Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.

A/n1: Dearest peeps, next week, I'll be having a small break, so I won't post a new chapter then.
The week after next week will be just as normal as each and every week, but I really, REALLY need a short break. I'm so tired, I can't even decently sleep. It sounds weird, but it's true.
I hope you understand!

A/n2: Let me recommend some good songs to you – all songs made by Dutch artists, but don't you worry, they sing in English and they're quite good at it, too.
I have three for you:
On Shoulders – Chef'Special
Rewritten – Teske
Sing – PollyAnna
CHECK THEM OUT. They are very nice and cute and soothing, and I especially like the last song a lot.^^

A/n3: Well, last week I wished you all a very merry Christmas, so this week, I wish you a very healthy, happy and amazing 2015. May the new year be one of the best years you'll ever experience, until the next new best year that follows that one up again!
Also, I hope you're enjoying your vacation break to the fullest! 8DDDDDDDD

~~ And Three Makes Five ~~

Chapter 82:

My father was often angry when I was most like him.
Lillian Hellman
(American dramatist and screenwriter)

What was that?

I blinked and blinked and blinked, because I had that… that thought in mind, or that… memory, if it really had been something like a memory, but as soon as it had flashed through my head, just as soon it was gone again, and now, I had no idea what I was thinking about in the first place.

What…

What was…?

'Mr. S-Spain?' Miss Lugo gave me a questioning look. 'A-are you okay? You seem kind of pale all of a sudden… is… is something wrong?'

'No! No, no, nothing's wrong, I just… almost remembered something,' I quickly said, smiling reassuringly at her. 'Now, what was it you wanted to drink…?'

Oddly enough, instead of comforting, my words seemed to have shaken her a bit. Her eyes grew just as much as Lovi's eyes did whenever he had found out something interesting and her hands, that had been lying on her lap fairly relaxed, suddenly squeezed into her own legs – convulsively.

'What-wh-what did you almost remember?' she asked, although her voice was barely audible now. 'Something… something about… the past?'

…

Something started to click here.

The way that girl seemed to be so focused on me, her freaky behavior, her jerkish movements and nervous glances.

Now wait a minute.

Oh god.

Don't tell me she was one of them.

Lovino would kill me if he found out I accidentally let in one of those… those so-called "nation-kids".

My stomach turned. God damn it. If I had been alone, I would've cursed. Why the hell had Hernández tricked me into meeting one of those attention-seekers? And… god, why the hell didn't I notice till now? Just how naïve and gullible was I?

I needed to get her out of my House, as soon as possible, before Lovi would come down and find out and… had have another fallback or something – oh no, that-that would be horrible!

Maybe I could make her some tea and call the police – no, wouldn't… wouldn't that be too extreme? The girl seemed nice enough, I didn't want to drag her off like a criminal… No, I should just… well… at least some place where I could be alone… I-I needed to think this over carefully – but fast!

'Yes, if only I knew what I almost remembered!' my voice got a bit too high and a bit too hysterical as I tried to laugh my way out of it, and then I got up from the couch. 'I'll… just prepare some tea for you, is that alright, miss… miss Lugo?'

If that was even your real name.

The girl watched my fake grin and my spastic movements, realizing that I had realized, and she bit her lips, raising up from the couch as well.

'Mr. Spain, you must know that… I-I'm not… my name's not… Lugo.'

Gah, I HATED it when I was right about these things!

'Tea!' I kept on chirping. 'I need to make the tea! Tea is good for you! Just-just sit down, I'll make you tea! Nice, fresh tea!'

The girl swallowed heavily and started to tremble. 'I-I'm your daughter. I-I… this… dammit, this was not supposed to go like this, b-but… I-I can't stand interacting with you like… l-like you are a stranger…'

'But you are a stranger,' I said, as calmly as I could while speed-walking to the kitchen, 'and strangers need tea, which is what I'm going to make for you right now, miss fake-Lugo!'

