Mateo Fernando Aquino Liwanag

**Mateo Fernando Aquino Liwanag** was a sales associate at Cloud 9 Store #1217 in St. Louis, Missouri. After his detention ordeal, Mateo eased in as an executive assistant to Amy Sosa, the then-Store Manager. Mateo continued to be an executive assistant for Glenn and Dina. He is Filipino, was born on August 17, 1995 and raised in Manila, Philippines. He moved to America with his grandmother. He is an undocumented citizen and is gay. He is very competitive and will do most anything to get ahead. He is portrayed by actor Nico Santos.

## Character History

### Season One

Mateo and Jonah start their first day at the store together and Mateo is immediately competitive with Jonah. He demonstrates that he will do almost anything to get ahead including putting others down. When the Cloud 9 "Stratus" magazine reporter Cynthia visits the store, Mateo is jealous when Jonah and Cynthia have a fling and he propositions Cynthia even though he is gay. He volunteers to man a salsa sample booth and affects a Mexican accent even though he is Filipino. He handles shift assignments when Amy is busy and takes revenge on all staff who have offended him. Mateo competes with Cheyenne for the right to buy a discounted sofa that a man died on. When it appears that a secret shopper may be sent to the store, Mateo says Garrett is a rapist in front of an attractive customer he is interacting with. Later, he is chased by a runaway forklift down an aisle which is filmed by the secret shopper. During the store's sales competition, Mateo is on Team Red and literally twists Cheyenne's arm and finds out that the winning team members get $100 each. Mateo helps a gay couple and reveals to Glenn that he's gay. Glenn asks his help in creating a display for gay marriages. He reacts when Glenn creates an opening for the display that is "too gay". When Dina steps down as assistant manager, Mateo works on a presentation for the position. Garrett leads him astray and he gives the presentation too late in an Uncle Sam outfit. When Cheyenne goes into what will later be shown as false labor, Mateo runs to get towels but gets distracted with the selection. Mateo is part of the staff who walkout in protest over Glenn being fired.

"Pilot": Glenn welcomes new employees Jonah Simms and Mateo to the store. Mateo is immediately competitive with Jonah.

"Magazine Profile": Mateo says Jonah will "spread his legs" just to get an article written about him in the Cloud 9 magazine "Stratus" but later, Mateo sexually propositions the Stratus reporter Cynthia even though he is gay.

"Shots and Salsa": Mateo volunteers to man a salsa sample booth but when Glenn finds out he is Filipino, he picks Carmen instead. Mateo helps Larry with his toothbrush selection and after Carmen is hurt, he mans the salsa sample booth and speaks with a Mexican accent. He can't stop speaking with the accent even when Amy tries to get him to. He dances with Amy as Dina plays guitar. He accuses Jonah of ageism when he lets an elderly woman cut line at the Pharmacy.

"Mannequin": Mateo is part of the group of staff who makes fun of Jonah with a mannequin that looks like him in the Break Room. Mateo uses the mannequin to say Jonah pretends to like jazz so that people will think he is cultured. Later in the Break Room, he isn't interested when Amy talks about all the other poses she put the mannequin in. He takes over the shift assignments and takes revenge on all staff who have offended him in some way by assigning them to freezer duty.

"Shoplifter": Mateo competes with Cheyenne for the right to buy a discounted sofa that elderly customer Charles died on. He is shown to be an excellent fake crier and isn't grossed out when Cheyenne details the birthing process to get him to leave. Later, he laughs at his phone as Cheyenne sleeps sitting up. He and Cheyenne are distressed when they find out the sofa has to be destroyed and watch as it is lit on fire by Jonah.

"Secret Shopper": Mateo brags that he wants a secret shopper to be sent to the store as he scored 93% on the corporate policy test. When it appears that a secret shopper may be sent to the store, Mateo says Garrett is a rapist in front of an attractive customer he is interacting with in order that he might help her instead in case she is the secret shopper. Garrett tells him that the secret shopper could be an employee so he starts watching staff in the Surveillance Office. He suspects the shopper may be Jonah and tells Glenn. He buys meatballs intending to give them to Jonah but Garrett takes them and sends him out to buy cake. Later, he is chased by a runaway forklift down an aisle which is filmed by the secret shopper.

"Colour Wars": When Garrett notices that the Gold Team is working hard at selling and doesn't know why, Mateo offers to find out. He literally twists Cheyenne's arm until she spills the secret that each member of the winning team gets $100. He takes one of Jonah's customers and sells him an expensive coffee maker. In the Break Room after the competition is over and Team Gold won, Garrett has switched to the winning team which Garrett points out.

"Wedding Day Sale": Mateo is seen decorating an archway with roses for the store's wedding day sale. Mateo helps a gay couple, Andy and Russell and reveals to Glenn that he's gay. Glenn asks his help in creating a display for gay marriages. Mateo compliments Glenn on being open minded and as they talk about Jesus, Mateo goes too far for Glenn and suggests that Jesus might have been gay. When Glenn shows the gay marriage display to Andy and Russell, Mateo believes he's gone too far.

"All-Nighter": Mateo says that he had sex in the Photo Lab. During a game of "never have I ever", Mateo indicates he's eaten human flesh and regrets not saving his brother Rodrigo. He applies make-up to Dina for her encounter with Jonah in the Photo Lab.

"Demotion": Garrett sees Mateo making a presentation for the vacant assistant manager position which includes pictures of how Mateo would look as a lion, dolphin, ant and rabbit. Garrett gives him misleading advice such as the presentation needs a talent portion. His presentation turns into a life story which Garrett says he needs to make "sizzle". Mateo adds a rap portion to the presentation which Garrett says can be "more street" and can be "bigger". Wearing an Uncle Sam outfit and with sparklers, he gives the presentation too late to Amy and Glenn.

"Labour": When Cheyenne goes into what turns out to be false labor, Glenn sends Mateo to get towels but he gets distracted with the selection and starts looking at shower curtains and floor mats. Afterwards in the Break Room, he presses on Cheyenne's tummy to make her pee. Amy asks Jonah and Mateo to take a sick day and clock in as Cheyenne, Mateo wants to know if Cheyenne will pay them back later. When corporate Steve to the store, Mateo calls him a "union buster". As Jonah complains about how the company treats them, Mateo complains that their customers are ugly. When Glenn gets fired, Amy and Jonah stage a walkout. Amy goes to Mateo who is stocking items as a "teal and green" story. Outside, he asks Amy if the walkout is going to work.

### Season Two

During the 2016 Olympics, Mateo finds out the he is not a US citizen and Glenn tries to convince Mateo that the US is #1. Mateo tries to admit that he is undocumented but Glenn takes this to mean that he doesn't feel accepted. Mateo has divided loyalties during the staff strike and sneaks into the store to show he is working and then runs back to the picket line to maintain his staff relationships. He tries hard to impress district manager Jeff Sutin. After Jeff mispronounces his name and doesn't give Mateo praise, Mateo has an outburst. He apologies and Jeff says in a suggestive way that he did notice Mateo. Mateo tells some staff that Jeff might be into him which evokes laughter. Jeff does ask him out on a date but Mateo is sworn to secrecy due to Jeff being management. On Halloween at the loading dock, Cheyenne sees Mateo and Jeff leaving for a date. On election day, Mateo confides to Cheyenne that he's an illegal alien and she tells him that she knows he's dating Jeff. During the store rebranding, after Jeff berates Dina, Dina insults Jeff to some staff. Mateo repeats the insult to Jeff who mentions it to Dina. To avert suspicion that he is the rat, Mateo lies to Dina that Sandra is dating Jeff. On Valentine's Day, Sandra fakes getting gifts from Jeff which makes Mateo increasingly jealous but Mateo is overjoyed to hear Jeff call him his boyfriend. On the store's "Wellness Fair" day, Mateo reveals that he and Jeff are dating. This results in Mateo having to transfer to another store. He breaks up with Jeff because he can't produce a SSN card and the transfer is cancelled. Jeff hates him for the break-up and when a tornado hits the store, Mateo leaves a message for Jeff saying he still loves him.

