A Dream Called Home

Reyna invites Cory over for dinner on his birthday. She spends hours cooking chicken mole, the national dish of Mexico, while he and Nathan play games in the dining room. Reyna is pleased to see Cory and Nathan enjoying each other’s company. Cory asks if Reyna received any news about her manuscript, which Jenoyne sent on a second round of submissions to editors. He remains upbeat when she tells him she has not heard from her agent in weeks. She imagines having dinner with Nathan and Cory as a family every night before reminding herself that Cory has a girlfriend.

In the weeks following the birthday dinner, Reyna finds it painful to spend time with Cory. She wants more than friendship, but he seems uninterested in pursuing a romantic relationship with her, pulling away when she tries to kiss him during a movie. Reyna apologizes and wonders if this is the end of their friendship. Mago tells Reyna that Cory is using her to ease his loneliness and suggests giving him an ultimatum. Reyna follows Mago’s advice. She shares her feelings with Cory over the phone and tells him to make a choice. Cory and his girlfriend break up the following day. He tells Reyna he is falling in love with her before leaning in for a kiss.

Reyna’s father briefly lives with her after selling his house in Highland Park and buying one in Adelanto, which is too far to commute to work. Reyna offers her father Nathan’s room, but he insists on sleeping in the unfinished garage. He behaves the same way Reyna did when she lived with Diana, keeping to himself and spending as little time at home as possible. Reyna is hurt when her father makes no effort to connect with Nathan. Nevertheless, the two share pleasant moments together, notably, when he builds a pergola over her patio, which they call a casita, or “small house.” He shares personal information with her, explaining that he ran away from his abusive parents at the age of 17 and learned construction to survive. Reyna recommits to breaking the cycle of domestic violence and child abuse.

As the pergola rises, she thinks about the dream house her father wanted to build for his family in Iguala, which prompted him to move to the US to look for work. She wants to ask her father about his rage, his sadness, and his regrets. More important, she wants to know why he abused his children, when he was himself the victim of abuse. Reyna wants her father to stay with her in the long term to rebuild their relationship. A few days later, however, he announces that he and his wife are moving into their own house in Los Angeles. Reyna realizes that her father once again built her a house—the pergola—but she was the one who built a home.

In a momentous event in Reyna’s career, she receives an offer from an editor with a big publishing house in New York City. Jenoyne relays the changes the editor wants her to make to the manuscript. Reyna is dismayed to learn that he wants her main protagonist to be a US-born Latina, rather than a Mexican immigrant. Her hopes drop further when Jenoyne tells her the editor is not interested in immigrant stories but rather in “Chic Lit,” books about middle-class Latinas who have assimilated into US culture. Reyna hangs up and cries. She calls her agent the next day and declines the offer. Cory tries to comfort Reyna with an outing to her favorite seafood market, but she is too depressed to enjoy the date. A few weeks later, she receives a call from Jenoyne about an offer from Atria Books, a division of Simon and Schuster. The editor, Malaika Adero, reportedly loves Reyna’s manuscript and does not want significant revisions.

Reyna travels to Mexico with Cory to celebrate her book deal. Although she wants him to understand her roots. Doubt creeps in during the taxi ride to Reyna’s aunt’s house. Reyna worries Cory will be put off by the poverty of Iguala. She also fears he will get food poisoning. Reyna’s aunt, uncle, and cousins greet them with enthusiasm, but Cory’s limited Spanish hinders communication. Reyna’s aunt serves chicken mole, giving Cory a drumstick while everyone else gets chicken feet. Cory is surprised by the meatless tamales, but he compliments the food and makes a show of enjoying the meal.

The sleeping arrangements push Cory further out of his comfort zone. Metal springs poke through the mattress, while the pillows are filled with old clothes, rather than foam or feathers. Reyna shows Cory how to fill the bucket for the outdoor toilet and warns him to shake his shoes before putting them on to avoid being stung by scorpions. Cory compares the conditions to camping. The next day, Reyna takes Cory to her father’s old house and to the cemetery to pay their respects to Abuelita Chinta. Reyna’s aunt prepares pigeon for dinner, a delicacy in Iguala. Infatuated by the dead birds, Nathan shoves one at Cory and calls him papa. Reyna and Cory visit her uncle Gary the next day. They leave behind clothes and money, but Reyna wishes she could do more. Cory moves in with Reyna upon their return to LA.