A/N: I'm taking a little break from Bending All the Rules and When All Was Lost to write some one-shots! I came across some AU ideas on Tumblr, and then it came upon me that I've never published a one-shot! I've written some on paper in the past, but I've never actually posted any to the internet! It was a shocking discovery, so I decided to dedicate some time and writing to a handful of short, one chapter stories. As I mentioned before, I stumbled upon a Tumblr post, or a master post rather, of AU ideas that I'm assuming were up for grabs! I would credit the original posters, but many of the user names were cut off. So, credit to whoever came up with these creative alternatives to the everyday, overly used AUs, and I hope I did these ideas some justice. The first is about a pair meeting on a roller coaster. Enjoy and please review!
Human AU [NOT countries!]
Suggested pairing: Matthew Williams(Canada) x Feliciano Vargas(North Italy) [Is perfectly fine viewed as a platonic budding friendship too!]
Mention of: Alfred Jones(America)
An Unexpected Ride
"Oh, God. I'm going to die, aren't I? This is it. My final moments on Earth. I'll never get to see the Eiffel Tower, or get married, or win a national award for my knowledge in botany, or-"
"You aren't going to die! These things are super safe!"
Matthew leaned over the metal contraption keeping him attached to his seat, trying to see the person beside him who had interupted the narration of his bucket list. The man in the other seat was smiling back at him like he hadn't a care in the world. It was one of the biggest smiles he'd ever seen, even comparable to that of his own brother.
"S-Sorry, I didn't realize I was speaking out loud, no one ever really notices when I'm talking... Are these things really that safe?" said the blonde timidly.
"Roller coasters? Ve, of course! The ones in amusement parks are built to last, si?" replied the enthusiastic hazel-eyed man.
"Are you certain? B-because, I mean, there have been cases reported of something falling and getting caught on the tracks and the coaster goes off course, o-or the electric going hay-wire and we keep on going forever without stopping, or, you know, the worst is when you hear about the ones that stop unexpectedly up-side-down for hours. All that blood rushing to our heads, we could pass out! These are real things that could happen, you know? Pretty scary stuff eh? This could definitely happen to us!" The fretful Canadian was nearly shaking in his seat.
"Oh, don't worry about it! It'll be fun! What are you afraid of, tall guy? You don't look like a kid!" The brunette stranger sitting next to him laughed.
"I-I'm nineteen." Matthew's cheeks flushed with embarrassment. It did seem rather childish for an adult to be so paranoid about some roller coaster - but this was no childrens' ride after all! "And you?"
"I'm twenty!" he smiled again.
'He definitely acts younger than he is!' thought the blonde boy.
"Well, it's good to know I'll die with someone my age."
"If you're so afraid of this ride, why did you get on?" the brunette tilted his head.
Matthew sighed, "My brother begged me to ride with him. He said it was the coolest, funnest, most daring ride in the park. Then, when I go to get on, he's nowhere to be found! He probably ditched me for another corn dog..."
"Ve, that's awful! Well, you don't need him to have fun!"
"That's just it, though. I wouldn't have gone on this stupid machine if I knew he wasn't here. With him here, it wouldn't be as scary... God, a-are the safety bars a little tight for you too? They're making me feel claustrophobic."
"I feel fine, just excited!" The smaller man exclaimed. "If you're scared, since your brother's not here, you can hold onto my hand if you want. Sometimes that makes me feel better too!"
"Um, thank you, but no thanks. I-I'm okay." Matthew considered the notion, but felt it may be invasive of the other man's personal space - even if he had invited him to.
"Suit yourself, mister! Hey, what is your name? Mine is Feliciano, but you can call me Feli because it's shorter and funner!" shouted the older of the two.
"Feli? M-Mine is Matthew. Or Matt I guess. And 'funner' isn't a-"
"Matthew! What a nice name! That's Matteo in Italian!"
"Ah, Italian? Then, you can call me Matteo, if that's what you want."
"Matteo, Matteo! Oh, it's going to be fun to do this with a new friend!"
"Friend?" Matthew was equally shocked and flattered. "But we just m-!"
