Author's Note: Uwah, I was so busy working on the next chapters I forgot to post this one earlier! Oh well, hope you enjoy. This one is the longest so far! :3

Reviews make my day.

Chapter six

'Just bite your lip and forget,

That all I ever do,

Is to sit and wait for someone who,

Would take me by the hand and by the heart,

And show me where to start' (The Third Time, Choir of Young Believers)

Mathias didn't find Lukas that day. Nor the next. Nor the next after that. He was quite worried. He snowboarded piste after piste, getting more and more desperate as the week drew on. Time was passing. Where was Lukas?

In other news, Mathias was only getting better and better at boarding. People admired his skills and he whooshed past them on courses, sometimes giving him angry glares and disapproving tuts at his outrageous speed. It made him smile. It was Wednesday morning he woke up with the idea. It was crazy. And he was going to do it.

He headed up the mountain as usual that morning, staring out at the breath-taking scenery. The whole landscape was shrouded in mist, which took a violet tinge in the morning light. It curled around the forests and mountains, claiming them into the kingdom of clouds.

As Mathias reached the top of his favourite red piste, he took a deep breath and pushed off. However, he did not continue straight. He did not follow the wide path down the mountain side. He split off at the top, taking a track etched into the snow by many before him. He was trying off-piste. He was going into the wilderness. It was new and terrifying, but exhilarating all at once. He had to regularly dodge rocks, but otherwise this was fantastic. He didn't have to worry about crowds, there was not a person in sight, and he would choose exactly where he went. He found himself enjoying himself far more than on the usual courses. This was far more exciting. Probably because it was far more dangerous.

That was when he noticed the figure in the distance. There was a decidedly blue dot ahead, and it grew larger and larger and Mathias approached. As he drew near, he realised that it was a person curled up with their feet under them and settled into the snow quite well. Mathias drew his snowboard to a quick, and tricky, halt, causing snow to splatter up around his board, straight into the downed person's face. Only then did Mathias notice who it was.

'Lukas!' He grinned at the sight of the boy. Perfect. He had finally found him. Then he realised.

'What are you doing here?'

Lukas looked up at him with some anger in his eyes. 'What does it look like?' he growled.

Mathias hadn't really paid much notice to the scenario at all to be honest. His eyes immediately fell to the tangle of a mess that were Lukas' legs. He was pretty sure they weren't supposed to bend that way.

'Oh god.'

Mathias covered his mouth and felt a panic rising inside him. This was not good. Nope. Not good. Not good at all.

Lukas looked on in silent interest as Mathias got himself completely worked up, and then eventually returned himself to his normal, annoyingly cheerful state before turning back to face Lukas. He couldn't help but notice that this time the smile looked forced and unnatural. It unnerved him.

'What happened?' asked Mathias, once he had finally gathered himself.

'Chicken heads. Caught my ski on one, went tumbling straight into this rock.' Lukas gestured. Mathias winced at the story, wondering how Lukas kept his cool like that when his legs looked like broken twigs.

'Chicken heads?' Mathias enquired nervously.

'Lumps of frozen snow.'

Lukas stared tiredly out over the mist. This spot had a particularly amazing view of the mountains. The violet morning light was slowly turning into a more golden glow, radiating through the clouds and settling on random patches of the landscape, creating a scene that reminded Mathias of the old religious paintings he had seen when forced to go to church as a child. It was mesmerising. The two sat in silence for an amount of time that Mathias couldn't measure, just observing. Just breathing in the fresh air and taking in the beautiful scene before them.

Mathias broke the spell first of course.

'Does it hurt?'

Lukas gave Mathias a sarcastic look.

'No. Not at all.' He said dryly, 'It's not like my legs are bent backwards or anything. It's not like I can't move them, no, not at all.'

Mathias gasped and shifted uncomfortably.

'What can I do? I could help you! I could carry you! We could-'

Lukas cut him off. 'Not likely. I can't even feel them. No chance you can do it alone.'

'I could though! I'm totally awesome like that!'

Lukas sighed deeply and shut his eyes. Now he had to deal with this idiot. He denied entirely that deep down he was actually kind of happy, if not just for the company alone. Before he could resist, Mathias had hooked his arms under Lukas' and was attempting to lift him.

Lukas shrieked as the pain shot through him in a powerful wave, leaving him shaking. Mathias recoiled immediately, slumping the boy back into his previous position where he lay limply against the rock.

Mathias was freaking out. He fussed all around Lukas, doing anything and everything to try and make it better. It hadn't exactly been smart of him, he had to admit. He had just been trying to help, but he always managed to mess things up more than he helped the situation. Lukas was lying back now, his head resting on the rock and his eyes closed. It suddenly occurred to Mathias that maybe he shouldn't let Lukas fall asleep in the cold like this. Wasn't that how people died in the movies?

'Erm, Lukas? Luuuukaaaaas'

The boy cracked his eyes open and gave Mathias a disapproving look.