'Wha-! Hey, j-just listen to me for a second – please, just… just listen!'

To my horror, the girl followed me to the kitchen and kept on asking me to talk with her, to look at her, but I couldn't – I couldn't, I couldn't, I couldn't, I didn't want to, because she was lying, she had to be lying, why was she doing this to me, why now, why not… not after I had read that damn book – oh! – I still needed to read that thing, yes, oh god, what was I going to do? What was I—

In the first place, I was going to calm down already.

And just like that, a strange and sudden calmness came over me. I made my mind empty at first, then I slowly, carefully put back in the most important bits and pieces of information I needed to know for the conversation that was going to happen here in about a few more minutes. I in- and exhaled in turns, tried to keep my way of breathing and functioning under control, and then, after pouring in the water into two glass cups, I looked over my shoulder at the girl who now stood in the kitchen as well.

I don't know why, by my heart cracked a little when I noticed long, black mascara-traces were all over her cheeks. Her eyes were swollen and red, and her lower lip was shaking uncontrollably. The poor girl had apparently started crying when I had been ignoring her in order to get things straight in my own head.

'Oh – no, don't cry, don't cry!' I stammered. No matter who or what she was, I hated to see girls crying.

'You don't know me,' the girl blubbered – and her lower lip shook even more.

I shushed her with words I can't remember anymore and sat her down on a chair at the table, sitting down myself as well. As the girl sobbed and rubbed her eyes, making her make-up look even more monstrous, I acted like I was as tranquil and at ease as possible as I put teabags in our glasses – while I was actually just as shattered from the inside as she was from the outside.

'Now…' I sighed, pushed one cup her way, over the wooden table, and forced myself to look her in the eye, '…tell me what your real name is, and what it is you're coming for. Okay?'

'I-I can't tell you.' The girl folded her hands around the cup and averted her eyes. 'Á-Ángel said it's best if you'd remember my name by yourself – he-he said that your memory probably won't be triggered if I tell you what my name is myself, s-so… s-so you must try and remember yourself.'

I gripped my own cup firmly, trying to keep my patience. I never thought Hernández could be such an asshole. I didn't know what he had told this girl, but god – why would he do such a thing? This girl was looking for her biological parents, and he tells her two immortal, male beings were her parents?

'You believe Mr. South Italy and I are your parents, right?' I asked, to confirm my own suspicions.

The girl nodded but kept silent.

'You…' I groaned softly and ran a hand through my hair. '…you know what we are, don't you?'

Another nod.

'I figured as much.' I frowned. 'So why… why, young lady, do you want to do this to us?'

The girl looked up with a jolt, new tears glistering in her green orbs – but it were angry tears this time.

'I'm doing nothing to you! I'm asking nothing of you, either! I only… I-I only want you to remember me as your damn daughter, dammit!'

She sounded like Lovino, alright. It almost made me smile.

Almost.

'Look, miss… whatever your name is,' I started, 'my husband and I finally have a break from our duties. We want some rest, especially now that he's feeling ill. I can't let you disturb our peaceful home.'

'B-but I just want-!'

'I don't care what you want!' I glared at her. The jig was over. 'I've been patient with you, I've even listened to you and allowed you to stay a little longer than I wanted you to – because believe me, I wonder what holds me back from kicking you out of the House right this instant—'

'You have read that book!' The girl shot up from her chair, knocking it over in the progress. 'I-I saw it in that room! That book written by Dr. Tosca! You read it! You must have seen the pictures, you—'

'I haven't read it yet, and I'm not sure I ever will, if that means I'll have more nagging girls like you over for tea.'

That was cold – I was amazed myself about how cold that was – and I instantly felt bad about it after one look on the girl's crushed face.

'S-so you're not even going to try, are you.' The girl dropped her arms and now, her face started to deform itself as she sank down on the floor. 'Y-y-you're not even going to try and remember me. You don't give a fuck about it. You don't even want to consider I could be your daughter. You just want peace. Well. Fuck.'

