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hinatastinygiant · 7 months

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6 | Lyra

Pairing: Kita x Fem!Reader

What's Meant to Be Masterlist

In the early hours of the morning, the sunlight peeks through the windows of the bedroom. You're exhausted after the events of last night, but still manage to crawl out of bed and make yourself look somewhat presentable.

In the kitchen, you start to make yourself a cup of coffee, but when you look for the sugar, you find it empty. Great, just what you needed. You grab your keys and decide to go buy a cup instead. Tastes better anyway.

When you reach your usual coffee shop, you notice it's surprisingly busy for this early in the morning. You groan and decide to keep walking to the one across from the club instead. Just as your hand reaches the doorknob, you see a 'Help Wanted' sign taped to the inside. Hmm, it couldn't hurt to apply.

"Good morning, ma'am," a woman behind the counter greets you as you enter.

"Morning," you reply. "Are you hiring?"

"Yes, we are. Would you like an application?"

"Please," you smile.

She grabs a blank application and hands it to you. You quickly fill it out and turn it in. "Thank you," the woman says, "if you don't mind, please come in for an interview sometime this week after five."

"Sometime this week? Like, today?"

"If you can."

"Sure, I can do that," you nod, feeling a sense of relief. "I'll be back later."

"Thank you, we appreciate it. Now, would you like a cup of anything? It's on the house."

"That'd be great, thank you," you reply, feeling more hopeful than before.

After ordering yourself a drink and a small sandwich to go with it, you sit down at the same table where you had first seen Kita.

A few moments later a figure slides into the seat across from you, and you can't help the flush of embarrassment that washes over you as you meet Atsumu's familiar grin.

"What are you doing here, Miya?"

"I came to pick up a coffee," he shrugs. "How are ya, Y/N? How've ya been?"

"I'm okay," you murmur. "How did you know I was here?"

Atsumu chuckles. "Suna might've mentioned that he saw you here once. I wanted to make sure you're doing alright," he explains.

"He did? Well, you're lucky because I usually don't come this early," you smile at him.

"Me neither," he chuckles. "Especially not when I'm this hungover."

"Ah, did you go out last night?"

"Yeah, we did," he grins. "Osamu's gettin' married, ya know."

"Oh, really? To who?"

"Her name's Natalia," he replies. "She's real pretty."

"Well, I'm happy for him," you smile. "When's the wedding?"

"Two weeks from now. You should come," he says, leaning closer.

"I don't know about that," you shrug, averting your gaze.

"Why not? It'll be fun! Besides, Kita would be happy to see you."

"He would?" you ask, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course he would," Atsumu smirks. "And hey, maybe if I get lucky, you'll be my plus one."

You roll your eyes and laugh. "I don't know about that, Miya."

"Hey, uh, are you sure you're doin' alright, Y/N?" he then changes the conversation.

"Yeah, why do you-" you begin, before stopping short. You didn't think of covering up the bruise still on your cheek before you left this morning. "It's nothing," you wave off his concern.

"That's not nothing. Who did that to you?" he asks, his expression darkening.

"I just... got hit by accident."

"Accident?" he repeats, his eyes narrowing.

"It's nothing, I'm fine."

"Y/N..."

"Really, it's not a big deal. Look, I don't think I'll be able to go to the wedding but I appreciate the ask. Please give Osamu my congratulations, okay?"

"If ya say so," he sighs, knowing he can't argue with you. "But if you need anythin', ya know, I'm just a phone call away. Oh, here, let me give you my number."

He quickly writes his number on a napkin and hands it to you. "Thanks," you say, taking it from him.

"No problem," he grins. "Anyway, I should probably get goin' before the boss yells at me. We've got a lot of work to do these next two weeks. But I'll make time for you any day of the week, got it?"

"I will, and thanks," you smile.

"Bye," he waves, before heading towards the door.

You take a deep breath, and try to enjoy the rest of your breakfast, but the weight of last night still weighs heavy on your shoulders. How could you even think of going to Osamu's wedding after last night? It would be weird. Maybe if you just avoid seeing anyone else from back in high school, things won't be so awkward. Shit, maybe you should just move to another country.

You glance down at the napkin on the table, and decide to save Atsumu's number. Better safe than sorry.

-ˋˏ✄┈┈┈┈

That evening, you return to the cafe for your interview. The woman from this morning is sitting behind the counter. When she sees you, her eyes widen.

