This time around we have some GerIta fluff to warm up the winter. I consider this a continuation of the Gingerbread Kisses. A follow up with PruCan will be coming soon as well. More human/holiday/fluffiness. I am kind of tying all of these stories in together and I'm wondering if I should have just put them in as some sort of 'Holiday Package' but alas, I did not. Established GerIta. Mentions of USUK, mentions of Gilbert/Prussia. Apologies for any OOC-ness.
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.
It's Beginning to Snow
Ludwig was impatient. He was pacing up and down the front hall, heels of his dress shoes clicking ominously against the wood floor. That in itself didn't mean much, Ludwig was always walking with military precision, but the agitated fiddling of his driving gloves and the single strand of blond hair that was falling out of place over his eye did not bode well. The imposing German wasn't angry, per se, he was simply a believer in arriving places on time—preferably early if at all possible. His grandfather had always told him and his older brother that if they were on time, they were actually fifteen minutes late. Of course, it was impossible for him to keep living up to his grandfather's standards of punctuality when he was dating a perpetually late Italian.
"Feliciano!" Ludwig checked his watch and called into the house. He honestly had no idea where his flighty little boyfriend was, but he knew that his voice was loud enough to be heard anywhere in the house. Oddly enough, there was no response from Feliciano. 'Typical,' Ludwig shook his head, 'We should have left five minutes ago.' He began to make a list in his mind of all the traffic lights they were bound to hit and which intersections would be practically impassable with this delay. And it was a delay. Ludwig always timed their trips down to the last moment so that they would never arrive somewhere late. A habit that he was beginning to suspect was a hopeless waste of time.
Noticing that light snow flakes were starting to fall, Ludwig automatically added on seven minutes exactly to the drive and was pleased to remember that he had placed the ice scraper in the trunk a few weeks ago. He would have to shovel the driveway tomorrow if this snow kept up. Feliciano loved the snow—but then again, he was never the one outside clearing the walk. Ludwig did that—Feliciano would build snowmen in the yard and then go inside to make hot chocolate and get their fireplace going. It was always so wonderful to come in from the cold and have Feli run up to him with steaming mugs of cocoa, wrap his warm little hands around Ludwig's large chilled ones and drag him to the fireplace. They had spent a lot of time and made some very good memories in front of that fireplace.
Winter was always a wonderful time of year for the couple. It marked so many milestones, so many memories. Ludwig knew that Feli would be ecstatic to see that it was snowing. The first snow of the winter. Smiling, and thinking about his wonderful, precious Feliciano, the tall blonde thought about a snowstorm two years ago and how it had changed his life. Then he heard the grandfather clock in his office chime and his sentimentality faded away again because he remembered that his wonderful, precious boyfriend still wasn't ready to leave.
Just as he was about to call out once more, his overdue partner came sliding into the hall in stocking feet, grasping two large bottles of what looked to be incredibly expensive wine. "Sorry Luddy," the infectious smile cut short any irritation lingering in the taller man's mind. "I couldn't find the wine anywhere. I bought it yesterday and I remember I put it on the counter but when I went to get it, it wasn't there anymore. It wasn't in the pantry, it wasn't in the sink, it wasn't in the laundry room…"
The blonde listened as his brunette boyfriend prattled away, listing all of the places that he had looked for the wine purchased as a holiday present for their friends, Alfred and Arthur. Ludwig was curious as to exactly how much Feliciano had spent on the wine seeing as while Arthur would be grateful, Alfred couldn't care less. Their boisterous American friend would prefer a shot of bourbon or tequila or anything really that could be used as an excuse for when he started asking if anyone wanted to partake in body shots—a practice that was usually shut down firmly by Arthur, but still happened almost every get-together they hosted.
"Feli," Ludwig usually didn't call his lover by the shortened version of his name, preferring the way the complete word felt on his tongue. The unusual use of his nickname got the young Italian's attention immediately and he stopped explaining how he has been looking for the wine bottles under their bed and smiled up at his German boyfriend.
"Yes?" Feliciano tilted his head to one side, looking absolutely innocent as he placed the wine on the hall table.
