Before I get started on this, I want to announce that I can not write anything that has to do with gay couples or lesbian couples. I've spent countless hours trying and failing at writing anything of the sort and have dully concluded that I will not be writing anything of that genre. As a result, every pairing in this story is straight, which means that there has been some obvious gender bending.

Those characters are as follows:

North Italy - Feliciana Vargas

South Italy - Lovina Vargas

Great Britian - Alice Kirkland

The OC's that I own are Sofia Jones who would be Sicily and Alexandra Zwigli who would be Geneva.

I, iPastatalia, do hereby swear that I own nothing excet for my two wonderful OC's.


"I woke up early with a pounding in my head

I'd been out the night before with all my friends

A little worried, kinda wonderin' what I did

I said Lord Please forgive me for my sins"

The light was almost blinding as Gilbert rolled over in bed. His head was aching and he felt like he'd been run over by a truck. Laying still for a few moments, he could hear the sounds of his wife moving around down stairs. She seemed to be making an awful lot of noise and he really didn't know why. So, instead of getting out of bed, he decided to lay there and not move so that he didn't aggravate is head ache any more than needed. This turned out to be a very bad idea when his beautiful wife walked up the stairs, and threw the bedroom door open. Before Gilbert could comprehend what was happening, she had pulled back the oh-so comfy covers and was crossing her arms.

"Get up or you're going to make us late." she stated as she stood there starring at him.

"Late for what?" he asked as he blinked at her.

"Meine Güte Gilbert, its Sunday. We are going to be late to church and before you ask, we ARE going." she replied in a manner that made her seem upset but not at the same time.

"But Lilli!" he whined as she proceeded to move about the room and opened all of the windows.

"No arguing. Get up and get ready so we can go." Lilli replied as she wandered into the closet.

Gilbert, knowing that this battle had been lost, rolled over and in the most ungraceful way, fell off of the bed only to land on the hardwood floor. A tinkling sort of laugh could be heard from the closet and Gilbert could only scowl. However, approximately, twenty minutes later they were walking up to the church that had been their Sunday destination ever since they had gotten married. Gilbert hadn't really been the church-type person before his marriage to Lilli. He really only went to keep her happy because an unhappy Lilli meant nobody was happy.

So there he was, in an uncomfortable shirt and tie, sitting next to her as the reverend began speaking. Gilbert really wasn't paying attention but Lilli was dutifully taking notes like she always did. At least, in this church, people weren't too stuffy or stuck up plus it was almost a real family affair. Gilbert's brother, Ludwig wasn't present because he was in the military and was currently deployed, though his wife Feliciana sat dutifully in her usual seat while Lilli's brother, Vash and his wife Alexandra sat across the aisle from them. Feliciana's sister, Lovina - who was married to Gilbert's friend Antonio - sat at the very back of the church. Gilbert's other best friend Francis, with his fiancée Alice Kirkland, sat in the back next to Antonio. Feliciana and Lovina's other sister Sofia and her husband Alfred sat behind Vash and Alexandra. Lastly was Elizaveta and Roderich, who sat on the opposite side and all the way up front because Roderich was the church piano player.

Yeah, that pretty much meant that their entire extended family was present at the service that morning. It wasn't a bad thing, though because the after church lunch was the best. So, eventually, the Reverend stopped talking and the songs were all sung and finally, it was time to head home for some awesome food. This weekend also meant that it was Gilbert and Lilli's turn to host the family for Sunday lunch. The drive home was short and uneventful but once they were there, Lilli was rushing to change clothes and finish working on the food she had started the day before. Gilbert, on the other hand, changed clothes and wandered outside to set up the fire pit for roasting marshmallows later.

Approximately, twenty minutes later, he was joined in the backyard by Antonio and Alfred, who had brought a case of beer with him. Accepting a bottle, the three men stood on the patio telling stories and such until a loud, vulgar, Italian voice began shouting at them. Hurrying inside, they each took their respective places at the table but not before Elizaveta and Roderich began arguing, which forced poor Vash to sit between them the rest of the night. Once the seating was arranged, they all bowed their head to say a prayer for Ludwig, who was deployed and loved being a soldier more than most.

The meal progressed on from there and as he watched the antics of the huge family, he had to admit that it was crazy and beautiful at the same time. He wouldn't trade a day now for anything in the world. Eventually, the meal ended and everyone was moving to the backyard for the marshmallows but Lilli pulled Gilbert aside.

"Can you go to the store for me, please? We are out of tissues and Feliciana is having a rough time. Could you please go pick some more up?" she asked him as she finished loading the dishwasher.

"Of course." was all Gilbert could say, because when a woman looks at you with those pretty eyes and cute smile, how can you say no.

So Gilbert walked out to the car and began heading into town for the tissues. On the main road, at a bus stop, he spotted a familiar figure that made is heart start pounding. Gilbert rolled to a stop and starred at the man.

"You're back!" he exclaimed as the man smiled.

"Ja. I got a change in orders and I wanted to surprise Feli, so I didn't say anything." he replied.

"Well hop in and I'll take you back to the house but I gotta stop by the drug store and pick up tissues first." Gilbert stated as the man threw his army bag in the back seat and sat down in the passengers seat.

Gilbert was way to excited so he drove faster than he should, reaching the store in record time. He figured that with this change of events, that they would only need one box, so he made his purchase and headed back to the car. Then he drove as fast as humanly possible to get back to the house. All of the cars were still out front when they pulled into the driveway, so Gilbert motioned for the other to follow him quietly.

Quiet and carefully through the house and to the back yard, everyone was laughing and talking so Gilbert made him wait out of sight until he said so. Of course, Lilli heard them first and her eyes got really wide as she gasped. For a moment all eyes were on the back door where Gilbert stood with a figure behind him.

"LUDWIG!" Feliciana cried as she jumped up from her spot next to her sister and raced to her husband.

Ludwig, though not a PDA person, had no issue kissing his wife as she hugged him as hard as she could. Though, before, she could ask, Ludwig stated that he would tell her when they got home; to which Feliciana promptly bid everyone good night and dragged him along with her to the car.

Later that night, Gilbert lay in bed while Lilli slept peacefully next to him. He thought back to earlier in the day and he realized how grateful he was for Lilli and how he seriously hopped that what they had would last forever. His final though before he rolled over and wrapped an arm around his wife was that no matter how crazy, or aweful, or beautiful, or even awesome, he would love his life.

I laid in bed that night and though about the day

And how my life is like a roller coaster ride

The ups and downs and crazy turns along the way

It will throw yah off if you don't hold on tight.

You can't really smile until you've shed some tears,

I could die today or I might live on for year

I love this crazy, tragic, sometimes almost magic

Awful, beautiful life

- Darryl Worley


If you liked ths, then please review which will feed my muse. The song is Awful, Beautiful Life by Darryl Worley.