The cold night air felt heavenly against Alex's sweaty face as he walked across the dimly lit balcony. Two panic attacks in less than a month. If things kept on going like that, he wasn't going to be able to perform in med school. He needed to get in contact with his therapist and schedule several sessions to help him figure out how to improve. He reached into his pocket for his phone and felt fabric. Montag's handkerchief, it was wet with tears and sweat. He needed to wash it and return it.
He shouldn't blame himself for panicking back there,that man didn't respect his boundaries, toying with him just to make him explode. He was vile and cruel, and he almost ruined the reunion just to have some fun torturing him. He clenched his fists and breathed deeply. He had to get used to that man´s presence if his sister was marrying Julian.
"Alex? what are you doing out here?" His sister's soft voice broke into the turmoil of his mind.
"Sorry, sis, I was getting overwhelmed back there" He approached her and kissed her forehead "Congratulations."
"Thanks. I actually feel like crap" She collapsed on the floor "How am I supposed to face mom and dad now? They should be here with me."
He crouched next to her "Are you having regrets? want me to return the ring to Julian?"
She smiled sadly "No, I do want to marry him, I just miss mom and dad. I shouldn't have to hide anything from them."
"You didn't have to hide this either."
"This is too sudden; I'll take advantage of Mother's Day and tell them. I'm scared but hopeful" she got up and turned "now let's go inside, you must be hungry."
He didn't have the heart to tell her about the knot in his throat and how much he wanted to go home so he walked back inside beside her and accompanied her to her seat next to Julian who was smiling brightly. Alex didn't know what someone in love looked like but he was sure they looked like that.
"Congratulations, Julian," he said softly.
"Thank you, Alex, I promise to take really good care of her" he pulled out Andrea's seat and helped her get settled. "Now please sit, the dinner's about to begin."
He sat next to his sister and glanced at the other side of the table. Montag was nowhere to be seen. He didn't feel happy about someone abandoning his sister during such an important celebration. He frowned. Andrea didn't need shitty friends like him.
"What's wrong?" his sister's whisper made him jump.
"Oh, nothing. I just realized there's an empty seat on the other side of the table."
"Montag excused himself a while back. He congratulated us and said he wasn't feeling ok, so he left." she scratched her head "now that I'm thinking about it, I'm surprised he came at all, he's so unpredictable"
"Unpredictable?" against his better reasoning he became curious.
"It's like there's two people inside him, you never know what his next move will be. Julian has known him since high school and there are so many things about which he just does not talk."
"I hope you won't have to deal with him so much. He sounds unstable." He whispered.
"don't worry, like I told you, his friendship with Julian goes back years and they've never had a single issue." She smiled reassuringly and returned to her meal.
Miami felt hotter than ever. The sun shone brightly on the sky and there was not a single cloud in the horizon. Alex felt thankful for his inability to get sunburned. 26°C wasn't really that high but coming from New York it felt hellish.
The uber stopped before the gates of his parents' Villa and from the street he could see the house, a large white building inspired by Spanish colonial architecture with big windows and ornamented doors. Living in a tiny apartment in New York he could delude himself into thinking they were middle class, but this tank of a house proved they were rich.
"I didn't remember it being so big," Andrea said, shocked.
"Me neither, the flat's going to feel tiny once we get back" he approached the gate and buzzed the intercom.
"¿Si, buenas?" His mother's voice came through the speaker.
"¡Mami!" Andrea squealed before he could get a word out.
"¡Mis bebés!" At the same time his mom yelled the gate opened and his sister ran inside.
His parents were standing on the entrance, his mother practically jumping from excitement, anyone unaware of their situation would've thought they hadn't seen each other in years but they met on New Year's eve. His father, always stoic, nodded and gave them a little smile.
"How was the trip?" he took Andrea's bag and hugged her
"Don't ask me, I slept for most of it" She shrugged and squeezed her mother tightly
"It was uncomfortable but bearable" Alex answered, he knew the question was for him and he needed them to believe he was getting over his phobias.
"Come to the backyard, children, Dario already lit the BBQ and he's about to start with the meat" His mother said cheerfully.
The path leading to the backyard was built with fake stones, giving the impression of having been there for hundreds of years. The vegetation elegantly scattered across the garden was a feast for the eyes with different types of flowers bringing it to life and the trees making the air feel cooler by providing shade.
"¡Llegaron los niños!" His mother's voice got everyone's attention. His uncles, aunts and cousins were chilling by the pool and some of them waved to greet them.
"Mom, I need to talk to you," Andrea interrupted.
Realizing how serious she was, his mother took Andrea's hand and then they walked together far enough to not be heard accidentally. If he was being honest with himself he wanted his mom to convince his sister to wait a bit before marrying. He still wasn't fully on board with the situation.
"Tia Lucia didn't know you were coming" a feminine voice stole his attention from the interaction between his mom and sister. Juliana. He smiled politely at his cousin.
"Yeah, dad wanted to surprise her and flew us here" he glanced at her sister who had her eyes fixed on the ground while speaking to his mom.
Juliana followed his gaze and her face took on an enquiring look "They look serious. Is there something going on with Andrea?"
"None of your business. If you're so curious ask her yourself" He learned early in his life that his family liked to get involved in everyone else's lives and offer unsolicited advice.
"You don't have to be an asshole"
"You don't have to be a chismosa. You know I don't gossip" he smirked.
"You don't do anything, we all know you're useless, all that brain wasted" She knew where to strike to make him feel like crap. "I'm gonna go eat, I'll make sure to let dad know you'll be eating later when you man up enough to approach us." she winked at him and walked away.
He sighted and rolled his eyes. His cousin was an expert pushing him and making him feel and behave like a kid. He took out his phone and decided to listen to a podcast to distract himself. Worrying led nowhere and there was nothing he could do to improve his sister's situation. His favorite podcast was doing a month-long special on American literature and the topic of the week was Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451. He wasn't a fan of dystopian literature but he could appreciate how Guy Montag's situation echoed the current political climate of the world.
Montag. He wondered how the guy was doing, his mysterious nature and unwillingness to build trusting relationships with his so-called "friends" made him curious. Even him, a socially anxious autistic appreciated and treasured his relationship with his family and strived to maintain those bonds. Montag's aloofness didn't seem humanly possible.
A feathery touch on his hand made him lift up his gaze. Andrea was standing before him, tear-stained cheeks and a trembling smile on her lips. Things must've gone right because she wasn't screaming bloody murder.
"Mom gave me her blessing," She whispered. "She said she's never seen me this happy"
He felt genuine relief and happiness. His mom and sister loved each other and they were like best friends, he didn't want to see any of them suffering.
"that's great, dude, let's go eat to celebrate"