Camilo x Reader -Broken Reflection

Chapter 32 (Lies can't save you now)

Y/N's POV

"I swear to the Saints, Camilo is an oblivious piece of shit sometimes," Mirabel huffed as we made our way out of the dressmaker shop. She'd come as I was finishing up work and I couldn't help but tell her everything about what had happened before breakfast as I set everything straight and got ready to leave. While the rest of the Madrigals were eating their morning meal, Camio and I had managed to fight, cry, and kiss.

We kissed...

Could I even call it that?

"Mira! He's still your cousin, y'know," I told her with a heavy sigh. She looked at me with wide eyes and an open mouth.

"You can't be serious!" She gasped. I gave her a puzzled look and she shook her head in disbelief. "I'll shit-talk my cousin if I feel like it," she continued to say as she crossed her arms and squared her shoulders. I let out an exasperated sigh in response as I slipped a rusted silver key into the shop's door handle lock. I twisted it quickly and pulled it out, trying the handle before turning to my best friend again.

She was watching me with slitted eyes.

"Don't tell me you actually like him," she said in disbelief.

"What? No," I sputtered and as if my lying wasn't bad enough, the key slipped through my fingers and tumbled down the stairs and to the stone pathway.

I cursed to myself and fell to my knees, pawing around on the stone trying to find it.

"You're even worse at lying than Luisa," Mirabel smirked. "And that's saying something."

"Stop being mean to your family," I mumbled. Mirabel laughed and leaned down, picking up the key and holding it to my face. I'd been searching for it for what seemed like forever and she managed to pull it out of thin air. I stood and resisted the urge to demand her to teach me her magical ways.

"Well at least Camilo deserves it," she said and I couldn't even disagree on that. I'd known Camilo for what felt like an eternity, but I never expected him to act so coldly towards me. We were still technically friends, but it felt like there was a constant wall between us that was at least ten feet thick. Despite how emotional he was before breakfast, he remained stone-faced whenever our eyes met.

What had I done to upset him so much? Why did it look like he was crying in the bathroom? Why did he reject me when I was about to talk about the kiss?

"Don't go."

I chewed on my bottom lip and felt my heartthrob as I recalled his words. He'd begged me not to leave him but I wasn't going to. His reaction was so sudden, but I had no idea what he was reacting to. Just when I thought my friendship conflicts were solved, bam! Another one.

"I mean, I don't see what you see in him," Mirabel continued to say, and it took me a few moments to realize that she had been speaking to me and we were walking home. For some reason, I didn't want to go back to the Casita.

"He's your cousin," I said with furrowed brows.

"Exactly." Mirabel faked a gagging noise and clutched her throat. "Barf."

The sun was beginning to set and Mirabel's chattering self had moved the topic of conversation along from her teenage cousin. She began to speak about making dinner with her mother. Apparently, they tried to make asparagus but they added too much lemon and it started to burn. She told me that Félix would gladly eat the green vegetable without criticism because he ate everything without complaining and had a smile on his face while doing it. I wondered if he'd still be that way if he ate my cooking.