"...Who said he was bothering me?"
The cheery morning atmosphere of the kitchen shattered with the unintentional revelation. Gilbert stared in openmouthed shock, Ludwig made a noise of disapproval but otherwise ignored the statement, and Feliciano stared as well, but more in confusion than anything.
"No way," The albino stated, "No way."
Mattie let out a sigh, "Forget I said anything..." He muttered as he picked up his plate and walked over to the sink.
"How can you say something like that and expect me to forget it?!"
"I was being honest..." Canada countered. "...I mean... Would you turn down a gift?"
Prussia scratched his head, "Um, yeah, if they were from a cheating bastard who stalked me into another country!"
"...You don't understand..."
Red eyes rolled, "Your situation in layman's terms: Francis fucked with the Italy bros—no offense Fel—and then West, America and Antonio fucked him up. You packed up and headed here, scaring the crap out of me and your family, so I headed here with Gilbird, West and Italy to make sure you're okay, and here we are!" He extended his arms out to indicate them all, "What is there to understand?!"
Mattie turned on the faucet and began to clean his plate, determined to keep his back turned and not meet anyone's eyes. Feliciano looked towards Ludwig, his eyes sparkling with concern. The German only shook his head, an indication that they should stay out of the argument.
"Well?!" Gilbert badgered, "What are you going to do about it?!"
Canada began drying his plate, "For now... Nothing."
"Nothing?! What do you mean nothi—?"
"Look," Though quiet, the word still had enough force to cut the albino off, "In case you haven't noticed, I'm going through a lot right now, between uprooting myself from my former boyfriend, trying to settle back in here, dealing with mysterious gifts from said ex-boyfriend; plus I'm forced to deal with your sudden appearance, which isn't helping me in the slightest. I've only been home for all of two days, and my primary concern is getting my house back in order and reestablishing my life. And as for the roses and Francis, I'm sorry if I don't have solution that pleases you." The Canadian never raised his voice but his final statement was still a verbal slap in the face. He folded his arms and looked at his other guests, "Are you two done? I hate to be rude, but I have a lot of things I need to get done—"
"Like what?!" Prussia demanded.
Italy quickly stood up, "Ve, we understand..." He grabbed Germany's hand and pulled lightly, telling the blonde to get up. "We'll be leaving now." Surprisingly the statement was forcefully directed at Prussia. The brunette smiled at Canada, "Ve, and thank you so much for breakfast! Tell you what, next time we visit we can swap recipes! I'll make pasta, okay?"
Mattie cracked a small smile, "Sounds like a plan."
"Yay!" Feliciano cheered, "Ve, We'll see you later! Ciao!" He led Ludwig out of the house.
Prussia stared at his friend, and then opened his mouth to say something, but the Canadian interrupted him, "Goodbye Gilbert."
Goodbye, in this case, translated to a very polite 'Get out of my home.' The Prussian narrowed his eyes at the dismissal, but went out the front door regardless.
Matthew's brow creased with stress when he heard the door close. Why would Prussia get so mad? He gathered the rest of the dishes and began to wash them. His gaze drifted back to the source of the conflict still situated on the kitchen table. He walked over to place the new roses in the vase, noting that it was getting rather full. Again his brain rehashed the question: why would France keep leaving the roses and run?
What kind of reaction was the man looking for?
The Canadian knew that he shouldn't like the gift, but he couldn't help but find it strangely romantic. He was fairly certain that anyone would appreciate the roses, and it would be rude to reject them... Did this mean that Francis truly cared? He... He had to, otherwise he wouldn't have flown all the way out here—but a nagging voice gnawed at the back of Matthew's mind. Remember why you came here. Bile rose in the back of the young blonde's throat. Francis wormed his way back into your heart once, how was this time any different? When will this nonsense stop? But Francis was the only person to reach out to him... The only one to tell him that he was loved.
