"Camilo, hurry up! They're coming!" Dolores called. She was waiting in front of his door, listening from the inside. She could hear Camilo's hurrying footfalls and what sounded like the ruffling of cloth.
"What are you doing in there?" she asked. At that moment, Camilo walked out, wearing the exact same clothes that he always did. Dolores didn't know what she expected. But then she saw something was different in his appearance. She grabbed the hem of his ruana and lifted it up.
"Hey, hey, hey," he said, pulling it away from her.
"Well, would you look at that?" Dolores said. "I don't think I've ever seen you match the buttons correctly on your shirt before."
"Jeez," Camilo said, dusting himself off. "Why do you insist on breathing down my neck all the time?"
Dolores didn't answer.
She was fighting hard to not tell him the truth about why she was feeling so anxious. From the moment she told him that Hanna had said his name, he was giddy with excitement. She just couldn't dampen his spirits now, especially not before what was supposed to be a fun occasion. But what would he think if she told him that the girl that he likes is supposedly being mistreated by her own father? And just how bad was it? Did Hanna need help? But then Dolores remembered what Isabela said. Handling their own family affairs was one thing but meddling with those of another family was a risky business. They needed more insight first. Isabela's plan for the elder sisters to start bonding seemed the most subtle thing to do. Dolores followed her brother downstairs to wait outside.
Camilo stood excitedly in front of the house with everyone. Antonio, who was nearby, looked at him and asked, "Are you gonna ask Hanna to dance?" Camilo looked down, wide-eyed at his little brother and his cheeks turned red.
"Um...maybe?" he said, ruffling his hair. "I don't know if she'll want to," he added.
But as he said this, he began to imagine himself doing the Salsa with her. He would give her a twirl with one hand, she would spin into his arms, and their bodies would be moving together in time to the music under the stars. Camilo suddenly felt hot under his ruana. His palms started to sweat so he very quickly wiped them on the legs of his trousers. After a few more minutes of waiting, Cal arrived with his wife and two daughters walking behind him. Amalia was wearing a yellow dress with her dark brown hair in a long French braid. Then finally, Camilo saw Hanna again. She was wearing a pale pink dress and white shoes. She had her golden-brown hair tied up in a high, elegant bun with two loose strands on each side of her face. All the light colors she wore really brought out the blue in her eyes. Hanna gave him a wide smile and waved at him. Camilo waved back at her. Amalia looked up to see to whom her sister was saying 'Hello'. When she saw Camilo, she put a hand up to her chin in thought. "Hmm," she said to herself.
"Thank you all for being here tonight," Alma said with her arms wide open. "Please, come in! Enjoy yourselves!"
"Thank you very much," Mrs. Engel said kindly, and they all walked inside the Casita.
Isabela then approached Amalia. "Hi," she said in a friendly voice. "I don't know if you remember, but I'm Isabela. Agustin's oldest daughter."
Amalia looked at the girl with the vibrantly colored dress and flowers in her hair in surprise and said, "Um...yeah...Hi. Nice to meet you."
Isabela took her arm in hers, and said, "Likewise. Come on! Let's talk! You know, I feel like we have so much in common being the oldest child in our families, don't you?" Isabela started to pull Amalia in a different direction from Hanna. Amalia looked back at her sister and said, "I guess."
Hanna gave her sister a sad smile. "Go. It's okay," she said. Amalia gave her what looked like an apologetic look and went off with Isabela.
Pepa then turned to Camilo and said, "Well don't just stand there! Be a gentleman and escort the lady inside!"
Camilo blushed and looked over at Hanna who was standing with her head bent down and her hands clasped together. He gulped and slowly moved towards her. Hanna looked up to see him getting closer and she felt butterflies in her stomach as she looked into his hazel-green eyes. "Hi," she said.
"Hi," Camilo said back, quietly. He then extended his left elbow to her. Hanna slowly placed her right hand on his inner arm, and they walked together up to the house.
Hanna looked around Casita for a second time. It didn't look as big as her house back home, but it was warmer and much more inviting. As soon as they were inside, she and Camilo let go of each other and awkwardly stood side by side, unsure of what to do. Then, Antonio came up to them.
"Hi, Hanna," he said, innocently. He took her hand in both of his and was gently tugging her with him. "You wanna dance?" he asked.
