Mirabel missed her sewing machine.
Dolores had changed and left hours ago, off to accomplish other tasks, leaving Mirabel to hand sew the hem by herself. When she finally stitched the last stitch and looked up, her eyes and fingers ached and the sun was slowly setting out the window.
There was a soft knock at the door. Luisa poked her head inside.
"Oooh," she said, her face lighting up. "Is this the dress?"
She stepped into the room fully, shutting the door behind her. Mirabel smiled and stood, holding the dress up to display it properly.
"Dolores looks amazing in it," Mirabel gushed. "Did she show you the ring?"
Luisa shook her head. "No, I haven't seen her since breakfast." She reached out and lightly brushed her fingertips over the lace. "It's perfect."
"I know! The only thing left to finish is hemming the lining and the sleeves, but it's all tulle and lace and I don't want to mess it up so I'm letting Pá do it."
"Yeah, tulle and lace sucks."
"Luisa, you have never sewed either in your life."
Luisa threw back her head and laughed.
Mirabel beamed. Then, she lowered her voice, even though they were the only ones in the room, and asked, "How was lunch?"
Luisa shrugged. "Good. Pretty quiet. I, um. I don't think he really knows what to do with us. But Camilo did an impression of Mariano and got him to laugh, so…progress?"
Mirabel smiled. "Good, good." She was determined to be happy Bruno was spending time with the others. Because she was. Honest.
"Anyway, dinner's ready," Luisa continued. "Mamá sent me to get you. She, uh, wants to talk to you about something."
Of course she does. "Great. Thanks, Lu. I'll be right down."
Luisa pat Mirabel's back as gently as she could and gave her a sympathetic look.
Mirabel was ambushed the second she walked downstairs. She saw her parents and tía and tío standing in the kitchen, drinks in their hands, talking amongst themselves in low voices. She made eye contact with her mamá, but before she could approach, Camilo looped an arm through hers and steered her in the opposite direction.
He whispered in her ear, "You're very popular with the 'rents this evening. What'd you tell them?"
"Nothing."
Camilo gave her a suspicious look.
"I literally haven't said a single word about anything to anyone," Mirabel said, her eyes narrowing. "My mamá just thought I looked tired, that's all."
"You made my mami thunder."
"That was an accident!"
"You got her in trouble with Abuela!"
"Again, accident!"
"Dios mío, would you both shut up?"
Camilo and Mirabel looked up into Isabela's furious face.
"Just—hold it together until dinner's over, will you?" she hissed. "We can talk about this later—"
"Everyone!"
All three of them jumped.
Abuela stood in the doorway, her presence filling the frame even as she smiled at her family. "To the table, while the food is hot. Let's go, let's go."
One by one, the family filed into the dining room and took their places around the table. There was an unspoken agreement as to which seat belonged to who: Abuela sat at the head of the table, with Mirabel to her right. On her left sat Camilo, who had had the seat permanently assigned to him when he was younger and Abuela wanted to keep one eye on him at all times. Félix and Pepa sat next to each other on the other side of their oldest son, Antonio next to his father, while Isabela and Luisa sat on the other side of Mirabel. Julieta and Agustín were the furthest away, and Mirabel was envious of their position.
Once everyone was seated, Abuela stood and clasped her hands together. Mirabel sat up straighter in her seat.
"What a blessing," Abuela began, smiling around the table. "To have my entire…" She trailed off, doing a mental headcount. "Where's Dolores?"
"The Guzmán's," Pepa said immediately, holding her head up and looking her mother in the eye. "She told me Mariano invited her over for dinner tonight. I didn't see a problem with it."
Abuela and Pepa stared at each other for a long moment until Pepa looked away, her cloud darkening. Abuela glanced at it but made no comment. Mirabel saw Félix give Pepa a sunny smile and reach for her hand under the table.
"No matter," Abuela said firmly, looking around the table. "The rest of us are here now. And what a blessing it is to have my family all around one table at last."