No, Canada shook his head as if to clear it; this wasn't right. He wasn't ready for this! Not here, not now... Not again. Yet that did not change the conflict raging within his heart and mind. No matter what he did he was eternally drawn and repulsed by the Frenchman for a multitude of reasons. That nagging voice decided to switch gears, but what about Gilbert? It asked.
The Canadian paused... What about Gilbert?
Well, didn't he fly out just as far for your sake?
Matthew shook his head once more. He needed to stop talking to himself, it wasn't healthy. But the argument in his head would not cease.
Prussia was the first person to reach out to you after the meeting. He made you smile, he told you to keep on smiling, and he sent Gilbird to make sure you were okay. When he wanted to let you know he followed you, he spoke to you directly one he found you. He's looking out for you. The mental war raged on, and the Canadian clutched his head in frustration, unable to perish any thoughts.
They say that if a certain someone can't leave the mind, then maybe that person belongs there.
But what happens when there are two?
xxxxx
It pained Francis to watch his little Canadian from afar. He walked back from his car down the street just in time to see Prussia storming from the house and to be honest the angry expression he wore was... Quite amusing. The car sped past him with a low growl, and France felt his expression morph into something much darker as he stared after the vehicle.
How dare they approach his Mathieu.
It was a bit chilly out, so the Frenchman wore a long overcoat, opting for stealth. A simple hat and a pair of glasses concealed him enough so that he would not be recognized from afar. He walked back up the sidewalk, approaching Mathieu's mailbox. From his coat he withdrew another perfect rose, and carefully slipped it inside.
Mathieu...
Didn't he know that it was wrong to talk to other men when one was in a committed relationship? They would need to talk about that later. The older blonde chuckled softly, yet the laughter did not reach his eyes. He really should be furious at the boy for running off like that, but that, like their talk, would be handled later. All that matter at the moment was leading his Mathieu back to him. He blew a kiss in the direction of Canada's home before turning on his heel and walking away. It wouldn't take too long before he won the battle that was surely raging in Mathieu's mind.
Love and war went hand in hand, and all is fair within them. And while Francis was not particularly strong in the latter, in love he would not surrender.
In love he would not lose.
xxxxx
To say that Prussia was perplexed, was an understatement.
He thought today was going to be perfect once he received that map. He would have finally gotten to see that Birdie was okay, and then they would have just had a really awesome day. So they did arrive, and there were pancakes. Mattie could cook one hell of a pancake. They had an awesome breakfast, surely a sign of an awesome day ahead.
Then Italy pointed out those damn roses.
Next thing he knows, he's fighting with Birdie over France. France, of all people! Why couldn't Mattie just see the guy as the cheating scumbag that he was? Why did the Canadian insist on letting everything slide by for now?
"I'm sorry if I don't have a solution that pleases you." Ouch...Alright, so maybe Birdie made a point there... His life. His decisions.
"But for the love of God why can't he just move on?!"
Gilbert had not been aware that he was talking out loud until Feliciano gave him a very strange look. Another odd occurrence of the morning was that the Italian had requested to sit in the back with Prussia on their ride back to the hotel, and that now the usually happy brunette fixed him with a stony glare. Gilbert responded with his own look of bewilderment, "What's wrong with you?"
"You really don't understand," Italy folded his arms. Very few things made him angry; ignorance of other's feelings was one of them. He clarified, "What Mr. Canada said... He's right, you don't understand."
The albino tapped his brother on the shoulder, "Hey West, what they hell is your boyfriend talking about?"
Germany looked irritated, "First off, don't touch me vhile I'm driving. Second..." His looked curious, "Feli, vhat are you talking about?"
Mocha colored eyes stared into red, "You may understand the situation but you have no clue what your Birdie feels. He has every right to have conflicted feelings and as a friend you should not have yelled at him like that!" Ludwig couldn't help but turn around at the next stoplight to catch a glimpse of Feliciano's face. With his eyes open and face set in a cross between a pout and a scowl, the resemblance to his older brother at that moment was quite unnerving. Thankfully his intensity was much weaker than the Southern Italian's as he chastised Gilbert.
