"Warnings": (Since this is apparently for triggery things... this is more of what to expect?) Germany/Japan (so shounen-ai)... language barriers, etc.
There was nothing more awkward than meeting someone who couldn't understand you. There was nothing worse than having to deal with another person who also doesn't understand you. Or at least, Ludwig would love to believe that.
The thing was, though it wasn't a significant event, there was something worse than those two things combine—he fell, even if he doesn't know when, in love with the third person, Kiku Honda. The problem was that their languages weren't similar… at all. He couldn't read it, write it, and could barely pronounce the words without stumbling over the multiple vowels and w.
Kiku, on the other hand, couldn't get the sound of the German words right, and often messed up on the spelling. The Japanese student couldn't seem to understand when the word required a diacritic, or when a certain word required an eszett instead of two "s".
Their mutual friend, and the one who introduced them to each other, Feliciano was a native Italian, and could only speak that language. Based on former experiences, Ludwig could identify a few words here and there, but he was just as confused about Feliciano as he was about Kiku.
Though the language barrier, as both Alfred and Arthur called it, caused some problems, they still were able to form a strong bond based on similar interested, similar hobbies, and their broken English. It was through those things that he realized that he might've cared for Kiku more than he did for Feli.
That was something he didn't want to admit, and at first, he thought it was something completely different. He thought, by chance, that he was attracted to the language, that he liked the way the Japanese spoke. He thought that he had what some (or all) would call a language kink.
Or maybe, though not as likely, he might just like Kiku's voice. Of course, that would mean that he was falling in love with the student, and he couldn't be falling in love—he just said that he wouldn't let anything distract him from doing better.
It was with that (excuse) thought in mind that he started to avoid Kiku. It… didn't work, as Kiku worked as hard as he did (and he was also in Ludwig's class… but that's a story for later.) A problem, one that was worse, was that he was constantly forced to be with Kiku because he was never able to deny Feliciano of anything—he was pathetically weak, and many (including his brother) thought that they were lovers.
If he was worried about what could happen when he was stuck with both Kiku and Feliciano, he was having a panic attack when he was left alone with Kiku. Though he didn't know much about relationships, he knew that he couldn't suddenly confess to Kiku—he knew that many would view it as romantic, but he didn't think Kiku would be all that happy with receiving a sudden confession. Kiku would freak out about a hug (from Feliciano, who often invades people's personal space, which doesn't make the hug shocking), and Ludwig could only imagine his reaction to a love confession.
The thought of Kiku, sweet, innocent, shy Kiku, ever responding to a confession in a positive manner (like reciprocating his feelings) was very small. He couldn't even imagine his feelings being reciprocated—that was impossible on many levels.
Even with an air of despondence, he managed to create a fake air of stoicism, one that many, if not all students, couldn't break. The wall he tried to build, to distance himself from Kiku—his downfall—was slowly crumbling to dust before him, and he could only watch.
He didn't feel like rebuilding the wall, just to have it fall again. He didn't want to go through the process over and over again, just to keep falling in love with him (even more than the last time).
In school, it's hard to say that it's a language kink, that he likes the way the language sounds. He could hear Alfred attempting to say a few words (which he knew… by heart), and he couldn't help but to wince as he heard those words. It wasn't that the words were mangled—shocking, since he managed to mangle the words of every other language—but it was like a confirmation.
He didn't want to know he was in love with Kiku—he didn't want that distraction. Then again, he knew what the Japanese student was like, so he highly doubts that Kiku would "distract" him.
This feeling (crap) subject is very complex.