And then she started to cry. Out loud. Just some soft hiccups and whines at first, but eventually, her voice grew harder and more desperate, while I stood there and had no idea what to do. I just… paced around the kitchen, looking from the girl on the floor to my cell phone on the kitchen table to the cups of tea, also on the table, slowly cooling down.

My eyes decided to kept staring at the girl when I looked at her again and I exhaled tiredly, crouching down so I could communicate with her a bit better. Well. I hoped.

'I don't want to be mean to you – I-I really don't. Sorry for… We… we had a rough time, miss… whatever your name is,' I said, hesitating about touching her but gently patting her on the head in the end anyway (but my hand was immediately slapped off her head – aggressively). 'Ouch. That hurt.'

'Yeah?' The girl looked up at me, her green eyes hellish bright. 'Did that hurt? Well, imagine that pain but a hundred-thousand times worse, because that's what it feels like when one of your biological parents has just brushed you off and stomped on your heart like it's filth.'

I frowned. 'You seem to be so very certain of yourself. It's admirable, really, and I wish I could help you, but I—'

'Why don't you at least believe me?' The girl's make-up was now all over her face, and since she kept rubbing in her eyes, it was only getting worse with the passing moment. 'I-I understand why you don't remember yet – but-but can't you at least believe me? There are… there are countries that have said they wanted… wanted to try and believe them…o-ow…'

God, she looked so helpless.

I hated watching helpless people and not doing anything about it.

'Oh, come here, come here come here…' I sighed and grabbed the girl, pulling her up and, when she was too dumbfounded to protest, even lifting her up.

'Whu-what…' the girl stammered and weakly pushed against my chest – but that was all, and that was not enough to convince me to put her back down again.

'You're a strange one,' I commented as I carried her to the living room. 'You claim to be my daughter, but you flinch and back off whenever I come too close to you. Not exactly a very normal thing for a daughter to do.'

She snorted and it sounded like she was trying to pull it off as cranky, but it actually sounded pretty sad.

'A-as if you'd find it normal if a girl that claims to be your kid wants to hug you all of a sudden. That would freak you out even more, and besides… b-besides, I have… I-I have problems with… w-with showing people I-I care for them and shit…'

I glanced at her at the moment she was busy fidgeting with her hands, her cheeks bright-red and her face folded in a huge frown.

…

I had to be honest to myself here – the girl looked like the spitting, female image of Lovino. And not just from the outside. She even seemed to have "inherited" many of his characteristics, like the excessive blushing, the frowning and even the weak attempts to come over as a bizarrely strong person while not feeling like such a tough person in reality at all. Also, she had problems with showing affection.

The only things that made her different from Lovi were her eyes, that were so much like mine that it scared me, and the fact she was slightly shorter than he was.

She either was indeed something that I should try to believe in… or she was a very good actress.

Well, anyway, I needed to clean her up a little, so let's put that discussion to the side for now.

'There you go,' I muttered as I put her down on the couch and watched her confused glaring at me. 'Okay. Umm… wait here a second, alright?'

She opened her mouth, but I didn't wait for her to answer me and walked away, back to the kitchen. There, I poured some hot water over a towel, grabbed her tea and the cookie jar, and returned to the living room.

She had been gawking around the room while I had been gone, the fold on her face partly gone as she noticed the bookcase on the other side of the room.

'So,' I started as I walked back into the room, 'you're a reader, aren't you?'

My voice had been as friendly as possible. It always had helped to calm down Lovino whenever he was mad about something, and it seemed to have the same effect on the girl – although she did jump a bit from suddenly hearing my voice again.

'Y-yes,' she grumpily stammered while I gave her back her tea. 'I-I like to read. A lot. I-I like stories. The weirder, the better.'

I chuckled and sat next to her. 'Really, now?'

