For lack of a better title, I give you: THE ABANDONED. Yeah, I couldn't think of one, so this is what you get. I came up with a random name for Mattie's dad. Also, this is one more thing to check off on my "List of Shit I Need to Fucking Write". So here we go! I don't think I have anything else to say, so enjoy! And pleas R&R!
When Lovino's grandfather had left him with Emma and Elizaveta and had gone to Italy with his brother, Lovino was five. He was just old enough to remember, but not old enough to understand. At first, he firmly believed that his grandfather would soon come back with his brother and they would all live happily together, but after a month, he realized that they would not be back any time soon.
Emma and Elizaveta, who were 21 at the time, were nice people, don't get him wrong. Lovino loved the Belgian and the Hungarian to bits, and they taught him morals and their own languages and how to treat women. However, he also wanted his brother back. He didn't understand why his grandfather had left him, but it had convinced him that he was absolutely worthless. This was made apparent when he started crying after he had accidentally broken a vase while cleaning.
"It was just an accident Lovi," Emma had quickly soothed him. "You're bleeding. We need to patch you up. Come on, stand up, and be careful of the glass." Lovino had nodded and carefully stood up, tears still in his eyes.
Years later, after Emma and Elizaveta had assured him that he was not worthless, he had simply grown to resent his grandfather. He had left him with no explanation why, and would probably make sure Feliciano knew nothing of his elder brother.
So he went on with life. When he was 13, Elizaveta had brought home another boy.
Matthew had never been exactly known. In fact, if you asked anyone, even his teachers, no one would be able to tell you who Matthew Williams was, as they honestly had no clue who he was. It would take his own family a couple minutes before they realize who he is.
Quite frankly, Matthew had gotten sick of it. With a brother who was very popular in school that always overshadowed him, a father that had once kicked him out because he thought he was a robber, and a dead mother, he felt he had nothing left to live for.
He had decided that it was time to run away.
At 12 years old, he had packed all his belongings into one suitcase (he didn't have much in the first place) and left the house when he knew his father and brother were asleep. Unfortunately, he had forgotten to bring food and water and money, so he didn't know what to do. And as he was a small kid walking in the streets, at night, alone, well, he was bound to run into some shady characters.
A few college boys had seen him walking around nervously and decided to check if he had any money on him. They slammed him up against a wall in an alley and demanded money. When he said he didn't have any, they began to beat him until he "told the truth."
"Hey!" Someone shouted. "What're you doing?!" A woman wearing a green dress ran up to them with a glare. "Why are you beating up a little boy?"
"He won't give us our money!" One college boy said. "But what are you going to do about it? Huh?" The woman's glare intensified and it was like a frying pan had materialized in her hand. She slammed it down onto each of the boys' heads until there was one boy left. That boy, terrified, yelped and ran off, leaving Matthew half-conscious and bloody.
"Yeah you better run!" The woman barked before turning to Matthew. "Oh dear, I better bring you to my house. Those wounds could get infected." She took Matthew in her arms and walked all the way home to Emma and Lovino.
"Who's that Ms. Elizaveta?" Lovino asked when she walked in with Matthew in her arms.
"I don't know, Lovi," she said. "And I've told you, stop calling me Ms. Elizaveta. We've lived together for eight years. We know each other well enough." Lovino just shrugged.
"What happened to him?"
"A few college boys decided to beat him because he didn't have any money for them," Elizaveta growled out as she placed Matthew on the couch. "Get me some bandages, please." Lovino nodded and ran off. He came back a few minutes later with the bandages.
After Elizaveta was done patching him up, she looked at Lovino. "Now, why are you up so late young man?" She asked sternly, although her eyes told a different story. Lovino looked down in embarrassment.
"I-I was waiting for you to get home," he muttered. "N-not that I cared or anything! I just wanted to make sure you would be here to keep your promise for tomorrow!" Elizaveta laughed and ruffled his hair, being careful of the special little curl on his head.
"You're so cute Lovi!" She laughed. "Go to bed now. You must be tired." Lovino nodded and headed off to his room.
The next morning, Matthew woke up to the smell of waffles. While he didn't love waffles quite as much as he loved pancakes and maple syrup, they were still a pretty good breakfast, and he was starving. He was just about to sit up when a woman with blonde hair and green eyes walked in holding the waffles.
