♥ 𝙑𝘼𝙇𝙀𝙉𝙏𝙄𝙉𝙀𝙎 𝘿𝘼𝙔！

⭒ ♪ ❝ 𝙣𝙞𝙘𝙚 𝙩𝙖𝙣❞ ♪ ⭒

———————— (chapter one)

©ivysbookgarden , march . 2024

Life was made up of moments, small moments where the world stopped and that particular feeling was all that was left. Corazón Delgado remembered every single one, she remembered her first crush, her brother's first love, her parents' anniversary, she remembered her first true heartbreak, and the moment she hated the most, that day several moons ago, where her life changed the second the phone rang and her brother's tragedy stricken face was all she needed to know someone wasn't there anymore. She just never imagined it would be their parents.

Cora only thought about that as her aunt's car sped through the streets she had familiarized herself with for the summer. She listened to her cousin drone on about how fun the summer had been, how her time in Puerto Rico would only add to her island memories. Something which Cousin Victoria defined as the moments she lived in this tiny archipelago called Puerto Rico, where the sun only hid at night but left the heat as a constant reminder of its absence.

"Corazon are you even listening to me?" Her cousin's voice finally cut through, it's previously droned out state gone.

"Yeah totally"

"Victoria déjala quieta, she must be so sad she's leaving, is your brother picking you up Cora?" her aunt asked, question which Cora had no answer for, so why not lie?

"mhm" she simply assented, going back to looking out the window as the Luis Muñoz Marin International Airport came into view. It was a small airport, but it was nice nevertheless, it had a beautiful store full of PuertoRican artifacts and treats, even the little Bimbo cakes Cora enjoyed so much.

"I love you so much sweetheart, I expect a call weekly from you or your brother to see how you guys are doing, have a safe trip linda " And with a kiss on her forehead, Miranda Toledo went back in her car, as if Cora couldn't notice the tears brimming in her aunt's eyes.

Suitcase in hand, Cora went into the airport, Calle 13 blaring through her headphones, as she found herself checking in her bags. She passed through TSA, and found herself stopping at that small souvenir shop she grew to be so fond of, she looked through the keychains representing each pueblo, she bought a pack of Bimbo cakes to eat on the plane then went to the Gustos Cafe and bought some coffee. Coffee in hand, Cora scrolled through the pictures she took throughout the summer, her tanned cheeks flushed after a pillow fight with her cousin Vicky, her cousin Lorenzo trying to bond with an iguana in the backyard, that same cousin Lorenzo getting hit by that same iguana, the reminder for her to get in line and board the plane.

The reminder for her to get in line and board the plane! Grabbing her suitcase and backpack, Cora rushed in line to board her plane, her mother always did say she has a particular ability for zoning out the world. As she accommodated her self in the plane seat, Cora took her phone and settled on texting her brother to tell him the plane was going to take off.

Cora: hi! plane's about to take off, so you should probably be on your way to the airport. love you <3

Putting her phone on airplane mode, Cora settled for her show playing softly in the background, with bimbo cakes and coffee the sound of the plane engine merely became background noise.

Corazon completely forgot how messy getting out of an airplane was. It took about thirty minutes for her to be able to get out off the plane and get her luggage, which was something she was not keen in experiencing again any time soon. She settled for texting Gabriel to check if he was already waiting for her outside.

Cora: hi! it's me again, please tell me you're outside already.

Gabe: What do you mean?

Cora: you're not here?!

Gabe: The airport was today?!

Cora: yes!

Gabe: Can you hang on, I'll be there soon

Cora: i'll just take an uber or whatever

What the actual hell. Cora thought, how could her own brother forget to pick her up from the airport. He was supposed to take care of her, but no, he forgot to pick her up. And now she was stuck in an uncomfortable Uber all the way home. Corazon wanted to think that he forgot because he was busy or stressed, but she knew her brother and she knew that he probably didn't even write her arrival down in the calendar that hung on the fridge. With a soft sigh, she plugged in her airpods and let the soft voice of The Marias fill the void silence in the Uber.

The sweet smell of cachapas con queso greeted her as she went in the house she missed so dearly. Corazon could just picture her mother, making the cachapas from scratch because she knew her daughter loved them so dearly, but her mother was gone, and the cachapas were probably take out from the food truck at the plaza.