The two's heads were thrown back as the coaster began to move. For a moment, Matthew had forgotten he was even on a ride - that was until he could feel his heart pounding against his ribs as if next it would yell 'Get me out of here!' Funny, that's exactly what Matthew's mind was suggesting he do.
"Oh God. I have to get off. I can't do this. I can't-"
"Relax! I'm right here, Matthew." The Italian decided it best to use the man's given name to help calm him, rather than the Italian version that the brunette himself was used to.
Hearing his name, even from a stranger's lips, was so soothing. He hardly ever heard it spoken in such a comforting way. Even if it pleased his ears, however, it hadn't stopped his heart from going berserk within him.
Click, click, click, click.
The coaster went up and up.
"Wee! I'm so excited!" Feliciano shook with great exhileration, hardly believing that the thrill was yet to even begin.
"D-Don't shake it! It might break!" Matthew's eyes were that of a deer staring into the headlights of an oncoming semi, which was an accurate representation of the way that he felt.
"Oh, Matthew, don't be scared! My offer still stands~!" the bright-eyed boy grinned, though not to be seen by the other as they were both looking straight on - one in anticipation and one in horror.
Matthew still stood strong on the fact that he shouldn't take the other man's hand. That would just be awkward, right? But as the incline of the coaster seemed to never cease, Matthew knew that at some point they would start to fall. Before he could even blink, they were there - at the top of the hill before the great decline. Matthew panted, double-thought to make sure he wouldn't have an asthma attack before remembering that he didn't even have asthma to begin with, and without further hesitation, grabbed Feliciano's hand in his own as they fell.
The Canadian swore he had the strength to break that boy's fingers, if it wasn't for him using most of his force to scream his own fragile soul out of his very lungs. It was almost the most terrifying experience of his life. Almost, being because he may have had more terrifying experiences such as a car crash or skiing accident, but mostly because he wasn't experiencing it alone like he thought he was going to. Yes, his brother abandoned him there to hypothetically die. However, he had met someone else - a friend of sorts - to help him face this terror, and before he knew it, as he heard the man beside him shouting with happiness, Matthew began to laugh. He even threw up his arms with the rest of the group. He was having fun. On a giant death machine, yes - but he truly was. He was sharing a moment of vulnerability with someone that didn't forget about his existence two seconds into their conversation, and if that wasn't a connection, then hell, Matthew didn't know what was.
The ride was over so quickly, Matthew didn't even know what he was so scared about. He thought it would last a lifetime - not that he didn't want it to, with the charming Italian's fingers tangled with his own. The blonde blushed at his thoughts. Was he letting his fondness show? Well, the other man had been so kind and inviting, it wasn't exactly the Canadian's fault!
"Matthew? Ve, the ride is over!" Feliciano smiled like the sun, and Matthew could finally see it clearly now that the safety bars had lifted off of him. He breathed deeply, glad to have room to move.
"That was...actually pretty fun!" the blonde covered his mouth as he released a diffident giggle.
"Fun? You aren't still scared?"
"No! I mean, I was, but I got over it. It wasn't as bad as I thought, when I had someone else with me." Matthew smiled bashfully, as he always did. His face was pink with slight embarrassment - the man wasn't used to showing his joy so openly before others.
"Well if you aren't scared..." The Italian grinned and glanced down to his hand, which the Canadian was still gripping.
If it was pink before, Matthew's face was cherry-red by now. "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't realize!"
"No, no, don't worry about it! My hand doesn't mind the extra company!" chuckled the jovial brunette.
"You don't mind? So...I don't have to let go?" Matthew smiled endearingly, letting his courage slip through. A little flirting never hurt, after all.
Feli was surprised, as the man seemed so sheepish, but couldn't refuse the offer of friendship or affection - whatever it may have been.
"Of course I don't mind!" The Italian hopped out of his seat and helped the other down. "Since your brother is nowhere to be found, wanna go for some ice cream?" he beamed.
"That sounds lovely," Matthew nodded.
The two then walked off, hand in hand in search of a frozen treat, as Feliciano pondered on a casual way to ask the blonde for his number.
A/N: Thank you for reading! If you like the pairing there should be more one-shots of them to come! They are one of my OTPs after all c: Please review and check out my other CanIta/2P!CanIta stories if you're interested!