Lukas dropped his house keys on the side table next to the door and looked around the way too quiet house. Normally there was someone here by now, since the Norwegian Nation was generally the last one home of a night. But all the man heard was absolute silence, something that unnerved the cobalt eyed Nation. He slipped his coat off his shoulders, placing it on one of the hooks and took to looking into every room on the first floor. The living room, kitchen, dining room, and three guest bedrooms were completely empty and everything was in perfect ordered. Another thing that bothered Lukas. He called for his brother and then his fiancé and then the other two Nordic's that generally lived in the house, no one called back and the house stayed silent.
Giving up on looking downstairs for anyone Lukas took to going up the stairs a little faster than he normally would have and saw his younger brother sitting on the couch they had in their secondary living room. The Icelander stared ahead at the white wall, his eyes unblinking as tears slowly rolled down his cheeks. "Emil?" Lukas asked, his voice sounded too loud in the quiet house and he noticed how his brother jolted at the sound of his name.
"H-He's dead…" The teen said barely above a whisper and turned to look at his older brother, purple eyes were blood shot and there was a streak of crimson blood across his face; blood that Lukas already knew wasn't his brother's. "Mathias i-is d-dead…" The words almost didn't sound audible, but they hit the Norwegian like a brick wall.
Tino walked slowly out of a room father down the hall and closed the door silently. Blood was on the towel he had thrown over his shoulder and his face looked unbelievable pale, while his lilac eyes held unshed tears as he wiped blood off his hands and onto his jeans; which already looked blood soaked. The Finn looked up and noticed Lukas looking at him with a look of absolute horror. "I-I'm so so so sorry…" He said, his voice cracked with the effort he took in not crying.
The Norwegian shook his head and backed away some, only to bump into Berwald. "No…No…No no no no no no. Please tell me this is some kind of cruel joke, please. He said he had his depression under control!" Lukas said his voice rising in volume. "Damn him! He can't do this to me! He wouldn't!" He practically screamed as he fell to his knees and cried into his hands. "Stupid selfish son of a bitch!"
The other three Nordic's were at a loss for words. They had never seen the Norwegian show so much emotion, then again they had all had their moments when they came home and discovered the Dane dead. Tino had been the first home and went upstairs to check on Mathias, something all four of them had been doing since the eldest of them had fallen into some weird depression that had zapped his normal personality. The Finn didn't know what to expect when he opened the Dane's door, but it wasn't what he had seen.
The Finnish Nation had opened the door to see Mathias slumped again the edge of his bed, a pistol held loosely in his right hand and a large puddle of blood around the now lifeless body of what used to be Denmark. The country in itself had been unaffected, but the personification was stone cold dead. Tino had checked for a pulse, a last breath, the fleeting movement of life leaving Mathias completely, but he had seen nothing. The Dane was cold; his heart had stopped pumping while baby blue eyes looked unbelievably dull and still open. The fourth oldest Nordic had rushed forward and closed the man's eyes and kicked the pistol away as he laid the taller Nordic on his back, an ear pressed to his chest listening for something he already knew wasn't there.
Berwald had been the second home and heard the anguished scream from upstairs and discovered his husband bent over Mathias, and even from his position at the door he could tell the Dane was dead. Despite every fight the two had had the Swede still found Mathias to be his best friend next to Tino and now he was dead. Automatically Berwald blamed himself, he knew he should have taken Mathias with him or told his boss he couldn't go out and stayed home with the Dane. Had he been home this wouldn't have happened. Together the two of them cleaned up some of the blood and Berwald had tossed the bullet less pistol into the trash downstairs.
Emil had come home third in a foul mood and took the stairs two at a time to go to his room, but stopped when he saw Tino crying into Berwald's shoulder; tears slowly running down the Swede's face as he held the Finn closer. Realization had smacked the Icelandic teen and this white hot panic flood his veins when he noticed the blood on the older Nations clothes. He had asked what happened, but hadn't waited for an answer as he walked quickly into Mathias' room only to fall to his knees as a sorrow filled scream tore from his throat. Berwald had to literally pick the teen up off of Mathias' body and carry him back into the secondary living room.
Lukas was reduced to a crying mess on the carpeted floor as he lay on his side, cobalt eyes held tightly shut as tears leaked out freely. His throat was already sore from screaming every curse and frustrated thing he knew to say. Sobs and wet coughs racked his frame as he started to mutter under his breath in a mix between Norwegian and Danish.