"Olympics": During the store's Olympic opening ceremony, Mateo represents sporting goods and wears a life jacket and water skis. He's seen shuffling away from the fire on the skis. In the Break Room, Glenn asks Mateo why he's wearing a Philippines flag instead of supporting the USA. Glenn then tries to show the US is #1 by showing him American products, with geographic info and by singing "America the Beautiful" and having Mateo join in. Meteo mentions to Jonah that he can't vote and in the course of conversation he says he got his citizenship documents at the "Green Card Store". He calls his grandmother and finds out his documents are counterfeit and that he is an illegal alien. He then tries to show his patriotism to Glenn by declaring he likes Dane Cook. He goes to Glenn's Office and says he's not an American but Glenn takes this to mean that he doesn't feel accepted. Glenn takes his Philippines flag pin and sticks himself in the chest with it. As he suffers, he asks Mateo to stay with him. Mateo witnesses Dina's awesome Olympics closing ceremony with Glenn.

"Strike": Mateo regrets walking out with the staff and says he got caught up in the drama. He runs back into the store and in front of district manager Jeff Sutin, fakes he was working and then runs back out to the picket line. He goes back into the store to discourage customers from buying items and snatches a towel away from a man until he sees Jeff. He then pretends he's making a sales pitch for a different towel. When Jeff tells the strikers that anyone who will sign the apology letter gets their job back, he asks Amy's permission to go back to work.

"Back to Work": Mateo tries to get Jeff to notice his job performance but Jeff is distracted and calls Mateo "Matato" when he re-introduces himself. To try and apologize to the staff for not siding with them during the strike, Dina gives condescending presents and gives Mateo deodorant. A customer thanks Mateo for helping her and seeing Jeff in the area, Mateo drags her over to repeat her praise in front of Jeff. The praise turns to derision and Jeff rebukes Mateo. Mateo confronts Jeff and expresses his frustration that Jeff hasn't noticed his attempts to impress him. Jeff holds Mateo's arm and says he's definitely noticed him in a suggestive way.

"Guns, Pills, and Birds": Mateo sides with Dina in catching, not killing a crow that enters the store. He and Dina try to catch it with a tarp but argue over how and it flies away. Mateo lays a trail of bird seed hoping to draw the crow out of the store but it attracts more crows that fly into the store. When Dina catches the crow and asks Mateo to "take care of this", Mateo whacks the bag on the ground and kills it.

"Spokesman Scandal": Mateo tells Sandra, Garrett and Cheyenne that he thinks Jeff might be into him which evokes laughter. Jeff keeps asking Mateo suggestive questions which end up being misleading. For example, saying he has a question which he is uncomfortable asking and then asking Mateo to clean up vomit. Garrett witnesses one of these and teases Mateo. Before leaving, Jeff asks Mateo on a date. Mateo is vindicated and wants to rub it in Garrett's face but Jeff says he can't as he is management and shouldn't be dating an employee.

"Dog Adoption Day": Jonah volunteers to work with Mateo at a dog adoption station at the store. When Jonah questions the priority that people place on pets, Mateo calls him a psychopath and then says he wishes he was dead. Mateo is competitive with Jonah surrounding everything to do with the station. He admits he is competitive but still can't stop trying to one-up Jonah. However, they work together to get all the dogs adopted.

"Halloween Theft": Jeff shows up at the store and asks Mateo out on Halloween. However, due to Dina believing a theft of irregular produce has been committed by an employee, she starts holding interrogations and won't let any staff leave, threatening Mateo's date. During the interrogation, Dina says Mateo is hiding something which he shows are white strips on his teeth. Whenever the topic of plans after work comes up, Mateo overcompensates and says he doesn't have any plans. Mateo accompanies Glenn and Amy to the Cloud 9 Chesterfield Store to get their irregular produce. Mateo yells at a customer who tries to take a grapefruit from Amy. Glenn suspends the interrogations and Mateo meets Jeff in his car at the loading dock, which Cheyenne witnesses.

"Election Day": On election day, Mateo confides to Cheyenne that he's an illegal alien and she tells him that she knows he's dating Jeff. Mateo is worried that if he doesn't show he voted, Dina will notice, find out he is undocumented and have him deported. Cheyenne advises him to get an "I Voted" sticker. He can't get one from the poll workers and rejects a hand-made sticker Cheyenne makes. He sees one in a trash bin but Roger pours rancid nacho cheese on it. Mateo tries to get Amy's "I Voted" sticker off her name tag but can't and then says he was trying to feel her breasts. Mateo finally buys Garrett's sticker but when he goes to show Dina and Glenn, they yell at him to get out of Glenn's Office.

"Seasonal Help": Mateo and Cheyenne both bet on temp seasonal worker Sue quitting in order to win a betting pool Jonah is running. They both sexually harass her in order to get her to quit.

"Black Friday": Mateo and Cheyenne start accepting bribes in order to hold or restock on sale items for customers. After Mateo gets food poisoning, Cheyenne gouges him for a bottle of pepto bismol. In the Break Room, Mateo accuses Amy that her stuffing made everyone sick. As he's vomiting in the sink and Amy asks him to barf quieter, he asks her to be a bitch quieter.

"Lost and Found": Mateo draws a pair of cargo shorts that he trades for a leather jacket that Amy draws not knowing there is over $900 in the shorts. While admiring himself in the mirror wearing the jacket, Glenn sprays silly string on him, ruining the jacket. When Amy reveals the money found in the shorts, Mateo accuses her of grifting him and the staff guilt her into upgrading the Break Room. Mateo installs coat hooks in the Break Room.

"Rebranding": During the store rebranding, after Jeff berates Dina, Dina insults Jeff to some staff. Mateo repeats the insult to Jeff when he has his "veil off" and after the veil is "on", lies that he loves that Jeff is still close to his ex, Chad. Jeff mentions the insult to Dina who starts questioning who told with Mateo. To avert suspicion that he is the rat, Mateo lies to Dina that Sandra is dating Jeff. Mateo tells Dina that they should ignore Sandra but at her first chance, Dina confronts Sandra. Sandra weaves tales of her fake relationship with Jeff so that no one is angry with her except Mateo.

"Ladies' Lunch": During a slow day at the store, Jonah and Garrett make up a game called "taped muffin". Mateo tattles to Glenn about the game but they both join in. As Glenn is running to make a basket, Mateo is pushed into Glenn who crashes into a cabinet and suffers a concussion.

"Valentine's Day": Sandra is perpetuating her fake relationship with Jeff by sending herself flowers at work which she then shows to the staff much to Mateo's annoyance. Garrett and Mateo watch as Sandra "receives" an extravagant Valentines gift from Jeff. Mateo is jealous of the fake relationship and Garrett notices. Mateo and Cheyenne watch as Sandra shows off a watch she "received" from Jeff. Mateo is now acting like Jeff is actually sending Sandra gifts. In order to further Mateo's jealousy, Garrett plays a romantic song on the P.A. system which he says is from Jeff to Sandra. After watching a sexual harassment video, Mateo asks if ignoring someone you're dating is harassment to which Jeff replies no. Mateo finds this ironic. Jeff leads Mateo to the dressing rooms and gives him a Valentine's gift - a key chain. After seeing all the expensive gifts that Sandra was sending to herself but saying they were from Jeff, Mateo is disappointed. Jeff asks if Mateo is angry because of the secrecy and calls Mateo his boyfriend which Mateo is overjoyed to hear. Mateo and Garrett see Sandra with another fake gift from Jeff - puppies. Garrett tries to antagonize Mateo but he's still happy Jeff has defined their relationship.

"Super Hot Store": When the store's temperature controls malfunction making it very hot, a pallet of yogurt spills in an aisle and becomes a source of contention between Amy and Marcus over whose staff should clean it up. Mateo really wants to clean it but Amy forbids him. After Amy fires Marcus, the warehouse staff walk out so Amy recruits her staff including Mateo to unload a truck. Mateo goes to Glenn's Office to report that Amy and Jonah are going crazy but doesn't enter the office and doesn't know that Garrett and Dina were having sex in there.

"Wellness Fair": Unknown to him, Amy sees Mateo kissing Jeff outside a theatre. Amy confronts Mateo and finds out the truth - that he has been dating Jeff all along and Sandra has been lying. Unfortunately, Sarah overhears and starts telling others. Later, Jeff arrives and gathers everyone in the Break Room to address an argument Glenn and Jonah were having in the store about abortion. It is revealed that Sandra faked dating Jeff and Mateo announces that he and Jeff are the ones who have been dating. Jeff asks the staff to keep it a secret.

