𝑐𝑎𝑚𝑖𝑙𝑜 𝑥 𝑟𝑒𝑎𝑑𝑒𝑟 | 𝐥𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐞 𝐞𝐥 𝐧𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞

Chapter 15. Nuestra Cancion

By the time we reached Casita, I was no longer chilled, but sweating and breathing heavy. However, Camilo had beat me to Mirabel's room. The nursery.

I rushed towards the door and opened it, still trying to be careful and show respect for Casita. "Mirabel! Please don't tell!" I cried.

"Don't worry, I won't!" She said between laughs.

Camilo was standing with crossed arms, tapping his foot impatiently. "Well, I'm not leaving until Real Mirabel can tell me!"

"Too bad! You can sleep on the floor." She teased her cousin.

He thought for a moment before exiting wordlessly, leaving us both staring at each other until just seconds later, Luisa walked in.

"Camilo, Y/N and I both know it's not Luisa."

He shook his head before transforming back into Camilo. He raised his arms into a shrug, "It was worth a shot." Before exiting again, this time to remain unseen for the rest of the night.

I waited until I thought he would be fully gone before bursting into full out laughs, unable to contain it. I couldn't stop at all. "The worst part is," I couldn't breathe through the words, "I didn't know it wasn't Luisa! You saved me!"

Mirabel giggled with me "Luisa would have the manners to knock!"

She patted the side of her bed for me to come sit with her. "How'd this even happen?"

I sat next to her and began to paint the picture. "Well... we were outside, talking, and he said I don't talk to anyone. I said that's not true, we talk plenty. So Camilo said he'll go ask you who I like because I wouldn't tell him."

"Aye... El tramposo!"

And with that I told her, "Goodnight, Mirabel." And headed to the guest room, where I'd replay tonight a million times in my head and try to find where I went wrong.

Where I didn't capture him enough, where I didn't draw the words out of him. Where I could've opened it up for him to make a move. Where I could've saved myself this embarrassment. But all those thoughts and the shame of it all were soon washed away by the words that still rang in my ears...

"Cariña..."

"Sus manitas..."

After the monumental disappointment that was our night at outside, where I was sure the tension would draw his words out of him, that I knew... or hoped, he'd wanted to say, the days seemed to blend together. I'd fallen back into my old shyness, my way of ignoring him. Yet, he still chose to sit next to me, even in silence, at meals.

But I must snap out of this feeble crush. Was that what I was here for? To flirt aimlessly with some silly boy who can't make up his mind?! Absolutely not! I'm here to train, to grow this gift. To make my familia proud. Not to entertain someone so arrogant that I can only see it without my rose colored glasses on. Not to fall for the first boy I have a sleepover, a friendly sleepover with! No.

And so, I believed it would continue like this. Brief interactions with Alma, reporting my progress. Exchanging smiles and waves with everyone I could. Still unable to shake that awkwardness with Bruno. Yet, Pepa and Felix did seem to pay a bit more attention to me than they had in the past.

That day went mostly normal, until Mirabel hunted me down while clearing the table after dinner. "Y/N, do you remember how you offered to teach me how to dance with a boy?" She questioned.

I nodded, thinking that I must stop doing that. I need to reply in full sentences, not just gestures. But it's so difficult to break these habits.

"Do you think your family is almost here?"

"Why, are you planning something?" Truthfully I couldn't remember. The days were becoming difficult to keep track of. I'd fallen into a routine, a simple way to keep myself occupied in this waiting game.

"Well, if your brother really is handsome, and kind like you say... maybe I could impress him with some of that. I mean, I know how to dance for fun, we all do. But not how to dance like that."

"I'll teach you. Come to the guest room." I took her by her hand and we made our humble way towards the room I'd slept in nearly every night. I gently opened the creaking door and she followed me inside, where we both stood.

"Come close to me." I said, and she stood in front of me. She was only slightly taller than me, by the hair on her head. "Put one hand on my shoulder." She followed. "Put your other hand in mine."

Truthfully I hardly knew what I was doing but I knew my brother couldn't dance at all. We stepped gently in small circles.

"That's all there is?"

"Normally you'd talk to him. Maybe he'd dip you, like this." I guided her down, to bend her back into a classic dip. She smiled at that. Our faces had been very close, where I had fear for fogging her lenses.

"If you were dancing a little less romantic dance you could do something like this." I let go of her and showed her how to sway her skirt to a beat, keeping time by tapping my bare foot onto the floorboards.

"And normally, there'd be some music. But it's all quiet right now." I said.

"That's okay. Quiet can be our song."

"Nuestra cancion." I agreed with a grin.

But soon our song of silence ended as we both heard a knock on the guest room's door. "Not it!" Mirabel exclaimed. I sighed and placed my hand on my hip before approaching the door, opening it to find Camilo.