"M-maybe he c-could come back…" Emil whispered rubbing at his eyes and turning away from his brother, he had never seen the older Nation break down and cry like this or even show so much emotion all at once. "I-I-I mean h-his country is still a-alive a-and he still has his population, s-s-so he c-can't really be d-de-dead can he?" He asked and immediately regretted it when he heard Lukas cry out louder, words no longer able to form for the older man.
Tino and Berwald shot the terrified Icelander a glare before the Finn dropped to his knees next to the distraught Norwegian. He calmly ran his fingers through the older Nation's hair, trying to calm him down some. After what seemed like hours to Lukas was only twenty minutes before his tears stopped coming and his cries turned into hiccups as he stared at nothing in particular as Tino carded his fingers through his hair. "The possibility is there…" Lukas said his voice sounded rough and cracked as he spoke, tears stained his face and he moved carefully to sit up; trying to find the energy to stand up.
The Finn helped his friend stand as the Norwegian struggled to regain his balance. "Lukas, his heart wasn't beating… A-and there was too much blood for him to even be revived." He said softly, tightening his hold some when Lukas gripped the front of Tino's shirt.
"The bullet hole to the head doesn't help much either." Berwald muttered and thought that Lukas hadn't heard him until another heart wrenching sob escaped the younger's throat. Tino threw a glare at his husband and hugged Lukas more tightly.
Lukas pulled himself away from the comforting hold Tino had on him and stiffly walked to Mathias' bedroom. He paused at the closed door, unsure if he could get himself to get enough courage to open the door. The Norwegian Nation took a deep breath and ignored the other three asking him not to do this to himself and pushed the door open. All the air in his lungs left as his eyes fell upon the body of the Dane he loved so dearly. Mathias was laid out on the floor, his arms resting over his middle and his eyes closed. His messy blonde hair was matted with blood and there was an entrance and exit hole on either side of his head. "Mathias!" He cried and rushed forward his hands stopping short of touching the being that had single handedly stolen his heart. Cobalt eyes blurred with tears and the younger Nation pressed his ear to the Dane's chest, hoping he would still hear the familiar beating of Mathias' heart. There was nothing and a scream of rage and sorrow ripped its way from Lukas' throat. "Mathias…Mathias…Mathias… You can't do this to me… You can't… You said you wouldn't. You promised you wouldn't…" He whispered hugging the man he loved, despite the fact that the Dane's skin felt cold to the touch. "You promised you wouldn't leave me… You promised."
Tino had made it his job to keep Emil from the room while his brother mourned his sudden loss, but Berwald knew that it wasn't healthy for the Norwegian to be in their alone. So instead of staying in the room with Tino and Emil; as the Icelander started crying again, and stood by the door of Mathias' room, keeping an eye on Lukas as he cried and whispered unsaid words to the Dane.
Nation's couldn't die as long as their country thrived and they had a population that showed its support for its personification, even if they didn't know who that Nation was. A Nation could only die if their country crumpled and fell apart or if their population literally disappeared all together. Neither of these things had happened to Mathias. The Dane's country was still thriving and he had a large enough population. So he couldn't really be dead. Lukas reasoned, not moving his head off of Mathias' chest. So he had to still be alive, his system was just trying to overcome the trauma its owner caused. "Please wake up… Please be alive… Please please please come back to me. I can't do this without you. I need you, you stupid Dane." He muttered intertwining his fingers with the cold stiff ones of his fiancé.
"Luk's… It's sad, but he's not coming back." Berwald said sadly and was suddenly shushed when the Norwegian fell completely silent. "What?" Lukas hissed something in his native language and pressed his ear closer when he heard a faint thump-thump.
"Mathias?" Lukas asked lifting himself up and looking down at the Dane, who still lay perfectly still the picture of death. But the Norwegian knew better than to assume he had made himself think he heard the beat of the Dane's heart. The Swede standing behind him raised an eyebrow in skepticism, but allowed Lukas to study Mathias carefully. Lukas watched intently and saw a flicker move the Dane's eye lids, quickly he put his ear back to the older's chest and listened closely. Thump-thump, thump-thump. Pale fingers found the vein in the Dane's neck and pressed down, only to pull away quickly when he felt the irregular beat under his finger tips. "He's not dead."
"That's not possible." The Swede said in shock, but kneeled next to Lukas and mimicked his motions and pulled his hand away when he felt the same thing.
"Like hell it isn't. That rat bastard promised me." Lukas said a little bitterly and gently ran the back of his hand across the Dane's cheek. "He promised all of us." They both watched as his body slowly started to heal the bullet hole at his temple, something neither of them thought was possible; but they learned something new most every day. "Nation's can't die unless their country dies."