"Integrity Award": Dina asks Mateo to use his relationship with Jeff to get an exterminator to help with the roach problem. Mateo agrees as he's anxious to show his influence with Jeff. Mateo phones Jeff to see if he can get an exterminator but Jeff doesn't want to show any special treatment. Dina asks Mateo if Jeff will help and he lies "yes" to project the illusion that Jeff is obsessed with him. Dina leads Mateo (disguised as an exterminator) into the Break Room to fumigate. Mateo lets off a bug bomb but isn't impressed with the discharge so he lets off more. Since Dina believes Mateo was successful in using his influence with Jeff to get the exterminator, she gives him a lot more tasks. Dina is showing Mateo massive store overhaul plans that she wants him to get Jeff to approve until they start coughing and see clouds of smoke entering the store so they evacuate. Emergency workers mill around the parking lot as Jeff approaches Mateo. Jeff has made their relationship known to corporate but in order to prevent conflicts of interest, he says Mateo must transfer to another store.

"Mateo's Last Day": In the Break Room, the staff are watching a self-serving video Mateo made for his farewell. He's transferring to another store in order to keep dating regional manager Jeff. Later, Mateo is proudly showing the staff pictures of the signature store he will be transferring to on Yelp!. Cheyenne and Jonah are setting up a display while Mateo lords his transfer over them. Jeff gives Mateo his transfer form and asks for his social security card. This is a problem as Mateo is an illegal alien. In the Warehouse, Mateo is lamenting that he is going to be deported to Cheyenne and Jonah. Jonah offers to marry Mateo but he is disgusted by the offer. Jonah and Cheyenne research how Mateo can remain in the country and find he'd qualify for a special visa if he was a violent crime victim. Mateo tries to get beat up by going to the Warehouse and shoving over a box in front of Dom and insulting Skip but neither hit him. Mateo threatens Brett who pulls a knife on him. Mateo turns to Jonah for help with getting beat up but Jonah is reluctant. Mateo begs him to and they go outside to the loading docks with Cheyenne in tow. Jonah isn't much of a fighter and has difficulty hitting Mateo in the face. He windmills and asks Mateo to walk into his fists so Mateo gives up on him. Cheyenne then tries to punch Mateo but can't so asks Mateo to say something mean to her. Mateo finally starts shoving Jonah but gets carried away and punches Jonah in the jaw. Jonah doesn't hit Mateo back and sits on a loading bay with an ice pack on his jaw. Jonah encourages Mateo to talk to Jeff and work things out. At the store front, Mateo's solution is to break up with Jeff so he doesn't have to transfer. He walks back into the store in tears and Jonah punches him in the face.

"Glenn's Kids": In the Break Room, Glenn has brought his foster children to the store and Leo draws a penis on the back of Mateo's head. In the store, Mateo is blue over his break-up with Jeff and in talking to Dina and Amy finds that neither thought he was attractive. Mateo asks Marcus if he thinks Jeff is attractive to which he responds with an emphatic no. The Leo, T'Oliver and Zoe (the three kids) tell Mateo they could set up a display faster than he could so he lets them do his work for him.

"Spring Cleaning": Mateo tries to train Bo during his first day on the job but Bo doesn't care. Later, Mateo and Sandra are seen hanging large placards with photos of a model that Amy and Garrett are trying to identify.

"Cheyenne's Wedding": Mateo is horrified that Jeff is at the wedding having broken up with him. He runs into Jeff who is holding Cheyenne's daughter Harmonica and Jeff expresses his hatred for Mateo and then hands Harmonica to him.

"Tornado": Mateo starts to form various alliances as protection against lay-offs beginning with an Asian alliance that includes Brett and Sandra, then a gay alliance. After the lay-offs are announced and Mateo is safe, he backs out of his alliances including Dave Matthews Band fans that includes Marcus and a Catholic alliance that includes Cody. Cody tells him that he lied and that that nobody loves him and he's going to die alone. During the tornado, Mateo calls Jeff to say he loves him despite the breakup. After the tornado, Jonah invites Mateo and Marcus for a drink and Marcus is thrilled.

### Season Three

During the store's re-opening, Mateo is concerned to hear Jeff will be in attendance and doesn't know if he received his voice mail in which he said he loves Jeff. He discovers Jeff is back with his ex and insults his toupee. After Brett's funeral, Mateo and Cheyenne fake that Brett's passing affects them deeply to get out of work. Cheyenne warns Mateo that Scott is flirting with him for perks which Mateo doesn't believe. Mateo, Cheyenne and others regularly have trivia nights after work which makes Amy feel left out. On Halloween, Cheyenne makes up Mateo to look like dead employee Sal so he can go to a wedding in the Philippines using Sal's passport but Mateo becomes super creepy so he washes the make-up off. He is caught by Glenn signing up fake customers for the store's rewards card and undergoes a baptism to show he is truly sorry. Mateo tries to leave Amy's disastrous Golden Globes Party several times. Mateo and Cheyenne rate Amy's dating attractiveness which results in Amy having a regrettable one-night stand. He tries to help Garrett be cooler around his idol Erick. Mateo is hurt at work and won't accept a settlement as his undocumented status will be revealed. He eventually tells Jeff this was the reason he dumped him. Jeff quits his job with Cloud 9 to date Mateo. Mateo unsuccessfully tries to use Jonah to guilt Jeff into getting a job. Mateo is disgusted that Jeff betrayed the store at the town hall.

"Grand Re-Opening": Mateo is concerned to hear from Amy that Jeff is coming to the store for the re-opening having broken up with him and then called him during the tornado to say he was still in love with him. Mateo wonders aloud to Cheyenne what he's going to say to Jeff and whether Jeff got his message. Cheyenne says they should recreate the tornado sounds with a big fan and test if Mateo can be heard over it. Mateo is sitting by a large fan and yelling "I love you!" on his phone to Cheyenne to test if she can hear him. A cute construction worker walks by and Mateo tries to explain the situation to him. In the parking lot, Jeff shows up and is wearing a toupee which causes everyone including Mateo to gape at him. After the store re-opens, Mateo approaches Jeff in the grocery section and finds out he's back with his ex. Mateo insults his toupee and leaves.

"Brett Is Dead": Mateo cuts his finger while he and Cheyenne are putting security locks on DVDs. Glenn asks how they are and when Mateo responds negatively, he thinks they are mourning Brett and offers them a break to reflect. They both fake loss and speak of their relationship with Brett in order to get time off work. In the Break Room, Mateo and Cheyenne are looking at their phones when Glenn enters. They fake sorrow and Glenn says he wants to write a tribute for Brett for the store newsletter. Since they indicated they knew him well, Glenn asks personal questions about Brett to which they make up answers. When Glenn calls everyone into the Break Room to deal with Dina's anxiety over the tornado, Mateo relates his trauma which is watching his brother (Rodrigo) drown in the South China Sea.

"Part-Time Hires": Mateo asks a construction worker about Scott as Cheyenne watches. Mateo plans to bump into Scott when he comes into the store. Kelly asks Mateo for advice but he sees Scott and shoos her away so he can flirt with him. Scott and Mateo are flirting and on departing, Scott asks for Mateo's employee card so he can use the employee bathroom. Mateo relents and Cheyenne suggests he's being used but Mateo thinks Scott is truly interested in him. Scott is disappointed when he asks for Mateo's employee card again and Mateo refuses. After flirting with Cheyenne, Scott enters the employee bathroom and shows Mateo her card. As Mateo and Cheyenne watch Scott flirt with Carol for use of her employee card, they wonder why he needs to go to the bathroom so much.

"Workplace Bullying": After the store is robbed, Amy sets up "parking lot buddies". Sarcastically, Mateo says he'll be paired with Justine because robbers will kill her first but he actually wants Cheyenne to be his partner. Amy is envious when she finds that many of the staff go to a trivia night after work. When Jeff calls the staff into the Break Room to discuss the robbery, Mateo is jealous when Jeff praises Jonah's inaction during the robbery and sarcastically says Jeff should just sleep with Jonah. In the Break Room, Amy tries to impress Cheyenne, Mateo and Kelly with her trivia knowledge. She sees Mateo eating a turkey sandwich and points out the Earl of Sandwich invented sandwiches. Later when Jeff again gathers the staff in the Break Room to talk about bullying, Mateo complains that all Jeff got for him on his birthday was a cake from the store bakery. As Mateo and Cheyenne get ready to leave, Amy has an outburst as to why she's not included in trivia night. Mateo asks why she's going all "Real Housewives" and says she should just come.

