ISABELA

Isabela began to notice her eldest primo, Camilo's change in both attitude and appetite, to the point where she was able to connect the dots and figure out who the girl he liked was.

Camilo was discreet, sure. But not discreet enough. Even his teasing ways weren't enough to hide it.

At first, Isabela didn't give it a thought, but over time it became obvious.

One afternoon, Isabela was having a midday break in one of the cafeterías in the town square with her prima, Dolores.

After the fall and restoration of their Casita, Isabela was able to find and discover more of herself. Not only was she able to grow flowers with a simple wave of her hand, but she could also grow almost all kinds of plants, like fruit-bearing trees.

There was also less pressure and more time to relax, which everyone was happy about. She was particularly happy for Luisa's sake, as her sister was constantly carrying around heavy things to the point where she didn't take breaks. Now, Luisa was able to take naps in between chores, which is a good thing.

Her prima, Dolores, seemed happier than she was after the Casita was restored. Not only because she was getting married to Mariano Guzman in a month, but because she was able to gain control of her gift. Isabela was not sure how Dolores' gift worked, but she seemed to know which sound to block out if she didn't want to listen to it. Even her bedroom was now soundproof-actually all their bedrooms were soundproof now-so she couldn't hear anything she was not supposed to hear.

Isabela's daily chore was helping the florists and farmers in town with their crops. And if there are weddings, Isabela would personally foresee the flower arrangements and decorations at the church.

At the moment, Isabela was sitting by one of the tables outside the cafetería across from Dolores. They were drinking cafés con leche and eating bizcochos.

"-know about that," Dolores said. "But Mamí said-"

"Espera!" Isabela interrupted, raising her hand. "This is your wedding we're talking about. It's all about you and Mariano. Lo siento, but I don't care what Tía Pepa says. You should be doing what you want to do."

"She's just saying that-" Dolores started to say, but she suddenly covered her ears.

A loud crash could be heard on the street adjacent to the town square and the cafetería they were at.

Isabela could see her primo, Camilo running towards the chaos.

She stood and glanced the the ruckus across the street. "What is going on?" She demanded.

Her sister, Luisa came out of nowhere. "I'm on it, sis," She assured as she walked briskly towards the gathering crowd. "Don't worry."

Apparently, two merchants who were driving their carts collided with each other. Their carts, carrying food and other stuff had spilled onto the cobblestone.

Dolores also stood from her seat. "Okay, I need to stop my brother from causing a scene."

"What?" Isabela exclaimed.

Isabela followed her prima and headed across the street where the collision happened.

Fruits and other dry goods were scattered on the cobblestone. Several people were on the street, some of them injured and some of them were trying to help. And they arrived just in time to see Camilo yelling at one of the cart drivers, and Luisa pulling their primo away to keep him from screaming.

Dolores immediately chastised her brother for yelling, while Isabela went to help the people who were injured.

Then Isabela saw her sister, Mirabel as one of the injured in the collision. She was sitting on the cobblestone street rubbing her head and fixing her glasses.

"Mira?" Isabela gasped as she ran towards her sister. "Ay, Dios mio. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Isa," Mirabel assured. "Don't worry about me."

Mirabel obviously did not look okay. She tried standing up but flinched. "Okay, maybe I'm not." She said.

Before Isabela can say anything, Camilo rushed towards them. From the angry and loud tone of voice he had moments ago, it changed into a soft and soothing tone. The same tone Camilo would use to calm down his mother.

Camilo ignored Isabela and went straight to Mirabel. "Mimi, are you okay?" He asked, checking Mirabel's face and arms for bruises. "Are you hurt?"

"I think I'm okay," She assured.

"You're not okay, Mira." Isabela insisted. "You can't even stand."

"You're hurt," Camilo realized. "I'll take you to your Mamá."

"Camilo, I'm alright-whoa!" Mirabel started to say, when suddenly Camilo picked her up bridal style. "What are you doing?"

"I'm taking you to your Mamá."

Camilo then went ahead and walked towards their Mamá, Julieta's booth for the healing food.

There was definitely something different with how Camilo handled it. The way he yelled at the cart drivers from with an angry and loud tone, and then the way he changed his tone when he talked to Mirabel.