"Good afternoon, Y/N. I'm glad you could make it. Let's sit, shall we?" she gestures towards the table you had sat at earlier.

"I'm Y/N L/N. Nice to meet you," you smile, shaking her hand.

"Likewise," she smiles back. "I am the owner, Ms. Takahashi. I hope you don't mind, but I have already reviewed your application and would like to offer you the job, if you're interested. One of my previous employees is not able to return to work after having their baby, so we could use the extra hands. My only concern," she then gulps as she looks down at your cheek, "is your safety. If someone hurt you, are you certain you'd be able to work here?"

"Oh, this?" you ask, gesturing to your cheek. There's no use in hiding it. "It's nothing, really. It was just an accident. And yes, I'm sure I can handle working here."

"Very well," she nods, her lips pressed into a thin line. "You start Monday, if that works for you."

"Yes, ma'am. Thank you."

ATSUMU'S P.O.V.

"You talked to her?!" Osamu grumbles at me as the two of us walk down the street together. "Didn't I tell you not to bother her?"

"I was just pickin' up coffee, Samu," I tell him, rolling my eyes.

"I highly doubt that."

"It's true! It's not like I asked her to go home with me," I reply. "But I did give her my number, though."

"Why the hell did ya do that?!"

"What's the big deal? I was just being friendly," I shrug. "She had a bruise on her face. It didn't look good. I think someone might've hit her."

"Hit her? Do you think she's still with that guy from high school? I remember Kita telling us about him," Osamu thinks aloud.

"I don't think so," I shake my head. "She's not with him in any of her pictures on Instagram."

"You stalked her? Dude, why are you like this?" he sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose.

"I got curious! Is that so bad?"

"Yes, Tsumu, it is."

"But hey, if she wants to go out with me, I wouldn't mind. I wouldn't be the asshole boyfriend who hits her," I shrug.

"Oh my god, will you just leave her alone? I'm sure the last thing she needs is your bullshit," he glares. "Now come on, we've got to get going. I'll drive."

"Where are we going?"

"To see mom. She wanted to talk to me about the wedding and I am not going by myself."

What's Meant to Be Masterlist

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marvels-writings · 3 years

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Nostalgia before War

Wanda Maximoff (Scarlet Witch) Masterlist

Series Masterlist

A/N: This series will hopefuly have regular updates now, sorry for the delay with this one. this is like a fluffy break before the angst in the next parts

The comforting nostalgia of your room surrounded you, your fingers playing with Wanda's in silence. She didn't say anything, wanting to stay in the quiet you'd created just for yourselves. But a knock sounded at the door anyway, interrupting the silence.

"Coming?" Natasha asked, opening the door and giving both of you a small smile. You gave her a tight smile and nodded, getting off your bed. Wanda followed your motions, at your heels as you followed your mom out of the room.

Your hand slipped from hers as you walked towards the elevator. The silence blanketing you wasn't one of comfort, it was rather of awkwardness. The sarcastic quips and the small talk from Natasha weren't there, rather just the sound of your footsteps.

Hesitantly, you slipped your hand into hers, trying to provide whatever comfort you could. The tension left her shoulders as she shot you a quick smile. Holding her hand was something you did whenever you were nervous, or scared, now it seemed like you were the one comforting her.

Her hand slipped from yours as you walked outside, refusing to show any vulnerability to the rest of the team. A small sigh left your lips at the action, smiling at them while walking into the room. Your smile wasn't returned by anyone, a grim silence surrounding the rest of the room.

Frowning, you made your way into the kitchen, seeing as it was the only empty spot in the otherwise full room. The rest of them stood in their chosen spots, looking around nervously. They watched as Wanda followed you, taking your hand nervously while standing behind the counter. . A secret hung over them, daring to be spilled by any of them.

"Is there a plan?" You asked, breaking the silence in the room. Steve nodded near the far end, sighing and nodding for Vision to speak. He hesitated, moving towards both of you in the kitchen. Setting his hands on the countertop, he let the silence linger for another moment before revealing the secret they were all keeping.

"We're going to take out the stone."

"What?" You snapped, your eyebrows furrowing together. Wanda squeezed your hand gently before moving her thumb in a calming motion across your hand. You bit your lip tightly, waiting for her to speak before your anger got the best of you.

"You didn't let me finish," Vision said, fidgeting a little. "Dr. Banner is going to be operating Wakanda."