"Hey Cora, i bought some cachapas, I thought you'd probably be hungry"

"I'm not really hungry but thanks Gabe, I'll just have them for breakfast tomorrow or something"

"Oh ok, how was your flight?"

"It was fine, im going upstairs"

"Cora, I really didn't mean to forget, im so sorry"

"It's fine"

Corazón watched Gabriel's face fall a bit, as she headed upstairs and part of her felt bad, but then again, he left her at the airport. She really wished she could travel back in time and go back to her first trip to Puerto Rico, she remembered it so clearly, the sweet coffee her abuela made in the morning, her papi's hat, eating pinchos at the beach. Back then, life wasn't so complicated, Gabriel was ten and she was five and he found it so endearing to watch her splash around the ocean shore collecting sea shells. But she was no longer five and Gabriel was no longer ten, and they lived together in a world where their parents were gone. She decided it was probably time to text Gus and let him know that she had made it home safe.

Cora : i'm alive

Gus : i was five seconds away from calling your brother and asking if your plane crashed

Cora: sorry to disappoint 🤷‍♀️

Gus: what's wrong?

Cora: 🧍🏻‍♀️

Gus: you're using emojis something is wrong

Cora: Gabe forgot to pick me up at the airport

Gus: he ditched you?!

Cora: yup, I had to take an Uber

Gus : Enzo's tomorrow?

Cora: if I manage to wake up

Gus : k, love you

Cora : <3

Laying her phone on her nightstand Corazon settled for trying get some rest before school, and as she laid down in the soft purple covers, she only stared at the ceiling and thought about island memories and her papi's hat.

"Corazón estás tarde!"

Cora would never wish jet lag on anyone. It was the absolute worse thing to experience, especially when you had to wake up early for school. She would also never wish the sound of her brother's voice as an alarm on anyone, but it was something she was unfortunately used to.

"It's 6:15 calm down! I'm almost ready anyway" The truth was she was nowhere near ready, the shirt she had chosen the previous night was wrinkled, and most of her clothes were either in her suitcase or inside the boxes laid throughout her room. That wrinkled shirt was really looking like the best option.

"Gus is here!" Her brother's voice rang out yet again, only reminding Cora of her tardiness as she debated what to wear. She refused to open up the boxes, but she was also pressed for time so the suitcase wasn't an option, wrinkled shirt it is.
"Cora I'm coming up!" Gus was apparently in a hurry, or he was just really excited to see her. "Oh sweetie you're a mess" He sighed out taking in her disheveled state.

"I know, I know, but I can't find my black converse and I haven't even done my hair, and I still have to eat breakfast" She said, she could feel the tears brimming in her eyes because truth be told, she wanted to be nowhere near school, and those boxes were really starting to bother her.

"Lose the ponytail, your black converse are downstairs, and we agreed on getting Enzo's" Sometimes Cora forgot how much she had missed her best friend, he always had a way to fix everything.

"Let's go!"

"Morning Gabe, bye Gabe, ten buen día, te amo" Corazón rushed out as she quickly went out the door black converse in hand, running towards Gus' car.

"So tell me about Puerto Rico, I haven't heard any good stories since your little cousin's birthday party" Corazon remembered that, she texted Gus in the middle of her cousin Coral's birthday party to tell him about the huge cake being served. Gus' voice was muffled by the sandwich in his mouth but she clearly understood what he actually wanted to know. Had she met anyone? The true answer was no, and Gus knew that, sophomore year had been hard on her, and Puerto Rico only offered a temporary fix. But she couldn't help but say "I kissed this guy at my Victoria's friend's party, but it was really dumb and it was also a dare, doubt he would count it"

"You didn't tell me you kissed a guy!" His surprise at Cora's lie was evident, but so was his joy, after Jake broke up with her Gus had very clearly expressed his distaste for her sad mood and how all he wanted was for her to move on, so a small white lie regarding Corazon's inactive love life wouldn't really hurt Gus.

"It wasn't really that big of a deal" she said, shrugging the statement off.

"I'm glad you did, it's a step to completely getting over Jake" Gus added, Corazon knew he wanted what was best for her, but part of her hated his relieved tone. So she settled for finishing her sandwich and watching as the familiar Redmont High School came into view.

Corazon was happy to know that her locker was nowhere near Jake's or his new girlfriend whose she had yet to learn. She also had found out that she shared two classes with Gus, so her first day was going good so far.

