Outside World

Part 9

A.N. Written alongside PanFluidMe

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It had taken awhile, but Pepa, Félix, and Dolores were all nearing the base of the mountain. They were calling Camilo's name as they neared the base.

Camilo was crying, holding his injured arm close and tried not to stand too much on his injured foot.

"Camilo!" Pepa called again once she stepped down on the ground at the base of the mountain.

Dolores tried to hear for Camilo again.

"Mamí?!"

Pepa heard Camilo call back. She ran toward the direction she heard her son's voice from. Dolores and Félix followed.

They soon found Camilo. Pepa ran up to her son and hugged him gently, so as not to hurt his clearly injured arm.

"M-Mamá."

"Camilo, mi hijo, what are you doing out here?" Pepa asked, still hugging her son.

Dolores gently joined in the hug.

"I was going to look for Mirabel, but I can't walk."

"What happened? How did you get so hurt?" Pepa asked.

"I fell off that rock." He pointed to a nearby, kinda big rock.

"All right." Pepa nodded. She didn't really know what to do. On one hand, they needed to find Mirabel, but on the other hand, they also needed to find Camilo medical attention.

"We need to find her."

"I know, I know. But we also need to get you help." Pepa looked at her son.

"I-I'm okay."

"Camilo, you need medical attention." Pepa insisted.

"Mirabel could need more medical attention than I do. We have to find her!"

"I know, I know. But I'm sure she's okay, wherever she is. We need to get you help." Pepa said.

He shook his head. "Mamá, we have to help her. I-I shouldn't have been standing here for so long."

"¿Mamá, por favor?"

Pepa sighed. "Okay, I'll tell you what. One of us will stay here with you and help you and make sure you're okay and the other two will go find Mirabel."

"No! I need to go find Mirabel!"

"Mijo, you can't walk. You just need to relax. Your father and Dolores will go find Mirabel. It'll be okay." Pepa assured her son.

"But-"

"Mijo, please, just let it go. You just need to relax. You can't walk on that foot." Pepa cut him off.

"It's fine."

"Camilo." Pepa said. "I'm not taking no for an answer, you're staying here with me and relaxing that foot while your father and Dolores go find Mirabel."

He swore under his breath before giving in. "Fine."

"Gracias, mijo." Pepa smiled softly at her son.

"Don't worry, Camilo, we'll bring her back safe." Dolores assured her brother.

He nodded. "You better."

With that, Félix and Dolores left the two and went to go look for Mirabel.

"¿Mamá?"

"¿Sí, Camilo?"

"Am... am I a bad son?"

"What? No, of course not, mi hijo. Why would you even think that?"

"I don't think I do enough."

"You do more than enough, Camilo." Pepa assured her son.

"I just wanted to help."

"And that's amazing. You did what you could."

"What if she doesn't want to come home? What if she found a better familia with a better cousin?"

"Camilo, you know she would never abandon her family like that for anyone else." Pepa assured.

"I kept telling her leaving Encanto was a bad idea." Camilo paused then clamped his mouth shut.

"You knew she wanted to leave the Encanto?" Pepa questioned.

He nodded.

"Why didn't you tell anyone?" Pepa asked. She wasn't made. Not in the slightest. She didn't even sound mad.

"No one will let me talk or they don't believe my ideas."

"We would've listened to you, mijo." Pepa said.

He shook his head. "I tried to tell everyone to look outside of Encanto and everyone kept brushing it off. Saying that it wasn't something she would do."

"That's because we didn't know she was actually considering it all this time."

"No one would listen when I tried to tell everyone about lots of stuff."

Pepa sighed. "Mijo, I'm so sorry."

"Mirabel would listen. She and I had talks about big plans that we both knew would never happen."

Pepa sensed how worried her son was. "Don't worry, Camilo. Your father and Dolores will find her and bring her back safely. She'll be okay."

"I don't want to loose her."

"And you won't. She'll be okay."

"I really hope so."