Translation of Love - By Alice Montalvo-Tribue Page 0,66

broke through, but I’m so glad that he did. The sound of my phone ringing brings me back to present. I look at the caller ID but it’s an unknown number. When I pick up the phone, the caller on the other end hangs up. It’s strange but not unheard of so I brush it off and enjoy the rest of the barbecue with my family and friends. Before long, it’s time for Victor and Alex to leave. I ride with them back to my house so they can pick up their things. Once their cars are packed, I say a quick goodbye to Alex and then I’m left with Victor.

“I’m gonna miss you,” I say, surprised by my own honesty.

“I’ll miss you too, Love.” He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into a hug.

I rest my head on his chest. “Will I see you next weekend?”

“Of course!” he says, placing a kiss on the top of my head. “You want me to come here, or you wanna come up to my place?”

I blink up at him. “Here. There’s too much drama when I go to you.” I don’t want another run in with his mother. I just can’t deal with a confrontation with her.

“I think you’re right. I’ll be here Friday.” He bends down and kisses me. I fight the urge to tell him how I feel about him, what he means to me. It’s too soon for me to give that piece of my self away. He pulls away from me, gets in his car and drives off, taking a piece of me with him as he goes.

I hated coming into work this morning. I’m grateful for the three day weekend but having Monday off throws me for a loop. I’m sitting at my desk enjoying a cup of coffee when Jacinda pops her head in my office. “Hey, Elle, can I see you in my office, please?”

“Sure,” I say hesitantly. On my walk over to Jacinda’s office, I’m trying to think about what in the world she could possibly want to see me about. I’ve never been called into her office before. I hate my job but my work is exemplary, all of my projects have been completed timely and I haven’t called out sick in over a year. I walk into her office. “What’s up? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine. Can you close the door behind you.” I do as she asks and take a seat across from her. “So, is there anything you want to tell me?” I can hear a hint of excitement in her voice.

I tilt my head and stare at her. “Uh, no. Did someone complain about me?”

“Ughhh, Elle!” she grunts.

I shake my head at her. “Jacinda, you’re scaring me. What?”

“This!” she says turning her computer monitor so that we can both see it. “I can’t believe you didn’t tell me.” On the screen is a picture of Victor and I coming out of his apartment. I stare at the screen in horror. How was this even taken? We were outside for less than ten seconds before we got in the car and drove away.

“Oh my God. Where did you get that?” I say, panic in my voice. I try to breathe through the feeling, knowing that this is the last place I need to have a panic attack. My picture is on the Internet for the whole world to see. I don’t know how I feel about that.

“It’s on a Spanish language gossip site.”

“Oh my God,” I repeat, not knowing what else to say.

“Elle! Oh my God, is right. You and Victor Garza? How did this happen?”

Maybe this isn’t such a terrible thing. It’s not like we ever said we were gonna keep our relationship a secret. “I met him on that day that he was here for the book signing. I happened to be in the store looking for a book and I ran into him. I had no idea who he was at the time.”

“So you guys are together? You’re actually dating him?” she squeals.

I smile at her and nod. “Yes, we’re together. I was at his house this past weekend and the paparazzi must have snapped our picture somehow.”

“This is so exciting! What’s he like?”

She sounds like a crazed fan at the moment and I can’t help but smile. “He’s wonderful. He’s just a good guy, Jacinda. He’s so amazing.”

“Elle, I’m really happy for you. I have to tell you though, this isn’t the only