He sounded so worried and concerned. But the way he was looking at Mirabel was icing on the cake. It was when Isabela realized the truth.

Ay, Dios mio, she thought.

"It's Mirabel," Isabela blurted out as soon as Dolores stood next to her.

"Hmm?" Dolores squeaked.

"It's Mirabel!" Isabela repeated. "Mirabel is the girl!"

Dolores frowned at her. "What are you talking about?"

"Mirabel is the girl Camilo likes, right?"

Dolores froze. "Uh…"

"Don't lie to me, prima," Isabela snapped. "I've seen the way he looks at her. Oddly enough, it's the same way your Papí looks at your Mamí." She said. "And these past few days, they've been awkward around each other. I don't understand why though."

Dolores remained silent.

"Lola?" Isabela called, then faced her and held her shoulders. "Tell me the truth."

Dolores didn't budge.

Isabela sighed and released her grip from Dolores' shoulders. "Alright, I swear I won't tell anyone."

It took a few seconds before her prima finally spoke up. "It's true." She confirmed. "He likes Mirabel. But he's keeping his distance because of Santiago. He doesn't wanna come between them."

Isabela then remembered the one time Camilo asked her for a bouquet of Flores de mayo one time, which he had never done before. She just thought that he was finally making a move on the girl he liked. But then again, she saw that same bouquet in Mirabel's hands. And according to Luisa, it was Santiago who gave it to their hermanita. It's possible that Camilo asked for the flowers and then gave them to Santiago, so he could give it to Mirabel.

"But why?" Isabela asked.

"I don't know,"

"You don't know?" She raised an eyebrow at her prima. "Please, of course, you do. You hear everything."

"You know my brother's too smart to say anything," Dolores said. "He knows I can hear him."

"Fine, but I want you to confirm something for me," Isabela insisted. "The other day Camilo asked me for a bouquet of flores de mayo. Did he give it to Santiago so he could give it to Mirabel?" She asked.

Dolores took a breath and nodded. "Yes,"

Isabela shook her head in confusion. "Why?"

"Okay, that one, I really don't know," Dolores said. "You'll have to ask Camilo about that. Though, I doubt he'll say anything. And honestly, I think it's best to not get involved with whatever it is."

What is that supposed to mean? Isabela thought. Something tells her that Dolores knows more than she's telling her. One way or another, she will get to the bottom of this.

CAMILO

Everytime Camilo sees Mirabel with Santiago, he dies a little inside. Sure, he tried his best to be happy for his prima, but it's not easy.

The same day Santiago gave Mirabel the flowers that Camilo himself prepared, he also saw Santiago hand Mirabel a piece of paper. For some reason, he already knew what the note on the paper said. Santiago was probably asking Mirabel out again on a date beyond the pass to make up for not showing up the last time.

When Mirabel's sisters and Dolores teased her about the flowers during dinner that same day, Camilo didn't join in with the teasing.

That night, he went to his bedroom early. But remembering about Santiago's note, Camilo climbed out of his window and up the roof. He carefully walked through the clay roof tiles to the other side of the courtyard. He leaned against Bruno's tower and waited.

Sure enough, after several minutes, Camilo could see Mirabel walking away from the Casita. She was no doubt on her way to see Santiago beyond the Pass. His thoughts then went to what might happen between Mirabel and Santiago on their secret date.

Nevertheless, Camilo stayed on the roof until Mirabel returned. He didn't know how long his prima had been gone, but he had to make sure she got home safe.

For the next few days, Camilo climbed up the roof to see if Mirabel went out with Santiago again, which she did. And he still waited for her until she came home.

The day Camilo had told himself, that's enough, was the day that cart collision happened. When he heard the crash, he ran towards it immediately.

He saw her prima, Mirabel on the cobblestone. By the looks of it, she's probably hurt. The thought made him angry.

"¿Qué mierda haces?!" Camilo yelled at one of the cart drivers.

Camilo didn't care about the mess it caused on the street. What he cared about was some people got hurt, especially since one of those people was his prima, Mirabel.

