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    Inside the train, Gwen stands da the door looking dejected. Her cuore is aching and she doesn’t even know how to contain the pain. It creeps, leaving her dizzy. ‘Did I say all those things? Did I really say that?’ she thinks, trying to recall what has happened. Everything seems like a dream, but the pain she feels in her cuore is real. She drops her bag, clutches her cuore and slumps to the ground. Tears are rolling down, wetting her neck and her camicia but she doesn’t care about it anymore. Her breathing is coming in rapidly as she tries to restrain her tears but the pain in her cuore increases as she remembers each and every word she told Arthur. ‘I broke his heart… I broke him,’ she thinks as she slams her head against the bacheca of the coach. ‘I’m sorry, Arthur… I’m so sorry,’ she thinks again and slams her head again and again until she felt slightly dizzy.
    But the tears keep flowing down her cheek. Her lips tremble as she buries her face in her hands and cries her cuore out. She knows Arthur will never forgive her, but she didn’t have a choice. She wouldn’t have done it if she wasn’t forced, she would never hurt him even in her dreams, but now, not only has she broken his cuore but she has shattered his strength as well. She fears for him. Will he be all right? Will he revert back to his old prattish self o will the rejection make him stronger? Gwen doesn’t know and she will never be able to find out from anyone… perhaps maybe from Merlin. One day.
    Gwen looks up, her eyes swollen and painful. Merlin is the only one who’ll believe her. He is the only one suspicious of her behavior and he could be her only hope to find out about Arthur. But how will she do it? How can she ask Merlin without anyone else finding out? più tears flow from her already swollen eyes and Gwen’s cuore aches like it is being ripped into shreds. She wishes none of this happened.
    Why did she have to say all this to Arthur? Why did she have to face his wrath when their happiness was just a week away? Why is life so unfair to her? What did she do to deserve such a punishment? Where did she fail? domanda after domanda floods her brain until she feels sick to her stomach. Something rings; her phone. Gwen sniffs and picks up her phone, her eyes reddening further when she spots Uther’s name on it. She wants to throw the phone away but she knows she must tell him what happened. She clicks on the phone and brings it to her ears.
“You didn’t call me! What happened?” Uther barks on the phone.
“It’s done… like te wanted!”
“You were supposed to inform me the moment te were done with him… not me calling te to find out!”
Gwen feels her cuore ache. Her brain snaps in anger and she closes her eyes, to calm herself. “It’s done. He is on the way to meet you,”
“Meet me… now, what have te done?”
“I didn’t do anything. I told him te paid me to act and he probably wants clarification from you. I told him to ask you.”
“What! Are te stupid, Gwen? I told te to leave me out of this and now look what you’ve done! Arthur’s going to think I’m part of this and will hate me again. I told te to make this look as if te are doing this…”
“What the hell was I supposed to do?” Gwen shouts on the phone, silencing Uther on the other side. “Do te think Arthur’s stupid? Do te think your son will fall for any cock and toro story that comes out from my mouth? No, he will not. Arthur’s smarter than that. He will find out no matter how long it takes and I have to make it look as if it was all planned up and I had to use your name to cement the lies!! If te don’t want to be part of it then te shouldn’t have been involved in the first place!!” she adds, snapping angrily on the phone.
“How dare you…”
“Look, Uther. The moment te told me to leave your son and offered me money to do so, te Lost any respect I might have had for you. Big time… understand? Now te and I are bound da nothing… I can snap, shout and even bark at te like I please. So don’t tell me that I should watch my mouth because I won’t. And listen here, old man… te have a wonderful son. Take care of him… because if I hear that Arthur’s suffering because of you, I will come for you. Get it?”
Uther laughs on the other side of the line, irking Gwen. “So… te still care for him?”
“I Amore Arthur and I will always Amore him. te can buy him from me, Uther, but te can never buy my Amore away. Till I die… till the last breath leaves my soul, I will Amore him. As he will of me.”
“After what you’ve done to him, I doubt that!”
“Don’t speak o assume things te don’t know o understand, Uther. Amore is not just a feeling we feel for one another. It’s our cuore beat. It will be with us till we die, no matter what happens along the way. It will always be with us, reminding us. Arthur and I might have gone our separate ways but he will always Amore me, I know that. He can marry anyone he likes o is told to, but I will always be his first true Amore and I can be proud of that. This is one thing te can never buy, Uther Pendragon. No wealth in your empire can afford this… te think you’ve won. No, I won. I have been the winner all the while.”
