Model!FrancexReader~The Natural Artifice~Ch 9

The Natural Artifice~Ch 9~

F-Francis is…

What were you supposed to do in a situation like this? Were you supposed to kiss back? Were you supposed to just sit there? Hold on. Did you actually want this?

Well, at least you didn't have to answer any of those questions just yet because Francis' lips left yours before you had a chance to make a decision.

"Did I startle you, ____________?" Francs asked in an unusually honest voice. This was a different side of him. You hadn't seen this before. That time at your own family's winery was different yet at the same time, he could act very open about romanticism and other blatant and vulgar things. You realized that you didn't really know too much about Francis' real individualistic self. He was, to be blunt, an enigma.

"I…" you began. You touched your lips gently with your fingers to make sure it was actually real. It was like the kiss had left a lasting mark on its surface. It had to be real.

"I wasn't startled," you said quietly with a smile. "It was unexpected, but it didn't come on too much as a shock."

Francis arched his eyebrows. "It didn't, now, you say?" He chuckled and brought his hand to the back of your head. "Then I don't suppose you would mind if we did that again?"

You blinked. Your face felt like it was steaming from the blood that was rushing to your cheeks.

"Well?" Francis asked gently stroking your (h/c) hair.

A smile crept across your lips.

"I'd love to," you answered.

-----

"Where were you two?" Michelle asked when you and Francis returned with the bottle of 1975 Xinomavro Karpusi.

Your face began to grow red-hot so you looked to Francis for some answers.

"Ohonhonhon~" Francis laughed. "Here and there."

Perhaps it wasn't the best idea to let him do the talking because he received odd looks from Gilbert and Antonio.

You sighed. "Remember when he cooked us that chicken dish when we went to my house?" Everyone nodded. "Well, he used a really expensive bottle of wine so he gave me this one in its place."

"Qué? What sort of wine was it?" Antonio asked.

"A 1975 Xinomavro Karpusi," you said.

"A what?!" Gilbert cried. "Zhat's a really good bottle! Francis, you dumpkoff! Why didn't you just serve it to us straight up?! You served it in chicken, for crying out loud! Chicken!"

Suddenly, you remembered Gilbert hadn't touched the chicken when Francis had cooked it.

"It's part of mein diet restriction," he had told you and Michelle. Now, you were thinking it had something to do with his pet, Gilbird.

"Sorry, Gilbert," you said with a slight laugh. "Even I didn't know Francis used this kind of wine until after dinner."

"Scheisse," Gilbert cursed disappointedly.

"Ah, speaking of dinner, is anyone hungry?" Francis asked.

Gilbert and Antonio were always hungry. You and Michelle indirectly admitted you were, too.

-----

"You didn't eat that much, ___________," Antonio said taking a sip of wine that Francis offered everyone.

"I wasn't that hungry," you said unconvincingly as you were caught off-guard.

"___________," Antonio stretched out your name. "I thought you were going to stop when you got into the fashion show."

You clutched your satiated stomach. When Francis had told you of how much he valued your natural beauty, you felt like it wasn't necessary to make any more changes to your diet. Plus, his cooking was superb. Something must've been wrong with Antonio's judgment.

"I'm being serious, Toni," you insisted. "I'm fine."

You Spanish friend leaned over and gave you a long, hard stare with his emerald eyes. "You know we like you for who you are," he said. "I don't see why you're so self-conscious."

You raised your eyebrow. "You all like me as in…?"

That caught Antonio off-guard. "Uh, I mean we like you as a friend and as you are right now as a model!" he answered in an unusually loud voice.

"Oh." You sighed in relief. For a moment, you were afraid Antonio was claiming that the entire Bad Touch Trio like-liked you.

Antonio hiccupped.

"Toni, did you drink it too fast?" you giggled.

"Of didn't, I course," he slurred.

Oh dear, you thought amusingly.

It might've been fun to watch Antonio get drunk. You had seen Gilbert do it plenty of times, but it wasn't the best thing to observe. Francis drank responsibly, but he knew how to hold his alcohol if he needed to.

Okay, maybe it wasn't a good idea to see Antonio drunk after all. It definitely wasn't a good idea to be around him when he got drunk.

"____________..." Antonio mumbled and slung his arm over your shoulder leaning his full weight on you.

"Toni, are you okay?" you asked worriedly. He responded with an exaggerated nod.

"Te amo, did you know that?" he asked.

You frowned. "I didn't catch that first bit."

"Ah, lo siento," Antonio apologized. You couldn't tell if he was being serious or not. "It means, 'I love you' in Spanish."

Your heart began to pound. "R-Really…?"

"Sí," Antonio mumbled and sipped the rest of his wine.

Uh-oh, you thought. I think he's had too much to drink.

Your assumption was only proven true when he barely missed your cheek and planted his lips on your palm.

"Toni…I think maybe you should sit down or something," you suggested nervously.

"Don't be like that, ____________," Antonio laughed. Then he hiccupped again.

You made a face. Where did the others go?

