Hello! This story is set in Hetaoni, one of Hetalia's fangames. It takes place during the loop before the one in the game.

Have a beautiful day!

Another failure. Another round of his friends dying before his eyes. Feliciano had enough. No more. Please, no more…

Ludwig kept dragging him along. "Not much further..." He clutched his side, trying to stop the bleeding somehow. If they could just reach the clock, it would be okay. Feliciano would know what to do.

"Try that room!"

Ludwig made a sharp turn and barged through one of the doors. There is was.

Feliciano quickly locked the door behind them. Now all he had to do… All he had to do…

"This is it, right?" Ludwig asked, panting. His vision was starting to get blurry, but he had to hold on until the end. "You'll use this clock to rewind time?"

Feliciano nodded.

"And we'll start all over again?"

He nodded again.

"...Then this is it."

"No..." He clutched the journal. "Not again…!"

"Feli?"

"I won't lose you again!" He choked on his sobs.

Ludwig gave him a sad smile. "It'll be alright."

"Don't say that!"

"It's okay, we're starting over again."

"That's what's not okay about it! Do you know… Do you have any idea..."

"I don't." He walked closer. "I can't even imagine what you've all been through."

"I can't… Not again..."

"Yes, you can." He tilted Feliciano's chin up. "Don't fail on me now, soldier."

"Y-yes, sir..."

In a moment where nothing mattered, he pulled Feliciano in for a hug. "It's okay. We'll see each other again at the world meeting, at the beginning of all this."

"There's something… there's something I want to tell you… But only when we get out of here… But… I also want to tell you… now..."

"I won't remember anyway."

"No, you won't… Again..."

"What is it?" He pulled back a little so he could look Feliciano in the eyes. "Or should I go first?"

"F-first?"

Ludwig smiled and wiped Feliciano's tears away with his thumb. "I will not remember I said this, but you will, and that's what matters. I… Ich liebe dich."

Feliciano whimpered. "Germany is always faster..."

"Am I now?"

He nodded. "In the beginning… Every time you were dying, or when I was about to rewind time, I'd tell you I loved you. But you never remembered. And I said it so many times… It started to lose its meaning. So I stopped saying it. And I only wanted to say it when we get out of here. But… it's been so long..."

Ludwig pressed a kiss to his forehead. "We both know I won't remember. But that doesn't make it mean any less."

A loud banging on the door made them both jump. "He's found us..." Feliciano whimpered.

"You need to go."

"No…!"

"It's okay, we'll meet again. But you need to rewind the clock, now."

"I don't want to say goodbye again!"

"Then say hello."

"...What?"

He cupped Feliciano's face. "When you rewind time, and we meet at the world meeting… Come to me and say hello."

"Why?"

"Because this time we'll escape. You'll say hello to the version of me which is there to stay."

The door creaked, the hinges starting to give way.

"Go now!"

"This will be the last time, I promise! I will never say goodbye again!"

"Go!"

The door broke down and the monster entered the room. Ludwig stepped towards it, buckling over, his body giving out. He looked around at Feliciano who got on his tiptoes to reach the hands of the clock. His shoelaces had gotten loose.

Ludwig turned back to the monster. "One last time."

The monster went for Feliciano, but Ludwig threw himself onto its arm, his body going numb. In a blur, he saw Feliciano rewind the clock. He looked back at him, and Ludwig smiled at him one last time before he closed his eyes.

In a flash, Feliciano was back at the world meeting. It had worked again. Again…

"And we'll wrap up here for today," Ludwig said. "Next meeting, we'll continue with section 17-B."

Feliciano got up from his seat, just like everyone else. It wouldn't be long before they'd leave for the mansion; Alfred was already spreading the idea around. He hurried to the restrooms and locked himself in a stall. He took a deep breath. One last time. This had to be the last time. No more goodbyes, no more…

He took another breath and hurried to join the rest. So this time his group would consist of Ludwig, Gilbert, and Kiku. "I want to come too!"

"Aw, yeah!" Gilbert said. "Come on, let's go!"

"I'm waiting for a text from Yao-san," Kiku said.

Feliciano looked at Ludwig. When they made eye contact, he smiled. "Hello."