Your Song Part II

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from Nothing Much to Do/Much Ado About Nothing.

A/N: This story is set in a universe where everything happens except Balthazar and Pedro getting together. The chapters will not take place in chronological order, so don't think you've missed anything if chapters don't match up with the ones before. Also, there'll be mention of a major character death, so yeah, there's that warning. Hope everyone enjoys this - I'll try to update as often as possible!

"What did you say to him, Balth? He seemed really upset." Balthazar had to lean away from the phone a bit. Ursula actually sounded a bit mad – it was her tone more than her volume that made him wince.

"Nothing, we didn't talk, like, at all, the entire ride home. I tried, but he turned up the music really loud. Kinda a nonverbal 'fuck off.'"

Ursula sighed. "Well, then what did you do? He was really excited when he left to get you. I mean, hell, he volunteered to go before I could finish telling him I couldn't." Interesting, Pedro had made it seem like Ursula strong-armed him into it. Why would he lie about that? "Tell me exactly what happened from the beginning."

"Um, well, I got to the baggage claim with Tony, and-"

"Wait," Ursula cut him off, "Why was Tony there?" She didn't let Balthazar answer. "No wonder Pedro was upset. He hates Tony. Were you being friendly with Tony or just walking with him?"

Finally, a pause for him to answer. "Tony and I actually sat next to each other on the plane – unplanned, of course. And, yes, I was being friendly with him. I mean, we are friends. Also, why would Pedro hate Tony? I thought they got along."

"Pedro's hated Tony since our senior dance, remember? You know, when he basically jilted you for Cleo? Anyway, now I definitely get why Pedro seemed pissed off. His first time seeing you in five years, and you're chatting it up with some guy he hates."

Balthazar had never heard Ursula sound so judgmental. "Hey, last time I checked, I'm allowed to be friendly to whoever I want. And whose side are you on anyway? Since when were you all 'Team Pedro'?" It really bothered him that his best friend was already laying into him before they even saw each other.

"Ok, you're right. This isn't fair to you. You don't really know the circumstances. Look, there's some stuff I need to tell you in person. Can you meet for coffee in about an hour?"

The first thing Ursula did when she saw him was pull him into a huge hug. "I'm sorry I got upset earlier. You're back for the first time in years, and I yell at you. I'm really glad you're here, you know. I've missed you." Balthazar hugged back. Skype calls and texting were definitely not the same as seeing Ursula in person. How had he survived so long without seeing her?

After getting their coffee and claiming a table, the two friends jumped right into the 'Pedro issue' as Balthazar dubbed it. "So, what do you need to tell me about him? It seemed kinda serious on the phone."

"Well, you've had your ban on all things Pedro, so I wanted to respect that and not say anything, but it's been really hard. He hasn't been doing too well since you left. Actually, he's been a complete disaster."

"But it's been five years. And it's not like he was the one who was madly in love."

"Yeah, it's been five years, but are you over him?" Ursula raised her eyebrows when Balth refused to answer. "He might not be in love with you, but you were his best friend. Sure, he has Ben and Bea and the others, but you were his best friend. And you just up and left. Disappeared." Balthazar tried to interject with some sort of defense, but Ursula held up a hand. "I get why you did it. You needed a break so you wouldn't, well, break, but Pedro didn't know that. He went from seeing you and hearing from you everyday to being completely cut off."

Balthazar sat and thought it over while Ursula sipped on her coffee. He had known from the start that it wasn't fair to Pedro, but no one else had said it to him. "You said he hasn't been doing well. What did you mean by that?"

After a pause, "You know Pedro was always a bit of a drinker. Life of the party, all that. Well, the drinking part got a bit worse, and the life of the party part became pretty nonexistent." Another pause. "Balth, he's an alcoholic. It wasn't just you leaving. This isn't on you. It was all the change – his scholarship falling through, friends leaving, basically having no direction in life – it just kind of pushed him over the edge a bit. I mean, he's been getting better. His parents got him to see someone about it, and he isn't drinking anymore, but it's still there. He says it always will be."

Balth felt sick. Pedro, his best friend, the love of his life, had been dealing with this shit for five years, and he, being ridiculously selfish, had blocked him out completely. Ursula had been quick to keep him from blaming himself, but how was he supposed to believe he wasn't a big factor in this? "Why didn't you tell me? I mean… I'm sorry, that isn't fair to you. I said 'no Pedro news', and you were just respecting that. But, why didn't anyone tell me?"

Ursula swirled her coffee around in its cup for a moment before answering. It was obvious she was trying to figure out how to phrase something. "I think everyone understood why you left like that. No one wanted… everyone knew you loved him."

"Everyone?"

"Yeah."

"Oh." He let that sink in. "Did Pedro know?" Please, no. Please.

"You know Pedro. He's oblivious to basically everything. He's gotten better about it, but no, he had no clue." Thank the gods.

The two sat in silence for a while, drinking their luke-warm coffee.

Then it hit Balthazar. "What the hell am I doing, thinking about this right now? I should be with Bea. I let her know I'd be coming in today." That seemed to wake Ursula from her reverie.

"Of course, I'll take you to see her now if you want. She's pretty lively most of the time."

"So, basically normal Bea?"

"Yup. She's still in fighting form. Yesterday, she and Ben argued for half an hour about flamingoes." Balth's face must have shown his disbelief. "Yeah, that flamingo thing is still going. And Ben is just trying to keep things normal. You know how they've always loved their little fights. I think it's actually encouraging to Ben; like, if she can hold her own in an argument, she's still ok."

Balth asked after a beat, "But how is she really doing, Urs? I need you to be honest with me."

She shook her head. "Not good, Balth. She and Ben are holding it together, but it's really not good. I probably wouldn't have called you home if it wasn't so bad."

Ursula could always be trusted to be honest, even when it was hard. Balthazar's heart sank.