“I can crush you, Gwen… remember that!”
“Isn’t that what te do best, Uther? Look… I haven’t got the time to talk to you, nor am I in the mood to deal with your arrogance. I have done what te wanted me to, so… be a man and act like a father. I have dato your son back to you, take care of him. At least for once, be the man your wife wanted te to be!! Goodbye, Uther. This will be our last conversation, so… go to hell!!” with that Gwen shuts the phone and throws it outside. She leans against the bacheca and heaves a huge sad sigh. Merlin had been right all the time. He has warned her not to trust Uther and she had completely ignored his advice. She fell for the trap, and in the end; she’s paying the heavier price. If only she had listened to Merlin. Gwen closes her eyes and recalls the unfortunate giorno she spent in Uther’s office.


Flashback to couple of weeks earlier …
    
Gwen is waiting for Uther in his office. She is delighted that the transfer is finally sanctioned after being halted due to some invalid information. Thankfully Reagan had asked Uther to interfere and now her biggest worry is solved. She thought of calling him to thank him but the help he has just offered requires better than a phone call and she decides to pay him a visit. As she looks around, the door opens and Uther walks in. Gwen stands up immediately.
    “No, no… Gwen. Sit down please,” Uther says and circles the table, pulls out the chair and sits down.
    Gwen sits down and smiles. “I came da to say thank te for your help a while ago. They detto te helped to sanction the transfer. Without your interference, they would have rejected the transfer. So… thank you.”
    “Come on Gwen … we are family, are we not?” Uther smiles. “Do te want anything to drink?”
    “No, I should be getting back. I left work in a hurry and Gaius must be worried about me,” Gwen says and gets up.
    “No I think te should be più worried about what I have to say now than your work, sweetheart. Sit down.” Uther says, flatly, tapping his fingers against his tavolo lightly.
    Gwen feels the air around them changes slightly and sits down, looking at Uther sharply.
    Uther smiles and leans back against his chair. “So, how much do te need to let my son go?”
    “What?” Gwen didn’t understand the domanda o why did Uther’s voice change suddenly.
    “I think I was very precise with my question, Gwen. I can write te a cheque now … a blank cheque. te just have to fill in the numbers.”
    “Are te trying to buy me?”
    “I need my son back in my life but without you. We are Pendragons and we don’t tolerate people of your class in our home. I want te to leave my son and head back to the shack te came from. How much do te need for that?”
    Gwen laughs. “I think te are really sick and desperate. te will go to any length to get Arthur back to you, wouldn’t you?”
    “Any length, whatever necessary.”
    “And I feel sad for te because the answer is no. Thank te for the offer, but the answer is a big no, with a capital N and O! te can never buy my Amore for him away… have a nice giorno Mr. Uther,” Gwen gets up and prepares to leave but Uther’s laugh stops her short.
    “I thought te might say this and which is why I came prepared with plan B. I tried to be nice, Gwen, but te wouldn’t have it, so I have to shift back being nasty once again. te really think your friend has the money already?”
    “What do te mean?”
    “Call Morgana and ask if she has received the money? Go on… call her,”
    Gwen pulls out her phone and dials Morgana’s number. She brings the phone to her ears and waits, her cuore beating fast. Her eyes fixed upon him. ‘If he’s lying …’
    “Hello?”
    “Hello, Morgana?”
    “Gwen… God, thank goodness te called.” Morgana sounds nervous. And it isn’t good news for Gwen.
    “Morgana, did te check your account? Has the money been transferred?”
    “No, I checked it twice after te called saying the money has been transferred but it’s not there. So I thought I might as well wait since some accounts take hours, but it’s been three hours already and the account is still empty, Gwen! I am scared… I really need the money, Gwen, please!”
    “Are te sure Morgana, have te tried again?”
    “Don’t waste your friend’s time, Gwen,” Uther says and Gwen tosses him a look of disgust.
    “Morgana, I’ll call te back.” She ends the conversation. “All right, is this all your doing?” she points at him, feeling disgust.
    “Don’t get angry, Gwen, I told te I tried nicely but te cooperate, so sometimes one has to play dirty to get things rolling. And I specialize in that. Now, your friend didn’t receive the money, did she?”
    “No!”
    “And I can help there… but one condition. te must exchange Arthur for the money. Deal?”
    ‘What the …’ Gwen thinks. “Forget it!”
