Smoke Rings in the Dark

A thin stream of early dawn light peeked in through the window shades as Cassandra stirred, slowly opening her eyes. She was momentarily startled when she didn't recognize her surroundings, turning over and seeing Sergio still asleep. "I'll be in the bathroom", she whispered as she got ouf bed.

Sergio awoke several minutes later and heard the shower running, a slow grin forming on his face. He fought the urge to join her in the shower knowing this would only frighten her, staying in bed and waiting for her. Ten minutes later, the bathroom door opened and Cassandra stepped out wearing his t-shirt and shorts as she towel-dried her long auburn hair. "Good morning, what do you want for breakfast?", she asked.

"Buenos dias, Cassie. De nada, just make coffee and I will do breakfast, you are my guest", he said gallantly.

Cassandra went downstairs and frowned when she didn't see a regular coffee machine, just a little old-fashioned hourglass-shaped coffee pot. She figure out that the to and bottoms halves unscrewed and there was a slotted plate on top of the water reservoir, finding a metal can of coffee with Spanish writing on the label as she scooped some ground coffee into the shallow plate after filling the bottom half of water. I suppose it's similir to a teakettle, she mused, placing the coffee pot on the stove and lighting the burner.

Sergio was pleasantly surprised when the aroma of roasting coffee filled the air, Cassandra sipping her coffee from a mug as the pot rested on the stove. "Gracias, Cassie. I don't have a regular coffee machine, I like this one better", he said, helping himself to a cup.

"I figured it's the same principle as a teakettle, Gran usesd it all the time. I am a biology major, I like taking things apart and seeing how it goes together", she laughed.

"Verdad, son muy intelligente, Cassie. That is science with bodies, verdad?", he asked.

"Yeah, that has to do with humans, animals and plants. I do human biology, our professor is taking us to an autopsy next month", she said.

"Vas hacer una doctora?", he asked.

"No, I'm going to be a biology teacher, a lot of women don't want to teach science. I've always liked science and I wanted to be a teacher as a kid, reckon I'd combine the two", she said with a laugh.

"Wow, bueno. I just went to one year of segunda in Argentina, I turned pro at quince con Independiente. That is why I want Benja to go to school, he will be the first member of the family di mi familia to graduate school", he vowed.

"I can help you with your English, but you are going to help me with Spanish", she teased.

"Si, bueno. Vas hablar Espanol a una Portena, Cassie. Y voy a hablar Ingles a un Americano de Sud", he chuckled.

"Ah, bueno. What is a Portena?", she asked.

"Ese son una chica de Buenos Aires, se llaman Portenos y Portenas, soy Porteno. Estas Americana de Sud, verdad?", he asked.

"Si, I'm from the South. But that is going to be strange you having a Southern accent, I like your Spanish accent", she teased.

"Si, y yo me gusta su acento, Cassie. Pero necessitas ir a su casa con abuela", he said with a sigh.

Cassandra nodded as they finished their coffee and started preparing breakfast. She had to laugh when Sergio turned on his Ipod hookup as it played cumbia, seeing him do a little dance as he grinned. "Voy a ensenara a bailar cumbia, Cassie. Puedas a bailar?", he asked.

"Uh, I don't dance. The country music for dancing is very silly, we call it line dancing. I play guitar instead", she replied.

"Bueno, me gusta oir y mirar tu tocando la guitarra. Quiero oir y mirar tu tocando la guitarra pronto", he said.

"I have an afternoon Anatomy class that ends at seven, do you have training?", she asked.

"No, the manager gave us the day off. Voy a tu casa en la tardes", he replied.

Sergio watched as Cassandra got out of the car outside the building, laughing as she blew him a kiss and he reached out to grab it . Son mucho tiempo que tenia una mujer, ella me gusto mucho y necessitos a llamar Mami y Jessica, he thought, driving away from the house.

Mary was in the parlor with her morning cup of tea when her granndaughter entered, a smile on her face and an amused look in her blue eyes. "How was the night with your handsome Argentine lover?", she teased.

Cassandra let out a nervous giggle and blushed, sitting down on the couch next to her. "Gran, don't say that. Sergio was a perfect gentleman", she chided.

"Aye poppet, your Sergio might be a gentleman but if he tries anything bad, you know your father or Shelton will straighten him out", said Mary.

"Daddy won't like him anyways, he doesn't like Latin American people. He thinks they're gonna take over the US and that they wanna get rid of Americans. Shelton just wants to make sure he's a good guy", she said.

"Your father never went to school properly, if he wasn't good at music he would be driving a truck or working on a farm. You will have to be patient with him and let him get to meet Sergio, they actually have a lot in common", said Mary as Cassandra looked surprised.

"You heard right, Cassie luv. They both came from poor families and became rich doing what they love and are good at, they just come from different countries. But Randall has to accept that you are not a wee lass but a grown woman, he cannot tell you whom to date", said Mary as Cassandra mulled over her words.

Sergio arrived at the house later that evening with a bouquet of white roses and a bottle of rose' which he handed to Mary. "Eses para ti, Senora Flynn", he said.

"Aren't you the charmer, Senor Gutierrez. Have a good time", said Mary.

Sergio couldn't help the grin on his face when he saw Cassandra come down the stairs with the guitar case, putting an arm around her waist and kissing her softly. "Buenas tardes, Cassie. Hasta luego, Senora Flynn", he said.

Sergio carefully placed the guitar case in the backseat and helped her get into the passenger's seat. "Vamos a comer primero y entonces vamos a mi casa, quiero a mirar y oir a tu tocando la guitarra", he said.

Cassandra nodded slowly as she tried to make sense of the Spanish words. "So we're going for dinner first?", she asked.

"Verdad. Vas a hablar Espanol con tiempo", he chuckled.

Sergio ended up taking her to a curry house on Wilmslow Road, much to her surprise. "Cuando vives en Manchester, vas a gustar curry. No me gusta mucho comida Inglesa, pero curry es bueno", he said.

Cassandra looked around curiously as a waiter led them to their table. The dining room was done in warm shades of orange, cream and red with murals depicting scenes from Mughal India, the scent of various spices wafting from the kitchen. "What do you recommend, I never had Indian food before", she said.

"If you don't like picante, I would say the chicken tikka masala, no son muy picante. If you do, puedes comer curries que tiene picante, pero necessitas a bebir una cerveza", he chuckled.

Cassandra nodded as Sergio ordered them a round of Singha. "No puedo esperar a oir tu tocando la guitarra, me gusta mucho. Puedas a cantar muy buena, y no saber chicas que tocan guitarra", he said.

"I don't understand much of what you said, but, uh, gracias. I really ought to have you teach me Spanish", she laughed.

"Bueno, voy hacer un maestro de Espanol, si? I said I can't wait to hear you play guitar, you sing bueno. And I have never met a girl who plays guitar", he translated.

"I never had anyone tell me that, my daddy and Shelton are the real musicians in the family. Daddy is self-taught at playing guitar, dobro, piano, banjo and accordion and Shelton plays guitar, bass and drums", she said.

"Mucho bueno, pero me gusta mi chica guitarrista", he teased as the waiter got their beers and took their orders.

Cassandra finished her dinner and took one last sip of beer, a satisfied smile on her face. "Te gustas, Cassie?", he asked, handing his credit card to the waiter.

"Yeah, Indian food isn't very big in Tennessee. I can help with the tip", she said, reaching for her purse.

"No, no mi mami dice que el hombre pagas para comida. Son mi novia", he said.