"Aww, of course, I do," Hanna said to him. Camilo looked at his little brother, shaking his head in disbelief. But at the same time, he couldn't help but feel relieved after the awkward silence from earlier.
As more people gradually showed up at the party, the house came alive (as Casita could be) with music, dancing, and laughter. Pepa and Félix were tearing up the dance floor with a crowd watching and clapping. Bruno was in a corner entertaining a bunch of laughing kids, using his rats to tell them stories. Dolores was sitting on the bench, flirting with Mariano. Mrs. Engel was talking with Julieta and Abuela, while Amalia was with Isabela and Luisa. Hanna was dancing with Antonio while Mirabel was watching from nearby, clapping her hands. Cal was sitting down, having a drink with Agustín.
"I gotta hand it to you, Agustín," Cal said while taking a sip from his shot glass. "When you said you live in a magical paradise in a magical house, I didn't think to take it so literally. Not until I saw it with my very own eyes. So, this is why I haven't seen you in over 20 years?"
"Well, yes. When my family and I moved to this place, it was more isolated back then. But we are hoping to change that a little at a time. And believe me, just wait 'til you see more," said Agustín.
Cal raised his thick eyebrows. "More than just a paradise and a magical house springing to life? What else could there be?" he asked curiously.
"All in good time, Cal," Agustín said.
Camilo watched Hanna as she danced with little Antonio. Seeing her having a great time warmed his heart, and yet he couldn't help but feel a bit jealous of how bold Antonio was being. Then again, Antonio was still just a child with no insecurities holding him back whatsoever. Camilo sighed as he kept watching her.
"Hey, primo," said a voice from right next to him. It was Mirabel.
"How come you're not up there joining them?" she asked, gesturing towards Hanna and Antonio. "Is Antonio in your way?"
"No," Camilo lied.
"You sure about that?" she asked with a grin.
Camilo stared down at his feet and sighed again.
The music stopped, and everyone applauded and whistled. As a new song was beginning, Camilo looked up to see Antonio walking towards him, hand in hand with Hanna. He straightened up immediately at the sight of her.
"It's your turn, Hermano!" Antonio said to him. Camilo and Hanna stared at each other, nervously.
"Come on, Antonio! You can dance with me now!" Mirabel said. She took her little cousin's hand and they walked off, leaving Camilo and Hanna completely alone.
After they stood there for a moment, Hanna silently gestured towards the dance floor and Camilo smiled at her. He took her hand and slowly walked with her. When they reached the dance floor, they saw Pepa and Félix doing the Cumbia. Camilo and Hanna then looked at each other and slowly started to move to the music, matching each other's steps.
Félix noticed them. "Come on, mi Vida!" he said, excitedly. "Let's show 'em how it's done! Hahaha!" And he twirled Pepa around by the hand. As the music picked up, Camilo placed his hand on the small of Hanna's back and she put her hand on his shoulder. They linked their other hands together and their feet mirrored each other perfectly. Pepa and Félix took this as a challenge and started to dance in a more complex step. Camilo and Hanna watched them, then grinned at each other, accepting the challenge. Hanna was better at dancing than Camilo thought. He raised a hand to spin her around until they were standing at arm's length, and she gracefully spun back towards him. Now she was in front of him with her back against his chest, swaying her hips, and her hands were laced together with his. The whole world could've been collapsing, and Camilo wouldn't have even noticed. The music, the atmosphere, and Hanna's presence had washed away all his anxiety. It was so euphoric and intense. Camilo gave Hanna one last twirl and on the final note of the song, she spun back into him. He had his hand on her waist, looking down at her and she looked at him. Their chests moved up and down as they caught their breath. But then, someone accidentally bumped into Camilo, causing him to clumsily fall on top of Hanna, and they toppled to the floor together. Camilo hurriedly got up off Hanna and held out a hand to pull her up to her feet.
"Are you alright?" he asked her.
"Yeah, I'm okay," she said, rubbing her head.
But when she looked up at him, she gasped loudly and clasped her hands to her mouth. Camilo looked down at himself and saw that he had shape-shifted into her as they had fallen. Camilo then looked up at the real Hanna and transformed back. She continued to stand there, wide-eyed with her hands over her mouth.
Hurt and ashamed, Camilo ran off.