"You know we needed to leave five—well, nine minutes ago now," Ludwig didn't need to say anything more. Feli knew exactly when they were supposed to leave. He just wasn't very concerned about punctuality.
"I couldn't find the wine," Feliciano repeated as he smiled and reached up to straighten Ludwig's tie. It was a comfortable gesture, just a way for the smaller man to touch his very proper boyfriend without making him uncomfortable. They both knew that Ludwig's tie was perfectly placed.
The tall blonde sighed and placed his fingers over the bridge of his nose, "Why were you looking for it under our bed?"
Shrugging, and running his fingers down his boyfriend's incredibly firm chest, Feliciano smiled and stated, "I don't know. You always put the entire liquor cabinet under the bed when Gilbert comes to visit."
"That's because my brother would deplete every top shelf brand we have if I didn't hide it from him," Ludwig shook his head, thinking of his brother. Glancing out the window, he jerked his head in the same direction to bring the snow to his boyfriend's attention. "It's snowing. It will take us longer to get there now."
Clapping his hands delightedly, Feliciano hopped over toward the window and pressed his face and hands against the cold pane of glass making excited noises that Ludwig realized he had missed since last year. Feli was always such a bright presence in his life and his joy for simple things such as the beauty of the snow never failed to make Ludwig smile.
"Oh, this is wonderful!" Feliciano turned back towards Ludwig. "We can build snowmen tomorrow—you'll have to help me this year though! Building the snowmen is hard work you know."
Ludwig simply gave a small smile and said, "Ja, I know."
A moment passed where neither moved, they simply just gazed at each other, both grinning and thinking about how lucky they were to have the other in their lives. Surprisingly, Feliciano was the first one to move, blinking suddenly as though startled saying, "We're going to be late! Oh, I'm so sorry Luddy. I know you hate being late." The rhetorical apology caused the blonde to glance once more at this watch.
Sighing, Ludwig managed to say, "Its fine. Get your shoes on and be quick about it."
The smaller man sat on the stairs to pull on his boots, while the tall blonde gathered up the wine bottles. He noticed that Feli had tied elaborate ribbons around the bottle necks, giving the expensive wines a festive tint.
"Ready," Feliciano sprang up from the stairs, and held his gloved hand out to his German lover with a smile.
Gripping both wine bottles with one hand, Ludwig slid his own gloved palm into his boyfriend's smaller as they stepped out of their house into the falling snow. Feliciano locked the door behind them, and Ludwig subtly double-checked the handle—the small brunette was notorious for 'forgetting' to lock the house.
The two lovers clung to each other as they slipped down the walk toward the car, careful not to fall, crush each other, or god forbid break the wine. Once the precious alcoholic host gift had been tucked into the backseat, Ludwig gently guided Feli around to the passenger door so that the smaller man wouldn't slip on the ice. Opening the door with a flourish for his boyfriend, as he always did, Ludwig placed his hand on the other's arm and softly said his lover's name. "Feliciano." The Italian stilled and smiled up at his tall lover.
"It's beginning to snow, sweetheart," Ludwig smiled down tenderly at his boyfriend, placing his hands lightly on Feliciano's hips.
Only a moment passed before Feli jumped up, wrapping his arms tight around his lover's neck and placed an enthusiastic kiss on his lips. It was soft and sweet and completely amazing and neither man wanted the moment to end. Reluctantly, Ludwig pulled away slowly, keeping his arms wrapped around his lover's waist. The snowflakes were clinging to both of their heads, and Ludwig couldn't help but feel his heart swell at the sight of his wonderful, perfect, adorable, incredible boyfriend.
No longer caring that they were behind schedule, Ludwig leaned down once more and softly brushed his lips against Feliciano's, trying to convey all of the love and the feelings that he was sometimes too stiff to show. The kiss deepened as the snow continued to fall, dusting their entwined bodies as the two men clung to each other in their driveway.
It was their little yearly tradition. The first kiss of the first snowfall. It was always perfect. Just as the very first time that they had kissed—two years ago, in the snow. The kiss that marked the beginning of the best thing in either of their lives.