I decided to rewrite this story from years ago. It's one of the few I was proud of in the past. If anything, it distracted me while Destiny 2 slowly downloaded on my console. There might be slight OOC since it's been years since I last wrote anything for Hetalia.
Hope you enjoy!
Knock, knock, knock!
Eleven consecutive knocks was what finally brought the drowsy Antonio Hernandez Carriedo to his door. Rustling his already tousled brown hair, he shot an annoyed glare at the clock that hung on the wall— just past one o'clock in the morning. There were only two people who were inconsiderate enough to wake him up in such a rude manner, and that was his two best friends: Francis and Gilbert.
Probably drunk.
Probably just to annoy the hell out of him.
Because they were asses like that.
It's happened before (on numerous occasions) and Antonio was not pleased at any of those times, having been the victim they were bothering. Throwing the door open, the Spaniard opened his mouth to give them a piece of his mind... but instead he found himself standing in the entryway simply confused.
A woman at his door hunched over, hands on her knees, as she inhaled copious amounts of oxygen.
"Chesa?" he asked slowly, unsure if he was seeing correctly in his half-asleep state.
"I'm very sorry for stopping by so late and unannounced," she heaved between deep breaths. She stood to her full height and sighed, tugging at the collar of the oversized, light gray sweatshirt she wore to fan herself. Antonio fought back a shiver from the chilliness of the night as he patiently waited for her to catch her breath. She placed a hand on her chest to check her rapid heartbeat, the result of having sprinted up the stairs from the third floor— where she lived— to Antonio's apartment on the fifth.
She seemed better now so Antonio pressed his question, "What are you doing here?"
Her flushed face contorted with guilt, suddenly unable to look him in the eye. "To be honest, I'm not too sure myself," she muttered, fixing the locks of dark hair that fell out of her messy braid. "I kind of panicked and ended up here without thinking."
She didn't have to say more before Antonio ushered her into his apartment. They could continue the conversation in the comfort of warmth. Glancing around his place, the man mentally scolded himself for not tidying up earlier in the day. Oh well, it was too late now. As she made herself comfortable on the couch, he excused himself to put on a shirt, having realized he was still shirtless— his preferred (lack of) attire to sleep in.
Unbeknownst to him, Chesa had eyed his muscular body and liked what she saw.
After he returned, he boiled hot water for two cups of tea. Joining her on the couch, he watched Chesa breathe in the aroma of the hot beverage with a fond smile twitching at the corners of his lips. "Are you feeling calmer?" he inquired to know after she took a sip.
"Yes, thank you," she replied with a grateful expression. Her hands hugged the base of the mug as she released a dejected sigh. "I received a call regarding my work."
Antonio's green eyes narrowed, assuming the worst. Chesa worked at a children's preschool, an occupation he knew was meant for her. She loved children, always had. Even on their first meeting, she expressed her desire to teach kids. To simply be around them, to help them learn the alphabet, count numbers, discover colors— her passion brought her certain joy, an aspect that Antonio immediately liked. When she assured him that she wasn't getting fired, he sighed in relief, something she chuckled at.
"It's just that... this week is Music Week," Antonio nodded, recalling how excited she was when she first told him about it. "My good friend who was supposed to be our musical guest just called me to cancel because she's really sick." Chesa threw her head back against the cushion, groaning in frustration. "What am I going to do? The kids were really looking forward to this."
Antonio hummed thoughtfully, tapping his fingers against his mug. "You can't ask someone else to do it?"
"Not on such short notice—" Chesa cut off abruptly, her eyes landing on a familiar instrument situated in the corner of the living room. A grin crept onto her face. "Hey, Toni?" The Spaniard flinched, knowing all too well what that singsong tone of voice meant. She leaned towards him, batting endearing eyes at him. "Do you think you can do me a tiny favor?"
He bore his green gaze into her own brown ones, deadpanning, "You want me to be the replacement musical guest."
Chesa clasped her hands together and gave him the biggest puppy dog eyes he'd ever seen. "Please, Antonio?" she pleaded with a sickeningly sweet voice. "It's only for a week! And you're one of the best musicians I know! I promise, I'll totally make it up to you somehow!"
Damn. Being around children all the time sure improved her puppy dog look.
But Antonio knew, one way or another, he was going to end up at that preschool tomorrow. With a relinquished sigh, he nodded his head and smiled. "How can I say no to that face?"
"Okay, time to gather around!" Chesa exclaimed, clapping her hands together to grab the room's attention. Like the obedient little angels she claimed them to be, the children all but ran and sat cross-legged on the circular rainbow rug at her feet, beaming and fidgeting in excited anticipation. She sat in one of two blue chairs, motioning to the empty one as she continued, "We have a special guest joining us for Music Week! Please give Mister Antonio a big hello!"
Antonio stepped into view with his guitar case in his right hand. He was greeted with gigantic grins and one synonymous, "Hello, Mister Antonio!"
They reminded him of a very young and very adorable Lovino... when he wasn't throwing one of his demonic tantrums, that is. Unable to resist the infectious grins, he returned the gesture with equal cordiality. "¡Hola!" he greeted in his native tongue. "Are you kids ready to learn about music?"
The children nodded enthusiastically, inching closer to him in wonder and awe as he brought out his somewhat faded acoustic guitar. While he made some slight tuning adjustments, Chesa and the other teachers handed out various instruments to the kids so they could play along.
It came as a pleasant surprise to Chesa to discover just how well Antonio worked with the kids. He explained music terminology in a way that was enjoyable and super easy for them to understand. Using a whiteboard that had a blank score written on it, he drew a few notes and a strange looking squiggle line called a rest. Next, he demonstrated rhythm and rest through clapping. The children were thrilled, following the simple rhythm Antonio made up on the spot.
