“You made it!” she smiled and hugged his waist tight. Her nostril flared a bit, and she opened her eyes wide.

        “Why do you smell like a wet dog, Dad?”

        “It’s been a bit of a day mi cielo.” 

        Then Nina ushered her dad down and whispered in his ear.

        “I told a lie to that mean girl, Preston. I said that we had a special dance planned. But I don’t know what to do now!” He chuckled a bit and replied,

        “How about we do that dance we do for abuela after Christmas dinner every year?” Nina nodded her head in agreement. He took her hand and led her to the center of the dance floor. Slowly but surely, they became perfectly in sync. And before they knew it, most of the gym was watching their dance. Even Preston was impressed and that was saying something. With the last step of their routine, the gym erupted with applause. Nina smiled up at her father and jumped up into his arms.

        “Thank you for making it Dad,” she said with a blinding smile.

        “Thank you for still having a little bit of hope in me. I’m going to try harder to make more of these.” Nina smiled and hugged him tighter.