Today Matthew and Alfred had received their report cards. Alfred had gotten modest grades. His lowest was in English, which had been a D-. Other than that is was all B's and A's. He was pretty content with any grade, so long as he was passing. Grades never mattered that much to Alfred. Matthew on the other hand cared about school a lot. That was why he was so pleased when he got straight A's for the first time.

It had taken loads of late night studying and determination, but he had achieved the best of the best because of it. That was why he smiled for the whole rest of the school day, as well as the bus ride home. He couldn't wait to see the look on his parent's faces. Maybe now they would finally realize that he was just as good as, and maybe even better, then Alfred.

For two fourteen year old twins that almost looked exactly alike, they couldn't be any more different. While Alfred was the outgoing attention loving one, Matthew was the quiet and withdrawn child. He was never noticed at school, and hardly noticed at home. His Papa Francis was probably the one who he was closest too. His other dad Arthur was nice as well, but his attention was mostly focused on Alfred. Alfred himself did care about Matthew, but only at certain times. When they were at school Alfred became the center of the crowd, and he too forgot about his shy brother.

There was one thing that kept him holding on though. Alfred may have been the one who played baseball, soccer, and football, but there was a sport that Matthew played as well. He happened to be one of the best ice hockey players on the entire school team, despite only being a Freshman. His whole team loved him, including the coach. On the ice he was a completely different person. Quick, speedy, and skilled. Matthew loved every second of it. It did sometimes upset him when his parents forgot about his games, but they somehow always were able to attend Alfred's.

"Ah, hello boys," Arthur, their dad, greeted the twins as they came through the front door. "How was school?"

"Boring, no duh!" Alfred told him. "Except during lunch. Feliciano Vargas chocked on his pasta and Ludwig had to come to his rescue. It was hilarious!"

"Alfred F. Jones, chocking is not something to laugh about! That poor lad could have died!" Arthur scolded him.

"Sure, Sure," Alfred chortled. "So I was wondering if I could go hang with the guys today until dinner? We're all celebrating the start of the new quarter!"

"We'll see" Arthur replied. "First I want a look at your grades. I know for a fact that today was report card day."

"Aw, c'mon" Alfred whined, but handed his report card to the awaiting Brit. "They're actually pretty good dude!"

"I'll be the judge of that," Arthur said, eyes scanning the grades on the paper. Suddenly he scowled. "Alfred F. Jones, your English grade has dropped! I thought you told me you were working harder in that class. Haven't you been doing your homework?"

"Yeah dad I have been working harder! It's not my fault that it's so boring. And I have been doing my homework...most of the time."

"Mhm, I'm sure" Arthur agreed sarcastically. "Well you can forget about hanging out with those friends of yours. We're heading upstairs to do some major studying."

"Aw, but dad, I'll work harder!" Alfred told him.

"That doesn't matter. Before the school year ends I at least want you to bump up to a C. I won't have you failing." Arthur said, gesturing for Alfred to go upstairs. Before Arthur could follow however, Matthew spoke.

"Here's my report card Dad." He said, proudly handing his own grades to show him. Arthur scanned the paper quickly, and smiled.

"Good job lad" He told him, giving Matthew a quick pat on the shoulder. "Well, I'd best go try to help Alfred with his schooling."

As Arthur left to go upstairs, Matthew's pleased grin faded. God job? That was it? His grades were a thousand times better Alfred's! For a moment he just stood there, before finally heading upstairs to his own room, the place where he usually spent most of his time. It was covered with hockey posters and the Canadian flag, and on his bed sat his stuffed polar bear, Kumajiro. It had been a gift that Francis and Arthur had gotten him when he was first adopted by them. So what if he was fourteen and still carried around a stuffed animal? He loved his bear a lot.

During dinner was when Matthew felt his confidence come back a little. Now that his Papa was here, he could show his grades to him and hopefully get something better than a good job.

"So boys, how did you do with your grades?" Francis asked, taking a bite of the chicken he had made, since Arthur was banned from making meals.

"I got all A's Papa!" Matthew was quick to speak up before anyone else.

"How merveilleux! I am so proud of you, mon petit Mathieu!" The Frenchman squealed happily, reaching over to ruffle Matthew's hair. He smiled proudly, glad that he was finally getting some attention.

