Note: This can be taken as a sequel to "Love is Blind." (In which case, it would be a few years later.)
Matthew fidgeted slightly as they waited for dessert. The night had been going smoothly so far. They had seen a great movie, and the food at the restaurant Francis had suggested was fantastic. There was just one thing he had left to do, and it could make or break the entire evening.
It would be nice if every other nation hadn't decided to eat at that very restaurant, at that very time. He knew as soon as he walked in that Francis must have told everyone what he was planning to do tonight.
Gilbert was dressed as a waiter, walking around the restaurant, but with the way the nations were handing him money as he wrote things down, he knew exactly what they were doing.
They were betting on his success or failure.
A glance over in the corner of the restaurant assured him that Arthur was in fact still there, still too drunk to actually leave. He'd have to try to find time to assure him later that it wasn't anything against him. It was bound to happen sooner or later, really.
He looked back at Alfred, who was still talking animatedly about the new video game he had started playing earlier that day. It probably wasn't appropriate conversation for the kind of restaurant they were in, but at least it kept him from noticing who the other patrons were. He caught sight of their waiter heading to the table and took a breath. Here goes nothing.
"Hey Alfred..." He swallowed a bit as Alfred stopped mid-sentence, and smiled a bit.
"Is something wrong, Mattie?" Matthew shook his head. He could do this.
"No...it's just--We've been...together...for a while now, and- I...I want you to know that you have become everything important to me. I...I love everything about you. The way you fall over yourself trying to make me happy, the way you smile when you do, the way you're determined to keep trying when you don't..."
The waiter set down the two flutes on the table, and started pouring champagne in them. Something sparkled in Alfred's glass, but he never took his eyes off Matthew.
Matthew took another breath and lifted his glass to Alfred, who did the same with his glass. They clinked together quietly. Matthew took a long sip of his before looking at Alfred again.
"Really, I'm trying to get to...I want to...Well, I mean, will you..." Matthew trailed off as he watched Alfred quickly down his drink, setting down the empty glass.
Around them, the other nations fell silent as they watched the scene unfold. A short distance away, the waiter was slapping his forehead, muttering something in French. There was a loud half-laugh from Arthur's corner of the room.
Noticing the sudden silence, Alfred looked around before looking at Matthew, a bit uncomfortable all of a sudden.
"Hey, Mattie...do you think maybe we could pay and go somewhere else?"
There was a collective groan in the room as Matthew just stared blankly at his boyfriend.
"Yeah, Alfred. The emergency room."