Abril Moya was enjoying the last puff of her cigar and then put it out in her ashtray. Her ashtray was getting a little full though. “I’m going to have to have the help come in more than once a week at this rate.” She muttered to herself before grabbing a few more cigars for the road. Before leaving she remembered to grab the keys to her new car and was now ready to go out to her first showing.
Abril had once been a much less successful person, back then her friends would call her a bit of a door mat, but the nicest woman you would even meet, but that changed the day she came back from her father’s funeral and found that he had left her all his holdings. She had quickly settled in as the new landlord to over twenty places around her city and lorded over them much as her father had, trying to collect as much money as possible, and spend as little money as possible.
It was because of this attitude that one of her tenants, Mrs. Brown and her family, had actually left the apartment she had been renting from Abril’s father for almost 12 years. It seems by pushing her with a raised rent, Abril had finally taken it too far for her. Abril was proud of the woman; she had finally had enough and put her foot down about the rent. With that done, it was only a matter of time before Mrs. Brown, and her family hopefully, were better off.
Now, Abril could raise the rent of the apartment more, it was her right and she felt that the apartment was worth more a month than what Mrs. Brown was paying, but that meant little now, Mrs. Brown had moved out, which meant that Abril had a free property to test her abilities to find new tenants, the first that her father had not brought in.
The first thing Abril did was list the apartment on all the local websites, with the rent a little higher than she was trying to get Mrs. Brown to pay, then waited. The wait did not last long as less than two weeks later she got a call from a newlywed couple who were looking for their first place to live together. Abril had talked to them a few times, over the phone at first, and then in person once, and today was going to be the first time that they saw the apartment, and Abril was determined to make the sale.
She got into her car and prepared to drive off. When she had left her father’s funeral her car had been a 1998 Blue Taurus, a cheap car she was able to get for less than three thousand dollars. Now however, she had upgraded many levels higher, to her father’s last car before he died, a silver 2019 Mercedes Benz. She loved this new car, and between that, her cigars, and the meals she now eats, she could not see herself ever going back to anything less.
Pulling up to the apartment, she took a parking spot that was reserved for her and got out of the car. Nearby was the couple, still in their cheap looking green car. Abril waved them over and the pair came to talk to her as she got out of the car.
“Hello, Ms. Moya” Peyton, the husband of the couple greeted.
“Hello.” Abril answered back. “Good to see you again Peyton, Marisol.” She said, motioning to the man and his wife. Marisol nodded and smiled at Abril. “Well it is a pleasure to see you again.” Abril continued, then stuck her hand out so the couple could shake it. Peyton shook her hand first, then Marisol did. Petron’s face scrunched for a second, then he walked a bit away.
“So I would guess you would like to see the apartment, if you will, please follow me.” Abril said then motioned for the pair to follow her to the section of the apartment that was for rent.
The low-rise apartment had enough space for six groups of people and was two stories, three on each floor. Abril walked to the new free area, one of the apartments on the first floor and unlocked the front door. The only time Abril ever met Mrs. Brown in person was when she turned in her key, something Abril was surprised the woman did.
Peyton entered the house first. He was white, skinny, and younger than Abril. He had told Abril that he and his wife had just left college, each had gotten jobs, and
were ready for the next stage of their life. Since they were just starting out, they did not feel it was time to own a home and were looking forward to renting for about a year.
His wife, Marisol, followed. She was Mexican, which made Abril feel a kinship with her. She was a year younger than Peyton and was able to graduate at the same time as him due to her high intelligence. Abril also found her to be quite hot and sexy, a thought which had come to her when she first saw her.
Peyton entered and took a sniff then started to talk, “does something smell bad in here?” He asked and Abril was confused for a moment, then she realized what he was smelling.
“Oh, I’m sorry”, she said with a grin, then pointed at herself, “that would be me, I had a cigar before I came over here, I was happy for today, and was hopeful to be able to finish off this sale.”
“Hmm”, he contemplated, “well, I’m sorry to say, you stink.” Marisol looked at her husband a bit surprised by how blunt he had been.
