How to Steal Diego Brando's Heart [Diego Brando x Reader]

Chapter 7: Jealousy

You opened your eyes to the same bland, boring ceiling that you stared at last night. Furrowing your eyebrows, you kept blinking your eyes to get accustomed to your surroundings. You looked to your right and there was Diego. You were actually kind of surprised that he got a wink of sleep. He seemed like the person who wouldn't trust anyone to do anything around him at any given time. Who knows, maybe you were getting to him!

You sat up and rubbed your eyes, trying to get the sleepiness out of your system. Tip-toeing out of the bed, you made your way quietly to the nearest window. You placed your arm on the windowsill, gazing out to try and gauge the time. The sky was a pretty mix of pink and orange, letting you know that dawn had just broken. It was still early though, and you could see no other racer outside. You were already awake and you doubted you would be able to fall asleep again, and even if you did you would feel embarrassed if Diego watched you sleep. There was nothing wrong with getting a head start anyway, you thought, heading to the bathroom.

You splashed your face and your body with water and quickly dried yourself with the towel the inn provided. You clicked your tongue at the little scars and bruises here and there. It was hard not to get nicked by anything while traveling. You changed back into your riding gear which you had cleaned a bit the night before. It was still a bit dusty but it worked. Finally, you tugged your hat on and flipped your hair behind you. A new day!

Opening the door, you almost tripped on your own feet as you saw Diego was already awake and dragging his fingers through his thick, golden locks of hair. He looked so... cute. You knew that wasn't a word you should be using to describe someone such as Diego Brando, but you couldn't help yourself. You were his age and single with zero dating experience, but you knew when you were fond of someone. You felt something that you never felt with the countless boring suitors your parents presented to you. And you had grown to appreciate his presence and grouchy personality far more than you expected to. Rather than feeling abnormally intimidated by him, you felt more at ease now that you had a glimpse of his past (but you were still a bit nervous around him. You still couldn't read or predict him very well and were terrified to upset him.)

Was he mad that you didn't wake him up as well? You weren't sure, but something that you were sure of was that you were staring at him for far too long, as he was now staring at you expectantly.

"M-morning, Diego," you said, trying hard to suppress the awkward smile on your face as you raised your hand in greeting. Diego nodded at you as he slipped past you and locked the bathroom door behind him. You let out a sigh of relief that you had been holding in.

Diego sighed as he washed his face with water, sweeping his slightly wet locks to the side as he gazed into the mirror. You were still here. Normally, he would be surprised, but after getting to know you, he wasn't the slightest bit shocked. Would he have done the same as you? Before, he wouldn't even think twice about leaving you by yourself. But after last night, he... wasn't so sure anymore.

--

You were waiting for him in the stables, and were preoccupied with something he wasn't sure how to think of. There you were, his horse Silver Bullet nudging and licking your face affectionately. His own horse barely ever did that to him. If you were anyone else, he was sure that they wouldn't come out unscathed, but when he saw you getting along so well with his horse, Diego couldn't help but feel emotion bubble up in his chest. What that emotion was however, he would never admit.

Silver Bullet was the first to notice him, as he neighed and jerked his head in Diego's direction. (Diego could have sworn that he saw his horse send a glare at him, possibly for interrupting his cuddling session with you.) You stiffened, not sure of what he would think of you so casually petting his horse, but he just huffed and walked to the edge of the barn where the water was stored. This made you a lot more confident in the fact that Diego didn't mind your presence, and maybe even liked you a bit. Score! Definitely a win in your book.