身在高地

Sigue andando el camino por toda su vida

Respira

Breathe

Y si pierdes mis huellas que Dios te bendiga

Respira

This is my street

I smile at the faces

I've known all my life

Hey, Nina. Como estás?

They regard me with pride

And everyone's sweet

They say, "You're going places"

So how can I say that while I was away

I had so much to hide?

Hey, Nina!

Hey, guys, it's me

The biggest disappointment you know

The kid couldn't hack it

She's back and she's walkin' real slow

Welcome home

Just breathe

Sigué andando el camino por toda su vida

Respira

Just breathe

Y si pierdes mis

huellas, que Dios te bendiga

Respira

As the radio plays

Old forgotten boleros

I think of the days when this city was mine

I remember the praise

"Ay, te adoro, te quiero"

Te adoro

The neighborhood waved and said

"Nina, be brave and you're gonna be fine"

Te quiero, respira

And maybe it's me

But it all seems like lifetimes ago

Respira

So what do I say to these faces That I used to know?

"Hey, I'm home?"

Mira, Nina

Hey...

No me preocupo por ella

They're not worried about me

Mira, alli está nuestra estrella

They are all counting on me to succeed

Ella si da la talla

I am the one who made it out!

The one who always made the grade

But maybe I should have just stayed home

Mira, Nina

When I was a child, I stayed wide awake

Climbed to the highest place

On every fire escape

Restless to climb

Respira

I got every scholarship

Saved every dollar

The first to go to college

How do I tell them why

Respira

I'm coming back home?

With my eyes on the horizon

Just me and GWB

Asking, "Gee, Nina

What will you be?"

Straighten the spine

Smile for the neighbors

Everything's fine

Everything's cool

The standard reply

Lots of tests, lots of papers

Smile, wave goodbye

And pray to the sky, oh, God

And how do I dare to say?

Nina

Can I go in there and say

Nina

I know that I'm letting you down

Nina!

Just...

Breathe

The reality of an elite school...

it's no joke, Pop.

Yeah, when I left, y'all were, like,

"It's gonna be great. Go show 'em who we are. Go represent."

The truth is...

is that most of the time I'm at Stanford feels like a betrayal.

De verdad? Of who?

Of my family.

My community.

Like the dean, he invited me to this diversity dinner.

Super-wealthy donors, trustees, the whole nine.

And I wore this black cocktail dress and I was walking to my seat,

and one of the patrons shoved her plate into my arms

and said, "I ordered the vegetarian option."

No. -Yeah.

And all the servers, all Latino, shot me this look,

like, "Ooh, what's this trigueña gonna do?"

"Ooh, what's she gon' do? Is she with us? Or is she with them?"

Ah, bueno. There's no shame in waiting tables.

And there's no shame in having a different path.

Like you.

Dad... the deadline passed.

The extension on spring tuition.

Yeah. -But I didn't receive notice.

Yeah, they let me finish off my classes, but we owe them.

No, don't you give it a second thought. I'm on it. Hm?

Dad...

The deadline to pay and enroll for next semester also passed.

How come you know about all this before I do?

I switched the info. I gave the finance office my dorm address.

Well, why would you do that?

Because you sold half the business, and it barely covered freshman year.

I don't want you doing something else crazy.

Espera , that sale pulled us out of debt. -No, no.

You and I both know that finances were tenuous before getting into this.

And this might not be feasible.

I'm gonna call them right now. -Dad, Stanford's over.

Stop overreacting, Nina, please.

Dad, I'm serious. -Oye!

You don't tell me how much we can afford.

You're not the parent. Hm?

God bless you. Dios te bendiga.

Gracias!

What's all over those pipes?

Rust. -Rust?

Lovely.

That's the roof.

On the floor?

Ay, Usnavi.

Tu eres un workaholic.

You think it will be different in the Dominican Republic?

Just like my mamá.

Morning and night, year after year... to what end?

To wake up and scrub another floor till the day she died.

Yeah, but... here I work to survive.

El Sueñito will be a labor of love.

The bodega was only supposed to be temporary,

but now... I'm like, almost 30.

The plan was always to go back.

Hopefully, I won't be going alone.

You, me and Sonny?

Y Sonny? Is he on board?

He's my next ask.

I'm not going without him.

Look, I got Sonny.

You know I can't go nowhere without you.

I took care of my community, no?

Hell, yes!

El Sueñito 2.0.

The tropical air'll keep you young, girl!

Caramba , buy me a bikini!

Let's go!

I don't know, man. Leave Washington Heights?

I'd have to talk to my dad...

You're just a kid.

You don't even know. For real.

Dominican Republic's gonna blow your mind.

Look...

You do you. It's all good. But don't be roping me into your thing.

Yo...

Beach.

Merengue . Carnaval.

Summer all year 'round.

Who's gonna greet you in DR?

Some cousin you saw two Christmases ago?

Best days of my life were there.

That's the corniest thing I've ever heard.

You came here when you was eight.

You got... "island memories."

Not me. I was in Pampers on that plane.

NYC's my spot.

I got my island, okay? Go get yours.

Don't forget how you got your name.

Yo... -Just, fix the fridge.

Yeah, all right. Bro, you think you're funny?

What's "Usnavi" mean, anyway?

That sounds weird.

No, it doesn't.

All right. All right, all right, all right. - Shut up.

On my dad's first trip to Nueva York...

he saw a passing ship on the horizon.

And... he was, like, "Wow, that's gonna be my son's name."

Usnavi! - Ohh...

Usnavi...

I like it.

Thank you.

Hi, Mr. Rosario? -Yes, yes, I'm here.

Yes, I'm not sure the information you received was correct.

In actuality, we're still accepting tuition payments up until June.

So the deadline hasn't passed?

No, it has not passed. Would you like to know the remaining balance?

Yes. I have a pencil.

Sure, the balance that's due for the fall semester...

Now, remember, the block was disappearing.

Exhibit A: Daniela's salon.

Moving in a week, after decades of makeovers,

the skin-deep kind and the emotional kind.

No one could fill her shoes.

Literally, they were like four inches high.

He doesn't have an apartment. He doesn't pay rent anywhere.

He's bouncing between two girls' houses.

Of course he is. -Mm-hm. Mm-hm. Mm-hm.

You know what? It's mad we allow ourselves to be hurt.

We need to have a better standard. -That's what I'm saying.

Tres paradas... pickety, packety, poom,

.and you're at the new spot.

I'm too old, and the Bronx is too far.

Que voy a hacer? I was priced out.

Most of my clients already up and moved to the Grand Concourse.

Hey, built in customers.

My lunch break isn't long enough for that trip, Dani.

Jessica...

One: swipe the fare card.

Two: ride three stops.

Three: arrive at my new location.

Ten minutes max.

Ten minutes? Cariño.

What are you riding, a time machine?

Excuse me?

No, she didn't, right?

Our people survived slave ships.

We survived Taino genocide.

We survived conquistadores and dictators. -Si.

You're telling me we can't survive the D Train to the Grand Concourse?

Okay, okay, okay.

And who cuts your hair better than me?

Hello, hello... How long's the wait?

For you, mamita , front of the line! Oye!

Emergency, coming through!