Here we go, I hope you like chapter two! I'm glad I managed to do it in a week. I think a chapter a week is what you should expect, since I always post on weekends anyways.
Special thanks to theticktalks, who helps me a lot, and a shout out to Lycoris1305, simply because I love her! xD (They're both at AnimeBoston right now, while I'm at home! *jealous*) Um, I don't own Hetalia, and that's all, so let's go!
The Fruits of Spain
"All my life, my heart has yearned for a thing I cannot name." -André Breton
"Wake up, sleepy head," a voice called gently. "Romano, it's time to get up!"
Romano slowly opened his eyes to find sunlight streaming through the windows, gleaming on every surface in the room. It made the chamber look bright, cheerful, and airy; not that Romano particularly noticed. Instead, he looked around bleary-eyed, trying to find the source of the voice calling his name.
Again, someone spoke to him. "Come on, Romano, wake up, now." A hand touched his shoulder very lightly.
Aha. The voice and hand had definitely come from his right; he rolled over in bed and saw he was not alone under the covers. A brown-haired head rested on the pillow next to his. "Italy," he muttered darkly. His brother was known for ending up in other people's beds.
A simple, but gratifying, plan formed in his mind, and he grinned. He grabbed the pillow from behind him and, as quickly as he could, swung his lower body over the other man's, straddling him in order to hold him down while he swung the pillow at his head. Experience had taught him that a few good whacks could go a long way in teaching that idiot to stay out of his room….
But the surprised face staring back up at his was not Italy's.
"Why, Romano," Spain purred playfully. "This is so sudden!" The two stared at each other for exactly three more seconds before fury consumed Romano.
"What the hell are you doing in my room!" He yelled, quickly jumping back off the Spaniard and hitting him with the pillow anyways, for good measure. Spain's only response at first was to laugh and hold his arms up to fend off oncoming attacks, but Romano didn't find anything remotely funny about the situation.
"I only wanted to wake you up and have a little joke, I wasn't expecting all that!" Spain continued a moment later, smiling and laughing. Romano felt his cheeks burn with embarrassment. He's laughing at me, the bastard!
"Just leave!" Romano shouted, frustrated with himself and his exasperating host. Spain rolled out of bed and ran, almost skipping, out of the room, giving a good natured wave before shutting the door behind him. The assault-pillow thumped against the door immediately after it closed, missing Spain by less than a second.
Romano swore violently under his breath as he got up and locked the door securely before attending to his morning routine a bit more aggressively than was necessary.
It was their second morning in the Spanish villa, though yesterday he hadn't been so rudely awoken. In fact, yesterday had been bordering on pleasant, compared with this morning so far. They hadn't been able to go on any excursions around the country because Germany, the poor fair-skinned little cherub (if you listened to Italy), had been badly sunburned at the beach the day before and wasn't up to it.
Nope, instead they'd spent the day in the villa, poolside for the most part, Romano gagging as Italy fawned over his boyfriend in his 'injured' state. You'd think he was on his deathbed, from the way his baby brother went on about it. And of course, rather than being embarrassed or upset that Romano, and even Spain, knew about his previously secret love, Italy had been incredibly excited to bring his relationship out into the open. Much more excited than Germany had been.
At least Germany's reaction to this whole thing is amusing…Romano had thought dully at the time, looking for anything to divert himself. He'd been bored out of his wits yesterday; Germany growing angrier with every public display of affection had been the only mildly entertaining thing that happened all day. But at least Romano hadn't been nearly molested first thing in the morning yesterday. That he definitely could have done without.
"Stupid Spain, who does he think he is, anyway?" he mumbled around his toothbrush as wandered back into the bedroom from the bathroom to see what time it was. 7:30? What! Why was Spain getting him up now? Yesterday he'd slept until after 10:00 and it wasn't a problem!
He quickly finished brushing his teeth and went to storm out of his room to yell at Spain some more for waking him up. Who the hell gave him the authority to get me up anyways? he thought moodily as he yanked his door open and stomped into the hallway. At least, that's what was supposed to happen.
