Camilo x Reader -Broken Reflection

Chapter 33 (We Can't Pretend Anymore)

I watched him study his complexion. His eyes ran over the smooth lines of his cheeks and the small arch of his thick brows. They observed the hazel tint in his eyes that was sometimes more green than brown.

"What are you doing here?" Camilo asked me. His question was incorrect. I wasn't really there and neither was he- it was our subconsciousness that stood in his room. He was in his bed and I was in mine. It was our souls in human form that stood near each other as I dreamt.

I started to say so but my voice trailed off when his eyes moved from his reflection to mine. I felt his heart skip a beat. His emotions and bodily reactions were heightened in his subconsciousness and I felt everything he did in tenfold.

"Did you come to see me?" He asked softly. His question was tentative. I shook my head.

"No," I said. "Not on purpose." I took a few small steps closer to him. I could feel the heat that radiated from his body. He felt conflicted. Worry and doubt pulled at his heart, but something else did too- longing.

His longing was something that I never forgot in the past three weeks that we hadn't spoken. I always felt it no matter where I went, and it was only heightened in my dream. I shivered.

"How long is this going to last?" He asked me and I shrugged.

"How long do you want it to last?" I replied. That was when Camilo's lips pressed into a thin line. He turned to face me, and I was once again welcomed with the sorrowful expression in his beautiful yet sad eyes.

"I never wanted it to be this way."

"Then why is it?" I was growing impatient. I wanted answers. I wanted to know why he felt the way he did. I wanted to know why he continued to be so cold towards me, and why I was the same to him.

"I hurt you," Camilo said. I shook my head.

"I've been hurt long before I met you. You couldn't hurt me if you tried," I said. The lie was easy. It slipped out from my lips just as easily as it would be if I were talking about the weather. It hurt to be so distant from Camilo. Without even realizing it, we'd become codependent on each other. We relied on one another to be our escape when we needed it. Camilo was an outlet for me where I could tell him anything that was on my mind without judgment or prejudice. I missed it so much my bones ached.

I let myself take another step closer to him. We were only a few feet apart. I could feel his steady breath and hear the beat of his heart. It warmed my skin and until then, I hadn't realized how cold I felt.

"You're the one that's hurt," I said to him. His eyes dropped down to the ground because we both knew he couldn't deny it.

"I know," he said. "I just don't know how to feel better." He looked up at me again. "Do you know when it gets better?" He asked. I gave him a small sad smile. "It doesn't" I replied. Sure, I was happier after leaving my town, but the ache in my heart was still there. Julio was still dead. I was still ultimately worthless despite my gift.

I knew that all of the Madrigals felt this way to some degree, but they were not as open to speaking about it as Camilo and I were. Camilo's eyes searched mine. I tried to find the answers I wanted in his, but all I saw were mossy green crystals. They say that the eyes are the window to the soul, but his were just mirrors. I could see my broken reflection in them.

I hadn't realized that Camilo had taken a few steps closer. I had to look up to meet his eyes and didn't look away when I felt his hands take one of mine. My first instinct was to pull away but I didn't.

"You still wear it," he whispered. When I asked him what he was referring to, his fingers brushed against mine. They played with the glass ring that he'd given me for my birthday.

"Of course," I said to him, and the corner of his lips turned up slightly.

He took a deep breath before saying my name. "I really like you," he told me. I almost flinched. Was I imagining things? Of course, I was. This was my dream. We were having a conversation I wanted to have and he was starting to say things that I wanted to hear.

It felt too real and my voice caught in my throat. I choked on the words I wanted to say, and before I could get them out, I was falling

falling

falling

+++

I woke two hours later. My eyes drooped and my body felt heavy, but I sat up in bed anyway. My dream felt too real. I could have sworn that Camilo had been in front of me- I mean really in front of me- only moments before.

Whether my dream was real or not, I knew what I had to do. I didn't care that it wasn't even five o'clock in the morning yet. It didn't matter if he were still asleep. I had to talk to him. I had to hear the sound of his voice again. I had to know the truth.

I slipped out of my bed and padded around Mirabel who lay in her sleeping bag. She slept like a log and I could hear the faint sound of her snore. I took a deep breath before my shaky hand lifted to the handle of my bedroom door.

I knew I could do it. I had to.

Before I could change my mind, I threw open my door, only to hear the sound of a quick gasp followed by a curse to the Saints.

Camilo stood in front of me with his hand raised and his fingers curled as if he were just about to knock. The bright yellow glow of the carved image on my door illuminated his soft caramel skin. It cast shadows under his long lashes and nose.

His wide eyes looked into mine for the first time in a week and a half, and that was when I knew that my dream was real and he'd dreamt it too.