The Heart of Camilo (A Camilo Madrigal x Reader Fem Y/N Story)

Diego in Black - Part 2

***

The five days away had been miserable. I felt ripped apart by guilt at how rude I had been to her. She consumed my every thought and I lay awake at night thinking about her, changing my mind about my plan to blow her off, changing it back, and then changing it back again. I had taken my prosthetic off one evening and held it in my hands, just looking at it. I should be grateful. I should be grateful I still had both knees. I should be grateful I had the skills to make a good-enough prosthetic. There was nothing wrong with it - this was my best model. But I looked down at what remained of my leg, and couldn't take it, wincing and looking away, rubbing my hand over where it ended, a few inches below my knee. It still felt so fucked up to slide my hand over it, my brain still expecting there to be a leg there. Sometimes my foot hurt - the one that didn't exist anymore, one of the most fucked up experiences I had ever had. My brain was confused, I knew that, the doctor had explained it might happen. Was that also why I felt so sick at the thought of her seeing me like this? 

I had given up, putting my prosthetic down on the floor and gone to sleep, had dreamed of Renata all night, waking up in a cold sweat. When the day came to return, I had landed firmly back on the side that it was over. I would go right to Camilo's house and tell him about the switch - that I would work the exterior shops and he would switch to be at the Encanto one for a while. I would avoid her until it was obvious that whatever had happened was nothing, that it was just two old friends catching up, flirted a little, but that was it. I repeated it over and over to myself - hoping that eventually I would believe it.

I rode into town on the evening of the fifth day, people looking up at me as I passed. I looked around, cursing myself that I was already automatically looking for her. No, I was sticking with the plan - it was done. It was done. I wouldn't try and find her. It was done. It was over. I turned Andhera to head to Camilo and Y/N's house, pushing through the center of town.

Because the universe likes to watch me suffer, naturally I didn't make it far before I saw her. It was like the people parted to reveal her to me. She was looking through the window of the flower shop where I had gotten her the rose. My heart exploded in my chest at the sight of her, all the longing and dreaming of her swelling inside of me. I suddenly couldn't remember why the fuck I would be so fucking stupid to not see her again and I felt drawn to her like a magnet. I sat there, paralyzed, not knowing what to do. I didn't direct Andhera towards her, but she turned, anyway, and I didn't stop her.

Andhera rode up behind her and I still didn't pull the reins to stop her, the two voices in my brain screaming at each other, waiting for her to turn when Andhera's proximity to her caused her to look over. Her face lit up when she saw it was me, making my heart beat faster instantly. Andhera stopped in front of her.

"Hi," I said.

"Hi," she said, rearranging her face into something much more nonchalant, leaning against the window casually. "How was work?"

"Work sucked," I said, turning Andhera so that I was able to look down at her directly.

"Really?" she asked coolly, glancing away before she looked back up at me. "Why?"

I stared at her, thoughts swirling around in my head - because I didn't get to see you - because I was an asshole and I never want to make you feel anything remotely negative ever in my life and I already have - because I missed you so badly it felt like I was missing a lot more than just a fucking leg - because your eyes haunt me - because you're so fucking amazing I just want to be with you all the time. 

She watched me carefully as I looked at her, the torturous thoughts clearly playing out on my face.

"You missed me," she smirked. It wasn't a question.