darling {c.l.}

t w e n t y f o u r

I sit in the cold uncomfortable bedside chairs where I've sat for the past 2 days, 2 days since Charles was shot, 2 days since my father shot him, 2 days since I've last seen his beautiful eyes,

Two days, 48 hours, 2880 minutes.

I've hardly eaten, Pascale has come to check on me every hour or two, Philipe hasn't been seen, Arthur and Lorenzo are always close by as Mick and Robert have stood guarding the room since Charles returned from surgery, the bullet was lodged in his lung but they had managed to remove the bullet and reseal his lung without significant liquids getting into his lungs, according to the doctors, he was extremely lucky.

They tried to look at my injuries, but I refused to leave his bedside. The doctor then came in and checked to make sure nothing was broken, I had a few scratches and bruises but nothing serious since Charles pushed me under the table.

I attempt to readjust in the chair trying to get comfortable again as I watch Charles, he lays peacefully in the hospital bed, I look around the room and notice the bloody clothes on the other side of the room, Pascale brought me a change of clothes shortly after he got out of surgery, I think she knew I wouldn't want to leave his side, not wanting me to be uncomfortable in my clothes that were basically soaked through from his blood.

I fumble with the engagement ring around my finger, a habit that quickly developed without even realising it. As I sit in the cold silent room, I hear the door click before squeaking open, I quickly snap my head around to see my father standing in the doorway, I immediately jump up with my gun in hand pointing it at him.

"You have a lot of balls showing up here, surprised they even let you through the front gate" I snarl at him, anger evident on my face.

"they patted me down and confiscated all weapons I had on me" he replies emotionless looking me up and down before continuing "i'm not the one you should be threatening Tesoro" he smirks as I cock the gun, showing how serious I am

"You're the one who shot and nearly killed my fiancé, I say you're exactly the person I should be threatening. Frankly I should just shoot you now, but us both out of our misery, but I'd much rather watch you suffer and have the cancer kill you instead" I snarl again taking a step towards him angrily.

"You dont actually mean that Francesca, I'm your father"

"I mean every fucking word, understand this too. The Leclerc family will never work with you again, consider this your notification, all ties between the Leclerc and Gambino family are officially cut, professional and personal alike" I growl looking him up and down, he scoffs not takin my words seriously

"You're in no positi-" he starts but I quickly cut him off

"Need I remind you who I'm marrying? Thanks to you? The deals are off, now get the fuck off the property before I feed you to the sharks" I growl.

"Dont come calling back to me Tesoro when you're broke and heartbroken" he coldly laughs before turning around and walking out of the recovery room. I sit back down and rest my face in my hands as I feel tears start rolling down my cheeks. I Hear the door open again, I look up and see Pascale walk into the room.

"Pascale, ça-va? combien de temps es-tu resté là?" I ask her quickly wiping the tears from my face.

"I'm alright dear, I heard everything. I'm so sorry" she says cautiously taking a step closer, I rest my face in my hands letting out a unsteady breath trying not to start crying again.

"Oh Francesca, cherié, he never deserved you" Pascale says sitting down next to me and starts rubbing a hand up and down my back. "You're so beautiful and talented, Charles loves you so much and I love you like a daughter" she says as I look up between her and Charles laying peacefully on the bed. "You never have to worry about being alone again, we all love you and we protect our own" she says pulling me into her arms for a hug, similar to how a mother would comfort a small child, and I attempt to keep my emotions under control so I'm able to reply to her kind words.

"merci Pascale it really means a lot, I'm just scared that I'm going to loose him, at the hands of my father to make it worse" I mumble in her shoulder as I feel her comfortingly rub her hand up and down my back, we both sit in silence for a few moments before pulling away and I reach out to hold Charles hand, its slightly cold but it's still his.

"our Charles is a fighter, he will be just fine, I promise you Francesca, how long has it been since you slept dear?" She asks, I look down, as if I'm silently answering her question.

"Get some rest sweetheart, you've been here for days. I'll stay here and you will be my first call if he wakes up alright?" She asks, I silently nod before standing and leaning over and press a light kiss to Charles' forehead before hesitantly letting go of his hand and walk out of the room.

"Wake me up if he wakes up? Please?" I ask Mick as I walk out of the room.

"Of course, go get some rest Fran, you've slept less than I have" he chuckles in reply as I walk out of the infirmary and I walk down the hallway to see all the blood on the marble floors cleaned up, I walk past the conference room and see it has been completely cleaned, as if nothing had happened.

I quietly make my way upstairs down the eerily quiet hallways before opening our bedroom door, I look down at my attire and decide to take a shower, I walk around the room as if I was on autopilot as I grab some undergarments and one of Charles sweaters.

I walk into the ensuite bathroom and immediately turn on the shower to let it heat up, I look down at my hands to see the faint remnants of Charles' blood still on them, I look up in the mirror and see my disheveled appearance, my hair disgustingly oily, tied up and probably with remnants of blood in it. The dark circles under my eyes are disturbingly prevelant, the fact I haven't slept in 2 days incredibly obvious on my face. I slowly strip down before stepping into the shower and my tense muscles immediately relax, enjoying the relaxation of the hot water.

I loose track of time in the shower but I eventually step out and dry myself off before changing into the clothes I had laid out before hand, the smell of Charles cologne filling my senses. I walk into the bedroom and stare at the bed for a moment before walking closer and climbing in on Charles side of the bed, wanting to be enveloped by his familiar scent with how empty the bed feels, the second my head hits the pillow, my eyes get heavy and I drift off to sleep almost immediately in the unfamiliarly cold bed.