"Oh, you're awake!" She said. "I hope you don't mind, but my friend, Elizaveta, brought you in after you got beat up by those college boys! My name is Emma! Do you like waffles?" A bit overwhelmed, Mathew nodded, too shocked to speak. Emma smiled and sat on the floor beside him, placing the waffles on a desk next to the foot of the couch where Matthew's head was laying.
"Umm, where am I?" Matthew asked.
"Why, you're in my house, of course!" Emma explained. "Be careful when you sit up. It might sting just a little bit." Matthew nodded and sat up slowly, wincing as he felt the ache in his body and the wounds on his back.
"Here, I'll feed you," Emma said, picking up his plate and fork. "Say, 'ahh~!'" At that moment, Lovino walked in and saw what Emma was doing.
"Emma, please don't treat the boy like a fucking child," he said. "Even with his wounds, I'm sure he could feed himself. It's not like his arms got too hurt." Emma pouted.
"Aww, but Lovi~," she whined. "I haven't been able to feed anyone like this since you turned eight! I like caring for little children!"
"Umm…" Matthew spoke up. "I'm twelve, so I'm not really a child." Lovino rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, well, you're not a teenager either," he said bluntly "So it doesn't really matter. What were you doing out in the streets at 3 in the morning? Don't you know how fucking dangerous that is?" Matthew looked down and Lovino sighed. "Well, whatever. Don't answer me. Fine." He walked to the kitchen to make his own breakfast.
"I'm sorry about him," Emma apologized. "He's a kind boy, really. He just has some problems with interacting with other people. Oh yeah, what's your name?"
"…Matthew," Matthew answered. "Just Matthew."
"Alright then, Just Matthew," Emma joked. "Eat your waffles. I'm going to go wake up Elizaveta. She's the one who brought you here and bandaged you up." She stood up and headed up the stairs, leaving Matthew with his thoughts.
A few days passed and Matthew had gotten used to the strange… unrelated by blood family, I guess you could call them. He had quickly learned of Lovino's temper and habit of swearing, so he made sure to not do anything to set him off. Emma was very cheerful and tried to get him to have fun, although they did get into debates over whether pancakes or waffles were better. Elizaveta acted like how a mother should be, despite the fact that they had only met for a few days. All in all, he liked them very much.
One day, when Elizaveta was watching the news, a picture of Matthew popped up on the TV screen.
"…12 year old Matthew Jones has disappeared from his home without a trace," the announcer was saying, making Elizaveta gasp quietly.
"Matthew!" Elizaveta called. "Can you come here please?" Matthew walked into the room, not noticing what was playing on the TV.
"Yes?" He said.
"Could you please tell me what this is?" Elizaveta asked, pointing at the screen. Matthew looked at the TV, where someone was interviewing his brother.
"Yeah, I didn't really notice that he was gone until the principal told Dad that he missed the last few days of school," Matthew's brother, Alfred, was saying. "I don't know how we could have possibly missed the fact that he wasn't there…"
"LIAR!" Matthew snarled at the TV in a rare fit of rage. "You know exactly why you didn't notice!" He grabbed the remote and shut off the TV before he could get any more angry.
"Matthew, dear, what was that about?" Elizaveta asked kindly. "What is going on?" Matthew gave a few shuddering breaths before speaking.
"I ran away from home," he began. "I was never noticed by anyone, not even my own brother or father. My brother always got the spotlight while it seemed that I wasn't even there. Once, my father kicked me out because he thought I was a robber when I was just getting food because he hadn't remembered to cook me anything for dinner. I couldn't take it anymore, so I ran. I'm sorry…" Elizaveta frowned and hugged the boy tightly.
"Shh, it's alright Matthew," she said softly. "I understand. Do you want to go back?" She held him at arms' length and looked at him seriously. Matthew shook his head.
"No," he said. "I just want to disappear from the earth for a while… Maybe a few years. But I'm sure you can't possibly-"
"Sure, if that's what you want," Elizaveta interrupted. "I don't see any problem with it. Now come on, help me make lunch, and then we'll wait for Lovino and Emma to get home. We'll explain everything to them." Matthew nodded and smiled through teary eyes.
