Snow Covered Tears
I awoke early in the morning with a sigh as I stretched. I started my morning routine of taking a shower, getting dressed, heading downstairs, starting a fire in the fireplace, can making breakfast. Ever since my brothers, Raivis Galante and Eduard Von Bock, moved out and went on a road trip, I was all alone. I rarely had visitors and every once in a while, I would see Ivan watching me from the tree line.
When I had finished my breakfast, which consisted of tea, eggs, and ham slices, I did the dishes. The sudden telephone ring made me jump. When I picked up the phone, a loud voice caught me off guard.
"Heya! It's your pal, Alfred! What're you up to?" America, or Alfred, practically yelled.
"I've just woken from a peaceful night's sleep. I'm not "up to" much," I answered, struggling with the "up to" part.
"I was thinking about coming over. How long are you gonna be home?" he asked.
"For the last time, Alfred, you can't drive to come see me via American road," I sighed.
"So…see you in a couple of days?" he asked, unphased.
"Yes, I suppose," I said and he hung up.
With another sigh, I returned the phone in its cradle and sat down at my table. I had nothing to do. I never had anything to do. Looking around, I decided to do housework. I returned upstairs and grabbed a heavy coat and scarf before heading outside and grabbing my ladder form my shed. With a grunt, I propped the ladder against the two-story house and began climbing with my tools in hand. Luckily, some wood was left on the roof from the last patch I made
I was steadily working on patching a few holes when a loud knock sounded on my front door.
"Bask in my awesomeness!" came Prussia's voice.
I crawled over to the opposite side of my roof and watched him. He knocked again and started grumbling.
"Liet! Let me in! It's freezing out here!" he yelled.
"I'm up here," I said and the silverette looked up.
"What are you doing up there?" he asked, rubbing his arms.
"I'm patching up my roof," I replied, crawling back to the ladder.
I climbed down the ladder and took it back to the shed, putting it inside after collapsing it. I then walked past Prussia and inside with him close behind.
"I forgot how much colder it here in the winter," he said, shedding his layers.
"Yes, that's why I have a fire going. Would you likes some tea?" I asked, doing the same.
"Um, do you have coffee?" he asked.
"I do. I actually bought some coffee grounds the other day," I smiled and entered my kitchen.
As I worked, Prussia took his seat at the table and looked around. A small snicker passed through his lips and I sighed.
"Raivis and Eduard are out?" he asked.
"Yes. They moved out three months ago and now they're on a road trip," I answered.
"I didn't know…and Poland?" he asked and I froze.
"He…moved out, too," I mumbled.
"There's more to that story than you're telling me," he accused.
"He and Russia…I don't even know why. Feliks hates Ivan and he…Anyway, he's been gone longer than my brothers," I sighed, trying to hide my hurt.
"Why didn't you call?" the silverette asked.
"I know how Ludwig is. He hates being bothered unless it's Feliciano. Besides, I didn't want to be a nuisance," I shrugged and handed him a cup of coffee.
"You're not a nuisance," he groaned and took the cup.
I shrugged again and sat at the opposite end of the table with another cup of tea. I stared at the light brown liquid and played with the cup. He cleared his throat and I looked up at him.
"Brooding isn't awesome," he said.
"I never claimed to be awesome," I mumbled.
"Stop feeling sorry for yourself!" he snapped.
"I'm sorry. I just get lonely around here and I wanted to fix up the house before Alfred arrived," I sighed.
"America? Oh, that should be fun," Gilbert laughed and drank some of his coffee.
"I suppose. He's always so rambunctious and wherever he goes, Arthur goes with him. No doubt they'll be spending the night and I'm not sure I'm up for dealing with their… "activities" the whole time," I responded, sipping my tea.
"It'll be alright, Toris. I'll help with the repairs if you'd like," he offered with a laugh.
"…I remember when we used to hate each other and now, you come to visit all the time and you're friendly," I said with a small smile.
"Well, being forced to work for Russia humbles you and being an ex-nation is a blow to the pride. No matter what, though, I'm still awesome," he chuckled and stretched.
A light blush rose to my cheeks and I smiled softly up at him as he stood. I could see a light blush color his pale cheeks as well before a pout clouded his expression.
"You coming? We've got work to do, Little Liet," he chuckled and walked to the door.
I followed the lead and slid into my coat and wrapped my scarf around me. We spent most of the day working on repairs her and there all over the house. At one point, snow had started to fall lightly as I was double-checking my roof repairs. I hadn't noticed one of the slick wooden boards until I stepped on it and slipped. Without warning, I slid down the roof and fell to the ground. Luckily, a pile of snow broke my fall.
"Toris! Are you okay?" I heard Gilbert yell and watched him slide down the ladder.
"Y-Yeah," I said, trying to sit up.
Gilbert ran up the pile of snow and gripped my hand, pulling me out of the pile. On the way down, I felt a sharp pain in my ankle and wrist. When my foot touched solid ground, I collapsed, pain shooting through my leg. I gripped Gilbert's shirt weakly, my wrist sending pain through my arm.
"Toris…" he whined and helped me up.
He helped me limp to my car and helped me inside. I clenched my teeth as more pain shot through my arm and leg. After a few minutes, Gilbert returned with the keys to my car and climbed in the driver's seat.
"Do you know how to drive?" I asked, watching him slide the key into the ignition nervously.
"S-Sure, Liet. I just, um…" he trailed off.
"Put your foot on the break and switch to drive. Now, ease off the break and slowly accelerate," I instructed.
He nodded nervously and followed my instructions. Once he started to get the hang of it, he smiled and started driving down the road. I gave him directions to the hospital and soon we were parked and I was being lifted out of my seat.
"G-Gil? What are you doing?" I asked.
"You can't walk to the door," he scolded.
