Of course!” Lola proclaimed, her eyes shifting to Eloisa from the car floor, indignant to have been asked that question.

  “Then why have you treated us like this? After all the sacrifices—”

  “Stop it, Eloisa!” Lola burst. “Stop it!”

  “Stop what?”

  “You're such a martyr. Nobody asked you to give up full-time college for us. You gave it up because you wanted to.”

  “I wanted to?” asked Eloisa with her eyes brimming with tears.

  “Yeah! You were probably too lazy to go full-time and you want to blame us for your decision.”

  “Lazy?!” Eloisa snapped. “Since when have I been lazy?” she demanded to know.

  Lola’s eyes dropped to the floor again. “Well…”

  “And have I ever told you or anyone house in the family that I blamed you for my decision?”

  “No, but it's there anyway.”

  Eloisa stared at the steering wheel. “I give up,” she muttered with tears starting to slowly fall. “You do whatever you want to do, Lola.”