Francis and Matthieu stayed in their room for the most part, Matthieu sometimes working up the courage to wander outside to help some of the farmhands harvest or to play with them during their breaks. Francis stayed cooped up in his room, fighting depression and wondering where his life had gone. He sat for days, wallowing in self pity and slept curled up next to Matthieu, the only time he could sleep was with his last reminder of his late wife. His drank only when he absolutely needed and ate little of what Matthieu brought up to him to eat. His pity party continued until one morning when I knock on the door awoke both him and Matthieu.
"Amigo, Matthieu has to start school today and you need to get out of the house. How about I drive Matthieu to school and we go do something fun, my farmhands should be able to manage while I'm away," Antonio hadn't let his friend's sadness go unnoticed, and it pained him to see Francis wasting away when he had a son that looked up to him.
"I don't want to," Francis' rough morning voice mumbled as he rolled over, Matthieu quietly getting out of bed and getting dressed.
"Amigo, you have to do something. I won't let you waste your life. Yes, Jeanne is dead, but you are still alive, live the life she couldn't you have to move on. You can't change her death," Antonio reasoned, secretly hoping that Francis would move on to him.
"I know, but what if I could have! What if I was the one that killed her! I was the one that asked her to come home as soon as she could! It was her coming home as soon as she could that made her the car that the drunk ran into! I was the one that killed her," Francis screamed, cheeks dripping with tears, his raw emotions finally being let out. "Leave me alone Antonio."
"Alright hermano," Antonio stepped out into the hall where Matthieu waited, ready for school.
"He gets like that, I try telling him that it wasn't his fault that mom died, but he doesn't listen," Matthieu whispered as he followed Antonio to the kitchen for breakfast.
"He was always stubborn, but this time I think it's for the worst. You should try and get him to get out of his room and go outside, he seems to listen to you the best," Antonio prepared two bowls of cereal and sat down.
"I don't think that would be a great idea, he sometimes forgets I'm there, or thinks that I'm my mom and hold me, asking why I left him. He wouldn't leave unless his life depended on it," Matthieu stared at his shoes, remembering a time when he and his dad were happy. He finally joined Antonio at the table.
"Still, please try, I'll do my best to get him out of there but I can't do it alone," Antonio sighed and started to eat.
"I'll try," Matthieu started to eat and a heavy silence fell over the two of them.
A/N: Sorry for abandoning you all! It's been a rough year and I didn't know quite where to go with this story. But I'm back now and I'm setting a goal to update once a month. You all should harass me if I don't update by feburary 31, which is my next due date.
I have an idea of where to go with this story now and I hope to continue it. Comments would be much appreciated and helpful. Thanks for reading and sticking with me!