'Y-yeah, I like them. P… South Italy always read stories. We liked them a lot. He-he gave them a silly twist so that he could mock them and amuse us at the same time.'

Such a dreamer, I found myself thinking, shaking my head a bit and turning her head my way, pretending not to see the shocked, defensive look in her eyes.

'That's nice. I'm happy you and your brothers liked them.'

The girl stopped glaring at me and she stopped trying to move away from me as well. Her jaw dropped a little and her eyes spread open so very wide I feared they were going to roll out of her skull.

'What?' I asked, as I concentrated on dabbing her left cheek.

'Did… did you remember something just now?'

I smiled and shook my head again. 'No, princess. I didn't.'

The girl's mouth opened even more, it was wide open now, as if she wanted to scream, but there only was a soft, unbelieving yelp that came out of it.

'W-why…?'

'Why what?' I frowned. What kind of mascara did she use? I couldn't get it off her face.

'You… you called me… and… a-and you know I have… bu-but I never told you.'

'I have no idea what you're talking about,' I said, half-listening to her as I now rubbed her cheek a bit firmer. 'But I think Papa Toni's going to take some soap, now. All that black stuff must have been hurting your eyes, aww, poor Lulu…'

It really was a bit sad, yes, that strange, mysterious girl, trying to get me to convince me to believe her and failing so very brutally at it. Poor Lulu indeed.

Wait.

…

Wait.

I paused my scrubbing of the girl's cheek and stared at her. Her huge, hopeful, teary eyes stared right back, and the longer she stared, the more I felt something tugging on my mind – something was tugging it, stomping it, kicking it, even – something inside of my head was now so very excitedly damaging an odd, empty, painful part of my memories, that I both wanted to yell at it to stop that already and to beg it to please keep on attacking it, for just a few minutes longer.

'Oh for crying out loud,' I muttered when the thing I was waiting to happen didn't happen, or at least not fast enough to my liking, and averted my eyes, collecting my head in my hands. 'My…my head feels like it's going to explode…'

'D-do you remember anything?' the girl pleaded. 'P-please, t-tell me you remembered something – please, please!'

But I didn't remember anything. I had remembered or at least thought of something – but just like earlier, it had been gone now. I felt like a well, a wishing well in which that girl was throwing coin after coin, and although she did let the well speak back to her, the well couldn't fulfill her wishes – it couldn't, I couldn't, and God knows I tried, I tried, I tried so very hard…

'Please!' The girl was crying again and clawed at my knees, almost falling off the couch.

I hissed softly and felt so sorry for her. Oh, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for not remembering. I'm so sorry…

'What the hell is going on here?'

I looked up with a jolt, the pulling and tugging in my mind stopped.

The girl, now sitting on the floor in front of me, looked up as well, burying her nails ever deeper into my flesh when we both watched Lovino – leaning against a doorstep, his face red from his fever, and his expression – locked on the girl – stormy and bordering on sheer hate.

\0o0/

I thought Antonio was taking his sweet fucking time, greeting that girl and leading her upstairs to let her meet me. So I went downstairs to see what was taking him so long.

And there, I found them. In the living room. Antonio was cradling his own head, while some stupid human girl was sitting down on the floor in front of him, wearing the most awful clothes I had ever seen, wailing to him to "please remember".

That was all I needed to see and hear to know enough.

'Well? Care to fucking explain?' I nevertheless grunted and let go of the doorpost. I felt so unreasonably angry that I didn't need to support myself anymore right now – I just wanted that girl, that-that poisonous curse that Tosca had called over us by writing her Bitch Book, to get the hell out already. Now.

'L-Lovino!' Antonio got up from the small table he was sitting on, his face as white as a sheet. 'T-this girl, s-she—'

'Claims to be our daughter, isn't it?' I shot hateful looks at the brunette, who pulled herself off the floor and took a few steps towards me.

'Who the fuck are you?' I ordered her. 'What's your name!'

