Summary:

Everyone becomes stunned when Mirabel's gift ceremony takes an unexpected turn. Bruno makes a heavy decision with dire consequences.

-o-o-

Written in Gabriela's and Bruno's POV.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

"Tía Gabriela?" Mirabel blinks at me in the mirror. "I'm nervous."

"...how so, Miraboo?" I ask as I finish adjusting the ribbon on her hair. She jumps off the vanity to twirl in her beautiful dress, one that I made for her that's adorned with golden butterflies.

"I don't know, Tía, I just am," Mirabel reaches out to me for a hug. I open my arms and she settles in. She looks up at me with big eyes, her glasses glinting in the light.

"Are you worried about your gift?"

She pouts at me. "Maybe a little."

I hum as I set her down next to me on the bed. "You know, whatever it is, you'll always be special to me."

"Do you mean that, Tía? Even when you and Tío Bruno have your own niños?"

I squeeze Mirabel into a bear hug. "I'll love my future children, but it'll never change how I feel about you."

Someone knocks on the door of the nursery. I get up to open it. Mamá Alma smiles at me as she enters, holding the candle that contains the miracle. "Gabriela, mija. There you are. I was wondering where you were."

"I was preparing Mirabel for the ceremony, Mamá," I nod towards Mirabel. "Julieta asked me to help, given she's busy preparing the food downstairs."

Mamá Alma hums. "Thank you, mija. I'm sure Julieta and Agustín appreciate that you and Bruno treat her so much like your own. Most people would think she's yours."

If only I had a peso for every time I hear that remark. I'd probably be rich.

"Mirabel just has a special place in Gabriela's heart, Mamá." We turn to find Bruno leaning against the doorframe, a small smile on his lips. "As do I." He walks over to Mirabel and embraces her. "Good luck out there, mi mariposita."

Mirabel beams at Bruno, her nervousness immediately dissipating. "Thank you, Tío."

"I'll take over from here," Mamá Alma says as she sits next to Mirabel. I sneak Mirabel one last squeeze before Bruno leads me outside and closes the door behind us.

"What do you think Mirabel's gift would be?" I ask Bruno as we make our way downstairs. There are plenty of people already milling about, waiting for the ceremony to begin.

"Hm, whatever it is, it would be something that would help the family understand our purpose in life," Bruno hums. I roll my eyes at him. "Wow, okay, philosophical, are we?"

He shrugs. "Just a thought."

"I guess you're right…" I sneak a quick peck on Bruno's cheek when no one is looking. "I see Mirabel being the one who would change your family for the better."

"You mean, OUR family," Bruno corrects. He pulls me to a quiet corner. I giggle when he smirks and leans forward to kiss me…but someone coughs from behind us. We immediately straighten up even before our lips touch.

It's Julieta.

"Plenty of time to do that at your wedding next month," She clicks her tongue disapprovingly at us both. "But today is for mi bebé, so behave accordingly, you two."

"Of course, Julieta," I smile at her and nudge Bruno. He puffs his cheeks at his sister, slightly annoyed by the interruption before sighing defeatedly. "Yes, hermana. Fine."

Agustín appears behind Julieta, looking all nervous. "They're starting up the fireworks. It's almost time."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

I watch as Mamá stares in confusion at what is going on.

It disappeared. Mirabel's door disappeared.

For the first time, a Madrigal grandchild did not receive a gift.

"Oh no…" Julieta gasps as she and Agustín rush up the stairs. I start to notice the townsfolk have their eyes on me. Gabriela leers at them. "Come on, cariño, let's go. Don't mind them." She says as she pulls me away.

We don't speak as we hurry upstairs, bumping into Félix who is already waiting by the nursery door with Camilo. We hear Pepa's voice downstairs, explaining to the guests with the help of my older nieces. "Lo lamentamos. Lo sentimos mucho. You all need to leave. The party is over."

"What's going on, hermano?" Félix whispers to me as Gabriela helps Agustín bring Mirabel into the nursery. "Why did Mirabel's door disappear?"

"I…honestly don't know," I confess. "I never got any visions of this happening, prompted or not." I glance over to the opposite side to see Julieta guide Mamá to her room.

"I guess there's a limit to what you can see…" Félix trails off when he notices the gleam in his son's eyes. Before we can even stop Camilo, he begins to shift into various people with wacky faces, trying to make Mirabel smile. Instead of making her laugh like it always does, it made her cry harder. Confusion colors Camilo's face.