"Sal's Dead": On Halloween, Mateo is initially dressed as a 1950's milk delivery man. Cheyenne is face-painting children when Mateo informs her that one of his cousins is getting married in the Philippines and he's frustrated he can't go due to his undocumented status. He's always wanted to take an Instagram photo of the wing of the plane. When emptying Sal's locker, Cheyenne finds Sal's passport and Cheyenne tells Mateo that she'll make him up to look like Sal so he can go to the wedding in the Philippines. Cheyenne makes up Mateo to look like Sal while quizzing him on Sal's personal facts. Cheyenne finishes making up Mateo and he is thrilled with how good a job she's done. He looks in the mirror and in a creepy voice says "One ticket to Manila please". At the make-up counter, as Cheyenne talks to Mateo, he makes an inappropriate remark to a customer. Cheyenne postulates that Mateo is starting to act like Sal since he is dressed and looks like him. Mateo doesn't agree but then makes a creepy remark while holding a grape to his tongue. As Mateo is helping an older woman try on shoes, he rubs her foot against his face. He realizes Cheyenne was right about him becoming like Sal and returns Sal's passport to her. He plans to wash the makeup off before he becomes Sal.

"Health Fund": In the Break Room, Mateo is groaning due to an ear infection which prompts many staff to propose home remedies. Amy makes a collection jar for Mateo. At the Pharmacy, Mateo asks Tate for meds without doctor's authorization to which Tate indignantly refuses. He then beckons Mateo to a side counter where there is a blind spot from the store's cameras and asks him what he wants. Tate pulls out a pill stash, samples one himself, retrieves antibiotics for Mateo and arranges for payment. Later, Marcus pours root beer into Mateo's ear to fix the infection. Garrett gives Mateo the collection jar which he decides to use to buy an expensive faux Gucci bag instead of treating his ear infection.

"Christmas Eve": As the staff are helping Glenn with Christmas lights, Mateo comments that Christmas is over-hyped which dismays Glenn. Glenn opines that Christmas is about looking back at the year's events which leads the staff to remember the many bad things that have happened. Glenn tries to get Mateo in the Christmas spirit by taking him to a hot cocoa station in the store but Mateo doesn't want any. Glenn is determined to show Mateo Christmas is more than fine and spots a soldier, Hank, and a pregnant woman kissing. Believing this to be a magical moment, he asks about them and finds out the soldier accidentally shot a service animal and the baby may not be his. Mateo drags Glenn away as the couple argue. Glenn drags Mateo to see the child on Santa Garrett's lap and improve his Christmas spirit but they witness the end of Garrett and Jonah's argument punctuated with Jonah stomping off and kicking a giant candy cane. Glenn gets the store Christmas lights working and the dazzling display puts Mateo into the spirit.

"Viral Video": Glenn shows Garrett that a mass email he sent to the store's rewards (Blue Card) customers resulted in many being undeliverable which makes him suspect that Mateo is committing fraud in order to get the $1 sign-up bonus. In Glenn's Office, Glenn asks Mateo if he made up rewards customers names which Mateo denies. Mateo reveals to Garrett that he has been creating fake Blue Card accounts. He creates a fake website for one of the fake customers to trick Glenn but Glenn recognizes the customer picture as a movie actor. Mateo has Jonah call the store pretending to be one of the fake Blue Card customers. Glenn takes the call thinking it is Mateo and insults him until Mateo appears beside Glenn. Glenn apologizes to Mateo for accusing him of signing up fake customers and offers to take him to lunch. As they are about to go to lunch in Glenn's car, Glenn mentions that the customer who called house is along the way to the restaurant so he'd like to drop by. Mateo calls Glenn's bluff. Glenn and Mateo arrive at the address of the fake customer's business which is a private residence. Even after a woman answers who knows nothing of the business, Mateo refuses to admit to his lie. Arriving back at the store, Mateo finally admits to Glenn he made up the customer and says he's sorry. When Glenn doesn't believe Mateo is repentant, Mateo asks what he as to do to prove it. Glenn says he needs to make a phone call. Glenn is seen immersing Mateo in a baptismal pool in Life's Works Church in order to forgive his sins.

"Golden Globes Party": In the Break Room, Jonah, Mateo and Garrett are placing bets on what will happen at that evening's Golden Globe Awards. Justine asks where they'll be watching the Awards and Amy is surprised as she always hosts a party for it. Mateo believes Amy's life is in a shambles. Amy assures everyone her life is fine, that she'll host and will be BBQing. At Amy's house, she cloyingly asks Garrett and Mateo if they are having a good time and insists they call the party drinks by names she's made for them from TV and other cultural references. Kelly tries to bond with Dina, Garrett and Mateo but doesn't know any of the famous commercials they are referring to and ends up alienating herself. Mateo tells Amy that the TV isn't working. Garrett can't fix the TV so Mateo asks Amy to call Adam for help but she refuses. Mateo wants to leave but Sandra arrives with Jerry who clearly shouldn't be out of the hospital. With no TV, no food and Kelly trying to teach everyone a confusing game, Mateo and Garrett have had enough and lead everyone in leaving. Dina stands up and yells that everyone has to stay, stop complaining and have fun. Everyone sits down in silence and banging noises can be heard coming from Amy's bedroom. The party over, outside Kelly is overjoyed when Garrett and Mateo invite her to a restaurant to watch the Golden Globes after parties.

"High Volume Store": Mateo is in the Break Room as Jeff announces that $80,000 more sales by day end will result in the store being re-classified as "quadruple A". He insults the size of Jeff's forehead. Kelly tries to sell a TV but can't answer the customer's question and is helped by Mateo. When Amy gathers the staff for a meeting in the Warehouse to convince them not to become a "Quad-A" store, Mateo is concerned that if the store does become "Quad-A", there won't be any time to clean the store. Amy assigns him to sports. In order to discourage sales, Mateo stops a customer from buying shrimp. In the Break Room after the sales target is accidentally reached, the staff sit depressed and try to accept the store will be "Quad-A". Mateo frets over when the store will be cleaned.

"Angels and Mermaids": Mateo spends the entire day in the Break Room. He helps Cheyenne with items for a mermaid theme birthday party. As Marcus leads the staff in classifying various beings as real, mythical or extinct, Mateo points out there were two separate Chupacabra sightings in Mexico. He also tells Marcus that reindeer are real and he saw one at Christmas in the store. He listens raptly to Kelly's angel story and when Jonah questions it and offends Kelly, he says "trouble in paradise" to Garrett. Mateo watches Glenn use Sandra as his new surrogate and Dina use Marcus to threaten she might get pregnant, calls a stop to the charade and gets them to agree to Dina being Glenn's surrogate again.

"Groundhog Day": At the Pharmacy, Tate treats Amy's groundhog bite while Cheyenne gives Amy kudos for Devon flirting with her. Tate makes derogatory comments on Amy getting back into dating and Mateo offers to set Amy up with one of his five single cousins. Mateo pretends that his awkward cousin Castor wants to speak to Amy as a customer but Amy quickly gathers that it is a setup and leaves. In the Break Room, Amy objects to Mateo trying to set her up with Castor and suggests his more attractive cousin Rogelio is in her league and asks for Cheyenne's confirmation which she doesn't give. Mateo tells Amy that she's not a "10" due to her age, being divorced and having a child. As Cheyenne and Mateo rate various employees including Tate as a "10" and Justine as a "3", Amy is aghast when Mateo says that Amy rates just a little higher than Justine. Mateo tries to set Amy up with another cousin and when Amy passes, Cheyenne says she needs to start dating again. Amy reveals she hooked up the night and reveals it was Tate. Since they rated Tate a "10" she says they should "do the math" on her rating. As Tate and Marcus confront Amy and she's made to look promiscuous, Mateo is angry since she turned down dating his cousins.