When Lovino came home from school and Emma came home from work, Matthew and Elizaveta explained everything about Matthew. Emma had quickly hugged the boy and agreed wholeheartedly with his idea of disappearing off the face of the planet while Lovino just said "Do what you want, I don't care."
For five years, everything was peaceful. Matthew was never found out. He ended up getting quite close to Lovino, to the point that they were considered best friends after two or three years of Matthew living with them. Emma and Elizaveta suspected that there was something more and made it their mission to set the two up together.
Of course, Matthew couldn't just stay in a house for five years. He needed to actually go out. Elizaveta came up with an idea of having him dress up as a girl and wear a wig when he went out so no one recognized him. While Matthew was reluctant to do it, it worked, so that's what he did whenever he went out.
Then, when Lovino and Matthew were seventeen and Lovino's birthday was in a week, the peaceful life they led shattered.
Because Lovino's grandfather had returned to get him back.
Lovino was just sitting in the kitchen, doing his homework and wondering what Matthew would get him for his birthday, when the doorbell rang. Elizaveta had decided to go on a date with her boyfriend, Roderich, Emma was at work, and Matthew was out getting groceries, so it just left him to answer the door. Lovino let out an aggravated sigh and stood up to answer the door.
"Yeah, who are you?" He asked as soon as he opened the door. "What do you want? We weren't expecting anyone to come today. Are you here to sell us something? Because if you are, we don't want it." The oddly familiar man blinked at him in shock.
"Why, you don't remember me, Lovino?" He said. "It's me, Romulus!" Lovino just stared back at him. The name didn't ring any bells.
"Who?" He asked. Romulus sighed.
"Your grandfather," he said. Lovino's mouth took an 'o' shape and he immediately glared.
"Okay, why are you here, Romulus?" He demanded. "It's been, what, twelve, thirteen years? Why now? And where's my brother?"
"He's in Italy with his boyfriend," Romulus answered. "I can tell you more inside, though." Lovino frowned but stepped aside to let his grandfather into the house.
"Now tell me why you're here," Lovino ordered once Romulus was seated on the couch.
"Originally, I had planned for Feliciano, your brother, to be my successor in my business," Romulus began. "However, he is rather… incompetent in being able to be serious. That's why I came here. I want to bring you with me to Italy." Lovino took a few minutes to process what he just said, and then laughed.
"Me? Go with you?" He snorted. "You must be joking, old man. After you just left me here when I was five, it would take a lot more than that to get me to come with you. I am leading a perfectly happy life, and I won't have you ruining it."
"Please, Lovino, I'm getting old and I need someone to take over for me when retire," Romulus pleaded.
"Then you should have thought about that before you left me here," Lovino spat. "What is this business of yours anyway?"
"I am the leader of a very important Italian mafia," Romulus told him. Lovino's eyes widened.
"No, no way in hell you bastard!" He yelled. "I am not getting involved in any of that sort of business! First of all, I'm not even trained enough to be part of it!"
"I can set up a personal trainer for you," Romulus said easily. "Although, according to my spies, you are already very good at multiple types of training. Hand-to-hand, street, and guns?"
"The guns are Elizaveta's fault and the martial arts is because I was bored," Lovino told him. "Wait- spies?! You sent spies to watch me?!" Romulus ignored that last part.
"I'm sure it would not take long for you to get much better at fighting for us," he continued. "You need to come. I need a successor." Lovino shook his head frantically.
"No way," he said. "I am not getting involved in any illegal shit. Not again."
"Again?" Romulus questioned. Lovino was silent for a few minutes.
"How long have you had spies watching me?" He asked at last.
"A few weeks, and only when you're not at home so I can determine how well you speak to people you are not close to," Romulus answered. Lovino nodded thoughtfully.
"Not long enough to know and dig up my hidden records then…" He muttered.
"What?"
"Three years ago, when I was 14 and going into 15, I had a boyfriend," Lovino began, his voice a little louder. "His name was Antonio. He was perfect in every way and he seemed to love me, but then I found him fighting an older boy named Ivan for something about drugs. It turns out he was the heir to a very important Spanish mafia family, and Ivan was the boss of the most influential Russian mafia. Somehow, I got dragged into deals with mafia families and some other illegal shit that mafia families do, and since Antonio was my boyfriend, he told me everything, so I ended up being very important. Especially considering the fact that I am very good at negotiations. That's why I'm good with guns, martial arts, and street fighting.
