[Germany fluff; High School setting]
"So! Why do you want to join the 'Newspaper Club'? Not like there's any reason not to!" chimes your classmate Feliciano as he bounces in his chair with excitement. His chair creaks in the library's empty space. You expected there to be more members, since the issues you have read were really well written. Yet, when Feli opened the doors for you he floated over to an empty seat and announced, "AHA! SO YOU WANT TO JOIN THE NEWSPAPER CLUB?!"
"Um, I would like to join and contribute to the team as a photographer," you wonder why you even bother telling him since you two are already quite acquainted. And, the sad honesty is because surprisingly, there is no photography club in the sea of already existing organizations. Yet, you heard Feli muttering aloud how his club does not have decent pictures to print that suit the club leader's standards. So, out of the blue you approached him. "Here are some samples," you hand him a folder of photographs mainly of the school building and a few sneaky shots of various classmates.
"Wow! How clear!" Feli holds photos up against the sunlight that lit up the library. "Mm, I'm sure Ludwig will approve! Especially, of this you took of him!" he pushes the photo in front of you, pointing at the blonde entering the school gates.
You remember well. You snuck away from the dormitory and sat on the steps of the school, waiting to capture the sakura trees pink petals shimmering in the morning sun. His arrival was unexpected though since you picked that specific time in order for no one to ruin your shot. However, he casually, unknowingly walked into her shot, but took a pause at the sakura trees. Through the lens you saw an expression you would never think a star pupil would show. His eyebrows were not furrowed as usual and a tint of pink nearly matched with the petals falling. A faint smile spread across his usual stern lips, and she couldn't help but snap the photo. The click of the camera snapped him back to reality, "Hey!" His deep booming voice shook you with sudden fear and luckily, with the tripod in hand and camera hung around your neck, you made a really quick getaway.
You remember feeling antsy sprinting back to your dorms, slamming the door, and taking a look at the photo you snuck. How beautiful. How worth it.
However, "L-Ludwig?" The soccer team's star player? The student in part of the top ten of the whole school? Even he had enough time to manage a club?
"Yeah! He's the leader of the club," Feli inserts it back in the folder as he peers at other photos. "Wow!"
I guess I have to explain myself during that time, huh? How awkward...
"OH, this was from the Cooking Club's competition right?" it's a picture of Francis with his hair tied up and white sleeves rolled up while making crepes. Antonio and Gilbert watch in amazement with genuine looks of excitement. "Wow, it's my first time seeing him so natural instead of posing at the camera!"
"Well, I do blend in with the crowd," as well as snap a bunch of photos until you got the right shot, but hey dedication is your best skill. "And, I heard the Japanese festival is coming up, so I'm hoping to get a few shots of that for the club...If I become a mem-"
He stands up so quickly his chair knocked down, "I, Feliciano Vargas, admit you, [Name], into the Newspaper Club!" Out of his hands flew torn pieces of line paper, "Ve," he begins to pick them up. For a few seconds you pitifully watch him, and then start helping gather the pieces, "I'm sorry, Kiku is helping with the festival and Ludwig has soccer practice right now. It's really nice to have someone else in the club now."
"It feels nice to be a part of a club," she dumps the paper in the most nearby trash can she could find.
"Ah! I have to go attend the art club now! I'll see you tomorrow, yes?"
"Ah, what time!" too late he rushed out the door. It didn't matter anyways since you two share the same class, "Oh, he took the folder with him...darn, those were my best photos."
...
"Good morning, [Name]!" Feli greets you like the usual as he stood outside the classroom with the folder in his hands. As he returns it he asks, "Are you excited for our first club meeting with you?" Before you can respond he waves to someone across the hallway, "Ah, ciao, Ludwig!" It is undecided whether to turn around or not, but she made the choice to see the tall German pushing his glasses up, holding his textbooks, and walking with a confident stride. There's no trace of that expression you captured, just the usual studious Ludwig.
"Good morning," he takes note of your presence, "Are you [Name]?"
"Uh, yes," he sticks out his hand and you nervously take it.
"Nice to meet-" your heart flutters as he leans forward taking a moment to recognize you. "Wait a minute...are you-" Anyways, it was just a week or two ago since that meeting, of course he'd remember.
