Capítulo Siete

Lovino couldn't sit still. He was feeling relatively restless ever since dinner, and now the restlessness soared to a level that was ten times worse. He wanted to get out of the room and wander around for a bit, but he really wasn't in the mood to deal with pirates. However, pacing back and forth in the captain's quarters didn't exactly help his predicament—he needed a change of scenery, if anything! The same four walls were starting to irritate him, and the creaking and groaning of the ship certainly didn't appeal to his musical taste. He couldn't deny it: he was bored and needed to do something.

'But what?' he thought. 'What else is there to do on this damn slave ship?'

With a disgruntled sigh, the young Italian lord plopped onto the bed and shoved his face into a pillow. If that bastard Antonio didn't kill him first, he was sure the lack of entertainment would. Had he been at home in Italy, he would have thrown a party—a party filled with music and dancing, as well as all the food you could eat and all the wine you could possibly drink. Lovino's parties were quite renowned throughout Naples, and everyone looked forward to them. It didn't matter if one was noble or if they were part of the lowest social standing; Lovino invited anyone and everyone all the same.

'Damn it… I'd kill to throw a party right now. Dancing sounds wonderful… Especially with a really pretty girl… Like last time~ Aaah…what was her name again? Isabella? Or was it Mirabella…? I can't remember! All I remember is that she was super cute—and Spanish…but that's not important, damn it!'

"Damn it…" he grumbled aloud, his words muffled by the pillow. "What do I doooo…?"

Silence thickened throughout the room, causing Lovino to close his eyes in order to take a quick siesta, but the soft chords of a mandolin being played caught his attention. It was rather pleasant to listen to, so he sat up to listen better. The desire to just watch and listen to the instrument burned within his soul, and without another thought he stood and curiously walked outside.

Antonio sat against the starboard-most gunwale, his eyes closed and a slight smile on his face as his fingers skillfully plucked the strings of his mandolin. The soothing lyrics of a romantic Spanish song vibrated through his vocal chords as he sang; Lovino couldn't help but shutter upon hearing the rich, entrancing tone of the pirate's (unbelievably) beautiful voice.

At the helm, Gilbert observed the Italian in amusement. Snickering to himself, he shouted, "Oi, Captain! Looks to me like you have an admirer~"

Antonio lazily opened his eyes and stopped singing to see what his first mate was talking about. Upon seeing Lovino, his fingers ceased their strumming, and his smile twisted into a slight smirk.

"Well, well, if it isn't Señor Vargas!" he chimed merrily. "What a pleasant surprise~ From the look on your face, I assume that you're enjoying the show?"

Lovino stiffened and furrowed his eyebrows.

"A-as if!" he stammered, feeling his face flush a bit. "I just came out to see what all that racket was!"

"I see, I see! Well why don't you join us? It's a beautiful night, no?"

"Like hell I'd join you bastards! I-I'm going to bed, damn it!"

Antonio chuckled and placed his mandolin to the side. With a slight groan, he stood up and sauntered over to his prisoner.

"What a shame," he said, smiling a bit as he peered into the face of the fiery Italian. "And here I was hoping that tonight I'd finally gain the dance partner that I've been searching for."

Lovino's face began to burn. Snorting and forcing himself to turn away from the (attractive) pirate captain, he sneered, "L-like hell I'd ever dance with you, jackass! Who says I'm a dancer anyway? What if I can't dance, huh? What if I hate it? Don't automatically assume that your hostages like dancing, or that they even can for that matter! Sheesh! The world doesn't revolve around you, y'know, no matter what you think! Bastard!"

With that said, he turned away from the Spaniard.

"Okay, okay!" Antonio cried, holding up his hands. "I just thought I should attempt to actually be nice to you, but if you don't want me to, I won't push it. I just…I dunno…I just feel different with you around, y'know? There's something about you that makes me feel more human, and…yeah… I know you hate me, and I know you're never gonna forgive me for what I've done to you, but I at least want to make an attempt at…I dunno…softening your heart, I guess. I wanna show you that I actually do have a soft side or whatever. But I understand if you won't ever open up to me. I don't blame you. But I'm just throwing this out there again: I truly do regret…"

"Just…stop talking…" Lovino muttered, clenching his fists. "Your voice really pisses me off. I hate you so much that I still wanna kill you, but…" He paused to sigh. Turning back to face his captor, he continued, "But…I guess dancing won't be so bad. I need something to do, and since there's nothing else to do anyway, I might as well blow off some steam by dancing."

