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Behind the Casita, just out of sight of the first story windows, was a small grove of trees that grew close enough and whose branches tangled enough that it stayed mostly dry during thunderstorms. Sure, if the rain and wind were too strong, the ground beneath these trees got as soaked as everything else, but it was a perfectly nice not-quite hiding place during the gentler storms.
Watching the glittering sun above filtered through the leaves was wonderfully calming too, but there were plenty of places for that in the forested area surrounding their Encanto. This particular grove even had spaces between the huge, ancient tree roots that made for perfectly comfortable lounging.
Especially if the lounger in question was a little on the scrawny side, with gangly legs to drape over one root and a head of auburn curls to hang slightly upside-down over the next.
Camilo had found this space when he was little, running away from where he was supposed to be helping in town. He no longer remembered exactly how old he'd been, only that he'd been trying to be friendly to some other kids and they'd started bullying him. The details didn't matter anymore; the teen's mind was actually fairly blank at the moment as he just listened to the raindrops on leaves high above him, eyes closed and one arm across his stomach.
Camilo’s mind wandered in the silence, vaguely wondering if the rain was just rain or if Pepa was upset about something. If it was the latter, he hoped his mother was just reading a sad book.
Since Casita was rebuilt, they'd all been trying to find ways to relax and be themselves, which meant sometimes the family would leave Pepa to her romance novels and let whatever weather happened happen. Félix would be near in case she needed anything, anyway. He had to remind himself of that. It was Camilo time right now.
He was so zoned out, he almost didn’t hear the quick, soft footsteps approaching and then stopping a couple feet away from him. "I thought you were busy with your cabrón today?" he asked softly, not even slightly opening an eye. He didn’t need to.
"You know his name." Dolores gave her brother a mild glare before curling up between a couple of roots near him, neatly tucking her legs under her skirt. "Our picnic got rained out."
"Such a shame."
"Cami…"
"Yeah yeah, I know. But I'm your hermanito, I'm not supposed to like every guy you date. Especially when he was almost engaged to Isabela."
Dolores smiled softly and extended a hand, gently ruffling her brother's curls. His protective side, like so many other things she'd noticed about her brother, rarely showed that openly. She was touched. "You're getting really skinny again."
"Comes with the territory." Camilo shrugged. "But I'm taking the afternoon off. It would be a shame to waste a day like this."
Dolores smiled again, leaning her head back against the tree trunk. She let her eyes close, and the pair just sat in silence for a few minutes, listening to the rain.
"It's been a while," Camilo softly commented, only slightly breaking the silence.
Dolores hummed in agreement. "The rain really isn't that bad, but nobody wants to do anything. It's kind of quiet."
Camilo smiled a little, opening an eye to glance at his older sister. "So a break afternoon for both of us."
Dolores just reached over to stroke Camilo’s hair again. "Your hair's getting longer, too. You're gonna look like Tío Bruno before long."
Camilo half-heartedly swatted Dolores' hand away, letting his arm drape over his head lazily. "You gonna keep picking on my appearance or you gonna enjoy the rain with me?"
Dolores chuckled, in the barely audible way only she could really pull off. "Not picking. Just noticing."
"Well, notice less." There was no real venom in his tone, but Camilo couldn't deny his body was still a sensitive subject.
"Lo siento."
Camilo hummed in response, half imitating Dolores, half just having picked up the habit from her.
The silence fell between them again, the comfortable silence that happens when two people are listening to the same natural music, the silence of siblings accustomed to finding quiet moments alone together.