mute - shawmila

chapter 15

camila sat on her bed, going through a box of old stuff she kept stuffed under her bed. she usually didn't go through that box, and could count on one hand how many times she had done so. it became filled the day they decided to clear out her little sister's room, their parents not wanting a constant reminder of what they lost.

she pulled all the contents of the box out one by one, wiping the tears off her face as she did so. the old polaroids laid on top, a dozen of old pictures they had taken over the years. some were just of her sister, some included them both and there were a few of all three sisters together too. she retrieved them one by one until she got to the last one, bringing her mouth up to cover a sob at the sight of this one.

camila and her sister were looking at each other, with camila bending down to reach her little sister's height. both of them were dressed in fancy clothes as they were celebrating the youngest cabello's sixth birthday that day. it was one of the last polaroids camila had of the two, as only a few weeks later tragedy struck. she stared at the picture intently, noticing the way her sister's button nose scrunched and her recently trimmed hair fell over her shoulders.

she put the pictures down and cried into her hands. she was the reason her sister wasn't here, the reason behind her family's grief, the reason behind her family falling apart. it was all her fault. camila brought up her knees to her chest and cried harder, her body rocking with every sob.

"kaki!" camila heard her sister yell from downstairs. she had still been getting ready, straightening her hair for the special occasion. camila put everything down and walked over to the hallway where she could see her sister. 

"yes, sofi?" 

"you're taking forever," she groaned, pointing to the clock. camila laughed and ran down the stairs to meet up with her little sister. 

"i'm sorry butterfly queen, i just wanted to look nice for your special day," she assured, tapping her little sister's nose. camila picked up her sister, placing her on her hip and started walking back upstairs.

"karla," her dad warned. "no more babying her," he reminded, a conversation he had been having with her often. 

camila rolled her eyes, she was only six after all. sofia held on tighter to her sister and buried her head in her neck, liking the way camila treated her. "it's just up the stairs, papa," she complained, and continuing to walk up to her room. she sat her sister down on her bed and held a conversation with her as she continued getting ready. 

"what did you get me for my birthday?" the youngest cabello asked with a grin. 

"you'll see after dinner," camila promised, knowing she was going to love the life-sized barbie dreamhouse currently wrapped downstairs. she finished getting ready, applying lip gloss for her final touch, ready to go.

"can i have some?" sofia asked, fascinated by the makeup. 

"sure," she smiled, walking over to her bed where sofia had been sitting. "pucker your lips like this," she demonstrated, waiting for the younger one to do the same. camila applied a small amount on her sister's lips, knowing her mom wouldn't appreciate a six year old with a sticky face. 

"karla, time to go!" she heard her older sister call out. 

"let's go, butterfly queen!"

sofia squealed when camila picked her up and spun her around. 

"she can walk, karla," her mom reminded at the sight of her youngest being carried.

okay, so maybe camila did baby her a lot. but can you blame her? her sister was too cute, and she was only trying to give her the best childhood possible.