Of course, he had forgotten that he'd locked the door only moments before, and, instead of it swinging open at his touch, he slammed into, not only banging his forehead but also ramming his hip painfully into the doorknob.
I frigging hate this place! he screamed internally as his eyes watered up with pain. He unlocked the door, cursing the little click the mechanism made for all he was worth, and entered the hall in a true rage. "Spaaaain!" he shouted loudly, feeling his voice crack towards the end of the drawn out syllable and not caring.
Spain peeked his head around the corner, shooting Romano an innocent smile. "I told you, you can call me Antonio!"
"I am not going to call you Antonio!" Romano spat out with irritation. It was only about the eight hundredth time since yesterday morning that they'd had this conversation. He had to get back to the matter at hand. "What I want to know is why the hell you woke me up at 7:30 in the freaking morning!"
Spain tilted his head to one side, looking slightly puzzled. "I'm taking you all to Madrid today, no? We need to get going, take advantage of the day!" He grinned suddenly and ran off again, shouting one last sing-songy message over his shoulder, "And I'm planning an awesome day, so you don't want to miss it!"
Romano groaned, feeling slightly distressed. Anything being planned by that guy couldn't be good.
…
Spain actually did make good on his promise of showing them a good time in Madrid. They hit several of the popular tourist spots, like la Plaza Mayor, el Palacio Real, and la Plaza Puerta del Sol. However, they didn't need to take any tours or read the little pamphlets on the history of the places, because Spain readily gave them all the information they could ever want. In fact, more than Romano wanted. Still, it was a pleasant sunny day, with just enough of a breeze to keep them from getting too hot, and it was hard for even Romano to stay in a bad mood for long.
As they walked around the city, Spain also pointed out some lesser known attractions; favorite local stores, restaurants, and bits of beautiful but unobtrusive architecture that would have otherwise escaped their eye.
Italy was really getting into the spirit of things, and his excitement also seemed to rub off on Germany. He went so far as to let Italy hold his hand as they walked through el Mercado de San Miguel.
Romano, meanwhile, was trying his best to ignore them and not let them ruin his day, but wasn't really succeeding. And he never would if Spain had anything to do with it.
"They're cute together, no?" Spain asked as he suddenly popped up at Romano's elbow.
Romano had been watching them, but he would never admit it, so he quickly averted his gaze and growled, "I don't know what you're talking about."
Spain seemed to not hear him, or maybe he just ignored him. "You must be glad that Italy has found someone who cares about him so much."
Romano dropped all pretenses and responded angrily, "Why should I be happy that damn potato-bastard is monopolizing my baby brother! That he's…infected him with his...German-ness!" He didn't care that he sounded like a whiney brat; it just felt good to say the words aloud for the first time ever.
Spain looked as though he was listening, but he didn't say anything. Romano felt like it was alright for him to continue. "It's not like we were ever that close, even as kids, but it's just weird that he spends all his time with Germany, you know? We're family, why doesn't he ever have a kind word to say about me?" Romano felt his lips involuntarily pout a little, and he crossed his arms across his chest in irritation at the habit.
"Are you jealous of Germany?"
"I…" he paused, and suddenly realized how much he'd revealed; and to Spain of all people! His face began to burn and he said quickly, "No, of course not!" He avoided Spain's gaze, though, and knew that he wasn't being completely honest.
But why should he be? What right does Spain have to know anything about him? Actually, he was disgusted with himself for the small amount that he had shared. What's wrong with me, why did I start spilling out my pathetic life story to this guy!
Thankfully, Spain didn't pry any further, and before long they had caught up with the pair of lovers.
"Spaaaain, I'm huuungry!" Italy complained as they approached. Italy clung to Germany's arm and looked as though he might fall over from 'starvation' any second. It was mid-afternoon, and considering how early they'd eaten breakfast, Romano was also beginning to feel the pangs of hunger.