Wanda squeezed your hand again before you could speak. Your head snapped to face her, seeing the worry written clearly across her face. She wasn't looking at you, rather staring at Vision curiously. The muscle in her jaw tensed, she bit her lip tightly.

"What's in Wakanda?" She asked, her voice constrained, as if she wanted to ask more questions but held them to herself. The vision opened his mouth to speak, but found himself at a loss for words, turning around to Bruce to explain for him.

"The tools I need to take out the mind stone." He began, toying with his ripped sleeves. "And keep Vision alive."

You turned to face Wanda, watching her clench her jaw tightly. Fear showed plainly on her face, her wide eyes, her pursed lips, how tightly she was squeezing your hand. But she nodded, almost as if she was giving her approval for this to happen.

The rest of the team nodded in response, moving towards the exit and the jet. Natasha gave you and Wanda a nervous look. You tried to give her a reassuring smile even though you didn't know what was going to happen.

"Let's move," Steve announced, leading you towards the jet.

The air in the jet was almost suffocating with silence. The team littered throughout it, almost brooding as they stared at the grounds. All of them knew of the fight to come, but none were brave enough to talk about it. Wanda on the other hand had tried to talk to Vision about all of this, about losing the infinity stone.

The android didn't make matters better, telling her that she would have to destroy the infinity stone, even if they didn't get it out in time. It made her all the more upset as she toyed with your fingers in a different corner of the jet.

You racked your brain for something to say, to start the most simple conversation. Nothing came up, some lame jokes came to mind but you doubted now was the time for them. Looking around, you tried to remember something funny enough or important enough to talk about that happened.

A grin quickly covered your face when you remembered the perfect thing.

"Hey, Wands." You called, bringing her attention up to you. She stopped playing with your fingers, all of her focus on what you were about to say.

"I think this is the same jet where you kissed me for the first time." You whispered, grinning even wider when her face turned a light pink at the memory. She hid her face into your shoulder, recalling the incident with far too much detail.

"Y/n," Wanda whined, slightly muffled by your shirt. Despite her upset antics, you could almost feel her smiling into your shoulder. The memory wasn't a sad one, rather an embarrassing one for the witch nestled in your shoulder. The grin never left your face as you recalled it, turning to whisper in her ear.

"I can't believe you were so scared of my mom." You whispered, your hand winding out of hers to rest on her waist. Her other hand still found yours, twisting the rings on your fingers. She mumbled for you to stop, but had no intention of making you do so.

"You can't blame me," She murmured into your shoulder, recalling the incident. You really couldn't blame her, you knew your mom could be intimidating and often even scary when she wanted to. You don't blame either of them for the incident, but you could still find it hilarious.

"I can't," You whispered, kissing the top of her hairline. "But it was hilarious."

A grin covered Wanda's face as you recalled the entire incident. Everything from the glares Natasha shot at Wanda in the jet, to the pink blush of her cheeks. It had been just after your first date with her, neither of you was brave enough to tell Natasha yet. She knew you were (your sexuality), but dating was still something new to tell her.

But she was a spy, she found out and tried to confront you in the jet. Which had just happened to be where you were kissing Wanda for the first time. The next events went by rather quickly, Wanda sprinting out of the jet, her face as red as a tomato.

Wanda didn't know how much you'd laughed with your mom after she left. She didn't know about the conversation you'd had with your mom either. The conversation about Natasha being skeptical about Wanda and almost trying to get you not to date her.

You'd never told Wanda that you'd defended her in front of your mother. Natasha was being protective over you, even more so since the witch had fought against them, against her before. She still got nightmares of what Wanda had shown her.

But she'd given her a chance, eventually finding herself smiling whenever you were with Wanda. She saw the way you cared for each other, and it was everything she'd hoped for you. Even now, there was a small smile on her face as she watched you whisper to Wanda as she cuddled into your side.

The corner you held to yourselves in the jet was like a small universe you'd created for yourselves. Where the rest of the team, the trip to Wakanda, the battle ahead, none of it existed. For those few moments, it was just the two of you that mattered.

But like all things, it would end.

The battle would have to be fought, but none of you could tell what was coming.

