Maria was never an easy girl to be around. The fact that she kept calling herself 'Prussian' instead of 'German' was enough to weird some people out. Most guys in the school have admitted that she was very pretty, maybe the prettiest girl in the school. If only she'd stop being such a wild girl. Her two best friends, Francis and Antonio also tend to scare away anyone interested in her. Of course, there are those who are brave enough to try and ask her out.

But they never succeed. Reason? She shoots them down every single time.

"I'm not interested in dating anyone!" She had yelled from the roof of the school the time she got five confessions in one day. "Goddamit! I want to be free till the end!"

"Just what does she mean by 'free'?" Arthur asked when he heard her from the school yard.

"Only God may know..." Francis replied. Despite being her best friend, he didn't always understand her.

It was a rainy day when he first arrived. Maria was not paying attention to the teacher as usual and found more interest at staring at the raindrops outside.

"...student from Austria..."

Wait, Austria?

Maria's eyes lit up. "Does that mean you're of Prussian descent?" She asked enthusiastically at the boy in the front of the room. Austrians were German and Germans were of Prussian descent so it made perfect sense!

The boy stared at the girl as if trying to see what makes her tick. Pure white hair and red eyes. It was a look he would never forget. "No. I'm pretty certain I'm Austrian."

"But, but! Austrians aren't awesome at all! Change your identity to Prussian!" Maria said proudly.

The whole class laughed and Maria grinned on. Roderich frowned. Couldn't this girl see that she was just making a fool of herself? "No. Prussians were rude and noisy. They were self centered and obnoxious. Kind of like you." He retorted.

"Whaaaat?" Maria whined and stood up, slamming her hands on the desk in the process. "Prussians were awesome! I'm Prussian so I would know it! Cuz I'm awesome!"

Roderich was about to respond when the teacher got annoyed and cut them off. He was sent to sit on the other side of the room from Maria. Something he didn't have a problem with. What did bother him, however, was the fact that she was glaring at him from the other side of the room.

Maria didn't like speaking with Roderich and avoided him every chance possible. She really hadn't expected to see him in the music room afterschool. Practice had just finished and due to 'accidentally' smacking the ball really hard into another student's face, she got an extra 15 minute lecture from the coach.

She had finished packing up all her stuff when she heard music. She stayed still for a moment before whispering, "Its a beautiful tune..." Forgetting that she was going to be late home, she started following the song to its source.

She was surprised to see Roderich playing the piano from the music room. He was in such deep concentration that he hadn't even noticed when she slipped into the room, climbed on a desk and sat cross-crossed-aplesauce to listen.

"Eh?" Roderich was startled to hear clapping when he was done. "...Maria?"

"Heh heh~! A girly activity for a girly guy! It fits you!" She said with a grin.

"Maria, if you're just here to insult me, I'd rather you leave?"

"Insult? That wasn't an insult! I was going to say it sounded really nice!"

"...That doesn't change the fact the first statement was an insult." Roderich said with a sigh. "Don't you have anything better to do?"

"You make it sound like I have a lot of free time."

"Because it seems like you have a lot of free time." Roderch started shifting on the seat uncomfortably. "C-Can you leave now?"

"What? Why? I don't want to! I want to hear you play again!"

Roderich sighed. "Then... Please sit on a chair like a normal person. ...I can see your underwear from here."

Maria's eyes widened as she quickly jumped off the desk and into a chair, pulling at her skirt to make sure no part of her underwear was visible. "Y-You shouldn't have looked!" She stammered as a blush crept up her face. If only the school didn't force her to wear this uniform. Then nothing like this would happen!

"Then why don't you try being more lady like?"

"Tch. Being a lady is for wimps. Besides, I want to be like my father and younger brother!"

"...I would've expected you to want to be more like your mother instead."

"My mother left us a long time ago." Maria whispered.

"Oh... I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to-"

"Its no worries!" Maria said with a bright smile. "I mean, my dad and my younger brother takes good care of me! I don't need to even worry about cleaning my house!"

"...That can't be a good thing." Roderich said with a sigh. "But I am surprised, though. I...never thought a girl could act as rowdy as you."

"Well, you thought wrong." Maria said with a smirk. "So are you going to play for me?"

Roderich turned back to his piano and started playing a tune. After he was done, Maria requested for another one, then another one. She really did like his playing. It wasn't hard for the two of them to get to know each other well afterwards. Each day after school, Roderich would practice there and wait for Maria. And every day when Maria was finished with her practice, she would join Roderich for a chat and listen to him play music.

"Maria! Maria!" Francis and Antonio called as they ran up to her, nearly knocking her over. "Is it true? Is it true?"

"W-What? What's true?" Marias asked as she tried her best to get the two boys away from her. They were nearly crushing her to the wall.

"That you're-" Antonio started.

"-Going out with Roderich?" Francis finished.

Maria blushed. How had the news travel so fast? "Y-Yes..."

"S-She's blushing and she's acting quiet and cute!" Antonio said in disbelieve.

"The world must be ending!" Francis cried.

Maria glared at the two of them. "STUPID! I CAN STILL KICK YOUR ASS TOO!" She yelled before giving her two friends a pounding.

