She made quite the entrance, and Liliana instantly felt her back stiffen, but to her surprise, Frantz did not even bat and eyelash in Christina's direction. His mood did not change, and his attention remained on Liliana the entire time.
Lili also tried to distract herself, but every time she heard someone utter Christina's name, she felt her skin crawl. Throughout the night, the couple drank champagne, listened to speeches, shared a few dances, and laughed.
At one point near the end of the evening, Frantz received a call from his mother, and he had to step away.
In that moment, Liliana simply sipped on her drink and looked around as she wondered if she would ever get used to sights like these. Men in expensive suits, women in beautiful dresses, and lots of financial competition. Lost in her own thoughts, Liliana didn't notice Christina approach her table until she sat in the chair next to Liliana.
Christina had been watching the couple from afar, and she felt sick to her stomach when she noticed how Frantz openly displayed his relationship with Liliana. Christina never imagined Frantz would get over her, and yet here was this small town girl, taking Frantz away from her.
Well Christina wasn't having it. She didn't plan to approach Frantz, but instead aimed to rattle Liliana and freak her out. Hopefully scare her enough that Liliana would leave Frantz.
With a new plan in mind, Christina approached Liliana, while Frantz was still away on the phone call.
As soon as Christina sunk herself down in the chair next to Lili, Liliana tensed up, and Christina smiled as she said, "relax, you don't need to be so nervous around me. I don't bite. But do you know who does?" She questioned casually, as if she and Liliana were longtime friends.
Liliana dumbly shook her head in sign of 'no' and Christina leaned towards Lili as she whispered "Frantz". Liliana's eyes widened and she gulped uncomfortably as Christina pulled away and laughed then she added "yeah, as long as you want him to, he'll bite."
Through Christina's taunting, Liliana chose to remain silent. Lili was aware that she didn't have a good poker face, but she trusted her facial expressions more than her tongue, so at this point, silence was her best friend. Plus, Liliana had no reply to Christina's vulgar dialogue, and Christina took it as a sign to dig her claws further into Lili's vulnerability.
"Oh my, don't tell me you haven't been to bed with him yet." Christina exclaimed in a harsh whisper, as though it was a shameful thing to say.
Liliana looked away, drawing a frustrated breath through her nostrils, and Christina hid a devious smile behind her hand as she shook her head and feigned a frown while saying "Lili honey it just won't do. Do you know what I had to do to get him to propose to me. I had to show him the goods he would get for the rest of his life," Christina offered her unnecessary advice, which drove Lili up the wall. Liliana wanted to get up and walk away, but she saw that it would only prove to Christina that she had managed to unsettle her, and Lili didn't want that.
So she stayed put. She kept her mouth shut, but she stayed put.
Meanwhile, Christina kept on with her mental slaughter, "If you're not putting up anything, he might lose interest quicker than you can blink," Christina explained, and though Liliana told herself not to listen, she felt her heart plummet to the darkest pits of her stomach, as her soul tore apart with fear.
Liliana blinked quickly, her breath faltering, and Christina saw that as a sign to keep going, "You have to give him something that will make sure he won't go anywhere." Christina coached, and though Liliana hated this moment, her ears listened eagerly, while her heart began to jump in her chest.
"I'm telling you, show him what you got girl, or else, he'll go out hunting for someone more available. He's a man with needs," Christina said, growling to add emphasis on the 'needs', meanwhile Liliana felt as if it was getting hard to breathe with every passing second, "Don't you think it's a shame on your part to make him wait?" Christina blamed, and Liliana flinched internally as she blinked quickly, her breathing picking up the pace, as her chest began to heave softly, "You're forcing him to think about seeking pleasure elsewhere love." Christina continued innocently, as if she didn't have a clue that Liliana was crumbling beside her. She spoke as if she had Liliana's best intentions at heart.
Christina smiled internally with glee then she added one final line just to make sure her words stuck, "Don't keep him waiting too long, or you might lose him altogether-"
"Excuse me!" Liliana chocked out as she stood to her feet and rushed away.
Liliana rushed out of the ballroom just as Frantz was coming back. She crashed into his chest, and he held her waist to keep her from falling.
"Hey are you alright?" Frantz asked, as he noticed Liliana was breathing heavily, and her face was red as she attempted to hold back her tears.
"I want to go." Liliana declared, "NOW." She pushed and with a quick, "alright," Frantz led her out.
On the way to the hotel, Liliana did not say a word. She simply stared out the window, and attempted to gulp her tears away, but when they lodged in her throat, it created a painful lump which Lilian could not ignore.
Frantz could only imagine what may have caused Liliana to be this upset. He wanted to ask her what happened, but he figured it was best if he let her cool down first. Liliana could be as dangerous as an angry chihuahua when she was mad, and the last thing Frantz wanted was for her to stop the car and storm off, like she did once before.
