So I was bored.

Like super bored.

Don't you give me that look.

*sigh* I'll see what I can do about the other fics. Right now, I'm writing this so that everyone knows I'm still alive… Got the idea listening to Michael Buble, of all people. Thank you, sir. You are now forever the voice of Alfred Jones in my mind.

Also, N. Italy is female and he and S. Italy are both like…three. Or four. And Erin isn't a country, sadly. Just a little add in. so sad.

~Don't own Hetalia or Famous Last Words by MCR or Dream On by Aerosmith. Don't ask me why the chapter's called that… I was listening to that song while I was typing…~

Chapter 1: Dream On

"Stop running! Sit, I say! Sit!" Erin grabbed at her youngest baby, smiling as Feliciana giggled and slipped out of her hands. She tucked her reddish brown hair behind her ear and reached out to grab the skirt of the dress her three year old daughter was wearing. Missing it by just a hair, she frowned as her daughter giggled and ran around the corner. "Romano?" Erin called, pushing her glasses back up on her nose and looking around. Having twins was about the worse thing anyone could wish on a single mother, yet here she was. She stood up and straightened out her back, looking in a mirror in the single bedroom she shared with her two children in the small apartment. Skinny (not by choice) and undressed (also not by choice). She scowled a bit at her reflection and looked around the room. They couldn't have gone far. It was a small one bedroom apartment where the kitchen blended into the living room. Right now, it was so messy it was a miracle she could find anything.

She exhaled angrily. "Time for bed, guys! Get back here!" She successfully grabbed Feliciana as the little girl made her fifth circle around the couch, hefting the child under her arm like a football as she searched for the other one. Romano, however, was the craftiest kid in the world. When he wanted to hide, he staid hid. Erin frowned and checked the clock on the beaten up microwave. "Romano, I have an interview with someone in an hour and you are being a butt!" Not the most eloquent way to express her feelings, but it vented her frustration. The babysitter was supposed to be here any minute and here she was, in her underwear, chasing her own children. "Fine, Romano! No tomatoes before bed!"

From a corner of the bedroom they all shared, Erin heard a wail start up that would've woken the dead for miles around. Undeterred, she marched right up to the source and arrested a darker haired child almost identical to the one under her left arm. She grabbed his wrist, ignoring his tears, and then gasped as the doorbell rang. Caught between a roc and a hard place, she sighed and let go of Romano's hand to open the door a crack. "Elizabeta…hello…"

The younger woman gave her a small understanding smile. "Rough day?"

Erin laughed dryly and opened the door a little wider. "Do you mind watching the twins while I…well, get dressed?"

"Of course." Elizabeta kneeled down next to Romano and the little boy instantly stopped crying and hugged her, crowing in joy.

Erin frowned in jealousy. Why was it her son liked every other woman except her? He probably hadn't forgiven her for dressing him up like a girl that one day a week ago…But he and Feliciana had looked so adorable together!

"Here's the other one." Erin gave Elizabeta Feliciana and ran towards her room. "Thanks!" She ran into the bathroom and put her hair up, inspecting it in the mirror.

"I'm so jealous of your figure! How did you get that tiny?" Elizabeta called from the living room.

Erin's eyes grew tired and she watched as her shoulders sagged, her hair falling through her fingers and brushing around her shoulders. She sighed and put her forehead against the mirror, muttering, "Try keeping two children fed and the electricity on. Then you'll be as skinny as me."

"What?" Elizabeta called.

"I just…exercise! With the kids!" Erin called, her tone fakely cheerful. Her stomach growled hungrily and she sighed and rubbed it. She hadn't eaten in a while because every cent of her measly pay check she got from writing stories on the side for the local newspaper went towards the kids. She was hoping this new interview would help her get another job and maybe…just maybe she could afford to eat.

