Coco

Cursed

Y/N POV:

I sat in the plaza with little Coco in my arms, watching them sing and dance. Hector was fantastic on the guitar, and Imelda's voice rang beautifully around the village. I clapped along with the tune of the music. La Llorona. A beautiful piece. Once the music ended, and they took a bow, the crowd slowly dispersed, and they walked up to me.

"Hey, Y/N. Did you like the song?"

"I loved it, Hector." I turned to Imelda, "And you sounded beautiful, Imelda." The young woman giggles, "Thank you, Y/N." She takes her daughter from my arms and kisses her head.

"Mama!"

Hector tickles his daughter, making her giggle. "Do you have to leave tomorrow morning?" I asked. Hector sighs, "Yes. Ernesto wants to be there as soon as possible. I'll write to you, I promise."

"You always want to make sure nothing bad happens to us, Y/N," Imelda responds, adjusting her grip on Coco. "Can you blame me?" I muttered, crossing my arms. "There is nothing wrong with you being protective of us." Hector chuckles. I rolled my eyes, "Yeah, yeah. If you leave early--"

"I will let you know." Hector pulls me into a strong hug. I wrapped my arms around him, "I love you." I whispered. He hugs me tighter like it would be the last time.

"I love you too."

"I wanna hug!" Little Coco calls out. I pulled away from Hector, and we both grabbed Imelda and Coco, bringing them into the hug.

When morning came, I went with Hector to meet Ernesto at the station. "Hey, Y/N! How are you?" De La Cruz pats my shoulder a little hard. I grunt, "Hey, Ernesto. I'm good." The man laughs, "Glad to hear!" He grabs Hector's bag and his own, entering the train.

"I'll write to you and Coco. Okay?"

I turned to Hector and gave him a tight hug. I felt like this would be the last time I would see him. Tears silently fell down my cheeks. "Hey, chamaca, smile for me." Hector whispers. I snorted at the nickname.

"Be safe."

"I will." He pulls away, grabs his guitar, and gazes at me one last time, "You're in charge now. Keep a good eye on the familia!" I nodded and waved as he entered the train, and it pulled away from the station.

"Good bye, Hector."

-----------------------------------------------------------------

My heart hurt for weeks at a time. The letters came from Hector, explaining his journey. The final letter came only to me after two years. He told me he was feeling homesick and would be returning home to see everyone.

I was happy. He would be back for Coco's sixth birthday.

But... when the train came the day he was to return home... he never showed up. Imelda shunned music from her life, including Coco's. I searched for him in the last town he was seen. Two weeks in the town. No Hector.

I kept asking people if they'd seen him. No luck. I went to the next town over and spotted Ernesto De La Cruz sitting on the bench, waiting for the train.

"Ernesto!"

De La Cruz was startled for a moment, but when he saw me, I noticed he pushed something under the seat. "Ahh, Y/N!" I approached him, relieved and confused. "Where's Hector? He was supposed to be home weeks ago. And... what are you doing here?"

Ernesto adjusts his tie, "Ah, you see, Hector went ahead of me, and I'm taking this train to see him."

"But where is he?"

Ernesto seemed nervous but quickly smiled, "It's a surprise, of course!" I raised a brow. "Are you also taking this train, Y/N?" He changes the subject. I blinked at him, "Uh... yes. I am taking this train."