"Lo siento, chico," The cart driver apologized, scratching his head. "I-"

"You're in a calle full of people!" Camilo insisted. "Did you not use your eyes?! Did you-hey!"

Camilo was then pulled by his shoulders. When he turned to see who it was, he rolled his eyes as he saw his prima, Luisa.

"Lo siento, señor," Luisa said. "We'll help you with the damages."

"Help him?" Camilo gawked. "Luisa, he-"

"Save the yelling, primo," Luisa simply said, then placed him down away from the cart driver.

Someone then pulled his ruana. "Camilo, stop it." It was his sister, Dolores. "Yelling is not going to fix the problem." She said.

"What did you want me to do?" Camilo complained. "Just stand there and do nothing? People were hurt because someone was careless."

"Exactly," Dolores said. "People were hurt and they need our help."

"But-"

"Isa and I will take care of this," Dolores assured. "Just go help Luisa with the injured."

Camilo sighed. "Fine." He glanced at where Mirabel was, who was tended by Isabela. But something was not right, so he decided to approach them.

Mirabel was sitting on the cobblestone street. Isabela was crouching by her sister.

"Mimi, are you okay?" He asked, concerned. He checked her face and arms for bruises. "Are you hurt?"

"I think I'm okay," She assured.

"You're not okay, Mira," Isabela countered. "You can't even stand."

Camilo glanced at her foot and noticed that her ankle was bent at an unusual angle. "You're hurt," He said. "I'll take you to your Mamá."

He wasted no time, scooped her up, and carried her in his arms.

"Camilo, I'm alright-whoa!" Mirabel yelped. "What are you doing?" She demanded.

"I'm taking you to your Mamá."

Mirabel never argue

The entire walk to his Tía Julieta's booth, Camilo didn't make eye contact with Mirabel. He just kept his eyes on the street, but the entire time, he could tell that Mirabel was eyeing him.

"You didn't have to do this, Camilo," Mirabel spoke up.

"It's alright," He assured. "It's all part of our chores, to help people, right?"

Mirabel didn't answer. "But still, it's just-"

"It's not a problem, Mimi," Camilo interrupted. "Don't worry about it."

Instead of taking Mirabel to Tía Julieta's booth, Camilo went the other way and had her seated on one of the benches by a tree on the sidewalk.

"Why did you bring me here?" Mirabel asked. "Mamá's booth is that way." She pointed in the other direction.

"Yeah, I know," Camilo replied. "But I also know you'd rather not hear her scold you for being injured again." He smiled. "Don't worry, Mimi, I'll be back with your Mamá's food. Just stay put."

Camilo started to head to his Tía Julieta's booth. He was thinking of a way to explain why he needed her food, but thankfully, his sister, Dolores was there.

"Hey, Dolores-" He started to say.

"You're supposed to take her here." She insisted.

"I know, but-"

"Oh, I heard what you said," Dolores said, grabbing several arepas and placing them in a paper bag. "You need to be careful with your actions, hermanito. Isa's getting suspicious."

Camilo frowned. "Suspicious of what?" He asked.

Dolores gave him the paper bag. "She's starting to ask questions about you and Mirabel. Why the Madrigal twins are suddenly awkward around each other? And if I heard anything."

"What did you tell her?"

Dolores shook her head. "Just give those to Mirabel before Tía Julieta asks questions." She said, pushing him away.

Camilo didn't argue. He ran back to where Mirabel was waiting for him.

"Here you go, Mimi," Camilo said as he sat down beside her and handed her the paper bag. "Eat up."

Mirabel didn't say anything and simply took the paper bag from him. "Gracias, Camilo." She said before taking an arepa from the paper bag and taking a bite.

Both Camilo and Mirabel glanced at her foot, which had been bent at an unusual angle. It straightened and Mirabel tried to move it.

"Ah, problem solved." He said.

Mirabel smiled at him. And she looked more beautiful when she did. "Here," She said, handing him the paper bag.

Camilo frowned. "Those are for you." He reminded her.

"It's not like you at all to refuse a reward arepa."

Camilo's face lit up. "Oh, don't mind if I do." He grabbed the paper, took an arepa, and started munching on it.

Mirabel chuckled, which was good to hear. It's nice to know that at that moment, she was laughing because of him, not because of Santiago.