"You're upset with how Big Brother France treated Mr. Canada—that's understandable—and you want to protect your friend—equally understandable—but did the fact that Big Brother Francis was Mr. Canada's first lover ever occur to you?" Feliciano leaned towards the other man, "And certainly you know how hard it is to let go of your first love..." His voice softened, as if he were recalling a personal memory, "When you fall in love for the first time...That person takes a piece of you with them...And they tend to be the hardest to forget... The hardest to let go..." His eyes suddenly lit up with sympathy, "And Mr. Canada was betrayed by that person..." He relaxed back into the seat, "And with Big Brother France sending those roses..."
Oh.
There are moments in life when one enters a situation expecting someone to have one reaction, and then exits having experienced something completely different. Prussia was having that realization moment where he realized that not only was he expecting Mattie to hate France and was wrong but realized he also reacted like a total jerk.
Okay so maybe he should have been a little more considerate and a little less blunt.
"So what you're saying is..." Gilbert paused, "Erm... What exactly are you saying?"
Italy looked out the window to watch the other cars passing by, "Mr. Canada is probably confused about France's feelings and his own feelings, which is why he's reluctant to let the relationship die... Nobody likes to be alone..."
Gilbert buried his face in his hands, "So I acted like an ass?"
Germany nodded in agreement, "Basically, ja."
"No one asked you, West!" The Prussian turned back to Italy, "So what do I do?"
The brunette patted his friend on the shoulder, "Give it time... Then apologize... Then don't do it again."
Prussia slumped in his seat, yes he tried to understand Mattie's feelings, but that didn't undermine his own. He still hated Francis with a passion and wanted him nowhere near Birdie... That last part was going to be the hardest.
xxxxx
"Alright Gilbird, you feeling any better?" Several hours later in the hotel room, Gilbert had finally finished what he believed to be an acceptable apology letter. A few small mountains of crumpled stationary littered the floor, with the waste basket being filled to the brim. The yellow chick had been asleep since they left for Canada's, and had only awoken an hour ago. He had stated that his wing was definitely feeling better and while his flight was still a bit unbalanced, he insisted that he was strong enough for another flight. Germany, frustrated by the fact that his brother had created such a mess, left the room and was now wandering the hotel. Italy had stayed, wanting to see how things turned out with Mattie.
Gilbird let out a cheerful chirp and grabbed the note. Prussia quickly ran down to the lobby to let the bird out. He walked back into the room to see Ludwig, armed with a trash bag, cleaning up all of the wasted paper. "You sent the note?"
"Ja," The albino replied, "It'll probably take a couple of hours for him to come back though..."
Italy's phone buzzed in Prussia's pocket, and he flipped it open without bothering to check who it was, "Hello—?"
"VENEZIANO WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?!" A voice screamed into the Prussian's ears. He dropped the phone and clutched his ears, wincing at the ringing sensation. The voice was so loud that the other occupants of the room could hear it clearly without the device being on speaker, "I DECIDE TO GIVE YOU AND THAT POTATO BASTARD THE HONOR OF DROPPING BY POTATOLAND FOR A VISIT, AND YOU'RE NOT FUCKING HERE TO GREET ME?!"
"Ah, Fratello!" Feliciano picked up his phone, holding it an arms length away, "Ve, you're visiting Germany?!"
"¡Hola Italy!" Someone called out in the background.
"I'M THE ONE TALKING ON THE PHONE HERE BASTARD, NOT YOU!" Romano shouted angrily. "FELICIANO VARGAS I DEMAND TO KNOW WHERE YOU AND THE MACHO POTATO ARE THIS GODDAMN INSTANT!"
