~About 3:20 AM~
Darkness.
It surrounded him, devoured him...
Suffocating, ever-present darkness.
His cries went unheard... There was no one there. He was eternally, and utterly, alone. Shapes began to take form in the darkness. Terrible moans and cries of pain reached his ears. The cloying scent of blood and rotting flesh filled the air. Even though these things were all around him... A terrible feeling of lonliness pierced his heart. They started to limp towards him. He felt that it was over.
Behind him, he could hear the sound of a clock. It was soothing. Tick... tick... tick... He felt himself relaxing, and his eyes closing, hiding the advancing forms from his view. They began to tear him apart.
Tick... tick... tick...
Red eyes flew open, and the man sat up in bed with a start, the sheets rustling sharply. The wild look subsided from his eyes and he mumbled, "Oh.. it was just a dream..." His heart was still pounding, his breath coming in short gasps. He sat there for a minute, and then swung his feet over the side of the bed. A form stirred next to him, but didn't wake. A strained smile came to the man's lips as he exited the room.
He headed towards the kitchen, and poured himself a glass of water. The clock read 3:30 AM. At least this one was digital. He heard the sound of footsteps on the stairs, and soon the sound of a tired voice from behind him.
"Gilbert? What are you doing up?"
He turned around then, grinning sheepishly. "Couldn't sleep." It wasn't a total lie. He couldn't sleep... not after such a confusing dream like that one. Confusing... and scary. But he wouldn't be scared by just a nightmare. Not him, not Gilbert Beildshmicht, the personification of Prussia.
"Oh." the brown haired man said with a small frown, rubbing his eyes.
"Shouldn't worry about me so much, Roddy." Gilbert walked over to him and looked into his eyes. "I'm just sorry I had to wake you up... I love watching you sleep." he said with another grin.
Roderich blushed furiously, and grabbed Gilbert's hand in mock anger. "Well then let's go back to bed. I'm exhausted." he grumbled, and led his boyfriend up the stairs, who followed obediently.
~The Next Morning. 7:30 AM~
"I'll see you when I get home, Roddy." he rustled Roderich's hair affectionately and gave him a kiss on the forehead. "I love you."
"..I love you too." the Austrian replied, wrapping his arms around Gilbert tightly. "Have a nice day at work..." he said, pulling back from the embrace.
"I will. Stay awesome!" he laughed as he walked out the door and waved. Roderich waved back, before starting to clean up the kitchen from breakfast. It was a methodical chore, washing dishes, and something that he rather enjoyed. Even if it did take away time from playing the piano. It was a good thing that he liked to do the more domestic chores, because Gilbert certainly didn't...
He dried the last dish, and rolled down his sleeves. "I guess I can go practice that ballad I was working on..." he mused out loud, then climbed the stairs and walked down the hall, opening the door to reveal his lovely grand piano. Roderich began to play, fingers moving skillfully over the keys.
This continued for a couple hours or so, the beautiful melodies filling the house. His stomach rumbled. "Lunch time, I suppose." he smiled as he thought of Gilbert eating the lunch he had packed for him. He had even included a little note... just reminding the Prussian of how much he loved him. He made a sandwhich, and sat down on the couch, flipping the TV on. The news... He really detested television; he did; but ever since Gilbert had installed the flat screen he had been watching it more and more. It made the house seem less lonely.
He began to doze off, nothing was really appealing on the news today... He was about to turn the power off, when he heard something interesting."Meteor lands... new element... scientists are looking into it... nothing we've ever seen before..."And then it was over. Dissatisfied, Roderich switched the television off, wrapped a blanket around himself and began to slip into sleep.