The Lost Miracle

Chapter 6: Another Beginning

Mira walked down the stony pathway to the Salazars home. The girl's day had been quite hectic; she had to fish a boy out of a well, fix a broken wagon, and return a lost donkey to his barn. But now, with the sun beginning it's descent behind the mountains, Mira was ready to enjoy some of Abuela Maria's famous empanadas and then go to her own house for a long, deep slumber..

"Mirabel!" she turned around to see-

"Andro!" The boy ran to her and held his amor by the shoulders. "Hey uh- can I- um, show you something?" Mira's brows furrowed in concern.

"Is something wrong?" She asked. Mira had gotten so used to being the miraculous helper of the town, she often thought that if she heard her name being called, she would have to follow it to some sort of catastrophe.

"Nonono, everything's fine, mi vida. I just wanna- um..." Alejandro rubbed his neck with his right hand. "There's a few things I wanted to show you, around town..." Mirabel thought for a moment. She was hungry... but food could wait for her amor.

"Oh why not?" Alejandro happily took her hand and led her to their first stop.

"So, I've been thinking a lot..." Alejandro began.

"About..?" Mira asked.

"About us..." he stopped walking in the middle of the road. Perfectly between the Salazar's casita and her own little house. "Do you remember when we met all those years ago?" he says, gesturing to his own house. "This is where you rebuild my home. Where you helped me get over my fear of my casita."

"Yeah, I know," Mira said with a smirk. "I was there..."

"Yeah well, I've always thought that was so brave of you. You just showed up to this village and before we knew it, you fixed everything." Alejandro began walking again. Mira knew where he was taking her. The town square, a clearing of buildings that surrounded the well. "So, that was one of the things I was thinking about..."

"Oh yeah?" she asked. "What else have you been thinking about?" The lovers walked through the square, some townsfolk waving at them as they returned to their homes for the night. Alejandro led Mira to the well in the very center of the town. The two sat on the stone well and watched the white fluffs fade away to flying carnation colored clouds. Children raced home from their football game, desperate to get home before the sunsets lest they face their parent's anger.

"Do you remember," Alejandro broke the silence. "About 5 years ago, we sat by this well just like this?"

"Yeah..." Mira answered as a smile grew on her face. "This is where you first asked me to have dinner with you," she turned to him with a teasing look. "Alone~"

"Yeah..." Alejandro looked down and shoved his hands in his pockets. "It's also where we had our first kiss..."

"Oh how could I ever forget!?" Mira exclaimed. "You wanted us to be just the two of us, so you had us come out here in the dead of night with just a lantern."

"Hey, that's not the only reason I had us come here at night!" He said with a light chuckle. "I wanted us to be under the stars."

"Ah yes, las estrellas hermosas..." she smiled at her amor. "They were beautiful that night, weren't they?"

"Yeah..." Alejandro looked forward to the clearing in trees at the forest ahead. He stood up and reached his hand out to Mira. "One last stop..." The two walked through the town. The sunset, now a glowing tangerine, bathed them in warmth. The lovers walked up a hill to the edge of town, straying off the path as they walked through the long overgrown grass. Mira's fingertips grazed the greenery that lay at her legs. They stopped at the very edge of town, the pathway now leading to the forest. A path Mira barely knew anymore.

"So..." The girl began to ask. She looked around at the town. It was so quiet this time of day... "We visited where we first met, we visited where we had our first kiss, what's so special abou-" She turned around, and was speechless.

"This is where I propose to you." Alejandro was knelt down on one knee. In his hand is a box with a golden ring resting inside. A small diamond sat in the center of the band, held up by two butterfly wings. Mirabel stood in silence. Her mouth agape and eyebrows raised to the sky. "Mira, I..." Andro cleared his throat and continued. "I-I love you. I love your passion, I love your strength, I love your need to help anyone no matter what. I remember that day you came to us, you were a shining star, a miracle..." Tears seeped from his eyes, matching Mira's already drenched face. "Mira... you told me you first came to this town to escape, to find a new beginning... Would you like to begin something with me?" Mira gasped as she wiped her eyes with the heel of her hand. Rushing to the ground, Mira hugged her Alejandro, just before enveloping his face in her hands and giving him a fiery, heartfelt kiss.

•••

"Felicidades!" Everyone shouted as the newly engaged couple walked back to the town square. A celebration was needed, after all, Mira and Alejandro were finally set to be wed!

"Did you plan all of this?" Mira asked her now fiance. They walked, arms linked, towards Mercedes.

"Nah," Andro answered casually. "Not alone at least..."

"I basically planned it all myself," Mercedes hugged her future sister- in- law. "All alone~ All for my future hermana!"