Mirabel's Doppelganger

Prologue

Gazing out the window at my childhood friend I couldn't help my fond smile. He cradled a tiny baby in his gentle arms, his mouth moving as he cooed at the child, just as I had seen him do many times before. Smiling his heart-wrenchingly beautiful smile he changed into the baby's mother, singing it to sleep with the woman's voice as the mother took a siesta close by.

Then Camilo looked up.

Fuck.

As quick as the fear sliced through me I went invisible. My powers cast a vivid allusion of my surroundings over top of me. Usually, I hated how my gift responded to my emotions but, this one time, it was helpful.

Taking a bunch of short breaths I prayed he hadn't seen me gawking at him.  Looking around confusion clouding his face, his eyes passed right over me. He looked over my window again before dropping his eyes back to the baby in his arms.

My shoulders relaxed as I realized he must not have actually seen me. He would probably brush it off as seeing things and leave it at that.

He shook his head that puzzled look still on his face and looked over at the mother of the child in his arms who was just waking up. They exchanged a few words and he handed the baby to her before walking away whistling a tune, that mischievous grin back on his face.

As he walked away I relaxed fully, but I kind of still wished he was near and I could study his beautiful face, watch his expressions as he cheered up the children...

With a sigh, my back to the wall I slid down until I was sitting against it, my half cleaned room looked back at me. The books I had been reorganizing sat forgotten on the shelf where I set them as soon as I caught one glimpse of that curly brown hair outside my window.

If only things had happened differently in the past.

But things were how they had always been since the night of Mirabel's gift-giving ceremony and there was nothing I could do about it.

I had a gift.

And Mirabel didn't.

And as sad as it was that meant not only could I not hang out with Camilo, but if I did his whole family would have hated me more than they already did.

...well except for Mirabel, evidently that girl doesn't have a bad bone in her body.

With a quiet sigh, I got up off the floor and finished cleaning my room.

At least one thing in this casita should be organized, with the jumbled mess of thoughts running through my brain it wasn't going to be me.

---------------

If this prologue hooked you into the story please drop a vote so that others may be more likely to find it and love it as well! Thank you!