"Yep, there he is," She said. "I knew you couldn't resist food."

There was a brief awkward silence as they locked eyes with each other. And loved the way Mirabel's big brown eyes sparkled.

Their moment was broken when they heard Santiago's voice calling out Mirabel's name.

"Mirabel!" Santiago called out as he walked briskly toward their direction. He literally dropped his accordion on the ground and checked on her. "I heard what happened. Are you okay?" He asked, his voice full of concern.

"I'm alright, Santi," Mirabel assured. "Camilo already got me some of my Mamá's food."

Santiago sighed in relief. "I'm glad to know you're okay." He then turned to Camilo. "Thank you for taking care of her."

Camilo forced out a chuckle. "Of course, Santi. She's my prima. I'll always take care of her." He said as he stood up. "Anyways, I need to go back to my chores and assure the children that Mirabel's okay. See you around."

"Camilo," Mirabel called.

It prompted him to turn around. "Hmm?"

"Thank you." She said.

Camilo simply smiled and nodded before turning his back on her and went off to go back to his chores. He glanced back at them and noticed Mirabel's attention was already on Santiago. She was smiling again, which he considered a good thing.

He had walked passed Isabela on his way back to the town square, who was giving him suspicious looks. He didn't understand why though.

"Hey, niños," Camilo said, giving everyone high-fives. "Sorry, I had to leave for a moment."

Most of the children had worried expressions on their faces.

Little Cecilia tugged his ruana. "Camilo, is Mirabel going to be okay?" She asked.

Camilo smiled. "Of course, she is, Cecilia." He assured. "I personally gave her Tía Julieta's healing food and made sure she ate it." He said. "And we shouldn't worry about Mirabel. She's the strongest person I know. Trust me, if that girl saved the miracle of Encanto, I know she can handle anything."

That seemed to lighten up the children's moods and they went back to playing.

Suddenly, Camilo heard a tsk sound from behind him. "Oh, Cami, Cami, Cami," It was his eldest prima, Isabela's voice. "Why don't you just save us all the trouble and tell her how you really feel." She blurted out.

His sister, Dolores had warned him earlier that Isabela had been asking questions about him and Mirabel. He had to be careful how to respond to not give things away.

Camilo turned to face her, trying to keep a straight face. "What in god's name are you talking about?" He asked.

Isabela stood before him, with her arms crossed and a mischievous smirk on her face. "Oh, you know what I'm talking about." She snorted. "Anything else you're hiding, primo?" She asked.

Camilo rolled his eyes at her. "Look, I have no idea what you're talking about." He said as he tried walking away from his prima. "I'll just go see if Tía Julieta needs refills, okay?"

"You do know that Tío Bruno helps her with the refills, right?"

Camilo glanced behind his shoulders as he walked further. "Two pairs of hands are better than one, prima."

"I don't think you should go there." She suggested.

"Can't stop me." He said without looking back.

"Can you really handle seeing her there with Santiago?" Isabela revealed.

Camilo froze and stopped in his tracks.

"Oh, that got your attention," Isabela said in her signature mocking tone. "So it is true."

Camilo turned to face his prima again. "Did Dolores tell you about this?"

Isabela smirked as she walked closer to him. "So Dolores knows about this." She made a tsk sound. "I knew it."

Mierda, he mentally cursed.

"I'm not an idiot, Camilo," Isabela continued. "I've seen the way you've been looking at my hermanita. And rushing to her aid earlier was the icing on the cake."

Camilo kept quiet, not knowing what to say.

"So why haven't you told her how you feel?" She asked.

Camilo shrugged. "It's complicated. You wouldn't understand."

"Is it because of Santiago?" She guessed. "You're clearly upset about it."

"It doesn't matter, okay?" He argued. "Let's just…not think about it."

"So, you're just gonna ignore the feeling until it goes away?"

Camilo sighed in frustration. "Dios mio, you sound just like Tío Bruno." He blurted out before he could stop himself.

Isabela gasped in surprise. "Tío Bruno knows about this too?"

"Mierda!" Camilo cussed.

Isabela sighed and gave him a pity look. "Cami-" She started to say.