A/N: You really don't know what's coming ;)

Tag List: @capcarolsdanver, @versdan, @lesbian-girls-wayhaught, @lovebotlarson, @dhengkt, @hstoria, @natasha-danvers, @veryfunnyal, @xxxtwilightaxelxxx , @ophelias-heart , @never-didbefore , @justarandomhumanhere, @the-most-unicorn-of-them-all , @thatssocamryn , @lesbian-x-blackwidow , @wlw-imaginesss , @username23345 , @ohfuckno , @hcartbyheart , @summergeezburr , @imnotasuperhero , @redknight9 , @izalesbean , @anni323 , @a-stressedstudent , @aaron-despair , @rooskaya-yelena , @dynnealberto , @thewitchandtheassassin , @izalesbean , @higherfurther-romanova , @thewidowsghost , @trikruismybitch , @natalia-quinzel , @blackxwidowsxwife , @studies-styles , @procrastinatingsapphictrash , @simpin4ajbby , @mmmmokdok , @ladyeliot let me know if you’d like to be in any of my tag lists!

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enchanted-encanto · 2 years

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La Canción de mi Corazón / The Song of My Heart—Chapter 19: Fireworks

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Read this story on AO3 here!

Fandom: Encanto (2021)

Overall Fic Rating: Explicit (for smut)

Relationships: Bruno Madrigal/Natalia Moreno (Original Female Character)

Characters: Bruno Madrigal Natalia Moreno, Original Characters, Félix Madrigal, Agustín Madrigal, Luisa Madrigal, Mirabel Madrigal, Camilo Madrigal, Antonio Madrigal, Dolores Madrigal, Isabela Madrigal, Pepa Madrigal, Julieta Madrigal, "Abuela" Alma Madrigal

Chapter Summary: Bruno picks up Natalia's engagement ring, and Natalia and the Madrigals attend a fireworks show.

______________________________

The Christmas party was now only a few days away, and it wasn't long before everyone in the family found out about Bruno's plan to propose. The casita was buzzing with excitement from everyone at all times as the big day grew closer and closer.

Bruno felt like he was walking on a cloud as he headed to the jeweler to pick up Natalia's custom made engagement ring. Through some advice from his jeweler friend Roberto, some input from his nieces and Maria, and his own research, he felt like the design he eventually landed on couldn't have been more perfect. He was absolutely thrilled to see it for himself, and he knew everyone in the family was too.

Bruno walked through the front door of the jewelers to a big, boisterous greeting from Roberto. Roberto was a tall, broad man with jet black hair and a mustache to match. He looked a lot more like a lumberjack than a jeweler, but the trade had come down through all of the generations of his family and he had a true passion for it.

"Ah, there he is!" Roberto cried out, quickly running into the room behind him and back. "Bruno, this ring is absolutamente perfecto. One of my best pieces, if I do say so myself."

Bruno smiled excitedly. "I never doubted you for a second, my friend."

Roberto motioned widely for Bruno to come up to the counter, holding up a small red fabric ring box.

"Go ahead, abrelo." Roberto said with a nod.

Bruno opened up the box to reveal the most stunning piece of jewelry he had ever seen.

The ring setting was made of yellow gold, matching the color of jewelry Natalia always wore. The ring's band was very thin and wrapped with small diamonds around the front half. The stone in the center however was the true star of the piece. It was a radiant cut, rectangular shaped diamond like the one that Maria had showed him, but larger. That center stone was wrapped in a halo of smaller diamonds also set in yellow gold. The ring sparkled and shined magnificently in every direction Bruno turned it.

Bruno felt the stunning piece of jewelry tugging deeply at his heartstrings, as it would serve as a permanent physical symbol of him and Natalia’s deep love and commitment to one another, like his eventual wedding ring would as well.

"Dios mío Roberto, this really is perfect.” Bruno said, completely amazed. “It's like you took everything we talked about and manifested it in reality and then made that even better."

"That's my job!" Roberto said with an enormous smile. "Natalia is going to absolutely love it."

Bruno closed the ring box and held it tightly in his hands.

"I know she will." Bruno said gratefully. "I can't thank you enough."

Roberto patted Bruno on the shoulder firmly from across the counter.

"It has been my family's honor to make all the rings for the Madrigal weddings over the decades. Come back to me for yours and Natalia's wedding bands after she say yes, okay?"

Bruno nodded, smiling warmly.

"My nieces will never forgive me if I don't get back home right away to show them. Thank you so much again Roberto, see you soon."

"Hasta luego, Bruno! Congratulations again!"

Bruno waved and put the ring box in the pocket of his jacket, not taking his hand off of it the entire time.