"Alfred on the other hand, just happens to be almost failing English." Arthur informed him, sending a frown at the other twin who was currently stuffing his face full of food.

"What? Mon dieu Alfred, I thought you were going to do better! We can't have you failing, or you'll have to retake the whole semester class!" Francis exclaimed.

Matthew sighed to himself in disappointment. There went his only hope of praise. Now the attention was turned to Alfred again, as usual. He finished his dinner as quickly as possible before heading upstairs. It was a Friday, but like normally he had no friends to hang out with. He settled for laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling thinking of how much he wanted to be noticed. That was pretty much impossible though. It was a dream to unrealistic to ponder over too much. He couldn't help but allow a few tears to escape, slowly running down his cheeks.

That was the first night that Matthew stayed up till midnight. It was also the first time he traveled down to the kitchen to retrieve a small sharp knife from the silverware drawer. Most importantly of all, it was the first time Matthew attempted to cut himself.

...

Francis was a little bit concerned. It was nearing nearly eleven in the morning and Mathieu had yet to come downstairs. Normally Alfred was the twin to sleep in, but even he had woken up to come down for breakfast. After all, Saturday was doughnut day, and who didn't like doughnuts? Now Alfred was in the living room playing video games. Arthur was making tea in the kitchen, and Francis himself was contemplating why Matthew hadn't come downstairs. Perhaps he was sick or something.

"Mon lapin, I'm going to see if Mathieu wants me to make him some brunch. Then perhaps we can all go out and do something." Francis said.

"Alright, Sounds fine with me." Arthur responded. Francis went up the stairs and to the room at the end of the hall with a picture of a maple leaf on the door.

"Mathieu, wake up sleepy head! I shall make you come brunch and then we will all go out and do something." He called, knocking on the door. There was no response.

"Mathieu?" He knocked again, a frown on his face. He tried to open the door but discovered that it was locked. He froze. Matthew never locked his door.

"Mathieu open the door right now!" He called with his voice raised in worry, rattling the doorknob harder. Francis had this gut feeling that something was extremely wrong. Finally coming down to his last option, the Frenchman slammed his shoulder against the wooden door. It took a few tries, but eventually the door flung open. The sight that greeted Francis would haunt him forever.

Sitting on the floor slumped against his bed was Matthew. His face was pale, much too pale, and was covered in a sheet of sweat. The worst part was his arms. Thick red liquid that was obviously blood was covering his arms, dripping down his wrists and onto the floor. Matthew's eyes were glazed over, and a knife was still clasped in a limp hand.

"Mathieu? Oh my God! ARTHUR! CALL 911!" Francis screamed, running over to his son. "Mon dieu, please Mathieu, please hold on!"

"Francis what on earth..." Arthur trailed off as he came into the room, a cell phone in his hand. "Bloody hell!"

Arthur dialed for an ambulance while Francis gathered the nearly unconscious boy into his arms, sobbing and trying to stop the bleeding. Alfred had heard the commotion and came upstairs.

"M-Mattie? What did you do?" Alfred asked, lip trembling in shock and horror.

"Alfred, go downstairs!" Arthur snapped while trying to assist Francis in helping Matthew. "Let the paramedics in when they get here and show them the way."

Alfred numbly stepped from the room. It didn't take that long for an ambulance to arrive. Pretty soon they came up the stairs with a stretcher. For the first time Matthew actually reacted, flinching as he came to reality and realized what was happening.

"N-No!" He muttered weakly, shoving away at the new hands that touched him. "I d-don't care anymore...l-leave me alone! Don't touch me!"

Francis sobbed harder at the words, and even Arthur could stop from crying. Eventually Matthew was forced and strapped into the stretcher and loaded into the ambulance. Only one person was allowed to ride with him, so naturally it was Francis. Arthur and Alfred would meet them there.

The next few hours were horrible. Matthew's family sat in the waiting room, eagerly awaiting for the news of Matthew. Francis had stopped crying now, and held onto Arthur's hand tightly. Arthur used his other hand to gently run his fingers through Alfred's hair in a soothing gesture. When the doctor finally came to tell them the news, it was exactly what they dreaded.