She grabbed a black dress that came down in a v for the neckline, the material on the left overlapping down the front of her chest. The straps were thick and the skirt flaired out a bit at the bottom, making it seem flirty. She pulled it on, pleased and depressed to note that not only did she no longer have to unzip the thing to get in it, but it hung on her a bit. It didn't swallow her at least, but one could tell she was a bit too small for the dress. She fluffed her hair out and applied make up quickly, smiling as she heard giggles from the living room. At least the kids would be safe with Elizabeta. Erin had heard about a break in one time while Feliciana and Romano were napping. Elizabeta had held off the intruder with nothing but a frying pan and had won.

Erin put on her glasses, frowned, and took them off again. She wasn't going for the nerdy look tonight. Sexy. Sleek. Amazingly hard working. That's what she wanted. She put in small diamond studs and paused, glancing down at her right hand and the ring on her fourth finger. She twisted it, biting her lip. It'd been two years since her husband had left her, pregnant and without a job, to fend for herself. Back then, she'd been a chain smoking biker bitch without a name or a home. She'd stopped the smoking and had sold her bike to buy this shitty apartment so she could have a roof over her and the kids' heads. She removed the ring and placed it in a small jewelry box, turning with a flip of her hair.

Ludwig Weillschmidt tapped his fingers on the table, watching the young woman he was supposed to interview walk into the restaurant. It had been Gilbert's idea to conduct the interview at Chateau's on fifth and main. And of course, the job was to be Gilbert's secretary. More like babysitter, but like the silver haired man always said, 'What does it matter?'. All of this was Gilbert's idea. So why wasn't he in this goddamn seat instead of Ludwig? The younger Weillschmidt brother sighed and set his fingers flat on the table. When he had inherited the family corporation from their father, it was pleasant, but not a surprise. Gilbert spent his money on women and drinking and whatever he and his friends, Francis and Antonio, decided to foolishly invest in for the month. Ludwig, however, was careful and patient and knew exactly what to do with the finances. However, Gilbert had just decided that he too wanted a piece of the action and had convinced his younger brother to at least let him attend corporate meetings. Meaning he wanted an office. And a secretary.

He ran a hand over his carefully slicked back hair again as he looked back up at his possible employee. She was incredibly beautiful and young looking, though he couldn't quite make out her figure with how that dress hung on her. It was hard to figure out if she was anorexic or just impossibly skinny. He'd find out soon enough. He lifted a hand in greeting as she approached him and stood. "Erin Vargas?"

"Yes!" She smiled and took his hand, shaking it firmly. "Mr. Weillschmidt?"

"Yes." He was distracted for a moment by how soft and brown her eyes looked, then by the way her hand shook. A fragile girl. That was fine by him. She wouldn't run off with Gilbert and do crazy things. "Won't you sit down?" He offered the chair directly in front of his.

A waiter came up behind her and helped her in and she smiled and thanked him.

"Have you eaten anything?" He asked out of politeness more then concern.

"I'm alright." She said neutrally, her hands in her lap. She sat tall and straight, undoubtedly nervous.

However, there was nothing to worry about. The more Ludwig inspected her, the more impressed he became. She seemed straight and earnest, things he would need if he wanted to keep Gilbert in line and out of the way. Her looks weren't that bad either. That was good also. Gilbert would listen to her.

He cleared his throat and looked away, uncomfortably aware that he'd been staring. "It says on your resume that you have two children."

He watched her eyes light up like her whole world was turning so much more faster then everyone else's, and a smile so beautiful and enthusiastic graced her features. "Oh yes! Feliciana and Romano! They're my babies!"

He couldn't help but smile as well. "Do you have a picture?"

She nodded and opened up the small handheld purse she was carrying, pulling out a small beaten up photograph. "It's a little old, but this is them." She handed it to him. "Romano's the darker haired one and Feliciana you can barely see with all the lace. I got a little carried away that day…" She blushed a bit but whether it was from the confession or the fact that their hands met, he couldn't say.

Ludwig glanced at the children, finding himself in awe at how photogenic they were. "They're beautiful children," He handed the photograph back. "Like their mother."

A genuine blush reached her cheeks as she took the photograph back and placed it in her purse. "Th-thank you…"

He studied her a bit, noticing the way her hand kept straying to her stomach and the trembling of her appendages. "Are you sure you don't want anything?" He asked, genuinely concerned now. She was showing all the signs of extreme hunger.

