7. Big Changes (age 11)

Alfredo's kids rarely joined us on our excursions. So, when his 2 sons came with us on a long drive to a small town one day, my sister and I were surprised and annoyed that we had to squeeze into the small back seat of the car with these boys. They were having burping contests and making farting sounds with their hands, armpits, mouths, and any other way they could. Their only form of entertainment on the drive was trying to make my sis and me puke, and they nearly succeeded. I think that what saved us was that 100 degree weather and no air conditioning meant that all windows has to be rolled down, giving us fresh air continually.

We made it to a quaint little town that had a gorgeous water fountain at the center of a city park. Mom and Alfredo left us kids to play at the park while they went into a building. As we played at the park, I started to see another side to the boys and started crushing on Ricardo, who was just a few months younger than I. By the time Mom and Alfredo came back out, I was so fixated on Ricardo that I hardly noticed that our parents were acting funny.

On the long drive home, I sat by Ricardo and we eventually ended up holding hands. That night we played hide-and-seek with the neighbors in my huge back yard, and as Ricardo and I hid together in the dark, we kissed. We were 11 years old and hadn't really thought through the fact that our parents were dating. Or maybe we just didn't take them seriously because they'd broken up so many times. All we knew was that we were in love.

So, when we were told the next week that my mother was taking my sis and me back to the U.S., we were devastated. My mom explained that it was becoming too dangerous there, especially for Americans. There had been bombings, and just a week or two after we left, our night watchman was killed in our neighborhood.

So, just a couple of weeks after our first kiss, Ricardo and I said goodbye to each other at the airport, and my Mom and sis and I boarded our plane. I was trying hard not to cry when my mother said, "I guess I can tell you my secret now!" She looked like she would simply bust if she didn't. She said, "Do you remember that little trip we went on a couple of weeks ago with Alfredo and the boys?" We nodded, anxious to find out what she was so excited about. "When we were in that building while you waited for us, we got married!" My stomach did a flip and my heart skipped a beat as I realized that I had kissed my STEP BROTHER!