The village was abuzz with life, children squealing and chasing one another, parents fondly watching from their homes, warm smiles on everyone's faces. The incident with the Encanto had given everyone a burst of life and joy, the laxer hold on the Madrigals themselves allowing the tension to slowly fade from the inner workings of the town. It almost seemed that the release of the pressure pressing down on the Madrigal's made it easier for them to help the town, faked smiles to hide exhaustion now absent as they laughed and danced with the townspeople.
In the middle of it all, with a smile on her face as she carried a basket of baked goods, stood a girl, a young girl, who's smile could rival the sun. She was but a face in the crowd, for the most part, but when that smile broke out, everyone knew she was there. Humming, she would offer the treats to her neighbors and friends, exchanging pleasantries with the confidence she barely knew she possessed. Kids crowded her with wide, curious eyes and bright giggles as she paraded around, holding the basket high above their heads to prevent their grabbing hands from reaching the treats safely tucked inside, the people around them all chuckling in that fond way only those who truly love can do. She took the playful attitudes in stride, accepting the town's quirks in stride, slipping right into the culture as if she were born to do so.
She was about the most fascinating thing that he had ever seen, and he wasn't sure why.
The young man himself stood on the other side of the town square, entertaining the crowd of people that had surrounded him from the moment he walked outside. No man alive could deny that he was a natural born entertainer, his gift only amplifying what he could already do. He hadn't noticed the young woman at first, too busy captivating his audience with his usual charm, only losing his focus when the children who had been previously enamored with him ran off to go and talk to you. You, who he had never seen before. Camilo had lived in this town his whole life; he knew every single person who lived within the mountain range that kept them safe. So how could he not know you?
"Everything alright, Camilo?" an older woman asked the young man, who nodded his head immediately while smiling reassuringly at the group of people who were still, in fact, standing around him, staring at him in varying degrees of shock and surprise.
"Simply admiring the view," he reassured the group, already slipping into the familiar feeling of his theatrics, though he couldn't put the same amount of energy and attention into it now that you had caught his eye. The town hadn't seen much excitement or change since the Casita had been destroyed and rebuilt a few years ago, and it seemed as if this small change was all that was needed to steal his mind away. The laughter of his small audience would pull his attention back well enough, but never without the added feeling of agitation from being distracted so much in the first place. The fact that you were new to him must have been too startling for him to be able to focus, he reasoned with a smile, finally doing an overly dramatic bow to signal that he was finished with his mini show. The crowd clapped with bright smiles and encouraging cheers before dispersing, joining their friends and family in their daily duties.
"You're quite the performer," a warm voice complimented from behind him, amusement in their tone as he turned to face them with his charming smile.
"What can I say? It's in my bloo-" he froze, his words getting stuck in his throat at the sight before him. It was her. In all her bright eyed, sweet smiled glory, her brow raised in amusement as she stared at him.
"In your blood?" you supplied, shifting the basket in your arms to adjust to the weight on your back. He nodded dumbly, looking a little lost, before his eyes drifted to that said weight on your back.
"Why are there kids hanging off of your shoulders?" he asked confusedly, breaking out of his trance as a small, amused smile graced his lips. Your smile grew at the sight, and you thought to yourself, 'much better', before you winked at him and took a deep breath to collect yourself, unaware of the sudden reaction in Camilo's gut you caused from the wink.
"I have no idea what you're talking about," you said, feigning innocence as the kids definitely still clinging to your shoulders giggled. "If there were kids hanging off of my shoulders, I'm pretty sure I would know, don't you think?" He grinned at you, a big playful thing, understanding what you were doing in an instant.
"Are you sure?" he asked, relaxing his posture to show his indifference, though even slouching he was taller than you, a fact you decidedly ignored for now.
"I'm positive- the kids know better then to try and climb me to get extra sweets," you agreed, listening to the way the children's laughter grew until they couldn't hang on to you any longer, dropping to the ground in a fit of laughter while you turned to them with a bright, adoring smile. "Now where did you guys come from?" you gasped in fake surprise, making their laughter increase as Camilo watched the whole thing with an amused and relaxed smile, ignoring the strange flutter in his stomach.
"We wanted what's in the basket!" the kids cheered from their small pile of limbs and smiles on the ground, trying to look serious as they explained themselves. You snorted.
"I already told you that you could get more tomorrow," you scolded gently, shaking your head fondly as they all grumbled about not getting more sweets. Camilo took this opportunity to step by your side with an equally fond expression.
"You guys better get a move on before she decides not to give you any," he pointed out, and the kids gasped, looking at you, to which you only shrugged, though in reality you would never do that. The kids, however, didn't know that, and immediately ran off while giggling, shouting their goodbye's as you waved to them, a warm smile on your face as you giggled.
"They're so cute," you said, shaking your head as Camilo looked at you, staring at you in contemplative silence before you finally met his gaze, raising a brow at him. "What?"
"Nothing, I just feel like I've never seen you before," he stated quickly, diverting his gaze and coughing uncomfortably. You snorted.