"Ve..." The Northern Italian shakily brought the phone up to his face so he could speak into it, "...We're in Canada..." Quickly he threw the phone at Prussia, jumped onto the bed, and buried his head under a pillow. Ludwig backed up several feet from his brother, expecting Lovino's violent reaction.
"YOU'RE WHERE?!" Gilbert swore that his eardrums shattered. "YOU PUT THAT BASTARD ON THE PHONE, NOW!"
Regretfully, Germany picked up the phone, "Before you say anything, I know I am a potato." He held the phone away from him as an enraged onslaught of Italian curses followed the statement. Romano kept yelling for a solid twenty minutes. He was suddenly cut off as someone seized the phone. Cautiously the blonde brought the phone to his ear, "...Spain?" He turned towards Gilbert, "Yes, he is with us," The German held the phone out to his brother, "Spain vants to speak with you."
"I'm not getting yelled at again am I?" The Prussian cautious asked into the receiver.
"No... I, um, think I have Lovi under control..."
"You locked yourself in the car, didn't you?"
"...Sí..." The Spaniard replied mournfully, but then perked back up. "So amigo, tell me what is going on! Why have you decided to travel so far?" Prussia quickly explained the situation. "Ah... Seems you have quite a predicament... If it were possible you know I would be at your side in an instant to back you up!" A note of deadliness entered the cheery brunette's voice, "But in all seriousness, if Francis is in desperate need of an axe to his face... Or just any part of his body, you let me know, okay?" A smile returned to his tone, "But I sincerely hope things work out with your Canadian friend! Now I think I shall let you go... Lovi looks like he's exhausted himself from throwing his tantrum... Aww isn't he so cute~?"
Gilbert rolled his eyes, "Whatever you say Antonio..."
"¡Adios!"
The albino shut the phone, "...Are my ears bleeding?" They still had a faint ringing from being subjected to Romano.
Feliciano cautiously emerged from his pillow sanctuary. He looked at Prussia, "Ve, I think you're okay..." The brunette sat on the edge of the bed, "I'm sorry about fratello..."
Gilbert sighed as he stowed the Italian's phone away once more.
Note to self: always check caller ID, if Romano, hand directly to West.
An hour later there was a tapping at the window, "Oh! It's Gilbird!" Italy exclaimed, "Ve, can I go to the lobby and get him? Pleasepleasepleaseplease—?"
"Yeah, just hurry!" Gilbert shouted back. He watched his bird disappear from the window as Italy ran out the door. Seven minutes later the Italian returned with the pet in tow. Gilbird flew over to his owner and dropped the note into awaiting hands.
'Now I know Italy helped you write this. It seems that you've forgotten my phone number as well...' The Canadian's cell phone number followed. 'Call me when you get this –Mattie'
Feliciano grabbed his phone out of the Prussian's hands, "Hey, what are you doing?!"
"Ve, saving the number of course!" After a moment he handed it back. Gilbert looked and saw that the Canadian's cell was now listed under 'Birdie.'
He took a deep breath and hit Dial.
xxxxx
Prussia apologized for his behavior; Canada apologized for throwing them out so abruptly (thought the albino insisted that his friend had nothing to apologize for... And that they had deserved it). Matthew was actually quite relieved when Gilbird arrived, he didn't want the Prussian to think he was going to stay mad.
"You know what," The Canadian finally said, "Why don't you come over tomorrow, and we just hang out?"
"Sure!" Prussia agreed, "What time?"
"Is one good for—?"
And that was when Feliciano's phone died.
So one 'o clock it was.
The Italian had advised Gilbert that he should go alone. "Not even Gilbird?"
"Ve..." Italy though about it for a moment, "No, he'll just be a distraction..."
"A distraction from what?"
The brunette just shook his head, "No Gilbird."
Prussia had expected the wait until the next day to be rater unbearable, but surprising the time flew. Before he knew it he was pulling up in front of the Canadian's house the next day. He rang the doorbell twice and waited.
"Hey, C'mon in!" Mattie greeted as he opened the door.