"I can limp," I mumbled.
"And you'll hurt yourself more," he countered.
When we entered the emergency room, he demanded that a doctor see me right away. When I was in a wheelchair, he gripped my shoulder.
"Do you want me to go with you?" he asked.
"I'll be fine, Gil," I smiled and let the doctor wheel me away.
It was two hours later that I was finally returned to the lobby. My wrist and ankle had been bandaged and I had been given a prescription for pain medication in case I needed it. Gilbert rushed to my side upon seeing me and asked what was wrong.
"It seems he has both a sprained wrist and ankle. He'll have to be in a wheelchair and he's not allowed to put any pressure on his wrist or ankle for the next week or two. In a month, he'll be fine. You can borrow that wheelchair for as long as he needs it, if you'd like," the doctor offered and walked away.
Gilbert immediately took over the role of pushing me around and wheeled me out to the car. I was barely able to slide into the seat by myself. Luckily, I could buckle my own seatbelt. After a few minutes, the wheelchair had been folded up and put in the back of the car and we were on the way back to my house.
"Do you need me to stay with you?" my companion asked after a few minutes of silence.
"I'll be fine. I just need to call Eduard and ask him to come back a little early," I smiled a bit.
"Well, I'll stay with you until they get back," he insisted.
"I'll be fine," I laughed nervously.
"You are in a wheelchair, not to mention you can't use your wrist at all. You need my help," he argued and I sighed.
When he pulled into the driveway, he climbed out, assembled the wheelchair and helped me into the device. Once we were inside, he wheeled me to the kitchen table and passed me the phone. With a sigh, I dialed Eduard's cell phone number and waited.
"Hello?" Eduard's voice asked.
"Sveiki, Eduard," I said, smiling.
"Toris! Hello, how are you?" he asked.
"Not so great. I fell off the roof today and sprained my ankle and wrist. I'm going to need some help for a week or two," I sighed.
"Who took you to the hospital?" he asked.
"Prussia," I answered.
"Well, I'm certain he can help you over the next two weeks," Eduard sighed.
"…But…" he cut me off.
"Listen, Toris, Raivis and I are busy and we're on vacation. I know you're our brother but you're nineteen and you have Prussia. I'm sorry but we can't come back right now," he said with another sigh.
"I see…Then, I guess I'll let you go," I said and heard a click. With another sigh, I handed Gilbert the phone and rubbed the back of my neck.
"What's wrong?" he asked, hanging up the phone.
"They aren't coming back for a while," I mumbled, looking at my wrist.
"You're their brother. Why are they being so selfish?" he snapped and I flinched.
"I-I…They've been planning this trip for a while and…" I stopped, not knowing what to say.
"Fine. I'll stay here to help you," he insisted.
"What about your brother?" I asked feebly.
"West has Feliciano," Gilbert shrugged.
I nodded, remembering the loud Italian, and attempted to roll my wheelchair back, sharp pain shooting through my wrist. Gilbert rushed to my side and gripped my shoulders.
"Are you alright?" he asked, his face tightened with worry.
"Yes, I'm fine," I smiled and nodded.
"Where are you trying to go?" he asked.
"Upstairs. Eduard's room has been cleaned out but I have some clothes you can borrow. Also, I need to get the thick blankets from the closets and put them on the bed. I also need to make sure the sheets are clean and put new curtains up and…" the silverette held up his hand to stop me.
"Toris, you need to let me worry about that," he smiled.
"You're my guest. It's my duty to have the room set up," I defended.
"You need to stop acting like a servant," he scolded and wheeled me to the stairs.
"There is no way this wheelchair is going up those stairs," he muttered.
With a snort, I stood and clutched the railing, limping up the stairs. The Prussian quickly caught up to me and swept me off my feet. A bright blush came to my cheeks and I pushed against his chest.
"Stop squirming!" he snapped.
"I can limp!" I yelled back.
"You're being childish!" he growled.
"You're always childish!" I whined.
"I am trying to help you, dammit! Now, shut up and let me!" he shouted and I flinched again.
The now fuming Prussian took me to my room and set me on my bed. He then stomped out and started banging around in the hallway and Eduard's room. I sighed and then I remembered something.
"Watch out for the hall closet! The shelves are…" I was interrupted by a loud crash, followed by the cursing of a now angrier Prussian.
A few seconds later, the silver-haired man came sulking into my room and glared at me. I limped to the attached bathroom (receiving an angrier glare) and returned with a first aid kit, sitting down on the edge of the bed. He held out his hand to reveal a few splinters and scratches. I silently and gently removed the flecks of wood and bandaged the minor wounds. With a grunt, the man turned on his heel and returned to work.
While he worked, I changed into some pajama pants and a shirt, resolving to take a shower in the morning. I left pajamas and clothes for Gilbert on the edge of the bed as I crawled in and pulled the blankets up around me. When he came back to the room, I was reading a small book I kept in the drawer of my nightstand. The clearing of his throat made me look up and meet his gaze. . His pale cheeks were pink with embarrassment.
"I, um, wanted to apologize…" he mumbled.
"It's fine," I smiled genuinely.
"O-Oh, well, that's good," he said, straightening up.
"Yes, oh, and I left clothes there for you. Did you make Eduard's room fit for your awesomeness?" I asked with a small chuckle.
"No, his room is so lame," he said, blushing brighter.
"Heh, well, I'll fix it later," I laughed a bit more.
There was silence before he reached over and grabbed the clothes. When he was half way out the door, he stopped and looked back.
"Do you need anything?" he asked.
"No, I'm fine. Good night, Gil," I smiled.
"Night," he mumbled and shut my door behind him.
I set my book aside and slid under the covers, turning out the lights. With a small, happy sigh, I drifted off to sleep.