Falling [ 𝓚.𝓥 ]

"𝐃𝐫𝐨𝐩 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐝"

I left the bathroom with a small smile fixed on my face, catching the attention of my mother who nervously fidgeted with her fingers. I awkwardly turned to sit back down on my seat opposite my father, who was asleep after multiple drinks. The night was beautiful, I thought as I turned to look out the window. I admired the view, until I was startled by Fransisco who was stood next to me, staring out the window too.
"I don't understand why you like staring into the dark" he said, as he continued to stand with his hands in his pockets.
I simply shrugged. Fransisco awkwardly looked around with his hands in his pockets, and began to light a cigar. Annoyed with the smell, I frustratedly asked,
"Would you ever stop smoking"?
The pungent smell of tobacco and beer had an impact on me, it was almost triggering though I'd never admit it.
Fransisco cooked his eyebrow, and stared at me with the cigar hanging off his lips.
"Probably not", he said as he continued to face the window again.

It was around 00:34 am when we finally landed in Austria, or more specifically, Salzburg. I felt tired and uneasy, I would have been lying to myself if I said I didn't want to do what my father ordered me to do. I couldn't tell whether I was angry, upset or somewhat relieved about the situation, it was all a lot to take in. I was lost in my thoughts until Alexander gave me a small nudge.
"We've landed", he said quietly.
I massaged my temple before slowly rising from my seat. Soon enough, Alexander was helping me off the final steps off of the private jet, and we were met with multiple cars- Audis, Mercedes, Range Rovers and many more. Soon later, Alexander began to guide me to the Range Rover and opened the door for me, Fransisco joining soon after. The inside of the black car smelt strongly of expensive cologne as soon as Fransisco came inside, but the scent was comforting in a way.
"You know where to go" Fransisco said tiredly, to the driver.
We began to drive, and I couldn't help but stare out the window to be met with the beauty of Salzburg. The architecture, the couples and trees were all beautiful to look at. It left a strange feeling inside of me, the fact that I never had the chance to explore Austria for myself but because of a marriage I had no choice but to accept. It felt like eternity when we were silent inside of the car, the only sound was from the outside. From the corner of my eye, it wasn't difficult to discover the tiredness in Fransisco's eyes. He had the look of irritation, tiredness and almost sadness. It was amazing to me, how even in the Austrian night his green eyes always spoke his emotions.
It wasn't long until we arrived to Mirabell Palace, the hotel part in which we would stay in. Fransisco exited first and offered me his hand to help me leave, which I awkwardly accepted. I wasn't conscious of the time, but I was rather focused on the imbalanced feeling of standing on cobblestone. My legs felt bare and cold in the night, and I could feel the tip of my nose going colder by the second. Just after, Felicia, my brothers and the rest of our family and friends arrived, and we began to enter the hotel. The interior was beautiful, marble flooring with beautiful art and a crystal chandelier. Sergio Romero checked us in, and we were shown to our rooms. The staff took our luggage, and the hotel manager himself insisted he'd show us to our quarters. Fransisco was behind the manager, followed by Sergio and myself as well as the others.
We were lead up the grand stairs to the second floor, where the manager unlocked the door to reveal a single double bed.
"For Mr Romero and his wife" the manager said in a kind Austrian accent, while gesturing to the engagement ring on my finger.
Heat rose to my cheeks and I looked anywhere but at the manager and Fransisco.
"Thank you, but I believe there has been a mistake" Fransisco said, through gritted teeth.
The manager kissed his teeth and nodded his head no.
"My English is not good. But whatever the marriage problem is, kiss and get over it" he smiled.
Fransisco was close to responding, before Sergio stopped him.
"Enjoy your stay, don't be too loud" the manager gave me a smile.
The hotel manager left, and Fransisco spoke up.
"Why would you not let me sort things out"? He said, to his father.
"Last thing we want is to raise suspicions, get over it" Sergio half shouted, before entering his own room.
It was just me and Fransisco stood alone in our room.
I attempted to speak, but Fransisco raised his hand resulting in a small flinch from me.
"I'll sleep on the sofa".
I blinked in confusion.
"You're quite tall, you should take the bed I wouldn't mind sleeping on the sofa" I stated.
"Doesn't matter" he shrugged.
It was approximately 1am. We still stood awkwardly while avoiding eye contact.
"You do know my mother expects us to have a child" he mentioned flatly.
I felt my shoulders tense.
"I'm aware", I replied.
"I don't want that, not with you anyway" Fransisco said bluntly.
I didn't bother taking offense.
"Neither do I, especially not with you" I emphasised.
"Why's that?" Fransisco seemed amused as he folded his arms and leaned on the wall.
"I know nothing about you, I never wanted this marriage, and so I'd never want a child with someone I don't love" I said with an ounce of passion.
"Fair enough" he said quietly.
"Has my mother been nice to you?" Fransisco asked with a smirk telling me he knew the answer.
"Does being nice mean pressuring me to satisfy and fulfill your needs?" I asked with a hint of disgust.
"Half the things she says I want are things she wants. Better the woman was left dead" he stated with no emotion.
I, was arguably startled.
"Surely she's not that bad to you?" I asked in disbelief.
Fransisco sighed and faced the wall instead of me.
"How is yours and your father's relationship? Something tells me it's not good by how often you flinch at whatever I do" he asked, just as emotionlessly.
I didn't cry, I wasn't going to. But it felt more hurtful.
"You might aswell drop dead right after your mother, Fransisco Romero" I whispered just loud enough for him to hear the venom in my voice.
I grabbed my purse and trench coat, and left the hotel room before I could capture a reaction from Fransisco. I could hear my heels hitting the marble floor as I rushed to leave the hotel. I was unsure of where to go but I wanted to be far away.