A Cuban émigré returned to the island after seven years away disguised as an alien to surprise his family, and the poignant reunion was captured in a video posted on TikTok that quickly went viral on social media.
The protagonist, identified as @el_hijod_oduwa, arrived in his neighborhood wearing the suit under intense heat. "The suit is going to get really messed up, it's terribly hot," he acknowledged in the video. A neighbor was the first to see him and recognized him immediately.
His mother knew nothing about the surprise visit, although he had previously mentioned to her that he wanted to come for Father's Day. Only his brother was aware, as he was the one who picked him up at the airport.
Upon seeing the alien at the door, the mother reacted with initial shock, but her maternal instinct took over: she launched herself into its arms, crying. "When it spoke, it was a... and it hugged me, and upon hearing my voice, it immediately embraced me," the protagonist recounted.
The reunion with her daughter was especially emotional. The girl had been told that someone would come to bring her some sweets, to keep the surprise a secret. "The girl couldn't believe it; she didn't run to her like a stranger," she recounted.
The man had left his daughter when she was just three years old. She is now ten. "I left my little girl when she was three; she’s now ten, a lot of time has passed, so this highlights the importance for us parents to not be absent in our daughters' lives," he reflected.
He described this trip as the moment he felt a "strong click" with her, acknowledging that, although he cared for her deeply, the separation had defined their bond since she was very young.
This case adds to a consolidated viral trend of emigrated Cubans returning to the island in disguise to surprise their relatives, wearing inflatable dinosaur costumes, Mickey Mouse, bear, rabbit, Stitch, and now alien.
A similar previous case was that of a Cuban who arrived disguised at his mother's house and generated thousands of reactions on social media. Another father dressed as a rabbit to surprise his family with equal emotional weight.
The trend has deep roots in the Cuban migration crisis: approximately 850,000 Cubans arrived in the United States in the three years prior to September 2024, leaving behind entire families for years.
The combination of humor —the absurdity of the disguise— and genuine emotion —the tears and surprise of the family members— explains why these videos resonate so deeply with the Cuban community both on the island and abroad.
"My mom was so happy, poor thing, she couldn't believe it, and I was even more delighted," the protagonist concluded in his story.
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