𝙟𝙪𝙨𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 || ⁱ. ᵐᵃᵈʳⁱᵍᵃˡ

two // oh no it's a crush

          YUP. IT'S OFFICIAL. If the—new—title of this chapter was anything to go by, you had a big ol' crush on Isabela Madrigal.

          Not that you'd ever admit it, of course. I mean you just did, but you were sure you would never allow yourself to believe in a fantasy that people would still look at you the same if you did. It was. . .a sobering reality, but it's not one you enjoyed. Sure it didn't have to come to it, so long as you kept these feelings buried deeper than a man trying to preserve his reputation—this crush was a special little secret with yourself. Because. . .well because you knew all too well of the consequences if people ever found out.

          A woman waves at you as you pass by the church, an inviting look on her face as you tried your best to kindly turn down her offer without having to call out no. She was your neighbor, and you remembered her as nobody but just one of your mother's friends. She was a kind woman, you really did enjoy her company.

          She looked understanding enough, waving you goodbye before ushering two kids inside the cathedral and away from your sight. You wondered if she'd be more persistent at getting you inside if you ever did tell her about these. . .feelings of yours. Would she ask you to pray harder for forgiveness from God for such heinous sins?

          You stop right in the middle of the plaza despite the blazing heat, gulping down a large lump in your throat as a thought crosses your mind unwanted.

          What would your mother think?

          "Okay, ease it up bitch, I'm not about to deal with this today." You tell yourself as you fought off the urge to slap the thought straight out of your head, turning just the slightest bit to look back at the Casita like that would somehow help ease up your feelings. It, obviously, did not, because as soon as you did you see Isabela running by upstairs in a chase with someone.

          You couldn't hear her voice from the distance and sounds of the village people, and hell, you couldn't even see her face that well—but you would like to imagine that she was laughing.

          "Y/N watch out!" Speaking of village people you barely manage to get out of the way as little kids giggled by, running past you in zig zags as one even had the audacity to grip onto your skirt. "Time out, time out! I'm not ready!" The little girl all but screamed, using you as a sort of shield as some grinning boy on your other side tried to catch her. "Come on, Maria! You know we don't do time out's!"

          "Okay okay can I just—okay ow, don't do that," You were on the verge of losing balance as the kids twirled around you laughing and cheering each other on, the last straw being when the little girl all but dragged you with her. "Okay that does it!" Your voice raised but it barely got above the kids' own screaming, the sight of an adult losing patience enough to make them back off you with all the fear and regret little six year old's could possibly hold.

          "Because you're not getting off me, you have angered the encanto monster!" Catching onto what you were pulling here the kids resumed laughing and screaming, letting out the best roar you could muster as you break into a chase through the plaza. You wanted to say that you went easy on them, you really did, but these damn machines must've been on sugar or something because dear God they could run.

          . . .well coffee, in this case, would be a lot more realistic.

          In the end you completely forgot what you were even upset about, spending about a few hours getting yourself sweaty chasing around little-mean-children before you were dragged off by your mother for lunch. It was a point of hilarity to exaggerate your look of pain and disappointment when she did, earning even more fits of giggles before they ran off when she glared.