The girl looked scared – scared and shockingly alike me, whenever I was scared. It was fucking creepy – it crept me the fucking hell out, dammit.

'I-I can't tell you,' she stuttered, 'I-I can't tell you my name…'

I gritted my teeth and ignored the fact my heart skipped a beat. The brat from the dream – she was the brat from the dream, dammit, the evil, mute witch that didn't want to tell me her name and then just… just walked off, leaving me hanging, silently accusing me of being the one who was at fault.

Oh? So, shaking up my life by claiming such messed-up shit, by making us feel bad about stories and rumors that are most-likely nothing but lies, by-by saying things that make my heart twist in pain and guilt, is that all my fault?

I don't fucking think so.

I narrowed my flickering eyes, as dangerously as I could, never looking away from the girl.

'Get out.'

The girl, who, all this time, had been snottering and bawling, like a stupid fucking kid, unexpectedly shook her head, raising her head firmly and taking another few steps towards me.

'No.'

'What do you mean, "no"?' I nagged, walking towards her as well. 'This is my House. My life. I don't need an annoying little liar like you around, so get the fuck out already!'

'I'm not a liar!' the girl now grinded her molars together as well and folded her arms demonstratively. 'I'm your daughter, and I'm not leaving until you realize that!'

'You are leaving, dammit, and you're leaving now!'

'I won't!'

'Yes you will!'

'I WON'T!'

'YOU FUCKING WILL!'

'H-hey, cut it out!' Antonio said, trying to stand in-between us. 'Can't we discuss this more humanely, over a nice glass off—'

'You stay out of it, you… you gullible moron.' I gave Antonio an annoyed look. Just leave it to him to welcome one of those fucked-up "nation-kids" in, dammit.

The girl gasped at that. 'Hey! Don't call Papa Toni a moron!'

I gasped as well. 'Don't call Antonio your fucking papa!'

'But he is!'

'NO, HE ISN'T! HE ISN'T HE ISN'T HE ISN'T AND NEITHER AM I, YOU PATHETIC, SAD EXCUSE FOR A WOMAN!'

It was the most… the meanest thing I could ever yell at a female, and no, I didn't feel proud to have shouted this into the girl's face, but I was at the end of my wits here – I didn't know what to do anymore, I didn't know what to say anymore, I didn't even know what to feel anymore. My head hurt, my chest hurt, my throat hurt and everything hurt, and that brunette had to pay for it – she had to pay for it, who else did I have to blame for it?

But the young woman gave me a immensely hurt, disappointed look – a look that took my breath away when I swiftly, temporarily recognized it – and for a second or two, three, I could see and think straightly. I saw Antonio, staring at me in dismay, I saw the girl, her eyes as gigantic and piercingly green as a green fucking full moon, and oh god, I knew I was wrong.

I damaged that poor girl – I-I should apologize to her, before I made her feel so very bad about herself that she'd never survive it. I would never forgive myself for letting a woman feel bad about herself – never, absolutely never.

I swallowed, my whole body shaking with slowly-fading anger. I looked at the girl, who kept her head down and shook just as much as I did.

'H-hey, I-I'm… I'm so—'

'YOU'RE A FUCKING ASSHOLE!'

I was speechless and stared at the girl – who now was staring right back at me, with eyes that weren't sad or watery, but almost catching fucking fire out of sheer, pants-soiling anger. Her fists were squeezed together into two hard knots of flesh and she breathed in and out rapidly.

'YOU'RE AN ASSHOLE!' she yelled. 'YOU'RE AN ASSHOLE AND A FUCKING HEARTLESS BEAST AND I FUCKING HATE YOU FOR NOT FUCKING BELIEVING ME, YOU HORRIBLE PIECE OF SHIT!'

Antonio and I both stared at her like we saw water burning, which we maybe did see, in a way.

Holy hell, I never knew there was another living being on this planet that could curse like that!