Oh, that's right, you remembered. Francis is giving Michelle a quick tour of the vineyard because it's nice and cool right now. And Gilbert is… Where exactly did Gilbert run off to?

"I have an idea, Toni," you said taking Antonio's empty glass and setting it down on the table that was provided for the patio. "Let's go look for Gilbert while Francis and Michelle are away. What do you say?"

"Sí! That sounds like a plan!" Antonio smiled idiotically and hugged you around your waist. He hiccupped yet again.

You rolled your eyes and headed back to the Bonnefoy Winery. Note to self, ____________. When Gilbert gets drunk, he plays hard. When Toni gets drunk, he gets sentimental—too sentimental.

-----

"We looked all over the house and the winery!" you groaned in frustration. All the while, you had to keep lip-blocking your tipsy Spanish friend. You didn't want to be kissed by two members of the Bad Touch Trio in one day.

I wonder if these guys are actually starting to live up to their name, you thought amusingly just before pushing Antonio away.

"Toni, if you were Gilbert, where do you think he could've gone?" you asked trying to distract him from doing anything stupid.

"I'd be right here, señorita!" Antonio said with a smile.

Oh great. Now he's forgetting my name?

"That's great and all, but Gilbert is not here," you reminded your friend just in case. "Come on, Toni. Keep yourself together now."

"I wonder how Diablo's doing," Antonio blurted out suddenly.

"I wouldn't know, Toni," you chuckled. Even though he was extremely clingy when buzzed, he still said amusing things. "I've never met Diablo before."

"Ah, but you haven't seen Pierre or Gilbird, either," Antonio also said almost-randomly.

Pierre…Gilbird…Why do they sound like they could be important right now? you wondered. Then it hit you.

"Toni, you're a genius!" you beamed and began to drag him out of the Bonnefoy Winery.

"Where are we going, señorita?" Antonio asked forgetting to address you by your name again.

"I think I know where Gilbert is!"

-----

And you were right.

"Here you are!" you cried in triumph when you and Antonio arrived at the chicken coop. A surprised Gilbert turned around to see you and a buzzed, more-than-sentimental Spaniard standing in the entrance.

"V-Vhat are you guys doing here?" he asked in a high, accented voice.

"You just up and disappeared on us, Gilbert," you replied. You groaned when Antonio leaned on your shoulder. "And do you think you could do something about your friend, here? I think he had a little too much wine." After you shoved Antonio away, you walked inside the chicken coop to see what Gilbert was up to.

"So why are you here of all places?" you asked quietly not wanting to disturb the sleeping hens.

You saw a smile—not a smirk—cracked across his lips.

"I just wanted to see these little guys again," he answered in a hushed voice pointing to the nest you saw earlier. You hovered over Gilbert so you could get a better look. From underneath a hen's down feathers, you were able to make out small lumps of fuzz and fluffy down.

"Aww, Gilbert, I didn't think you really cared about chicks that much," you giggled and ruffled the Prussian's silvery white hair.

"I already told you, ___________," he chuckled. "I like both kinds."

"Ah." You remembered him saying that from earlier this morning. You redirected your gaze on the new mother hen and her chicks. "So what's Gilbird like? I mean, it seems like you really like birds."

"He was awesome in every single way," Gilbert answered.

You blinked. "Was?"

"Ja," Gilbert nodded. He paused for a few seconds. "He died of old age a few years ago."

"Oh…" Now you just felt foolish. "Gilbert, I'm so sorry. I didn't know…"

"That's alright," he said redirecting his ruby eyes on the chicks. "I didn't expect you to know because I never told anyone else outside of Francis and Toni."

"Still…!" your voice trailed off.

Gilbert chuckled. "I told you, ___________! It's alright!" He got up from his knees and brought you up. "I think we need to go take care of Toni now."

"I agree," you giggled.

"Und, I think we should also go back to see where Francis and Michelle went," Gilbert added.

"Yep," you nodded and followed Gilbert out of the chicken coop. Antonio was passed out on the dirt snoring softly and murmuring something about "churros" and "tortugas" and "tomates."

-----

When you did get back to the patio where you guys were supposed to meet up with Francis and Michelle, they weren't anywhere to be seen. You suggested that you leave Antonio behind and go search the vineyard with Gilbert.

"Where did they go?" you wondered aloud.

"They couldn't have gone far," Gilbert concluded. Suddenly, he stopped you in the middle of the grapevines and turned to you.

"____________, where were you and Francis this afternoon? Tell me the truth."

"Huh? We were…" You pointed to the far end of the grapevines to where the shady groves of trees were. "He took me over there."

"Then that's probably where they went," Gilbert concluded. He grabbed your hand and quickened his pace. "And what were you two doing over there?"

You swallowed. You weren't sure you wanted to answer that just yet so you remained silent. To your relief, Gilbert didn't pry you for answers.

When you arrived at the grove, you saw Francis and Michelle, but what they were doing was something you didn't want to see. You wanted to turn your eyes away, but you were frozen in disbelief. Even after Gilbert called out Francis and Michelle's names, their lips remained locked together in a kiss.