    “Fine, we’ll sacrifice your friend’s life for Arthur then. Good bye!” Uther picks up his phone.
    “Wait… what are te doing? Who are te calling?”
    “That’s none of your business, Gwen. te can marry Arthur, te made your decisions clear on that, so… let me just say that the money no longer needs to be transferred.”
    “Don’t!! I need the money!”
    “Then hand Arthur back to me!”
    “I can’t… I Amore him!”
    “Love o life, Gwen, the ball’s in your court. te save a life through Arthur, think about it that way.”
    Gwen feels like her cuore is being ripped out. What the hell in going on with Uther? He had been so nice to her weeks fa and now he’s behaving like a total arse. “Why are te doing this to me? I Amore your son and I can adjust in your family,” Gwen pleads.
    “It’s not the subject of te adjusting well in mine, Gwen, it’s about dignity, status and class. I can’t have a lower class daughter-in-law, Gwen… imagine all the domande I would need to answer, the humiliation I would have to face… the status of the Pendragons would be tarnished da your presence. I can’t have that. te can never fit in Gwen, never. Trust me; it will hurt te and me and above all Arthur. So to save te from all that pain, I’m asking te nicely to let Arthur go from your life. There are plenty of men out there who’ll fit in your life well… just let Arthur go. That’s all I need.”
    ‘Let Arthur go!’ the words replays in her mind like a record player. She can’t imagine a life without Arthur and now his father is demanding one in exchange for her friend’s life. How will she do it? How will she deal with it? “This isn’t fair… using my friend to blackmail me isn’t fair, Mr. Uther!”
    “Life isn’t always fair, dear. Now, I haven’t much time… so, what do te say? Arthur o the life of your friend? If te choose Arthur, you’ll be tormented da the guilt of ending a life. te wouldn’t want that, would you?” Uther asks, looking straight at Gwen.
    Gwen doesn’t know how to answer him. She knows Morgana needs the money urgently but to lose Arthur in order to help her friend is killing her silently. Gwen knows she can never live without Arthur but if she chooses him, Morgeuse will be dead and Morgana will be devastated. And it would be her fault. Morgana trusted her… how can Gwen disappoint her now? And what would she tell Morgana? Gwen shakes her head.
    “So, it’s Arthur then I suppose?” misinterpreting Gwen’s head shake as a sign.
    “Don’t torture me, please!” Gwen shouts, covering her head with her hands. Tears roll down her cheek. The prospect of losing Arthur is looming large and she knows she doesn’t have all giorno to make her choice. It’s a case of a life against her love. Sacrificing Arthur in order to save a life would mean she’d be free of that guilt, but at the end, she’ll lose Arthur. She’ll be alone, hurt and miserable. She’ll be burdened instead da the guilt of losing Arthur and lying to him. She doesn’t know how to decide. This is madness. This is torment. She pounds her fist against her head, silencing the throb that starts to penetrate through her skull.
    “Arthur then!” Uther picks up the phone but Gwen rushes over and stops him, holding the phone tightly. Her eyes are bloodshot and she looks at Uther in fear.
    “No, please… I’ll… I’ll give up…” the name takes a long time to appear. “Arthur!” she finally says.
    Uther smiles and puts down the phone. He fishes out his hand phone and calls a number. Bringing the phone to his ears, he smiles at Gwen. But Gwen looks at him in disgust. “Reagan? It’s all done. te can carry on with the transfer,” he instructs. Gwen’s eyes widen hearing the name.
    ‘Reagan?’ she thinks. ‘Is he part of the plan?’ she thinks again. Her cuore hurts and she closes her eyes to shut out the pain. This is all a dream and she will soon wake up from it. Someone snaps their finger in front of her. She opens her eyes and notices Uther looking at her, smiling.
    “It’s all done, Gwen. Your friend should have the money da now. If te don’t believe me, te can call her up and find out.”
    Gwen’s fingers tremble as she searches for Morgana’s number and clicks it. The line is immediately picked up da her friend. “Morgana?”
    “Gwen?”
    “The money is transferred, Morgana… te should be able to use it.”
    “Are te all right, Gwen? te sound sick.”
    “I’m fine…” Gwen lies, wiping away her tears. “Just check if you’ve received your money.”
    “Really? Wait, let me check it…”
    “Call me when te have,” Gwen says and ends the call. She feels sick and amaro in her heart. She no longer feels like living; after all what would her life means if Arthur is not part of it. Her head throbs and her knees wobble like jelly, threatening to collapse. She clutches to the edge of the tavolo to keep herself from falling.
