AN: And now, Escritoria proudly presents the climax of this fic! I hope you all enjoy it, though I get the feeling a bunch of fans will very much hate me after this... Remember, it isn't over yet, and whoever doesn't win gets a bonus chapter! So review and tell me what you thought, even if you hate me .

Maddie was a little surprised at her own anticipation as Friday drew nearer. She found her eyes meeting Gilbert's more than usual, and they'd share a smile before turning back to their work or continuing down the hallway.

Unfortunately, her solitude during lunch had been completely shattered after Gilbert asked her out. The day after, she found him waiting for her at her usual bench. The next two days after that, it was Francis. Then Gilbert again on Friday. It was never both of them at once, however.

It made Maddie feel guilty to see the glares they gave each other. The easy but meaningful camaraderie she had seen between the two of them on her first day of school had completely evaporated, to be replaced by cold-shouldering and bitterness. It made her sad to think that she was the one who had caused this rift between such close friends, even if it wasn't her fault both of them had fallen for her.

Not to mention her indecision could be taken for a skillful maneuvering to play them off one another. Hopefully no one thought her cruel and sadistic enough for that, at least.

Friday came at last. The school day dragged by unceasingly, made even longer by not only the anticipation of a weekend, but weekend plans for once. Maddie had slept over at Feliciana's dorm before with Mei, and attended a superhero movie marathon her brother hosted with Ludwig, Kiku, and Yao there to watch, but this was a different sort of thing. Maddie had never been on a date before, so this was a special day for her.

When class finally let out, Maddie went straight back to her dorm. Almost four hours remained until Gilbert would come to meet her, so Maddie forced herself to sit down and complete her homework for the weekend, as was her Friday ritual. She hated cramming all of it into Sunday evening, which was what Alfred and most of her classmates did, and she loved the feeling of freedom once she'd finished and had the weekend completely to herself.

Homework done, Maddie occupied herself with a little baking. She'd promised Alfred she'd make him cookies this weekend, so she figured she might as well get that out of the way while she had some time to kill and needed to have something to occupy her hands. Another hour was spent that way, mixing the dough and baking several pans of the homemade cookies.

After she finished and cleaned up the kitchen, Maddie hurried upstairs to figure out what she would wear. She felt slightly silly about it, but she wanted her first date to go smoothly, so she picked her outfit carefully.

Since it was Gilbert, Maddie decided they probably wouldn't be going anywhere fancy, so she settled on a pair of white skinny jeans to wear with a silky blue top precisely the color of her eyes. Her hair went into a braid pulled over one shoulder, and for a while she debated about putting on some makeup, but decided against it. She never wore it, and she didn't want Gilbert to think she was trying too hard; she still wasn't completely sold on him, after all. Her footwear was the same as usual—her favorite pair of battered black Converse, which she never went without.

By the time she got back downstairs, the cookies had cooled somewhat, so she wrapped them in several gift bags with labels. The biggest was for Alfred and Ludwig, who would undoubtedly end up sharing theirs with Kiku and Yao, and there were two more for Feliciana and Mei as thank-you presents for their advice. She kept a handful of the golden cookies studded with pits of molten chocolate for herself and Britt.

Maddie shot a text to Alfred, letting him know his cookies were done and he could come pick them up. Her blonde British roommate wandered into the kitchen not long after the message was sent, summoned by the smell of cookies. "Yum," she said, sticking one into her mouth.

"Where are you going tonight?" Maddie asked, surprised by Britt's appearance. She wore dark jeans and a gray halter top with a Union Jack on it. The top revealed just a hint of cleavage, something Maddie had never seen on Britt before. Black leather combat boots adorned her feet and her normally bound-up hair fell loose about her shoulders. She even wore a brush of eyeliner to accentuate her bold green eyes.

"A date," she responded with a hint of smugness.

A swell of hope filled Maddie's chest. Could Alfred have finally gotten through to her? "With who?"

"Francis." Now Britt looked really smug.

Maddie felt like a hammer had just nailed her between the eyes. "With…with Francis?"

A triumphant gleam in her green eyes, Britt nodded smugly.

"I see." Maddie kept her face carefully smooth and fiddled with the sparkly silver ribbon tying closed the batch of cookies she intended for her brother. Why hadn't he come yet? He developed a warp-speed setting where food was concerned. "I'm going upstairs…"

Safe in her room, Maddie leaned against the door. I guess Francis didn't really care after all, she thought. It hurt to think that all the things he'd said to her were just empty words, not instilled with the truth she'd thought she'd found in them.

