Storyteller (Encanto X OCish Reader)

CHAPTER 34 - Moving?

"Alright," you nodded before opening the door outside. "Goodnight everybody!" Your family followed after you, also as tired as you were - after all, a lot had happened that day.

You slept in late the next day and when you woke, you instantly sensed that something was really wrong. It felt... empty.

When you exited your room, it seemed as if it was some sort of twisted dream. Everything around the house was in boxes and packed. "Ma? Ma, what's going on?" you asked, seeing how she was packing together the place.

"Oh, good morning, Y/n," she greeted, handing you a toast. "We're leaving."

"Wha- what? But we just got here, I love it here- Why would we-" you stuttered, your eyes growing wide.

"Oh, you got it wrong," she chuckled sadly. "You're staying at the Madrigals'. With your abuelo. We don't belong here. We belong back where we came from. But you and your abuelo, well, you belong here. With people like you."

"Are you sure?" you asked. "And why so suddenly, do the Madrigals even know?"

"Yeah, Camilo should be here to help you move any second now. We decided yesterday at dinner but didn't want to ruin your mood."

You hummed, brows furrowing further. "They don't know, do they?" you asked, referring to your sibling who were outside on a carriage, deep asleep.

Your mom smiled sadly. "No, they don't. Now help me carry those boxes to the carriage, they're the last ones."

You nodded wordlessly, picking up a box from the hallway. You felt your throat slightly getting blocked and you shook your head, keeping yourself from crying. After all - you had to be strong. You didn't know why but not crying was programmed into your system. Was it because you were the eldest? Probably.

Your dad gave you a hug as soon as you put away the box. "This is the best for you," he assured, you nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry, we'll write you a letter as soon as we get home," your mother assured. "That's only two weeks."

"Alright," you nodded slightly, giving them both a last hug before they climbed to the front part of the carriage. You walked next to the carriage, lightly ruffling each of your siblings' hair, still careful not to wake them up though.

And then they went. You waved slightly before stepping back inside the house. It was all empty except your room, of course. It stung in your eyes and that activated the reaction of masking sadness with anger. You huffed and took a box, starting to pile your things in it.

"Hey," Camilo's voice said from behind you. "Can I help?"

"Sure," you said, handing him the box without even looking him in the eye. The problem was - you knew you would break if you did.

"Do you want to... talk about it?" he asked.

You stopped your movement, staring at a family picture for a moment before putting it away. "Thank you, but there's no need," you said quietly, keeping your voice from breaking. "Just very sudden, that's all."

He frowned but knew better than to pry. In a few minutes, your room was empty. "Let's go," you said, nodding towards the stairs.

Without another word, the two of you walked into your new home. You took the other box from him and went to your room, pushing the door close behind you with your foot

You let out a shaky sigh, putting down the boxes on your bed.

Hey, hey, you'll be fine, alright? Your eyes widened. You had subconsciously made your imaginary friend come - as always when you were feeling down - but this time he really floated around your room, looking like a golden shadow.

"You'll be just fine," he assured, putting a hand on your shoulder. "It will blow over. Like every other negative emotion. There's no point in crying about it when it will go away anyway."

"You know, that's not very healthy," you muttered.

He only shrugged. "I say what your mind makes me say. So to sum it up, you haven't been too healthy with yourself."

"Oh shut up," you grinned, pushing away the negative feelings.

"Just saying~"

He faded away and a peaceful look made its way onto your face as you started to unpack. It was weird, how your emotions worked. Just a minute ago, you were on the edge of breaking down. But now you just felt peacefully empty, nothing really going on with your emotions.

Humming a tune to yourself, you unpacked the things and put two picture frames on your bedside table. One of your family and the other the card Camilo had made you.

Knock. Knock. "Can I come in?"

Speak of the Devil... you breathed out deeply before answering. "Of course."

"Hey," he greeted quietly, closing the door after him. "I was wondering if you were okay. You were oddly quiet during the walk."

You laughed. It sounded a bit strained but you ignored it. "Heh. I probably just overreacted."

He frowned. You opened your mouth before he could say anything. "Don't go saying ignoring my emotions is unhealthy. I'm well aware but that's my way of living and I'm just fine."

"Okay," he said slowly. "Anyway, we're having lunch in a bit."

"It's that late already?" you asked, glancing at the clock. It was true. It had been about 3 hours since you started unpacking. "Oh how time flies," you laughed. "Now that you mention it, I am feeling a bit hungry."

He grinned. "I believe. C'mon. Let's go help Tía Julieta."

"Race ya," you said before barging out the door.

"You cheated!" he yelled before shapeshifting himself longer legs. He soon passed you, stepping inside the kitchen first. "I won!" he announced.

You huffed a breath. "So I cheated, eh?"

"Let's call it a draw," he offered, putting out his hand.

"A draw," you agreed, shaking his hand. You felt a slight tingle go up your arm as you shook his hand but you ignored it. He didn't - a soft smile made way onto his face and he chuckled a bit.

"C'mon now. The table doesn't lay itself."

The tiles on the floor clattered a bit.

Camilo huffed. "Okay, the table could lay itself but we should help too."

"Yeah, probably," you agreed with a grin. Just like that, your bad mood was gone.