"Oh yeah there was this huge argument between Moriah Hendrix and her boyfriend, I can't remember his name" Gus was in the middle of catching Corazon up on Redmont High's summer gossip as they searched for a new lunch spot since a bunch of freshmen had stolen their usual spot.

"The one with the Kermit voice? That's Collin" She asked referring to Gus' retelling of the argument between Moriah and her boyfriend.

"Collin! That's him, yeah so basically he insinuated that she had a crush on their bandmate and she did not like that. She went on this whole tangent about misogyny in the music industry which was so badass I'm also like 75% sure that one of them is quitting the band." He finished as he threw his backpack against the tree that would now serve as their new lunch spot. "I now pronounce this our tree."

Cora had missed Gus, how easy it was to talk to him. She was also starting to like their new tree, it was far more comfortable than their old one. Taking out her songbook, Cora settled for writing while she waited for Gus to come back for the bathroom, a wave of gratefulness for Jake's absence throughout the day rushing over her.

"Cora?" Oh no. It's like he was Beetlejuice, summoned by her thoughts of him. She was really starting to resent Gus' bladder.

Cora awkwardly grinned up at him, eyes strained from the sun "Hey Jake"

"Hey! I thought that was you, I couldn't really tell cause your hair is longer and your face was kinda covered by your notebook" Oh how Cora missed his smile, she knew she shouldn't but it was the smile she had loved for a whole year, and she was such a sucker for second chance romances.

"Umm yea my aunt is a firm believer in growing out your hair" Dios mío, could she be more awkward? She sounded like Chandler Bing in the blackout episode of FRIENDS.

"Nice tan, it really suits you"

"Thanks it's mine" If she could facepalm without looking completely ridiculous, she would, but her main focus was ending that conversation and running away as soon as possible.

"Well it was really nice to talk to you Cora, i just wanted to tell you how sorry I am about how things went down, but maybe it was for the better, Zora and I get along great Cora" And the conversation had ended, mainly because Jake's last sentence had been a big dealbreaker which made Corazon want to burst out in tears, but also because Gus, her true savior, had come back to take her away from the painful interaction. "Unless you're trying to break Cora's heart again please do the universe a favor and leave"

"Sorry Gus, I was just catching up with Cora" Jake apologized as he turned away, probably with the intention of finding his girlfriend and showing her off to Corazon.

"What the hell was that?" Gus said turning towards her.

"He commented on my tan" Cora groaned out, face buried in her notebook.

"What?!"

"He said nice tan, and I said 'oh thanks it's
mine' I am such a dork!" If embarrassment had a face it would be Corazon's, she had never ever in her 16 years of life had been so embarrassed.

"To quote the amazing gay icon Remus Lupin, eat you'll feel better" Gus said, a small smile on his face and suddenly Corazon felt better.

"That was never confirmed" Gus had always loved Harry Potter, while Cora leaned more towards Twilight, they bonded over their love for werewolves and fictional characters.

"My gaydar says otherwise, anyways when are you getting your license?"

"Shit I totally forgot about that" Corazon had not forgotten about getting her license, she had looked forward to it, until February of course. Everything she had wanted to do with a license had been taken away by a mere act of dismissal, by something which had been premeditated with the thought of another girl. But with a shake of her head, she dismissed the thought of his betrayal, of her broken heart, and proceeded to finish her lunch.

Corazón Delgado was famous among her family for procrastinating, a habit that eventually led her to her current position . Which is why she currently found herself waiting for her brother to pick her up from school, an hour after school ended of course.

"Hey, Cora!" Jake's voice rang out from the courtyard, his hair messed up from lacrosse practice.
"Jake, hi, again" Cora replied, her smile shining with obvious discomfort.

"So you haven't gotten your license yet?" He asked, his smile unfading. Jake had always been such a sweet boy, with a full heart, and a never-ending love for Cora and her bright smiles and short songs. But he had broken her heart, left it on that party floor, and replaced it with another girl's, her memory never forgotten.

"No, not yet but-"
"Let's go, I'll give you a ride, you still live with your aunt?" Cora's response was cut off by Jake as he rearranged his lacrosse bag on his shoulder, starting to walk towards the student parking.

Cora hesitated, looking to the side, "Umm, no Gabe and I moved into the old house" she said as she followed after him. Getting a ride home from you ex couldn't be that bad right? It was just a ride home, she lived like an hour away walking.

