Caray, Caray!

Alternate Title: Ivan’s Worst Day Ever (he loses his mom, his sibling, his baby, and his girl)

Maripaz has just presented the mathematically inclined Ivan with this equation: Going at it like bunnies x 5 x every day x the .3% chance of failure of birth control pills = BABY!!!!

Maripaz tearfully tells the shell-shocked Ivan that she’s pregnant and wants an abortion (aborto). Ivan wants her to take a few steps back. Is she sure (yep, she’s almost three months late); wasn’t she taking the pills (yep, see failure rate above); let’s go to the pharmacy and get a pregnancy test, and then we’ll see. She asks him to buy the test, and then falls tearfully into his arms. He tells her not to worry and that everything will be alright. Maripaz’s face tells us she’s VERY worried.

At the factory, Ivan lines up with the other employees and collects his last pay of the summer. His padrino Silvestre tells him he can come back to work for him anytime during his vacations from university to make money for school. He makes a bee line for the pharmacy.

The EPT tells Maripaz exactly what she suspected but didn’t want to hear- she’s preggers. Ivan’s mom must know someone who can do the abortion, like a curandera (traditional healer). Ivan warns her that it’s too dangerous and asks her if she knows how many women die because of illegal abortions. Maripaz doesn’t care. She’d rather die than live with the shame. Doesn’t he know what her friends will say? Ivan doesn’t give a damn what her friends think. The only things that matter are the baby and her. Maripaz doesn’t give a gosh darn about the baby! She wants him to do something, ‘cause he’s responsible too.

Ivan has a talk later on the lawn with Pipo, who doesn’t have any ideas either. Alicia cheerfully walks up to Ivan to tell him about her approved “vacation” for a few days to go to the festival of San Francisco. It’s not a problem for Alicia that he’s busy with school and can’t go with her. She nags him a bit about eating well while she’s away. Since she’s leaving early in the morning before he wakes, they say their farewells, she blesses him, and they share their special mother-son farewell gesture. Ivan asks her so say a prayer for him to San Francisco. They both look like they need extra prayers as they give each other a last hug.

As night falls, Maripaz paces her room wondering what to do. Lucia comes in wondering why her big sis won’t eat dinner and is acting so strange. She (happily) assumes that it’s because Mari has had a fight with Ivan. Maripaz declares there is NOTHING between her and Ivan (except that pesky baby). She yells some more at Luci to get out when she offers to get her some medicine for her “stomach ache.” (le duele el estómago/la panza/el vientre)

At the dinner table, Lucrezia is ticked that Mama Carlota let their slave, uh, servant, Alicia off for vacation. When Mama C won’t allow that to turn into a fight, she turns her sights on her daughter. She’s going to go see what could possibly be keeping Mari away from this harmonious family dinner.

In the servants’ quarters, Ivan tearfully remembers Mari’s words about wanting to abort his baby, and pounds on his bed in despair and desperation. Mari is also in her bed wallowing in despair, although more quietly, when Grandma Carlota peeks in on her.

The next morning, Alicia says farewell to cheery Cleto who wishes her a good vacation. She stops off in the church before leaving, and prays to the Lord to forgive her for the huge sin (grave pecado) she’s about to commit. She loves Gerry, and doesn’t want to cause him any trouble. If his family found out she was pregnant, or Ivan, she doesn’t even want to think about it. She begs God to please let her be reunited with this baby in heaven, and to ask him to forgive her for what she’s going to do, or send her the punishment she deserves.

Ivan stalks the main house waiting for Maripaz to emerge. When Luci emerges instead, he admits to her that yes, he and Mari broke up. But he wants to remain on good terms with her and wants to talk to her. He asks Luci to relay a message to Mari to meet him in the garden. She reluctantly agrees.

Maripaz is meanwhile being pressured to go to the fancy pants party with Mom and Grandma. She begs off and avoids eating once again. They leave in time for Luci to relay Ivan’s message.

Alicia walks cautiously up to a colorful, pink and yellow house. A little girl comes to the door and guides Alicia to the woman she’s come to see.

Who is exactly the woman Maripaz wants to see right now. Ivan tells her that he did not ask his mom about a partera (midwife). He doesn’t feel that a child is ever a burden/hindrance (estorbo). For her, it is. She’s too young. A baby will ruin her life. Ivan does not agree. There are plenty of women her age that get ahead in life, WITH a child. Maripaz is NOT one of those women. Ivan reminds her that she’s talking about their (“our”) baby. He understands how she’s feeling, and he’s feeling pretty rotten too, but he doesn’t think abortion is the solution. Plus, an abortion in one of those dirty places would not only result in the death of the baby, but probably also her death. Or it could go badly and she would never be able to have children. Maripaz starts channeling Mama Lucrezia’s hysterics. She sees Ivan is going to be stubborn about it and won’t help her. If that’s the case, then she’ll just take rat poison or throw herself off the balcony! She stalks off, and screams at, and pushes Ivan when he tries to stop her.