'I should go get help.' He stated, gaining confidence after his earlier mistake. Yes. Help was the best option. He could get someone from the resort and they would come up with their stretchers and fancy equipment and-

'No.'

Mathias tilted his head quizzically.

'Just... Just don't leave okay.'

Lukas hid his face, but not quick enough to disguise the enormous blush. Realising what was going on, Mathias felt a smile tug at his lips, which he tried to hide so as not to worsen the situation.

'Alright, we'll stay here. Someone is bound to ski past eventually. Then they can get help.' He said as he sat down slowly next to Lukas. He couldn't help but grin at him now. He was just so cute with that little rogue curl and the way he looked in the opposite direction to avoid eye-contact. Time passed in silence. More time. Neither had any way to tell how much time, but the sun was moving gradually higher into the sky. The landscape was beautiful and glistening in the morning sun and Mathias felt more at peace than he had ever felt in any other long period of absolute silence. Eventually he spoke.

'Lukas..' He said the word in a musing way. It wasn't a question. It wasn't an attempt to get his attention. It was him thinking aloud.

'Lukas...'

Lukas gave him a questioning look as Mathias continued to stare straight ahead, his brow furrowed in concentration. Finally he turned to Lukas.

'Where are you from?'

'Where do you think? Norway.' Lukas continued to stare at the boy in confusion. What was going on?

Mathias turned back to the view and carried on thinking.

'Er... What are you doing?' Lukas ventured, sitting up and wincing slightly at the pain in his legs.

At this, Mathias turned and beamed at the smaller boy. 'I'm coming up with an awesome nickname for you of course!'

Lukas sighed and lay back again. He should have known better than to think it was anything of actual importance.

Expecting a painful blow, Mathias braced himself. When nothing came, he carried on.

'Ah! I've got the perfect thing.'

Lukas thought he looked a little bit like an excited puppy with those huge blue eyes lit up like that. All he needed was for his tongue to flop out and a tail that wagged furiously.

'Really?' he replied dryly, though this time without the malice that usually laced his voice.

'From now on I'm gonna call you Norge!'

Lukas furrowed his brow and looked at him, puzzled. 'Why?' was all he could think of to say.

'Well you're from Norway, and in Denmark we call Norway Norge.'

Lukas looked at him blankly.

'You know we call it that here too.'

'Shush!' Mathias cried and clumsily pressed his finger to Lukas' lips. 'Don't ruin it now Norge!'

Lukas didn't look amused. Mathias didn't let that fool him.

'And why do you want to call me Norway?'

'Because you're from there, duh! Anyway, you're a pretty good representation of Norway as a whole. Beautiful and cold.'

Lukas wasn't sure if he was thrilled or worried at this boy calling him beautiful all the time. Maybe a bit of both. Either way, Mathias' cheerfulness was proving kind of infectious, despite the rather grotesque way his legs were painfully laying broken before him and the fact that they were stranded on the side of the mountain. Reminding himself of that fact also reminded him of how cold he really was. It was still not yet noon and the sun had next to no heat. He started to shiver, trying to stop himself but unable to resist it when his teeth started chattering quietly.

Next thing he knew, a big pair of warm arms were wrapped around him, engulfing him from behind. He jumped, and almost let himself lean into the heat and comfort of the embrace before realizing what he was doing and attempting to shove a happy looking Mathias away from him. Mathias clung on tightly.

'Aw come on Norge, I know you're cold! I can warm you uuuuupppp'

Lukas made a mental note to kick him hard in the shin as soon as he found himself in a position from which he was able to do so. That was, assuming his legs would be working any time soon.

Lukas soon found out that trying to shake him off was futile, and eventually just sat and let Mathias hold him. Mathias was sat right up against him from behind, his arms wrapped around his chest and his legs on either side of his body. He felt a warm flush go to his face and was thankful that Mathias was situated behind him and was thus unable to see it. He definitely didn't enjoy it though. Nope. Definitely not. The sky was starting to cloud over and a gentle shower of snow was starting to settle around them. Lukas turned to look at Mathias and saw, much to his silent amusement, that a snowflake had landed right on his nose. Mathias was trying desperately to get it off without moving his arms, which were still wrapped around Lukas. It looked rather ridiculous and Lukas had to stop himself from sniggering. For a moment he almost thought it was cute. It wasn't though. Nope. It was stupid. Deciding to stop the bumbling fool, Lukas reached out a hand and brushed the rogue snowflake from Mathias' face. The other teenager grinned happily, and their eyes met for a moment before Lukas made an incoherent noise and turned back around again.

'So, what's with the clip?' Mathias ventured, playing with Lukas' hair as he fiddled with the cross shaped hair pin. Lukas was quiet for a moment, feeling Mathias running his hand through his hair and leaning ever so slightly into the sensation. It was almost pleasant.

'It was a gift, from my mother.'

'And where is your mother now?' Mathias said cautiously.

'Working. She's always working.'

They fell silent again, as the snow began to fall heavier now.

'What about your parents?' Lukas wasn't sure why he was attempting to make conversation. It certainly wasn't like him.