You can feel your face redden from embarrassment, but that photograph. You treasured not because you had any feelings for him, but because you took pride in seizing a rare moment. A true appearance of admiration and softness, that many men are too prideful to show. So, you whip out the photo from the folder, "Yes! It's me!" You place the photo in his hand and the passionate side of you flows out, "All right, I didn't mean to catch you off guard, but when I did, this face! It left me stunned, not because you're good looking," okay maybe that isn't the right word, but you turn around not wanting to see his reaction. "But, how the light hit your face, along with the sakura petals gracefully falling, and the tiny smile that escaped. There's no way, to recreate that moment." You inhale deeply and confronts him, "Furthermore-"
A crowd of peers gathered around Ludwig during your monologue, observing and complimenting the photo, agreeing with every word you just said. His eyes are locked on the photo and his cheeks are probably as red as yours.
"That's right! You hardly make that face Luddy!" joked his brother Gilbert along with the rest of the trio.
"Oh my, to think the petals add a softness to the muscular Ludwig," teased Francis.
A few girls spoke up, "Wow! I hope that is included in the yearbook!"
"Such skill, I have much to learn," comments Kiku.
Ludwig finally turns to them and growls, "Don't you nits have classes to attend to?" Everyone either backed off or rushed ahead of Ludwig as some girls giggled past you.
"Um," although Feli stood by your side Ludwig's cold blue eyes locked you in place and made the bustling hallway seem as if it's just the two of you. "Sorry."
He adjusts his glasses and coolly hands the photo back, "It's okay, I'm sorry, I had the wrong idea of you." He clears his throat, "But clearly, you have the passion that this club needs. I'll see you two during lunch."
Back straight. Cool stride. For a second, his face resembled the Ludwig in the photo as he greeted you and Feli goodbye. Just a second.
...
"Hey, is that photo for sale? Kesesese!" the noisy light blonde Gil never paid any attention to you until today. His seat is assigned right in front of you, and you hated it as he would usually smash his chair into your desk when he wanted to nap or stood up. Francis and Antonio followed him inside, not wanting to go to their classrooms yet. And, for some reason they got their hands on your photos.
Francis gazed at the crepe photo, "Oh, how beautiful...I am!"
Oh my god.
"Oh yes she actually made you look pretty damn humble," teased Antonio. He places a hand on your shoulder, "That's definitely a talent!"
"Hey, I can be humble!" argues Francis. "I can't wait to see your photos in the school newspaper, mon amie," he blows a kiss, pulling Antonio along with him as the homeroom teacher entered.
Gil hands the folder back, "Nice getting to know ya!"
"Mhm..."
...
"Oh, there she is again," cooed Francis seeing [Name] casually strolling around the courtyard with her camera hooked around her neck, bouncing around. The trio, Feli, and Ludwig sat underneath a tree that had a perfect view of the grassy school field. Tents for the festival are being set up, so gym class was cancelled for the week. Francis broke a bunch of poses out with a rose he mysteriously pulled out of nowhere as [Name] approached the gang. To his dismay, he did not catch any attention of hers as she skips down the hill leading to the tents.
"HA!" Gil lets out a hearty laugh which causes her to notice the group.
"Oh," she twirls around and carefully makes her way up holding her camera. "Good afternoon," her camera clicked when Francis was unprepared.
"H-Hey! One more!" begs Francis as she looks over the photo for a second.
"Francis, if you hold that confidence up as you usually do, there's no such thing as a bad pho-" her sentence stops after zooming in the picture. A hidden smile breaks out as she lets out a restrained giggle. "D-Don't worry I'll delete it."
"Not until I see it!" Antonio jumps on his feet as Gil holds Francis down. He lets out the same reaction after three seconds of staring, "Oh, man! I thought you claimed to be photogenic!"
"I wanna see big brother Francis' face!" Feli stood up. Seeing that his best friend chose to put interest in this photo, Ludwig gave into curiosity. Really, she intended to travel down to see the festival being set up, but instead she ended up sitting between Ludwig and Feli watching the setup underneath the tree.
Ludwig's eyes leave the pages of his textbook, watching her browse through photos, debating whether to keep them or not. Her height seemed to be the same as Kiku's since she fit snug between the two. The trio have left, and Feli fell asleep due to the shade the tree gave and the soft wind. After clearing the photos he saw her eyes spark when she realized that her friend has fallen asleep. Without shedding any concern for how close she and Ludwig are sitting already, she props herself against his arm and leans back, aiming for the right angle.