Abril, kept on her grin, which had quickly become a fake one, and motioned for him to move ahead, “how about you checkout the bathroom now?” Abril wished she had taken a dump in the toilet to show him what a smell really was.
While showing them the apartment, she started to have some small talk with the pair.
“You know, I can’t help but notice you are a mixed-race couple.” She mentioned to the pair. At once the both of the pair’s eyes went ashen, as if they were afraid of what Abril was going to say next. Abril noticed this and giggled, “oh no, you misunderstand. I was just going to mention that my father was American, and my mother was Hispanic too, Mexican in fact.”
“Oh, my parents are from Mexico”, Marisol added, “so how are your parents?” Marisol asked.
“Well, man I almost hate to mention it, but well, my parents got divorced when I was young, and well, I don’t know what happened to my mother, and my dad just died earlier this year.” Abril told the pair, then made herself look sad. She did truly miss her father, and regretted never really getting to know him.
“I’m sorry, ” Marisol said to Abril.
“Its fine”, Abril answered back, before clearing her throat and putting back on the fake grin, “anyway through her is a second bedroom”, she told them as she led them to what she assumed was Mrs. Brown’s daughter’s room.
After finishing the tour, Abril asked if the pair had any questions and Marisol raised her hand, seeming to be embarrassed.
“Can I go to the bathroom?” Marisol asked, her face slightly red.
Abril laughed and told Marisol it was fine; the water was not turned off.
“So”, Abril started, waiting for Marisol to come back, standing there with Peyton, “how are you two doing, still happily married?”
“Oh yeah,” Peyton answered. “We are still I guess in the honeymoon phase of our relationship. We just got married last month.” Peyton smiled, remembering the wedding. “She was beautiful, in an all-white dress, her sister as her maid of honor, it was a wonderful day.” He seemed content for a moment and Abril decided to put a concerned look on her face.
“What’s wrong?” Peyton asked after seeing her face. “Oh, its um, nothing”. Abril answered back. “Nothing?” Peyton asked, uncertain.
“Well, maybe nothing.” She sighed then looked at Peyton. “Just the way you described the wedding reminded me of how my dad described his to my mother. The beautiful dress, I think my mom’s was pink though, the happiness, the feeling that the joy would never end, it just all seemed familiar when you said that.” Abril sighed again before continuing.
“Well, like I said my mother left when I was young and I guess, you never really get over it. She was so nice when I was younger too, but over time I found out that my mother kept a lot of secrets from me and my father. She was very secretive about her past, before she met my father, I don’t even know if I knew any of my mom’s real friends. If that wasn’t enough, I think she cheated on my dad too.” Abril
finished, then acted embarrassed that she had told such a secret. “Sorry, I don’t like talking about how my mom lied to me and my father that much.”
Peyton looked at Abril and breathed through his nose, “well, I am sorry”, he said, then thought for a moment and gave off a nervous chuckle, “but I am certain Marisol would never do that to me.”
Abril nodded her head, “no of course not, you and her seem very happy.”
Marisol came back in and after a few more minutes of discussion it seemed like the decision had been made, Peyton and Marisol would rent the apartment.
Abril smiled then put up her arm, to gather the pair’s attention.
“I have something to celebrate such a wonderful moment.” She then pulled out three cigars from a pocket on her jacket. “There is no better way to celebrate than with a cigar.”
Peyton gave a small chuckle before waving his hand, “I told you earlier I am sure, I don’t smoke, and Marisol doesn’t either.” He explained.
Suddenly Marisol gave a more nervous chuckle and looked at Peyton. She stared him in his eyes and looked embarrassed, “that isn’t exactly true.”
Peyton looked confused and shocked at the same time. “What” was all that came out of his mouth.
“Well,” Marisol started before looking away from Peyton and looking down, “before I met you I would sometimes smoke, Blackstones, in fact. I, well, I cut down a lot when we started going together; I haven’t had one in a few months in fact.”
“Well, I am happy to say, these” Abril then motioned to the cigars, “are a lot better than some cheap cigars”. She then smiled at Marisol, “come on, it is a special occasion, you are starting a new life with your husband.”