When they reached the hotel, and Frantz opened the door to his suite, Lili didn't say a word. She quickly stormed past him and headed to her room and slammed the door shut as she breathed out in a mixture of short sobs and disgruntled heaves. She wanted to scream. The pressure of her anger pressed against her forehead, as Liliana stood still, placing a cold palm against her head as she closed her eyes and tried to slow her breathing.
She sniffled through her nostrils just as aggravated tears escaped her shaking eyelids, as she placed another hand on her stomach. She sobbed out quietly, pressing a hand against her lips to muffle her cries, meanwhile her head began to pound with a harsh headache.
Liliana shook her head in disappointment.
This is what she feared the most. She knew an experienced man such as Frantz would eventually want sex. And whether she was ready or not, Liliana believed what Christina said,. She hated herself for agreeing, but maybe she now believed she had to give something to Frantz to make him stick around.
Liliana was shaken from her thoughts when Frantz knocked on the door as he said, "hey babe, I'm just going to get ready for bed. I know you're angry, but I am giving you space. If you need to talk, you know where to find me, if not, then don't forget to pack, we're leaving bright and early tomorrow." When Frantz finished, he waited, but eventually, he received nothing.
Liliana didn't reply, and Frantz headed to his room.
Frantz was such a gentleman, he deserved to be treated right... right? Liliana couldn't possibly believe that she was considering this. But eventually, she forced herself to be believe that she had to compensate Frantz for his patience and troubles, and love. Wiping her nose and her trail of tears, Liliana looked to her reflection as she nodded, knowing exactly what she had to do.
Liliana removed her dress and jewelry. She took her hair out of it's do and slipped on a pair of pajamas which were easy to remove, but she kept her underwear on. Then after washing her face, and giving herself a pep talk, Liliana exited her room, and headed to Frantz's room. She entered without knocking and found him removing his shirt.
She approached him as he greeted "hey, is everything okay-mmh" his question was muffled at the end when Liliana simply flushed herself against his body and began to kiss him.
Frantz was ready to kiss her back but couldn't help but feel that the kiss felt forced.
He pulled away with a frown to ask, "hey are you okay?"
But Liliana refused to respond. Instead she pushed him down to sit on the bed, and she straddled him as she kissed him again. As she did so, her nose began to burn, her throat started to hurt with the lump of tears, but she pushed past every resistance.
"Wait- Lili-" Frantz tried to speak, but Liliana didn't give him the chance. She kissed him and began unbuttoned her shirt with trembling fingers, but then her tears began to spill uncontrollably, and there was no stopping. When Frantz felt something wet drip onto his shoulders, he pulled away just as Liliana opened her shirt to reveal her bra.
"Woah, woah, Lili babe slow down." Frantz rushed to stop her from going any further, while he held her hands. Liliana sobbed in frustration as she asked, "isn't this what you want? Something to keep you around?" And Frantz shook his head blinking as he said, "no, why would you think that?" But Liliana didn't reply. She searched his eyes in frustration for a sign that he was holding back from having sex with her, but he stared back with genuine worry. Realizing what she had done, Lili released a broken sobbed, then quickly covered her face with her palms, and quietly sobbed into them, as Frantz saw to bringing her shirt back together again. He buttoned it silently, then he clasped his hand around her wrists and pulled them from her face.
She looked down in shame, but Frantz refused to let it go, as he placed a hand under her chin and looked into her eyes as he said, "I never, ever, want you to feel pressured about doing anything you're not ready for. Liliana, you're it for me. I have nowhere else to go. I don't want to go anywhere else." He declared softly, as he wiped her tears away. And Liliana pouted, so confused as to why and how she let Christina get to her. She was stronger than this, Liliana knew that she was stronger than this.
Frantz looked into Lili's eyes adoringly. He caressed her face, then he kissed her nose, and her wet cheeks, as he declared "I love you for you. Not for sex, not for your body, but for you, and what's in here," he tapped the area above her heart, "and here," he tapped to the side of her head, "everything else comes after." He finished, and then he kissed her.
He didn't kiss her out of lust. He didn't kiss her out of want. He kissed her to convince her and to seal his words.
He meant it when he said that she was it for him.
As his lips laid against her softly, Liliana felt the last of her tears pour out. He loved her.
When they pulled away, Lili blushed in shame and looked away, a new set of fresh tears burning through her eyes, and down her cheeks. She couldn't believe what she had come so close to doing.
Frantz noticed her crying, and he whispered, "come here". He pulled her into his arms, and she cocooned her face in the crook of his neck, while his arms caged her in. He laid on his back, her upper body resting on him, and he simply caressed his hand over her back, while Lili seemed comfortable in his arms and against his warm skin.
Eventually they both fell asleep. And Liliana couldn't have asked, for a better first time in bed with Frantz.