Blood started to flow through cold veins and baby blue eyes snapped open as the Dane sucked in a breath of air, his lungs stinging painfully at the sudden effort. A blood filled cough racked the older's body and he sat up quickly, his head spinning from the sudden change in position. He braced his weight on his arms as he spit the blood from his mouth and onto the hardwood floor. Mathias groaned at the throbbing pain pounding in his head from where the bullet had torn through his skull. His breathing was irregular and his heart was beating too fast for him to form words or even stay in his somewhat crouched position.
Faintly Mathias heard footsteps leave the room and a Swedish accent talking to two others, but his heart was beating in his ears and he couldn't hear much of anything. Regret flooded his veins, but so did relief at not really being dead.
"Oh thank the gods." Lukas breathed and wrapped his arms around the Dane's shoulders, nuzzling his tear stained face into the side of Mathias' neck; ignoring the smell of blood and death that clung to the older Nation.
Mathias coughed again and brought a hand up to grip the Norwegian's hands. "I'm sorry…" He said through another couch and grimaced when he felt dried blood crack against his skin, along with cold wet tears that slowly ran down his neck as Lukas silently cried.
"Shut the hell up and don't ever ever do that again." Lukas said holding on tighter. "Depression or not you don't fucking kill yourself. Dammit, we all love you, moron. You mean absolutely everything to us and we can't live without you. I can't live without. I need you; I have to have you around." He explained, not even caring that he was expressing everything he felt for the Dane, but the heart wrenching sadness and the white hot fear that had coursed through his veins was unbearable and he had to make sure his fiancé knew how much he meant to him. "You also promised you would never leave me, asshole. And you better be damned sure I'm not going to let you forget that."
Despite the situation the Dane laughed some and turned so that he had the Norwegian on his lap with his arms wrapped around the younger's waist. "I never meant to pull the trigger… I'd hate to leave you behind. I'm so sorry." He said nuzzling into Lukas' light blonde hair.
Lukas held onto the front of Mathias' shirt and moved so he faced the older man. "Jeg elsker deg, Mathias." He whispered and kissed the Dane forcefully, a kiss that Mathias was more than willing to return.
They parted for air, both of them panting and Lukas rested his forehead against Mathias'. "Jeg elsker ogsa dig, Lukas." He said leaning forward to kiss the Norwegian again. They sat their quietly for a while, their hands intertwined while the Dane gently moved his fingers against the small of his fiancé's back. They're peace was ended when the other three Nordic's came back in, Emil running forward and hugging the Dane like he had just been reunited with a lost parent. Followed by Tino and then Berwald, all four of them holding onto the eldest Nordic.
"I told you we all need you." Lukas muttered, causing Emil to murmur something into the Dane's shoulder. Tino sniffed and pulled away from the scene, his eyes watery as he looked Mathias over. Other than the dried blood the Dane seemed to be perfectly fine.
"Don't do this to us again, Mathias, by the gods, please don't." The Finn said leaning forward some, careful of Lukas and Emil (Both of them holding onto the Dane as if he would disappear any second if either of them let go), and gently kissed Mathias on the forehead before fully standing. He tugged gently on Berwald's sleeve, whispering something about how they needed to be alone and that he and the Swede could talk to him in the morning. Berwald nodded and followed the younger Nation out of the room.
Emil had started to fall asleep due to fatigue and allowed himself to be moved up onto Mathias' bed, although he wasn't sure if Lukas or Mathias had put him there. He was just glad the Dane wasn't actually dead, and subconsciously reached a hand over the edge of the bed so he knew Mathias and Lukas were still in the room; even if both were on the floor.
Lukas rested his head against the Dane's shoulder and nuzzled into the side of his neck, constantly reminding himself that he could still hear and feel Mathias' pulse and heart beat. With that in mind he allowed himself to slowly drift off to sleep, a light sleep that he kept waking up from whenever the Dane shifted, but sleep nonetheless. Both of them were in this state of sleep and wakefulness, and each time one of them woke up they checked to see if Mathias was okay. This was mainly something Lukas was doing, checking for the Dane's pulse and for the air that blew from his nose as he drifted in and out of sleep. All things that signified life. As Mathias slept Lukas gently ran his thumb over the ring on the Dane's left ring finger.
The sliver band matched his in color, but not in simplicity. Where the engraving on Lukas' was simply with curves that resembled ocean waves, Mathias' was complex with a lot of crossing angles. At some point the Norwegian knew he fell asleep, listening to the beat of his lover's heart.