𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐀𝐔

Two Strings, One Knot

A/N: we have now reached the part of the story where it's being told in present tense.

BRUNO'S POV

I sit in front of a mirror, trying my very best not to shed a tear as Pepa is combing the ever-loving life out of my head. I wince as I felt the comb pull a strand of my hair. "AH! Easy!"

"Maybe if you'd stop making your head look like a rats nest, this would go more swimmingly." she complains.

She ties the top half of my hair back and into a ponytail, while the rest of my hair is down. I've never had a hairstyle like this before. Usually or on occasion, all of my hair would either be out or put into a low effort ponytail.

"There we go." She wipes imaginary sweat from her forehead. "Handsomely decent."

Gazing at my reflection in the mirror, I can no longer recognize the person in front of me.

How did I get here?

Mamá walks through my door. She stands behind me, looking at me through the mirror. I'm not expecting any compliments from her, but she did do something I'd never thought I'd see her do for me.

Water rolls down her cheeks.

I can't help but cringe. "Ma... don't."

"I can't help it. You... remind me so much of my dear Pedro."

I know I look like my father.

I don't say anything. Because knowing her, there is more.

She smiles. "May you and Evangelina give me lots of grandkids." There it is.

She leaves. Pepa also takes her leave but I stop her.

"Pepa, hold on!"

She looks at me.

EVANGELINA'S POV

CASA GONZALEZ

My awakening is not caused by the sun glinting in my window's curtains. It's not Bruno's arms that envelop me in my dream, reassuring me that he would willingly be with me that gets me out of bed at 6 in the morning. It isn't even the sound of Mamá in the kitchen, probably making my breakfast, that has me looking at the gorgeous wedding dress Maria put so much effort into designing.

It's the nerves flowing through my entire body.

Today is the day I give up my last name and officially become a Madrigal.

The memory of when I first met Bruno runs fresh in my mind.

FLASHBACK: 31 years ago

"Mommy?" A ball of panic began dwelling up inside me.

This wasn't well thought out.

I need a tree.

I went through the bustling crowd of the festival until I found something tall, green, and brown. It had trousers on but I wasn't complaining.

My arms immediately wrapped around the bottom of it. Then an odd thought came to me when this tree didn't feel like a tree.

My eyes wandered up until I met green eyes. This tree is alive. He looked down at me, my eyes brimming with tears.

"What the-? Let go of me you brat!" My tree spoke.

"I lost my mommy!" I cried.

He scowled. "Well that's not my problem! Go cling to someone else!"