A Person I'd Call My Liberty| Fyolai|

˚₊‧꒰ა ♱ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚Secret From Son to Father˚₊‧꒰ა ♱ ໒꒱ ‧₊˚

"I'll cut to the chase... do you have feelings for that boy?"

Fyodor froze. He had been glancing at Nikolai the whole dinner, but he didn't expect that his father would catch on. How would he explain this?! That he's in love with a boy he took in just the night before? That Nikolai is so beautiful that Fyodor wants to kiss all over his skin?! Fyodor let out a small sigh, shaking his head. Just the fact that his father had noticed his little gaze game made Fyodor tense up and feel nervous. Did that mean that the man knew just how much his son had fallen for this boy? Fyodor was already dreading the inevitable talk that would follow, but he could no longer avoid this. He simply bit his lip and stayed quiet for the moment. "Don't even bother lying to me," Fyodor's father suddenly spoke up again, his voice sounding a bit more stern this time. "Just tell me the simple answer... yes or no... do you? Do you have feelings for that Ukrainian boy?" Fyodor was now filled with a growing sense of dread... as if getting caught staring at the boy for a bit too long was one thing, but being directly confronted by his father about his feelings towards Nikolai was something entirely different. He was silent, not answering his father's question directly, which was answer enough.  "I knew it..." Fyodor's father spoke up again, this time with a slightly disappointed tone. "And you didn't intend to tell anyone, did you? Not even your mother?"

Fyodor still kept his silence, simply nodding his head at that. He couldn't admit it, but even the thought of admitting his feelings for that boy to his mother was terrifying to him. "You were planning on hiding this from all of us, weren't you?" Fyodor once again stayed silent, once again nodding his head this time. He couldn't deny that. He would've kept his feelings for Nikolai a secret forever if given the chance. Though now, that chance was being taken away from him... and he knew it wasn't entirely unfair either. Fyodor's father let out a small sigh, shaking his head in slight disappointment. "And your mother knows absolutely nothing about this?" he spoke up again, the worry in his voice being evident now. Fyodor shook his head once more, still keeping his eyes downward. He was already dreading what was about to happen next... and he knew there was no way to stop it now. "I see..." Fyodor's father spoke up again, this time sounding a bit more troubled than he was before. "You understand that this is not acceptable, right?" the Russian spoke up once more, his tone sounding strict now. Fyodor let out a small sigh, nodding his head again. He understood. he knew that this wouldn't be acceptable to his parents whatsoever... that was why he hadn't told anyone about this, and that was also why he intended on keeping things this way. "Do you think we'll just give permission for you to bring home a boy from another country and have you two fall in love? Do you think the rest of the family would accept it? Do you think the neighbors would accept it? Do you know just what would happen if this sort of relationship were to be made public around here?" Fyodor's father spoke harshly, making it clear that he wasn't going to stop until he got an answer out of his son.

Fyodor flinched slightly at the harshness in his father's voice, and he kept silent, not answering his question. He was right, he knew that. Even if he desperately wanted it to be true, he knew that no one else would accept what his feelings towards Nikolai were at the moment.  Fyodor kept silent, not saying anything else to that. He really did understand, it was just that the thought of giving up on Nikolai felt like one of the worst things he could do right now. Fyodor was feeling a mix of emotions, and it was hard to tell which was stronger... the dread of this talk, the disappointment his father clearly felt, or the desire to hold onto Nikolai despite everything happening. Fyodor's father sighed, trying to process this whole situation. He hadn't expected Fyodor to start catching feelings this quickly and now he had no idea how to fix this. Fyodor's father let out another small sigh, taking a deep breath before continuing to speak. "I understand your feelings for the boy... and I'm... I'm not going to say that I approve of it... but I'm not going to try to separate you two either," he spoke. Fyodor was surprised at hearing that. Did that... did his father really just say that? Was he really going to be allowed to keep talking with the boy that he liked? Fyodor let out a small sigh as he felt some of the tension leave his body slightly. He still understood that his father, and everyone else for that matter, did not approve of this relationship. But for the moment, no one was going to try to separate them. Fyodor kept silent for a moment, not sure how to respond to that.

"I'm going to ignore the fact that you kept this a secret from us," his father spoke up again, "because I don't believe it was with any malicious intent. But you have to know... if something like this comes out... if anyone else were to find out... we're going to have a very serious issue on our hands." Fyodor understood that, and once again, it filled him with that familiar feeling of dread. He hoped his feelings for Nikolai would stay a secret because he didn't want to lose the boy and he didn't want the entire family to know either. Fyodor took a deep breath, still trying to process what his father had told him. So as long as they kept this a secret, then no one would get in their way. But if anyone were to find out, then they'll really have to be careful. Fyodor let out a small smile, trying to hold back his relief just a bit. He could still keep talking to Nikolai... and no one would get in their way either. Sure, his feelings still weren't approved... but in the current moment, it was the best outcome he thought he could get. Fyodor held back a sigh as he kept quiet, doing his best to hide just how relieved he was at the moment. He kept quiet for a moment, trying to calm himself before speaking up again. "So... just to be clear, you're fine with me talking to the boy still, right?" he spoke up again, getting confirmation this time, just to be safe. Fyodor let out a small sigh, this time, it feeling a lot more like a sign of relief. This whole talk had turned out better than he had expected it to.He had been certain that his father would be the type to separate the two right away, but he didn't. He was actually going to let Fyodor keep talking to Nikolai... which was more than Fyodor had hoped for.

"I'm going to trust you on this... just don't do anything stupid," he spoke, with that same tone still present. Fyodor nodded once again, and this time, his father seemed to believe him. He let out another sigh, standing up and making his way out of the room.Fyodor finally let out a sigh of relief. Once his father left the room, Fyodor immediately relaxed a tiny bit more. Well, this was one obstacle over, now. Fyodor had feared that his father would try to separate him from the boy... but he didn't. All Fyodor had to do left was to make sure that not a soul found out about this relationship, and then they'd be fine. Fyodor's heart was still beating quicker than it normally had been, this time, for a rather relieved reason. He felt like he had dodged a huge bullet. And now... well, now he could continue to talk to his crush. Fyodor was suddenly feeling a lot happier than he had been earlier... and he was ready to find out more about the boy he'd recently saved. Fyodor soon stepped out of the room he was in, now going to look for Nikolai to see if he was still upstairs. He wanted to check on the boy again and see if he was okay, but he didn't want to take too long, now that he wasn't in trouble with his father. Fyodor quickly started to search the second floor, looking for the room that Nikolai had been staying in... and he found it rather quickly. He found the door open, which was odd... he was certain he'd heard the boy lock it earlier. Fyodor stepped inside, closing the door once he did so. Nikolai was still sitting on the floor, as if he never moved... his gaze was still focused on the floor, and Fyodor was feeling a bit worried now.

Fyodor walked over to the boy that he liked, taking a seat next to him, "Nikolai?" he spoke up. He waited for a moment... but to Fyodor's surprise, he got no response. Nikolai was still keeping quiet, which worried Fyodor even more. He let out a small sigh, "Nikolai, are you alright?"

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End of chapter 6!!

Word Count: 1573