Not everyone, Mirabel thought as Abuela continued her speech. She made brief eye contact with Camilo.
He must have recognized something in her expression. His eyes narrowed and he subtly shook his head.
Something nudged her foot. Mirabel looked down and saw, to her surprise, a coati nuzzling against her shoe. Clutched in its hand was a folded piece of paper, and when it saw her face it held the note up with a small chuff.
Curious, Mirabel leaned under the table to accept the note.
"Mirabel?"
She pulled back, startled, and smacked the back of her head on the underside of the table, making the dishes rattle. Rubbing the back of her head, she felt her cheeks heat up as she looked up at Abuela's perplexed face.
"Sorry," Mirabel said, the note crumpled in her palm. "Uh. Rock in my shoe."
Abuela nodded and turned her attention back to the table. She held up her wine glass and the rest of the family followed suit. "To another smooth day tomorrow. ¡Salud!"
"¡Salud!"
While everyone drank, Mirabel opened the note and read:
Mira,
I got Tío to sleep for one hour. Can I have extra cheese in my chocolate santafereño?
Love,
Antonio
Mirabel shut her eyes for a brief second and took a deep breath. Ay, Toñito. We've gotta work on your timing, buddy.
But it didn't stop her from giving Antonio a thumbs up down the table anyway, and smiling when he beamed at her.
The toast ended, Abuela sat down, and conversation around the table resumed. Mirabel picked at her food, her mind drifting to the barn. She hadn't seen her tío since breakfast, and she wondered if he was doing alright…
"Mirabel?"
Mirabel's focus was immediately brought back to the present and to Abuela sitting beside her. "Sí, Abuela?"
Abuela gave her a warm smile. "Have you thought about what I asked, mija? Will you be joining me tomorrow afternoon?"
Oh, right. The council meeting. Mirabel sighed internally. Smiled. "Sí, I…I'd love to come with you."
"Splendid," Abuela said. She took a sip of wine. "Señor González is introducing the yearly budget tomorrow, and there will have to be some big changes…"
Abuela continued, but internally Mirabel was screaming. It just felt so…meaningless in the face of, well, everything else. Who cared about budget cuts when Mariano didn't know about the magic? When Pepa had to conceal her cloud to the point of physical pain? When Camilo wanted to move away so he could finally use his Gift freely? When Bruno was sitting in the barn, alone, when he should be here—
"Mirabel? Are you listening to me?"
Abuela was looking at her now, a small frown on her face, and Mirabel panicked. Abuela had asked her a question, hadn't she?
"Um—"
"You know, Abuela," Camilo cut in, leaning a little over the table. "If you're worried about adequate funds, you could always divert some away from the Rural Initiative Program instead of dipping into—"
"Gracias, Camilo," Abuela said, cutting him off with a sharp look. "But I was asking Mirabel."
Camilo's mouth snapped shut and he sat back in his chair, looking down at his food.
Mirabel swallowed. "Well, actually, I think Camilo would be better able to answer that question…"
Abuela looked at her for a long moment. Then, she waved her hand. "No matter. I'll be sure to get you a copy of the agenda for you to review before the meeting tomorrow. Now." She patted Mirabel's hand. "Tell me all about your trip, mija."
Mirabel glanced at Camilo across the table. He was pushing his food around his plate, but when he noticed her looking, gave her a small smile and a wink. She sat up straighter in her seat and smoothed down her skirt.
"Sure, Abuela, I'd be happy to."
"And…is this enough queso, Toñito?"
The minute dinner was over, Antonio had beelined to Mirabel for his promised chocolate santafereño. Mirabel was happy to oblige, ducking away from Abuela with a half-hearted apology and getting out of clearing the table in the process.
Antonio shook his head, his eyes locked on the cubes of cheese Mirabel had in her hand. "Mas, por favor."
Mirabel made a face but did as requested, stirring. "Okay, this is, dare I say, an unholy amount of cheese, so I'm refusing to add any more on principle."