YOU SHITHEAD! YOU FUCKING FUCKFACE – YOU'RE A FUCKING FUCKFACE, THAT'S WHAT YOU ARE, YOU GODDAMN BASTARD!' the girl kept on shouting.

'H-hey!' I responded now, because she was going too far, dammit!

'SHUT UP! FUCK YOU! FUCK YOU VERY VERY VERY MUCH!' She now started to throw pillows at me – the soft ones, on the couch, that could never hurt anybody much as her verbal abilities could.

'You stop that – oompf!' I almost tipped over when caught one pillow with my face.

'NO! YOU'RE A-A TURD!'

'…a-a what?!' Antonio stammered, bewildered.

A FUCKING TURD – A BIG, SMELLING, STINKING PILE OF DOG-POOP!' she breathed in deeply for a second. 'YOU BOTH ARE, DAMMIT!'

'Okay – that's enough!' I growled and grabbed her arm, which she instantly tried to pull free.

'LET GO, TURD! YOU'RE A TURD AND NOTHING MORE THAN A TURD, YOU—'

'God – just WHEN will you watch YOUR BIG MOUTH ALREADY, LUISA!'

'NEVER!' she hissed and literally tried to scratch my hold loose from her arms.

But no matter how hard and panicked she scratched the skin off my fingers, I didn't feel it. Hell, I didn't even see it.

I remembered.

o\00/

'Luisa?'

I couldn't think.

Everything was ruined.

Yes.

I just ruined everything.

That was the single thought that bonked against my skull, over and over again, like the beat of a drum.

I had lost my patience. I had started to rant at my Italian father like an unruly kid, and now he was going to toss me out, and why shouldn't he, dammit – I had called him horrible names, so many horrible names – it was only normal he didn't want to talk to me.

'Luisa…'

I had wasted my chance.

I had… had thrown my one and only chance to get to know my real parents, to heal my heart and to work on my own personal developments – it was all in the gutters now. It was all gone. It was… god. I could stay here and insult them even more, but what good would that do… and I was so close, I had almost reached Papa Toni – I-I think – and now…

'Luisa.'

For SHIT's sake!

'W-would you stop saying my name already!' I bit at Papa Lovi, panting hysterically. 'It's annoying! It's—i-it's…'

My voice died when I looked at him. His expression was a wild mix of disbelieve, astonishment, panic – and then, suddenly, realization.

'Luisa. Luisa.' He gulped and his dull, brown-green eyes filled themselves with tears. 'Oh god. Oh god… what… what…?'

I pursed my lips, not saying anything.

'I-it's you… it-it really is you…?' Papa Toni had suddenly appeared next to Papa Lovi and smacked a hand in front of his mouth. 'N-no… b-but you're… y-you're so big, Lulu…'

Something strange happened right then. Something that I couldn't explain, but at the same time, I could explain it very well, very punctually, even, if I had given my problems with affection, my aversion to displays of love and to the word "love" itself a chance to manifest themselves in front of me in actual words.

But instead of that, my suspicious heart simply panicked, made me shake off Papa Lovi's hand and made me bolt.

Yes. I ran away.

Now that the possibility of getting to feel better about an emotion I had despised for most of my life was this close, I fucking panicked and sprinted out of the fucking room like my butt was on fire.

And you know what puzzled me even more?

They didn't hesitate a second.

'Shit! She's getting away! Don't let her get away!' I heard Papa Lovi yell.

'I'll go to the garden – you go after her!' Papa Toni answered instantly.

They shouted, nagged, roared and spat more things to each other, I know they did, because I heard their voices, all agitated and scared and fearful, as if they really were worried I'd get away from them before they could, and that made my legs move only faster. I didn't even know why. I just… they just did.

I suddenly was outside again, in the backyard – I apparently had somehow managed my own spazzing body to at least give them a chance to get me by fleeing out of the backdoor instead of the front – and I ran, and ran, and ran, and oh god, my poor baby – this couldn't be good for my baby, goddammit all…

'There she is!'