____________________

Bruno got home as quickly as possible and–not at all to his surprise–the entire family was waiting for him on the ground level of the casita.

"He's back, he's back!!!!" Mirabel cried out.

"You didn't say anything helpful for Dolores to tell us, we've all been just waiting around going crazy!" Isabela complained.

"This had better be good." Camilo teased.

"Everyone, give Bruno a second to step inside the door before you all rush him!" Félix laughed.

"So?!?!" Pepa exclaimed, running up past Félix to Bruno's side.

Bruno smiled wordlessly and pulled the small box out of his jacket pocket, and then opened it to a chorus of excitement and happy tears from his family as they circled around him.

"Oh my god it's perfect!!!!" Isabela yelled, overwhelmed with excitement.

"She is going to absolutely love it!!" Mirabel said, placing her hands over her heart.

"Absolutely beautiful, tío. " Dolores said softly, a bit teary eyed.

"Es perfecto." Pepa said softly, sniffing as her eyes filled up with joyful tears. Félix put his arm around his wife with a big smile on his face.

"Roberto outdoes himself every time. It's beautiful, hermano." Félix said warmly.

"Es tan hermoso." Alma said, joyful tears in her eyes as well. "Did you design that yourself, mijo?"

"In part." Bruno replied. "I had lots of help from my lovely nieces and Roberto."

"It's stunning, Bruno." Julieta said, her arm around Agustín who was nodding in agreement "We're all so happy for you."

"I have to admit," Camilo began, a genuine smile on his face. "You did good. That suits Nat perfectly."

"Thank you all." Bruno said, his heart nearly spilling over with appreciation. "I hope she loves it."

"Natalia would be over the moon if you asked her to marry you with a toy ring from a vending machine." Luisa said with a smirk. "But I agree that it is exactly something she would wear, she is no question going to love it."

"So walk me through the plan the night of the party again?" Agustín asked.

"The basic plan is to do the whole party like normal–" Bruno began.

"–and then when it comes time to open gifts," Mirabel chimed in, "We'll go through all of that like normal and then when it's Nati's time to open her "gift" from tío Bruno, she'll look down at the tree to find it and then when she turns back around he'll be down on one knee!!!!"

"Exactly." Bruno smiled, blushing a bit.

"Are you nervous?" Luisa asked.

"Are you kidding?" Bruno replied immediately. "I'm asking the woman of my dreams to marry me, I'm an absolute wreck. I wouldn't be surprised if I dropped the ring box while I was asking her."

"Like she would in a million years say no, don't be silly tío." Isabela said.

"That is very sweet that you're worried at all, Brunito. Of course she'll say yes." Julieta added.

"Were you nervous when you guys proposed?" Bruno asked Félix and Agustín.

"Oh yes." Félix nodded.

"Very much so. I actually did drop the ring box when I proposed." Agustin said, making Julieta laugh.

"It was adorable." Julieta said affectionately, kissing her husband on the cheek.

"When I asked Pepa I remember feeling like I was going to pass out all day.” Félix said. "But then when I actually looked up at her and asked, she looked so beautiful and the moment was so perfect that all my nerves went away immediately."

"Awwww, mi amor." Pepa said sweetly, looking more in love with her husband than ever.

"What are you going to do with the ring in the meantime?" Mirabel asked Bruno.

"I have a safe place to put it until that day." Bruno replied. "I'm glad I don't have to carry it around for very long though, it's admittedly pretty stressful having something like this just, around."

"But pretty soon you'll have a fiancée to wear it!!!" Isabela exclaimed with a big smile.

Bruno's heart did flips in his chest, just the idea of the word fiancée and Natalia in the same sentence was more than his brain could process most of the time. He was nervous about the actual proposal, but could not be more excited to actually make her his fiancée, and then his wife!

"Isn't Nati meeting us here before we to go to see the fireworks tonight?" Mirabel asked.

The Encanto's residents put on an annual event in the town square to celebrate the December solstice, complete with a big fireworks show at the end.

"She is–" Bruno said. "–but not until 5."

"It is 4:45 tío, you'd better get upstairs and hide that ring before you blow your own proposal." Luisa said with a chuckle.

Bruno's heartrate skyrocketed. "Oh wow I completely lost track of time yes thank you!" He said to Luisa before speeding up the stairs.

Bruno tucked the ring box away in a safe location in his room that Natalia would never look in, nervous about having it off of his person for the first time.

