Stuck With You ⇁ Carlos Madrigal

04

The rest of lunch with The Madrigals was rather uneventful, Thankfully no one commented on your long trip to the bathroom - maybe they all thought you had some sort of stomach problem like Bruno did. . . you shoved down the slight embarrassment that came with that thought.

Now, as you were back at the nursery - you breathed in a sigh of relief, you sat on the floor back pressed against the frame of the bed, looking off into the ceiling.

Mirabel sat next to you, she called out your name softly, quickly catching your attention as you turned towards her. ". . . You know you can tell me if something's bothering you, right?"

You smiled, letting out a nervous laugh. "Yeah, I know."

She sighed, fiddling with her fingers. "I-It's just . . . You've been acting weird for a few weeks now. Those night visits your parents had with my mom, and your family just abruptly went into the city."

You could hear your own heart, beating so loudly it felt like it was about to burst. The city. Your eyes shook. The hospital. All of a sudden you dragged back into a memory - the sound of your own screams filled your ears.

"N-no!" You had shouted,
trying to break free from
their grasp. "Stop it, please -
I'm not sick!"

"Stop, Dear!" Your mother
shouted, holding you down.
"They're trying to help you, just
stay still!"

"Please I don't wanna--" You
thrashed violently, screaming.
"No . . . I'm not crazy, please!
Just Stop!"

"It. . . hurts. . . Mama."

You let out a laugh, pained and uncomfortable, quickly pushing yourself to stand up from the floor, trying to shake away the memory.

It - it won't happen again. You thought. As long as I don't mention Camilo, about anything from my world again - they won't think I'm crazy - they, they, won't take me back to that place. They can't.

Mirabel followed after you, the worry clear as day on her face, she placed hand on your shoulder - before gently pulling you into a hug. "You don't have to tell me, If you don't want to . . . but please just remember, that I'm here for you, okay?"

Tears slipped from your face, as you hugged her back tightly.

"Thank you, Mirabel." You're one of the only things keeping me sane at the moment.

____

You walked through the woods, this way was the opposite of a shortcut but after all that happened today, you needed a real distraction, and a detour through the forest was just that.

The grass crunched beneath your feet, you looked around, trying to find a familiar mark - there - you walked closer, fingers skimming through a worn out ribbon.

"Ours was pink." This one's red. Your lips pulled into a smile, as you glanced down at the ribbon that was wrapped tightly around the tree, tied into a neat bow - probably courtesy of a young Mirabel, it definitely had seen better days, seemingly seconds away from falling apart.

"I guess they made a treehouse too." The treehouse had been Camilo's idea - it was supposed to be a secret hideout that only the three of you knew, but basically everyone in your families knew about it, You even remember when Augustin tried to help build it - it ended in an absolute disaster - having him be permanently banned by his own daughter, not being allowed within ten feet away of the prized treehouse.