He approached Kina’s father, who looked really busy preparing everything that had to be
prepared for a good meal, for two or three people.
He was smashing the raw beef, combined with more spices and more minced vegetables, and
called him out with a simple good morning and excused his arrival.
“Good morning, sir, I’m Kenny, we just talked on the phone”
“Kenny! Nice to meet you, again”
He chuckled, but a friendly chuckle, where Kenny could sense a feeling of a really kind person,
right off the start.
“I heard that you had an orange company, right?”
“Oooh…. (chuckles) it’s not a company… alright, it’s just a simple family “tradition”
“I wanted to ask you, sir, if are you still taking volunt—”
They heard a thud from inside the house
“You must have met my daughter earlier, Kina”
Said Kina’s father, referring to the thud in her room, pointing at the room, with a finger-pointing
gesture.
“I sure did, I sure did…”
Continued Kenny, a little bit awkward, not sure if he should ask about the loud sounds coming
from her room, now and the sound from the first time he came to their home, but decided to just
let the conversation flow.
“Wait! I’ve got an idea, Kenny, give me one second to tell her to come down, she loves meeting
new people, and you sure seem like a good match”
*Is her father really trying to get me with his daughter?*
Monologued Kenny, smiling her father’s question off, but feeling a little bit awkward inside.
“Oh no, you don’t have to, sir, I can see that you are REALLY preoccupied here, I don’t mean
to–”
Taking his attention away for a quick second, Kenny saw Kina’s father already in the door,
already having the door opened halfway, preparing to go and call her daughter down
"HOW IS HE SO FAST?! Think Kenny… think… think”
And he found a way to stale the time.
He sniffed the air around the grill, so loud, making sure that her father could hear the action.
“With what are you burning the grill, cherry wood?”
Kina’s father stopped for a moment and slowly turned his back around, with an amazed look in
his eyes
“Oh, what was that? You’ve got a good sense of smell, Kenny”
With his hand on the door’s knob, he closed the door behind of the home, not entering, and
approached Kenny
“For the meat, what did you put, my father used salt, pepper, very sliced bits of garlic and very
small pieces of beef jerky, for that intense crunch”
“You see… (heads up to the glass table and shows the ingredients, each of them, constantly
looking at him and at the ingredients, changing back and forth) I use just like your father,pepper, salt, diced garlic, BUT, I also use pepper flakes and dried parsley”
They continued the conversation about food, burgers, spices, different taste in combination of
spices, for about fifteen more minutes, and that was when Kenny asked the question he was
assigned to ask
“Mr.Kina’s father…–”
“Call me, Jorge; father is too formal”
He chuckled, which was a good sign, because Jorge was getting comfortable around Kenny,
which was good because he had higher changes to be accepted in their traditional family
business.
“Jorge, I wanted to ask if I could become a volunteer, at your family’s business”
“You must have heard about Kina from Stephan, is that right?”
Asked Jorge, as his face turned into a melancholy state, sitting himself down on a chair, giving
out a silent sight, then supporting his face on his palms, where a thin golden ring can be seen
on his ring finger.
“N-no, I-It’s not that, sir, I just wanted to offer my help–”
But he was promptly stopped by Jorge
“You see, Kenny, I’m really glad you’re here… (sights and chuckles), but if you will be a part of
our family business, then I have to tell you the truth”
“I don’t see no problem in that, sir”
Continued Kenny
Kenny listened carefully, while placing himself on the second chair, right to Jorge’s side.
“Her mother died at birth, my wife… and she wasn’t there when Kina needed, and I was gone
for days and even weeks when she was younger. Somehow I became like a stranger for her, but
luckily her sister was there.
(Chuckles and looks down, playing with a metallic grill tool) She
went into bad things while her sister was gone too, she got into bad company with other girls her
age, other boys older than her, unluckily, but now… now things are better than they used to be.
She needs help, Kenny, she is suicidal, and no therapy session can fix what she has became.
But now it’s worse than ever… I can’t help her, I just can’t… I don’t have the strength, I tried…
so many times.
He switches his look to Kenny, with a sorrowful look on his face.
Then a realization came to Kenny’s mind, which he was sure to ask
“I just had to go…”
Kenny lowered his head and narrowed his eyes in a serious manner, talking with a slow voice.
“Jorge, did you leave because you had to carry the “tra-di-tion”, or because you tried enough?”
Jorge raised himself from the seat in a slow motion and went back to preparing the grill, now
with his back towards Kenny
“Will you think about me like a bad person?”
Asked Jorge, sniffing his nose
“Do you regret it?”
Continued Kenny, sitting up from the chair, slowly approaching Jorge
“Yes”
Replied Jorge, with grief inside his voice, sounding like his eyes were about to flow down with
rivers of salty water.
“Then it’s okay, Jorge, I don’t judge”
Smiled Kenny, placing his palm on Jorge’s left shoulder.
“Forgive me, Kenny, it’s hard to talk about it. And it’s even harder when you’re all alone”
Asked Jorge, forcing himself to not let out tears coming from his mirror sight.
He gave out a slight melancholic chuckle, and turned half of his face towards Kenny, where he
could see the lower of his eyelids and the pain inside his eyes.
“I don’t think you want to help someone like me, do you?”
“People make mistakes, mr.Jorge, and this is why people aren’t perfect. I’m not perfect,
mr.Jorge”
Hearing these sentences from Kenny, his eyes highered in hope and awe.
Jorge slowly turned his face back towards the grill, sniffing his nose and exhaling through his
mouth, because his nose was runny.
Jorge started placing the raw beef patties on the grill; Both of them heard the sprinkles of water
evaporating on the burning hot metal plate of the grill.
“Tomorrow at eight in the morning, in front of the Casta, is that okay with you?”
“Yes, it’s okay”
*Why these were happening, Kina was looking out the window, targeting Kenny, somehow
hiding herself behind the curtain, making sure that she couldn’t be seen by him*
Kenny prepared to leave, but when he was about to take the corner of Jorge’s home, having a
few more steps towards the gate, Jorge’s words stopped him for a few seconds, making him
turn around.
“Thank you, son”
Kenny gave out a slight smirk and headed out of the gate, closing the gate’s door behind him.
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