A/N: Hey, folks! This little one-shot here came into my mind during vacation. You see, 'Madeline' was a series I used to watch in my early childhood. I was so fascinated by this tomboyish girl and the adventures she experienced. While streaming on YouTube, I found a video of said series and watched it, and it resurrected my memories 3

And since I'm a huge shipper (*wink* *wink*) I immediately noticed something between Madeline and Pepito. I think that if the series went into their teenage years, these two would definitely end up together, don't you think so? ;)


"Buenos noches, Madeline... mi amada."

There it was again. This word said girl just couldn't understand. A word in Spanish, a language still foreign to her.

Madeline knew Pepito since forever. They hadn't had the best start as he was a naughty little boy back then, a 'Bad Hat' as she called him. But then the incident with the dogs happened, and he decided to quit his bad behavior to become a better person, a better friend.

Since then, he and Madeline had been inseparable.

And now they were twelve years old, the little girl wasn't so 'little' anymore and the boy had developed into a fine gentleman, well-mannered and chivalric. They have grown over the years, both in height and maturity.

But someday, instead of the usual 'mi amiga', which she knew meant 'my friend', he started to call her 'mi amada'.

At first, Madeline shrugged it off as a new nickname for her. Pepito sometimes called her 'mi niƱita' too, which meant 'my little girl'.

But, unlike the other ones, he never told her the meaning behind this nickname.

And whenever she questioned him about it, the boy would suddenly freeze up and stammer nervously, claiming the nickname was 'como el resto'.

Another new thing were the constant hand kisses he began to give her. Every time they greeted or parted from each other, Pepito would take her hand and press his lips gently against the knuckles. An action which made Madeline blush bright red from embarrassment. Especially whenever the other girls were nearby and she heard them giggling at the display.

And when she asked them what was so funny, all the would say was "Oh, nothing." and then resume giggling among themselves.

It frustrated her to no end that the girls apparently knew something she didn't.

Eventually, Madeline decided to just deal with it. Ignore the strange happiness she would feel whenever the boy said her name. Ignore the pleasant tingle on her hand whenever he would kiss it.

And especially ignore the way her heart fluttered whenever he would give her that soft smile or how his eyes seemed to sparkle each time their gazes met.

But this didn't mean she wasn't curious why she felt this.

So here they were, standing in front of the Old House in Paris, the boarding school she was still attending after all this years. The sun had already went down and the sky was covered in a beautiful reddish color.

Pepito had accompanied the girl to the house, kissed her hand in depart and smiled at her while wishing her a good night, once again calling her this 'nickname'.

And despite not knowing what it meant, Madeline had grown to like it.

She returned his smile with her own. "Bonne nuit, Pepito. And thank you for walking me home."

"Anytime." he replied softly, his lips brushing against her hand one last time before letting it go. Madeline felt her heart flutter once again and turned away from the boy to walk off before he could see the blush and smile that covered her face.

After the girls broke the bread and ate supper, brushed their teeth and went to sleep, Madeline was lying in her bed, unable to fall asleep. Quietly creeping out again, she went outside on the balcony and gazed at the full moon, her thoughts filled with the neighbor boy and his strange behavior.

Oh Pepito... she sighed. Qu'est-ce qui ne vas pas avec toi?


Meanwhile the Spanish Ambassador's son was just entering his chamber, having brushed his teeth after a delicious supper. The boy crawled into his bed and looked out of the window. The full moon shined brightly, filling the room with a serene glow.

Pepito then reached under his pillow and revealed a photo of him and Madeline sitting on a bench in the park with big smiles, holding hands and leaning against each other.

He smiled wistfully at the girl in the photo. "Madeline..." the boy softly whispered her name like a prayer. Unable to resist, he pressed a gently kiss against her face, his thumb tracing the photo lovingly. "I wish I wasn't so shy..."

Pepito hid the photo back under the pillow and nestled into his bed. He closed his eyes and imagined Madeline's beautiful face, making him blush and smile.

Someday he'll tell her. Someday he'll be brave enough to tell her how much she really meant to him. But until then, he would continue being her best friend, always being there for her, giving her hand kisses and slowly wooing her.

Oh Madeline... he sighed. Mi amada... te quiero...


A/N: And that's it, folks! Wow, I never thought I could be that sappy :| ... Anyway, this will remain a one-shot... unless you want it to be continued? :)

Like always, reviews are greatly appreciated and remember:

Stay cool and so long!