Alondra Cisneros, a Crenshaw cheerleader, soccer player, and close friend of Spencer James, catches the eye of a Beverly High Eagle.
published: jun. 17, 2020
completed:
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With Armando now making an effort to make up for all the years he missed out on, and Alondra no longer completely ignoring him, it was all a big adjustment. Ruben and Lily clearly didn't care as they had accepted Alondra into the family once they met her, Madison was obviously going through it, and Rachel was adjusting to how the two were around each other more.
Since it was the weekend and Alondra made it onto the varsity soccer team, Armando thought it was a perfect time to celebrate. Madison also made the team, but she was grounded, and still mad about it, so she wanted nothing to do with Armando at the moment. That being said, Armando had planned a celebratory father-daughter day with Alondra alone. "Why are we here?"
"Come on, you love this place!"
Alondra looked up at the combined roller skating rink and ice cream parlor in Crenshaw. "When I was three. I haven't been here since then."
"Really? I thought you loved this place?" Armando asked, leading the way into the building and holding the door open for Alondra to walk through.
"I did, because it was some thing we did together, as a family." Alondra commented. Before Armando had abandoned the family, he and Teresa used to take their three kids and spend the day together there. Alondra wasn't old enough to skate yet, so she and Armando usually ate ice cream while Teresa skated with Marcos and Antonio. Once he left, it went from being their favorite place to being the one place in Crenshaw that they refused to go back to.
The place filled with good memories turned to nothing but disappointment and abandonment. Just walking through the doors brought back negative feelings. "Look, they still have your picture up." Armando walked to a wall and pointed out a picture that looked like it came from a disposable camera. She didn't remember it, but the Cisneros family ended up becoming regulars to the place, and to honor it, the owners had pictures taken of them. On that specific day, Alondra was eating a banana split and had gotten it all over her face, and everyone thought it was a good picture to commemorate and put on the wall for some reason. "Hey, you're old enough now. You can learn how to skate like your brothers."
Alondra continued to look around the place as they waited in line, faintly remembering the times she spent there. "I don't know if being here is a good idea."
"Just— try for 30 minutes, please. If you still don't like it, we can leave and go back to Beverly." Armando explained, and because Alondra couldn't exactly get in the car and drive away, she agreed. "What size shoe do you wear?"
× × ×
On the other side of the FaceTime call, Serenity and Shawn listened as Alondra ranted about everything happening, a crown from the ice cream parlor still resting on her head. "That's weird, right?"
"I mean, growing up you always said you wanted your your dad back." Serenity commented. "Did you have fun roller skating though?"
"Yeah, I mean, I learned how to skate but I kept falling on my ass. Plus since I didn't know how to do it, I kept holding onto him, but it's still weird. Like I hate him for leaving us and making us grow up without a father, but he keeps spending time with me. My brain is jumbled and I don't know what to think." Alondra explained. "Look, they gave me this crown because they recognized me."
Shawn, who was sitting on a couch with Maya in his lap, adjusted the phone so he could say something before Serenity could cut him off. "Alo, I don't think anyone ever gets over a parent walking out on them. What matters is if his efforts A strong enough for you to forgive what he did. You don't have to forget it, but if you can forgive it and move on, you'll be good."
Both of the girls went quiet, because in all of their years of knowing Shawn, never has he said somethings that insightful. "Did Louisiana turn you into a poet? They making you read Shakespeare something?" Serenity joked.
"Nah, I am just able to actually go to school now. Without all the gang stuff, I can take care of Maya, go to school, and work." Shawn shrugged as if it was nothing, but considering the fact that while he was living in Crenshaw, he barely had time for Maya or school, it was a big improvement.
"So nobody is depressed and is living their best life? That is what I'm hearing." Serenity asked, her eyes moving across her screen To the point where only her eyes and forehead were in frame. "Best friends can't suffer."
"I don't know, I'm kind of having withdraws from the street food in Crenshaw. I have yet to find a single mangonada over here." Alondra pouted slightly and crossed her arms as she leaned back against her pillows and headboard.
The group finally had a moment of silence, breathing after all of the talking they did, when Serenity gasped. "I'm getting a car soon, I can come pick you up and we can go get some."
"How do you both have a car and I don't?"
"I started working at Dairy Queen, and my parents said they would pay half of it as long as I don't fail any classes. Besides, if I fail any classes then I'm off of the cheer team, so I'm getting that car." Serenity explained, now sitting up in her bed just to show how passionate she was. "Don't worry, best friend. I'll come kidnap you and we can go buy out all of the food stands together."
"Shawn, do you think you'll ever come to visit? I miss stealing your fries so I wouldn't have to pay for my own."
"If Tyrone ever gets handled, yeah I'll come. I can't go back if he's trying to kill me." Alondra sighed and huffed with another pout on her face, and Maya, who was switching between the FaceTime call and her cartoons, noticed Alondra and copied her before giggling. "I think Maya misses Crenshaw too."
The two girls shook their heads, both thinking the same thing, but Serenity was the one to say it out loud. "No, she just misses us. Maya, we'll come kidnap you too." Maya, not understanding a single thing that came out of her mouth, nodded her head with a smile because she felt included in the conversation.
no one come at me for them somewhat making up bc alo has hated him since ch 15 🙄🤚🏽 living in his house while he pays for everything she buys, she can't hate him forever pero that resentment for abandoning them will always be there
this is the 2nd time I have updated today, I need to go do homework before I fall behind😭🤌🏽 i'll be back tomorrow brb 🏃🏽♀️
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