"I don't wanna talk about it!" Camilo urged, then took a deep breath before speaking again. "Please, I-I just wanna see her happy. And…Santiago seems to do that." His voice cracked. "That's all that matters to me."

Once again, he turned his back on his prima and came face to face with his own sister, Dolores. Her facial expression showed concern.

Camilo groaned. "I don't have time for this." He said as he walked past his sister.

His own stubbornness turned out to be his downfall. Camilo did went back to his Tía Julieta's booth, and of course, Mirabel was still there with Santiago. He turned away from their direction and simply ignored the fact that they were there.

He could return to the town square, but he'd face Isabela's I told you so, so he just went ahead and approached the booth.

His Tío Bruno saw him first. "Camilo, perfect timing," He grabbed a basket and handed it to him. "Your Tía Julieta needs refills."

"Oh, of course," Camilo said.

As he waited for his Tío Bruno, Camilo couldn't help but glance at Mirabel's direction.

Mirabel was still with Santiago, and he did not like how close their bodies were to each other. Then Santiago's eyes started twitching, making Mirabel worry and she looked like she was calming him down. Until, his prima cupped Santiago's cheeks.

That action made him grip the basket hard. He wanted to run and separate Mirabel from Santiago and defend his prima, until Mirabel only blew air into Santiago's eye, which probably caught dust.

Unbeknownst to him, his Tío Bruno had repeatedly been calling his name. He didn't notice until his Tío had to tug his ruana.

"Camilo," Tío Bruno called. "Come on!"

The way back to the Casita with his Tío Bruno was quiet until his Tío asked him the question.

"So," Bruno started. "I reckon you haven't told her yet."

Camilo simply rolled his eyes at his Tío. "I don't wanna talk about this right now, Tío."

Bruno sighed. "Someone might get ahead of you if you won't make your first move."

I already made my move, Camilo wanted to say, but he did not say that out loud. But it was a stupid one. And she might never forgive me for it.

"It really doesn't matter at this point, Tío." He said. "She already has someone."

"So you've given up?" He asked. "Is that what you're saying?"

Camilo shrugged and didn't answer. Because honestly, he doesn't know anymore.

. . .

The dinner that night was awkward, considering their seating arrangement. The only person sitting between Camilo and Mirabel was his hermanito, Antonio. All because he insisted that he sat between his two favorite people in the Casita. Not to mention, right across the table from them was Dolores and Isabela, watching them in an unsubtle manner. He wasn't sure if they had intended to sit across them, but it couldn't be good.

Things got more awkward when Antonio choked on his Arroz con Pollo from eating too fast.

Camilo had to gently tap Antonio's back immediately. "Geez, Toñito," He said. "You need to slow down on that Arroz con Pollo."

Mirabel giggled as she poured water on Antonio's glass. "You're slowly replacing your brother on eating seconds, primito."

"Lo siento," Antonio apologized. "I'm hungry and it's so good." He said before taking a drink from his glass.

"Alright, hombrecito," Their father, Félix, who was sitting on Camilo's left, spoke up. "Switch seats with Camilo. Come on."

Camilo's eyes widened. "What?" He cried.

"Switch seats with your brother, now." Félix insisted.

Camilo reluctantly stood from his seat and let Antonio sit on the chair he first sat on. He then took Antonio's seat, which was right next to Mirabel.

He didn't dare look to his right, where Mirabel sat. Across the table, he could see Dolores and Isabela giving side glances at each other.

Things got even more weird when both Camilo and Mirabel reached out for the plate of tamales at the same time and their hands brushed against each other. It made them retreat their hands altogether and Camilo ended up sliding the plate of tamales over to Mirabel without looking at her.

After dinner, Camilo stood from his seat and went directly to his room. As he closed the door to his room, only then did he let out everything he'd been holding in.

He leaned against his door. "That's enough, Camilo." He scolded himself. "You should be happy for her. You need to stop."

Camilo eventually walked past his hall of mirrors, which became foggier and distorted that he couldn't see his reflection anymore, and the lights were dimmer that he could barely see ahead.

As he went down the stairs between the tiered seats, only then did he notice that the room temperature was colder. On the stage, the curtain drapes were half closed, and the only thing you could see through it was his bed.

