Well this might be a bit of a feels trip. Enjoy~

Chapter 6

Ludwig actually broke the silence. The two brothers were very close, after all they only had each other. Ludwig might try to avoid Gil at school, but he still thought he had the greatest big brother ever. He just didn't want to be seen as a delinquent like Gil, and Gil understood that.

"What happened Gil?" he asked as they drove.

Gil's hands were throttling the poor wheel but his voice was steady enough. He looked at Ludwig then back at the road. "Tell me the story you heard."

Ludwig looked straight out the windshield "Well Felica came to me after school and told me Liz was really ticked at you. She said Liz had been crying and missed her last class. Then she said she saw Roderich, and his face was pretty messed up still. I guess he and Liz traded numbers…" Ludwig shifted uncomfortably. He didn't really want to be the bearer of bad news for his brother.

Gil blew a stop sign on accident and continued to choke the steering wheel. "So, she's pissed at me and she's now got Roderich's phone number. Great. And she went home with Felica so they can talk about how awful I am, and how she wants to date Roderich?"

Ludwig frowned and bit his lip "Well…I don't know what they're going to talk about. But…I'm sure everyone is talking about the fight. You broke his glasses and messed up his nose, I think the entire school knows by now." Ludwig paused and looked over "Gil you should loosen up a bit, your hand is bleeding again."

Gil growled something in German that Ludwig didn't catch and drove the rest of the way home in silence. He pulled into the drive and got out. Once inside he stopped and looked at his brother.

Ludwig looked back at him and sighed, shutting the door and walking closer. Sure they were two very tough guys, but when it was just them they could get sentimental. Ludwig hugged his brother and tried to say something comforting. He knew his brother even better than Liz did. They really had no secrets. They were as co-dependent on each other as the Winchester brothers.

Gil hugged him back and grumbled "We're never talking about this ever again."

Ludwig laughed a bit "Never."

In a moment Gil patted his brother's back and they broke apart. Gil's eyes were red, not iris red, crying red. He didn't want to lose Liz and yet here he was utterly helpless to do anything else.

A week or so went by and Liz gave Gil the cold shoulder. He didn't see her besides for Chemistry, and she had made it clear she wasn't talking to him in that class. His grade slipped from a C to a D, and they slipped in other classes to. Liz had really helped him with his school work, even if she thought she didn't. Francis and Antonio were the greatest friends any heartbroken boy could ask for, but even they couldn't lift up his spirits. Ludwig and Francis supplied Gil with all the information he usually got from Liz.

Ludwig got the best information, dating Felica made him subject to the girl's gossip circle, which made Francis really jealous.

The worst came true for Gil. He knew it all along but he still had a strange ray of hope that maybe Roderich would so something stupid and Liz wouldn't like him.

But Ludwig came to the car in a somber mood and told Gil the news. Roderich had called Liz the night before, and they had a date tonight. Felica had been really excited for her best friend, and Ludwig had acted happy too. It hurt him a bit to know his big brother's heart was about to get shattered.

Gil was really quiet the whole car ride home. It wasn't a surprise to him, but it still hurt more than he had expected. It was like something had squeezed his lungs and heart and then stomped on his chest. He felt deflated.

When he felt like this, the first person he went to was Liz. She was his best friend, she was his vent outlet. She would never judge him for his feelings, she was ok with him crying into her. She understood that even tough guys cry, and she still knew Gil was a strong boy. They had bonded so tightly when Gil had broken apart when his dad left. Gil didn't even know how to handle a crisis without her at his side.

It was like someone threw him into battle but forgot to give his armor or a weapon.

But when he didn't have armor or a weapon, he had something else.

Gil walked into the kitchen and got down a bottle of alcohol. He wasn't really sure what it was, it was a bottle their father had in the liquor cabinet, one of the many he had left behind when he left his boys.

Ludwig wasn't around to see, so Gil took the bottle into his room and shut the door. It was strangely nostalgic, hiding in his room with a bottle of something strong. He had done this before, he had done it when his father had left him with the house, bills, and total responsibility for Ludwig.

For a teenage boy, it was too much to handle. Gil hadn't taken care of his stress in the best of ways either. He was strong for Ludwig, but behind closed doors he drank himself into paradise.

And right now, with the intense pain in his heart, and a loss so great it felt like the world was collapsing. His world was crumbling away and he didn't have someone to catch him.

This wasn't a stress that belonged to Ludwig, Gil wouldn't hurt him. Francis and Antonio were great friends but they just didn't know some things. They didn't know everything that Liz did.

Liz was who he wanted, who he needed. At this point it wasn't even as his girlfriend, he needed his best friend. Gil was seeing he'd rather have her in his life as his friend than not have her at all.

With the depression crushing and strangling the hope out of him, Gil raised the open bottle to his lips and drank himself into a numbness.

He drank half the bottle, it was something strong like a whiskey. The label was old and peeling off, to faded to read. But he didn't need a label to know it was probably over 100 proof.

He drank so much he made himself sick. He stowed away the bottle and passed out around midnight. He woke up, thankfully, but he promptly felt nauseous and ran to the bathroom and puked. The alcohol stung even worse on its way back out.