Abril had suspected that Marisol was a cigar smoker when she had met her before, whereas Peyton was always complaining about the smell, Marisol didn’t, in fact she almost seemed to enjoy it when she came to the office. Abril had noticed that when Marisol had entered her office, Marisol’s face almost lit up for a split-second.
“Well, I guess one can’t hurt”, Marisol answered back. She was curious why Abril was so certain that this brand was better than Blackstones.
“That’s the spirit”, Abril said before handing the cigar over to Marisol and getting ready to light her own.
“Wait!” Peyton screamed at the pair. He was surprised he had raised his voice, as was Marisol. He looked down, ashamed of himself for a moment then cleared his throat. “Can you at least smoke outside?”
“Smoking is allowed inside here”, Abril added frankly, and Peyton looked disappointed.
“Please,” he answered back.
Marisol nodded her head and led Abril outside so the pair could smoke the cigars they had.
The pair walked about 30 feet from the apartment complex, near a garbage can with an ashtray, and Marisol turned around and took a look at the complex. “Between the two of us”, she said, lowering her head and starting to whisper, “I think it is a little too small.” She said before laughing a bit.
“Well,” Abril started, thinking, “don’t worry, you both seem happy to be there.” She said then handed Marisol one of the cigars.
“Well Peyton is happy about it”, Marisol said, before looking down at the cigar. Marisol looked at it and her eyes bugged out. “Does that say Chouaib?” She asked, noting the word printed on the cigar.
“Yeah, I smoke Chouaib”, Abril explained before lighting her lighter and taking a puff to get the cigar going. “Here”, she said, handing Marisol the lighter.
Marisol took the lighter, then started shaking her head. “I can’t accept this; they are too expensive. I just can’t.” She explained, then tried to hand the lighter and cigar back over to Abril.
“Nonsense. This is a celebration, you have a new home with a new husband, this is the start of the rest of your life. I insist.” Abril said, while refusing to take the lighter back.
“I, I, how much are these?” Marisol asked, trying to figure out a way out of what she was doing.
“About 40 dollars each.” Abril said frankly, then took her cigar back to her mouth and took another puff. She held it for a second, savoring the taste, then blew it back out, blowing the smoke into the sky. She then looked at Marisol and smiled, “don’t worry, its a gift, enjoy.” Abril exclaimed, then motioned her hand, with the cigar in it towards Marisol, trying to push her forward.
“Well,” Marisol said, sounding unsure of herself, “if you say so”. She then put the cigar in her mouth and wondered if she was ever going to be able to go back to Blackstones after this, not that she would, since it seemed Peyton wanted her to quit completely.
Marisol took a puff, then coughed a little and took the cigar out of her mouth, “I wasn’t expecting it to be so smokey,” she then breathed out to calm down and moved the cigar back to her mouth, she took another, smaller puff and held for a second, before blowing it out. She smiled and looked at Abril, “not bad”, she said.
“Only not bad?” Abril asked, a sly smile on her face. She laughed and took another puff herself before continuing. “I can’t say how it compares to other brands, it is the only type I ever smoked, but, well, I can’t see myself smoking any other type.”
“Well, it is good.” Marisol said back, before laughing herself, then taking another puff. “Excellent,” she exclaimed, smoke coming out of her mouth.
The two smoked in silence for about five minutes before Marisol decided to breech a topic she was afraid was taboo.
“If you don’t mind me asking, Abril, may I call you Abril?” Marisol asked, Abril looked over, the cigar in her mouth and nodded. “Abril, what happened with your parents?” While in silence smoking the cigar, Marisol’s mind had wandered to what Abril had said about her parents and was wondering if there were any warning signs, being a newlywed herself.
Abril looked at Marisol, then looked down, her face growing sad. She took a puff then looked away, almost seeming to hold back tears. “Are you sure?” Abril asked.
Abril’s reaction had made Marisol even more curious, so she nodded her head. Then took a puff of the cigar.
Abril sighed, then started to tell the story.
