Finders Keepers

You and Miguel have been texting what feels like nonstop. You feel like a teenager again, grinning at the messages coming in on your phone. What was supposed to be the two of you deciding where to eat had turned into small chats about just about anything.

Miguel: Are you doing any work down there?

You: Well I’m trying, but someone keeps texting me…

Miguel: Oh yeah, anyone I know?

You: Just some handsome guy I met...

Miguel: You trying to make me jealous?

You: Now, why would I do that?

You were much bolder over text. Flirtier. So was Miguel, you noticed. You jumped, looking away from your phone when a package was slammed down onto your desk.

“Oh, I’m sorry.” You looked up at a carrier who seemed like he had been standing there for a while. He handed you a clipboard and you quickly signed off for the package before apologizing again.

Once he was gone you looked down at the small box. It was addressed to Miguel. Again, you couldn’t help it when a small smile spread across your face. There was a small slot in one of the far walls that would manually send the package up to Miguels mail slot in his office. But… you could always just take it up yourself. You glanced around at the empty first floor and shrugged. Other than the carrier that had just come in you hadn’t dealt with anyone else all day. Surely you could sneak off and just directly deliver Miguel his package really quick.

You grinned to yourself as you made your way to the elevators, the package clenched tightly to your chest. You pressed the button for Miguel’s floor and once you arrived you made your way down the confusing hallway to Miguels office. After passing a few offices that all looked the same over and over you stopped. Though you’d gotten a pretty detailed tour of the building, you’d soon realized you didn’t really know which way you were supposed to go. Luckily you stumbled upon a directory, showing names and office numbers. You scanned through, looking for Miguel’s name when you were interrupted.

“Excuse me.”

You jumped and turned to find Miranda and another meek looking woman standing behind her.

“Oh, Miranda.” You tried to give her a grin.

“Did you send off the testing samples I shuttled down to you this morning?”

“Samples?” You didn’t remember anything coming down from her office this morning. But then again you had been glued to your phone the whole time.

“I sent them down and they need to be at the next facility by tomorrow.”

“Oh, I-“

“Did you send them off or not?” She raised her voice and even the quiet woman that stood with her jumped.

“I.. I was unaware that you sent something down. There must’ve been an issue with the notification system.”

“It has never had any issues before.” She leered.

“I can make sure it’s still working. “

You turned at the sound of his voice. Miguel approached the three of you with a warm smile and Mirandas face fell.

“Oh, I’m sure it is Miguel. T-this really isn’t necessary-“

“It’s no issue. Better to be sure the mail system is working properly.”

Miguel made the short walk to Mirandas lab and opened the slot for her outgoing packages.

“Oh.” He reached inside and pulled out a container. “Looks like it didn’t go down.”

“W-well, here must be some issue with the mail shuttle itself.” She stammered.

Miguel tilted his head sideways at her before turning back to face the mail slot. He placed her package inside and then promptly pressed the button. The mail quickly went down the slot and to the first floor with no issue.

Miguel turned back to the three of you slowly, a confused expression on his face.

Miranda was quick to speak up. “Looks like you have the magic touch.” She grinned at him.

“Maybe so.” He said simply.

You smiled at him brightly from behind the other two women.

“Sorry about that Miguel.” The other woman finally spoke.

“It’s alright, Kathy.” He stepped past the two of them towards you and started to steer you away.

“Don’t worry I’ll personally make sure your package arrives on time Miranda.” You called to her as you followed Miguel.

Miguel chuckled and led you into his office. You paused, looking around the room. There wasn’t much there. A small frame on his desk with a photo of Miguel with Gabbi sitting on his shoulders.

“That for me?” He pointed at the package in your arms.

“Oh! Yes.”

Right. You had forgotten the whole reason you’d come up here. You handed it off to him and he inspected it for only a moment before dismissively setting it down on his desk.

“Thanks for coming to my rescue, by the way.”  You huffed a laugh. “I’m starting to think Miranda hates me.”

“Well, she’s harmless I swear.” 

“Maybe to you.” You mumbled under your breath.

He sat on top of his desk, making him almost eye level with you. “I’ll admit I was actually on my way down to see you when I saw the three of you.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yeah, I got some news I wanted to share with you.”

You nodded. “Alright..”

“Gabbi has a sleepover with her soccer team Friday night.” He started.

“Yes?”

“And she has soccer practice Saturday morning.”

You tried to stop your smile from growing. “Okay..”

He stood and crossed the room until he was standing directly in front of you. “And, that’s the day I’d like to take you out. It wouldn’t be the nice dinner date that I’d like to take you out on but, I know a great breakfast spot.”

“I was supposed to taking you out.” You scoffed.

He grinned and leaned back just slightly on his desk. “Well, you were taking too long.”

You rolled your eyes. “Fine. But I’m paying.”

Now he rolled his eyes. “Sure.”

“I’m serious, Miguel.” You playfully thumped him on the chest. “You’ve done enough for me already. I’m taking you out.”

