It's been two years since Ethan and Emy adopted Rudy. I am now 18 and have started learning how to drive. The reason for this is that Rudy will be attending public school. Since Ethan and Emy are often busy with work, I have taken on the responsibility of dropping him off and picking him up from school. I like this routine because Rudy will always write about what he does at school. I was a little worried when he first started because I didn't know how the other kids would react to him not being able to speak. Still, he made new friends and wasn't really scared of meeting new people, which made me happy.
After I dropped him off at school, I went back home and turned on my computer to do my online classes for the Department of Game and Fish. The job I want is to work at the Ruidoso Fish Hatchery. I have to study really hard to stay ahead in my classes, which is quite stressful. However, the class doesn't last long, so I also help out around the house by feeding the horses and doing chores. One morning, while I was attending my classes, there was a knock at the door. I got up to answer it, and when I opened the door, I saw a very familiar face; it was Carlos. I was shocked to see him again, and he asked if he could come in. I let him and asked if he wanted anything to drink. The only thing he asked for was a cup of water, so I got some. Then I started talking about the things we did and how I have a little brother now. He was shocked to hear that, but while we were talking, he asked me a question, and I was taken aback by his response.
"So do you still miss Neavah?"
When he said that, I just told him that I have moved on from her and now I have better things to do. When I said that, I could see the tension in his eyes as he shared the gossip with me. Apparently, some of the girls at his school were teasing him about whether I came here or not, and their curiosity only added fuel to the fire. When he told me that classmates were asking if he knew who I was and which school I attended.
He played it cool, shrugging and insisting he had no idea who I was, but I knew better. Deep down, I could tell he'd rather not have the drama that would ensue if my name slipped from his lips. I felt a mix of gratitude and frustration; I didn't want a horde of girls showing up at my house, plus I didn't really like to be with a bunch of people. After Carlos and I were done, he had to go somewhere, so I said goodbye to him and went back to doing my work for school. A while later there was another knock at the door when I went to open it a lady was asking if Emy was home I told her she wasn't here at the moment but I would be happy to help, after I said that I let her let and asked if she wanted anything to drink she told me no and that she was fine for now so I sat on the living room chair in front of her. When I asked who she was, she told me that she was Rudy's caretaker and needed to see how he was doing. I told her that he was at school, but he's been happy to be here with us. When I mentioned that, she pulled out a file. The file had Rudy's name on it, but what caught my attention was his last name—Villalobos, which is the same as mine. When I asked where Rudy came from, she explained that since Rudy could talk, he was moved around to various foster centers in Texas and then New Mexico. Curious, I asked, "How did he end up in a foster home?"
"Well, his family was struggling to keep him healthy, so Child Protective Services took him away. But this isn't the first time they've had a child taken from them."
"What do you mean by that?" I asked.
"Well, a few years ago, they had a little boy living with them. The only problem was that they weren't from the U.S.; they were from Mexico. So we had to take the child, but we didn't really know his name because he only spoke Spanish."
After she said that, I paused for a moment because the story that she told me was the same story that I remembered when I was young, the past kept coming back to me, and the faces of my parent kept coming back to me as well. After that, she left and told me thank you. I said you're welcome, and closed the door when I did. I tried to calm myself down after I did, look at the time, As I got ready and climbed into the truck to pick up Rudy, I found myself asking,
"What the hell did I get myself into?"