Dahlia

Moving In and Moving On

In the days leading up to the move, Dahlia found herself justifying her actions. Cortez’s house was maybe 20 minutes from the campus by car. It was an eternity away by  New York City standards. Dahlia had saved money from working when she was in high school and was able to buy herself a car that she kept parked at Cortez’s house anyway because she did not want to pay for a parking pass at her school. She would at the very least be able to use her car everyday. Cortez’s house had a driveway and a fence. It was very secure, which Dahlia appreciated, and the rent was affordable for them. It really was the perfect situation, except she had this uneasy feeling that she couldn’t explain. She was afraid to let herself be happy because she was waiting for the other shoe to drop. Despite her uneasiness she went with it. 

After Dahlia finally moved into their apartment she began to feel a little more comfortable. Studying was certainly easier, though she did have a new distraction. Cortez. Not that he meant to of course, but everytime he got out of the shower, everytime he cooked dinner, everytime he was in her presence she couldn’t help but drool. They were newly engaged after all. But it was a welcome distraction.

Cortez was loving every minute of having Dahlia around. He felt at ease because she was close. He would never have told her but he was always concerned for her when she lived on campus. Of course he knew she was safe but she was too far away. He tried to make sure that everything was perfect for her. She had always had a rough time with everything. From what she had shared with him, her family life was rough. He got a small glimpse of that when he met her mother and she actually flirted with him. Since she had always only had herself to rely on he wanted her to know she could lean on him for whatever she needed.

Life was sweet for Dahlia and she wasn’t used to such smooth sailing. Even though her home life was fantastic now, she missed Tania. She missed late night trips to the Xi-store to get microwaveable noodles and sodas that were awful for her health. She missed everything she needed being super accessible. There were so many more pros to living off campus though, like privacy. One thing that Dahlia did not miss however were her roommates. They were always playing loud music and movies and breaking her concentration. They were rude and obnoxious but thankfully they would no longer be a problem. Dahlia was one of the only seniors that she knew that had been chosen to live on the campus through the school’s lottery system. The issue with that was that she was not able to choose who she lived with and had gotten stuck with some young, spoiled sorority girls who did not exactly appreciate her melanin. In fact, right before Cortez had proposed, one of them complained about Cortez constantly being in their suite, even though Dahlia had a single room. She only shared a bathroom with the girls but they were claiming to feel threatened. In reality, the girl tried to flirt with Cortez and he politely turned her down. The proposal came right on time in order to avoid any issues.

All in all she knew that she made the right decision about her living situation but there was still that nagging feeling that she just could not get rid of. Despite that she had convinced herself that this wasn’t crazy and it was all going to work out. Realistically though, she knew that there were some hurdles that she and Cortez were going to have to face. Aside from Buckey, Dahlia had never met anyone in Cortez’s family. He always skirted around the subject when she asked about his family. She didn’t really know anything about them other than they lived in The Bronx. He was forthcoming with all other information, other than his family life. It was always something that lingered in the back of Dahlia’s mind, but nothing that occupied too many of her thoughts. Being the budding therapist that she was, she had tried to pick Cortez’s brain several times but he always so masterfully redirected her questioning.

One evening after dinner, Cortez hit her with a bombshell that she wasn’t expecting to say the least, and it triggered her emotions in a huge way. It was late March, the hardest part of the semester for Dahlia and Cortez decided to make a nice dinner for Dahlia. Buckey had come over for dinner that night too with his latest random. Some girl named Kayla from school. Dahlia had seen her around the quad before but didn’t know her that well. She ran in a circle that Dahlia was not a part of. She was friendly enough but Dahlia knew that this wasn’t going to last. After dinner, a couple of drinks and polite conversation Kayla left to head back to campus. Buckey sat on the couch next to Dahlia and smiled at her. “So sis,” he said. “What do you think?” “You want the honest answer or the stock answer Buck?” “The honest answer of course.” Buckey chuckled. “I can always count on you for the truth.” “Well,” Dahlia began. “I kind of think she’s not your type.” “I mean, the whole time she was here she barely put her phone down.” Buckey nodded as if acknowledging the truth in that statement. “Really superficial and I think she’s just hanging out with you cause you are cute and she wants to flex on the thots at school.” Dahlia said with a shrug. Cortez smiled. “You did ask for the honest answer bruh.” “And you know my baby is a whole mood.” “She’s not mincing no words.” Buckey smiled. “I know, that’s why I asked her.” “I am over this though.” Buckey said. “I’m cursed.” Buckey sighed a deep sigh and said “all I really want is a young lady that I feel comfortable taking home to mami.” Dahlia chuckled.

Cortez cleared his throat. “Great segue Buck.” “Babe,” he said. “I think that it is time for you to meet my parents.” Dahlia was drinking a bottle of water and spit it out of her mouth when he heard the news. “Excuse me,” she said. “Are you kidding?” “Why now?” Buckey shifted in his seat. “It is time though Dee.” “Have you even told them that you are engaged Cortez?” “Yes babe I have.” “And you didn’t tell me?” “Well, I mean… what did they say?” “Were they pissed?” “Oh my goodness, they are going to hate me.” She started sweating and breathing heavy. Cortez took her hand. “Babe, its cool.” “You don’t have to be anxious.” “I talked to my parents before I even proposed so there will be no surprises.” “It will be fine ok?” “I know it will, I’m so sorry Cortez.” Dahlia said breathlessly. “It‘s just that you know how I get.” Dahlia took a few deep breaths and started to calm herself down. Buckey sat next to Dahlia looking confused. “Sis, you good? Cortez shot him a look which Dahlia saw. “It’s ok babe.” “I don’t mind explaining.” “I get a little nervous when it comes to family functions because I don’t have a lot of experience with family.” “It‘s basically just Linda, my mom, me and my cousin Kalmia.” “Kalmia’s mother is my mom’s sister and I’m sorry to say this, but she’s a huge b***h that doesn’t treat Kal well.” “Like not even a human.” “So, Kal spent a lot of time at my house before I moved up here.” “It‘s been tough while I have been away at college but I try to keep in touch with her and make sure she is doing well.” “Even though Kal and I are the same age I feel like her big sister.” “I’m super protective of her.” Buckey nodded. “It's just that I don’t have many good family experiences.” “So, whenever the talk about meeting family comes up I don’t want to be weird but I don’t like attending family functions.” “I get nervous and have panic attacks.” “I have been able to control them for the most part through breathing and prayer.” “Well babe,” Cortez said. “We are not going until next week because I knew you would need to some time to process the news.” “But don’t worry.” “My dad was a part of the whole process and both of my parents are aware of what is going on.” “I mean, I could wait until your graduation to tell everyone the news but I want everyone to meet my beautiful fiance. Dahlia steadied her breathing. “I mean, I am super excited that you are introducing me to your family but I can’t shake this feeling that I have.” Cortez smiled. “It’ll be great babe. “I know it will.”