"Hiya Birdie!" Prussia followed the other man inside and into the kitchen. He was silent for a moment, "Look," He shrugged comically, "Again, I'm real sor—"
"It's fine, really," Matthew insisted, "If I had been able to get ahold of you sooner I would have let you known about Francis and..." The blonde trailed off, not really knowing how to finish the sentence. He waved it off "Anyway, um, what do you want to do? To be honest I didn't really have anything planned... So since you're my guest it's up to you!"
Prussia tried to think of something of awesome activity, but in the kitchen he found himself think of food and that led to him blurting out, "Could you show me how to make those awesome pancakes we had the other day?"
The request caught Mattie off guard, "Pancakes? You do realize that it's past noon, right?"
Oh. Gilbert folded his hands behind his head, "So then we'll have a late awesome brunch!"
Canada laughed, knowing that he would have to give in to the Prussian's wishes, "Alright, I'll show you how to make them..."
"Awesome!" The Prussian punched the air, smiling brightly.
He marveled how the older man's face had the ability to light up like a child's, his happiness was infectious, "You get the flour, sugar and baking power out of the pantry, I'll get out the bowls." After a few minutes they gathered everything they needed. Teaching Gilbert proved to be very entertaining. He really seemed to be making an effort to do well. "Okay so now mix these together, and I'm going to prepare a pan." Matthew set the skillet down on the stove and turned to see Prussia vigorously whisking the batter. "S-Stop!" The albino saw his friends horrified face and froze.
"What?"
"You're supposed to stir it... Gently." Canada took the bowl and whisk from the Prussian, trying to see if there was anything he could do to improve the quality of the batter.
"I ruined it..." Prussia face-palmed, "Sorry..."
"No... I—we can make it work..." The blonde was staring at the mixture intently, "Just... lightly grease the skillet and set it on medium heat..." Okay so he couldn't necessarily save the batter, it wasn't the end of the world. The pancakes just wouldn't be as fluffy as he's like them to be, that's all. He showed Prussia how to cook them, and the hardest part was convincing him that it was worth the wait.
"But I want the pancakes now..."
"Do you want to eat a half-cooked blob and get sick?"
"No..."
"Then you'll wait."
About fifteen minutes later they both had served and Mattie had eaten his fill. "Not bad for a first time, huh?" Gilbert stated as he continued to eat. His friend was currently wiping off the counter, stopping when he spotted the still open bag of flour.
"Pretty awesome if you ask me..." A sly smile came to the Canadian's face as he slipped one hand in and grabbed some of the white powder. "Hey Gil..."
"Yeah?" The Prussian turned around, realizing his mistake a second to late.
Matthew flung the fistful of powder into his face with an ecstatic cry of "Gotcha!"
The albino sputtered and coughed, once he recovered he stood up, grabbing the bag before Canada could swipe it off the counter, "So that's how it's gonna be? I hope you know this means war!" He began throwing handfuls of flour at the blonde who laughed and dropped behind the kitchen counter. Gilbert jumped up on the counter and dumped a considerable amount of flour on his friend's head before the Canadian could get away. However, Mattie reached up and shoved the bag into Prussia's chest, upsetting his balance enough so that his grip on the bag would loosen, but not enough to tip him over.
With the flour back in his possession Canada tossed some more at Gilbert's front. The albino got down off the counter and scooped some spilled powder off the floor. Mattie quickly realized that he was trapped between the table and the counter and threw the bag at Prussia's pants, effectively coating them. While the older man was distracted the blonde slid over the top of the counter and safely on the other side. All the while both were laughing uncontrollable; Mattie couldn't remember the last time he had this much fun. Unfortunately once he righted himself he was on the receiving end of another facial assault. His glasses, slightly clouded from when his head was covered, were now coated in white, making sight impossible.