"He-" he shifts his arm, and so with an oomph her head lands right on his lap as the camera's shutters clicked. "S-Sorry, you startled me!" he's flustered, not knowing how to help her sit back up.
Feli wakes up as [Name] pulls herself off Ludwig's lap, "N-No! I should've asked first, my bad!"
Another rare memento was caught unexpectedly by [Name]'s camera.
A shocked, blushing Ludwig. How cute. Of course, she viewed it facing the camera away from him and leaning on trusty Feli who went back to sleep. The three of them waited for Kiku to complete day one of the setup, but it seemed he would not make it on time as she can see him scurry back and forth from tent to tent. It's been two weeks since [Name] have joined the club, and the topics that have been selected were not photo worthy ones. The issue she is excited to shoot for is the upcoming festival. Ludwig returned back to his books except had a bothered face and a tint of pink on his cheeks. So badly, she wanted to sneak the picture, but decided to keep it in mind. "You're very photogenic, did you know, Ludwig?"
"Huh?"
"Oh, um," she turns the camera off and thinks. "There's no way to not sound creepy, but now that I started hanging around you," he watches her perform awkward hand motions. "It's like, I can't explain it, but your expressions are so...pure."
"Pure," he blushes at the word. Many would describe him as masculine, smart, serious, tall, and what not, but never pure. "Pure, huh?"
"I like it. It proves you shouldn't judge a book by its cover," she giggles to herself. "Ha, sappy phrase," she mutters and reaches for the textbooks she has been ignoring.
Does she not realize how photogenic she is as well?
Ludwig did since he has a knack for paying attention to every detail. A constant smile painted on her lips, a splash of color on her cheeks, how her eyes twinkled and found beauty in the most simple things. Everything so far intrigued him, but made it harder to approach her.
Day by day she broke down his barrier. He found himself helping her whenever she felt a burst of inspiration. It worried him so, for she would go as far as leaning over a bridge or climbing trees, he realizes she is almost as bad as Feli. Two months have passed...
"Hey, are you two dating yet?" asks Gil as he juggles the soccer ball. Only [Name] waited patiently for Ludwig's practice to end on the bench by flipping through her books or lazily snapping a few photos.
"What? Of course not," he takes the pass from his brother and knees the ball up, lands it on his forehead and balances it.
He loses focus when Antonio giggles, "Ah, looks like someone admired you." He makes the shutter click sound, "Oh, and looks like someone is admiring her?"
The ball drops as Ludwig turns and sees an unknown boy shyly approaching [Name]. He passes the ball nervously to Antonio, looking away, but peeking from the corner of his eye. "Looks like ya got competition bruder," chuckles Gil as he purposely steals the pass. The boy scratches his head, and Ludwig can see from her reaction to his words, made it obvious to what the intention is. Flushed cheeks, clamped mouth and lowered brows, is definitely what he feared, but it's none of his business.
Arthur calls out from the goal, "HEY! We should be practicing our shoots!"
Alfred sprints by, stealing the ball from the German brothers, "He takes the ball!" He announces his actions, "And the hero comes close! Is he going to make it past the blimey?! And, he SHOOTS!" If he tilted his foot just a little more to the right, it would have shot straight past Arthur, "AND SCORE!"
Ludwig stares at the ball fearfully, seeing as it projectiles right in [Name]'s direction. No one could call for her attention in time as Alfred did make a "score" directly on her face. The camera is knocked out of her hands as the force of the ball throws her off the bench. "Cripes!" yelled Alfred, but Ludwig sprinted his way to her first. Francis nearly matches his speed as he cried out to [Name].
She already picked herself up and began looking for her camera, worrying over cracks, checking the lens and what not. To her disappointment, it no longer worked. "[Name], are you okay?!" Ludwig bends down to her and gasps at her watery eyes.
"M-My camera..." she lifts her arm to wipe her face, Ludwig grabs her arm a little too late as she realizes blood stained on her white sleeves. "Oh...my nose."
"Oh my god! I'm so fucking sorry!" apologizes a guilty Alfred.