He wasn't just hung over, he was sick. He had drank way too much and he was probably borderline alcohol poisoning again.

He felt awful, now with the happy buzz gone he felt all the pain about Liz and Roderich tenfold. Hel felt like someone was twisting a knife in his chest and then poking him with a branding iron, right on his heart.

Ludwig lingered in the bathroom doorway. He remembered Gil's problem. They didn't talk about it, it was one of the off limits conversations. Both brothers were content about never talking about their father. They quietly accepted the checks they got and otherwise forgot the man existed. Ludwig found it hard to forget Gil's problem though. He had nearly lost his brother to alcohol poisoning, and if Liz hadn't shown up in time…Ludwig didn't like to think about it. Liz had gotten to Gil, and maybe fear and guilt did too, Ludwig didn't care what changed him he was just happy his brother had quit drinking. Ludwig had never been able to persuade him otherwise. Ludwig was in fact pretty useless to Gil right now. It worried him greatly to see how sick his brother was, and he couldn't very well leave him alone.

Ludwig knew who his brother needed and it wasn't him. He snuck away and got his phone, calling Liz.

She answered while she ate her breakfast. "Ludwig?" she asked in a surprised tone. The younger brother never called her

Ludwig's voice trembled slightly "Liz…Gil's sick. I think…well it's like…you know." He left it at that. Liz remembered as clearly as Ludwig did, those nights where Gil was lost to the demon drink.

She slowly put down her cereal spoon. "Oh…" she frowned and worry knotted in her stomach. Gil might have pissed her off by punching Roderich but she stilled cared a great deal for him. He was her best friend, even before Felica or any of the girls.

"Ludwig go to school, I'll come over. He won't be alone…"

Ludwig was pretty sure Liz missed the whole 'Gil probably drank himself stupid because your dating another guy' but he was at least happy she was coming over. She could get to him, and maybe the two would reconcile as well. He left and Gil stayed on the bathroom floor, his cheeks flushed, stomach churning, and head pounding.

Liz crept over through the open door and walked through the house coming to the bathroom. She looked down at Gil and for the first time in a week and a half spoke to him.

"Gil what did you do?" her voice was soft and so concerned it ripped Gil's heart worse than barb wire.

"I…It's the stomach flu." He lied

Liz sat near him, leaning against the cabinet under the sink. Gil groaned "How romantic this is."

Liz shook her head "Now isn't the time for your jokes Gil."

He sighed and only said "I know."

He got sick several more times but by noon he was better. She had scolded him for the drinking and taken away the bottle. He felt guilty about scaring her and Ludwig…again.

Later they relocated to the family room and he was laying on the couch, his head propped on a pillow which leaned against her leg. She looked down at Gil and said "Tell me the truth Gil."

Slowly he sighed and told her how he felt. Well, he mostly told her how he felt.

"I got angry at Roderich I guess, he's just so unlike me. We're like two halves of sandpaper Liz, we are going to rub, there's going to be serious friction. He just got to me in a bad mood and you know how often I get into fights. This time it just happened to be a boy you liked…" Gil sopped there before he broke to pieces.

Liz shook her head "I'm not asking about the fight Gil."

He closed his eyes and was quiet for a while. "I can't stand…" he nearly said 'you dating him' but he caught himself. "I can't stand the cold shoulder. It's been a really hard month, my grades are falling and I just need you. And when I needed you, well you took the guy I hate most side. And Liz it hurt me…I don't know how to handle that kind of pain without…well without you. Ludwig, Francis, Antonio, they're all great but…I just, prefer you. You're my best friend. Please. Please don't lock me out again." He pleaded, emotions swelling up inside him. This isn't what he wanted to say. He wanted to scream how he loved her; he wanted to howl his agony out until he was empty, so he could start all over.

But something in her face kept him in check. She really was into Roderich, and if he was a good friend then he wouldn't give her hell. If he really was her best friend, then he would be quiet about it and support her. For years she had wanted this dream boy and now she thought she found it, and well, Gil wasn't that selfish.

Liz leaned down so Gil sat up, and she hugged him tightly.

She felt like the world's worst best friend. She knew Gil was too tough of a guy to go whine to his friends about his problems. She knew Gil talked about it but she knew that the depth wasn't the same. She knew Gil better. She knew his ways.

She should have known better than to shut Gil out when he had been acting funny these past few weeks, and she had. And Gil had nearly given himself alcohol poisoning again, and Liz didn't want to repeat those days.

"I won't shut you out, I promise Gil." she squeezed him gently.

He choked a bit, trying to keep it together as he hugged her back.

It hurt to be reconciled with her. He had back his best friend, but now he had to sit back and watch the girl he loved date a guy he hated. To avoid another cold shoulder, Gil knew he had to keep his mouth shut. To make Liz happy, he had to act happy for her. He had to accept she liked someone else no matter how bad it hurt.

When she pulled away he smiled at her, his mind resolved.

"Best friends?" he asked

She grinned and sealed his fate. "Best friends."

Never again would Gil fight Roderich. Now he would be happy for Liz he wouldn't be selfish, and he would watch her be happy with another. That's what best friends did after all.

well how was that? *whoops I just sunk my own ship*

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