Turns out you wouldn't have to guess how you would fit into his family for very long- the very next day while you were out in the market, Camilo nowhere in sight, Pepa invited you over for dinner, which you happily accepted.
Camilo, when you told him, seemed to be even more excited about the news than you were.
"You're going to love the rest of my family, Antonio especially! He's such a sweet little boy, I'm surprised you two haven't already met, considering how much the kids like you-" he continued brightly, and you found yourself completely mesmerized by his antics. He hadn't stopped talking for the past fifteen minutes, excitedly babbling on about his family as you watched in affectionate silence. You were starting to get a handle on these feelings coursing through you the more you were around him- you'd already figured friends didn't think about kissing each other, so your feelings weren't platonic anymore, but how deeply they ran was still something you were trying to piece together.
"-and of course you already know mamá, but you haven't met my papi! You should see the way he looks at my mother, those two were a match made in heaven, he always seems like he knows the right thing to say-" Camilo continued, and you just shook your head fondly, making Camilo pause in his excited rambles. "Something wrong?" he asked, and you shook your head again.
"You're just cute, is all," you said, his cheeks flushing an adorable shade of red at the compliment, a bright triumphant grin on his face.
"You think I'm cute?" he asked giddily, and you rolled your eyes at his antics
"Yes, mi pequeño y lindo camaleón, I do," you agreed, and he cheered excitedly, pumping his fist in excitement. You laughed and he grinned at you, watching as you blew on the paper in front of you to dry the ink. The two of you were currently sitting on the bridge over the river, the water rushing beneath your feet as you chatted to ease some of your nerves before the meal later that day. The said paper you were holding was yet another song, one that had been ringing in your head for days beforehand, though the main melody had only come to you in your sleep the night before. The subject of that song was sitting next to you, staring at you with eager eyes that wanted desperately to interpret the notes written on the page. You'd already promised that you'd play it for him someday, those dang puppy dog eyes truly being your weakness, but his curiosity did not deter him from looking at those notes over and over again, trying to understand why you'd done what you did.
"You know, I was thinking," Camilo said casually, almost a little too casually, tipping you off that he was about to suggest something you may not like, "maybe you should sing for the family, tonight," he finished, smiling at you in that cute boyish way that haunted your dreams. You snorted.
"Nice try, Cami, but you won't get me to sing in front of you that easily," you teased, lightly poking his nose affectionately. He pouted.
"I just wanna hear you sing a little bit!" he whined and you shook your head with a smirk, making Camilo's mouth go dry.
"You've already heard me humming, right? Isn't that enough for now?" you teased, and he scowled, huffing and crossing his arms. He reminded you a bit of an annoyed five year old, and when you voiced this, it only made Camilo's pout grow.
"You're no fun," he mumbled, and you snickered.
"I'm plenty fun, I just don't bend to your will as easily as you want me to," you shrugged, turning and standing. Camilo watched as you stretched, a curious expression on his face, though his cheeks tinted red when your shirt rode up slightly.
"What are you doing? Are you going somewhere?" he asked, rushing to join you as you started walking away.
"I hope you don't expect me to go over to your house for dinner wearing this," you deadpanned, gesturing to your clothes. Camilo blinked.
"What's wrong with what you're wearing?" he asked, studying your simple white shirt and colorful embroidered skirt combo with a small frown.
"Don't you think it's a bit informal? I'm going to dinner with your family, I should at least try to look presentable," you explained, which seemed to only confuse the young man further.
"What's the big deal about meeting my family?" he asked, and you paused, giving him an exasperated look.
"I don't even want to explain this to you," you muttered, and he stared at you in surprise, his head tilting slightly in confusion as you walked.
"What does that mean?" he begged for an explanation and you sighed, unable to even pretend to be mad at him for not understanding why this might be important to you.
"I just want to make sure I make a good impression on them is all, Camilo. I know you're probably desensitised to just how powerful and influential your family is because all you see them as is your family, but it's different for me. Technically speaking, I owe my life to your family," you explained slowly, and realization dawned on his face.
"...are you worried that they're not gonna like you?" he asked slowly, and you winced, looking down at the ground. Camilo sighed, grabbing your free hand. "(Y/n), you have nothing to worry about! They're gonna love you, I promise!" he reassured you, squeezing your hand sweetly.
"Camilo, I am walking into a house full of people who have amazing magical abilities, one of which literally saved my life, and you expect me not to be nervous about meeting them, let alone making them like me?" you stressed, and Camilo sighed again. He wasn't sure just how he knew how they would adore you, only that he knew that they would take one look at you and decide they loved you. Perhaps it was his own adoration shading his vision with rosegold, but he couldn't find a single reason that his family wouldn't immediately take you in like you were one of their own.
