Mateo steps off the plane into Paraguay. The air is warm and thick. Everything sounds different.
At dinner, Mateo pushes his food around. A cousin slides a plate toward him. He takes a small bite.
'¿Qué es?' the cousin asks. Mateo shakes his head and takes another bite.
Mateo walks through the town, holding his mom's hand. A rooster crows right past him. He pulls her hand tighter.
A dog barks from a doorway. Every sound is new and loud. Mateo keeps walking, eyes wide.
Two kids run up and grab Mateo's hands. They pull him toward a soccer ball. '¡Hermano!' one shouts.
Mateo's eyes go wide. It's his cousin from the photo on the wall. They kick the ball together.
They laugh and kick the ball back and forth. Mateo tries the word again. 'Gracias.'
Mateo sits between his cousins on a bench. An ice pop drips down his wrist. The sun is setting and painting the sky orange.
He looks at his cousins, then at the sky. Then at his ice pop. He smiles.