I feel bad for my sobrino. He doesn't understand what is going on.

Félix quickly takes his son's hand and whisks him out. "Lo siento, hermanos. I…think we should leave you to it." He gives Agustín an apologetic look before shutting the nursery's door behind him.

The tension in the room is heavy. Agustín paces the room, muttering, worry evident on his face. "This has never happened before…"

I say nothing as I stand next to my beloved. Gabriela looks anxiously at me. She's cradling Mirabel in her arms, letting my niece cry on her shoulder.

Moments later there's a knock on the door. Julieta enters with tears in her eyes. "Bruno. Mamá is asking for you."

"Why would she be asking for him?" Gabriela interjects before I could even answer my sister. Her grip on Mirabel becomes a little tighter. "She's not thinking that this is his fault, is she?"

"No. Gabriela. I don't think she does." Julieta's taken aback by her sudden outburst.

"Then why is she asking for Bruno?"

"I don't know," Julieta looks at Gabriela sadly. "She wouldn't tell me."

Gabriela's face falls and she starts to cry. "I'm sorry, Julieta…I didn't mean to be rude. It's just…everyone was looking at Bruno like he's the cause of all this…"

Julieta opens her mouth to say something but Agustín stops her. "No, amor, she's right…I would be acting the same if I were in Gabriela's position."

"Querida," I place a comforting hand on Gabriela's shoulder. "I'm not surprised by that anymore, but…is this why you were glaring at everyone?"

"They weren't just staring and thinking badly about you, cariño." Gabriela's voice is barely above a whisper. She had to lower her voice with Agustín in the room. The rest of the family, save for myself and my sisters, are still not informed about her ability. "It was directed at Mirabel, too."

I prickle at the confession. If it was just me, I wouldn't care. But this is different. No one hurts my niece. "I know you're wary about it, mi vida, but I'll go see what Mamá wants from me. I'll be right back."

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Julieta and Agustín left me alone with Mirabel after we managed to settle her to sleep. They were worried, but I assured them both that I would stay over while they check on the rest of their children. My family would understand if I don't come home tonight. They saw what happened.

Bruno returns about an hour later, displeasure evident on his face.

"What did she say to you?" I ask as he pulls me into an embrace. He is silent for a moment before he responds. "Don't worry, mi vida, she didn't blame me or anything, but…"

I look up at him. "But…?"

Bruno sighs. He lets go of me and presses his palms into his eyes. "She wants me to look into Mirabel's future."

"What?" I remove Bruno's hands from his face to hold them in mine. "But…her rule…"

"It's why she couldn't tell Julieta earlier when she called for me. You're the only one that knows about this."

"Am I not supposed to know too?"

He grimaced at the thought. "No. She didn't tell me to keep it from you, but she asked that I keep it from the rest till I see more. Either way, there are no secrets between us. After all…you know everything."

I chew on my bottom lip. "Not everything. I may know what everyone's thinking, but right now no one knows what to do. I can't think of anything to help."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up, mi vida," He says as he squeezes my hands. "None of us expected this to happen. Even I didn't see this coming. Something is amiss in the family…and I'll find out what it is."

Bruno brings my right hand up to his lips, kissing the gold band on my finger. I'm worried about what tomorrow will bring, what it'll mean for Mirabel, what it'll mean for Bruno and me. "Everything will be okay, Gabriela. Trust me."

I lean forward to kiss him, fervently, passionately. He sighs as he kisses me back, not wanting to let go. We stay like this in silence, his arms around my waist and my head on his chest.

"Bruno?"

"Hm?"

"I'll be okay. Go do what you have to do. But you have to promise that whatever you see, you'll come back to me."

"I'm not going anywhere, but I promise you." He gives me one last kiss before turning to leave the room. "Te amo tanto, Gabriela."

"Yo también te amo, Bruno." I whisper as the door closes behind him.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

I don't recall what point after midnight did I fall asleep.

I wake up the next morning to the sound of frantic voices. I find Mirabel sleeping soundly in my arms, oblivious to what is going on. I slowly get out of bed, careful not to wake her. The noise outside makes me worry. I decided to see what is going on.

I haven't completely closed the nursery door when I bump into Julieta. "Ay, lo siento, Julieta," I say as I catch her by her shoulders. "I didn't see you there."