"Please, feed him," Germany also begged. He glanced with a pained expression at his left arm, which looked as though it was beginning to come out of the socket as Italy dragged it down even more.
"Well you're in luck, 'cause I've made lunch plans for us! Come on, it'll take a little while to get there by foot, so let's get moving!" Spain cheerfully led the way down a nearby street, and the other three followed, wondering where they could be going. Maybe one of the cafés or restaurants he'd pointed out earlier in the day?
Apparently not, for Spain was leading them in a different direction than they'd gone before. It was indeed a bit of a walk before they reached what seemed to be their destination; el Parque del Retiro, a beautiful park in Madrid that Romano had heard about and had always secretly wanted to visit.
"Are we eating here?" he asked Spain somewhat skeptically, wondering if there was a restaurant or something within the park. He was pretty hungry at this point, and would be pissed if they had to wait much longer before eating.
"Yep! Come on, follow me!" Spain led the way down several crisscrossing avenues that ran through the park, obviously heading in a specific direction. He kept them all walking at a good pace, so they didn't have much time to appreciate the scenery around them or any of the buildings, fountains, and other manmade additions that enhanced the natural beauty.
Eventually, near the middle of the park, Spain stopped and pointed at a small group of trees. "There!"
"There?" Romano questioned. He looked around, checking to see if he missed anything. Nope. Just a stand of four or five trees in the grass. There was a monument not far away, on the edge of a manmade lake, but it was in the direction opposite of the one Spain was pointing in.
"You got it! Let's go." Spain dragged them over to the trees and pulled off the backpack he'd kept on his shoulders all day. He unzipped it and pulled out a large, checked blanket. He gave it to Germany and Italy to spread on the grass as he sorted through the other contents of his bag; a picnic lunch.
Romano stood off to the side, watching the other three set up. He wore a slight scowl on his face. Was he supposed to sit on the ground to eat? They were in goddamned Madrid, not at the beach or something, so why should he sit in the freaking dirt?
Spain's just doing this to aggravate me, he thought angrily. And it's working.
"Romano, you gonna join us?" Spain called from the blanket, where he now sat, serving his homemade food. Romano reluctantly joined, because he was hungry, though he hated every moment of sitting on the ground, on a blanket, out in public. It was unbecoming of a nation. He sat a little distanced from the others, hoping he wouldn't be associated with them by passersby, at least.
"I've made some nice tapas for you guys," Spain said cheerfully. He pulled out the first, a very basic one to start. It was just pieces of bread, sliced from a fresh baguette, with slices of cheese and ham or a Spanish sausage, chorizo. It was a little simple for Romano's taste, but it got him ready for the next course, or tapa, or whatever the hell it was.
"And now, let's split this tortilla." Spain went to digging in his backpack again, and Romano, who wasn't at all familiar with Spanish cuisine, wondered what he meant. A tortilla? Like, bread?
To his surprise, it was an omelet. Again, it was simple, made of egg, potato, onion, and some green bell pepper. They all got a good portion of it, and it was a lot more filling than the bread. Then they had some small empanadas, which Spain called empanadillas. They had a tomato sauce and beef filling, and were pretty tasty, though of course Romano made sure to remain sullen during the whole meal.
After they had all eaten their fill, they lazed around for a while and chatted. Italy was curious about the lake and the monument that was a little ways away. Spain explained that the statue of a man on horseback was of Alfonso XII. Italy wasn't terribly interested in the history though, because when he took a closer look, he saw people in rowboats out on the water.
"You can rent one, if you want," Spain said with a shrug, when Italy asked about them.
Italy gasped and turned excitedly to Germany, tugging on his sleeve. "Ludwig, we can rent one, can't we!"
"I told you," Germany said quietly through gritted teeth with a glance at Spain and Romano. "Call me Germany."
"But you let me call you Ludwig when we-" Germany cut Italy off by clapping his hand over his mouth. Romano sniggered at the blonde's obvious discomfort. He would have to remember to ask Italy to finish that sentence later on.
