In Love With You

TWO-1

I can"t believe Christmas is finally here!

Long days have passed since Danny and Julie"s engagement. Those days I was buried in the office with a pile of contracts full of pranks sent by one of my best clients – an agent who looked after the careers of several actors who were cast to record a series for streaming - and that gave me, a lot of work.

pranksstreaming I"m really excited for Christmas. In addition to being my favorite holiday, this will be the first time we will meet at the new home of my brother and his bride. I can barely contain my smile as I remember them both. Daniel is happier than ever now that he is going to be a father, and my best friend marvels at motherhood. I am very happy for them, especially for Julie, who loved him for so long and never gave up what she wanted. She is truly an example of faith and perseverance.

Although I don"t share her faith in relationships. After all, I have a long list of exes who broke my heart to prove I wasn"t made for true love and all that Happily Ever After nonsense. Some time ago, I concluded that a woman"s true happiness lies in having a successful career, money in the bank, a good shoe that doesn"t hurt her feet, and a nice body in bed. Not necessarily in that order.

If Julie heard me talking like that, she would say my heart is hardened and maybe it really is. But I learned a long time ago that I don"t need anyone to be happy. I love my own company and having a no strings attached affair is perfect for an independent girl like me. When there are no feelings involved, there are no expectations, so no one can hurt you.

The image of Zach comes to mind suddenly and I shake my head, pushing him into the corner of my brain meant for fun, which is where he fits into my life.

I look around the room, making sure I haven"t forgotten anything. I am taking several gifts with me. I am a denial in the kitchen, which makes a gastronomic contribution impossible, but my talent for shopping is second only to George"s. I leave the house, take the elevator down to the garage and put all the boxes and packages in the trunk of the car-an old New Beetle, but one that I have a great attachment to. It"s white, fluffy, with leather seats, but its engine has seen better days. I bought it when I was in college, and even though I could afford to trade it in for a new car, I"m dying to get rid of it.

After putting everything in order, I sit in the driver"s seat, throw the bag on the seat next to it, turn the key to start it and... Nothing.

- You"re not gonna do that to me now, are you? I mutter, irritated. I make a few more attempts and nothing in the car works.

- You should exchange this car for a newer one - Zach"s voice comes to mind, and I remember all the times he repeated those words to me. I take the key out of the ignition while rolling my eyes, take out my phone to call an Uber, but after a few minutes of waiting for the app to find a car, the message that there are no cars available at the moment makes me swear under my breath.

- You should exchange this car for a newer one -I press the call button and, before I can stop myself, I press on his name.

- Hi, Princess. Have you arrived yet? - he asks with that low, hoarse tone of his voice that makes me melt a little inside every time he talks to me. No, don"t look at me like that. This is purely desire. Nothing more.

- Hi... actually, no. My car doesn"t want to work. Zach has a characteristic that attracts me too much in a man. The proactivity. I don"t have to ask for anything. A ride, chocolate, kiss. Whatever I need, he solves it. A leader in every aspect of his life.

- I"ll get you in fifteen minutes. I"m leaving the house now.

A panicked feeling wraps around my neck, like claws pressing, making my breath gasp.

- But... will people not understand? I ask, worried. What was it you were thinking when you decided to call him, I scold myself. The last thing I want is for people to think we"re together, even though we are. God, what a mess!

What was it you were thinking when you decided to call him, God, what a mess!I hear a dull sigh on the other end of the line. I stiffen my body, prepared to listen to his protests that I don"t want to assume we"re together, but he responds with an expressionless tone – which makes me arch my eyebrow in surprise.

- Don"t worry, Princess. Just tell the truth: your car dropped you off and I gave you a ride. No big deal.

I nod, even though he can"t see me on the other end of the line.

- It"s okay... I"m waiting for you.

***

Zach stops the car in a parking spot just as Ben maneuvers the car to park as well. Seeing the movement of the cars, Danny opens the door and approaches the entrance, hugging Julie.

Seeing me getting out of Zach"s car, he frowns at me in confusion.

- Hi, little sister. I didn"t know you were coming with Zach... - he comments, as I approach Julie. Zach slams the door and locks the car with the remote and says before I have time to open my mouth.

- That old wreck she calls her car broke down. I gave her a ride.

I shoot him with my eyes and my brother nods, agreeing that my car is past its time to be retired. But before Daniel says anything, I get closer to Julie, who smiles at me.

- Let me run my hand over my nephew - I say, stroking her belly, without even saying “Hi”.