"Oh, no it's fine I should've be-"
"You git!" Arthur has taken another ball and thrown it at Alfred's head.
"Mon'amie! OH! OH! Blood!" Francis waves his hand anxiously looking for any type of cloth around.
"Ah, ah!" the blood doesn't stop dripping, so she began to feel the panic rise. The boy from earlier stuck around and attempted to help her up, but Ludwig automatically flicked his arm away and grabs a towel from his gym bag, leans her head forward and holds the towel. It wasn't necessary to smack his arm away, but Ludwig felt the need to, he wanted to be the one to aid her.
"I'll buy you a new camera, I promise!" Alfred tearfully says. "You know what? I'll get it fixed!"
"I-It's okay, this camera was getting old anyways," now she had a reason to update it.
...
Gil and [Name] wait outside on the school steps waiting for Ludwig to get an ice pack. "Ha, you really had him worried there," he pats her back. "Get all the blood out yet?"
"It's getting there..." she horrifyingly takes a look at the blood poured out from her nostrils. The blue towel, all stained. Not just a blue towel, it's Ludwig's towel.
"He really cares a lot for you, ya know?" Gil falls silent, which is unusual as he stares at the entrance. "Complaining of the weird stunts you pull, how careless you can be sometimes." She blushes into the towel, "But that's, just him, caring. Who knows? Maybe something something will happen, huh?" He playfully nudges her arm, and ruffles her hair, pretending to be unaware of Ludwig standing behind. "So, what did that guy from earlier say?"
"None of yer business."
"He ask you out?"
"It was just a confession..."
"What did you say?"
"Stop already, or I'll throw my bloody towel at you," she threatens and returns staring at the gates. "The sakura trees are no longer in bloom..."
Should he continue teasing his little brother? He whispers aloud in her ear, "What would you say if I asked you out?" she shoots him a glare, and he can feel Ludwig throwing knives at him mentally. "Oh! There you are Lud!" Gil stands up with his bag hanging lazily on one arm, "Well, I kept you company long enough, [Name]! See ya birdies tomorrow!"
Ludwig motions towards [Name] observing her give a half-hearted wave to his brother. She shivers as he presses the ice pack against her nose, "Thank you."
He watches her eyes flutter as she adjusts to the temperature. He didn't need to continue holding the pack, but he did. "No problem, you don't have to continue waiting for me after practice, you live in the dormitories right?" he's forcing himself to be distant, jealousy? "Why do you even wait now?"
She can feel his grip leaving the pack, so she holds it herself. "I like hanging out with you, Ludwig. You don't have to take care of me, you have more things on your hands right?"
"Don't make that face," he pulls her into a hug while holding her head.
His hugs usually last for a second, but he kept her close. "Ludwig?" five seconds have passed.
"Um," the clutch he had on her head prevented her from looking up. "I," looking at the hand holding on to the strap of the gym bag, she can see how hard he is clenching it. "B-Be," she can hear his heart clearly beating wildly as her ear leaned against his chest, and smell the sweat from the practice. He stiffly held her, and she also stood in place, having an idea where his words are leading to, feeling the ice trying it's best to cool her warming face. "G-GO OUT WITH ME?!" his voice echoed in the courtyard.
"Ludwig, don't do this to me," she shakes, pushing the ice harder against her face. He stares at the sky with a cherry face and she keeps her head lowered, forehead on his chest. She can feel his hand shaking, loosening slowly as each second of silence passed, "Y-Yes."
...
Breaking the barrier and entering friendship with Ludwig was one thing to get used to, but now viewing him as your boyfriend, became another challenge. The trio would jeer at Ludwig and try to instruct him how to treat you. Testing his patience, Francis would put an arm around her, showing how to properly hold her. No one laid a hand on you when you tried out that defense move Ludwig had taught. Proudly, he wraps his arm around and gives her a loving kiss on the head.
"AW! SO CUTE!" Feli would say, "And it's all because of me! You can thank me later, Ludwig!"
"Ah, shut up already," he would say while you lean against his back.
Kiku liked to snap pictures with his phone, "There's much love I feel here. I'm quite jealous."
