closer.
âThis is my cousin Lewis,â said Tommy.
âHi, Lewis,â she said, waving.
Luisito waved but was unable to say a word.
âGot to go,â said Sherry. âNice to meet you!â
Again, Luisito stared and waved.
âWhat happened to you?â Tommy asked when she had left. âFirst time Iâve seen you speechless. You like her or something?â
Luisito just nodded and stared.
âShe is Sherry Jones,â Tommy said. âShe goes to my school and is on the soccer team. All the boys in my class like her, but they think she is a bit stuck up.â
âStuck to what?â asked Luisito.
âNo, what I meant is that . . . she thinks she is all that,â said Tommy.
âAll what?â Luisito asked.
âShe ignores most of the boys, so they think she isnât very nice,
comprendes
?â said Tommy.
âYes, I get it,â Luisito said. âShe has the most beautiful red hair.â
âHey, speaking about soccer, do you want to try out with me this year?â Tommy said.
âMaybe,â Luisito replied. âHer name is Che-rrrr-y?â
âNo,â Tommy said laughing. âSofter on the shhhh and donât roll your râs.â
Wow, I will have to practice that one
, Luisito thought.
What
ever
happened
to
all
the
Marias
I
used
to
know
, he wondered.
He wrote to Abuela that night and told her he had met the most beautiful girl with ginger hair and sparkling green eyes. He hoped he would hear back from Abuela soon. He knew he had to deliver the message she had whispered in his ear right before they left Cuba.
âTell the Cuban priest at the Our Lady of Charity shrine in Miami this,â she had said,âExodus 32:1â35. Itâsa Bible verse. Memorize it. Also, tell him that his mother awaits him at the Italian Embassy.â
When he had arrived in Maryland, Luisito had written Abuelaâs message down and hidden the piece of paper under his mattress. He was afraid that as time passed he would mix up the numbers or forget something. What could it all possibly mean?
16 DIECISEIS
Summer in the United States is wonderful,
Luisito thought. In Cuba there was always work to be done, but here Luisito and his cousins slept in, spent the day watching summer TV programs, played outside, and watched TV again until late at night.
During the day the adults were at work. Luisito felt so grown up. In Cuba, even when he stayed by himself he always had a neighbor come by to check up on him. Rosie did have two rules: no guests over while the adults were not home, and Sonia was not to drive them anywhere without permission. These were rules that his seventeen-year-old cousin didnât take very well, as the boys could tell by the disco music playing full blast in her bedroom.
âThere she goes again!â Tommy said from the black vinyl reclining chair next to the TV. âTurn it down!â he shouted. âI canât hear
Gilliganâs Island
!â
âDisco music is much better than that TV program,â Sonia yelled as she lowered the music playing on her eight-track stereo. Then she came out to the living room, dancing and pointing alternately down to the ground and up to the sky. âItâs
Saturday
Night
Fever
, baby!â
âGreat, when she lowers the music the program ends,â Tommy said. âI am so bored!â
Luisito couldnât understand how his cousin could be bored with all the games he owned, plus all the great television programs.
âIâm going to call my friends from the neighborhood,â Tommy said.
âDidnât your mother say we couldnât have anyone over?â Luisito said.
âI am not going to let them inside the house. We can play basketball outside,â he said.
âOkay, that sounds good,â Luisito answered. Tommy started calling his friends, and before long they were ringing the doorbell.
âThis is my cousin from Cuba. His name