is a weekly serial. While it is a work of fiction, it has elements from both my own experiences and stories I’ve heard from various people. The characters, while in some cases inspired by real people, aren’t directly modeled on anyone in particular. I expect there will be inconsistencies and factual errors. I don’t know where it is going, and I’ll probably forget where it’s been. Why am I doing this? To give me an excuse and a deadline for some creative writing and because I thought people might enjoy it. Gozatu!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n\u201cYou got shot, Kepa,\u201d said Maite as she tried to keep her voice level. \u201cYou essentially died. We don\u2019t know what kind of trauma that causes, not just to your body, but more importantly your mind. Unlike Blas, you remember what happened, you remember that bullet piercing your chest, your heart exploding. And yet, here you are, dancing and drinking like nothing happened. Your mind is having a hard time processing things.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kepa pulled himself up so that he too was propped on his pillows. \u201cWhat do I do, then?\u201d he asked, half pleadingly, half accusingly. \u201cYou\u2019re the smart one, how do I fix this?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maite sighed. \u201cI don\u2019t know, Kepa. Ez dakit. We have to be more careful, minimize these traumatic episodes. We can\u2019t be so reckless. Otherwise, our minds will crack and we\u2019ll be useless.\u201d She looked over at Kepa. \u201cOr worse, we\u2019ll lash out at one another.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kepa nodded. \u201cI\u2019m sorry. At the time, it seemed so heroic, so noble to take that bullet, knowing I would just come back when the bubble popped. I didn\u2019t think beyond that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Maite reached over and grabbed Kepa\u2019s hand, giving it a squeeze. \u201cWe\u2019re in this together, and we\u2019ll figure it out, together.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kepa smiled. \u201cTogether,\u201d he said as he pulled Maite over, his lips finding hers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the morning, they found Javi and Julie in the kitchen, breakfast nearly finished.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI hope you like bacon and eggs,\u201d said Javi. \u201cIt\u2019s a bit hardier than what you usually get in the Basque Country but, well, this isn\u2019t the Basque Country. Julie\u2019s already got the coffee ready.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kepa smiled as he took a cup from Julie. \u201cMil esker,\u201d he said. Turning to Javi, he added \u201cAnd bacon and eggs sounds great. I have to admit, I like the big American breakfasts.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, and you need to keep up your strength if you are going to the Grand Canyon,\u201d added Javi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAbout that,\u201d began Maite. \u201cWe\u2019ve decided to skip that part of our trip. We\u2019d rather just hang out here, if you don\u2019t mind.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd miss the Grand Canyon?\u201d asked Javi in bewilderment. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the most awesome things in the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cHave you been there?\u201d asked Kepa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWell, no\u2026\u201d began Javi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have,\u201d interjected Julie, \u201cand it is awesome!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe tried to cram too much into this trip. And, I think we just want some down time after everything,\u201d said Maite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI guess your interview was pretty rough,\u201d said Javi as he dished the bacon and eggs onto four plates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt took more out of me than I expected, that\u2019s for sure,\u201d answered Maite as she sat down.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou are more than welcome to stay here,\u201d said Javi. \u201cI can\u2019t take much more time off of work, though, but if you are comfortable having the place to yourselves, while I\u2019m at work, you are welcome to it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMil esker, cousin,\u201d said Kepa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you get this post via email, the return-to address goes no where, so please write blas@buber.net<\/a> if you want to get in touch with me.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cWhat the hell happened back there Kepa?\u201d asked Maite once they were back at Javi\u2019s place and in their bedroom. Kepa was finishing brushing his teeth while Maite lay in bed, propped up on the pillows. Kepa shrugged and gave her a thin smile. \u201cThat bang from the car took me back. It felt like […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4410,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2640,864],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5224","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adventures-of-maite-and-kepa","category-bubers-basque-story"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/maite-and-kepa-v2-01.png","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2sYNu-1mg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5224","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5224"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5224\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5225,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5224\/revisions\/5225"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4410"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5224"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5224"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buber.net\/Basque\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5224"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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