Antonio's emerald eyes glimmered with happiness for a brief moment before they softened to a playful gleam. Smirking a tiny bit, he slyly said, "I thought you didn't dance~?"

"Of course I can dance, asshole!" the young lord shouted. "I was trying to teach you a fucking lesson earlier, damn it! I was telling you not to assume shit about other people! I'm the goddamn ruler of Southern Italy, damn it, so of course I know how to fucking dance! What kind of dumbass noble would I be if I didn't? Jackass!"

The Spanish pirate laughed jovially for the first time in years. He never expected to laugh out of sheer amusement and happiness ever again, so of course he was startled by this occurrence. Apparently he wasn't the only one startled, for Lovino gawked at him. On the poop deck, Gilbert choked on his spit upon witnessing his friend laugh cheerfully for the first time in such a long time. The rest of the crew seemed just as flabbergasted, for they all paused to stare at their captain. Antonio instantly noticed this and quickly regained control of himself.

Clearing his throat awkwardly, he turned around and barked, "And just what the hell is everybody staring at? Did I give permission for everyone to stop what they were doing? Get back to work!"

The crew immediately resumed their duties. The Spaniard snorted and rolled his eyes before directing his attention back to the Italian.

"Anyway…shall we dance, then?" he asked, cracking a tiny smile.

"Ugh, fine," Lovino grumbled, trying to suppress another blush (and failing). "What music are we dancing to? We need music to dance, idiot."

"Aaah, sí, that's right! Music… Emilio! You're a decent mandolin player, right?"

"Aye, sir!" Emilio replied, answering from across the hull. Making his way over, he added, "I've played a bit in my day."

"Excellent~ Then I have a new job for you. Grab my mandolin and play the background music as Señor Vargas and I dance."

"Aye, Captain. Anything in particular you want me to play?"

"Mm…" Antonio paused to think as he eyed down Lovino. Nodding a bit, he replied, "Yeah. Start it off slow…almost romantic-like…and then slowly ease into a more passionate tempo. Add some spice to it, get what I'm sayin'?"

"Of course, sir," Emilio confirmed. "I can do that."

"Excellent~ Then let us get started, yeah?"

"Aye, sir!"

Without further ado, Emilio walked over to the gunwale and made himself comfortable. Picking up the mandolin, he began to play a soft melody in a suitable manner that the Captain had requested. Antonio nodded in satisfaction as he listened before turning to his dance partner.

"Shall we dance?" he asked.

Lovino snorted.

"Yeah, yeah. Let's get this over with."

Antonio only chuckled and positioned Lovino. Smiling fondly, he took a couple steps, and soon he began to lead the Italian in a simple two-step. Lovino followed along, but more obligatory than willingly. To him, the dance was boring and the music was too slow—he wanted to dance, not spin around in circles!

After several minutes of playing in a sweet adagio tempo, Emilio began to accelerando into passionate allegro. Antonio smirked a bit and pulled Lovino close, their bodies tightly pressed against each other. Lovino exhaled deeply and closed his eyes; the music started to invade his senses, and soon he found himself moving freely with the Spaniard in swift, fervent movements.

Antonio spun Lovino a couple times before pulling him close again—Lovino jumped on the opportunity to sling his left leg across the pirate's hip. The Spanish captain smirked a bit and dipped his partner. Lovino closed his eyes and tilted his head back, a shuddering sigh escaping his lips as Antonio leaned forward to barely graze his Adam's apple with his lips. Once he was pulled back into a dancing position, Lovino pressed against the pirate and moved with him, their hips grinding passionately together in time with the music. Their feet stepped lightly and quickly with the rhythm, and a spark slowly started to ignite within both partners. Two pairs of legs would intertwine, then release, then intertwine again as the music overcame the bodies of both pirate captain and Italian lord.

Lovino grinned slightly as Antonio lifted him into the air and spun him around. Once he returned to the ground, he continued to step in time with the beat of Emilio's mandolin playing, Antonio moving perfectly with him. Antonio licked his lips and moved his hands to Lovino's hips. The Italian smirked slightly and rocked his hips to the beat, enjoying the look of pure enthrallment displayed across his captor's face. With graceful skill, Lovino pressed against Antonio once again, only this time he began to run his hands along the pirate's broad chest. Antonio shuddered at the contact and closed his eyes. Slipping his arms around the young lord's lithe waist, he held him in place and swayed in time with the music.