"That's just by the exit right, past Enzo's?" He asked opening the car door as Cora climbed in.

"Yeah, you know how to get there?" It had been a while since Jake had driven her to her parents' old home. She didn't want to make the car ride any longer than the fifteen minutes it took to drive there.

Jake started the truck, pulling out of the parking lot as Cora folded her hands over her lap, looking out the window. As much as she hated the awkwardness she didn't harbor any desire to carry out a conversation with Jake. Her and Jake's relationship had been a good one, of course it had its ups and downs, but after that party Cora never thought she'd be able to forgive him. And as she sat in that car she realized she hadn't, being next to him hurt, and sitting in the passenger seat she was so used to as Jake's favorite radio station resounded only made her pain worse. And she only wondered if he was hurting too.

Fifteen minutes quickly passed and Jake parked in front of Cora's house.

"Damn it still looks the same." He commented as she strained his neck to looks the house.

Cora picked up her bag, her lips pursed as she nodded at his comment. "Yup, hasn't changed, same old house. Thanks for the ride Jake"

Jake smiled at her, "No problem, I'm always here if you need me Cora".

Cora looked to the side, as she shifted her feet. "Thanks but I don't want you to be." Closing the truck door, Cora turned and stalked toward the house, taking her keys out, never turning back to look at who she once loved.

Corazon was faced with a dilemma. Well, not so much a dilemma as just a simple decision, whether to go out or not. Gus had invited her to the First Day Bonfire, that Seniors usually threw every year, but she didn't have anything to wear. Nothing in her closet seemed appealing enough to wear, and she didn't have time to buy clothes. Settling for a white tank top, and some denim shorts, Corazon started getting ready singing along to the melody of Taylor Swift's 'Speak Now'.

"I'm going out! Hey have you seen my denim jacket, with the furry thingy, i can't find it anywhere" Corazon announced as she went down the stairs, shoes in hand.

"It's probably in the rack or in one of the boxes and you're not going out in that"

"What's wrong with my outfit?" Cora frowned, looking down at her outfit.

"Those pants are way too short" Gabriel replied, dropping his phone on the kitchen counter.

"They're called shorts for a reason Gabe" Corazon replied jokingly, rolling her eyes.

"Is this about Jake?" Gabriel asked, fully turned now, looking at her

Cora turned around, mouth agape. "What?!"

"He's the one who drove you home no? I saw his truck" Gabriel stated. Seeing Jake's truck had set off red flags in his brain, he knew teens broke up and got back together all the time, but he thought his sister was better than that. Gabe had never been a bad brother, but he had always been a concerned one, their lives contrasted in that sense, Corazon's whole life was full of interrogations about her friends, and boys, and where she was going. His whole life was full of worries about Corazon, down to details like the temperature around her and whether she should wear a jacket or not, their father always said he got that worrying nature from their mother and that Corazon's procrastination had been inherited from their father.

"He was doing me a favor because you forgot to pick me up, which seems to be your new normal" Cora answered, anger slipping through with each word, as she finished tying her shoes. She truly hated how annoying Gabe got sometimes. She was well aware he always worried and that he was simply fulfilling his role as both a big brother and her current legal guardian.

"I'm sorry i forgot to pick you up, but I've been busy, with tia moving back to Puerto Rico and you living with me now, I'm not used to this Cora. You gotta cut me some slack"

"Can I go now, Gus is picking me up" Cora asked grabbing a water bottle from the fridge.

"If you change first you can go" Gabe replied, with what could be interpreted as his attempt to reason with Cora.

"Why do I have to change this is what I want to wear"

"Carajo Corazón it's not that deep just change" Gabe snapped, his anger seeping through.

"It's shorts and a tank top, you're not papi you know? You can't just control what I decide to wear" Cora fumed, she was getting tired of Gabe and his behavior, who was he trying to be? He obviously wasn't their papá.

"Yeah but I am the one taking care of you"

"Seriously what is even your problem today," Cora asked, setting her water bottle down. Gabriel was acting unreasonably and all she wanted to do was leave. Her skirt was a reasonable length and he was making it an issue when it didn't have to be. "God you're so annoying you're acting like I'm working at a strip club, I'm going to party coño" She gritted out, her tone sharp.