"One day, I got dragged into a fight between Antonio's family and another one. I got severely wounded and I couldn't hide it from Emma and Elizaveta. With the help of some connections, I got out of that shit and had my records of that ever happening deeply buried and locked away. Anyone who knew was sworn to secrecy, and they would have to kill themselves before giving away any information on me. I broke up with Antonio, too, so I wouldn't get dragged in again and risk the lives of my loved ones. We're still friends though. But I don't ever want to be dragged into that again."
"I understand where you're coming from with this," Romulus said, "but I need an heir. Please, at least take some time to consider-"
"I'll consider it if that's what my loved ones want," Lovino interrupted him. "In the meantime, I'm going to call Elizaveta and Emma so that-"
"Lovino, I'm back!" A soft voice called as the front door opened and shut. "Can you help me with these groceries? Also, I saw a different car outside! Did you buy another one without Elizaveta and Emma's consent again?" There was a faint rustling of clothes and Lovino instantly abandoned what he was saying in order to help the person who had just walked in.
"That's not my car," he said, smiling slightly as he saw the person at the door. "We have a guest, actually. Let's put these in the kitchen first and then I'll introduce you." Matthew smiled and nodded, handing Lovino a few bags before walking to the kitchen.
"Lovino, who is that?" Romulus asked once Lovino walked into the living room with Matthew after putting the groceries away. "I thought you only lived with Emma and Elizaveta. I didn't know one of them had a son your age…" Lovino shook his head.
"They don't," he said and walked behind Matthew to wrap his arms around his waist and rest his head on his shoulder. "Matthew, this is my grandfather, Romulus. Romulus, this is Matthew. He's my fiancé. We're getting married next year." Matthew smiled and blushed as Romulus's eyes widened.
"Fiancé…?" He whispered. His eyes then found its way to the golden wedding ring on Lovino's finger. Lovino nodded.
"Yes," he said. "Do you see why I can't leave?"
"You can, of course, bring him with you, you know," Romulus told him. Lovino frowned and narrowed his eyes.
"I'll only consider it with his and Elizaveta and Emma's consent," he repeated. "I'm going to call them and ask them to come over so that they could tell you what they think." He let go of Matthew and called Emma and Elizaveta, asking them to come home because someone wanted to talk to them.
"Lovi, what's going on?" Matthew asked quietly after Lovino hung up the phone. Lovino sighed and kissed his cheek.
"I'll tell you once Elizaveta and Emma get here," he promised. "Then I won't have to repeat everything." Matthew nodded and made himself comfortable on the couch while waiting for their guardians to get home.
When Elizaveta and Emma saw Romulus, Elizaveta had to be held back from trying to kill him for just leaving a defenseless five year old and not so much as send a letter for thirteen years. As soon as she was somewhat calmed down and seated next to Emma and Matthew, Lovino began to explain the situation.
"…and so now I need your consent before even considering going with him," he finished.
"No way in hell," Elizaveta and Emma said instantly.
"Please, at least consider my offer," Romulus insisted. "Lovino will, of course, have bodyguards and he'll have all the money in the world. He will be well cared for."
"The mafia is a dangerous place though," Matthew spoke up just loud enough to be heard. "Assassins on every corner, spies everywhere, especially against a boss. It's like a multi-player video game with a team against one enemy or opposite team. One wrong choice, one wrong move, and you lose the game. Everyone dies. You need to think five steps ahead of the enemy, but if you predict their next move and it's wrong, then everything falls apart and you and your team all die. Except life isn't a game. You don't revive as many times as you please before you win, and you don't always win. You might die, or someone else might die. How would I know if he will make it home after a mission?" Everyone stared at him and Matthew blushed from speaking so freely.
"Y-yeah, what he said," Elizaveta finally said, shaking off the surprise from hearing Matthew speak like that, as it didn't actually happen often. "I don't want to fear that one day, I'll get a call from Matthew or someone else saying that Lovino died young."
"Don't try to give us some half-assed excuse either," Emma continued. "You only care about your precious little mafia, not Lovino. I want him to be loved and happy and safe. Get out, now. I don't want to see you around here again." Romulus looked ready to argue, but he sighed.
