Stand By Me

dos | commitment

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ANTONIO

"I NEVER THOUGHT so many people would come out for a marriage announcement," Serafina whispered in awe to the car window, her eyes glazing over at the masses of screaming, jubilant people waving gold and yellow Spanish flags in the air.  

           Antonio squeezed Serafina's hand while they were both in the private car set aside for them. Roberto, being the main man in this whole public marriage, had gone ahead in his own black vehicle in the royal motorcade. As tradition, the entire royal family were currently parading down the main streets of Madrid that led to the royal palace for the ceremony where Roberto would announce his arranged engagement to another Spanish heiress, Renata Julió. The motorcade was flanked by two royal guards dressed in all black, riding their own motorcycles beside each flag-bearing car. 

          He leaned into her side of the car, his chin just barely grazing her bare shoulder of a semi-revealing dress he was so enjoying. "I understand it perfectly. One half of the Guerrero twins off the market forever? I can already hear the crushing hearts of twelve year olds across Madrid." 

          "Roberto is a piece of work," Serafina nodded, "Renata doesn't deserve him." 

          "Roberto thinks so too." 

           She suddenly turned to him, and in the private area of the car, Antonio was wondering why she wasn't already all over him. If it weren't for the mass amounts of gold medallions and sashes Antonio was wearing, he would've been taking off his jacket in two seconds, like they have done so many times before. 

           "Do you remember what Father told me that sent me running off to Barcelona in the first place?" Her dark eyes were such a strong shade of ebony that Antonio couldn't see any hint of her pupils. She bore them into his. 

            Antonio shook his head, "No. Why?" He always wondered why her sudden trip to Barcelona had come up out of nowhere, seemingly out of the blue with heightened urgency. 

     She sighed, tearing apart their gaze and picking at the leather interior of the car. "He told me that if I didn't get my act up together soon, he wouldn't appoint me for the head of the company. Not only that but he's having a hard enough time being the current CEO in the first place. It's rough right now. He never lets on more than he needs to, but I can tell there's something wrong, something incredibly serious" 

          He brought a firm hand to cup her cheek, forcing her to look at him. "I'll talk to my father. They're close friends, he'll be able to do something. They're basically like cousins, he won't hesitate to help." 

           Serafina bit her lip, shaking her head before looking down at her lap. 

            "What? Serafina, what's wrong?" he leaned in. "Is it that bad?" 

           But there was no time to respond, because the motorcade had eventually crossed the iron gates of their Madrid palace and stopped at the front doors. This palace served as the formal living place of Antonio's family, but more often than not, they chose to live in one of their multiple manors or ranches far from the hub of the city. There were too many prying eyes, despite all of the guards. 

        Serafina wasted no time in getting out of the car, flawlessly floating on the ground on her five-inch stilletos. Antonio joined her momentarily, and as they held hands, he felt that searing feeling of power that their image together so rightly ensued. The pair strutted inside through the palace gates, but not before Antonio waved one last time to the steady drum of his people outside. He felt a forced tug on his hand, before he felt her slender fingers slip away. A separate guard was ushering Serafina into another wing of the palace, tugging at her to follow urgently.