Isabela sighed as she went over the memory that was over 9 years old before looking over at her small shelf made of flowers she kept next to her bed while it hung about 20 feet above the floor. On it laid the small amethyst stone she received that day along with a bunch of pictures she had with Carla, one being from that day as well.

She closed her eyes after looking at a more recent picture from only 2 months ago, they were together in front of a new flower statue that she had made in her room and were copying the pose mockingly. It felt so nice to make fun of that part of her that always felt so ingenuous. Carla understood how she always felt pressured to be perfect and never asked the same of her.

She opened her eyes again and looked back at the picture, her eyes focusing on Carla this time as she went over how much she had changed over the years. The wild and always excited girl who most times looked messy and rough but in an extremely cute way was no more. Her light tawny skin had gained a bit of a tan over the years, but luckily it still wasn't dark enough to hide whenever she was blushing. And her old messy curls that rarely ever looked brushed were now always styled in either a neat bun, two dutch braids, or in a neat curly combover style. In all honesty Isabela found herself missing when she could always just reach out and play with her hair, it was always so chaotic and unrestricted, nothing like her hair that always had to be perfect.

That's why she actually appreciates that even when Carla does her hair it always still is a bit messy. Her bun might have a few loose curls, or her braids might not have gathered all the hair and a bit of it would fall into her face continuously, and instead of rebraiding them she would just keep tucking it behind her ear whenever it bothered her. Small things that always showed Isa that her Carla would truly never change, no matter how much the people around her wanted her to.

Which is also the reason her heart ached at the moment, because her Carla never actually changed, and she still was mostly driven by her emotions. Even as she grew up to be calmer and better at hiding them, she still lived her life doing what she felt was right. That's why she knew what she had to do would hurt her.

Isabela finally lowered her bed back to the ground and then laid in wait. Luckily she didn't have to wait long because her door opened a few minutes later and there stood the girl her mind was often consumed by. Her hair was in dutch braids again, and she was smiling so wide that Isa wondered if her cheeks hurt.

She didn't say anything and just stood there for a few seconds before she simply raised an eyebrow at her. Isa could feel her face heat up and she felt like immediately rushing over like a puppy, though she didn't, it wouldn't be appropriate for someone like her. She instead gracefully rose from her bed and practically glided to her best friend's side. Carla giggled and once she was close enough she grasped her arm and pulled her outside her room.

"Come on princesa, I want to make it before my mamí complains that I haven't helped out today." They both chuckled at that. Both Carla's parents were crafters, they made almost anything and everything and it was always of high quality, though sadly her father typically left on trips to find new products to make or materials to make other products from. They always missed him, but none of his trips lasted over 2-3 months, and he would always stay for at least a month before doing another one. Despite how often he was gone it was always obvious he cared about his family and his community whenever he was around. He was always helping or making something for someone.

Isabela smiled as she was dragged out of her casita by the only person who could make her heart race, before her smile was stopped when she saw Abuela near the door, as if she was waiting specifically for her. Carla's pace slowed to a stop in front of the well known matriarch who offered her a small smile before looking over at Isa.

She made sure to immediately stand up a bit straighter and she quickly pulled her arm from Carla without paying any mind to the way the other girl turned to her in confusion. Abuela smiled and came up to her before placing her hands on her cheeks.

"You look beautiful mi nieta." She spoke softly and Isa nodded with a light smile as her grandmother let go. She tried to hurry out of the house with her friend before she could say anything else but it only took her Abuela a few seconds to quickly add,

"And while you're out Isabela, why don't you try and have a conversation with Mariano? Getting to know him early on is all the better don't you think?" She asked and Isabela stopped while her best friend's head tilted before she looked back at her with her curious light brown eyes that never failed to make her melt but this time she just felt frozen.

"Y-yes Abuela." She muttered before pulling Carla out of the house this time, ignoring the stare her Abuela was giving her because of her stutter. She never stuttered, but it slipped out and it was too late to change it.

She didn't slow down her pace until they were a bit away from the casita and near the town.

"Isa?" Her friend asked slowly and when she turned to face her she could see only more confusion in her eyes, and Isabela internally begged her not to question anything, to just leave it alone for a bit longer. And to her luck it seemed like she understood because she offered a gentle smile and pulled her along away from the town.

"How about we go around the town today?" She asked while pulling the flower girl to follow and soon they were behind the houses and near the forest areas. Isabela made sure to watch her dress and her hair, she couldn't let anyone find out what happened just because she had a small stain on her.

After they walked for a while Carla stopped and Isa wondered if there was a problem, but quickly after she pulled her arm away slightly, but only to grab her hand and intertwine their fingers.

Isabela let out a small puff of air in surprise as she felt her face get hot, but when she looked at the other girl she was just grinning up at her, her cheeks bright red but nothing but joy in her eyes.

"I know that you always have a lot going on, but you already know that you can come to me about anything," Her grin slowly turned a bit smug as she leaned closer, and Isa hoped that she couldn't hear the way her heart was trying it's hardest to leave it's cage, "and I do mean anything, especially after last week." And then she quickly gave Isabela a peck on the cheek before she continued pulling her along.

It was like she suddenly forgot how to breath for a few seconds until she stumbled over a stray tree root and had to quickly make some flowers to catch herself.

"Are you okay?" Carla asked while looking her over, but still holding her hand. Isa could only nod before she started to laugh, and quickly Carla joined in.

After a few seconds of that Isabela straightened herself out again before looking back at her dress, she was relieved to see there weren't any marks. She sighed before her eyes turned back to her friend.

"Let's cut back into town here so I don't accidentally get messy." She tried her hardest to ignore the disappointment that seeped into Carla's eyes.

"Oh! Yeah! I forgot that some people don't like messes and ya know, dirt." It was obvious there was more she wanted to say on the subject but she didn't. Isa slowly but surely pulled her hand away from her friend's and walked between the houses they were at, and she knew Carla was right behind her, but it felt like her insides were twisting up in a way she couldn't understand.

Carla was never behind her, ever. Maybe if the two were pulling the other along one of them might be a step behind, but typically that was always Isabela who loved letting Carla drag her any and everywhere. But not having the other girl by her side, just felt wrong. Though in her head she couldn't help but think it was something she would have to get used to. Especially with the way her life was going.

It seemed that the price of being perfect normally turned out to be happiness.