"Alright," he said. Without another word, he left. Everyone looked at Lovino.
"Lovi, are you alright?" Matthew asked softly, placing his hands over Lovino's. "After seeing you grandfather, you must be at least a little upset, right?" Lovino shook his head.
"No, I'm fine, actually," he told him. "I'm absolutely fine. I've survived about thirteen years without him. He doesn't matter. I'm perfectly fine living here with you, and Elizaveta and Emma."
A month after the incident with Lovino's grandfather, Matthew decided that he didn't want to be in hiding anymore and he wanted to go to school. Lovino, Elizaveta, and Emma were shocked, of course, but they didn't want to argue with him, so they agreed on the condition that he would always be with Lovino. After persuading the school to do so, he was in. (Matthew had legally changed his name to Matthew Williams a couple years before, so that was the name he had in the high school database)
Lovino was grinning as he walked into his first period class, and that sort of scared his classmates as he never showed any emotion other than anger to anyone. He just couldn't wait to see the look on that hamburger bastard's face when he saw his brother again for the first time in six years. And he also had a plan for when Matthew was introducing himself.
"Okay class, today we are bringing in a new student," the teacher said as soon as everyone in the class had settled down. "I expect you to be kind to him, as according to his guardians, he has not had contact with many people for the past six years. Matthew, would you come in now please?" Lovino suppressed a smile as he saw Matthew walk in looking all cute and shy to be around so many people. He heard a small gasp come from someone somewhere in the back of the classroom.
"U-um, hello there," Matthew said quietly.
"Speak up, Matthew," the teacher told him kindly. "I don't think the people in the back can hear you. Be sure to tell everyone a little bit about yourself." Matthew nodded and took a deep breath.
"Hello there," he said loud enough for everyone to hear him. "Umm, my name is Matthew Williams. I'm 17 years old, and my birthday is July 1st. Umm, my favorite animal is a polar bear, and uhh, I like ice hockey, I guess. Umm…" Matthew went on talking, with the teacher asking him a few questions to get him going.
When Matthew was almost finished talking, Lovino stood up. He felt the eyes of his classmates following him as he walked in front of Matthew, who abruptly stopped talking once he saw his fiancé standing in front of him. In one swift motion, Lovino leaned down and kissed Matthew square on the lips, effectively making their teacher stutter and the fangirls start squealing.
"Now listen hear!" Lovino said loudly after he was done kissing Matthew, standing beside him and taking his hand. "Matthew here is my fiancé." He showed everyone their wedding bands. "So no funny business, alright? If you do anything, I won't hesitate to kill you!"
"Lovino, you cannot just walk up here and threaten everyone in this classroom!" The teacher spluttered. "Even if this boy is your fiancé!" Lovino simply shrugged.
"I'm just giving everyone a warning," he said. "Come on, Matthew. You're sitting next to me." Matthew nodded and followed Lovino to his desk Lovino gave a glare to the poor boy sitting next to him until he took another chair.
"Lovino, you don't have to do that," Matthew sighed as he sat down. Lovino ignored his words and sat in his seat. The teacher sighed and decided that there was nothing she could do about her most troublesome student. She resumed teaching.
The rest of Matthew's classes went the same way, with Lovino leading him to the classrooms during passing period. Matthew saw his brother a few times, but didn't say anything to him. He was waiting for Alfred to talk to him first.
Then lunch came around and Lovino had Matthew sit with him and "the idiots that call themselves his friends," aka Antonio and Francis. They welcomed him warmly and all was peaceful- to an extent, anyway. With Antonio and Francis, nothing could ever be peaceful.
"Oi! Lovino!" A voice called out to them. Lovino and Matthew turned and noticed Alfred walking towards them. Lovino heard Matthew's breathing quicken and he gripped onto his arm tightly. Lovino glared at Alfred.
"What do you want, hamburger bastard?" He spat. Alfred shrugged and slowed to a stop in front of them.
"I just want to know why you haven't told me that you knew where my brother was!" He said. "We've known each other long enough! You should have told me!" Lovino scoffed.
"Yeah, right," he said. "And besides, my fiancé is named Matthew Williams, not Matthew Jones."
"He looks just like an older version of my brother!" Alfred declared.
"Coincidence," Lovino lied easily.