    “Shall I ask someone to drive te home?”
    “I’m fine! I don’t want anything from you!” she snaps at him and feels più tears flooding her eyes. She wishes to go home but her feet won’t budge. It looks like she’s glued to the floor for good.
    “Come on, Gwen. There’s no need to get angry with me… this is for your own good,”
    “There’s no good for me o Arthur in this… only you.”
    “Now, that’s not true. Arthur will get a better life, lead a più respectable life with someone of his own status and your friend will have her sister back. And what più can te ask?”
    “What about me? I have to endure this agony for the rest of my life!”
    “Now… do te think I’ll let go off te without a reward?”
    Gwen turns around, clearly confused.
    Uther smiles and points at the table, where a suitcase filled with money lay open, revealing all the bills inside. “This is for te Gwen. A reward for your sacrifice. Take this and lead a better life.”
    “I told te already that te can never buy me!”
    “No, I guessed I couldn’t, but… this is just a reward. After all, te sacrificed your Amore and that requires remarkable compensation,” Uther says.
    “You’ve already done that for Morgana…”
    “That’s for Arthur… this is for you. I just want to make sure te benefit from this as well… I hate to think of te being left out,” Uther explains. “And I also want to make sure te don’t hold on to your sacrifice to get back to me… te know, when te get desperate. Knowing you… I might as well be prepared,”
    Gwen laughs bitterly. “You don’t have to worry, Uther Pendragon. When I promise, I hold on to my promise. When I say I will let Arthur go, I will do just that. But I don’t need your pathetic money for me… like I said, te can never buy me o my love, and I don’t need te having something to lord over me. Goodbye!” Gwen barks and strides towards the door.
    “Are te sure about this?” Uther calls from behind. “This money can keep te happy forever, Gwen. te wouldn’t have to work at all.” He snickers.
    “You can take your money and stick it where the sun doesn’t shine,” Gwen snaps coldly, then picks up a vase from the tavolo beside the door and heaves it at Uther. He dodges it, the sneer still on his face.
    “Whatever te say.”
    And with that Gwen left the office, tears still flowing down her cheek. As she passes through the huge sliding door, her phone rings. It was Morgana.
    “Gwen… thank te so much, the money is the in the bank. I can get it to Morgause… thank te so much. I Amore you.”
    “Glad to have helped, Morgana. See te later.” And Gwen slumps down da the side of the lamp post, clutching her stomach, crying her cuore out.


    Arthur pounds the back of the sede, sedile with his fist, angrily as the car swerves in to the huge yard that leads to the exclusive manor of the Pendragons. Gwaine clenches his cheek, listening to his friend’s cries while Merlin sits slumped in sadness. Behind him, Arthur is still kicking and pounding the sede, sedile with his feet and hands, lashing out his anger. His cuore is shattered, hurt and extremely broken beyond words. He feels empty inside. He no longer feels for him o anyone. All he does feel is the sense of emptiness, lingering in him.
    “Damn te Guinevere!” Arthur slams the sede, sedile beside and buries his head on the seat.
    “Arthur… calm yourself,” Gwaine advices as he quickly glances back.
    “How can I, Gwaine… how can I? She killed me with her words… and yet, I still Amore her!”
    “Get over it, Arthur… te heard her! She never loved you!”
    “We don’t know that for sure, Gwaine,” Merlin says from beside him.
    “Didn’t te hear everything, Merlin? Didn’t te hear the words she laid on Arthur?”
    “I heard her, Gwaine, but I know she loves him,” Merlin risposte sadly but still not looking at Gwaine. “I am worried about her. Something is suspicious.”
    “Yeah… well, te should be worried about Arthur, because she just broke his heart!”
    “Gwaine… come on!” Merlin turns to look at Gwaine. “Give her a break, too. We don’t know what her side of the story really is… and there’s no point in jumping to conclusions.”
    “Merlin! Look… if te want to go ahead and believe she is hiding something, da all means do it, but I will not because Arthur’s my friend and I will not betray him like she did… and te shouldn’t either!”
    “I’m not betraying Arthur.”
    “Then don’t!” Gwaine snaps at Merlin angrily forcing Merlin to coil back into his sadness. Gwaine concentrates on the road and in minuti brings the car to a halt in front of the huge doorway. Gwaine pulls his handbrake and glances at Merlin before turning around to meet Arthur. “We are here Arthur,” he says.