- Johanna, did you know that Julie is there, carrying that belly? Danny asks, pretending to be mad at me.

- I know, yes, but the baby takes priority over the two of you - I reply, still cuddling Julie"s belly, who looks proud to be carrying the family spotlight. If I were anyone else, I would never invade her personal space to "pet a baby". But Julie is like my sister, and I know she is happy with all our attention.

When I am satisfied, I hug Julie and we are wrapped in the strong arms of George, who was right behind me.

We went inside, talking and laughing. Daniel has barely closed the door when the doorbell rings. He opens it and I am surprised by the presence of Alan – the hot guitarist of The Band – and Jude, his younger brother.

- Oops! I"m glad you guys came. Get in! - Danny greets them and I smile, happy that Alan accepted the invitation to spend Christmas with us.

He and my brother started off on the wrong foot, but they finally understood each other. Daniel understood that there is a friendship only a musical partnership between him and Julie, in addition to a friendship. The two men had a serious conversation in the week of their engagement, in which Alan proposed a truce to Danny, who accepted it, putting their mutual dislike aside.

I smile at how much my brother has matured. It is beautiful to see the changes he has been making in his life, rethinking his attitudes and assuming his feelings. By reuniting with Julie, he managed to overcome jealousy, understanding that for his woman to be happy, he needs to give her freedom, support her dreams and allow her to thrive, without trying to create obstacles or deprive her of the things she wants to achieve.

Freeing yourself from structural machismo is a difficult step, but possible. Daniel is proof that change is possible.

I remember our last conversation, when he spoke:

- I had a lot of insecurity when it came to my feelings for Ju. But the relationship we"re building is so deep and reciprocal, it doesn"t make sense the jealousy I had of Alan – the arrogant ex.

That"s when I commented that Alan and his brother would spend Christmas alone and Daniel decided to invite them to celebrate with us.

The tattooed musician enters the room, closely followed by the shy boy. The two go to Zach, who is talking to my father. I avert my gaze to Julie, who smiles proudly at the groom for his civilized behavior.

Hello, Sir. Polite; good-bye, Sir. Jealous Ogre.

After we all helped my mom set up the dining table, serve drinks and snacks, we settled in to watch the Lakers game in the comfortable TV room that Daniel made sure to set up in his house.

The living room is filled with soft leather armchairs and has a huge TV, which looks more like a movie screen. At the back of the room, there is a pool table and another for playing poker. It"s the playground for grown-up kids, as Julie says. And I have to agree.

I look around the room, seeing my excited dad, next to Zach and Alan, talking before the match started. But Daniel is strangely quiet, staring into a corner of the room, looking distracted.

I approach him and wrap my arm around his shoulders.

- Hi, little brother. Is everything okay? - I ask. We"ve always been very close, very connected. The last thing I want is for him to be sad about something.

He shakes his head, as if awakening from a long daydream, and smiles at me.

- It"s okay. Yes, Jo. I was just looking around the room and realized that in the very near future, me and the Mini-Me we will be enjoying this room together, with our toys. - He breaks into a radiant smile and rubs his hands in each other. - I can hardly wait for that to happen.

Mini-Me- Mini-Me? What is a Mini-Me? - I ask, confused. What is he talking about, my God?

Mini-Me?Mini-Me What is he talking about, my God?- That"s what I call the baby, - he explains, and I see Zach approach with a knowing smile, as if he had already heard that explanation a few times before. - I am absolutely sure that he will be a boy, so I call him Mini-Me. A miniature of me, you know?

Mini-MeZach laughs and I frown at his explanation.

- But Danny - I ask, worried - what if it"s a girl? - This kind of expectation seems dangerous to me.

- I doubt that fate would play with me in this way, giving me a female daughter to raise in this world full of boors, scoundrels and womanizers, as I was. - I"m glad he recognizes, I think, rolling my eyes. - Noooo, ladies and gentlemen! - he explains, making fun of us and the rest of the group who came to listen to him. - Destination it is not a vindictive female in PMS, so much so that it is called "the" destiny, in the male. He, the destiny, is a nice guy who doesn"t screw first-time parents, right? - Zach and I laughed at his completely crazy explanation.

I"m glad he recognizes- I"ll apologize for the sexist comment just because I"ll laugh a lot when “destiny” - I speak, making quotes with my hands -, this clueless alpha male and with his own needs, will s**t you out.

Daniel shakes his hand, dismissing my words, and I shake my head. Let"s see who will have the last laugh in this story.