"You're a wonderful dancer…" he murmured in Lovino's ear.

"Mm…you haven't seen anything yet…" Lovino replied, albeit a bit overconfidently. "Care to see more?"

"Please…"

The Italian grinned and pulled away from his partner to dance on his own. Gazing at Antonio seductively, he swayed with the music and took his time to easily move his hands along his body. Antonio froze and watched in awe as his hotheaded prisoner danced; for some reason, his heart palpitated within his chest, and everything about Lovino could only be described as pure magic. He wasn't exactly sure what he was feeling, but for this moment he could care less. Instead, he focused on the man in front of him and watched in fascination.

Lovino smirked to himself—if there was one thing he could pride himself on, it was the fact that he could dance. When he moved, there wasn't a single person he didn't leave gaping in wonder; the proof was the Spaniard in front of him (as well as the rest of the crew, who once again abandoned their posts just to watch). For the moment, the captain was under his spell and in the palm of his hand. This was his moment, his time, and his chance to assert his authority. When it came to dancing, everything belonged to Lovino.

With a playful smile, the Italian paused his dancing to outstretch his hand and coax his partner over with his index finger. Antonio swallowed the lump in his throat and staggered over, completely smitten over the hazel-eyed beauty before him. Breathing shallowly, he pulled his partner close and they once again danced passionately together. At one point, Antonio took it upon himself to dip Lovino a second time, only this time Lovino was control, for he wrapped both his legs around the pirate's waist and threw one arm across the back of his neck. With his free hand, Lovino cupped Antonio's cheek and leaned forward.

With his lips just millimeters apart from Antonio's, he softly whispered, "How do you feel…?"

"I feel…" Antonio paused to swallow another lump. "I-I feel…that you're a really good dancer…"

"Oh…? Is that all~?"

"N-no, you're an amazing dancer…" the pirate corrected, frozen in place as his prisoner remained wrapped around him. "I…I want to do this more…"

"Mmm, I see~" Lovino purred, feeling smug and quite proud of himself. "You're not that bad of a dancer yourself, Antonio."

Antonio's breath hitched as his name escaped the Italian's lips. Trembling ever so slightly, he moved to seal their lips together in a kiss, but Lovino's hand put a stop to it before it even began.

"Ah-ah~" the young lord cooed. "We're dancing."

"Right…right… Dancing…"

Lovino untangled himself from the Spaniard, and they both resumed their zealous dance. Several more minutes passed, and Emilio's song was slowly coming to an end. Antonio held Lovino close as they swayed together. His heart was pounding ferociously and his body felt like it was on fire. He felt as high as the sky, and no words could describe his current emotions except for that they felt amazing.

Moving his hands slowly along the Italian's sides, he rested his head atop his partner's dark auburn locks and whispered, "Señor Vargas…no…Lovino… I…I need to get to know you better… Please…please, Lovino…can we…start over…? I need to get to know you… I want to spend more time with you…"

"Do you really mean that…?" Lovino murmured softly, leaning into the pirate. "Truly…?"

"I swear on the graves of both my father and my mother that I'd like nothing more than that…"

"Honestly…?"

"I swear…"

"Mm…" Lovino closed his eyes and smiled. Pulling away from the Spaniard, he studied his face and clicked his tongue in thought. Still smiling, he gently touched his fingertips to the pirate's cheek and whispered, "You know what I say to that…?"

"What…?" Antonio breathed, closing his eyes and leaning into the touch.

"I say…" Lovino abruptly withdrew his hand, and his smile instantly contorted into a grimace. Glaring at his captor, he hardened his heart and venomously spat, "Over my dead body."

And just like that, he turned around and stormed back into the captain's quarters, slamming the door behind him. Antonio stared at the door for a moment before he sank to his knees, his heart crumbling into a million pieces.

~Continuará~

Hoooly balls, I am so sorry it's taken me forever to update! A bunch of crap has come up and it's made it difficult to write, plus it gives me writer's block, and it's not fun! But I'll keep trying to update A.S.A.P.! Ending on that note, I hope everyone had a happy Halloween (I know I did~)! And if you don't celebrate Halloween, then I hope that your October 31st was just as enjoyable anyway~

Poor Toni. I had a ton of fun writing this chapter! Sorry if the dance scene sucks; I can't dance to save my life, so I just…yeah, I winged the whole scene. OTL But anyway, thanks for all y'all taking the time to read! It makes me so happy knowing that you guys actually like this story! ^^~

So…until next chapter~! ;D