And see him, you did. It was obvious from the way he walked up to you, though he tried to play it off, as his normal practiced swagger was replaced with bounds of excitement, that he was eager to see you. You were used to seeing this behavior with the children of the town, but from someone your age it was kind of funny... and a little cute, you had to admit.
"Good morning, Camilo, I didn't expect to see you so soon," you greeted with the gentlest smile you could muster, watching as Camilo eyed the small grocery basket in your hand. You looked down at it as well, giggling and then looking at him as he looked away in embarrassment. "Are you trying to figure out how to ask me if you can carry this for me?" you teased lightly, watched as his cheeks tinged pink. A brighter, sweeter laugh left you and he scowled before you offered it out to him.
"...I was about to ask," he mumbled before taking it, watching as you fondly shook your head.
"You were taking too long, I was just speeding up the process," you said, starting to walk, Camilo immediately matching your pace and sort of staring at you again. You let him, this time, chatting with the shop owners and laughing with them as you bought your goods, holding back a snicker as Camilo absently put what you handed him in the basket with a very confused expression, like he was forgetting where he was.
"Your boyfriend is muy guapo," one of the owners said and you giggled, watching as Camilo finally came back into focus as his face flushed.
"We're not-" he began, coughing awkwardly and trying to speak. No longer was he the confident entertainer you'd seen yesterday; here, he was just the young boy who was still trying to find his footing in the social world. Lucky for him, you were much better at handling this, it seemed.
"He's an acquaintance of mine, just another curious pair of eyes," you explained simply, the merchant nodding in understanding with a sparkle of amusement in his eyes.
"Being the new girl in town sure has made you popular, hasn't it?" he merchant said, and you laughed, nodding in agreement.
"It's certainly made my life interesting, but it's nothing I can't handle," you agreed, something clicking in Camilo's mind at the statement.
"I knew I didn't recognize you!" he suddenly shouted, a few nearby people giving him a strange look before continuing on with their day. You sighed softly, paying for what you bought, and walked on towards your home, where Camilo followed like a small, excited puppy, clearly proud of himself for realizing he'd never actually seen you before because you hadn't lived here before.
"Technically, I've been living here for a few years now," you started as you walked, Camilo going silent as you talked, watching as the light shone on your hair briefly as you walked passed different buildings. "But for the most part, I've spent it being trapped inside, considering I've been deathly ill for a while now. My parents, bless their souls, were convinced that I had been cursed, not sick, and, well, it wasn't until I snuck out and met your tía that I finally did something about how sick I was. My parents still think it was some kind of celestial miracle that I'm better now," you explained, stopping as Camilo froze in his tracks. "Something wrong?" you asked, your brows pressed together in concern.
"So you've been sick this whole time? That's why I haven't seen you?" he clarified. You nodded, closing his mouth with gentle fingers when you saw his jaw drop.
"Don't feel bad, mi encantador amigo," you said gently, his eyes widening a fraction as you spoke, "I'm putting that all behind me, and I'm certainly doing better now. Look at me! I'm fine as a fiddle," you said, doing a little spin to prove your point with a bright smile, Camilo smiling at your antics.
"Well, you do look fine," he mumbled, mostly to himself. You snorted.
"Save the flirting for another time, I still have to get home and get these to my parents," you said, leading him forward again as he sputtered.
"I wasn't flirting," he mumbled, and you smiled softly at him.
"Alright, I won't say it was, but we do need to actually get these to my parents," you said, gesturing to the basket in his hands. He looked down in surprise, like he forgot he was carrying it, and you laughed. "Camilo, amigo que cambia de forma, did you forget you were carrying that?" you teased, and he scowled.
"I was distracted! You're very distracting," he protested, to which you only eyed him and waited for the inevitable embarrassed reaction from him, which came with a grumble. You put a gentle hand on his shoulder with a giggle.
"You know, you don't have to be so nervous, Camilo, and I certainly won't make you stick around if I'm making you anxious," you reassured him, and he immediately recoiled.
"No! No, I don't- I don't want to leave, I wanna hang out with you," he said quickly, and you smiled brightly at him, squeezing his shoulder gently, your heart fluttering slightly when he returned your smile.
"Let's drop this stuff off then, I can't spend my whole time hanging out with you just doing chores!" you said, grabbing his free hand and taking off running, laughing at his surprised yelp before he joined in your laughter. He could actually run faster than you, you noticed, which was so unfair because the moment you called it a race when your house was in sight, he beat you with no problem, cheering loudly as he watched you run towards him with a triumphant grin.
"I win~" he bragged, parading around as you rolled your eyes, snatching the basket of goods from him.
"That's not fair, you with your stupidly long legs," you grumbled, though there was no real malice in your tone as the two of you burst out laughing with each other. Your mother came to the door, hearing all the noise, and was pleasantly surprised to find that you had a boy standing in front of the house.
"Mi angel quien es esta?" your mom asked, and you handed her the basket with the warmest smile you could muster, Camilo going quiet and watching politely.