She gave the drink one final stir and passed him the cup. "Be careful, it's hot."
Antonio nodded and cautiously wrapped his hands around the mug. "Gracias, Mirabel."
"No, thank you, Toñito," Mirabel said, ruffling his hair. "You were a big help today."
Antonio ducked his head, a pleased smile spreading across his face. He took a noisy sip and asked, "Are you coming to play Pesca?"
"Uh, yeah, wouldn't miss it."
Antonio giggled.
"Hey." Isabela ducked into the kitchen, glancing around to make sure they were alone. "We've got Tío's dinner so we're gonna head over. You coming?"
"I am!" Antonio said, cradling his drink.
Mirabel waved her hand. "I'll clean up first and meet you there."
Isabela nodded. She smiled at Antonio. "C'mon, hombrecito."
Antonio took another noisy sip as they left the kitchen.
Mirabel whipped through the dishes and was just wiping down the counter when Abuela entered the kitchen, holding a thick folder in her hands. Mirabel felt prickling dread creep in, even as her smile slid into place.
"Here, mariposita," Abuela said, holding out the folder. "The agenda for tomorrow, as promised, along with any other relevant paperwork."
"Gracias, Abuela," Mirabel said, accepting it and inwardly wincing at its weight. "I'll look over it tomorrow."
"Just be sure you are very familiar with it," Abuela said, a stern edge to her voice. "It's a lot of reading…perhaps you should look over it a little tonight as well."
Mirabel winced. "Oh, umm." Her eyes slid toward the back door. "I kinda told Toñito I'd go play Pesca with him..."
Abuela frowned, but before she could say anything, someone behind her cleared their throat.
Mirabel and Abuela both turned to see Julieta in the doorway, her arms folded across her chest.
"Mamá," she said sharply. "Mirabel's been working all day. Let her have some fun with her cousins, eh?"
Yet again, there was another silent exchange between mother and daughter. But this time, Abuela was the first to look away.
Abuela reached out and patted Mirabel's cheek. "Have fun, mariposita." She left the kitchen.
The moment she was gone, Julieta sighed. Mirabel watched her closely. Her mamá looked so much older for a moment—there was a tension around her eyes and shoulders that just wasn't present when they were at home and she wondered, not for the first time, if her mamá and Abuela had ever truly mended the cracks in their relationship since The Argument, or if it remained simply…something else they didn't talk about. An open wound left to fester.
"Gracias, Mamá," Mirabel whispered, taking her mamá's hand.
Julieta smiled, squeezing Mirabel's hand. "De nada, mi vida. You've been working so hard today, you deserve to have some fun." Gently, she eased the heavy folder out of Mirabel's grasp. "Let's just…leave this here, sí?" she said, setting it on the counter. "Are you all going out to the barn?"
Mirabel made a noncommittal noise.
Julieta hummed. "Well, better not keep Antonio waiting. I know how much he looks up to you. But we need to sit down and chat sometime tomorrow, okay?"
"Por supuesto, Mamá," Mirabel said, pulling her mamá into a hug, squeezing her tight. Julieta returned the embrace, pressing a kiss to Mirabel's cheek.
"Don't forget, Toñito's bedtime is at nine," she said in Mirabel's ear. "Lest you risk the wrath of The Cloud."
Mirabel giggled. "We won't."
"Mirabel! You coming—oh."
Julieta pulled away from Mirabel to smile at Camilo in the doorway. "She's on her way, Milo, lo prometo."
Camilo nodded, awkwardly shuffling his feet.
Julieta smiled at Mirabel, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "Now, shoo. Go have fun."
"I will. Te quiero, Mamá."
"Te quiero también."
The moment they were outside, Camilo gave her a questioning look.
Mirabel was quick to reassure. "I didn't tell her anything, Milo."
Camilo sighed and ran a hand through his curls. "I mean…she's going to find out soon anyway. We're gonna need to talk about that."
