#rose molina ultimate matchmaker my beloved

[daintyduck99]

doing that twirling/spinning thing when they hug for writer's choice!

As usual, Mom finds Julie before Julie finds her. Her voice rings through the airport, lovely and strong and unmistakable. 

"Julie! Por aquí!" 

They beeline for one another, colliding in a hug despite the sweltering heat. The hug is brief, but fierce, punctuated by a kiss to the side of Julie's head. Mom beams. 

"It's so good to see you, nena." 

Julie beams back, blinking away tears.

"You too, Mami." 

Mom leans forward conspiratorially. 

"Want to make a detour for some ice cream? I won't tell your brother." 

Julie hesitates. "Are you sure? The traffic…and you hate driving…" 

"Ah." Mom smirks. "I brought a helper." 

She steps aside to reveal—

"Reggie!" 

Julie launches herself at him, and his arms are already around her, hoisting her into the air. He twirls her around, and they laugh, clinging to one another like…

Like close friends. Best friends. 

Basically family, at this point. 

She buries her face in his chest as he gently sets her feet on solid ground, allowing herself to squeeze him tighter for only a moment. He doesn't seem to mind. 

Actually, he props his chin on her head, squeezing her more tightly in turn. 

He hums into her hair. 

"Missed you, Jellybean." 

She mumbles into his shirt, but she knows that he knows what she's saying.

Two can play at that game, after all. 

"Missed you too, Reguito." 

Sure enough, his cheeks are a rosy red when they finally unravel. She just smiles.

Mom clears her throat, and Julie nearly jumps a foot in the air. Reggie, too. 

"Right!" he all but yelps. "Ice cream. Um. Bags first. We'd better get going." 

Her mother's musical laughter escorts them out of the airport. 

She shines on them both with the same sort of affection, and Julie swallows around the tightness in her throat. 

Reggie is already part of the family. 

She can't screw that up. 

Only— 

Then Mom starts behaving oddly. 

She insists on sitting in the backseat, and when they get to the ice cream shop, she lingers at the counter. She makes herself scarce at home, citing garden work, leaving Julie and Reggie to their own devices, as no one else is home yet and won't be for a while. 

They end up in the studio, of course. 

She plays the piano piece she wrote for her composition class, and they play a few of their favorite songs, some popular and some theirs, but when she asks him, semi-jokingly, to play a piece of his because it's only fair, he goes red again.

He blows out a breath, keeping his eyes fixed on his interlocked hands. 

"Well, your mom said—she kind of insisted that I needed to show a certain one to you, actually, but—she's agreed to take responsibility if it makes things—weird." 

Things are already kind of weird, but that feels like the wrong thing to say. Julie doesn't even trust herself to speak. 

She takes his hands and nods. Smiles. 

He swallows, searching her eyes. 

"Okay. Get me the acoustic?" 

She's quick to comply, and he cracks a small smile at her enthusiasm. They settle on the sofa, curled towards one another like parenthesis, like they always have. 

And he sings her the dreamiest song. 

Seriously; part of her wonders if she fell asleep during her flight. It's like her wildest dream come true, too good to be true, the light in his eyes and the longing in his voice as he pours his heart out to her.

Am I bright enough for you to keep? 

Do you wish on me when you can’t sleep?

Could I step into your starlight? 

He's hardly moved the guitar before she's flying into the familiar space of his lap. She tucks her face in the crook of his neck and his arms come around her reflexively. 

The only thing left to say is yes.

And when Reggie officially becomes a Molina a few years later, Mom doesn't need to say anything. 

She just shines.