Rest. Clap, clap! Rest. Clap!
"¡Muy bien!" he complimented the proud three and four-year olds. "That was great! Now, we will move on to tempo. Tempo is how fast or slow a song plays."
Antonio made stiff, forward circles with his arms, pausing briefly when they were at full extension, before bringing his elbows back to meet with his sides and pausing again. It was robotic in a sense, but it successfully imitated the chugging motions of a train, which was what he wanted them to imagine. He had fun speeding up the train and then slowing the pace, only to quickly increase speed again. Even the teachers laughed when some of the children shouted, "Choo, Choo!"
The last of the music basics he hit on were notes and harmony. It was more difficult to demonstrate like he did with the previous two lessons so Antonio picked up his guitar again. He strummed his guitar, trying to find harmonizing chords. The children watched, fascinated, as he got lost in the moment and played a mesmerizing melody. As soon as the short song ended, everyone erupted in applause, to which he bowed his head. He spared a glance at Chesa, who grinned and mouthed a silent thank-you.
The children were then separated into small groups to create their own songs. Chesa and her fellow teachers spent ample time with each group to hear and applaud what they came up with. Antonio, meanwhile, played some random songs with them for inspiration. The rest of the afternoon was filled with clamorous, albeit charming, music.
"Mwiss Chesa!" Antonio reactively turned his head and watched as his apartment neighbor was approached by a cute little boy. "Mwiss Chesa, was that good!"
"It was brilliant!" she cooed, patting him on the head for a job well done. "All of you are fantastic musicians! I don't think I can ever be as amazing as you guys!"
The boy beamed from ear to ear. "Antonio can teach you! He's good! I'll go get him!"
"Yes, let Antonio teach you!" one of the teachers snickered at her.
"Elizabeta, you shush!" Chesa shot a glare at her but the momentary distraction allowed the boy to run off and get his new music idol.
Chuckling to himself, Antonio stumbled in his steps as his young fan awkwardly pulled him towards his now blushing teacher. The boy yanked him down to the floor next to Chesa and pointed at the guitar. "Antonio can teach Mwiss Chesa!"
She waved her hands in front of her as a sign of polite refusal. "Sweetie, Antonio is here to teach you, not me—"
"¡No te preocupes!" Antonio laughed as he handed her the guitar, which she hesitantly took with a slight pout.
Chesa emulated the way he held the guitar and strummed her thumb against the strings once. He grinned, his eyes swimming with mirth. She had no idea what she was doing. She almost squeaked when Antonio moved in behind her, his face hovering next to hers. His own heart thumped faster as he said into her ear, "Hold the neck of the guitar like this—" He was very aware of her body stiffening as he moved his hands over her own, sometimes interlacing their fingers so they were positioned correctly on the strings. "Press down on the strings where your fingers are and strum."
The musical soundings of harmonious chords rang throughout the classroom.
Chesa couldn't help her grin, proud of her momentous achievement. "Hey, I played something!" she exclaimed, turning her head to look at her music teacher. She gasped loudly, her blush deepening at the realization of how close their faces were. Shifting her eyes elsewhere, she abruptly handed him the guitar and stood up. "I, uh, i-it's almost snack time," she mumbled lamely and left him dumbfounded to prepare the snacks.
Hearing joyous snickering behind him, Antonio turned to look and found it was Elizabeta. "Snack time is not for another hour," she said with a mischievous, knowing grin. "You're pretty sly, aren't you, Mister Antonio?"
Said man feigned an innocent smile. "I don't know what you're talking about."
A period of peace and tranquility arrived in the form of nap time.
While Chesa checked on the sleeping children, Antonio chatted up a conversation with Elizabeta and Emma, the other teacher. As he helped wipe down the snack tables, the two ladies offered him advice on how to get their colleague's attention. It was definitely welcomed; how was it that these two women, who he'd known for less than a day, knew he had an obvious crush on his neighbor and said neighbor was oblivious to his advances?
"Give it more time, Antonio," Emma said, tossing a sympathetic look to him. "She's closer to cracking than you think."
Antonio's ears perked up at this. "Really?"
His question went unanswered as Chesa sauntered over to them. She raised an inquisitive brow at her two colleagues' grins. "What are you guys talking about?"
"Nothing much," Elizabeta shrugged, dismissing her suspicion. "Just giving Antonio here some advice."
"Advice? On what?" They didn't say anything more for they excused themselves to finish cleaning the rest of the tables. Chesa huffed, placing hands on her hips as she turned Antonio. He sat in a chair that was too small for him while retuning the strings on his guitar. With a thoughtful silence, she went into to back room and returned with a juice box and cookie, offering both to him. "Antonio, really, I can't thank you enough for today."
"De nada," he responded with his signature smile as he accepted the food. "I had a lot of fun."
Laughing quietly, she sat in the chair across the table from him and rested her chin on her palms. "Have you thought of how I can repay you?"
"Not yet, but I'll let you know when I do."
A tomato red color rose to her cheeks as she darted her eyes to something other than the Spaniard. Noticing this, Antonio tilted his head in bemusement, which only made her muscles tense and her blush become more apparent. "W-well, I was wondering, if you're not too busy, if you would like to join me for—"
"Mwiss Chesa?" a tiny voice interrupted her. "I can't sleep..."
Antonio released a longing sigh. He knew where the conversation was going and was eager to hear her finish. Alas, his opportunity vanished as Chesa's attention was instantly taken away by a yawning three-year old. As disappointed as he was at the interruption, the soft lullaby she sang to the child brought a smile to his own.
Oh well, they still had the rest of the week.