    Without a word, Arthur pushes the door open with a bang and steps out. He doesn’t even bother to close the door and climbs up the steps and enters. Gwaine sighs and steps out but Merlin doesn’t do the same.
    “Aren’t te coming?”
    “No… te go ahead,” Merlin risposte and Gwaine doesn’t press. Today’s events are far too bizarre to be described and if Merlin wants to have his moment alone, so be it. Gwaine closes the door behind him and enters the manor.


    “Father?” Arthur calls loudly, entering the main hall. “Father!! Dad!!!” he calls again. But no one seems to be around, not even Geoffrey. Arthur searches for his father in all the rooms he knows his father might be in, including Uther’s study, but the old man isn’t there either. Arthur is angry. He kicks the chair in the study as hard as possible and walks out to the window. As he nears it, he spots his father, standing da the fountain. Arthur pounds the window pane and rushes out. As he hurries out he passes Geoffrey but he doesn’t stop da to greet the old butler.
    Uther is looking at a dying plant when he hears footsteps behind him. He knows to whom they belong, but he keeps looking at the plant.
    “Father?” Arthur calls the moment he comes to stand behind his father.
    Uther turns around slowly, his face pale and weary. He might be entering his late fifties but never looked that part until now, with all the guilt and burden placed on his shoulders, Uther suddenly looks his age. “Arthur?”
    “You didn’t come to see me in the hospital.”
    “I know… I’m sorry,”
    “Are te also sorry for what te have done to me?”
    “Arthur…” Uther steps closer with his arms extended but Arthur steps back, his eyes red in anger. He shakes his head.
    “I am sorry… I didn’t mean for it to happen like this…” Uther says sadly.
    “So, te know. That was fast!” Arthur teases bitterly.
    “I knew what would happen, but not what happened,” Uther replies.
    “Is that why you’ve been a mere shadow in the hospital? Is that why te didn’t come to see me today?”
    “Look, Arthur… I didn’t know it would turn out this badly for you.”
“But it did, Father. It did… and what are te going to do now? Buy più people to settle the trouble you’ve caused o are te going break più hearts like te did mine?”
    “Stop it, Arthur… I didn’t want it to end like this but I had no choice. She was threatening to put te behind bars, and…”
    “You should have let her, Dad!! I killed a man, an innocent man, and I deserve to be tried! That would have been fair, man for man, life for a life!”
    “But te are my son, Arthur!! And I will not let my son be put behind bars while I am still alive! I will do all I can to see te are free and I did just that. Unfortunately she used te for her own interests and I hardly see how that’s my fault. I am just as stunned da what she caused as te are, Arthur. I was willing to accept her into our family!”
    “I really want to believe what te tell me, Father, but…” Arthur pounds his chest. “Why am I feeling different about this? Why am I finding it hard to believe all this…”
    “This is the truth, Arthur. And I know it will be hard for te to believe me, after all I haven’t been very convincing to you, either. But the ball’s in your court, Arthur. It’s up to te to believe me o not. I am not denying I played a part in your misery but I meant well. I wanted to make sure te were sicuro, cassetta di sicurezza and chose the only way I know how, through money. I didn’t know what type of a person she had been before, but I was willing to take her in if indeed she had been in Amore with you. Unfortunately, she wasn’t…”
    “How will she live, Father? te gave her money for that, too… didn’t you?”
    “Arthur, that’s rubbish!”
    “You challenged her to make me agree to the operation, didn’t you? And she played her cards well… so did you? Both of you… makes me sick!”
    “Arthur, I did that but I didn’t ask her to play with your feelings and neither did I know you’ll fall in Amore with her. That surprised me at first, but I thought she probably changed herself and decided to persuade te willingly. But then she came da my office last week to ensure I gave the money as promised. I know none of this will make any sense to you, but I don’t care Arthur. My conscience is clean and I owe no one any explanations. If te still want answers, why don’t te do the investigation yourself? Find out if she came da the office and met me? Ask the managing director if she asked for the money to be transferred o if such a sum was actually transferred? And ask Gaius if she did leave her work to meet me last week? I am not making this whole situation up Arthur, I don’t have to. But this is the truth and it’s up to te to believe it.”
    “I… I don’t even know what to believe anymore, Father… o who should I believe. Those I love, those I trust, always ends up hurting my heart… so why should I even care what te say?” Arthur leans against the pillar and sighs, sadly.