He stumbled backwards, trying to wipe them off, but it was no use. By that point so much spilled, that walking hand become hazardous, this was further proven when the Canadian slipped, landing with a sharp TWACK!
"Shit!" Prussia ran to the blonde's side, "Birdie?!"
"I'm alright," He laid the floor, dazed. "Um... I'd like to suggest a treaty...?"
Gilbert kneeled down, concerned, "Birdie how hard did you hit your head?"
Mattie giggled, "You said this was war... So now I'm proposing a truce!" He sat up, "The treaty of Awesome Maple, resulting in the Prussian-Canadian Alliance."
"Are you sure you didn't hit your head?"
"I'm sure now help me up!" He reached blindly for the albino.
Prussia grabbed the Canadian's hand and pulled him up, "Alright then, I accept this treaty!" They shared another laugh as Mattie leaned against the counter while taking off his glasses.
"Hmm... I gotta wash these..."
"The Awesome Me will take care of them!" Gilbert exclaimed as he plucked the glasses out of the blondes' hands.
"You don't have to!"
"Please, I helped make this mess, and I gotta help cleaning somewhere," The Prussian turned on the faucet, "So I'll start with you!"
Mattie was glad that the flour covering his face masked the small blush that spread across his cheeks. He found the gesture rather... Sweet.
Another conflict arose in the Canadian's thoughts. Now look at that, would this have ever happened with Francis? Did you ever have this much fun with Francis? Sure it was such a simple and childish thing, a flour fight, but it was exhilarating and breathtaking in its own right. When was the last time he laughed like that? If such a thing had ever happened with France, the first thing the older man would be worried about is the state of his clothes, not about Matthew when he fell or the state of the blonde's glasses. Actually... Canada would have been afraid of throwing the flour at Francis. Mattie knew he could get away with if when he threw it at Gilbert. He knew Gil would play along. He brushed the flour off his cheeks, willing his blush to fade.
The Prussian smiled as he wiped off the lenses. That definitely was the most exciting thing that had happened to him in a while. When was the last time he laughed like that? Sure he laughed, but he hasn't laughed with anyone for a long, long time. He grabbed a paper towel and dried the glasses off. He turned and stopped. Mattie's long bangs, not held in place by his glasses, obscured his face. "Hey... Where'd Birdie go?" Gilbert joked as he walked over. He hesitated for a moment then took a step closer, reaching and tucking half of the Canadian's bangs behind one ear as if he were parting a curtain, "There you are! I was thinking I lost you there for a second!"
"Very funny..." Mattie muttered, feeling his blush returning. He looked up see the albino staring at him, "What? Do I still have flour on my face?"
Prussia answered the question with one of his own, "Have you ever considered wearing contacts?" He couldn't help but stare at the younger man. One thing he noticed in particular was Mattie's eyes. He always knew that Birdie had blue eyes, but not that he had a chance to look at them—to really look at them—he saw that they were a deep oceanic blue. On the whole, the Canadian looked even softer without his glasses, cute even. Gilbert would go as far as to call the blonde pretty.
"No, why?" Gilbert looked away sheepishly, Matthew let out an exasperated sigh, "Seriously, what?"
The Prussian grinned, deciding it was best to tell the truth, "You look good—not that you don't normally look good but..." He hesitated again then slipped the glasses back on Mattie's face, "It's kinda awesome to see you without them." His voice was soft, the confession genuine. His hands rested on the counter, on either side of Canada.
"Really?" Matthew whispered, a strange feeling blossomed in his chest... Some sort of longing.
"Yeah..." Prussia breathed in return. There was a moment where everything seem to be still, hanging in a precarious balance. Slowly, he leaned forward—
Ding-dong!
Gilbert stopped, his lips just ghosting over Mattie's. The blonde placed a hand on Prussia's chest, making him take a step back. "I better go see who that is," He mumbled quickly while pushing past the Prussian and leaving the room. The albino let out a disappointed sigh and shoved his hands into his pockets. Matthew shyly returned a couple of minutes later, and placed a bouquet of roses onto the kitchen table, on a spot the flour hadn't touched.
