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"Eliza?" Roderich asks as he enters the courtyard. He sees her under the willow, what he knows is her favorite spot. "You wanted to see me?"
"Yes…" she trails off. He wonders if she's tired. "I need…to tell you something."
"Well, what is it?" he asks. Why is she being so roundabout with it?
"I'd like to break up."
His breath catches. "W-what?"
"I still…I always will love you," she begins.
"Then why?"
"There's someone else that I love…more."
"You…" He can't believe this. The whole time… "You were cheating on me?"
She gasps. "No, no! Nothing like that! That's why…that's why I want to break it off," she explains. "So I don't have to…cheat."
"…I see."
It's quite a bit to absorb; he takes a moment to collect his thoughts.
"Well…" he starts hesitantly, "I…suppose that is…the best way. I wish you happiness with whoever they are, Elizaveta."
He turns on his heel and leaves abruptly, trying not to show how much it hurts to hear those words, to say that he wants her to be happy with someone else. He'd hoped they would spend their lives together. Apparently, now, that wasn't going to happen.
She bows her head shamefully. He'd been nothing but loyal to her; he'd loved her, and she couldn't do the same. Still, she couldn't help but feel relieved that it had gone so well. He hadn't looked too bad when he left.
Now, she thinks, I just have to get through the school day. And then…
x-x-x
It feels more freeing than usual to leave school on Friday, Elizaveta notes with a smile. Already, she can see Gilbert amongst the crowd of people; not hard, as he's the only one in black in this sea of red and beige. Spotting her, he waves, and she returns it with a grin.
"Hey, Liz!" he calls as she arrives. They move out of the way so people can pass.
"Hey, Gil? I've got a question to ask…" she states. Out of the corner of her eye, she sees Roderich, his head down and his spirits obviously low.
"Ja? What is it?"
"Um, could we talk somewhere else? Like…the park?"
It was right on the way home, and Elizaveta was a sucker for romantic cliché. It was also why she had chosen the courtyard to meet Roderich and not just her locker.
"Alright…" he agrees hesitantly, beginning to walk. "Why the park?"
"Just…just because," she tells him. He nods in understanding; he'll find out why when he gets there.
The walk is, as usual, filled with a playful back-and-forth of insults both know the other isn't serious about. It doesn't slip from his notice that she's wearing the flower clip he bought her the other day. It's odd, though; normally, she tried to return his gifts, always guilty about how she didn't feel the same way. He always makes her keep them, though, and then they end up in the back of her closet, lost and forgotten.
But this is the first time she's actually worn or used something he gave her. He wonders what the occasion is.
At the park, she leans against a tree, closing her eyes for a moment. Gilbert takes the opportunity to rest his gaze on her, marveling at how the simple pose and background could make someone already so pretty look even more beautiful.
"Gilbert," she begins, swallowing her nervousness. There's no reason to be; she has almost no chance of rejection, and she knows it. Still, she takes another anxious gulp. "I…I broke up with Roderich."
He snaps out of his slight daze, shocked. "What?"
"I realized something last night," she continues. He tells himself that he doesn't dare hope it's true, but he cannot help the elated rush of anticipation surging through him.
"I love you, Gilbert," she confesses, "more than I love Roderich."
He blinks; the information hasn't fully sunk in yet. "Uh…"
Her face falls as she takes his hesitation as rejection. I took too long; he's lost interest in me. He's found someone else. I should've realized this earlier. Why did I-
Her worries are halted by a pair of lips pressing against her own, a pair of hands resting on her waist. Her eyes widen in surprise for a moment, but she soon closes them and melts into the kiss, sliding her arms about his neck. It's slow and sweet; closed-mouth, but that's part of what makes it perfect.
They pull apart after a few seconds, their foreheads touching. Simultaneously, they break into grins.
"So…how'd the snob take being dumped?" he asked, smirking. Elizaveta's smile crumbles, and she turns her head away from his; her hands slip down to her chest, her fingers wrapping together anxiously. The thought shoves its way into Gilbert's head, a quickly-growing seed of doubt; she'd said "more than I love him."
"You still have feelings for him," he realizes. She nods, her chin crinkling as she attempts to keep the tears she knows are coming from showing.
The jealousy that surges through him is immediate; even after all this, he still has her heart. But he pushes it down, because he knows it will be taken as anger, and that's exactly what Eliza is afraid of. Instead, he focuses on the "more."
She's chosen him; she's made that clear. Even if she loves the piano-playing prick, she still loves Gilbert more. It's a fact that he can live with. He knows she's not so stupid as to think he doesn't care about it, but it's something he can accept, at least for a while.
"…It's fine," he tells her, cradling her cheek. She whips back to him, shock apparent on her face. He continues, stammering, his face reddening from embarrassment. "I m-mean…as l-long as you chose m-me…I can…accept it."
A watery grin splits her face as they pull each other close; she buries her face in his chest as happy tears finally begin to fall. He smiles softly, resting his chin on her head.
Roderich sees them as he rides past the park, tinted black windows hiding his face from the pair. He tells himself he's happy she's happy, that the hurt he feels isn't there. Still, he is envious of the albino that holds his precious Eliza; he wonders when she will stop being at the edge of his every thought.
Gilbert sees a sleek black car ride slowly past the park; he can't see who lies inside. He does not respond, only kisses the top of Liz's head and pulls her ever closer.
x-x-x
Ah, I love the ending; I don't know why, it's lazy and kind of crappy, but it's so cute! I'm thinking of maybe writing a when-they're-all-grown-up sort of thing. I dunno. I might, if I get bored while the teacher lectures us about listening.