Chapter 10:

In the next room, Liz was doing her best to comfort a very insomniac Antonio. He wouldn't go
to sleep. The shock of his father's murder kept him up for the whole night. His eyes were glassy, and he
didn't speak much.

"Antonio," Liz said coaxingly, "I'm sorry for what happened, but you really should get some
sleep."

"I can't sleep Liz. I can't stop thinking about this. But you go ahead."

"No," Liz answered. "I care for you Antonio and I'm going to be here helping you to the best of
my ability." She sat down next to him on the bed.

"Thanks," he murmured.

She took his hand in hers. They sat there like that for a few minutes, not saying anything. That
was a comfort to Antonio in itself. Knowing that Liz - the woman he had been through so much with -
was there for him.

"I can't believe that the love I felt for Sheridan died like that," Antonio began to say a few
minutes later, confiding in Liz. "I mean it died instantly when I found out she killed my papa! I never
believed in unconditional love, and I guess now I proved it to myself."

"Oh, Antonio," she said gently, caressing his hand softly. She didn't care right now if he had
stopped loving Sheridan or not. All that mattered was helping him overcome this grief he was
experiencing.

"What do you think?" he asked her suddenly. "Do you think it's wrong of me to stop loving
her?"

"Of course not!" she answered quickly. "You're handling it all very well. If I were in your shoes,
I don't think I would have done anything differently."

He leaned over and drew his arms out, waiting for a hug from her. She fell into his soft touch as
they sat there, each holding the other, trying to make the pain go away.

"Thank you," he said.

"For what?" she asked.

"For being here for me when I needed you. For being a great friend. For being you." The last
three words were said differently from the others. He looked deeply into her eyes. She gazed back, and
she could tell instantly that the small part of his heart that still loved her was growing into something
bigger.

He bent down and kissed her softly on the lips to show his appreciation. She kissed him back.
They sat there, hugging and kissing each other for hours, reviving the old but not forgotten memories
they used to share together on St. Lisa's back when they were romantically involved.

______________________________________________________________________________

The next day, early in the morning, Beth, Luis, Antonio and Liz packed up their belongings and
got ready for their drive back to Harmony. They knew it was going to be a long drive back, at least a
few days, but they didn't care. Besides, Luis and Antonio still needed time to come to terms with their
grief and a little traveling couldn't hurt.

They decided to alternate between who drives the SUV back home. Liz had the first shift.
Antonio sat next to her in the passenger seat while Luis and Beth were in the back.

"Did you speak to mama last night, Antonio?" Luis asked him.

"No," he answered. "I guess I should call her soon. But I want to tell her face to face, not over
some phone."

Luis didn't say anything. Beth stroked Luis's arm, trying her best to be a good friend to him.

Luis's mind replayed to the events that had transpired last night. The pain and agony he had
experiened instantly when he found out that his papa was killed by Sheridan! Oh God! He could just
imagine how his family would react. Pilar had always considered Sheridan to be like a daughter to her.
What was she going to think when she found out that her "daughter" killed her husband? Luis let out a
long, unconsolable sigh.

Beth let Luis put his head on her shoulder. Liz drove the car for another hour, until they began to
all have hunger pains. Liz pulled the SUV over into a small cozy restuarant somewhere in Oklahoma.

After they all had sat down and ordered their meals, Liz and Beth decided amongst themselves
to do the best they could to cheer up the two glum Lopez-Fitzgerald's.

Beth and Liz did their best to bring up a lively topic of conversation to at the very least, make
Luis and Antonio forget about their grief for a while.

Once they finished their meals and desserts, they headed back to the car.

"I'll drive this time," Luis offered.

"Are you sure, Luis?" Beth asked, concerned.

"Yeah, I need to get my mind off of things."

"Ok," Liz said, handing him the car keys.

{a/n: next chapter: theyll get back home and surprises await the Harmonians. lol. its not
necessarily good surprises!}