    Uther walks towards his son and reaches out to grab his shoulders. “I am not proud of what I did, Arthur, and I know you, too… it’s never easy shouldering the guilt of taking a life and it will haunt te for life. And the same goes for me but, I did what I must because te are my son. te will not understand this, Arthur, but… one giorno when te have a son of your own, te will. Until then, if it makes it any better, let me shoulder the guilt.” Uther walks past his son. Arthur remains quiet.
    “What are te doing, Arthur?” Gwaine stops Uther and looks directly at Arthur. The latter turns around.
    “It’s all right Gwaine…” Uther starts. But Gwaine silences the elder Pendragon with a nod.
    “Are te still pining away after her? Haven’t te learned anything from what happened a while ago?” Gwaine reminds. “She left te Arthur!! And she did it coldly!”
    “Gwaine…”
    “I’m sorry, but I have to say this, and it will hurt te as well, Uther. I don’t trust te and never did but I trust Gwen when she detto te offered her money, because that what’s te are good at. But what I didn’t expect from her is the way she treated Arthur. That was completely shocking and it left amaro taste to my mouth. I trusted and respected her, but now… that respect has turned into ashes. I heard all the things she detto and each word was like a knife, piercing into our hearts. I felt the pain and I meant nothing to her, but… imagine how Arthur would have felt. And then I know where have I mistakenly placed my trust,” Gwaine explains. “But that doesn’t mean I trust you…” he adds quickly, looking Uther. “There’s still some way to go before we achieve that… but I am with te on this." Gwaine says and walks towards Arthur. “What your Father did was selfish, but no one knew Gwen would turn her back on you. We underestimated her, Arthur. Your Amore for her blinded your judgment and I understand it pains everyone, especially you, but… te have to let her go.”
    “I can’t, Gwaine… I see her everywhere!”
    “It takes time, Arthur… no one detto it will be easy. But te have to let her go…”
    “Why, Gwaine!” Arthur snaps, pushing Gwaine’s hand from his shoulder.
    “Because she is the past, Arthur!! This…” Gwaine points at Uther. “This man here is your future now!” Gwaine says, equally angry at Arthur for still behaving like a helpless child. “This man did all this because he loves te and I know there’s no ethics in his actions but what about Gwen’s? She loved only your money. But this man used his money to save te because te are his son. A father will go any length to save their son and yours did the same. It hurts, yes, but te are saved, Arthur. Think about that… Gwen’s history now, she no longer exists in your life. te have a bright new future ahead of te so it’s time te paid attention to that!”
    “Gwaine… let him be, son. He will never believe me no matter who advises him. And I am used to this da now. I am just relieved he has his eyesight back… and thank te for speaking on my behalf,” Uther says softly, looking sadly at Arthur who still keeps quiet.
    “What are te doing, Arthur?” Gwaine hisses, shaking Arthur’s arm.
    For Arthur everything seems blurring. He can’t think clearly. He understands what Gwaine is telling him but he cannot look beyond what he understands. He wants to believe his father and though one half of his cuore is with his father, the other half is still lacking trust. And now Gwaine is confusing him further da taking sides with his old man. ‘Where’s Merlin?’ Arthur thinks. He values his friend’s consigli and now he needs it più than ever. But there’s no sight of his friend. Gwaine is probably reacting because he is hurt da Gwen’s actions today, but Merlin had been on Gwen’s side all the way. ‘Does he knows something I don’t know?’ Arthur thinks. His cuore is heavy. He wants to believe his father yet something is nagging in the back of his head, like a warning bell. What could that be? And now, Gwaine wants him to reconcile with his father. ‘Who should I trust?’ Arthur thinks. ‘Gwen… my father?’ Arthur thinks and closes his eyes. His head throbs. The events of today have been stressing and it’s no good for his eyes.
    “Arthur?” Uther’s hand on his shoulder alerts him. Arthur stiffens.
    “I am sorry, Son,” Uther says, tears welling in his eyes.
    And Arthur’s cuore softens. His own tears, the ones he’d been keeping in check all this while rolls down his cheek. He pulls his father close and hugs him. “I’m sorry, Father… I am sorry.”
    “No, te have nothing to be sorry for.”
    “I have everything to be sorry for, Father. I still feel this whole situation is bizarre but I promise te this…” Arthur pulls himself away from his father. “I will try to be the son te want. I give te my word.”
    “Thank te Arthur… thank you,” Uther says and hugs his son back.