“My father was a piece of shit.” Abril sighed, then continued. “He was a controlling, evil man who never let my mom, or me have anything. My mom eventually had enough and had to run from him. It was so bad, she left me behind to do it, that is how bad it was, it made a mother abandon her child.” Abril took an angry puff from her cigar, then rolled her eyes, remembering it. “When I turned 18, I left home too, I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.”
Abril, then put her hands down, and calmed down, “the only good thing my father ever did for me was leave his holdings, so I could own an apartment like this, and give it to great people like you and your husband. Well,” Abril paused, and looked at the apartment she was trying to get the couple to rent, “I hope your husband is a good person.”
“What do you mean?” Marisol asked, having just taken a puff of the cigar, and allowing smoke to escape her mouth while she was talking.
“Well, he seemed really mad about the fact you were going to smoke with me, no never mind, it is probably nothing.” Abril tried to push it away and acted innocent.
“What was your first sign your father was, a piece of shit?” Marisol asked back, suddenly a bit worried.
“Let’s see”, Abril said pondering, “I think he was mad that my mother had done, what was it”, Abril took a puff while thinking, “oh yeah, he was mad that my mother used to go to bars with friends before they were married, and he didn’t know.” Abril explained, then looked down at the cigar in her hand, “but I am sure Peyton being mad about you smoking is totally different.”
Marisol took one last puff of the cigar, and even though it was only about halfway done, she put it out on a trashcan with an ashtray, while saving as much of it as she could and looked over at Abril. “We should probably be heading back; I am sure Peyton is a little worried.” Marisol then tried to hand the half-used cigar back to Abril.
“No, keep it”, Abril explained, wavering her hand. She then took one last puff herself and then put her cigar out in the same way. “Like I said, it was a gift.”
The pair reentered the house and Peyton looked over at the pair.
“You were out there a long time, what did you talk about?” He asked Marisol.
“Oh”, Marisol thought for a moment on what to say, “nothing really.”
Peyton let out a small noise that sounded like he was annoyed, but let it go.
“So,” Abril said, trying to defuse the sudden tension in the room, “are you two ready to commit to the house?”
Marisol and Peyton looked at each other, “yes”, they said in unison, both with a bit of anger in their voice. They stared at each other for a moment and then they started to laugh together.
“That’s great. So, you two will need to head to my office sometime in the next week or so, and we will fill out the paperwork to make it official.” Abril said, a big smile on her face. She went to shake Peyton’s hand, and then got to Marisol and while shacking her hand pulled out the other cigar she had brought, “I would like you to have this one as a gift too.”
Marisol was about to decline it, afraid of having almost 80 dollars’ worth of gifts showered on her when beside her, Peyton spoke up.
“She’s fine, she doesn’t need it.” He said.
A look of annoyance came across Marisol’s face and she grabbed the cigar out of Abril’s hand. She looked Abril in the eyes, ignoring her husband, and smiled. “Thank you.” She said to Abril.
“Um, okay.” Abril said, acting shocked. “If you two could please head out, I need to lock this place up.” Abril said and watched the couple leave. As they were almost out, she then shouted one last thing to the couple. “Marisol, contact me if anything good happens, so we can celebrate.” Peyton heard this and started to stomp as he left.
Three months later
Abril was sitting at the desk in her office enjoying a cigar when suddenly the phone on her desk started to ring. She answered it expecting to know who it was.
“Hello, Ms. Moya, its me Peyton Fontane. I’m calling with some sad news.”
“Oh no, did something happen?” Abril answered back, her voice sounding shocked.
“Well, Marisol left me, I was, I was wondering if we could take her name off the lease, we are, we are”, Peyton started to weep on the other end of the line.
“It’s okay”, Abril answered back through the phone, “if there is paperwork you need done, you can come in tomorrow, and we can take care of it.” She answered, knowing what word he was about to say.
“Thank you”, he answered, on the other end Abril could hear him sucking up air, “I’ll be there tomorrow. See you then.” He said, before ending the call.
Abril sighed and took a puff of her cigar when she looked over at her current smoking buddy, Marisol.
“So Marisol”, Abril looked over at her, “your ex just gave me the good news.” Marisol held up the cigar she was smoking to celebrate with Abril and smiled.