Crushing On A Madrigal | 𝐄𝐧𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐅𝐚𝐧𝐟𝐢𝐜

·6·

"Sleepless Morning"

Estella lets out a sharp breath as she turns in her bed, the memory from earlier has been haunting her ever since they separated from each other.

Groaning and irritated, Estella sits on her bed and turns on the lamp at her bedside table. She looks at the small clock placed beside her lamp and checks the time.

"It's already 3 in the morning?" She whispered to herself, disbelief present on her face.

How important even is sleep these days?

"Damn." She mutters under her breath, rubbing her eyes before finally standing up.

Estella changed from her nightgown into her everyday clothes and decided to start her day.

Only four hours earlier than usual.

Cleaned the house, swept the floor, watered the plants, organized her mother's fabrics, and even arranged the different colors of paints in her father's art room from the lightest to darkest shade and from biggest to smallest can and bottle. And somehow she managed to do all that without waking a single person in the house.

"It's a skill, really." She said, boasting in the mirror as she took a sip of her coffee, noting the fact that she looked like she resembled someone. Specifically, someone who's a boy.

"Ai– yeesh," Her Father exclaimed, almost jumping at the sight of his daughter, standing near their staircase. Sighing in relief, knowing that he wasn't seeing a ghost or a living corpse, he lectures his daughter. "Goodness, you almost made my soul ascend, Mija.

"And what's with the dark bags under your eyes? Didn't you get enough sleep last night?" He expressed in a more soft tone, noticing how exhausted her eyes looked. Noting the fact that she's holding a cup of steaming hot coffee.

She never drank coffee of her own free will.

"I'm fine, I just woke up earlier than usual, that's all." She says, waving a hand to try and dismiss the topic. "How early?" Benito asked, unconvinced as he arches a brow at her.

About "yesterday morning" early. She says to herself, keeping the thought tucked up in her mind as she tries understating it before replying to her Papa. "Just an hour or two early." She shrugged, sipping more of her coffee. 

Has caffeine always been this delicious?

"Estella?" They heard Tacita call from upstairs. "Did you re-organize my fabrics again?" She questioned, as Estella replied, "Si, Mama," adding volume in her voice so her mother would be able to hear her.

"I appreciate the hard work, Mija. But you didn't have to since you already do a lot of– Ooh," Tacita pauses, eyeing her husband and eldest child, with a perplexed face. "Is that coffee? I thought you disliked coffee." She asked, craning her neck to further observe the drink as she slowly starts walking down the stairs toward them.

"Right?" Her husband nodded in agreement.

The couple turned their full attention to their daughter and started examining her carefully. "Are you feeling unwell?", "Did you have a nightmare?", "Is your body aching somewhere?".

Estella backs away from her worried parents and laughs it off. "Mami, Papi, I'm fine. Seriously." She says, raising both her hands in defeat before noticing how her mother managed to snatch away her cup of coffee without her noticing.

Her parents glanced at each other before turning to her in unison, clearly unconvinced. "That's it," Her mother huffs, pointing a finger at her daughter. "Estella Adriana Cortez, you stay inside this house until you feel better." She says sternly.

"Wait, huh?" Estella exclaims confusedly. Am I being grounded? She asked herself, unable to understand the situation.

"You're mother is right. You're clearly overworking yourself. Go up to your room and rest." Benito adds, completely agreeing with his wife as he grabs hold of their fifteen-year-old daughter's shoulders and starts urging her to walk up the stairs and back to her room.

"What? B-B-But– Huh?" Estella stuttered, her brain completely blank as she only stares at her parents dumbfoundedly. "I'm so confused." She muttered under her breath before having an idea pop into her tired and slightly aching head.

"Oh, wait!" She exclaims, stopping in her tracks as she snaps her fingers, surprising her parents. "What if... I go out," She paused, noticing her parents' frowns, and flashing them the I'm-not-finished-yet look.

"To rest." She finishes, awaiting her parents' approval but instead, their frowns just kept on getting. . . Well, frownier. However the hell you're supposed to describe it.

"You do know you have two kinds of "rest", right, Corazon?" Tacita mentions, asking for a more clear and more specific answer.

"Y'know, like, go to the woods, have a little stroll. Feel the wind in my hair and stuff." She explains further, trying to make them understand what she meant.

"Oh, that kind of rest." She heard her father whisper to himself, making her pout at him.

"Well," Her mother spoke, tapping her foot and crossing her arms. "As long as you be back before lunch and," She trailed, gently caressing her daughter's cheek and suddenly stretches it in a matter of a millisecond.

"If you promise to really rest and not sneak behind my back trying to help other people when you don't even know how to help yourself." She says through gritted teeth, continuously pinching her daughter's cheeks causing her to whine in pain.

"Yes, yes, I promise! Mami, my cheeks are getting sore." She pleaded, grabbing onto her face immediately right after her mother let go. "Alright, you can go." Tacita smiled, putting her hands together and making a short clap.

"Be back late!" She heard her mother jokingly yell before going out their front door.

Teenagers. Tacita thought as she shook her head and shrugged at her husband playfully.

"Parents," Estella muttered, rubbing her sore cheeks.