"I'm fine…" She said weakly, blinking as he ignored her statement and shoved a menu in her face.

"I think not." He said dryly over the menu.

She took it meekly from him, opening it.

"If you don't mind me asking, what's the situation at home?" He glanced at the fingers that peeked over the menu, searching for a ring. "I'm just asking because at The Weillschmidt Corporation, we care about our employees." As Gilbert would say, 'weakest excuse ever'.

"I'm…single."

"Never married?"

"No, recently divorced." She tapped her fingers on the menu and he wished he could see her face. She finally put the menu down and folded it up, her tone cautious and her eyes downcast in the most modest yet determined way. "It's my two kids and I in an apartment. I get my revenue from writing for the paper."

"How much does it pay?"

"Fifty cents a word."

"That's not that much." He said, calling a waiter.

"It's enough for us to live." She shrugged. "I'll just have some of your soup."

"With some bread." He added onto her order, staring her in the face.

The color drained from her face and he knew exactly what was running through her head. But…I can barely pay for the soup…!

"I'll pay." He assured her. And then, he didn't know whether it was pity, or the fact that he genuinely liked her, but he said, "You've got the job, Mrs. Vargas. Welcome to the Weillschmidt Corporation."

Her face lit up at this and she smiled at him brightly. "Thank you so much Mr. Weillschmidt…! You don't know how much this means to me…!" She took his hands in her excitement and they both paused, staring in each other's eyes. Finally she awkwardly laughed and let go. "I-I'm sorry.,, I got overexcited there…"

"Please," He seized her hands again. "Call me West."

"'Call me West'!" Gilbert mocked his younger brother from their home, so far on the other side of town from Erin's shack. The silver haired young man was standing around in a worn pair of jeans, but no shirt. Hell, Ludwig was glad that his brother was even wearing pants. "God, that's the cheesiest line ever! Did you really say that?"

Ludwig ignored the older man, taking off his suit jacket and placing it on a chair.

"Sooo…?" Gilbert poked his brother in the side, smirking as Ludwig flinched away. "What does she look like?"

"Here." Ludwig picked up a folder off his desk and handed it to Gilbert. "This is her resume and picture."

"Resourceful." Gilbert picked through the papers. "She knows you'll remember her face if you see the picture." He paused and whistled. "Woooowww…No mother of two has ever looked that hot."

"She's beautiful." Ludwig muttered appreciatively, collapsing into his chair.

"What was that?" Gilbert blinked and looked up.

"I said the children are beautiful." Ludwig covered himself. He already got enough crap from Gilbert about his love life. No need to add more wood to the fire. "Two twins with brown hair and this odd little curls…"

Gilbert scratched just below his belly button, his pants sliding down a bit to reveal more silver hair trailing down. "And you hired her because she won't run off with me to have more beautiful children. Admit it." He said accusingly.

"Yes, actually." Ludwig said dryly, leaning his head on his fist, his elbow resting on the arm of his chair. "The last thing we need is more 'potential heirs' to the Weillschmidt Corporation."

Gilbert shrugged. "Don't look at me. I use a condom. They're probably Antonio-"

"Ah!" Ludwig covered his ears. "Don't want to hear about that idiot's sex life please!"

Gilbert shrugged. "Whatever. Can I keep her picture?"

"What for?" Ludwig asked darkly.

His brother gave him a dirty look. "So I can masturbate over it. Jesus, West! It's just so I know who she is when she shows up for work tomorrow!" He turned his back, heading out of his brother's office. "God, you act like you like her or something!" He paused at the doorway, smirking at his younger brother. "Wait….is that how she got the job so quickly…?"

Ludwig growled. "Get. Out."

Gilbert laughed and waved, stepping out and closing the door behind him. He held the picture up in the darkness, letting a beam of moonlight fall on the face of Erin Vargas. "You're definitely a whole lot prettier then I expected…" He murmured, letting a smile creep over his face. "This should be fun."

Well then. That's the first chapter. Please R&R so I know what to fiiiixxx or what you like. :D