You two spread fluff wherever you went, making people sick of the sweetness. The actions you two exchanged were not risky to be called out on, but just enough to drive an arrow through someone's heart making them either wish they had someone, or want to look away. Wasting time, studying, sharing intimate moments with Ludwig distracted you from how fast the months passed until you sat on the benches for the Ludwig's last soccer game. You were so engaged with the way he moved around the field and opposing team you forgot about taking pictures. Feli sat next to you, cheering as loud as his brother is jeering. Ludwig's last year of being a high school student, yet you have one more to go. It's a topic that you two have hardly crossed or wanted to talk about, but you knew well, he is not going to stick around the area.
Maybe after the game, oh, they scored. Damn, I missed it. Who made it? Luddy? Gil?
The team wraps tackle Ludwig down as the students in the crowd cheer loudly. Feli jumped out of his seat hugging you tightly, "We won! We won!" You look at Ludwig who struggled to escape from his friends' arms with a bashful face, but the school crowd surrounded him. "C'mon! We can get to him if we surf through the crowd!"
"I-It's okay, Feli, I think I'll stay here and take pictures," just a few.
"VICTORY PARTY AT OUR HOUSE!" yelled Gilbert. Everyone had either left or ran off the benches to congratulate Ludwig, however, you stayed on the bench, waiting patiently as usual, smiling when his gaze meets yours. Yet, a frown would form when he turns back to his peers, you can't help being jealous.
"Hey," three individuals block your view. As you took a better look at them you realize they were from the losing team, "You're Ludwig's girl, right?"
This might be a great time to leave.
The bad feeling from your trusty gut and the warmth developing on your face from fear are probably good enough warnings. No answer only aggravated them as one member took a seat beside you, wrapping a strong arm. He's almost as muscular as Ludwig, probably as strong as he is since you couldn't pull yourself away. "Are you mute?" Ludwig's sweaty smell is intoxicating in an appealing way, but these guys became your definition of B.O. The one blocking your sight of the leaving crowd had the worst stank.
"Fuck off," you hiss and headbutt the one holding you back and duck through. There's no way to get down the bleachers without caution, "Lud-!"
Oh fuck, I'm falling.
You tumbled while holding your new camera close to your stomach, feeling your knee hit the edge hard, but someone cushions your fall. "BASTARDOS!" you hear Antonio and Francis cussing at the team members.
"DEGAGE!" cursed Francis.
You now realize it's Gil who caught you as his laugh vibrates on his chest. His hand held your head, "Are you okay, [Name]? I saw those idiots were bothering you, but-" You couldn't help but bury your face in his shirt and letting out a wailing cry, and he sits up, holding you close.
"What happened?"
"What's up?"
"Why's she crying?"
"Who are those guys?"
"Fucking give her space!" curses Gil. "Oi, Lud-" you look up seeing Ludwig stomp past you two and shoving Francis and Antonio off your offenders. His punches either aimed at their head or stomach, and they regret ever messing around with you in an instant. "HEY!" Gil yells at his friends to stop his brother's rampage now that he continued to kick the players.
"Ludwig!" Feli grasps his waist as Antonio and Francis hold back his arms.
"Ah, shit," Gil watches helplessly with you and the crowd.
...
The party Gil carelessly promised is obviously cancelled as he finds himself lecturing Ludwig while Feli treated his wounds at their house. His knuckles are bruised and scraped. He only took one hit that hardly took any effect, but it swelled. "You're lucky they didn't wanna press charges, well, of course not! You could've killed them!" he cracks open a beer and guzzles it down, throwing one to at his injured brother's way to either use as an ice pack or to drink down. "Plus, they aren't the one you should have been concerned about!" he chugs it down, crumples, and goes for another. "Why is it me who caught [Name]?!" he burps. "HUH?! Holding her while she cries, comforting her, and having to shade her from your rage? Really! It would have been better if I was the one to beat them up and you were the one to be holding your girlfriend!"
Feli shushes Gil, "Hey, hey, at least she's safe now right?"
"Pathetic, bruder," Gil hiccups and marches for the door, "I'm staying at Franci-OH, hello, [Name]." She stood at the door with wrinkled school attire, and a bag of clothes, "Hey, Feliciano, you too, let's go!"
Feli took the hint seeing her at the door, "Ciao, Ludwig, get better, okay?"