I gasped, as far as I could gasp in-between my pants and weird groans and grunts, when I spotted both my biological fathers, approaching me rapidly from two different sides, the looks on their faces determined and focused.

I took a sharp U-turn somewhere, near a tree where a swing used to hang, and didn't hear the things Papa Lovi and Papa Toni screamed at me in turns. I could only imagine what a random bystanders would think or say if they saw us chasing after one another like this.

A random bystander

I blankly stared at the trio running around in a well-kept garden, belonging to a huge mansion. The two guys that were chasing the lonely girl were shouting and yelling at her while the girl cursed, cried rivers and sped up her tempo, panting like an old train.

'Luisa! Stop running for me and Papa Lovi already – it's okay, sweetie, it's okay!' the oldest person of the three cried out.

'Listen to your father, dammit – please listen to him!' the other male yelled as well.

Meanwhile, the girl, looking about as old as the guys chasing her, just pressed her hands on her ears and closed her eyes, repeating 'shit shit shit shit shit', running straight to the road next to the building, over a flattened gate, practically attempting to kill herself since there was a biiiiiiig truck passing.

…

I should really quit drinking.

\0o0/

TOOOOOOOOOOOOT

TOOOOOOT-TOOOOOOOOOOOOOT

TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT

were the accusing, angry honks the truck-driver made his vehicle groan, while the insanely big MONSTER drove past our House, as if he hadn't just almost ran over my daughter. I mean, shit, Antonio was lucky to have been able to pull her away from the road in the very last second!

'Suicidal idiots!' the man yelled from his window, shaking his fist at me.

'WHAT!' I almost spit fire as I sprinted after the ugly truck-driver (and his truck). 'You fucking jerk – come back here! Get out of that car, you maniac! Come back and fight like an ugly truck-driver!'

But the ugly truck-driver didn't hear or see me anymore and drove away, leaving me behind in a cloud of dust, fumes and sand.

I glared at the vehicle one last time, before turning around and hasting myself back to where I had left Antonio and Luisa – to where I should be.

As I got back at the flattened gate – we should get that fixed already, we really should – I slowed down my pace, not really sure what to… to do now, or what I could say, when I saw Luisa, sitting on the ground, her face buried away in Antonio's chest as she cried and allowed Antonio to hold and hug her tightly.

They both looked fucking crappy, with… with all that dust and those reddened eyes, and naturally, it was one of the most beautiful things I had ever seen.

Antonio mouthed a sheepish greeting to me as soon as he noticed I had returned, his eyes so fragile and happy it jerked on my heart's strings, and pulled Luisa even closer, stroking through her hair lovingly.

I stared at them a little while longer, before dropping myself on my knees.

Luisa. My daughter. My grown-up daughter.

I never saw her growing up.

I cursed and crawled closer to them, and Antonio already made space for me to impulsively throw my arms around Luisa, crying as I felt her hugging me back, and crying harder when Antonio wrapped his arms around the both of us, whispering sweet nothings to her.

'My princess – my-my brave, silly princess… I'm so proud of you…'

I choked up. 'Forgive me. F-forgive us, Luisa… please forgive us, baby…'

Luisa mumbled something I didn't catch. I glanced at Antonio, but he didn't know either.

'Wh-what did you say, Luisa?'

Once again, a lot of inaudible mutterings and mumbles. So I chuckled, softly, and raised her face.

'One more time, baby.' I smiled at her, overjoyed, and gently caressed her eyes. 'Y-your father and I are… are getting old and deaf, y-you know…'

Antonio made a weird, muffled sound and bit his lower lip helplessly.

Luisa's face was all wrinkly and wet, and she gripped my wrists tightly, flashing me and Antonio a small, huffy smile.

'I'm…I-I'm not going to say it again, d-dammit…'