Anibal de la Luna is a regular kind of guy who's moved to Los Angeles in part to leave his Puerto Rican culture behind.

On a rainy night he meets up with a pregnant hitchhiker, Celestina del Sol, who claims to be 54 (but looks much younger) and who says she's been pregnant for two years. Her special ability? She can slow down time. He offers her refuge.

Cloud Tectonics, a love story in one act written by Obie-award winning playwright, José Rivera, is making its Houston premiere courtesy of Mildred's Umbrella. Artistic Director Jennifer Decker says she's been wanting to do this production for ten years, but only now have the right actors (Patricia Duran and Greg Dean, founding members of Mildred's Umbrella) returned to Houston.

A further plot twist is that Celestina is on a journey of discovery. "She's looking for the father of her baby but she has no idea how old he is because it feels like a few days for her but it could have been 40 years for him," Decker says. "When she hooks up with Anibal they're in his apartment for one night but it's been two years for everyone else."

Decker, who also teaches college English,promises that the story should appeal to general audiences 12 and up and anyone who loves English literature.

"It's just like fairy tales or anything else," she says. "It's sort of fascinating to think that a miracle can happen and everyone's hoping that it'll happen to them. And this is a love story between two people who are from different worlds. As far as the magic, it's fascinating to think that there could be someone who's on a different plane of existence than everyone else."

Cloud Tectonics runs January 22 through February 7 with performances at 8 p.m. Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Monday. Studio 101, Spring Street Studios, 1824 Spring Street. Call 832-463-0409 or visit mildredsumbrella.com. $12 students. $20 general admission. Pay what you can Monday, February 2.