"You're going to marry Pacha? Reina, do you really think that's wise?" her father asked, looking a bit skeptical.
"Papi, at least I won't be far away from you," she said, hugging him, "I couldn't stand the thought of not being with you. I love you...I need you still, Papi."
"I need you too, Reina," he replied, kissing the top of her head, "But this may be the final straw you could pull on your mother. She's told me that she refuses to speak to you."
"She can't!" Chicha exclaimed, her eyes misting with tears, "She's my mother!" Atoc stroked his daughter's hair, trying his best to comfort her.
"But Pacha, Reina," he murmured, "You love him? You truly love him?"
"Well...that's the thing," she replied, "I don't know. I care about him...but I don't know if I love him," she said, looking up at her father, "I only said yes because I felt like there was no other way out...but I'll grow to love him, won't I?"

"I thought the same thing about your mother," he said, shaking his head, "And My feelings have remained the same. I care for your mother deeply, but no...love is not the word I would use to describe my feelings for her. "
Chicha sat in the nearest chair, staring down at her hands. What did she do? Her mother wouldn't speak to her, she was engaged to a man that she didn't know if she loved and who had no prospects...and worst of all, she had the creeping feeling that her father was disappointed in her.
"Papi..." she whispered, "Are you ashamed of me?"

"I am," her mother said from the doorway, her arms folded and her usually immaculate appearance disheveled, "I am beyond ashamed of you. I'm disgusted by your actions," she continued, "And I promise you, this is the last time you'll hear my voice directed at you."
"Chasca..." Atoc begged, "She is your daughter!" She glared at her husband.
"I have no daughter."

With that, she turned on her heel and exited the room, leaving it silent as the dead.
"Papi..." Chicha sobbed into her hands, "I'm so sorry. I've shamed you..."
"No no, mi Reina," he hushed her, lifting her chin, "You don't deserve your mother's wrath. Keep hope, Reina. Your day will come where you'll find the love and care you deserve, whether it be with Pacha or a more worthy man."

She winced at the last part of his statement, his disapproval apparent.

"Pacha is worthy...worthy enough," she argued weakly. Atoc chuckled, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Don't argue with me," he teased, "Papi knows what's best for his little Reina. No man will ever be worthy of you. But if he makes you happy, then he is good enough. That is what you must find," he said, poking her chest gently, "You must find the man who makes your heart stop, who makes you safe and who you feel as if you cannot live without. That man is the man that is worthy of you. And only him."
Chicha nodded, biting her lip.
"I understand Papi," she whispered, wrapping her arms around his neck, "But I'll always love you most."
"And I, you," he replied, lifting her easily, like a small child, "Always, mi Reina."