I nodded.
“Para una huésped.”
“Right, whatever,” he said, smiling, and stepped back for me to enter.
It wasn’t quite as big as Sophia’s bedroom, but it was very big, and it had a king-size bed with a beautiful dark cherry-wood headboard and four posts. The comforter was burgundy, and there were pillows as big as the ones Sophia had. At the moment, nothing looked more inviting to me than this bed.
In such a bed, there can be only good dreams, I thought, recalling something my grandmother once told me.
Edward showed me the bathroom. There was a brand-new toothbrush and other toiletries for guests in the cabinet. The bathroom was tiled and had a very big tub and shower stall. I reminded myself that this was the room I had dreamed would be mine. I had followed a twisted, painful path to get to it, but here I was. But how long would I be here? As I looked around at the comfort and luxury, I thought about my aunt finding me here and exploding into another rage. Edward saw the concern in my face.
“Don’t worry,” he said. “It’s all okay. I’ll make sure,” he said, pointing to himself. “You sueño.” Then he thought for a moment and raised his hand. “Wait. I’ll be back,” he said, and hurried out of the room.
I didn’t move. Less than a minute later, he returned and handed me a pair of what I was sure were his pajamas.
“Okay?” he asked.
“Yes, gracias.”
He started away again. I stood there, still timid and afraid, expecting to see my aunt appear at any moment and begin yelling at us both. Surely, Señor Baker had called her by now, I told myself.
“Sueño, sueño,” Edward said standing in the doorway. “Buenas noches.”
“Buenas noches. Gracias,” I called to him as he started to close the door.
He smiled at me and closed the door. I remained standing there, still expecting something terrible to happen. Surely, this was too good to be true. I had gone from a nightmare to a beautiful dream. The silence convinced me I was all right for now. I went into the bathroom, cleaned myself as best I could with my painful scrapes, and then got undressed and put on his pajamas. They were too big, of course. When I looked in the full-length mirror, I had to laugh at the sight of myself.
I got into the big bed. The comforter, the mattress, and the fluffy big pillows all felt so wonderful. This had to be what it would be like if I could sleep on a cloud, I thought. However, despite all Edward had said and done for me, I still felt quite anxious and listened hard for any sound of footsteps or shouting, but the house remained quiet.
My head was spinning because of all that had happened so quickly. I had never been on a real roller coaster, but I couldn’t imagine it being any more dramatic and frightening than the roller coaster of emotions I had just ridden.
I turned off the lights with the switch beside me and in moments sensed myself sinking into sleep. It felt as if I were sinking deeper and deeper into the large, soft mattress, but I didn’t care if I disappeared. I never welcomed sleep as much as I did at this moment, and disappearing didn’t seem all that terrible to me at the moment.
In the morning, I woke to the sound of loud arguing in the hallway. Although I didn’t understand what they were saying, I clearly heard my aunt and Edward. Edward said something that caused my aunt to be quiet. Then I heard Sophia. Edward was shouting at her as well.
Moments later, there was a knock on the door. I was so frightened I almost couldn’t find my voice, but I managed, “Sí?” and then quickly said, “Yes?”
Edward stepped into the room. He was dressed for school. I glanced at the clock and saw how late I had slept.
“Todo bien,” he said. “You stay aquí,” he added gesturing at the bedroom. “Aquí. Comprende?”
“Yes. I am here.”
“Exactly,” he said, smiling. “Now you are here. You will go to school. School, comprende?”
“Escuela.”
“Right, escuela. You will go. Mi madre will…how do you say it…make it happen…do it…”
I nodded.
“I’ve got to go. Don’t worry,” he said. “Todo bien. Damn, I have to learn more Spanish quickly. You teach me español every day.”
“Okay,” I said, smiling. “And you teach me English, yes?”
“Yes, but you’ll learn it quickly in the classroom. Gracias. Hasta la vista,” he said, and backed out, closing the door.
It was quiet again, but then I suddenly heard a lot of talking and coming and going just outside the bedroom door. Shortly afterward, it was opened again, and Señora Rosario came marching in, her arms full of clothing. She looked upset and just dropped the clothes on the bed.