Prologue: So It Begins
Children take hold of a very special part of Tino's heart. The sweet love that fills the heart, the cherubic face, and, oh, the pure innocence!
Tino lounged on the couch, looking up towards the blank ceiling. He was still young, hardly half way through his twenties. Yet, he touched his stomach, longing for a womb, and dreamt of having a child. Be it a boy or a girl, be it quiet or noisy, be them docile or rambunctious! Berwald noticed Tino day dreaming again and approached him, bending over and placing a kiss on Tino's head.
Tilting his head back to look at Berwald, Tino sighed. His blue, crystalline eyes glittered with emotion. He reached for Berwald's hand, which rested on his shoulder, and gently pressed it.
"You want a baby, don't you?" Berwald asked in a soft voice.
"More than I want anything, Berwald…" Tino responded. Slowly, he pushed himself off the couch, disrupting the blanket on it and causing it to slide back. Berwald caught it and set it away as Tino went, swaying and humming to himself, to the window. He fancied himself with a child in his arms. He rocked the imaginary baby and, realizing how foolish he must look, leaned against the window. His milky white arms fell away from the imaginary baby and dropped to his sides, like fallen leaves.
Outside, snow fell down in thick layers, blanketing the earth in a white sheet. Berwald watched his lover forlornly. He loved that man with all his heart. He loved Tino more than he could imagine and it broke his heart that they couldn't have children at will. Tino considered adopting but something always got in the way.
Well, Berwald should have expected it. Ever since he had taken Tino on dates, Tino always spoke of the sweet, pure things. Children appeared in conversations more than he could count, especially of late.
"Tino, I love you," Berwald said, trying to comfort Tino.
Tino did not change his expression. He only nodded weakly.
In one month his wish came true.
Berwald woke up in the dead of night to his phone blaring. Tino grumbled and shifted in the covers, his shoulders bunching up and his knees rising to his chest. The room was bathed in chrome moonlight. Berwald picked up his cell phone, standing up and walking out of the room.
The speaker was Arthur, all the way across the globe in York, England.
"Hello?"
Berwald began to respond but Arthur overrode him.
"Oh, Berwald, I have a favor to ask of you." Arthur sounded slightly panicked, on the verge of tears almost.
"What is it?" Berwald asked, leaning against one of the walls and rubbing his neck. He could hear the washing machine rumble, vibrating the walls. Tino shifted in the other room, muttering something and throwing the bed spread off.
"You like children, don't you? If I recall correctly last time I saw you Tino was going on and on about having a kid. Right?"
"Yes…?" Berwald frowned, wondering where this was going.
Arthur cleared his throat on the other end. "Well, I seem to have come across an orphan boy. He's only a babe as of now, hardly two years old, and he needs some parents."
"Do you expect me to go across the world to collect a child?" Berwald mumbled. He was uncomfortable talking to strangers, especially over the phone. Even though he had seen Arthur several times, he still didn't call him a "friend". Then again this offer was irresistible. It would call an end to Tino's longing and would bring a homeless child a family. Morally it was perfect.
"Actually you won't have to!" Arthur interjected brightly, "No, no, not at all. I'm coming over in a week and I'll bring the child along. Goodness people will gawk but nevertheless, you'll have a baby boy."
"I should ask Tino…"
"Do you really think he'll reject this offer?"
"No…"
"Then what's there to worry your head about?" Arthur laughed shortly. "I know it's late but I needed to make sure you were alright with all this. His name is Peter, by the way. Not to waste more of your time, good night!" Arthur hung up and Berwald was greeted with a bright flash of his phone, piercing the darkness, and silence.
He shuffled back into the bedroom, setting his phone on the bedside. He slipped into bed, greeted by Tino's warm, outreaching hands. He collected Berwald in his arms, burying his face in Berwald's shoulder.
"What was it…?" he whispered, already starting to fall back to sleep.
"We have a child now."
"That's nice…" Tino fell asleep, not having heard what Berwald said clearly.
In the morning, when he rose to find Berwald knocked out cold in a deep sleep, it dawned on him what Berwald had said.
He yawned and looked at Berwald's sleeping form. Tears of joy sprung from his eyes and it was all he could do to refrain from crying out. He bent forwards, kissing Berwald's strong jaw and broad nose that sloped down to a smooth tip.
Berwald opened one eye, cracking a smile.
Tino hummed in glee and sprung out of bed. Berwald watched him go, quite content.
I do not own Hetalia