I'm coming home,

I'm coming home,

Tell the world I'm coming home.

Let the rain wash away, all the pain of yesterday,

I know my kingdom awaits, and they've forgiven my mistakes.

I'm coming home, I'm coming home

Tell the world that I'm coming...


"WELCOME HOME, DORITO!" The mass of people shouted to me, as we turned into the driveway to park the car.

My face lit up, and my heart started beating faster! I couldn't believe that everyone had gone out of their way to throw a homecoming party for me! I wasn't expecting this, at all! As I was opening my car door, closest to the house, my mom ran straight over and greeted me with the tightest hold I'd ever gotten in my life.

"Ay, welcome home hijito! I've missed you so much!" she exclaimed, gripping me tighter with each word.

"Aww ma, I've missed you too."

"I've missed having someone to yell at for wrecking everything. Your dad's getting sick of me yelling at him, ha!"

"Haha mama, I see that you haven't lost your character yet!" I replied, as she released me from the "death grip", she'd held me in.

"Not yet, hijo, not yet," She chuckled, ushering me into the house. "Why don't you go inside and get changed, while I finish preparing your feast?"

Feast? Now that news was on a par with my freedom!

I swung open the red, creaky door, and grinned, whilst I wondered into the kitchen to find out what that arousing smell was. I couldn't believe my eyes! There was tray after tray of food, as far as the eye could see: barbequed shrimps, ribs, rice, burgers, hot dogs, and chicken salad... everything you could ever want really! I was beginning to think that no-one had eaten since I'd been jailed!

"Yo Dorito! Glad to see ya back!" An instantly recognisable, loud voice shrilled from the leather sofa, which sat at the other side of the open-planned room. I moved my focus away from the mounds of food, and zoomed in on my cousin Chris. That guy had changed so much in five short years!

He'd lost all this puppy fat, had grown about five inches taller, got rid of his "hipster" style glasses, cleared up his skin, let his hair grow out , styled his beard and had finally got a himself a sense of style.

I made my way over to the free space beside him and sat down between him and my other cousin, Rosanna. I grabbed a Tequila beer from the ice-filled bucket beside Chris, and began a casual convo with him.

"You've changed so much Chris! What's the secret to your new ethic?!"

"Heh, nothin really. I've jus' started to get off my ass and do things now."

"HA, good answer! Are you on a diet, or an exercise regime?!"

'No, I just started hangin' out with Javek and Nayden again. I also got myself a job down at Pedro's studio, editin' stuff for him."

"Nice. I'm glad to see that you got a life when I was locked up inside the inferno."

"I know this is hard to believe cuz, but you actually inspired me to change when ya got brought down. I didn't wanna end up behind bars for witnessin' some crap I wasn't involved in. I decided to start livin', 'fore I couldn't do it anymore. Your sentence was the milk to my coffee that made me realise there was more to life than thugggin' 'bout everyday."

"I dunno what to say to that Chris, only that I'm glad my jail term inspired you to become a better person."

"So, how was jail?"

"Terrible. They pushed me too far over nothing, but now I'm unleashed, no-one can take away this beast's freedom. He's gonna grab the bull by its horns, and fight for what's right this time 'round, even it means causin' some chaos for justice."

"I'm glad to hear that man; 'cause whatever they been feedin' ya in there's worked wonders on you! How the heck did ya keep so fit and sane in there?!"

"I became a vegetarian."

"Was the food really that bad?!"

"Nah, I chose to dine that way, because vegetarian convicts got slightly bigger portions than the meateaters to fill 'em up the same."

"Oh, how come?!

"Veggies don't eat meat, so they need to substitute it for somethin' with protein that weighs 'round the same, but is usually larger due to the fact that it's plant based and the plant grows in various sizes, depending on the conditions, instead of a cut of a certain meat of which the animals are roughly the same size."

'Ah, I see. That’s very clever dude."

"Wanna know anything else, before I go and get changed into somethin' more comfy lil c?"

"Nah cuz, imma let ya get ready first, then grill ya afterwards."

"Heh Chris, you never fail to crack me up, even after all this time!"

"Ha, I know."

"Wanna help me pick a nice shirt for the reunion?" I asked, jumping off the seat with my half empty beer bottle, I'd been slowly sipping throughout our detailed convo.