She flinches.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" I ask, my brows furrowing as I take in her reaction. "Is…everything okay?" She doesn't respond for a while until I gently shake her. "Julieta?"

Julieta snaps herself back to reality. "Bru…Bruno…" She trembles.

Why do I feel like something terrible has happened?

I try to calm her down. Her mind is racing a mile a minute that I can't get a clear picture of what's happening. "Julieta, breathe. What about Bruno has got you so worked up?"

Her face falls. "Gabriela…we…we can't find him anywhere…"

"What?" I yell a little too loudly. A strong gust of wind breaks my grip on her. I turn my head in horror to see a tornado in the middle of the courtyard.

"Pepi, amor, calm down!" I hear Félix yell over the commotion. "He's just here somewhere. He couldn't have gone very far!"

"What is going on?" I remark as I leave Julieta and rush to Bruno's tower. I quickly climb up the short steps to open his door before someone grabs my hand.

"Don't," Julieta gasps. She's caught up to me. "It's not safe there."

I turn back to face her. "What do you mean it's not safe? I saw Bruno last night after you and Agustín left. He said he needed to do something in his room…"

"We tried looking for him in there earlier. Casita doesn't respond in the room anymore. Look at his door."

My mouth gapes open. ¿Que demonios? She's right.

Bruno's door lost its glow.

"Where's Mamá?" My head is spinning. I rub my temples, wondering if I just imagined Bruno coming into the room in the middle of the night.

"Downstairs. Agustín's with her. She's inconsolable. I've tried asking her what happened after Bruno went to see her last night, but she wouldn't tell us. All we know is that when she came by this morning to check up on him, this is what she found."

"She asked Bruno for a vision last night," I confess to Julieta. "...of Mirabel."

Julieta gasps, shocked at the revelation. "What? Is this why…she didn't tell me? What…what about her…rule? What vision…about my bebé?"

"I don't know…that's all Bruno told me…"

We stand there in silence. Maybe Bruno coming into the room after I've fallen asleep wasn't a dream. Maybe it was real, but my mind was just too hazy to register it.

It was already past midnight.

I'm on the edge of sleep. I heard the door open, then the sound of footsteps. I stirred when the bed shifted and fingers caressed my cheek.

"Mi amor," It's Bruno. His voice was soft as he whispered into my ear. "I know I promised that as long as you asked me to, I would always stay by your side…"

He choked as he held back his tears. "...and I promised I would come back to you, whatever I see of the future. Pero…tengo que romper la promesa. Lo siento. Lo siento mucho, mi amor. Por favor, perdóname."

His hand grazed over mine. "I hope you'll understand. Tengo que romper tu corazón…to protect the family. Siempre te amaré, Gabriela…but maybe…we're not meant to be."

Bruno kissed me one last time…and I fell back into the darkness.

I glance to check my right hand. A broken sob comes out of me. It can't be.

He wouldn't.

The world feels like it's crumbling down. I can't breathe.

"We're having the townsfolk search the whole Encanto right now. I doubt that he'll have made it far to reach the outside world, but…I don't know what made him think of just getting up and leaving. This isn't like him…" Julieta says before gasping in horror. "Gabriela? You're bleeding!"

I look down to see blood dripping down the side of my leg.

"Gabriela, let's get you to my room," Julieta tries to hold me but I avoid her grasp.

I feel weak all of a sudden, but I ignore it. My vision starts to blur around the edges as I push past Julieta to leave. "I have to find Bruno," I mumble. "…he came in last night while I was asleep. I wasn't dreaming…"

"Wait! GABRIELA!"

I don't get very far before my legs gave away, making me fall backward but not come into contact with the floor. I can't register anything else that's happening. All I could think about is the missing weight on my finger.

Julieta catches me. "Dios mío, you're pale…Agustín! Félix! Pepa!" I hear her yell out. She brushes the hair away from my damp forehead. "You're in shock. Don't worry Gabriela, I've got you. Anyone? I need help here!"

"Bruno…left me…" I croak out as the tears start to fall.

"Mamá, what's going on?" Julieta immediately turns to see Luisa standing there. "What's happening with Tía?"

"Luisa, mija, don't panic. Help me get your Tía Gabriela to my room. Quickly!"

I feel like I'm slowly being pulled underwater. It's cool and deep and dark. I want to curl up in this space and stay there forever. At least I wouldn't feel this pain.