"Ok, we can go rent a boat." Germany dragged the smaller nation away before he could say anything else to embarrass him.
That left just Romano and Spain together. Spain settled back and, Romano thought, dozed a bit in the sun. He was officially bored now, so he decided to go for a walk. I mean, I'm in a park, what the hell else am I supposed to do?
He found that he was drawn, quite by coincidence, to the lake where his brother was now paddling around in a rented rowboat with his boyfriend. He wandered around the edge of the pond for a little while before sitting on the steps below the large memorial. He rested his chin in his hands and glared at some young children for a few minutes for some entertainment, but his gaze kept being drawn back to the two in the boat every few seconds. He could feel his blood pressure increasing at the sight.
After some time sitting alone and feeling sorry for himself, he became aware of a shadow blocking the sun from reaching his back. Turning and squinting up, he recognized Spain's carefree features. He let out a sigh and went back to staring at the little lake, not even acknowledging his host's presence.
"It's a beautiful day to be out there in a boat, don't you think?" Spain asked as he settled down on the stone steps beside Romano. Romano shrugged, trying to keep as neutral as possible. Spain continued down his train of thought. "The weather's perfect, the park's not too busy 'cause it's a weekday, and it's a good day to be with friends!" Spain smiled widely at Romano.
Romano felt the urge to barf up his lunch, but managed to resist and just shrug again.
"But you're still not having a good time, are you?" Spain asked in a soft, knowing tone very unlike his usual joyful voice.
"Uh…" Romano was unsure how to respond to him, for the second time today. What's wrong with me? he thought at first, but then he changed his tune. No, it's more like what's wrong with Spain. How does the bastard keep asking me these questions that are just so…uncomfortable? He didn't know, and it made his stomach churn.
"Well, wanna know what I do when I need to cheer up?" Spain unslung the backpack from his shoulders once again, and pulled out a simple brown paper bag. From this he removed a large, red, ripe tomato.
"A tomato?" Romano was surprised into talking aloud.
"Picked it from my garden this morning. Watch." Spain took a knife out of the bag and sliced the tomato evenly in two halves. Then he sprinkled a little salt and pepper on each half and handed one to Romano. "I like them plain, too, but I just felt like a little seasoning today." He grinned. "¡Salud!*" he said jokingly, and took a huge bite from his half.
What! Am I expected to just eat a raw tomato! Romano liked tomatoes, of course, in sauces and other dishes and things. But just a plain tomato? That was weird. However, Spain seemed to be enjoying it…
Hesitantly, he raised it to his lips and took a small bite. Immediately his mouth was filled with a clean, fresh taste unlike anything else he'd had before. It was good; no, it was better, it was amazing.
What else have I been missing? he wondered briefly as his eyes widened at the unexpected delight he took in the tomato, but he didn't want to let Spain know what he was thinking. The man seemed to know too much about him as it was. However, Spain was looking at him questioningly, asking him how it was with his eyes, so he gave another noncommittal answer. "It's alright."
Spain seemed somewhat satisfied with this; at least, he didn't press him for anything more. As soon as he turned away, though, Romano attacked the fruit in his hand, trying to savor the moment but at the same time trying to eat it as fast as he could. He licked the juice from his hand when it was gone, and then wished there was more.
Well, at least one good thing came out of this trip, he thought, catching a drop of juice that was threatening to drip off his lips with his tongue. Then he glanced over at Spain, who had spotted Italy and Germany and was waving at them. He scowled at the sight, and then reminded himself grimly, but that bastard's still as annoying as hell.
About the tomato; I don't like tomatoes, I don't eat tomatoes, I know nothing about what they taste like plain and raw! So I took the salt and pepper thing from how my dad likes to eat them (yep, he eats whole raw tomatoes sometimes; he's Italian, haha) so if that's not 'normal' then Spain just inherited a quirky trait from Daddy Walroose, ok? xD
I still know nothing about Spain (the place) so I hope I did okay with this! I apologize to all Spaniards if I messed up!
* Salud – Cheers!