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[color=darkgray][indent][indent]As the youngest son, grandson, nephew and cousin of the Fernandez family, Santiago was put on a pedestal from the moment of his birth. He was the pride and joy of the family with his charm, affection and vivacious nature. They celebrated his successes, bragged about his athletic accomplishments and supported him unconditionally. So when everyone’s favorite golden boy had shown up to the family’s Christmas Eve party with a very American, very visibly pregnant girlfriend, everyone had been nothing short of shocked. But once the initial surprise had blown over, the Fernandez family had quickly embraced April as one of their own. Santiago had done his best to properly introduce his girlfriend to the family, but it had been Gabriela who’d taken the girl’s hand and paraded April around the opulent home, gushing to everyone about her and her excitement about becoming a grandmother for the first time. It was during one of the moments in which April was caught up in conversation with his cousins that Santiago had excused himself from the party, and entered the house of the late Rosalba Fernandez.

An overwhelming wave of grief and nostalgia suddenly came over him, tears suddenly burning at his eyes. It was the first time he had set foot on the property after her passing, and he was surprised to see that everything looked exactly the way she had left it. A part of him secretly hoped that the elderly woman would suddenly round the corner with her welcoming smile, embrace him in her arms and wrap him in one of her warm, loving hugs-- but he knew deep down that it was nothing but an empty dream.

His brand footwear made soft clicking sounds against the tile floor as Santiago took his time examining every single inch of the house he’d grown up in, taking in all the sights and reliving many memories of his upbringing  Once in the hallway, his pace came to a complete stop, eyes glued to the framed photographs of the members of the Fernandez family hanging from the walls: childhood photos, weddings, class pictures, graduations… And right at the bottom of the hall, adorned by a large golden frame, was a photo of the family matron with her beloved youngest grandson.

To say April was a bit overwhelmed by all the new people was a massive understatement. Santiago had told her about his rather large family in the past, but actually seeing the vast majority of them in one place was completely different. The brief moment of their shock when they saw April--very much not from Puerto Rico and very obviously pregnant--was a bit jarring at first, but after some casual conversation they seemed to warm up to her quite quickly. But of course, no one warmed up to her as much as Santiago’s dear mother. Initially, the amount of love and kindness from this woman was almost uncomfortable, but given that April had barely had a mother figure in her life until now, she grew to love it. Gabriela was the mother she’d dreamed of, but never had.

Conversations about April’s childhood, her father and her hobbies dominated the conversations that took place between herself, Gabriela and a few of Santiago’s male cousins. April’s smile never left her face as she regaled them with obviously over exaggerated stories of her time at the race track and on the road, stories of close calls with the cops, and most importantly the stories where she beat her dear Santiago around the track. 

It wasn’t until she got dragged away into conversation with the women in Santi’s family that she got to talking about the baby and how the pregnancy had been. It didn’t take long for [i]the question[/i] to come up. [b][i]“Is it a boy or a girl?”[/i][/b] they all asked. April took a deep breath and glanced around for Santiago. He would probably want to be here so that they could announce it together. [color=ec008c]“Let me get back to you on that, Santi would want to be here for it.”[/color] And with that, she gave them her gentle warm smile and paced off to look for her now absent partner, leaving the warm evening air outside and heading into the house.

After a few moments pacing around the unfamiliar house, April caught a glance of her lover through the crack of an open door. The flats on her feet made little noise as she quietly and slowly walked down the hall towards him, her head cocked slightly as she tried to see what he was looking at. Once she was no more than a pace away, the brunette spoke quietly to him [color=ec008c]“I know you miss her more than anything. Are you alright?”[/color] April wrapped her arms around his waist from behind him, tucking her head into his muscular back. 

The feeling of his girlfriend’s slender arms around him instantly provided Santiago with a sense of comfort. He basked in the warmth she provided for a few seconds before turning around to face her. [color=D11717]“I’m fine,”[/color] he said softly, wrapping his own muscled arms around her and kissing the top of her head. Hugging her was starting to be a feat these days. [color=D11717]“What about you? You holding up okay? My huge family hasn’t scared you off yet, hasn’t it?”[/color] he joked, flashing her one of his playful grins.

April grinned as they embraced, shaking her head as much as she could manage with it against Santi’s chest. [color=ec008c]“Your family is amazing Santi, they’ve been super supportive. Especially your mother, she’s just amazing.”[/color] She gently broke from Santi’s arms and looked up to him before kissing him gently on the lips. 

[color=D11717]"I'm starting to think my mom loves you more than me, and I'm the favorite,"[/color] he chuckled softly, playfully squeezing her shoulders.

[color=ec008c]“I’m serious mi amor, I know how much she meant to you. I’m always here for you.”[/color] April smiled to him before glancing around. [i]His grandmother certainly had a nice home.[/i] 

[color=D11717]"I know,"[/color] he reassured her, kissing her forehead. Now that the nostalgia was over, he honestly felt okay. [color=D11717]"I'm fine, promise."[/color] He was quiet for a second, but when he noticed her looking around the house his smile returned and he grabbed her hand. [color=D11717]"C'mon. Let me give you a tour."[/color]

April nodded and squeezed Santi’s hand gently before he began to lead her around the beautiful home. It was a very bright and peaceful looking place, with walls colored in gentle shades of brown and cream, and spotless white marble floors that tied the entire look together. It was a place with a partially modern look, but the furniture suggested a more rustic taste with stained wood in almost every room in some manner. It wasn’t décor that April would’ve chosen herself, but she didn’t mind it at all. It was very cozy, but still a sizeable house.