"Video Game Release": Inside the store, Dina announces the release of a new video game "Barbarians Gate 3" to the staff. Sandra says she creates a family when playing The Sims which evokes an incredulous response from Mateo. Garrett sees Mateo talking to Erick (who he idolizes) and wants to know everything they said. Mateo repeats their small talk in a mocking manner. In the Break Room, Glenn discusses the "nurse-in" protest by breastfeeding mothers. Marcus wants to know if he can expose his penis in the store which Mateo mocks. At the Pharmacy, Garrett butters up Mateo and asks for help becoming friends with Erick. In the Break Room, Mateo has arranged for he and Garrett to have a beer with Erick. Erick says the situation is cool but Garrett breaks down and rants that it's not cool as he isn't comfortable with his own hero-worshipping of Erick. He insults Erick and leaves. Mateo says to Erick that Garrett actually is the cool one in the store.

"Safety Training": Marcus tries to convince Jonah, Garrett and Mateo to invest in human cheese but Mateo is distracted by a customer he likes. A sign Kelly put up crashes onto Mateo as he approaches the customer he likes. Some staff gathers around Mateo as he is icing his wrist. Marcus and Justine both tell Mateo they received a settlement when they were hurt. Mateo doesn't consider himself a good negotiator so Jonah volunteers to help him. In the Break Room, Jeff offers Mateo a $1000 settlement. Jonah negotiates lamely and then says they'll take it. As Jonah and Mateo look through the fine print of the settlement document, they discover that a background check is required which will reveal Mateo's undocumented status so they inform Jeff they are turning down the offer. Jeff approaches Jonah and Mateo and offers a higher settlement figure which he says is the final offer. When they turn him down, he keeps offering higher figures which to his frustration are refused. In Glenn's Office, Jeff's boss is on the phone and Mateo is offered $50,000. When this is refused, Jeff and Mateo argue about their past relationship which embarrasses Jeff in front of his boss. In the hallway, Jeff gives Mateo a settlement check of $10,000 and considers the matter settled. When Mateo still refuses to accept it, Jeff accuses him of trying to make him look bad in front of his boss. Mateo admits that he is undocumented and that is the reason he can't accept the check and why he broke up with Jeff.

"Amnesty": In the store, Mateo tells Cheyenne that he revealed his undocumented status to Jeff who left without commenting on it. He's worried that Jeff has reported him but Cheyenne doesn't think this has happened. Mateo is reluctant to participate in the amnesty and is worried Dina or Glenn may report confessed actions to corporate or the government. Mateo leaves Jeff a voice mail asking if he's done anything now that he knows about Mateo's undocumented status. Mateo is the first to participate in the amnesty but is evasive in revealing his undocumented status to Dina and Glenn. When Glenn admits there was no fireable offence, Mateo asks if Jeff said anything and deflects Dina's question. At Coffee & Bakery, as Mateo leaves a voice mail for Jeff's boyfriend Chad looking for Jeff, Jeff surprises Mateo and tells him he quit his job. Mateo realizes Jeff hasn't reported his undocumented status. He asks Mateo out for a drink and they leave hand in hand.

"Target": A going away party is held in the Break Room for Jeff. Mateo also considers it a celebration of he and Jeff dating again. Jeff says he working at Target now and after a disagreement with Glenn, he marches into the store and standing on a movable ladder, asks who'd like to join Target. Mateo wonders why he want any of the staff since he always says they are incompetent and Jeff admits to Mateo he's doing this out of spite. Mateo happens upon Jonah and Kelly setting up the furniture display and when they lie that Glenn asked them to set it up, he thinks Glenn is mad at him because of Jeff. Jeff approaches Mateo who is setting up a new furniture display. Mateo knows Jeff lied about having a job and wishes he hadn't picked Target for his lie.

"District Manager": Due to new district manager Laurie being in the store, Mateo approaches Garrett and Cheyenne worried about his low score at checkout. He claims Garrett's score is better than his from all the video games Garrett plays and then insults sci-fi, angering Garrett. At checkout, Mateo can't get the scanner to work on a food can. In the Break Room, he expresses his frustration to Garrett and Cheyenne. Garrett convinces him to change his checkout stats on Glenn's computer. In Glenn's Office, Garrett accesses Mateo's personnel file on Glenn's computer and changes his checkout stat (UPM score). Mateo wonders if the score is now too high but Garrett convinces him to make the score impressive. In the Break Room as staff posit whether it is sexist to call a woman a bitch who is acting like one, Mateo says that the gays took the word "bitch". Laurie approaches Cheyenne, Garrett and Mateo about Mateo's very high UPM score. Garrett suggests that Mateo should demonstrate his checkout technique and Mateo realizes Garrett has set him up for failure due to him insulting sci-fi. At a checkout, Mateo stalls demonstrating his scanning technique including turning off the cash register until Cheyenne turns it back on. He then claims he was stung by a bee and runs off.

"Local Vendors Day": Marcus is selling "boob cheese" made of human milk which he tells Mateo he mainly sources from stealing baby bottles. After Alex talks to Amy in rapid Spanish and she says yes to a question she doesn't understand, Amy discusses her conversation with Cheyenne, Dina and Mateo. They aren't helpful in translating what Amy thinks Alex said. As they discuss Alex, Mateo says that just because Amy has a racial preference for dating doesn't mean she's racist. When Glenn asks staff in the Break Room if they're sure they don't want to buy anything from Jerusha's craft table, he suggests to Mateo that he'd look good in a scarf. Mateo doesn't want one and says he doesn't cover up his neck as it's his best feature.

"Lottery": After Glenn announces that the Missouri Lottery jackpot is the most it has been in 20 years. Mateo and Cheyenne's lottery dream would to both buy an island. While picking lottery numbers, Cheyenne and Mateo agree to buy their tickets together so they can remain friends if they win. At Coffee & Bakery, Cheyenne and Mateo ponder whether to get lottery winnings in installments and fantasize about who'd they invite on a yacht if they win the lottery. As Glenn gives a Cloud 9 personal budgeting session to the staff, Mateo points out the budget only allows $4/day for food and Cheyenne says there is no allowance for child care or medical treatment. As Cheyenne and Mateo continue to talk about their dream yacht, Sandra tells them they wouldn't win as much as they think due to taxes and other factors which disappoints them. The staff and customers watch the lottery draw on the store's TVs and when they don't win, Cheyenne and Mateo mask their disappointment.

"Gender Reveal": Jeff, now sporting a moustache, surprises Mateo and maintains the ruse with Jonah that he's working for Target. Jeff leaves to shop and Mateo tells Jonah that Jeff is jobless. Jeff figures out that Jonah knows his ruse and Mateo discusses this with Jonah. Mateo doesn't want to ask Jeff to find a job (as Jeff quit Cloud 9 for Mateo) so Jonah offers to. Jonah finds Jeff talking to Mateo and encourages him to find a job. Jeff wants to find what makes him happy which Mateo supports and so Jonah relents. In private, Mateo is angry at Jonah as Jonah was supposed to be the "bad cop" and insist on Jeff finding a job. In hiking gear, Jeff approaches Jonah and Mateo. Jonah forcefully tells Jeff he needs to stop dreaming and get a job while Mateo play acts supporting Jeff. Mateo continues to tie into Jonah but Jeff stops him and gives in to getting a job. He is so despondent that when Jonah keeps playing "bad cop", Mateo asks him to stop and Jonah relents. In private, Mateo is angry again at Jonah for not playing his role. At the party, Mateo watches Jeff in a fishing hat talk to Cheyenne and rues their economic down turn.

"Aftermath": In the Break Room, Glenn gives morning announcements, Amy tell everyone she's pregnant. Mateo says he could tell because of the way Amy ate many taquitos the week before. Mateo is in the front row of the group photo and is wearing a suit as he "wants to shine" which Cheyenne says makes him look like an car freshener. Mateo leaves $20 on floor for Amy and pretends someone dropped it. Amy says she doesn't need charity and Bo tries to take the money and struggles with Mateo. Filming of the staff video continues with Mateo who overacts how he felt when the tornado hit the store. He then gives a convincing performance which moves Glenn but the camera is turned off. In the Break Room, Amy tells Cheyenne how Alex took the pregnancy news. When Mateo overhears that Adam offered to get back together with Amy but she doesn't want to, he can't believe she'd choose being alone over Adam. Mateo watches the staff video and is enthusiastic with the outcome.