"I'm afraid that Matthew is very depressed. He has woken up, but he won't talk to any if us. He will make a full recovery physically though." The doctor explained. "I don't know about mentally..."

"Mon dieu..." Francis whispered. "I just had no idea. I don't understand...he has seemed perfectly fine."

"Well I'm afraid that right now he isn't fine. You can see him if you would like, but I warn you that he's not very happy. I really would like your consent to keep him here under suicide watch for the next forty eight hours. He doesn't seem mentally stable." The doctor told them, a serious glint in his eyes.

"But...but shouldn't we take him home and support him there? He needs his family..." Arthur spoke.

"I can't keep you from taking him home, but I strongly advise to keep him here." The doctor replied.

"I...I think we should allow them to watch Mathieu here," Francis said slowly. "If it for the best then we must. I Don't want mon baby boy in danger."

It was decided that Matthew was to stay in the teenage crisis unit for at least 48 hours to be sure that he wouldn't try to kill himself. They were allowed to see him quickly, but Matthew was asleep.

Alfred was very disturbed by what his brother had done. When he and his parents had come back home, Arthur had a talk with Alfred and tried to explain to him that they would have to be very supportive and protective of Matthew once he came home.

"I'll be Mattie's hero," Alfred said confidently. "I'll protect him."

The next couple of days were quiet and depressing. Francis and Arthur didn't have to work since it was the weekend, and instead of going out with his friends Alfred stayed home close by. Finally on Monday, it was time to pick Matthew up from the hospital. It was just going to be Francis who picked him up so he wouldn't be overcrowded at first. Alfred was not going to school, and Francis and Arthur were each taking a few days off from work.

The doctor had called and reported that Matthew seemed okay for right now. He was prescribed with anti-depressants, and his parents were advised to keep an eye on his behavior. Matthew was also going to be set up with a professional psychiatrist to see twice a week starting on Wednesday. Some changes had to be made at the house. Or one, all of the knives and other sharp objects were locked away. Alfred was also going to move into Matthews room for the time being, to keep watch on him at night and keep him company.

When Francis arrived, he was very relieved to see his son alive. Matthew was dressed in sweatpants and his oversized red sweatshirt. It hid his freshly bandaged wrists. He was advised to have someone change the bandages once a night.

"Oh Mathieu, I've missed you so much!" Francis cried out, gently pulling the frail teen to his chest. He tried his best to keep back tears as he buried his nose in Matthew's soft hair. The teen smiled a little nervously, accepting the hug.

"I've missed you too Papa," He said softly. After holding onto each other for a little while longer, Francis finally led Matthew out to the car. The Frenchman tried to be as cheerful as possible, humming along to a song that was on the radio.

"I was thinking that we could get lunch before going home. What do you think? Seem like a good idea?" He asked.

"Oui Papa," Matthew answered quietly, looking down at his hands which were folded in his lap.

"Where do you feel like eating? There's seafood, Italian, Mexican...anything you want." Francis told him.

"I-I'm fine with anything." Matthew whispered once again, twisting his hands tighter and fidgeting. Francis saw the distress in the boys eyes and was quick to reassure him.

"Why don't we just get some sandwiches? You like those, non?" He suggested.

"Oui," Matthew answered him, looking a bit more relieved. Francis nodded happily and drove to a great sandwich place not too far from home. He allowed Matthew to sit in the car while he went in to pick up the food, but he felt paranoid, even though it only took less than ten minutes.

"I made sure to get an extra large for Alfred. I swear, that boys stomach is a bottomless pit," Francis said with a chuckle. He was glad to get a smile out of Matthew, even though it was little. He couldn't believe that his son was so broke. How could he and Arthur not have noticed? Just how long had Matthew been hiding his feelings from them?

What were they going to do now?

a/n: I usually don't write really depressing things...but my big brother was picking on me and it put me in a depressing mood. Anyways, I hope it isn't terrible. I've always wanted to do a story centering around Canada, since I am so much like him. This will be a multi-chapter story if you want. I'm not sure if it's even good.

For the record, I am also working on my other stories too, I promise!

So anyway, let me know if this story is okay, pretty please? Do you guys want me to add more chapters?