The stage lights by his bed had apparently changed shades from yellow to blue. It was also foggy, like the ones used in theaters for dramatic effects. So there was a thick veil of smoky fog surrounding his bed. There was also a soft, sad classical music playing in the background on his gramophone.

He then went down the stairs between the tiered seats, which also had fog up to his knees that he could barely see the steps.

The sad classical music playing on the gramophone was not helping his case. Just as he reached his bed, he crumpled on the foot of the bed and cried his eyes out.

That's enough! he told himself.

Mirabel might likely be going on another date with Santiago beyond the Pass. But it shouldn't matter to him now.

Just be happy for her! His subconscious yelled. If you really love her, you need to let her go.

His emotional meltdown was cut short when he heard a knock on his door.

"Camilo?" A voice called. It was his Papí, Félix's voice.

Camilo immediately stood and wiped his tears.

He could hear his father's footsteps as he stepped into his bedroom. "Cami-oh!" He exclaimed. "Uh, mijo, can you…I can't see anything. Why is it so dark?" He asked.

Camilo sighed then leaped off the stage, ran up the stairs between the tiered seats, and into the hall of mirrors.

Félix stood by his door and he seemed to be holding a plateful of food in one hand.

"Papí?" He called as he approached his father.

His Papí jumped back when Camilo came out of the hall of mirrors. "AH!" Félix gasped as he placed a hand over his chest to get over his shock. "Dios mio, you scared me."

"Papí, what are you doing here?" Camilo asked.

"Well, I saved you a trip to the cocina tonight by bringing you these," Félix showed the plate of buñuelos. "And yes, we know about your nightly visits to the kitchen to get food."

"Who's we?"

"Everyone in the Casita knows, Cami." His Papí confirmed. "Why do you think your Tía Julieta just leaves food in the kitchen after dinner? That's for you and your Tío Bruno to find when you get hungry late at night."

"Oh, uh, gracias, Papí," Camilo forced out a smile.

"It's no problem, mijo," Félix said, tapping his shoulder. "Now, on to the other thing I came here for. Are you okay?" He asked.

Camilo forced out a smile. "Of course, I'm okay, Papí." He lied. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Félix raised an eyebrow at him. "You don't have to hide anything from me, mijo." He said. "I know you're upset about something."

Camilo frowned. "How can you tell?"

"Well, in most ways, you're like your Mamí," Félix pointed out. "Except, there isn't a catastrophic hurricane happening in your room."

"How does that relate to me?" He asked.

"Well, your room is usually bright, with blinding spotlights, a polished hall of mirrors, and lively music playing on the gramophone. But now, it's dark, cold and-what is this?" He gestured to the fog around them. "Is this smoke?"

"It's fog, Papí," Camilo informed.

Félix chuckled. "Sí, definitely like your Mamí." He remarked.

Camilo then asked his father a question before he could stop himself. "Papí, how did you tell Mamí you like her?"

Félix's eyes widened in surprise. "So, it is about a girl. I knew it!" He giggled, then placed his arm around his shoulder and gave him a side hug. "Mijito is growing up."

Camilo rolled his eyes at his father.

"So, do we know this girl?" Felíx asked. "What's her name?"

"I'm not telling you her name," Camilo said, matter of factly.

"Alright," Felíx raised his hand in surrender. "I'll just ask your sister about it."

"Papí!" He complained.

Felíx laughed again. "I'm joking." He sighed before speaking again. "Well, it wasn't exactly an easy task. You know how you're Mamí is. But my words are nothing if I don't act on it."

Camilo shook his head in confusion. "I don't understand."

"The point is, you don't just tell a girl you like her, mijo," Felíx advised. "You need to show her why you like her and how you appreciate her."

"But it's different for us, Papí," Camilo countered.

"Why?" Felíx snorted. "Because we're the Madrigals and people look up to us? That won't matter, mijo." He then placed a hand on Camilo's shoulder. "Piece of advice, just be yourself. No using of your gift or pretending and/or imitating to be someone else. Just be the real you. The real Camilo. It's all you ever need to be."

Except, Camilo had already done that. Well, at least some of it.