"Town Hall": In the Break Room, as Laurie goes over the forbidden topics at the town hall, Mateo says he going to ask the CEO the craziest rich person thing he's ever done. In the Warehouse, Amy and Jonah share their discovery that Cloud 9 is unfairly firing older employees with a number of staff. Mateo says that Todd's wife is beautiful and asks how they are going to get an incriminating email from Laurie's phone. Cheyenne and Mateo makes plan to disguise Jeff to get him into the town hall and then are condescending towards Garrett's much more difficult plan to patch a hidden camera into the company's camera feed at the town hall. Jeff tells Cheyenne he feels stupid in the disguise she planned for him so Mateo encourages him. When Jeff takes off his disguise at the town hall, Cheyenne exclaims as she forget he was in disguise. After Jeff betrays the staff and lies why Myrtle was fired in order to get a job at Cloud 9 HQ, he approaches the staff and Mateo implies he's a traitor. He tries to convince them that his promotion is a good thing for everyone as they now have a man on the "inside top". Cheyenne asks if he'll get Myrtle her job back but Jeff is evasive. The staff look at him with disgust and Mateo rebuffs Jeff's kiss.

### Season Four

Jeff tries unsuccessfully to win Mateo back including bringing a virtual Myrtle greeter to the store. Mateo arranges many extravagant scenes to shoot Dina's Christmas card photo. He's jealous when Glenn arranges for Kelly to win the Golden Vest. Mateo competes with Amy in a costume contest for a paid vacation day. Cheyenne and Mateo unsuccessfully try to have Amy change her baby's name from "Parker". He reveals that his parents don't know he's gay. Citizenship checks of the employees results in Mateo trying to hide his undocumented status and getting a big favor from Glenn. Mateo and Cheyenne brainstorm ideas for their imaginary business "Chateo." Jonah helps Mateo organize an activist group opposing Rodrigo Duterte. Mateo watches Cheyenne give Marcus a horrible tattoo. Glenn steps down as manager but requires help from Jonah and Mateo to deal with money he accidentally embezzled. Mateo acts as if he's the new floor supervisor. On the Surveillance Office monitors, Amy catches him making fun of her. At Emma's quinceañera, Cheyenne and Mateo try to make Amy cry. Mateo learns Marcus is living in the store's tunnels and tells Marcus that he's undocumented. In retaliation for Sandra trying to start a union, Cloud 9 Headquarters has ICE visit the store who ultimately arrest Mateo.

"Back To School": Mateo's in the group of staff who don't react as Amy hands out work assignments while making sexual entrendres. Jeff approaches Mateo and Cheyenne who treat him with disdain as he unsuccessfully tries to befriend them by inviting them to Chicago. They comment he's been at the store a lot for someone who works five hours away and Mateo says he's moved on. As a group of staff try to figure out what Jeff's surprise will be, most believe it'll be a food truck. Dina thinks Jeff may murder Mateo. At the sexual harassment meeting, as Sandra wonders why Amy and Jonah aren't together, Mateo suggests it's because the sex between them is bad. He also asks if Jonah found sex with a pregnant woman weird. Jeff's surprise is a virtual Myrtle which can act as the store greeter. He tells Mateo this is the next best thing to the real Myrtle and he did it for Mateo. The staff walk away in disgust while the virtual Myrtle malfunctions. "Baby Shower": Dressed in an ugly Christmas sweater, Dina has Sandra take photos for her Christmas card. Feeling the setting is too plain, Mateo starts pitching alternate photo ideas which intrigues Dina. Mateo pitches several photo ideas to Dina which she finds outlandish. After revealing she doesn't trust men with glasses, she gives in and listens to more pitches. In the Warehouse, Mateo photographs Dina in a white costume with a polar bear. She loves the photos he shows her and says she's comfortable with nude pics. Mateo shoots Dina as Mother Mary and as a sexy Santa. When shooting her dressed scantily, they're interrupted by Garrett who can't stop staring at Dina. As Mateo shows Dina photos of her in a sled being pulled by men dressed as reindeer, he proposes one more photo scene, Dina hanging from the ceiling dressed as an angel. Mateo leaves the shoot with Dina to get a memory card but gets distracted by a stripper at the baby shower and stays. Garrett asks Mateo how the photo shoot went with Dina, but staring at the stripper, Mateo doesn't hear the question. In the Warehouse, Dina is yelling for Mateo, desperate to get down and having to pee.

"Toxic Work Environment": When Kelly asks for a transfer, Glenn tells Mateo that he'd like to take employee of the month away from him and give it to Kelly. Perturbed, Mateo points out that while Kelly is a great person, she's a bad worker which Glenn acknowledges. Mateo is jealous when Glenn creates a new award, the Golden Vest, and gives it to Kelly. Jealous of the Golden Vest, Mateo accuses Kelly of playing dumb and threatening to leave in order to get it. When she calls the award meaningless, like "Employee of the Month", Mateo insults her and leaves. At the toxic workplace meeting, Mateo mimics Kelly's high voice and loves Cheyenne's impression of Fran Drescher. In order to make Kelly happy, Jonah manipulates Glenn, which Mateo joins in on, into believing that she is the cause of the troubles with the store's culture. At the front door, as Kelly happily leaves with a box, Glenn and Mateo say goodbye, with Mateo now wearing the Golden Vest.

"Costume Competition": Glenn announces that a costume competition for a paid vacation day will be held. In a wheelchair due to her swollen feet, Amy laments not dressing up while Mateo, dressed as a baseball player, insults her. Amy changes into a Mario costume and Amy and Mateo eye each other competitively with Mateo now dressed as Melanie Davis from "The Birds". Dina points out Cheyenne's sexy hula dancer outfit which she thinks will easily win the competition. In the garden centre, Amy and Mateo compliment Cheyenne on her costume but seeing her as a threat, they try to discourage her from wearing it. They fake worry that she's being objectified which Cheyenne doesn't care about and, that it might offend Sandra, who's Hawaiian. Amy and Mateo work on Sandra until they convince her that Cheyenne's costume is offensive to Hawaiians. Seeing an opportunity to knock more competition out of the contest, they convince Janet to take offence to Marcus' costume. Flush with success, Amy and Mateo manipulate Sayid, Gary, Paul and Tyler into taking offence to other's costumes. Amy receives a complaint about her costume so she accuses Mateo of complaining to win the competition. Mateo lies that he was genuinely offended so Amy gets Marcus, who is Italian, to sort of say he's OK with her costume which Mateo doesn't accept. As the staff argue about what is an acceptable costume, Mateo's objection leads Dina to threaten to cancel the contest. Faced with this, Mateo retracts his complaint which leads everyone to believe that it's OK to wear their costumes as long as they honor the cultures they're from. At the contest, Mateo names famous white women. Waiting for the competition winner to be announced, Amy and Mateo fake nice but when Amy wins, she rubs her victory in his face.

"Delivery Day": As Dina and Glenn leave for the hospital, Amy's water breaks all over Carol's shoes which Mateo says were so cute. Mateo brings congratulation cards for Garrett to sign. After Mateo calls a joke he's written "cute", Garrett asks for the cards back and ponders writing funnier jokes. Garrett tries out a baby card joke on a customer, which to his frustration, the customer only finds cute. Mateo tells Garrett to just signs the cards. He's in the Break Room as Garrett tries getting the staff to come up with a baby card message from everyone and makes the excuse that the individual messages were offensive. After Amy and Dina have their babies, Garrett shows up at Amy's hospital room, wheels past, flings in a card and swears while Mateo tries to excuse Garrett's behaviour.

"Maternity Leave": Amy tells Cheyenne and Mateo that Adam is watching Parker. They consider the name "Parker" strange and try to hide their puzzlement over her choice. Mateo discusses the name "Parker" with Cheyenne and comparing it to child abuse, convinces her to join him in getting Amy to change it. In the Break Room, Cheyenne and Mateo show Amy a presentation that compares the name "Parker" to a homeless person and a bad movie character. Having prepared a placard of replacement names for "Parker", Cheyenne and Mateo sulk away after watching Amy scream at Glenn.

"New Initiative": At the store front, Glenn and Dina explain a new Cloud 9 policy to the staff which is making small talk with customers. Mateo corrects Glenn's pronunciation of a new store slogan. Later, Mateo tricks Amy into serving an older couple who start telling many stories about their son who is in medical school. He won't help a customer with questions about a drill. In the Break Room, several staff make fun of Jonah for keeping the truth from his parents. This leads to Mateo to admit that he's parents think he's straight. He watches Jonah's parents take the news that Jonah works at the store hard and isn't bothered by their tears. After Amy and Jonah tell some staff that they're dating, Mateo and the others there don't really care.