The way he was looking directly into your eyes made your heart leap in your chest, but you tried your best not to show it.

“Yes ma’am.” He simply said. Miguel glanced at your lips just once, a quick fleeting glance, but you noticed it. It made you want to lean into him, to just quickly close the distance between the two of you….

You blinked and came back to your senses.

At least go on the date first Y/N… You thought to yourself.

He quickly stood and walked around to the other side of his desk, clearing his throat. Almost like he was caught up in the same haze as you.

“I should probably get back to work.” You started towards the door.

“Yeah, I’ll uh- I’ll text you the address.”

“Sounds good.”

_____________________________

On the day of your date with Miguel you’d panicked trying to figure out what to wear. It was a warm day, so you settled for a sundress that complimented your skin tone. You kept your makeup simple, not wanting to overdo it (but also you were so nervous you hadn’t been able to do anything special).

As you drove to the restaurant you tried to calm your nerves. You weren’t sure why you were so nervous. It’s not like this was some blind date with a random guy. You knew Miguel. Well, you sorta knew him. You definitely wanted to know him better. 

Sooner than you had realized you were pulling in to the parking lot of a very nice looking restaurant. You took a deep breath as you stepped out of the car. This was fine. Everything would be fine. Once you had made your way inside you looked around for only a moment when you saw Miguel. When he saw you he smiled as he stood, coming to greet you.

“Hey, there you are.” He pulled you into a hug which you shyly returned, not expecting it. “You ok with a table by the window?”

“Y-yeah that’s fine.”

Miguel grabbed your hand and led you the small distance to the table. He released you as the two of you sat across from each other. You hid your nervous smile prentending to smooth out your dress.

“You look great by the way.” Miguel said, handing you a menu.

“Oh, thank you, you look good too.” You took it and started looking at the options on the menu to avoid his gaze.

“This is a really nice place.” You said, still not looking up.

“Oh, yeah. I try to come here when I get time.” Unbeknownst to you Miguel was watching you closely with a confused expression.

”Yeah and it’s pretty close to Alchemax too.” You flipped the menu over still looking. “Would probably be good to come here for lunch too.”

”Umm, yeah..”

”I mean probably not you, you always seem pretty busy.” You were rambling now. “I mean I’m never that busy since there’s not a lot to do- but you know that cause you got me the job and-“

“Y/N.”

You paused in your rambling at his voice. “Do you really want to talk about work on your day off?”

“No…” You said shyly.

”Good. Cause I’d much rather get to know you.”

You felt your face go warm. Thankfully you were saved when your young waiter came to take your orders. You quickly mumbled something that had caught your eye from the menu. The waiter took your menus and walked off to put in your orders, leaving you and Miguel in silence. But not for long.

Earlier you had been so nervous the conversation would get dull after a certain point. You had even called Saff in a panic late last night worried you would run out of things to say. But, there was never any real awkward silences between the two of you. Even after the food arrived Miguel continued to keep the conversation going. He had calmed your nerves and you found yourself opening up to him more and more. He told you more about himself. Telling you about Gabi and the things he had to learn to take care of a young girl on his own.

“So how long have you lived in the city?” He asked.

“A couple years now. I moved here right out of college and did an internship for a while and some odd jobs on the side.”

“Your parents live out here too?”

“Uh, no actually.” You took a sip of your water, suddenly quiet.

“I’m sorry, we don’t have to talk about it-“

“No, its fine. We just…” You sighed and placed your drink down. “They wanted me to go into the family business and I wasn’t interested. I haven’t spoken to them in a few years.”

Miguel sensed you were uncomfortable and quickly changed the subject. “I, uh, I used to come here a lot, but it's been a while. Gabi loves the pancakes here.”

You took a bite of your food and gave him a sly grin. “Do you bring a lot of your dates here too?”

He grinned at that. “Gotta have a date to take them anywhere.”

“So, it’s been a long time for you too?”

“Oh, you have no idea.”

“So, this isn’t too weird for you?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean… you know…” You didn’t know how to say the words out loud.

He made a gesture for you to go on. You cleared your throat and just said the what had been at the back of your mind for a while now.

“I mean, since I look like your wife and all…”

“My wife?” Miguel seemed genuinely confused for a moment. Seconds later he snapped out of it. “Oh, I-“ he stammered and then took a sip from his own drink.

“She and I were never- We weren’t actually married.” He finally got out.

“Oh?”

“We, we weren’t that close- Well I mean we had to have been close at least one time but-”

“It’s ok. You don’t have to explain.” You placed your hand over his on the table. “If you’re ok with it, then I am too.”

Even if it was a little weird. You tried not think about it too hard.

Miguel smiled back at you and turned his hand over, gently grasping yours. The sound of a phone ringing startled both of you and you let go of his hand to check your purse to check if it was yours. Miguel also quickly pulled his on phone out of his pocket. “It’s one of the soccer moms.”