"Of course," The Prussian muttered bitterly, too quiet for his friend to hear. Of course he would be bested by roses.
That French bastard had an impeccable sense of timing.
He took a breath, trying to control his temper. Mattie picked the flour bag off of the floor, "Could you... Help me clean up?"
"Hm...? Oh sure... Where do you keep the broom?"
"In the pantry."
Silently they began to clean. Canada dampened some paper towels and began to wipe off the counter. Prussia grabbed the broom and began dragging it across the floor, gathering small mounds of flour. Not a word passed between them. Ten long grueling minutes later Matthew suddenly threw his hands up in defeat, "You know what? I'll just finish it later, you don't have to—"
"This is partially my fault," Gilbert stated, "I'm going to help you clean," He continued to sweep the floor as Canada abandoned the counter and walked over to the table. He grabbed the bouquet of roses and removed their plastic wrapping, before sorting through the vase and beginning to swap out the roses that had begun to show faint signs of wilting.
"Ouch..." He suddenly grumbled.
Gilbert snapped to attention, "You okay?"
"Yeah just got scratched by a thorn..." The Canadian looked at his finger, "No blood though..."
"That's good," Prussia muttered in reply,
Matthew stared at the vase, "You know... That's my least favorite thing about roses... The thorns." Gilbert paused in his sweeping to listen as the Canadian let out a sigh, "Roses are so beautiful... You really learn to admire them after a while... To be given a rose, it's like a blessing because you discover that something about you is so wonderful that someone has to award you with something as beautiful as a rose."
His expression fell; he seemed to be talking mostly to himself, "Something always seemed to appeal to me about roses..." He set the vase back on the table, "They're so beautiful and welcoming... So you let your guard down around them, and you forget about the thorns, even though it's obvious that I have a tendency to get pricked," He held up his injured finger as an example and let out a sad chuckle. "But I figured that its beauty made up for the thorns..." Mattie leaned on the back of a chair, toying with one of the buds, "...Maybe if I was seen with something as good as a rose, maybe people would notice me more—not that I'm desperate for attention or anything!" He stood up straight and waved one hand in a defensive gesture, "Don't get the wrong idea, I'm completely fine with—"
"Birdie," Prussia cut him off as he set the broom aside, "It's just a flower."
The blonde paused for a moment before shaking his head gently; he figured that Gilbert wouldn't get it.
"No, I mean, a rose is just a flower," Prussia leaned against the now cool stove, facing Mattie. "Just like everyon—I mean just like all the others."
Cerulean eyes gazed at him curiously, urging him to explain.
"Well, you see..." He tried to find the right words to say, "The only reason people say the rose is so special—why you say it's so special is because you think it's special and wonderful and all that other crap." He folded his arms, "You give the rose that image, and you give it power over you. You're drawn to it and believe it's the best because you think it's the best—which it's not." Gilbert was silent for several seconds, trying to gather his thoughts, "To me... The rose has always been dark and cold, with its thorns only hurting whoever gets too close." He suddenly picked a different angle, "Okay, so let's say you got a daisy, a rose, a violet and—aw hell let's even throw a sunflower into there. Four flowers now close your eyes and picture them."
Matthew did as he was told, "Okay..." He muttered.
"They all have petals, right?"
"Right..."
"They all have leaves?"
"Yeah..."
"And they all have stems and that pollen thingy in the middle and they grow out of the ground, plus they all need sunlight and water and they all start from these tiny little seeds..." Prussia sighed, "Do you get what I'm trying to say?"
"I think so..." The Canadian's eyes were downcast.
"When it all comes down to it, they're all just flowers. The rose is just like everyone else." Gilbert would have said more, but his phone when off, "Dammit, who the hell...?" He pulled it out of his pocket.
"You got a replacement phone?"