Mirabel let out her own sigh. She felt like all she did was sigh this week. "We need to talk about a lot of things."
Camilo was silent then as they walked through the orchard. They were nearly to the barn when he blurted, "Let's just…have fun tonight instead, yeah?"
Mirabel smiled. "Sounds good to me."
When they opened the barn door, Mirabel saw her sisters and Antonio milling around in the main area of the barn, but no sign of Bruno.
"Where…?" she started, but Luisa pointed up to the hayloft.
"Dolores is talking to him," she whispered. "It sounds serious."
"I can hear you, you know."
Luisa rolled her eyes as Dolores appeared over the edge of the loft, Bruno not far behind her. He raised a hand in greeting.
Antonio skipped immediately to the ladder and climbed up to Bruno to take his hand, chattering about dinner. Bruno smiled at him, giving the boy his full attention.
Mirabel, Camilo, Luisa, and Isabela quickly joined them. Once Mirabel was firmly in the hayloft, she sidled up next to Dolores and nudged her oldest prima.
"All good?" she asked quietly. "I thought you went to Mariano's."
Dolores shook her head and gave Mirabel a small smile. "No, that's just what I told Mami. But I'm okay, just…looking for advice."
"Oh. Did you find what you were looking for?"
"Hm. We'll see."
"Mirabel!" Antonio ran and threw his arms around her waist, turning big eyes up at her in distress. "Tío Bruno's never played Pesca!"
"Oh dear," Mirabel said, looking at Bruno over Antonio's head. Bruno gave her a soft smile and a wink and she suppressed a giggle. "You'll have to teach him, Toñito."
Antonio nodded seriously. "Can we all play?"
Camilo leaned over and ruffled his hermanito's hair. "Of course. Luisa, you brought the cards, right?"
Luisa held up the well-worn deck. "Duh."
They sat down in a circle as Luisa shuffled and doled out the cards. Antonio immediately decided that he and Bruno were a team and sat on Bruno's lap. Bruno whispered something in his ear and he giggled.
Halfway through the game, after the duo scored their fifth book of matching cards in a row, Camilo threw his hands in the air.
"Oh no, no, no, are you both cheating?"
Antonio's face was the picture of innocence. "I, Antonio Castillo, would never cheat, Camilo."
Bruno nodded seriously above him. "It's true, he never would."
The girls all laughed while Camilo spluttered, "Tío, you–you've only known him for a day—"
"Sí, sí, but I am an excellent judge of character," Bruno said with a toothy grin. His eyes glowed green in a blink-and-you'll-miss-it flash. "Do you have any Jacks?"
Mirabel threw her cards down and burst into giggles, leaning against Luisa.
"Okay, so, did no one bother to explain to Tío Bruno that Gifts weren't allowed on game night?" Camilo grumbled over Mirabel's laughter, handing over his three Jacks. "You're an adult."
"An adult who is winning," Bruno corrected him, accepting the cards with grace and handing them to Antonio to arrange in a neat pile on the floor in front of them.
Dolores and Isabela snickered into their cards.
Bruno leaned over to Mirabel and stage-whispered in her ear, "Ask Camilo if he has any fours."
Camilo squawked. "This is blatant favoritism!"
Mirabel smiled serenely. "Camilo, do you—"
"Dios mío, just take them!" Camilo cried, throwing down his remaining cards. Antonio laughed wildly.
But despite Camilo's moaning and groaning, Mirabel could see how relaxed and happy he was. And as she looked around their circle, she saw how relaxed they all were, sprawled out among the piles of hay—knocking elbows, swapping cards, ribbing each other.
She looked at Bruno and saw he was doing the same thing she was, taking them in, his expression so open and brimming with affection it was almost too painful to look at directly.
This is how it always should have been, she thought fiercely. This is how it always should be.
Translations:
1. Pesca - Go Fish, literally "fish"
2. Salud - cheers, literally "health"
3. Queso - cheese
4. Mas - more
