*Well, I thought it was high time to start writing a longer Hetalia story, so I thought I'd fulfil a prompt on the Hetalia Kink Meme.
Original prompt : I want to see how the once happy couple's relationship progresses/diminishes to the breaking point, and how they finally call it quits. I want you to break me, Anon. I'm okay with any pairing for this except AusHun.
Immediately when I saw this prompt, I knew I which pairing I was going to use; SpAus. Despite being an AusHun and Spamano shipper, I really think Spain and Austria had a very happy relationship in the past, but that it just didn't work out in the long term. Title is (obviously) inspired by the Adel song, because I'm crap at coming up with my own titles
Anyway, without further ado, here it is. (By the way, it's a Human AU, which is why I've used human names).*
One sentence is all it takes.
It's been such a long time since he last heard that voice. Countless years have tumbled by in the meantime; too many for Antonio to even remember to keep count of. Yet when he hears those words- rich, prim and stiffly accented- rising over the other side of the supermarket aisle like a lost melody, the recognition immediately sets in.
"Excuse me, but I don't suppose I could trouble you for directions to the pastry counter?"
Antonio's heart begins to slow, each beat thudding with a realisation heavier and more painful than the last. Everything on his mind that seemed important ten seconds ago- the price of courgettes, planning next week's dinners, trying to remember whether his Lovino prefers cherry or plumb tomatoes- slips away into graceful oblivion, leaving only one impulse on his mind.
Vaguely, he's aware of stepping away from the shelves, abandoning his trolley, and hastening down the aisle like he's possessed by a dream. His pulse has quickened again; the jittering urge turning increasingly frantic. Somewhere in the back of his mind, there's a voice screaming doubts (strange how much it sounds like Lovi's), but he pushes it aside.
He has to know if it's really him, he has to. More than that, he wants to.
Turning into the next aisle is like entering a time capsule. His back is turned away, but Antonio distinguishes him in an instant, fondly noting the navy trench coat, high boots and that one rogue curl that used to cause him such chagrin. Everything about him is just the same as before, from his poker-stiff posture to the way his knuckles whiten from clutching the basket a little too tightly. It's as if Antonio had stumbled across a scene paused from a video, or even returned from collecting an item as he had so many times on their own shopping trips together.
The thought terrifies him.
Ahead of him, the half-stranger nods stiffly as he listens to the directions, thanks the shop assistant with all his usual haughtiness and moves to walk away. It's then that Antonio realises that he can't let him go. Not just yet.
"Roderich!"
The word tumbles out before he's even aware of it. His breath stills as he watches the man freeze in his place, evidently startled by the suddenness of his name. Or perhaps he too has heard the voice behind it; perhaps he too feels the same jolt of nostalgic trepidation.
As the man turns, Antonio doesn't notice the ruffled disbelief in his face, or the way his eyebrows knot together in distress, or even how his mouth hangs ajar. All he can see is the change in the picture; a change that's so slight, but makes all the difference in the world.
A thin band of gold around his fourth finger.
"Roderich?" he calls again, and this time, the tone is almost pleading.
The basket slips from Roderich's hand, falling to the floor with a crash.
*Okay, this part is a kind of prologue; the story behind it will be coming in later chapters. Reviews would be wonderful.*