At the curandera’s house, Alicia waits and listens nervously to the screams of the woman ahead of her.

Lucrezia screeches at Ivan to wash the car while Luci tries to get the scoop from him on what happened in his talk with Maripaz. LuScreechia continues her rant about Ivan indoors. He’s uppity and no one seems to notice except her. Oh woe is Lucrezia! Carlota tells her she’s the only one who likes to make a huge deal about class distinctions. Lucrezia doesn’t care. Ivan is a Mr. Nobody (Don Nadie).

Luci bops into moping Maripaz’s room wondering if she and Ivan have broken up. Maripaz yells that he’s a liar and a coward (mintiroso y cobarde) and orders Luci out. Luci’s happy that they’re broken up, because Mari doesn’t deserve him!

In the garden, Ivan paces, and seems to make a decision. He runs into the house and takes a moment to stare at the portrait of his look-alike grandfather. He approaches the LuCrazya Monster and tells her he needs to speak to her about something really important. He then shows that he is either crazy, or has found those spare set of balls that Lucrezia chopped off Gerry. He asks for permission for him and Maripaz to marry. Lucrezia smiles! Actually smiles for the first time. But only because she thinks he’s joking.

That smile gets turned upside down really quickly when he comes right out and tells her he knocked up her daughter. The Omen music goes full swing.

Alicia’s moaning in pain on the bed as the curandera cleans up after the abortion. It wasn’t easy to get the baby out, she informs Alicia. She’ll be in pain for a while and she’ll give her something for the pain. Also, she must rest for a few days. Alicia cries out to her baby and begs its forgiveness.

Ah, back to Lu-Crazy-a. She accuses Ivan of taking advantage (aprovechar) of her daughter (snort, giggle) and slaps him around. Her screams bring Gerry running, who has to physically restrain her from scratching Ivan’s eyes out, while she threatens to have Ivan thrown in jail. Now Carlota joins the fun.

Gerry hustles Ivan out the door for a man to man talk. How could he do this? Ivan tries to explain about young love and all that. He’ll quit school and work hard to support Maripaz. Gerry wonders if they used protection (snort, giggle, you’re one to talk…). Ivan takes all the blame. Gerry wrings his hands and wonders whatever will they do?

Ivan got it easy dealing with No-Balls Gerry, because Maripaz is now being confronted by Mama Lu-Crazy-a and Grandma Carlota. Lucrezia throws Mari on the bed and is about to slap the baby out of her, when Carlota stops her.

Maripaz has her back against the wall (literally and figuratively) when Lu-crazy-a accuses her of getting pregnant by Ivan. She tries to save her hide by saying Ivan raped her! Lu-crazy-a is ready to kill the bastard, but Grandma Carlota is way smarter than either her daughter or granddaughter. She asks how far along Mari is. Three months along means that Ivan supposedly raped her right when they began her driving lessons. And she continued to take driving lessons with him after he raped her? Uh huh, that makes sense. “He threatened me!” Yeah right. You were SOOO scared all these months. Carlota knocks down Mari’s lie pretty quickly and declares BOTH horny teenagers are to blame. Gerry arrives to tell them that Ivan says that they are in love. Maripaz informs them all that SHE does NOT love Ivan. Carlota tells it like it is and basically calls her granddaughter a slut. “You just had sex with him to amuse yourself!”

This is the last straw for Lu-Crazy-a. She calls her favorite daughter a sinverguenza (shameless). Carlota wants them to move on to thinking of solutions. Lucrezia is decided. No way will she let this pregnancy go to term so that everyone can see the shame her idiot (estupida) daughter has brought to their family. Gerry thinks marriage is the solution. Over Lucrezia’s dead body!

They take the argument to the living room. Gerry thinks an abortion is dangerous. Lucrezia thinks they can find a doctor to do it. Carlota is not on board with the abortion idea. Anyway, it’s illegal. Luci comes in wondering what all the fuss is about. She’s hustled out with a promise to tell her later. Carlota has a third option—adoption. They’ll send the girls away for a year. Lucrezia wants to know how they’ll explain the girls being away, but Carlota points out there aren’t too many other options. They’ll say the girls are studying in the States.

In the garden Ivan also won’t tell Luci what’s going on, but begs her to ask Mari to meet him. She finds Mari rocking in near fetal position on her bed. She refuses to speak with Ivan.

On a street corner, Alicia looks like death and struggles with her suitcase. She ditches her suitcase, manages to make it to Celia’s house, and asks to stay a few days.