"Managers' Conference": Glenn announces that he's required to check all employees' citizenship status through an on-line system. Mateo, who is undocumented, becomes very nervous. When Glenn hears that Sayid is shoveling snow, he tells Mateo to take over for him. Mateo complains to Cheyenne about the special treatment being afforded Sayid and that he should receive it since he's undocumented. Sayid passes by just as Mateo mentions his status causing Cheyenne to wonder if he overheard and will tell Glenn or Dina. Talking to Sayid about to his immigration status, Mateo mistakenly mentions he's undocumented. Backtracking, he says he's in the country legally and was sworn in by the president which Sayid finds hard to believe. Mateo and Cheyenne engage in an obviously practiced conversation that Syrians are liars and place doubt in Glenn's mind as to Sayid's trustworthiness. Sayid confronts Mateo about spreading rumors that he's a liar which Mateo explains is due to Sayid hearing about his undocumented status. Sayid doesn't care until Mateo accidentally suggests Sayid might be deported if he hides Mateo's secret. Reading that Sayid intends to tell Glenn, Mateo starts following him. Later in Glenn's Office, Glenn tells Mateo that Sayid reported his undocumented status. Glenn checked Mateo's SSN which belongs to a woman in Buffalo. Mentioning that the SSN in his file is wrong, Mateo then hesitantly gives a new SSN which Glenn can see is a lie. In the hallway outside Glenn's office, Cheyenne tries to comfort Mateo and talks about visiting him in the Philippines. Glenn arrives and tells Mateo that his SSN checked out. Relieved, Mateo then realizes that Glenn is lying. Glenn wishes Mateo a Merry Christmas and giving him a knowing look, turns away.

"Shadowing Glenn": Cheyenne and Mateo find they both would like to start a business. They annoy Garrett when brainstorming a name for their business, until Cheyenne suggests "Chateo." In the Break Room, Cheyenne and Mateo show Marcus various logos for their company and ask how they make him feel. Discovering they have different expectations for how they'd like their company described, they almost end their partnership until a new synonym satisfies them both. After Amy orders too many ice pops, Marcus offers to hide them outside the store while Cheyenne and Mateo plan to distract Glenn. Heading to Glenn's office, Cheyenne and Mateo keep Glenn out of the store by asking for his business advice. Jonah interrupts Cheyenne and Mateo's session with Glenn to ask him to lunch to discuss a raise. Unable to keep Glenn in his office, Cheyenne and Mateo follow him into the store where Justine is trying to sell ice pops by suggestively sucking on them. Hearing Cheyenne and Mateo plan their business, Jonah asks to join thinking he might be able to make some money. They confess that they just like to talk about various dreams and never intended to really start a business. They ask Jonah if he'd like to start a band with them but Jonah says he doesn't play an instrument. They have to re-iterate that they just like to make plans they don't intend to follow through on. Jonah agrees to join but after proposing a band name, they kick him out.

"Cloud 9 Academy": In the Break Room, Mateo complains about the difficulties of applying for asylum in the US, while Sayid points out applying to be a refugee is even harder. Looking at the application, Jonah suggests that becoming an outspoken critic of the Philippines president, Rodrigo Duterte, may help Mateo's application. After Mateo shows Jonah some memes he's posted on-line maligning Duterte, Jonah says he'll have to show his opposition in a stronger fashion, such as leading an activist group. Agreeing, Mateo recruits Marcus. Jonah and Mateo hand out flyers for the activist group and recruit Sandra to come to a meeting. At Coffee & Bakery, Jonah and Mateo have a meeting of the activist group which Marcus, Sandra and six customers attend. Suggestions such as a letter-writing campaign and a protest march are discussed. At the activist meeting, Sandra suggests having a bake sale while Marcus wants to take more drastic action against Duterte. Mateo wants a rally in the parking lot which one of the activists says she can get a TV station to do a news story on. With the rally underway, Sayid tells Mateo that he'd never be seen on TV critisizing his country's government as he'd be tortured and killed if deported. Mateo's mood goes from jubilant to terrified. In the parking lot, a news reporter questions Mateo about his opposition to Duterte but scared, he gives neutral answers that Jonah supports. Marcus interrupts and speaking to the camera, identifies Mateo and says that Mateo is going to kill Duterte.

"Steps Challenge": Mateo is in the Break Room as Glenn announces the steps challenge but isn't enthused about it. In the parking lot, Glenn takes a push scooter out of his SUV to help him get around the store as his ankle is in a cast. He refuses Mateo help and doesn't have the strength to push himself up an incline and rolls backwards towards a delivery truck. Seeing Mateo isn't into the competition, Amy manipulates him into thinking that corporate is tracking each worker's steps and he'll be viewed by them as average. Mateo starts frantically moving around the store. Mateo takes a customer who wants to buy a toy on a long route to the toy aisle. Having walked to work, Mateo arrives sweaty and is encouraged by Amy. Later, Mateo wants to burn down the Bel-Ridge store and is angry at Amy when she admits she caused the conflict with Bel-Ridge.

"Blizzard": Trying to leave the store during a snowstorm, Mateo compares the cold weather to the critical reception of several music artists. As Glenn gathers the staff and customers in the Break Room and breaks the news that they're all stuck in the store for the evening, Mateo compares their situation to that of homeless people. He reveals how he lost his virginity and that he had to go to the hospital afterwards. After sleeping in the store over night, Mateo wakes to find Cheyenne draped across him and has difficulty getting her to move. Nerves frayed, Amy and Mateo attack each other's personal habits. He tells Garrett he smells and joins in attacking a customer, Terry. Later, he drinks and with Cheyenne, Dina and Glenn, he plays Jenga with shoe boxes.

"Lovebirds": Marcus takes off his shirt so that Cheyenne can tattoo a picture of his mother's face on his back. Mateo points out how weird this is which Marcus doesn't get. Cheyenne stops tattooing Marcus and pulling Mateo aside, says she's messed up. Mateo yelps when he sees the tattoo and then covers for Cheyenne by insinuating that the tattoo looks like a model's face. Cheyenne's attempts to fix the tattoo just make it worse and she decides to cover it up with a hat and try another face underneath. Marcus shrieks in agony as Cheyenne's tattoo continues to grow as she attempts to fix it. Marcus looks at the final tattoo which has a tall top hat with a creepy face beneath it and he shrieks at Cheyenne while Mateo watches.

"Minor Crimes": After Glenn steps down as manager, Mateo wonders who'll replace him. While helping Glenn clean out his office, Mateo finds a bag with $27,000 in cash. Glenn explains it's unused money from the store's maintenance fund which Jonah makes him realize he accidentally embezzled from Cloud 9. At the Warehouse loading dock, Jonah tries to calm Glenn while Mateo suggests Glenn spend the $27,000 on a coat. Jonah suggests that if they cause enough damage in the store, the cash can be used for it's intended purpose and Glenn won't technically have embezzled it. Mateo brings a shopping cart full of tools into the Warehouse where Jonah encourages Glenn to damage a wall. Glenn, Jonah and Mateo smash items in the Warehouse, dressing rooms and clog a toilet. Glenn tells Jonah and Mateo about the embezzled money that is left and resigns himself to being punished. When Jonah and Mateo suggest more damage that can be done to the store, Glenn rubs a wall affectionately and says no. In the parking lot, Jonah and Mateo console Glenn as he leaves for the day and gets into his car. He then drives his car through the store's entrance way causing huge damage which will use up the rest of the embezzled money.

"Salary": On Amy's first day as manager, Mateo manipulates Cheyenne into agreeing that he'd be the best candidate to replace Amy as floor supervisor. She suggests that he needs to act like he has the position in order to get it. Mateo approaches Sandra and asks her to straighten out the linen section. She's starts to question who asked him to tell her to, but Mateo stares her down until she complies. Mateo addresses a group of staff including, Ted, Taylor, Roxy, Sayid and Marcus and gives them assignments. When Sayid questions his authority, Mateo bluffs that he's been given it which Marcus backs him up on. In the Break Room, Amy apologizes for the accident which revealed her salary and Mateo tries to pass himself off as a floor supervisor. Disguising his voice, Mateo calls himself to customer service and calls himself a floor supervisor and later puts a picture of himself as floor supervisor on the wall by customer service.