It doesn't matter, she told herself firmly. Francis is with Britt now, and I guess…you're with Gilbert.

o~O~o

Britt answered a knock at the door eagerly, thinking it might be Francis. Instead she found that idiot Alfred there.

His eyes popped at the sight of her. His gaze traveled up and down her body shamelessly, but for some reason she didn't find it insulting. Maybe because of the blatant awe and appreciation. "Wow," he breathed.

Disappointed, Britt glared at her roommate's twin. Impatient at him for not being who she'd hoped he would be, she asked, "What do you want, America?"

Alfred shook his head slightly to get his thoughts back in order. "Oh, Maddie texted me and said she had some cookies for me," he said, keeping his eyes downcast. Ever since she'd shot him down last time, he'd been blissfully more subdued around her. It was a little strange, actually. Sometimes she missed his warm smile.

But only sometimes.

"In the kitchen," Britt said, gesturing. "Yours have your name on them." She rolled her eyes. Maddie was so OCD sometimes.

"Thanks." He passed her and went to claim his treat.

Britt trailed along behind to make sure he didn't get into any mischief. Alfred glanced at her briefly, but it was enough for her to catch the flash of pain in his eyes at the sight of her.

"Going out tonight?" he asked with a brave attempt at nonchalance.

"Mhm. With Francis." For some reason, the wash of pride that had swelled in her chest when she told Maddie about the date didn't come, however. In fact, her victory suddenly felt rather hollow.

I don't understand! Britt howled internally. I've wanted this for so long, and when he's around, it just means nothing!

Alfred blinked slowly. "I see."

Why wasn't he jealous? He was obviously head-over-heels for her. What was with this uncaring face?

In a fit of some hot, furious emotion, Britt added, "It's good that Maddie got a date too, so she won't be here all by herself."

That elicited the reaction she wanted. Alfred's gaze snapped to hers, full of surprise and a hint of hurt. Obviously, Maddie hadn't shared this with her own twin. His voice was carefully controlled when he asked, "Really? With who?"

"Gilbert."

Alfred's brows drew together angrily. He snatched the bag of cookies Maddie had made and left without a word.

Britt felt a strange hollowness in her chest when Alfred slammed the door shut. What was with him, anyway? What right did he have to look at her like that when she'd made it clear that she preferred Francis over him? But she couldn't shake the memory of the pain in his impossibly blue eyes when she'd said no to him. And no matter how many times she kicked him while he was down, that pain never turned to anger. If he just got angry with her, just once, then she wouldn't have to feel the weight of this guilt anymore.

Or was it even guilt? She didn't need to feel guilty for turning him down—she never had when saying no to a guy before. And that didn't explain her desire for him to be angry at her so that this confused emotion would go away.

Gilbert came to pick up Maddie, and Maddie glowed with shy happiness as they set off together towards the town. Francis came for Britt not long after. She took his arm and made herself smile and reassured herself that this was what she wanted. And she firmly put out of her mind the niggling thought that maybe what she'd felt when she rejected Alfred wasn't guilt, but the knowledge that the choice she was making was the wrong one.

o~O~o

As they walked towards the restaurant, Gilbert's strong hand wrapped around Maddie's. "Is this okay?" he asked, glancing at her with his hypnotizing red eyes.

She nodded and swung their hands a little, eyes downcast to hide her blush. "Thanks for taking me out," she said timidly.

He laughed and squeezed her hand. "I should be thanking you for saying yes," he chuckled.

Maddie flushed deeper. "That was nice of you to say," she managed.

Another snicker from Gilbert. He raised their entwined hands and brushed a knuckle across her flushed cheek. "Oh, and by the way, I like long walks in the moonlight and bouquets of fresh roses," he said with a wink.

Her puzzlement must have showed on her face, because Gilbert elaborated, "You said you wanted to get to know me."

"But…you were joking, right?" she asked hesitantly.

"Do I look like a roses kind of guy to you?" he asked, cocking an eyebrow as he gestured at his outfit. Ripped black jeans and a German metal band shirt with a short-sleeved button-down gray shirt over that, and a black leather wristband with a metal cross on his wrist. Altogether he looked very punkish, and not at all like the kind of guy who'd like roses.

"No, I guess not," she said with a slight laugh. "So what do you really like? Ludwig told me you play the bass."

Gilbert's eyes lit up at the mention of the instrument, and Maddie knew she had hit on something special to him. "Yeah, I do," he said. "It wasn't easy getting the administration to let me bring it here, either, but I got to bring it if I don't play after six or so. It's awesome. I don't know what I would've done without it."

"I can tell you really love it," Maddie said. "How long have you been playing?"

"For about ten years, since I was eight," he replied. "You should've seen me back then," he added, sounding amused. "Basses are pretty big instruments, and it looks really funny to see a little kid play it."