"Probably because we don't run in the same social circles, Mr. Magical Madrigal," you teased, opening the basket to Camilo as he stared at you again in confusion. You bit back a giggle. "This is the part where you take a treat, dummy," you said, Camilo laughing awkwardly as he grabbed a muffin before you closed the lid, allowing him a moment to eat and relax.
"I don't mean to be rude," he finally said, studying the muffin in his hands, his eyes widening when he took a bite and savored the flavor, making your smile grow. "I just thought I knew everyone in town." You hummed in thought for a moment.
"Well, you probably do," you started slowly, his eyes slowly drifting to you as you spoke, "especially considering that I know exactly who you are. I've seen you around before, we just haven't spoken face to face, which is probably my own fault. Playing with little kids comes easy, talking with people our age, well..." you trailed off, shrugging. "You get the idea."
"Not being good at talking to people? Not really my area of expertise," Camilo bragged, watching as you rolled your eyes and playfully swatted his arm, Camilo chuckling at your reaction.
"Not all of us have super cool powers to impress people with, Camilo," you huffed, only making him smile wider.
"You think my powers are cool?" he asked, turning into you and raising a brow with a wide, mischievous grin. You snorted.
"Like an iceberg, Camilo," you said, shaking your head with a fond smile, Camilo shifting back into himself as he eyed you in surprise. He hadn't been expecting a compliment from you- he hadn't been expecting any of this from you, really. Your head whipped around as you heard your Mom calling for you, and you smiled at him one last time. "I'll see you around, Camilo," you said, bumping your shoulder affectionately with his before walking away, weaving through the crowds expertly and smiling at whoever looked at you.
For a while, Camilo didn't move from his spot, simply stunned and watching your retreating form as a weird warmth bloomed in his chest from the contact with you. No one paid it any mind as he stood there, mind reeling, trying to figure out what on earth had happened. It wasn't that he wasn't used to compliments, as he received those on the regular, but the fact that the compliment came from you specifically seemed to make the difference here. Something about you made it different. He spent his short walk home trying to figure out what, absently saying his hello's to whoever he passed by until he ended up in front of his own bedroom door, his hand floating above the doorknob. He really should be walking about the town still, soaking in the sun that his mother was so generously blessing them with.
"CAMILO!"
Speaking of which.
"What is it, Mamá?" he called, looking over the railing at his beaming mother. He couldn't help but think back to the girl from earlier, who's smile could rival his own mother's right now, before he shook that thought away, surprised at his own actions. Now was not the time to get distracted.
"It's time for dinner! We've been calling your name for a while now, mi pequeño camaleón," his mother replied, looking up at him now that he was in sight and frowning softly at the look on his face.
"Ah, sorry Mamá, guess I got a little distracted," he said, immediately rushing down the stairs to join his family for dinner. Pepa eyed her son suspiciously as he went, but did not stop him as she went to go sit at her husband's side to eat.
It was obvious to everyone sitting at the table that, while Camilo was physically there, his mind was elsewhere. He wasn't actually eating any of the food he had grabbed, wasn't cracking any jokes or teasing his cousins or siblings- he hadn't even smiled since he sat down. They couldn't help but wonder if something had happened to him while he was in town, only one person besides Camilo himself knowing what was going on.
"So, Camilo, I saw you talking to a girl earlier," Dolores said casually, eyeing her brother, who's head immediately snapped up to look at his sister in surprise. The tension of the table immediately relaxed, was that really all it was?
"Uh, yeah, I did," Camilo agreed, slightly confused. It dawned in him that he'd completely forgotten to ask for the girl's name, and silently prayed that his family didn't ask what it was.
"Aww, our niñito is growing up," Pepa cooed, smiling at her son, who's mouth opened to protest before Mirabel cut in.
"I bet it was that one girl he was staring at earlier," Mirabel teased, snickering as Camilo glared at her.
"I wasn't staring at her!" he protested.
"Yes you were," Dolores replied, not even looking at him as she continued to eat her food in peace, though she was secretly pleased at what she'd done. Camilo stood suddenly with a grumble, not meeting his family's eyes.
"I'm going to bed," he mumbled, stuffing his hands into his pockets and staring at the ground as he went, his parents eyeing him in surprise as the rest of his siblings and cousins continued their playful chatter amongst themselves, though now without a twinge of guilt in their hearts.
Camilo huffed as he sat down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling in frustration, your image right behind his eyes every time he blinked. He wondered, briefly, if you had intentionally left your mark on him, trying to distract him with the mere thought of you for your own amusement. It was an absurd thought, and he dismissed it as soon as it came, but what was left when he ruled it out is that you truly hadn't been trying to do anything other than be polite, and it was he himself that had captured what little you had said to him and clutched it to his chest. The more he thought about it, the more he found himself wanting to at least talk to you about this, to ask about who you were, why you hadn't talked to him before- and why you had chosen now, of all times, to finally make yourself known to him. He wasn't upset with you, the opposite truly, but he didn't know what to do with the strange feeling fluttering through him. He needed time, and more importantly, he needed to talk to you.
On the other side of town, in a much smaller house, you sat, much thinking the same thing, about the young man with the charming smile, who you hoped to see again in the market the next day.