She walks in the living room, seeing him holding an empty beer can, and slumping over the couch. She silently and cautiously sits next to him, "Ludwig?" She crinkles her nose, smelling the alcohol, "Ludwig, look at me." He doesn't, so she hops off the couch and kneels between his legs, "He-" suddenly, he grasps her tightly it felt as if her neck could be snapped, but she knew that wasn't his intention as he rests his head on her shoulder.
"I'm so sorry."
"Ludwig," she manages to plant a kiss on his cheek.
"I'm sorry," he continues holding her, but she pulls herself on the couch and sits on his lap. She feels his teeth grazing on her neck as he continued to apologize. "My brother is right," she doesn't reject his hands roaming her back and sneaking under her plaid skirt. "I'm pathetic."
"No," she takes a whiff of the soccer shirt he still had on. Musky, and strong from the sweat, made her head feel a bit dizzy. "You're not."
"I should have been holding you," his hands fumble to unbutton her blouse and aiming next for her bra.
"You're holding me now," she lets a sudden cry out feeling his teeth on her bud.
"Yes, I am," usually he is gentle and slow, but he roughly sucks and holds her close. She can feel the bulge growing in his shorts as he grinds against her, "I'm so selfish," he hands spread her underneath and fingers push against her opening. "I just want you to myself, is that bad?"
"N-No," she moans feeling his built torso. "I want you too," she pushes herself on his crotch and smiles when he throws his head back in pleasure, letting out a deep grunt. "You're so cute, Ludwig," his hair gel has mostly worn off from the events of the evening, so she brushes his bangs down and stares into his loving blue eyes. She takes his throbbing member out from his shorts, but right before she inserts it she gives Ludwig a soft smile, not looking away from his eyes. "Ich liebe dich, Ludwig." It went inside smoothly and quick, probably because she is now familiar with the shape and size. However, no matter how many times they perform love making he never fails to make her shudder.
"Gott, [Name]," he holds her tightly, pressing everything inside and squeezing her butt cheek. "Don't pull that scheisse on me."
"B-But you make such a cute face," she envisions the expression of lust and love painted across his face. An image she will never allow anyone else to see or share, only hers. She giggles casually to herself as the idea of them having sex disappeared for a second, "Hehe, so cute."
Her voice is muffled by his mouth and coveted with moans as he begins thrusting furiously. When she parts away from his mouth for only a mere second he would ask if she still thought of him as cute. She never gave the claim up, partly because it is true and that he would pick up the pace, so that she can no longer answer clearly. His saliva tastes sweet and bitter from the beer, "No one can have you."
"Okay." She broke out in whimpers as he grabs hold of her butt once more and heaved her, so they were still connected as he stood. He lays her back over the couch arm so her head touched the cushion, but her hips down are his to hold.
"Spread your legs," she isn't that flexible, but attempts to hold her legs as wide as she can by placing gripping the back of thighs. Shakily, she obeys his order and is rewarded with a thrust. She puts a hand up to pause, "L-Ludwig, you think you can take your shirt off? I wanna see your muscles."
He gives her the "really now?" look, but does he request. Although she did not agree with the lighting of the room, the sweat outlined his toned stomach and his firm torso, she couldn't help but drool like any teenage girl would. He tenses, feeling her clench and seeing an erotic look he has grown accustomed to, "Did you already?" He smirks and continues ramming inside her, pushing her legs to her head, seeing if it is possible to go any deeper. He can feel everything tightening and she can feel him swelling. It's too much to bear for her and he watches in amusement as she grabs on to the cushions or peek into his eyes. He rubs a thumb over her sensitive spot, and felt her tingle, enjoyed her uncontrollable moans. "You come again?" she gives him glare with her red face and he chuckles deeply giving one final push before releasing over her blouse.
Ludwig makes his way to the couch, but kneels on the floor, kissing her sweaty cheeks, "Ich liebe dich, [Name]."
...
The Brandenburg gate stood gloriously as the orange sky began highlighting the columns and the statures sitting a top. You wonder why your brother has insisted in bringing you to Germany's most famous monument when it is something you are already familiar with. He can make a few outlines of the people who stood along the entrance taking pictures or selfies. Except one individual who ran around with their camera probably attempting to capture the whole icon. They stop right when he stood at the entrance, putting the pieces together. She lowers her camera and flashes a toothy smile.
