Francis Bonnefoy was out of his league here. He knew next to nothing of writing letters to total strangers, and even less about how to make the letter not sound awkward and forced. He only had two lines down, but even so was already lost with what to put next. What were you meant to write when sending a parcel to someone you had never met, who also happened to be across the world from you?
He sighed, screwing up the piece of paper in his hands and reaching for a new sheet.
Hello
No, that was definitely not a good start, too casual.
Greetings
Francis was neither an alien nor his best friend, Gilbert Bielchsmidt; he had more class than that.
To whoever receives this
Ah yes, Arthur Kirkland would surely approve of this beginning, being a man of such formalities.
My name is Francis
Last name? No, he was pretty sure you were meant to save that for the end of the letter
You don't know me, but I heard about a programme for sending soldiers care packages and I thought I'd give it a try. Seeing as I don't know who you are or where you're located, I couldn't make the items very personal, so I tried to include a little bit of everything that you might be missing. If I got some items wrong, I hope they can at least serve your friends well.
How could he end it? 'I hope you don't die anytime soon' was far too insulting to put on a letter, and just the thought of putting 'I hope you continue to serve your country well' was enough to make Francis cringe. Aha...
I hope you don't miss home too much, and if you do that some of the things you have might help even a little bit.
Best wishes, Francis Bonnefoy.
That seemed about as perfect as he'd ever get it, so with a smile he slotted the letter inside an envelope and sealed it - placing it inside the box of various items: toiletries; sweet snacks and drinks; some camping-type objects and even a small electric bug zapper.
Francis had first heard of the programme to send soldiers overseas a care package through Arthur Kirkland, who had four older brothers in the army to send care packages to. Though at first he had been sceptical of the idea - wondering who on earth would want a stranger sending them things when relatives or friends could do it themselves - Arthur had been quick to remind him that 'not all people have a rich, supportive family like you do, Francis'. Realising the truth in Arthur's words, Francis had decided that if a simple care package could be enough to make another person happy, the small amount of money he would spend gathering the items would be worth it.
When he had told his two best friends, he had received quite different reactions. Gilbert had roared with laughter for at least five minutes, before informing Francis that he was obviously going soft in the head and "soon you'll end up like Feliciano!", which Francis rolled his eyes at. Antonio, on the other hand, had offered him a smile and told him how wonderful he thought the idea was, and would it be okay if he and Lovino did the same thing?
"What should I put in it though?" He questioned anxiously, suddenly afraid that he would get it all wrong.
"Francis," Gilbert snorted, "I know makeup and pretty little clothes are more your area, but Google has existed for quite a few years."
Google had indeed helped him decide, and had also eased his worries of packing the right things. He made sure to only buy the best quality products, in case the recipient thought him to be cheap and not enjoyed the package. And when the time came to send off the parcel, he made sure to seal it properly and delicately in case anything was broken.
With a sheepish smile, he handed in his parcel, gave a curt nod to Arthur - who was also giving in his boxes - before shoving his hands into his pockets and heading back home; expecting that to be that.