"Do you trust me, mi rosa?" he said softly, and you blew out a breath, your cheeks flushing slightly as you nodded, and he smiled fondly at you. "Then trust me when I say that they're gonna love you. You have nothing to worry about," he reassured you, taking the hand that he still held in his own and bringing it up to his lips, pressing a gentle kiss onto your knuckles. You gasped, your cheeks deepening to a gentle red.
"...Camilo?" you said softly, and he grinned at you.
"Come, mi rosa, if you really want to change before we head over for dinner, then we can do that," he said, tugging you forward, now having the location of your home memorized. The two of you had been hanging out everyday for weeks now, and if you were honest, you were genuinely surprised you hadn't run into more of his family members. Perhaps they had decided to offer the two of you space to allow some semblance of privacy.
You sighed as you studied your reflection, Camilo waiting out in your living room chatting with your parents as you changed. It was the nicest things you owned- a soft velvet skirt of deep purple, a silky white shirt cinched in the middle, with shoes that matched the skirt. You played with your skirt anxiously, fixing every small detail as if you could somehow make the reflection staring back at you a more perfect looking person. Unfortunately, you couldn't, so you simply took one last deep breath and exited your room, scowling at the pencil lead on your fingers.
"Alright, Cami, I think I'm ready to go," you announced as you walked into the living room, halting the conversation in an instant the moment you were in sight. There was a thick silence for a moment, Camilo and your parents all awestruck at your appearance, making you shift self consciously in the spot where you stood.
"Dios me salve," Camilo breathed, his cheeks colored a bright red at the sight of you, simply at a loss for words. He knew he found you attractive, he knew that you were one of the most beautiful girls he'd ever seen, but this was something different entirely. He wanted to grab your hand and take you away from here, wanted to hold you tightly to him because there could be nothing more precious in the world to him than you.
"You look so... grown up," your father said, his eyes tearing up as you walked further into the room, your cheeks slightly tinged pink from being stared at. Your parents were at your side immediately, pulling you tightly to them in a tight, warm embrace.
"Mamá, papi, I can't breathe," you wheezed, and they pulled back slightly, Camilo watching from his spot on the couch in a daze.
"Sorry, mi amor, you just... I can't believe we get to see you look so grown up," your mother breathed, wiping her teary eyes. You smiled at your mom, your eyes tearing up until your expression matched your parents.
"I know, ma, I got lucky," you agreed, looking over at Camilo with a soft smile, making him stand up immediately.
"Should we get going, mi rosa?" he asked, waiting patiently for the okay from you and your parents, unwilling to pull you away from your family when you weren't ready to.
"Yes, mi camaleón, we can start heading over now," you said, kissing your mother and father on the cheeks, before joining Camilo's side, accepting his offered arm as you smiled over at your parents.
"You two have fun, okay? And stay safe," your father said, winking as your face went from a soft pink to bright red.
"PA!" you whined, your parents laughing as Camilo looked away in embarrassment. "C'mon, Camilo," you mumbled, walking towards the door to escape your teasing parents. Camilo happily followed, blowing out a breath the second you were out the front door.
"If your parents are anything like mine, we are never going to survive," you muttered, and he chuckled.
"We will survive," he reassured you, and you smiled at him.
"We better- or else you'll never hear me sing," you joked, and he gasped.
"Does this mean you do plan on singing for me someday?" he asked, trying to mask his excitement, and you shrugged.
"Who knows, maybe I am," you said slyly, and the way he swallowed after you said that made your stomach flip pleasantly. The two of you walked together, chatting with one another, your feelings only growing as the two of you walked, and you wondered how long it would take for the two of you to be honest with each other about how you feel. You didn't exactly plan on telling him about how you felt, but you also felt like you couldn't really hide it either. You were almost completely convinced that he did have similar feelings for you, considering he kissed your hand and was itching to introduce you to his family, but you didn't want to say he did for sure until he told you. What if you were wrong? You would be crushed if you found out that he had only been going along with what you were doing for your benefit.
Something cold slithered down your spin as your thoughts slipped into a darker stream of consciousness. You knew that Camilo hadn't known about your sickness when you'd first met and became friends, but his actions had changed after you'd told him. Was he only doing this out of pity? Was he letting you hold your feelings for him so tightly because he wanted to make the girl who almost died feel better? You didn't want to believe that Camilo would do such a thing; you'd seen this boy interact with the rest of the town before, he was a genuinely kind soul, and never intentionally hurt anybody. But your anxieties wanted to convince you so badly that he wasn't being genuine that it made your stomach sick with it. Camilo, being ever observant when it came to you, slowed down their walk as he noticed the worried crease between your brows.
"Something wrong?" he asked you gently, and you looked over at him, your shoulders releasing their tension when you saw the kindness lying behind his eyes. You shook your head.
"I'm fine, let's just get to your house. I'm starving."