Mathias didn't answer immediately.

'My mother is dead.'

Silence.

Lukas had no idea how to reply. He felt a sinking feeling in his chest. He hurt for this boy. He felt pain for him. He couldn't imagine if that had happened to his mother. She may always be working, but at least he still had her. Looking for a way to comfort Mathias, Lukas leant his head back and rested it on the other boy's chest. He shut his eyes and heard Mathias' heart beating, just a little faster than normal, though nowhere near as fast as his own. Mathias let his head drop forward so his forehead was resting on the top of the Norwegian boy's. Painful memories started to surface. Memories and feelings that pushed away his glee at Lukas' comforting embrace. He refused to cry. He hadn't cried in so long now. He wouldn't cry.

Time seemed to slow down or stop completely, as even the snowflakes seemed to halt in mid air. There was nothing. They sat in absolute silence, just feeling eachother's warmth. Who knows how long they sat there for? Their trance was broken when suddenly a loud and clear voice rang out behind them.

'Hello? Is there somebody there? Are you okay?'

Both boys snapped their heads up to look at the skier who skidded to a halt next to them. Mathias immediately got up. Lukas couldn't hide how humiliated he felt at being caught in that rather odd position at that moment. It could surely be interpreted as the wrong thing by any passer-by.

The skier still stood frozen, staring in horror at Lukas' mangled legs. Huh. Lukas had almost forgotten about those.

'Wh-what happened?' The stranger muttered in shock.

Lukas went to speak, but Mathias did it for him.

'He took a tumble, smashed into this rock here. We were waiting for someone to pass by and go get help. Didn't want to leave him, y' know?'

The stranger nodded and gulped nervously.

'Dude, could you go down and get somebody up here with a stretcher or something. I can't move him on my own.'

The stranger nodded again. It seemed he was able to do little else. His gaze had not yet shifted from the mess that was Lukas' legs. Mathias couldn't blame him, though he had quite forgotten about it while they had been sitting there.

'Erm, he's getting pretty cold out here man...'

The skier started and snapped out of his horrified daze. He mumbled something about being as fast as he could before stumbling away down the mountainside. Mathias sat back down, leaning slightly against Lukas as he let out a relieved sigh.

'Shouldn't be long now.'

Lukas let out a sigh of his own, forcing his gaze to be a cold one as he looked round at Mathias. Mathias wasn't grinning nearly as much as usual. Hmm. Odd.

'This place... I thought I'd hate it, but I've actually kinda come to love it here.' Mathias mused into empty air.

Lukas nodded. 'It's amazing.' He tried not to sound too flat, but he was afraid that was the default tone of his voice. Mathias continued looking into the distance. Lukas suddenly and inexplicably felt like their places had been reversed. Now Mathias was the one thinking and Lukas was the one staring stupidly. He found it hard to tear his eyes away though. Mathias sat with his elbows on his knees and his hands tucked under his chin, a peaceful and thoughtful expression on his face. His blonde hair was swept up in that crazy mess that somehow always managed to spike upwards, despite the flattening effect helmets had on most other people's hair. His eyes were the brightest turquoise-blue and his features defined-

No.

He wasn't thinking that.

Nope.

Luckily, his train of thought was cut off when he noticed a small group of men carrying a stretcher struggling down towards them over the tricky landscape. Suddenly remembering the pain in his legs, he winced aloud and sat up a bit more. Mathias saw what had distracted Lukas and started waving energetically at the lost-looking first-aiders.

'Over here! Come on! We're right here!'

Lukas put his hand to his forehead, fighting off a headache and groaning at Mathias' loudness. At least he was going to be inside in the warm soon. Strangely, that didn't comfort him as much as it should. He had sort of enjoyed this, despite the intense pain his legs were in. He had seen Mathias in a different light. He was still stupid and annoying, but maybe not as stupid and annoying as before. It was most likely just his delusional mind playing tricks on him. The team of first-aiders arrived at long last and started to ask him questions before struggling to get him onto the stretcher. The pain was incredible. Black spots started to appear in his vision and he couldn't stop himself from shrieking out in agony at times when someone pulled him the wrong way or even so much as touched his legs. By the time he eventually ended up on the stretcher there was nothing but the blinding white pain. He wasn't exactly sure what was going on, but one thing struck him. Soft lips, a gentle kiss planted on his cheek. He knew immediately who it was. He may have been completely out of it, but he was certainly able to throw a very fine punch that aimed to strike Mathias right in the jaw. From the squeal and consequent laughter, Lukas guessed he had been right on target.

A small smile tinkered on his lips as he was carried away. Then he blacked out.

Author's Note: THIS WAS SO MUCH FUN TO WRITE EEK

Yes this scene was basically the basis for the whole fic I'm so glad we got here finally

Do you know how many hours I spent researching ski resorts and Norway and skiing accidents and injuries because I know it was far too long

Anyway yes review or favourite or just say hi or whatever it's nice to know there are people out there

it's late okay sh