____________________

Natalia arrived at the casita right on time, so Bruno was extra grateful for his niece's reminder.

She knocked on the door and was greeted by Félix.

"Hey Nati, come in!" Félix said, giving her a hug.

"Happy solstice!" Natalia smiled. "I come bearing treats."

Felix rubbed his hands together excitedly and took the box containing said treats out of Natalia's hands, setting it down on the dining room table.

"Hi Nat! What'd your bring us?" Luisa asked, walking into the dining room.

"Vanilla cupcakes with toasted marshmallow frosting, complete with some edible snowflakes on top of course."

The family came through and greeted Natalia, getting ready one by one to head out.

Bruno was the last to head down the stairs, and when he saw Natalia he did his best to look like he hadn't been running around in a mad dash the last 15 minutes.

He walked up behind her and put arms around her shoulders.

Natalia looked behind her and smiled brightly, kissing Bruno on the cheek.

"Well hi there!" She said happily.

"Hi to you, beautiful." Bruno said, overjoyed to see her.

"You are very warm. You been running laps up there?" Natalia joked.

Bruno panicked internally just a bit, doing his best to brush her question off.

"Nah, just got a little stuffy in there while I was getting ready." He said.

"Got everything we need?" Natalia asked, Bruno grateful that she'd dropped the subject.

"Yep!" Bruno held up a picnic blanket for them to sit on to watch the fireworks.

"I brought cupcakes. Want one before your family steals the rest?" Natalia asked.

"You wouldn't just make more if I didn't get one?" Bruno teased.

"I knew you were just with me for my baking."

"You're cute too." He flirted.

Natalia and the Madrigals headed over to the town square, securing a big section of spots on the ground to put their blankets down and sit.

The family brought drinks and snacks and everyone chatted and enjoyed some performances by local bands as the evening went by.

Dolores had taken Antonio over to a face painting stand, and when they returned Dolores had a vine of daisies painted on one side of her face, and Antonio's face was completely covered in paint to look like a tiger.

"Wow, what a lovely flower and scary tiger I see coming towards me!" Natalia said to the two of them as they approached, making them both smile.

"Rawr!!!!!" Antonio cried out, putting his hands out in front of him like claws.

"Que aterrador!!" Natalia said, pulling Antonio towards her and tickling his belly.

Antonio screeched with laughter until Natalia finally took mercy on him and set him back down on the blanket.

Bruno looked over lovingly at Natalia, a warm tingly feeling in his chest as he watched how wonderfully she always interacted with the youngest member of the Madrigal family. He often daydreamed about what it would be like for them to have little ones of their own someday, what an absolutely wonderful mother she'd be.

Natalia felt Bruno's gaze on her and turned towards him.

"You okay?" She asked, putting her hand on his cheek.

He leaned his face into her touch, smiling.

"Never better." He said softly.

"Want to know a funny story?" Natalia asked, looking over at something in the distance.

"What's that?"

"I remember seeing you at this festival once, just before the time that you were gone."

"Really?" Bruno said, extremely surprised.

"Yeah, I think you left not terribly long after it because it couldn't have been much longer than 10 years ago. I was in line to get some popcorn in that exact corner of the square over there and you and your family passed by, you were all heading the other direction and didn't see me. I remember it so clearly because you had a tiny Mirabel on your shoulders and she was just crying up a storm, you could hear it from all the way down the square. She had the exact same glasses on that she wears now, just smaller."

"I do remember that!" Bruno exclaimed, digging into his memory. "All the kids were crying that night, they were all totally exhausted from the day and were out like a light as soon as we got them home. That is wild to think I walked right past you and had no idea."

"Isn't it?" Natalia said with a laugh, patting on Bruno's crossed legs to have him spread his legs out. She put herself in between his legs facing away from him and he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"I know I definitely did not see you that night because the second I laid eyes on you that first night at the restaurant, I was done for." Bruno said, making Natalia blush.

"I was so nervous when you and your brothers-in-law came up to talk to me." She laughed.

"You were nervous?" Bruno said, shocked.

Natalia nodded. "I had just gotten my first good look at you in ten years and god you looked so handsome that night and were so, so cute when we did talk. I couldn't wait to see you again."

Bruno was blown away by this information, remembering the events of that night as him being a total mess from start to finish.

"We certainly have Félix to thank for all of this,” Bruno said, “because I was certain at that time that someone as beautiful as you wouldn't have given me so much as a second thought and he was the one that pushed me to meet you."