Maddie laughed, and from there the conversation went on seamlessly. She'd never really sat down and had a long, uninterrupted conversation with Gilbert, but somehow she felt as though they'd been doing this forever.

They arrived at the restaurant, which wasn't anything special—but then a high school kid's funds were not limitless—just as it was starting to rain, and sat down at a table for four. The pair of them chatted away—about their families and lives back home, their hobbies, their friends at school and their teachers. Maddie hadn't had this much fun since she left Canada, and she was grateful to Gilbert for that.

As they were engaged in a heated debate on which sport was better, hockey or football, Gilbert's eyes suddenly locked on something over her shoulder. His laughing expression faded into disbelief that was soon replaced by a hot red glare.

"I can't believe he would stoop so low," he grumbled to himself.

"Huh?"

Maddie almost turned around to see what he was staring at before a very familiar voice said in her ear, "Bonjour, Maddie! What a coincidence running into you two here! Mind if we join you?"

Maddie was paralyzed. This isn't happening! But there was no denying it. Francis was here, right in front of her, beaming as though nothing was out of the ordinary, with a furiously glowering Britt at his side.

Gilbert glared scarlet fury at his roommate. "You're shameless," he spat.

"What?" Francis said innocently, taking a seat next to Maddie. "Britt and I were going to eat here already. We might as well double since we are both here!"

Britt looked about as happy as the situation as Gilbert. She sat down slowly and glared down at her menu with murder in her eyes, her hands fisting white-knuckled on the laminated cardstock while she refused to look at anyone.

Maddie wished she could just vanish. This was so humiliating! What was Francis thinking? Her cheeks were hot as Francis tried to start a conversation with Gilbert as if nothing was wrong. The white-haired German stared back stonily at him. Attempts at conversation with Maddie fell equally flat because she was too mortified to do anything but mumble and trip over her own tongue. The Frenchman didn't even bother to say a word to his fuming date, as though he knew she was a time bomb ticking. All she needed was one word to set her off.

Eventually, even Francis realized that the awkwardness of the situation simply couldn't be ignored and fell silent. The quiet ensued until their food arrived, and was only broken then by Maddie thanking the waiter before becoming even more icily awkward than before.

The others began picking at their food, but Britt remained wordlessly still, staring at her plate with a heartbroken look on her face that Maddie and Gilbert tried to ignore out of courtesy. Francis just seemed not to see it.

Abruptly Britt stood up, rattling the plates loudly as she did so. Her face was in shadow, but Maddie saw a single tear slide down the bridge of her nose and fall on her plate.

"Britt…?" Maddie asked worriedly.

"Shut up." Britt's voice was flat, cold.

Maddie recoiled like she'd been slapped. "But… I…"

"Just shut up!" Scrubbing at the tears running down her face, Britt ran out of the restaurant, banging the door loudly against the wall as she went.

"Wait!" Maddie got up and took off after her friend. She was barely aware of Gilbert and Francis surging to their feet as well, because by then she had already raced out of the restaurant after Britt.

While they were in the restaurant, the drizzle had turned into a deluge. Rain poured down in sheets and pattered loudly against cars and windows, drowning out Maddie's shouts as she chased after Britt. Maddie could hardly see through all the droplets clinging to her glasses.

Britt ran through the parking lot, but stumbled and fell just as she reached the sidewalk. With a defeated slump to her shoulders, she sat there sobbing.

Maddie knelt beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. "Britt… I don't know what to say. I'm sorry, I didn't—"

"Just shut up!" Britt shrieked, slapping Maddie's hand away. The tears on her face were swallowed by the rain, but her eyes were red and sobs heaved her shoulders. "What's wrong with you? Why couldn't you just make a decision instead of leading both of them on? I could have made him happy!"

Stunned, Maddie sat back. Britt slammed her hands down on the concrete, sending water flying everywhere. "I wish you'd never come here! If you'd never come here, then I could have been with Francis. But you just had to go interfere, and now he doesn't want me, even though you're not sure you want him!"

Tears stung Maddie's eyes. "I'm sorry," she said hoarsely. "I didn't mean to…"

"But you did! And I hate you for it!" Britt's baleful green eyes and furious howl echoed through Maddie's mind, rebounding, magnifying, hurting more and more with each pass.

Slowly Maddie got to her feet. And then she was running, tearing off through the rain like Britt had a moment before. She could tell her tears apart from the raindrops because they poured hot down her cheeks, burning like the fires of judgment licking at her face.

o~O~o

Alfred crouched beside Britt. What was he doing here? Had he followed her? No, likely he'd been stalking Maddie and Gilbert. "That was something," he said after a long pause.