"Sure, 'jus pull me up!" He chuckled, sticking his hand out to me, so I could force him out of his comfort zone.

"Your parts are so much easier to pull around!" I smirked, approaching the bottom of the stairs.

"I know, that's what she said!"

"Haha you dirty-"

The second we were about to climb the stairs, when some kid who was running straight past us, at smashed right into Chris and spilled his beer. He didn't look very happy about it.

"YO KID! WATCH WERE YA GOIN NEXT TIME!"

The little kid froze in his tracks and stared at Chris with the most adorable puppy eyes.

"I-i'm sorry Senor, I-i won't let it happen again!" He bawled in his cute accent. Chris let out a little grin, and pat him on his head.

"It's ok, lil man, I know you didn't mean it, but try be a lil careful next time you decide to run past grown men holding drinks in their hands. D'ya understand?"

I knew that he couldn't stay mad at the little critter for long...

"Y-yes I do" He nodded, before fading back into the background. Chris just shrugged at me.

"So, I guess that I have to borrow one of your shirts. D'ya have any baggy ones?"

"I think so. Do you care for the color?"

"Not really, as long as it covers up my ass cheeks, then I'm fine."

"Heh. Ok then."

I led the way up the stairs, and opened the old wooden door into my room. I was gobsmacked at how little it had changed. Everything was in the exact same place. My double bed cover was perfectly preserved, the magazine I was reading the night before my sentence was still open at that raunchy page I'd left it at, nothing was moved from my desktop, my home entertainment system was all in one piece, and even that half eaten bar of luxury chocolate that my cousin Hector gave me for my 22nd birthday looked legit!

"Nothing's changed so far cuz, has it?!"

"Just like your sex life!"

"Very funny, Dorito." He glared at me, while I plundered through my drawers for something we could both wear. I came across my favourite pink shirt, long grey chinos, light blue converse, and a brown leather belt for myself, followed by a stylish purple checkered shirt for Chris.

I sat everything on my bed, and noticed a very well-presented looking box on my bed. There was an immaculately written note attached onto the front of the box. The box wasn’t there two minutes pervious.

Curious, I lifted it up to see who it was from. I found no name, just an “x” in the bottom right hand corner of the card. I was totally baffled by the marks of my past. My suspicious arose when I noticed Chris smiling at himself in the mirror.


"Yo Chris, April Fools was last month.”

“That ain’t from me, man. I’m not that nice of a person.”

“Do you know who it might be from?”

“No idea, man. I guess you gonna have to ask ‘bout.”

“Oh well, I’ll open it up and have a look ‘round the box. It might surprise you what clues people leave behind without even realising that they’re doing it.”

“True.”

I carefully opened the front of the box, gently lifting the white flaps up, so that I wouldn’t tear them apart. I was very shocked to see my old straw hat, from that summer night seven years ago, wedged between two unknown items wrapped in black paper.

 I lifted up my hat out of the box, and watched as another note fell from the inside of the hat. I sighed and thought to myself; “Damn, someone is really having fun playing with my mind!” If Chris wasn’t shitting about with me, then who was?!

I read the second letter, as I firmly tightened the hat onto my head of spikey bed hair. My heart started to flutter, when I realised that she hadn’t forgotten about me, after all those years we spent apart:

Dear Doritokins,

I found your hat at the back of my closet, when I was cleaning it out. I just want to thank you so much for that fabulous summer we had together...  All the drinking, dancing, singing, and joking around! It really drew us closer than ever to each other. You filled a gigantic hole in my heart! I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you, through your trials and tribulations. No other man has satisfied me the way you have! We’ve had this inseparable bond, ever since kindergarten. I get mad when you get mad, and deep inside, I feel heartbreak when you do. I just want to see your pretty face again. I just want to touch them soft lips, and grab your spikey, dark hair, (even if it’s our last night together).

I heard about your homecoming, and I am bitterly disappointed that I never got an opportunity to attend it, due to my heavy workload. I got Javek to deliver the box over. I won’t be out of work until at least half nine, but I have been invited downtown to my sister Lea’s 26th birthday party, down by Calle Ocho. I would be more than delighted if you could make it by 11 (if you are going). I heard that Eddie’s going to DJ ‘til 6 in the morning! Until then, I hope you enjoy the pleasure of wearing your old straw hat, and protecting yourself from the sun’s harmful rays.

Kamy xo

….