Julieta's voice is distant. "Look at me. Look at me, Gabriela. Don't close your eyes. You're going to be okay. Just stay awake."

"Gabriela? Gabriela!"

It all fades to black.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Loving someone always demands a sacrifice. To me, it was the most difficult choice I had to do.

I made myself disappear from the family for good the moment I saw Mirabel's future.

I forwent my plan to leave Encanto. The mountains were too tall to even make it through in one night. I had nowhere to go…but then I found a hole in Casita's wall that I never knew existed. Maybe it had always been here.

I went into the darkness and never looked back.

I look around at the small space I'm standing in after roaming around for hours. Which part of the house is this?

I hear voices. I notice a small ray of light coming from the crack in the wall and I peep through. I'm right beside the dining room. I see Julieta and Agustín talking about something.

I try to listen to their conversation.

"You did all you could, amor," Agustín says, comforting Julieta who's slumped down on the dining room table, crying. "Don't be too hard on yourself."

"What is happening to our family?" Julieta sobs as Agustín rubs her shoulders. "First, Mirabel, then Bruno, now…Gabriela…"

"It's not your fault," He sighs. "You and Luisa were able to save her life. If our daughter wasn't there…it would've been much worse."

She looks up to meet Agustín's eyes. "I'm worried about Luisa. It's too much for a young girl like her to see her Tía like that, bloodied on the floor."

Blood? What happened to Gabriela? My heart catches in my throat at the mention of her name. I feel her ring in my pocket. The guilt washes over me.

You promised, Bruno. You promised you'd come back to her, whatever you see.

I try to shoo the thought away. I broke her heart in the middle of the night while she slept, too much of a coward to properly face her. I stole her ring, the one I gave her when I asked her to marry me. I didn't want her to wait for someone who'll never come back.

In the process, I broke my own heart, too.

She deserves much more than…me.

"Luisa is a strong girl. It's Mirabel I'm most worried about…" Agustín trails off. "I don't want her thinking that everything that's happening to our family is her fault. She never asked for any of this. Her Tío Bruno's disappearance. Her Tía Gabriela losing their baby…"

I'm taken aback by the last line. She…was expecting? I suddenly remember the night of our engagement party. Gabriela and I had a little too much to drink and we hid in my room to get away from prying eyes. My memory is spotty but I know our lovemaking was a whole lot more passionate than usual, maybe even careless.

I fight the urge to slam my fists against the wall. How did that happen? But…her vision. Our future. Did she lose the baby because of me?

Their conversation is interrupted by the sound of thunder. It's Pepa. "I can't find her!"

"What do you mean?" Julieta immediately stands from her seat.

"Gabriela's gone missing. She's not in your room!" Pepa is shaking, trying hard not to cry herself.

"WHAT?"

"Dolores is listening for her whereabouts as we speak," Félix suddenly enters, waving a piece of paper. "...but she left a letter…"

"What does it say? Pepa, what does it say?" Julieta pleads, shaking Pepa's shoulders.

Pepa wails and it begins to rain. "She…she said she's sorry. She can't bear to be here, to face any of us. She's ashamed that she let everyone down. She couldn't take Mamá's disappointment after losing both her baby and the father of her child…and asked that we…we don't try to…"

Julieta becomes frantic. "She's….she's not going to…"

Agustín stops his wife from going any further. "We have to go find her. NOW."

I watch as they all rush out of the dining room. They don't know I'm on the other side.

I heard everything.

I grit my teeth as my tears start to fall. I slump down and weep, mourning over the loss of everything I had held so dear.

I am so sorry, Gabriela. I am so, so sorry. I never meant for this to happen. Mi amor, mi hijo por nacer...nunca quise lastimarlos a los dos.

I left because I didn't have the answers. I sacrificed my life…to protect Mirabel.

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Glossary of terms (in order of appearance in-text):

Niños - Children/Kids
Mi mariposita - My little butterfly
Lo lamentamos - We're sorry
Lo sentimos mucho - We're very sorry
Que demonios - What the hell
Pero…tengo que romper la promesa - But...I have to break the promise
Por favor, perdóname - Please, forgive me
Tengo que romper tu corazón - I have to break your heart
Siempre te amaré - I'll always love you
Mi hijo por nacer - My unborn child
Nunca quise lastimarlos a los dos - I never meant to hurt you both