You quickly slid your phone back into your purse as Miguel quickly read the words on his screen, the smile on his face starting to fade.

“I’m sorry, I have to go.” He started to stand from the table, his eyes still glued to his phone.

“Oh, is something wrong?” You got up as well.

“Um, it’s Gabbi. Something happened at practice.” His voice was the most uncertain you’d ever heard it. “I think she got hurt. I’m sorry I gotta go.“

“No, no Miguel don’t apologize. Go, I’ll call you later.” You said, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder.

He gave you an apologetic smile before quickly placing a gently kiss on your cheek. “I’m sorry.” He said before taking off.

Once Miguel was out of view you sat back down at your booth. Your cheek was still tingling from the small kiss. You put your face in your hands, ashamed that such a small gesture could make you react this way. Still grinning, you shook off your emotions and raised a hand, getting your waiters attention.

“Hi, I’ll take the check now.”

The teenaged worker looked at you confused. “Uh, that tall guy that was sitting here already paid.”

“What?”

_____________________________

You headed back to your apartment after your delicious breakfast was cut short. You gave a friendly wave to Mrs. Lin who was on her way out as you headed in. As you entered the lobby of your building a loud screaming caught you off guard. You peered around the corner to where the elevators are and recognize Miguels tall form immediately.

He was holding a screaming Gabriella in his arms, whispering softly to her. “It’s ok sweetheart.” He brushed her hair out of her face and held her tightly to him.

Miguel sees you and immediately panics. He quickly pressed the button to call the elevator again. He had to get Gabriella back upstairs without her seeing you. This was too soon. This wasn’t how he wanted the two of you to meet.

“Come on, Gabi. Let’s go.”

She wasn’t having any of it. She wriggled out of his grip and flopped onto the ground; her eyes screwed shut as she continued to bawl her eyes out. He sighed and picked her up, trying his best to comfort her. The child was restless in his hold, fidgeting this way and that. What should you do? Should you leave? It felt wrong to not even offer Miguel any help. But before you could even make a decision, her eyes met yours. The young girls eyes immediately widened.

“Mama..” She seemed to calm for just a moment when she saw you.

“Mama!” She started to cry again once you didn’t immediately come to her. Her tiny arms stretched out to you.

Miguel tried to pull her back, “No mija, leave her alone.”

“No, no!” Gabriella wailed, trying her hardest to break out of his grip. She turned to you her cheeks streaming with tears. “Mama!” She cried reaching for you, her hands making little grabbing motions. Your stomach dropped as you watched the tearful child.

“I’m sorry.” Miguel said, still trying his best to calm her.

“No, no its fine.“ You took a hesitant step towards the two. “Can I?” You asked holding your arms out to take Gabriella who was still frantically trying to get to you.

Miguel gave you a soft look, almost as if to ask if you were sure. You nodded, taking a closer step. With a broken sigh he handed the girl over to you and she scrambled into your arms. You were taken aback by just how quickly she calmed just by being held by you. Her back still heaved with heavy breaths as she started to calm down.

You adjusted her in your arms, rubbing a gentle hand up and down her back as she buried her face in your shoulder.

“Shh…shh…” You cooed, gently rocking her. Miguel came to your side and lightly stroked the back of Gabriellas head.

“See? You’re ok.” He said with a small smile. His eyes met yours and he mouthed a “Thank you” to you silently. You gave him a small smile in response.

“Hey, hey, look at me,” You said softly. The sniffling girl turned just enough so you could peak at her face. “How about we go upstairs, and we’ll get you all cleaned up, hmm?”

“Y-you’re coming too?”

“Yes, I’m coming too.” You smiled at her.

“…o-okay.” She said, laying her head back against you, no longer hiding her face. After the ding of the elevators arrival Miguel put a gentle hand on your back, steering you towards the opening elevator doors. He pressed the button for your shared floor, and you continued to rock Gabriella as the three of you waited for it to arrive.

“Now what were you crying about?”

She sniffled and rubbed at her eyes. In your arms she lifted the hem of her soccer shorts just slightly, showing you and open scrape on her knee. The scrape itself wasn’t to bad, but the skin around it looked slightly bruised. 

“She had a nasty fall while they were playing.” Miguel said,

“Oh, no.” You looked and the scrape. “Well, we can clean that up, and then I have some really cute band-aids we can put on it, ok?”

She nodded sniffling and tucking back in to you. You and Miguel shared a look. He gave you a reassuring squeeze from the hand on your back. Neither of you had to say anything but understood each other perfectly. The two of you were going to have to discuss this. A small part of you felt wrong, pretending to be this little girl's mother. This could go very wrong. It could possibly scar her for life. But there was another part of your heart that sang as you cradled the small child in your arms. The way both she and Miguel were clinging to you felt like something you’d been missing for so long was finally back in your grasp.

Family.

You shut your eyes at the thought. This was wrong. They weren’t your family. But for these next few moments, you would allow yourself to pretend.