Santa Cuerva Luchadora Mágica: IV - Verano de Estrellas

The next morning, Marumina's muscles ached. She dragged herself to Leche Liebre and went through the opening procedures. A glance at the pile of garbage bags as she entered made her wonder if she had been dreaming yesterday as well.

She made herself a café de olla, extra fuerte, and sipped at it while she got the coffee shop ready for business. A peek out into the dining area made her wonder about Kenichi. Did he have a place to stay? She sat down at the table where he had sat the previous day and sipped at her coffee. She liked Kenichi, even if he did seem clueless. But then her thoughts went to Calavera Mariachi. Though she only knew what Tochi had told her about him when explaining the cosmic balance that the Luchadoras Mágicas were meant to uphold and all the lore behind that, she felt almost as if she knew him already. There was some deep connection that they shared, but it was veiled in a layer of mystery, and for some reason, that made him all the more appealing.

She stirred her drink with a cinnamon stick and thought of the strange coincidence of meeting two handsome men on the same day.

Lupe came in through the back. “Good morning, Mina” she said.

Marumina looked over at her from her seat. “I could have used your help yesterday,” she said. She pushed herself to her feet and made her way to the kitchen on sore legs.

“Oh,” Lupe said. “¿El Gorro de Dormir?” She nodded. “Sorry, I had to help Tina with the afternoon crowd. Though we probably should have come to help when everybody fell asleep.”

Marumina set her cup down next to the sink. “It's okay,” she said. “You can make it up to me by doing the dishes.” She smiled.

Lupe laughed. “Sure. Next time, though, I'll be there. I'll drag Tina by her tail if I have to.” She looked at Marumina. “Was it that rough?”

“Tochi made me train. I almost got beaten by Gorro.” She trailed off.

“What happened?” Lupe asked.

“I got to meet Calavera Mariachi.”

Lupe squealed. She covered her mouth with her hands. “Oh,” she said. “Is he as guapo as he looks in the pictures?”

She nodded. Lupe looked out through the plate glass window at the front of the shop. “Do you think that means that things are changing? Like Tochi said, the balance is shifting?”

Marumina shrugged. “I think we need to just keep doing our best.”

Lupe looked back. “Where is that conejito anyway?”

“He's at home, napping. Acts like he was the one practicing backflips and clotheslines.”

Lupe grinned. “Typical Tochi,” she said.

The two finished preparing the shop before Lupe flipped the sign to OPEN. The regulars filed in with their regular orders, taking their regular seats, and doing their regular activities. Marumina and Lupe took turns working the front counter and the back kitchen. Someone had turned on the television, and there was a news snippet about what had happened the previous day with Gorro de Dormir, and how a maniacial member of Los Rudos, a luchador-themed gang, was once again stopped by the mysterious vigilante, Santa Cuerva. The newscaster also said that with it affecting the launch of the new Luna Cosmetica line, Isabella de la Vega would be holding the event the entire week. One final story talked about a man named Fernando Delacova who had been missing for several days now. Several pictures of him flashed on the screen with a request that any information about him be shared with the police or this news station. When the station went to an infomercial about shampoo, someone turned the television off.

Looking out through the window, Marumina saw the Luna Cosmetica trucks parked, one per intersection it seemed. They were everywhere. However, something about them didn't seem right.

Around lunchtime, Kenichi showed up. He had his guitarron strapped to his back in its case and was carrying a paper bag. He came in, saw Marumina and waved. She waved back before heading back into the kitchen.

“You can't bring in outside food,” Lupe said.

Kenichi laughed. “I bought some lunch for Marumina. I got extra, so you can have some too.”

Lupe sniffed the air. “¿Pollo al pastor?” she said.

“Yes, I think,” Kenichi said. He pulled out a few foil wrapped burritos. The bag had the name MARCO POLLO written on the side.

Without a word, Lupe accepted one of the burritos before disappearing into the back. When she returned, it was with Marumina, and she no longer said anything about the outside food. Marumina was carrying two cafés des ollas.

“I got burritos,” he said. They sat down across from each other. She took one. It was still warm through the foil.

“Thanks,” she said. “I can use a break. You should have seen Lupe wolf hers down.” Both she and Kenichi laughed at this before eating civilly. “Where did you stay last night?” she said.

“I found a mission,” he said. “The deacon who ran it was very hospitable.”

“Do you need a place to stay?” she said.

“I'll probably only need one for a short while,” he said. “I'm on a business trip,” It wasn't entirely a lie. “Once I'm done here, I'll head on over to the next place.”

Marumina screwed up her eyebrows. “Shouldn't your employer be paying for a hotel or something?”

Kenichi laughed. “Yeah, probably. I'll have to bring that up next time.” He looked around the shop and out through the window. His eyes lingered on the makeup truck. Then he shifted his focus back on her. “You know,” he said. “A lot of people are going crazy over this Luna Cosmetica thing. Does everybody here really love makeup?”

Marumina shrugged. “It's popular,” she said.

Kenichi leaned forward. “You don't look like the kind of person who needs to wear makeup,” he said.

She blushed. “Thank you,” she said. She stirred her coffee with a shaky hand.

“I like coming to see you,” he said after a silence.

“Me too,” she said. Her heart was racing in her chest.

“I'm going to miss you when I have to leave,” he said.

“You don't have to leave,” she said.

He took a deep breath, let it out slowly. “I think I do,” he said. “It's strange, and you'd probably think I was crazy if I told you, but I can't stay in one place for too long.” His hand touched hers. “But I'm glad I get to see you.”

Electricity went from one hand to the next. She had no words, but savored the moment for its brief life.

“You make it hard to move on,” he said. “Every time I see you, I want to stay for just a moment longer, but my work, my job, my responsibility, gets in the way.”

“Oh, Nichi,” she said. There were tears in her eyes. “Why do you torment me like that?”

“I'm sorry,” he said. “I think I'm tormenting us both.”

She moved her hand slightly under his. “Can't I come with you?” she said in a quiet voice.

“Don't you have responsibilities here?” he said.

She said nothing.

“Besides, I don't think I'm allowed to bring anybody with me when I go.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Who's controlling you such that you're not allowed to do what you want?”

Kenichi sighed. “It's complicated,” he said. He gave her hand a squeeze.

“It always is,” she said.