"I'll have to remember to thank him for that." Natalia said with a big smile. "Things work out the way they're supposed to."

Natalia motioned to the family, all smiles and having a great time together.

"I am so grateful for you, for this. I really feel like...like you guys are my family too, you know?"

Bruno's heart swelled, touched by her words. He kissed her on the side of her head gently.

"That is more true than you know, mi amor. We're the ones that are grateful for you." Bruno said, nearly bursting with having to keep the surprise of the next few days inside.

"Nat! Tío Bruno! We're dealing out a round of poker here, you guys in?" Luisa asked, motioning to them with a deck of cards in her hand.

Natalia shrugged. "Sure!"

Dolores won the game of poker by a landslide, winning all of the candy coins the group was using for their bets.

"Are you sure you can't hear our thoughts, too?" Camilo complained, crossing his arms.

"You mumble when you have a bad hand." Dolores replied with a smirk.

Camilo recoiled from her words. "I do not!"

"You do." Natalia interjected.

Camilo shapeshifted into Natalia and stuck his tongue out at her.

"Ooh, definitely going to add 'taunted by myself' to my 'things I wasn't expecting to have happen to me in my lifetime' list." Natalia said with a laugh.

"You get used to it." Bruno chuckled.

"So what are you wearing to the Christmas party, Nat?" Dolores asked Natalia, a bit of panic immediately growing on Bruno's face at the topic of the party.

"You guys said you guys dress up nicely for this one, right?" Natalia asked.

"Yeah, it's definitely a party you want to look your best at." Camilo added with a mischievous smile, choosing his words very deliberately. Bruno begged his nephew with his eyes to talk about absolutely anything else.

"I've got a dress in mind, I think it'll work nicely." Natalia said.

Mirabel watched what was happening and the panic growing in her uncle's face.

"Hey Nati, I'm um running to the restroom!" Mirabel said quickly, improvising. "Do you need to go before the fireworks start?"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." Natalia said none the wiser, standing up and heading off with Mirabel.

"You guys are trying to kill me." Bruno said weakly as soon as Natalia was far enough away.

"Hey, you had to know I wasn't letting you propose to Nat without giving you at least a little bit of grief." Camilo teased.

"I really was interested in what she was wearing, too." Dolores squeaked out.

Bruno put his face into one of his palms and sighed, making his niece and nephew laugh.

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Natalia and Mirabel returned just as the fireworks show was announced to be starting in 5 minutes.

Everyone turned to face the center of the plaza where the fireworks would be set off from.

Natalia assumed the position she was in earlier, sitting between Bruno's legs facing away from him with his arms wrapped around her middle, and she intertwined her fingers with his.

A band played an accompanying musical number as the first fireworks were released.

The fireworks exploded into a sea of color–blue, green, and red sparkles lighting up the sky. Natalia was completely captivated by them, her eyes big and bright.

He thought about where he was in his life during this exact same festival a little over a decade ago, so close to the darkest period of his life and yet, for a moment, so close to the brightest part of his life standing only a few feet away at a popcorn stand. To think that he was here now, with all of his loving family around him again and his soon to be fiancée wrapped in his arms, it felt like the most beautiful dream, but even better.

"Hey." Bruno said into Natalia's ear, just loud enough to be heard over the fireworks.

Natalia turned her head to look at him, and he saw the reflection of the fireworks in her eyes. The smile she gave him when their eyes met was so beautiful and full of love that he nearly asked her to marry him right then and there.

"I, I just love you so much." Bruno said, looking at her tenderly.

"I love you too, baby." Natalia said brightly, turning her body slightly more to be able to kiss him.

The fireworks in the sky above them nearly matched the intensity of the fireworks going off inside both of their heads when they kissed. Bruno made a point to savor and cherish this moment, a true testament to how far his life and the lives of his family had changed for the better.

He had never felt happier and more in love than he did at that very moment, the anticipation of the special, wonderful day coming up very, very soon feeling more exciting than ever.

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End Notes:

Spanish translations for Chapter 19:

-Absolutamente perfecto: absolutely perfect -Abrelo: open it -Dios mío: my god/oh my god -Hasta luego: see you later -Tío: uncle -Es perfecto: it's perfect -Hermano: brother -Es tan hermoso: it's so beautiful -Mi amor: my love -Que aterrador: how scary

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