"Mamá, this is my friend Camilo Madrigal," you introduced, and your mom took a moment to study the two of you.
"Ustedes dos son lindas juntas," your mom gushed and you blushed.
"MA!" you whined, Camilo snickering at you, enjoying how the tables had turned, though he was also partially using this as an excuse to cover his face to hide his own flush. "We're just friends, we met just yesterday!" Your mom chuckled and shook her head, waving the two of you off as she went inside, though she could admit she secretly watched as the two of you walked away from her home, both closer to each other than friends would be.
"So what do you do for fun?" he asked as soon as the house was out of sight. You shrugged.
"I write, I draw, I practice the guitar, sometimes I'll go swimming- WOAH!" you yelped as Camilo suddenly grabbed your hand with a mischievous grin, probably intending to get payback as he dragged you along. "Do you know where you're going?!" you yelped as he laughed, having not quite outgrown his boyish ways.
"Just trust me!" he shouted back, ducking through an alleyway, leading you a little ways outside of the town until you reached a small clearing, where there was a small bend of the river hidden from the town. You gasped at the sight, letting Camilo slow to lead you to the edge, plopping down with a sigh as he let you settle down next to him, tying your hair back before removing your shoes and sticking your feet in the water.
"Alright, I'll admit, I'm glad I trusted you," you finally said, and he grinned, his cheeks rosy with warmth.
"See? I told you that you should trust me," he bragged, narrowly dodging you whacking his arm.
"You're arrogant, you know that?" you groaned, and he shifted, playing with the grass that surrounded you. He didn't respond for a while after that, the both of you sitting in silence, simply enjoying each other's company, though you were beginning to feel a bit warm from sitting in the sun. Maybe a little too warm.
Camilo startled when your head fell against his shoulder, your eyelids fluttering as he gaped at you in shock, his skin flushing to a very cute red, though you weren't really in the right state of mind to notice that.
"Woah, hey, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly, reaching down into the river and pouring some of the water over your forehead, slightly dousing his shoulder with water in an attempt to keep you cool.
"Just warm, Cami. I may need to head home now," you mumbled, though you made no move to get up. He hummed and decided that he would take you home himself, shifting carefully before scooping you up in his arms.
"Jeez, why are you so light?" he muttered and you snorted.
"What part of sick do you not understand?" you joked lightly, adjusting slightly in his arms with a sigh. "I'm sorry about this, Cami," you mumbled, and he hushed you.
"No apologizing, I've got this," he said determinedly, giving you a smile that made your legs feel like jelly and your cheeks to turn red. He took that as a bad sign and muttered curses under his breath.
"Oh, relax, will you? I'm not dying," you teased, reaching up and brushing a stray strand of hair out of Camilo's eyes as he walked.
"Says the girl who couldn't even stand a second ago," Camilo muttered and you stuck your tongue out at him.
"I thought being carried was supposed to be more romantic than this," you groaned and he snorted.
"What do you want, roses?" he teased, looking down in your eyes for a moment as the two of you laughed softly.
"My names (y/n), by the way. I realize that I haven't shared it with you yet," you stated softly and he smiled down at you, muttering your name under his breath, your heart speeding up when you heard it.
"That's a beautiful name," he whispered, coming closer to your house by this point.
"Ah, well, I had to be cool somehow," you shrugged, letting your head rest against his shoulder as he walked.
"I suppose being giftless makes life harder like that," he teased and you glared at him.
"You are so lucky I am not on my own two feet right now, pequeño camaleón," you grumbled.
"Don't make me drop you," he said and you laughed.
"You wouldn't dream of it," you grinned, and though he scowled at you, you knew that you were right. He wouldn't drop you- there was this strange sort of instant chemistry between the two of you, and though you barely knew each other, you two already felt like good friends. He wouldn't want to drop you in the state you were in.
"Ah, did she stay out too long again?" your dad asked as Camilo brought you to the doorstep, to which Camilo nodded, frowning down at you.
"A little warning would have been nice," he scolded softly and you shrugged.
"You only live once, Cami, I don't wanna spend all day worrying about how far away I am from a house to rest if I need it," you said, and both men sighed, your father smiling at Camilo.
"Thank you for bringing her home- my wife was telling me about you earlier. You seem like a good man," your dad told Camilo, who smiled, before your dad let him in. Your house was small but colorful, paintings done all over the walls as giggles echoed throughout the house. Your dad led Camilo through the house until he reached your bedroom, where Camilo placed you down onto your bed, where you smiled up at him.
"I'll see you tomorrow?" you asked Camilo before he turned away. He smiled.
"If you want me to come see you, then sure," he said softly and you smiled.
"Whatever would I do without seeing mi pequeño camaleón?" you said, and you couldn't see it, couldn't feel it, but his heart fluttered when you called him yours. He said one last goodbye to you, not really wanting to go, and walked away.
"Él es lindo."
"PA!"