"Nah, this is Italy's..." The Prussian looked at the caller ID before groaning childishly and answering it, "What is it, West?" His tone became defensive as he stuck his free hand into his pocket, "Well excuse me for not wanting to be locked out of the room!" He pulled out a hotel card key, glanced at it, then shoved it back into his coat, "Yes, I have it," He let out a sigh of defeat, "Alright, fine... See ya." The albino hung up while muttering, "If he knew he'd be back earlier he should've just grabbed the damn thing himself..."
Canada frowned, "You gotta go?"
"Yeah, West and Italy are on their way back to the hotel and West just realized that I have the key, and because he's too proud to just ask the staff for help when he gets there I gotta drive over and miraculously get there before him..." Gilbert scowled while folding his arms.
"Well you better hurry then... It'll only make things worse if you make them wait."
"But, uh... How am I gonna explain this?" He gestured to himself, still covered in flour.
Matthew laughed, "C'mon, let's go out on the front porch and see what we can do... Or did you forget that you dumped half the flour bag on me?"
They laughed and went out front to made an effort to brush a majority of the white powder off of themselves, "You still have a bunch in you hair," Prussia pointed out as he finished wiping off his shirt.
"Really?" Canada shook his head, sending clouds of white dust in the air, "Hmm... Now whose fault could that be?"
"Fault?!" Gilbert sounded offended as he tousled those blonde locks, "This is an awesome work of art! Now your hair is almost the same awesome color as mine!"
"We're both cover in flour, so naturally our hair's going to be white!"
"Okay well, I think I got most of it... The car might get messy but least I won't track it into the hotel," The Prussian gave himself one final shake, "How 'bout you?"
"I think I'm good," Canada replied while looking himself over.
Gilbert, realizing that it was time for him to leave, suddenly pulled the blonde into a farewell hug, "You think about what I said... About the roses?" He backed up half a step, his hands resting on Mattie's shoulders, "Please?" He asked softly—with the faintest, faintest hint of desperation.
Was he... Begging?
Blue eyes beseeched a reason why while red strived to receive an answer. Again strange sense of longing tugged faintly at the Canadian's heart, and it was met with another wave of confusion. Several seconds passed and Mattie forced himself to look away, "S-Sure..."
Prussia sighed, letting go of the blonde's shoulders and taking a few steps towards his car. He paused, hoping for Mattie to say something else. After a moment he shrugged and said, "Guess I'll be going then... Bye Birdie."
"Goodbye..."
Gilbert looked over his shoulder to see Canada give a small wave. He cracked a smile and returned the gesture before getting into his car. As soon as he was a considerable distance away from the house he slammed a fist onto the dashboard. Prussia glanced at himself in the rear view mirror, red eyes were panicked, confused. He shook his head and forced himself to focus on the road. Try as he may, he could not push the image of a certain blonde from his mind. His grip on the wheel tightened.
"I was so close..."
HAPPY ONE HUNDRED AND FORTY-FOURTH BIRTHDAY CANADA!
(At least... I think that's right...)
First off I would like to state that by saying in the previous author's note that the next Chapter would be short, I jinxed myself into writing another 6000 plus word monster. How my hands have not fallen off yet I'll never know. Originally when I woke up this morning I only had up to the first scene change and the flour fight written and I though to myself, "Eh, I'll just post on Sunday, no one will really care..."
Then I looked at my calendar.
Upon realizing that it was Canada Day I realized I simply HAD to post today, so I wrote. And wrote. Andwroteandwroteandwrote...
So here I am twelve hours later! Somehow miraculously on time! (I apologize if there are any errors in my rush to get this up)
I would like to sincerely thank my friend aphfangirl7476 for helping me while writing this and listening to me complain all this past week about Writer's Block. This chapter would not have gotten up without you!
I hope all of my Canadian readers have a wonderful day, and that everyone else has a splendid weekend as well! Ciao for now!
Remember to review!