"Stop fucking cursing at me, I'm trying to have a conversation with you!" Gabriel yelled, clearly annoyed with Cora's attitude. It reminded him of his parents and how they always knew how to calm him and Cora out when they fought. His parents called their fights explosive because when they fought their voices rang so loud that the world seemed to shake. People always said it was because they were Puerto Rican, but their father believed it was something the siblings had inherited from their mother.

"You're the one cursing so much! Y que tanto the afecta si salgo?!"

"A mi no me afecta, but I just want you to be safe, I'm trying to protect you"

"God I hate you, you're so freaking annoying, Jesus!" Cora finalized as she headed upstairs, her steps leaving behind a shallow echo that represented her anger.

"Corazon ven acá!"

The slam of her door was the only sound he got in reply, other than the front door opening greeting the mixed smell of Thai and his girlfriend's perfume.

"I left for Thai and all of a sudden you guys are fighting" Catalina stated, a confused look on her face. She was well aware of Gabriel's and Corazon's fights, but she had never witnessed one, or well the end of one.

"I don't know what's going on with her, it's like she left herself back in Puerto Rico" He sighed, his head in his hands.

"She's had a tough few months amor and so have you, you gotta take it easy," Catalina said, rubbing his back as a sign of comfort. She and Gabe had been dating for two years, and she knew how much he hated fighting with Cora.

"I know but she doesn't have to act like this"

"She's a 16-year-old girl Gabe, one who just went though a huge breakup that she may not be over yet"

"I know, I know"

"Why don't we just eat, watch a movie?" Catalina offered.

"I'll set the table"

The sound of the doorbell cut through the silence only filled by the clatter of forks scraping against each other as Gabe set the table. "I'll get it," said Catalina, as she headed for the front door only to be greeted by Gus carrying grocery bags. "Hey Gus, I don't think Cora's in the mood for a party but we got some Thai if you're hungry", Fabiola offered, a small smile decorating her face.

"Oh we're not going to that thing, I got a bunch of snacks, Twilight, and some Olive Garden" Gus responded, in truth he never planned on going to the bonfire, but he thought making the offer to Cora would be better than immedieatly discarding the idea of an outing. He knew Cora would be a bit sad considering her current situation and her conversation with Jake earlier in the day. He was also aware of the need for Corazon to unpack and organize her rooms, so Gus figured why not kill two birds with one stone? Not literally, Gus loved birds.

"She's in her room" Catalina smiled, she knew Gus was always the one to cheer Corazon up. It was something he had demonstrated time and time again since Catalina and Gabe had started dating.

The sound of Taylor Swift's 'Dear John' was the only thing Gus needed to hear to know Corazon was truly in a bad mood. With a sigh he knocked on the door, he didn't need to check to know it was probably locked. "Cora please open the door".

"It's open anyway" Cora rang out from her bed.

"Hey Cory, how u feeling" Cory was Gus' nickname for Cora when she was upset. It had been decided when Cora and Gus started watching Boy Meets World whenever they were upset.

"Like someone just burned all of my Taylor Swift records" Corazon's muffled voice answered from her face down position.

"I got Olive Garden" Gus responded with a small smile, holding up the Olive Garden bag.

"yay"

"I say we watch Twilight and eat Olive Garden, then we unpack everything cause this is a mess" Gus offered as he sat down on Cora's bed, bags set on top of her desk.

"I hate evil ex-boyfriends, and stupid big brothers" Cora sighed out setting her head on Gus' lap, a stray tear making its way across her face.

"You don't hate your brother, Gabe's just a tad bit too overprotective, and well Xavier sucks so you can hate him" Gus shrugged, putting on Twilight as he grabbed the Olive Garden bag.

"Pass me that chicken parmigiana please"

"So I was thinking we could color code your closet by seasonal colors and hang the polaroids on top of the desk"

"That sounds nice" Cora responded, when it came to decor and organization Gus was the first person to call. And so they laid there, with Twilight playing in the background and the smell of pasta hanging over the room, evil ex boyfriend and overprotective brothers long forgotten.

authors note : i know i disappeared for a hot minute but it's okay, cause i think i'm back. my life has been a complete mess this past few weeks, so writing has not been the easiest and Jake and Cora's part was definitely the hardest.

anywaysss, i hope y'all liked this chapter! i honestly miss Puerto Rico so I will absolutely be using this as a way to express that. also so many bits of my characters