A story set in the fictional town of Ardenthill.
Midday came with the apartment door banging open. Sarita looked up blearily from the couch and realized that Astra must have a key to her apartment. She couldn’t remember if she’d given Astra a key or not, but it didn’t matter. Astra having her own key meant that Sarita didn’t have to get up off …
For the first time in her life, Camila skipped class when she wasn’t sick. Though, she wasn’t so sure she wasn’t sick. She didn’t know if heart-sick counted as an excuse, but she had thrown up after lunch. It was afternoon already, and not a peep from Belén. Camila had checked her text conversation with …
The enormity of impending change on Sarita’s life left her listless on the floor until her phone rang. It was Astra, of course, with her unstoppable torrent of energy and plans. Sarita’s Angel bombarded her with excited ideas until Sarita couldn’t remember one of them. Not that it mattered if Sarita knew what the plans …
“Mommy, I have to tell her.” Camila looked up at Betty from the floor of her Mommy’s room. Betty hadn’t put her there, Camila had chosen the floor on her own. It felt right to acknowledge that she was Betty’s Little, when she was in her Mommy’s room. They didn’t need to be actively playing …
“I should go.” Nohemi was walking away before Sarita had processed her words. “Hemi, wait!” Pauline rushed to the table. By the time she’d set down the ice cream bowls and turned around, Nohemi was out of anything but shouting distance. “Are you really not going to give me a hug, Princess?” Astra held her …
Going directly to a babysitting job from school and volleyball practice was a challenge for Monserrat. For one thing, it meant carting around three outfits, at the minimum. After changing out of her athleisure outfit for classes, into her skimpy volleyball uniform, then into a pantsuit for babysitting, she felt like a variety show girl. …
It was fun for Sarita to be the one the bouncer recognized at the Green Fairy, even if it was by association with Astra. The night had wild energy that propelled Sarita to the coat check and out of her cover-up clothes in record time. Magic was in the air, far more than she’d felt …
The leaf-swirling gusts of fall wind carried a dreadful chill that heralded midterms and holidays. Camila hugged her coat more tightly around her, laughing as Amanda danced through the airborne leaves. Her lab partner had been finding ways to stay moving and warm on the whole walk. Amanda’s midriff baring lavender coat was the culprit, …
The diaper decorating project loomed over Sarita, casting a darker shadow of guilt every day. In the end, she got it finished the way she always did, with panicked effort at the last minute. A light work week helped Sarita survive her late night decorating sessions. Dropping hours from her usual mid-thirties to mid-twenties was …
“Navi, I kept my pullup dry!” Monserrat gaped at Jenna, wondering for a moment if she’d heard one of her fantasies instead of what her fiancé actually said. A spring breeze blew across them, perfumed by rain-damp earth and wildflowers. Shifting mentally to Navi, Monserrat’s face broke into a goofy grin. Public or not, she …