"Easter": In the Surveillance Office, Amy discovers there's a camera with an audio feed in the Break Room and catches Mateo and Carol making fun of her. Talking to Mateo, Amy stops doing an action she heard Mateo critisize and he lies that he loves it. Later, Jonah learns the camera is hidden in a smoke detector and while in the Break Room, Mateo catches Jonah looking at the smoke detector. After Amy is caught spying, Mateo opines that everyone complains about the boss which Glenn worries happened when he was manager. As Amy apologizes to the staff, Cheyenne snickers and sends Mateo a text. He snorts at the text, leading Amy to ask about it. Lying that the text was from his mother, Amy demands to see it so Mateo throws his phone on the floor, smashing it.

"Quinceañera": At Emma's quinceañera, Mateo and Cheyenne compliment Amy on the party and seeing Amy choke up watching Emma, comment that they've never seen her cry. Glenn says he has and trying to mimic Amy crying, Cheyenne and Mateo decide they want to have it happen. As one of Emma's uncles makes a speech about chastity, Cheyenne and Mateo comment how many similar speeches have been made. With Amy, Cheyenne and Mateo observe how quickly Emma's life is passing but are disappointed when she barely shows any emotion. Using mics, Cheyenne and Mateo sing a sad song for Amy, interspersed with comments about Emma leaving her soon. Bringing strange looks from most everyone but no tears from Amy, they ask the DJ to play another sad song which Amy tries to stop. The party over, Mateo and Cheyenne approach Amy and try to show her a moving video. When Amy refuses to watch it, in a last-ditch attempt to make Amy cry, Cheyenne kicks her in the shin. Amy swears at her, Cheyenne apologizes, and she and Mateo leave quickly.

"Cloud Green": Glenn re-introduces Pastor Craig to Amy and Mateo who comments on a movie and a TV show to Mateo. In the Break Room, after Mateo and Sayid complain to Jonah about several green measures he's taken, Jonah gets frustrated and offers to give the green ambassador role up, which Cheyenne accepts. In the Break Room, Cheyenne starts a "Green Team" meeting which Mateo attends. Watching Cheyenne, Mateo, Marcus and Sayid take pictures to post on social media, Jonah points out they're not doing anything to help the environment.

"Scanners": Cheyenne and Mateo have a duel with the scanners which Cheyenne wins and Glenn wants to join in on. Hiding in a dress rack, Carol knocks out a "Yogurt" team member. Mateo suggests to Garrett and Cheyenne that he go into the store's tunnels to get behind Carol. Walking in the tunnels, Mateo hears a noise and finds that Marcus is living there. Marcus begs Mateo to not tell anyone and guilts him into staying for noodles. In the tunnels, an embarrassed Marcus doesn't believe Mateo can relate to his situation so Mateo confesses he's undocumented. Marcus promises to keep Mateo's secret, as long as his doesn't get out.

"CLOUD9FAIL": Trying to think of ways to make extra money, Cheyenne, Garrett and Mateo decide to sell some of their possession in the store. Cheyenne displays some of her items at the jewelery counter and surprises Mateo when a customer wants to buy an old purse. After seeing Cheyenne's success, Mateo brings in some of his old items. Cheyenne and Mateo try to convince a customer to buy a used electric toothbrush. Glenn brings in a box of items once owned by Jerusha's father which Mateo and Cheyenne go through. Although there are many treasures in the box, including a valuable baseball card, in ignorance, they throw them in the recycling bin.

"Sandra's Fight": Cheyenne, Glenn and Mateo scold Garrett for not revealing to Dina that he was responsible for releasing her birds and, sleeping with her afterwards. He attends the union meeting with Robin Green. When Dina returns from Cloud 9 Headquarters, she describes it to Cheyenne and Mateo and refuses to give Mateo pens she took while there.

"Employee Appreciation Day": Mateo and Sandra look forward to forming a union, citing its benefits. As Glenn, Sayid, Cheyenne and Mateo discuss Jerry, Amy gets a Skype from Jeff warning her about ICE's arrival. Running into the store, Amy yells at Mateo to get out of the store. Everyone with Mateo individually knew about his illegal alien status but are surprised to find each other knew. ICE agents enter the store and Mateo and Cheyenne run into the back. In the Stock Room, Glenn and Dina report that ICE has blocked all the exits. Marcus proposes that Mateo hide in the compactor which Mateo thinks is crazy. In the Warehouse, Amy gathers a number of staff and asks for ideas to get Mateo out of the store. Sandra and Justine have inane suggestions while Marcus admits he's been living in the store. Dina doesn't think it's possible to have Mateo escape and points out that technically, he is breaking the law. After arguing about the justice of Mateo's status, Jonah suggests they get the staff to call everyone they know to the store and hope that the crowd will allow Mateo to slip out. Outside the Break Room, Cheyenne regrets how much she's going to miss Mateo and points out to him that even if he escapes ICE, he can't come back to the store. Agent Robson tells Amy, Garrett and Jonah they're looking for Mateo. Lying that they don't know him, Robson notices a picture of Mateo on the wall. Amy leaves while Garrett and Jonah still claim ignorance. Finding Cheyenne and Mateo walking through the store, Amy warns them that ICE knows what Mateo looks like. Dodging the agents, Mateo is spotted by Robson. Dina tries her best to guide Amy, Cheyenne and Mateo away from ICE but there's too many agents. Continuing to run from ICE, Mateo is soon surrounded. Amy and Cheyenne propose a last-ditch scheme to distract the agents but Mateo stops them and gives himself up. Outside the store, the staff and customers watch as Mateo is driven away by ICE.

## Relationships

### Jeff Sutinedit | edit source

Jeff asked Mateo on a date soon after the employee strike was settled. Their relationship was kept a secret because of a company policy that forbids management from dating employees. Jeff calls him his boyfriend for the first time on Valentine's Day, 2016. Their relationship became public during the store's "Wellness Fair". As a result, Mateo had to transfer to another store. Mateo's undocumented status becomes a problem when he can't produce his SSN card for his transfer. After not being able to come up with other ways to get citizenship, he chose to break-up with Jeff. Jeff expresses his anger with Mateo dumping him at Cheyenne's wedding. When a tornado hits the store, Mateo calls Jeff to say he stills love him. Mateo insults Jeff's toupee and is angry that he has gotten back together with his ex, Chad. Jeff reveals to Jonah that his eccentric behaviour started when Mateo dumped him. Mateo reveals to Jeff that his undocumented status was the reason he dumped him. Jeff quits his job to date Mateo. Mateo is disgusted that Jeff betrayed the store by having Myrtle fired at the Town Hall.

Jeff tries unsuccessfully to win Mateo back by inviting him to Chicago. When he discovers all the staff hate him, he promises a surprise to win them back. He brings a virtual Myrtle to the store which only increases the acrimony against him.

### **Rodrigo**

Mateo mentions he had a twin brother named Rodrigo who he didn't rescue from a wave, which he regrets. ("All-Nighter") Rodrigo drowned in the South China Sea. ("Brett Is Dead")

## Trivia

* He told Glenn that he's gay. ("Wedding Day Sale")
* He's eaten human flesh and has another job at a restaurant called "Ev and Harry's". ("All-Nighter")
* When he was 4, he swallowed a magnet that never came out. Personal details including his birth date were revealed when he and Garrett accessed his employee file on Glenn's computer. ("District Manager")
* He lives with his cousins. ("Lottery")
* He's expressed his admiration for Beyoncé many times. ("Mateo's Last Day") ("Baby Shower")
* Liwanag means "brightness" in Tagalog.
* His 2 last names has the same surnames from a Filipino actor.[1]

## Quotes

“*No, I was just trying to beat your story. Sorry, I'm competitive.*”— **Mateo, "Dog Adoption Day".**
“*Look, I know you don't want to hurt me, but not doing this is hurting me. So if you're really my friend, please, beat the hell out of me.*”— **Mateo, "Mateo's Last Day".**
“*If we're talking about truth bombs, well, take shelter, 'cause I'm about to make it rain.*”— **Mateo, "Gender Reveal".**