AN: DRAMA? IN THE THIRD CHAPTER? *everyone gasps* *Iggy Voice* WHO THE BLOODY HELL DOES THIS BITCH THINK SHE IS? *End Iggy Voice* I'm the author, that's who. And I call the shots. That being said, I'm not a fan of this chapter, but it's something that needed to be done. I'm a bit concerned that this story is going to get too "Romeo and Juliet" for my liking, but I'll try to stay away from that as much as possible.

I'm thinking of changing the rating to T. I swear too much OTL.

"Francis, I—"

"Out! Get out of here right now!" Francis is seething with anger, and it shows. Antonio has no idea how much he's heard, but obviously it was enough to set him off. If looks could kill, Antonio would be bled out on the floor.

He turns to Sesel. She looks incredibly supervised, and her mouth hangs slightly open as if she wants to say something.

She does. "Mon pere…why are you so angry?"

"Sesel, go to your room."

"Mon pere—"

"Sesel, now!"

She does not move. After a moment of consideration, Antonio dares to speak. "Sesel…Maybe you should…"

Francis shoots him another furious glare. "Antonio, what the hell are you still doing here?"

He finally gets the hint. Turning to leave, Sesel shoots him one last hopeful glance. She moves to reach out to him, , but Francis pulls her away.

Antonio takes his leave. Hundreds of thoughts are buzzing through his head. Will Francis be angry with him forever? Will he have to choose between Francis and Sesel? Given the choice, which one would he pick? How could he possibly make a decision like that?

What if he loses them both?

Francis is—or at least, he was, as at this point Antonio isn't sure if the Frenchman will ever want to see his face again—his best friend. They've been with each other through absolutely everything, since the two of them were mere children. Antonio has been Francis's protector numerous times, and Francis has always been there to catch him when he falls. Antonio can't even begin to imagine what life would be like without the Frenchman by his side.

But at the same time, his feelings for Sesel have progressed to such a point where he in unable to see his life without her in it. When he begins to picture what the future might hold for him, she is always there, and Antonio likes it that way. He doesn't want to lose her, not before he finds out if she feels the same as he does. Ideally, Francis will be understanding and Antonio won't have to deal with losing either of them. Ideally, this will be just a small bump in the road that leads to a better tomorrow.

He's being overly optimistic.

Hey, a man can dream, right?

Her father is furious.

She's not sure how much of Antonio's confession he'd actually heard, but she can tell that he heard all he needed to in order to be so incredibly angry.

He tells her to go to her room.

She's 20 years old. There's no way in hell she's taking an order like that.

She doesn't go. Antonio, perhaps trying to be the good guy, suggests that she listen to her father, but is simply asked to leave again. It isn't fair. None of this is fair, and if she were still young she would jump up and down, and scream at her father, throw a real fit.

Sesel doesn't do that though. Instead she reaches out to grab Antonio's arm, try to keep him from leaving, and is stopped by her father. Her stupid, stubborn father, who wants to keep her from a great guy, a guy who cares about her. So unfair.

And just like that, he is gone.

And she is left all alone and unprepared to face her father. She can see that he is practically steaming with anger, but whether that anger is for her or Antonio, she does not know. Perhaps it's both.

Neither of them is saying anything. Sesel feels that she ought to speak, but she's having trouble collecting all her thoughts and emotions.

"Sesel, I want you to be honest with me. Do you have feelings for… for that man?"

She glares at him, anger starting to rise in her chest. "Antonio, father. You know his name, you know everything about him! He's not just some strange man, he's your best friend, and—"

"Sesel," Francis says, cutting her off in a shaky but authoritative tone. "Do you, or do you not, have feelings for… Antonio?"

Sesel looks him dead in the eyes. "I do."

"How long has this been going on?"

"A while."

"Sesel! God dammit, how long?"

"A few years."

"Really? That long?"

She nods, never breaking eye contact. He nods back, his face steeled with an angry but yet frighteningly calm expression.

"He won't be coming by anymore," he says decisively.

She shrugs this off. "I can just go see him."

"In who's car?" Francis sighs exasperatedly. "Sesel, you live in my house, and as such—"

"I only live here because I don't have enough money to live on my own! Once I get back on my feet you'll have nothing to hold over my head!"

"Sesel, I am your father—"

"Oh grow up, Francis! Sometimes people like each other. It's a thing that happens, and it's not going to change just because you say so, just because you're my father! It wouldn't matter if you were the damn queen of England, you have no control over who I fall for. I barely have a say in that!"

"You're my child. I'm the parent here. I am done having this discussion."

Sesel shoots him an angry glare and, ignoring Francis's protests, storms out the door.

She needs a walk to clear her head.

20 minutes or so after Sesel leaves, Francis hears a knock on the door.

He's expecting his daughter.

Instead he gets a very apologetic, very cold looking Spaniard.

He should just the slam the door in his face.

Instead, he says, "Sesel isn't here, what the hell do you want?"

Antonio lifts his sorry head to look at the Frenchman. "Amigo… I had no idea you would be so angry. That's the last thing I want. I've been thinking, and… I'm going to respect your wishes. I'll leave Sesel alone, I'll even take back my confession. Which is going to hurt like hell, if I'm being honest, but… it's for the best. I don't want to lose you as a friend."

Francis doesn't know what to say. He isn't sure if he's quite ready to welcome Antonio back into his home just yet. "Perhaps it would be best… if you just stayed away from us for a while… you know, until this dies down a bit. You spend so much time here, and it's not that I haven't liked having you around," Francis loves Antonio's company dearly, but at the moment is focused more on keeping his daughter away from him. "Maybe you should go out, you know, meet new people."

Fall for someone else.

"Oh…si… Alright… I'll do that. Adios, Francis." He drives off, leaving Francis to wonder if he has really made the right decision.