As they walked, she ran her fingers along the now marble walls as they entered the master bathroom. [color=ec008c]“As much as I like my bathroom back home, I could get used to this.”[/color] she grinned, running her finger along the edge of the very modern looking bathtub before turning and walking over to the mirror. The brunette looked at herself briefly, then down to her very pregnant looking abdomen. She let out a relaxed breath before looking at Santiago through the mirror [color=ec008c]“If you had told me back in freshman year that I’d be having a child before I graduated, I would’ve laughed in your face. And now, now I feel like it was meant to happen. It just feels...right, y’know?”[/color].

The young man couldn't help but chuckle and shake his head, staring at their reflection in the mirror. [color=D11717]"It's fucking crazy, Lils,"[/color] he admitted, closing the short distance between them and wrapping his arms around her once more, resting his chin on her shoulder and his hands on her round stomach. [color=D11717]"It's been a rollercoaster, but I'm thankful for it at the same time. If it wasn't for you and this kid, I would still be walking around with no idea of what to do with my life. But now I've got you, we'll have our kid, we have this house…"[/color] he purposely trailed off with a smirk, waiting to see her reaction.

[color=ec008c]“What do you mean we’ll have this house? We’re gonna move to Puerto Rico?”[/color] April turned around almost instantly, looking into Santiago’s eyes inquisitively, trying to see if he was messing with her or not. 

[color=D11717]“Only if you want to…”[/color] he said with a shrug. [color=D11717]“[i]Abuela[/i] left me this house on her will. Whether you want to or not, it’ll always be here. The house is still ours.”[/color]

[color=ec008c]“I mean, it’s gonna have to be after I finish university. I already have a few places lined up where I want to apply, they have the best engineering programs in the area.”[/color] A smile broke out across her face, her warm playful eyes sparkling in the dimmer light of the bathroom. [color=ec008c]“I guess I’ll have to work harder on my Spanish.”[/color] she said with a grin before leaning in and planting a kiss on his lips.

[color=D11717]“[i]Feliz navidad, princesa[/i],”[/color] he responded with a sweet smile, kissing her again before taking her hand once more. [color=D11717]“Now let’s go back to the party. I think it’s about time we give everyone what they’re asking for.”[/color]

April followed Santiago back to the party with a big smile on her face. As they got back outside, all eyes were on them, looking up questioningly at both the young couple and at the confetti cannons Gabriela had handed each person during their absence. She had left them with quite a cliffhanger and evidently they were eager to find out about the baby. April looked to Santi, then back to everyone else as she took in a deep breath. It seemed like there were so many more people when every single one of them was waiting for an answer.

[color=ec008c]“Ladies and gentlemen: if we could have your attention, [i]por favor[/i]. We have a big announcement.”[/color] She smiled to their audience, before looking to Santiago once again and speaking to him in a whisper [color=ec008c]“Are you ready, [i]mi amor[/i]?”[/color]

The young man’s grin was infectious as he nodded and winked at his girlfriend. [color=D11717]“Definitely!”[/color] he answered cheerfully, shooting his brother Steven a thumbs up so he could start filming the happenings before excitedly addressing his family. [color=D11717]“Okay. So. The most asked question that April and I have gotten all night is [i]what are we having[/i]. So instead of us telling you, we’re going to let you find out yourselves…”[/color] he declared, still grinning widely at his family while putting his arm around April’s waist and pulling her closer to him. [color=D11717]“[i]Mami[/i] gave everyone a confetti cannon a few minutes ago. What I want everyone to do is to point their cannons upward, and on the count of three, twist the top and bottom parts of the cannon in opposite directions. Anyone got any questions?”[/color]

After looking over the group and ensuring the group knew what they were doing, April leaned over to whisper to Santiago as everyone began to grab their confetti cannons [color=ec008c]“This was an awesome idea. So much better than regular old announcements.”[/color] She turned back to the rest of the group and squeezed Santi’s hand gently before calling out once again. [color=ec008c]“Is everyone ready?![/color]

As all of the gathered smiling faces nodded, the couple of the night called out in unison, their voices echoing across the yard.

[indent][b][i][color=#EC008C]"[/color][color=#E90183]T[/color] [color=#E50571]H[/color] [color=#E1085F]R[/color] [color=#DD0C4D]E[/color] [color=#D90F3B]E[/color] [color=#D51329]![/color][color=#D31520]"[/color][/i][/b]  

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[b][i][color=#EC008C]"[/color][color=#E8037B]G[/color] [color=#E00959]O[/color] [color=#D81038]![/color][color=#D41327]"[/color][/i][/b][/indent]

And after their united countdown, over thirty separate confetti cannons shot off into the evening air and filled the sky with a mix of pink and silver confetti. The first few moments were silent as the confetti rained down above them in slow motion, a mix of bewilderment and awe on the faces of all. And then smiles, applause and cheering began to fill the air as the many faces of the Fernandez family returned their attention to April and Santiago, rushing over to the expecting parents and showering them with love.

After all was said and done, the young couple posed for a couple of pictures together. And for the first time ever, Santiago decided it was about time he showed off his growing family to the world. With the most genuine of smiles, the young man picked out his favorite photo out of the bunch (a beautiful candid of them mid-laugh with his hands on April’s round stomach) and posted it on all his social media platforms with an accompanying caption.

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