"Lovino, it's alright," Matthew murmured. "It doesn't matter anymore."
"But Matthew-"
"Yes, Alfred, I am your brother," Matthew sighed, just loud enough Alfred to hear. "I asked Lovino and his guardians to help me disappear. I didn't want to be found."
"But why Mattie?" Alfred asked. "Don't you know that dad and I love you? We've been wanting you to come home."
"Yeah, well you have a funny way of showing it," Lovino muttered. Alfred glared at him.
"What was that?" He growled. Lovino stood up and cleared his throat.
"I said that you have a funny way of showing that you love him!" He repeated loudly. "After ignoring him, taking away his much needed attention, forgetting him, and not even noticing that he was missing until days later, it's amazing that you can say that you love him."
"I did everything I could to find him!" Alfred snapped. "It's not my fault he's hard to notice!"
"You should be able to notice him anyway because you're his motherfucking brother!" Lovino shouted. "You should have made sure that he had friends and that he wasn't lonely! Instead, you didn't even bother talking to him!"
"Lovino, it's fine," Matthew said, holding Lovino back before he attacked his brother. "It's okay. That was six years ago."
"I know your reputation Lovino!" Alfred declared. "You probably just want to get into my brother's pants!" Lovino's eyes flashed angrily.
"Why you-!" He tackled Alfred to the ground and began punching him. After a moment of being stunned, Alfred responded with just as much ferocity.
"Stop it you two!" Matthew shouted, but he was ignored. Eventually, two teachers pulled the two away from each other and Matthew hugged Lovino.
"I'll have you know that I love Matthew more than you ever did, you bastard!" Lovino yelled at Alfred. "So don't even think about giving me some half-assed excuse about why you didn't notice he was missing until days later!"
Lovino was to be suspended for a week after that, starting the day after because he still had to show Matthew around. When Lovino and Matthew got home, Emma was waiting for them. She freaked out over Lovino's injuries first, and then listened to what happened. She immediately wanted to pull Matthew out of school, but he reassured her that he was okay with what had happened. After all, there was nothing they could do to make him leave them.
However, the next day, there was a knock on the door. Elizaveta answered the door while Lovino and Matthew were cuddling on the couch.
"Ah, yes?" Elizaveta said to the man standing in front of her. "Is there something you need?"
"I'm here for my son, Matthew Jones," the man said. "Or as I've heard he's called, Matthew Williams. My name is Abraham Jones."
"O-oh yes," Elizaveta stuttered. "Come on in. We can talk about… whatever it is you're here for inside. Matthew, dear! Your father is here!"
"WHAT?" Lovino shouted. "No way in fucking hell are you letting that bastard-" He cut off abruptly as Matthew shook his head at him.
Elizaveta walked into the living room with Abraham behind her.
"F-father," Matthew stammered. "Umm, hello." Abraham smiled.
"Matthew," he said warmly. "If you've been here this whole time, why didn't you come home?" Matthew shrugged.
"I didn't want to," he said simply. "I am happy here."
"Well, now that we've found you, why don't you come home with me?" Abraham said. Matthew shook his head.
"No," he said. "I don't want to." Abraham frowned
"Why not?" He asked.
"Why should I?" Matthew said. "I'm perfectly happy here. There's no reason for me to leave them. I've gotten used to being here."
"I could charge them with kidnapping," Abraham threatened. Lovino snorted.
"Can't put a charge on us when Matthew willingly stayed here," he said. "He could testify for himself. Even get a lie detector."
"Dad, I love you, but you didn't even remember my existence for 12 years of my life," Matthew said. "I'm happy here. Elizaveta and Emma are liked older sisters to me and… I'm sure Alfred's already told you about Lovino. Please, dad, I want to stay with them." Abraham sighed.
"Alright then," he relented. "I guess I'll let you stay here. I'm not so terrible as to try to make you come with me. I am really sorry, Matthew, for not paying attention to you before you ran away." Matthew smiled.
"It's alright, dad," he said. "I forgive you." Abraham smiled and bid goodbye to them before leaving. It was silent for a few moments.
"Matt, did you really forgive him?" Lovino asked. Matthew smiled and shook his head.
"No," he replied. "I know it's been a month since then, but have you forgiven your grandfather?"
"…No."