"...I can't believe it." Francis said to Antonio as the two watched the two lovers from inside a cafe. Maria and Roderich were discussing their date outside. "I can't believe that she's managed a relationship for 8 months while the two of us can only manage 2 at most! I mean, you, Antonio, it makes sense since you know, oblivious and gets no where-"

"Hey! I am not oblivious!" Antonio protested. "I mean-" He stopped to wave at two girls from his class while one of the girls blew him a kiss. He just grinned back. "-You're always loosing girls cause you sleep around so much!"

"At least I'm getting some!"

Antonio sighed.

"Um... Want to go watch that new movie tonight?" Maria asked. And when Roderich didn't respond, she looked up at him to find that he was staring into space. "...Roderich?"

"Huh? Yes, what were we talking about again?"

Maria frowned. "Roddy, have you been alright? You've been out of it for the past two weeks..."

"I-I have?" Roderich was surprised that she had noticed. Wait, who was he kidding. Of course she noticed... "No, its nothing." He said and put on a smile. "Now, er, that movie you were talking about..."

Maria glanced at him with a worried look for a moment longer before speaking again. "Right, so its at that new theater and I'll see you at 8?"

"...Sure." He responded with a nod.

Roderich watched as his dad packed the remaining items into boxes and ship them back to Austria. His parents just had a divorce. And his dad, never wanting to return to these horrible memories, wanted to go back to Austria and never come back.

"We're leaving tomorrow. Said all your goodbyes yet, son?" His dad asked.

"I...er...Almost." There was still one person he hadn't said goodbye to.

'I will never see you again'

'I'm moving away and will never come back'

Those phrases, they seem like an ominous promise that he didn't want to say.

Roderich didn't wait in the music room like he normally did. This time, he was up on the roof, thinking about how to do this. He didn't even notice how much time had past.

"Roddy!" Maria called from the stairway, completely breathless. That was to be expected. The roof was six floors above the music room. "Why weren't you in the music room today? I searched all over for you, you know? Its not good to make awesomeness do this!"

"Um, well... Maria..." Roderich started.

"Yes, what is it?" She walked up next to him. He didn't look at her, too afraid that he wouldn't be able to say anything.

"I, uh, I..." He was having a hard time finding a way to say this. "...I think we should break up."

Maria was silent for a moment. "Why?" The question hung in the air causing a thick and tense atmosphere.

Roderich bit his lip and got the courage to turn to look at her. "I...I just don't love you the way I did before!" He quickly said.

No! That's not true! I love you even more!

"I'm sorry. Goodbye!" He said and turned around to run down the stairs.

Maria stood in stunned silence as her eyes watered up and the first tears began to spill from her eyes. She had always told herself that she won't let herself cry, ever. But this was the first exception she had to make in her life.

"...Why?" She said again despite the fact that Roderich had left long ago. The hiccups and sobs started and just grew louder and louder as she leaned against the brick walls of the school. "Why?" She repeated. Again and again she repeated the same word as if it was the only one she knew.

The days he spent in Austria, Roderich couldn't help thinking how different the result could've been. He had panicked and said it in the worse way possible, he had realized after one night of thinking. A long distance relationship would've worked fine. Why hadn't he thought of that?

Needless to say, he had regretted it till the day he had moved back to America, the country where he had met Maria in.

He really didn't expect to ever see her again, but he couldn't help going to the places they would frequent at.

He had nearly given up hope when he stopped by the cafe they used to go afterschool. He was sitting in the corner, deep in thought when he heard a voice he knew he wouldn't ever forget.

"...And two cups of coffee, please. How much is that? Um, can you place each order in a different receipt? My coworkers try to get out of paying each chance they get!"

That spunky tone of voice. Yes, it was impossible to mistaken it. He quickly turned around and standing in front of the counter, there she was, Maria.

Maria glanced at her watch and caught sight of Roderich. She looked startled and her eyes widened slightly. "...Can you bring my order to that table over there?" She asked cashier and pointed at the table Roderich was sitting at.

"And here I thought I would never see you again, Roddy." She said with a smirk as she sat down. Her hair was longer now, not the tomboy-ish way it was when they were in high school. "So, what brings you back here?"

"Maria...I...I'm sorry."

Maria frowned. "Really? The first time you see me in like what? Ten years and that's the first thing you say to me?"

"...Er, I love you?" Roderich tried again.

"Hmph." Maria turned her head in a snobby way as if to emphasize. "I'm not wasting any more tears on a bastard like you!"

"Er..."

"Don't er me!" She snapped. "You know, I've got other love interests now! I wouldn't give you the time of day the way you are!"

"I..."

"You're going to have to try hard if you want to say you love me again!" She said as the waiter brought the order to the table. "Thank you, sir." She said, giving the waiter a smile. The waiter blushed and hurried away. "I have a really cute coworker too so I'd say you better hurry!"

"I..." Maria looked like she was about to cut him off again so he quickly said, "Fair enough! But let me start by doing this!" He grabbed her wrist as she was leaving with the order and pulled her into a kiss. "...I hope that's fine."

Maria gave him a half-hearted glare. "Tch. At least you're not as spineless as you were back then." She said with a smirk.

De-Anon from Kink Meme.