Grandma Carlota explains to Luci that she, Luci and Maripaz will be leaving in a few days on a trip and won’t be back the whole school year. She tactfully tells her that Ivan and Mari fell in love and did something that a young woman (I guess men are excluded) shouldn’t do before getting married. Luci’s no baby and no fool. She knows that means they made love. She’s impactada to learn her big sis is pregnant with Ivan’s baby.

Celia puts Alicia in bed and asks what happened to her. Alicia admits she saw a woman who took out her baby (sacar el chamaco). Celia is shocked, points out that Alicia said she was being careful and wonders why Alicia didn’t tell Gerry. Alicia tells her about not wanting to cause Gerry any more problems. Celia wonders what the heck Alicia was thinking. She’s acting like a silly young girl (chamaca tonta). Alicia thinks something went wrong in the abortion. She doesn’t want Ivan to know, but Celia is really worried and crying because Alicia looks really ill. Alicia refuses to let Celia get anyone. She convulses in pain and raises a bloody hand from where she was clutching herself.

In the garden, Luci confronts Ivan about not telling her the truth about making love to and impregnating Maripaz. She tells him it’s his fault that now she and her sister will have to go away. “When? Where?!” Luci runs off without giving him any more info.

Alicia is bleeding and burning up with fever. She still refuses to let Celia get help. Celia tells her that if she gets worse, she will have Silvestre take her to the Red Cross (Cruz Roja). Alicia cries for her baby’s forgiveness.

Ivan sneaks into the main house and into Maripaz’s room. He wants to talk, but she doesn’t. She still wants the abortion. He wants them to run away and elope. She scornfully lets him know she will not marry the son of a servant. Well, it wasn’t important to her before (you know, when they were doing it like wild monkeys). She gets in his face and makes it very clear (using lots of those Laisha W ‘r’ rolls) that it doesn’t matter how hard he works, or how successful he becomes, he will always be the son of a lowly woman (gata).

Ivan gets the message loud and clear, but wants to know what will happen to HIS baby. Mari says it’s not even a baby. It’s just a lump (bulto) that she’s going to abort. She tells him to get the hell out.

He then runs into Lucrezia, who also tells him to get the hell out, in an even nastier tone than her daughter. She wants him and his mother to disappear. Ivan’s fine with that, but decides to play a little hard ball too. If Maripaz aborts the baby, then he’ll make sure the whole town knows what happened. (Oh, snap!) Lucrezia watches him talk to Cleto by the gate before he leaves. She then questions Cleto about what he said (only that he’s leaving and to let his mom know when she returns from vacation), and where he’s going (to his madrina Celia’s house). Lucrezia wants the address.

Ivan packs his things and speaks to a sympathetic Pipo about how he loved Mari but she just used him.

Lucrezia calls her corrupt ranch manager Leandro, complaining about how Ivan insulted and threatened her. She wants Leandro to find some boys to teach Ivan a lesson. She’ll pay him well later.

Ivan leaves Pipo in Cleto’s care until he can find a good place for him and his trusty dog. Pipo whines and cries as Ivan leaves. Ivan walks the town streets and remembers Mari’s words of scorn. He punches and kicks a wall to vent his anger.

Celia finds Alicia in a worsened weakened state. She runs to the door, thinking her husband or sons have returned and can help, but finds Ivan at the front gate. He’s surprised to find her there since she’s supposed to be at the San Francisco festival with his mom. She admits all to him about the abortion and his mom being in bad shape. Ivan rushes to her side. Alicia reacts when she hears him call to her. She didn’t think God would grant her the miracle (milagro) of letting her see him one last time. Celia runs to get a taxi and Ivan tries to convince his mom that she’ll be alright. She knows it’s not true. This is her punishment (castigo). Ivan wants to know who knocked her up.

Outside Celia desperately tries to find a taxi as Leandro lurks around the corner with a goon.

Ivan wants to know if it was his father who impregnated her again, but Alicia denies it and refuses to tell him. She doesn't want vengeance. She has another spasm and reaches out to caress his face. He’s so handsome; so intelligent. She is sure that he will succeed/triumph in life. She takes off her silver rosary and places it in his hand. She clasps his hand, with the rosary between their two palms. Ivan begs to go outside with his madrina to find a taxi to take her to the hospital. Alicia makes him promise that he will become an engineer, and be a good, honorable man. He promises and she asks for a kiss. He kisses her tenderly on the forehead. She looks at his face, smiles, and does their special mother-son farewell gesture one last time. Her hand slowly falls back onto the sheet.

Celia is still outside screaming for a taxi. She finally gets one to stop and runs back inside. The goons await their opportunity to attack Ivan.

Celia enters the room in time to hear from Ivan that Alicia is dead. He gently cradles the body of his beloved mother in his arms.

Previews: Ivan gets the stuffing beat out of him and Alicia is buried.

Labels: Fuerza