MAMI ✔️

Chapter Twenty Eight

HANNAH'S POV

"Ever been on a plane before?" I ask Diego as we walk through the gate into the plane.

"No it's my first time." He replies clearly excited.

"It might get bumpy at some point but other than that its smooth sailing the rest of the way." I assure him.

We find our seats and since its Diego's first time flying I let him have the window seat. It's a small plane meaning there's only two seats on either side of the aisle which makes me happy. I was not looking forward to dealing with someone cussing me out for being too big and taking their seat space. I'm a thick girl so I always have such kind of problems but thankfully I don't fly much. Diego helps put our bags in the overhead compartment before we both sit down.

"How long is the flight?" He asks.

"Approximately five hours if there's no delay on the layover." I answer him.

"Cool." He nods taking out his headphones.

I smile at this because it's not like I expected us to talk the whole flight over. I came prepared with a good book to keep me occupied.

Diego taps me just as I'm finding my bookmark so I turn to face him.

"You okay?" I ask him.

I don't want to make him uncomfortable by encroaching on his seat. Five hours is a long time to be uncomfortable. He nods at me and smiles.

"Yes I'm perfect. I just wanted to say thank you again for everything. You being here means the world to me especially since Santi can't be. I'm glad you two are together, you're perfect for each other and I get a big sister." Diego answers.

His words bring tears to my eyes because I realize that Jada was right, Santiago coming into my life means my family is getting bigger. The brothers think I am making their life better but they are the ones healing parts of me that I didn't realize needed healing in the first place.

"And you are the small brother I never had. It's a pleasure to be here Diego and I'm glad you invited me to be part of this milestone with you. I'm sorry Santiago couldn't be here but I am happy to be here for you in whatever capacity until he is." I promise him.

I am really tempted to tell him that Santiago will be getting out soon but the last time we talked he still hadn't heard the verdict from the parole board. It's making me anxious because it's not like I can call him and I don't want to risk sending another letter until I know of his current situation. Santiago also wants to surprise Diego once he's out and I don't want to ruin whatever plan he has.

Diego bumps his shoulder with mine since the space between seats is too small for us to have a proper hug. I smile bumping his back. I never knew having a small brother could be this much fun. I've always been the baby of the family, I'm even the youngest in our friendship group but with Diego in my life, I'm not anymore.

It doesn't take long for us to be airborne and Diego has a huge excited smile on his face the whole time. The pilot manages a perfect ascend minus bumps and the rest of the flight is just as smooth. There's a layover in Nashville, Tennessee that takes less than an hour meaning we make great time.

"So this is where you'll be spending the next four years?" I ask Diego as we maneuver our way out of the airport with our luggage.

I only have a duffle bag since I'll only be here for a few days but Diego has a couple of suitcases and bags with him. The kid is literally relocating his life across the country since he will be here for the next four years of his life and maybe more if he sets down roots. He might have been born and raised in Phoenix but it doesn't mean he has to go back there once he is done with school.