"Go away, Alfred," she heaved. "No one wants you around either."

"I'm not going anywhere."

Intense fury surged through Britt. "That wasn't a question!" Overwhelmed with rage, she raised her hand to slap him.

To her surprise, his hand caught her wrist in an iron grip. He wasn't wearing his glasses, which were useless anyway because of the rain, so she could see that his eyes were deadly serious.

"I don't particularly like being slapped," he said softly. "But I would let you if it was just me. I probably did something to deserve it anyway." He smirked humorlessly. This was a side of Alfred she'd never seen, and it scared her. "But it isn't me. It's Maddie you want to hit. And I can't allow that."

So this cold stranger wasn't a vengeful monster. He was a protector. With the way Alfred always acted, it was hard to imagine him dangerous—but when someone he loved was hurt, he was as dangerous a man as Britt had ever seen. He was…well, a hero.

For the first time, she understood Alfred's heart. It was much deeper than she'd realized, and his love went all the way into the depths of his soul.

She swallowed thickly, trapped by the ice in his eyes. But even through that ice she could see it when he looked at her, that longing, that helpless longing. He knew that he'd lost, but he couldn't help but mourn for her. "It's her fault," she managed. "Francis…"

"Don't be stupid." His sneer made Britt's eyes widen in outrage. "You just want somebody to blame. It's a bad situation—nobody's at fault. Besides, what are you thinking, wanting to date that jerkwad? What he did to you in there was just awful. Do you really still love him after that?"

Another sob clawed its way up her throat. He'd hurt her so much. And she'd known he would. Why had she wanted him so badly when she'd known it could have no other ending but this?

A broken heart couldn't cry alone. It didn't matter who it was—Britt needed a shoulder to cry on.

Even if it was Alfred's.

When he opened his arms, she fell into them helplessly and bawled into his chest. Her fingers fisted involuntarily in his bomber jacket and she clutched herself as close to his warm comfort as she could.

He lifted her gently onto his lap and held her while she cried, stroking her hair and rocking her back and forth as he murmured soothing words to her. Words like, "It's going to be okay," and "You're done with him now," and "I won't ever let him hurt you again."

What impertinence, to think she needed someone to protect her. She was made of tougher stuff than Maddie.

Or was she? If so, what was she doing here, sobbing in the rain in the arms of a man she didn't even care about?

She remembered the indecision she'd felt at rejecting him. And she remembered the despair she'd caused him, and the knowledge that his feelings wouldn't just go away that easily, with one simple refusal. How had she always instinctively known that they were bigger than that, stronger than rejection, immortal? No matter how many times she tried to stamp it out, his love would not be destroyed.

No, his feelings wouldn't go away. Any more than her own would.

Britt kissed Alfred so hard that their teeth clinked together painfully, but she didn't shrink from the pain. Instead, she kissed him harder, demandingly, infuriated at Francis and Maddie and Alfred and at herself for not ever knowing what was good for her, and for spending so long hating the man who had been meant for her all along.

Surprised by her ferocity, he took a moment to respond. When he did respond, he met her lips unhurriedly, soothingly, calming her furious kiss. Eventually her lips slowed to meet the pace of his, and only then did he pull back.

"Better?" he asked with the ghost of a smile.

She pounded a fist into his chest. "Idiot."

His mouth descended on hers again, and she was completely helpless to refuse him. She'd never felt so much when she was kissing someone before, and—although she'd deny it to her grave—when their lips met, she never wanted it to stop.

"I love you," he panted when he broke away for air. "I don't know what this is, but I hope it's a confession of some sort."

Instead of answering, she cleared her throat with a blush and got to her feet, wobbling slightly. "Let's get out of here. We're going to catch our deaths of cold."

He laughed and stood. "Okay, then. Whenever you're ready to confess to me."

Her cheeks darkened. "You're an idiot. A bloody idiot!"

"Well, then, you just made out with a bloody idiot," Alfred said smugly.

Her fist pounded his chest. "…Fine! I love you too, Alfred."

Eyes glowing in a way that made her stomach swoop dizzyingly, Alfred gathered her into his arms and kissed her once more. "Thank you," he whispered against her mouth.

"Alright then," she harrumphed, extricating herself from his arms. "Let's go get cleaned up."

"Yes, ma'am," he said with a cheeky grin. Would she never get the upper hand with him?

Well, for right now, that was okay, as long as he was by her side. She'd figure it out.

AN: Awwwww USUK! Make our feels all better!

Next chapter the ultimate climax will happen and hopefully I will win back much love :D It's really dramatic and I'm proud of it, so please stay tuned~