Your first day of school after summer vacation hadn’t started out the way you hoped.

When you went to drop off your books at your locker, you were met with an explosion of glitter.

A glitter bomb…great.

Laughter echoed through the hall as students pointed and snickered.

Red-faced and humiliated, you bolted out of the building and straight toward the pickup area, fighting back the sting in your eyes as tears threatened to fall.

Camila was waiting in the car, one hand resting lightly on the steering wheel, the other draped over the back of the passenger seat.

The late afternoon sun warmed the windshield, but her gaze immediately sharpened the moment she saw you rushing toward her.

You slid into the seat, trying to disappear into yourself, but there was no hiding the mess. Glitter was everywhere, woven into your hair, dusted across your cheeks, and sparkling stubbornly on your clothes as if you’d walked through a rainbow storm.

Camila’s eyes widened. She leaned closer, brushing a few sparkles off your shoulder with a tenderness that cut through her disbelief.

“Mijo/Mijà….What on earth happened to you?” She asked softly, trying not to laugh at first at how ridiculous you looked but then noticed your eyes, seeing tears welling up in them and the burning in your cheeks, her voice now laced with concern and just a hint of protective fire.