Author's note: A de-anon from the LiveJournal kink meme.
That's What You Get: Chapter 11
Ivan glanced at his two companions and resisted the urge to sigh.
The ride to the airport had been awkward enough; Gilbert uncharacteristically silent in the passenger seat (with a pouty lower lip, a clear sign that he was sulking), Natalia glaring daggers at the two older boys from the back. He had tried to lighten the mood by starting a conversation, but all his attempts merely received uninterested grunts or halfhearted replies.
The mood did not change when they arrived at the airport either. Gilbert still kept quiet as he helped Ivan with Natalia's luggage when they did her check-in at the counter; scary stalker tendencies or not, Natalia was still a girl, and had done quite a bit of shopping that she was going home with two bags instead of just the one she had when she came to visit. Natalia refused to meet Ivan's gaze, alternating between glaring at Gilbert and random innocent passersby, who would flinch and move further away from the strange blonde girl.
Oh well. Natalia would board her flight in a little while and once she was on the plane, all this unnecessary stress and awkwardness would go away, yes?
Gilbert shivered slightly, a gesture that puzzled him. Was the other boy cold, or was it just a reaction to his younger sister? Deciding it was quite possibly both, Ivan unwound the scarf around his neck and looped it loosely around Gilbert's neck and shoulders.
Gilbert looked up at him in surprise. "Thanks," he muttered.
"I'll go and get everyone something to drink while we wait, yes?" Ivan offered and left, not waiting for a reply.
He doubted that Natalia would try anything, since there were far too many witnesses. At least, he hoped so.
--x--
Gilbert silently called Ivan every single expletive he knew of for leaving him with the other boy's creepy little sister for company.
He risked a quick glance and found that Natalia had the most annoyed expression on her face. Deciding that trying to start a conversation would quite probably be suicidal, he jammed his hands inside his pockets and tried to look interested in the flight board.
Huh. They still had quite a while before Natalia would have to leave to go through immigration, then board her flight. Brilliant. He sighed and resigned himself to uncomfortable silence, then nearly jumped in surprise when Natalia spoke to him.
"So he really does care for you," she said. Strangely enough, her tone sounded slightly resigned... and less hostile? She continued, "You are wearing his scarf. That scarf is his favourite. He has never given it to me to wear."
He stared at her.
"I did not believe him at first," she said, looking coldly at him,"when my brother said in his e-mails that he had found someone here. Someone special, just like I am special. I told him that no one could ever compare to me. No one."
"Huh?"
She ignored him. "But he is right," she said rather resentfully, "you are special. Your hair, skin, as pale and clear as mine. Even paler. Your eyes, almost like his. He knows that I am pretty, yes? But you are almost as pretty as I am."
As much as Gilbert detested being called 'pretty', the recollection of a certain conversation regarding Natalia breaking the fingers of a boy she disliked guided him into making the wise decision of keeping his mouth shut. Not that he was afraid of Ivan's psycho stabbity-stab-stab kid sister or anything. No. It was simply because it was not awesome to pick fights with girls. Yep.
"At first, I thought that perhaps my brother simply forced you into this. Pretend that you were his boyfriend, yes? He's very, very good at that, making some of our cousins do things for him, even though they did not want to. But I have found that your reactions to him are... honest. You certainly did not look... coerced into what you did yesterday," she added, her cheeks turning slightly scarlet.
Oh. That. Gilbert could feel his face growing warmer as well. So Natalia was in the house and he had not imagined her presence then.
"So if you break his heart," Natalia hissed, "I will rip yours out and shove it down your throat. While you watch, yes? And do not think that I will not find out if you hurt him. I will always know everything about my brother. Always."
Gilbert made a noise that he decided was definitely not a nervous gulp before he nodded. "Got it."
Natalia offered him a grudging smile. "Good."
Ivan returned a few minutes later with coffee for all three of them; the Russian boy was pleasantly surprised to find that the mood had somewhat lightened. Even though Natalia still refused to talk to Gilbert, at least she was no longer glaring at him. She even started a conversation with her brother – wholly in Russian, but Gilbert did not care if he was left out this time – and time seemed to pass by quickly before she had to go.
She hugged her brother affectionately and kissed him on the cheeks, before turning to Gilbert. Gilbert – and Ivan – were very surprised when she grudgingly offered him her hand. She did however, nearly crush his hand when he shook hers, but at least the pain was not as bad as that first time they met.
The two boys waved at her until she disappeared into the security and immigration checkpoint. The moment she was safely out of sight, Ivan let out such a long, relieved sigh that Gilbert could not help but laugh in amusement.
"You have no idea how glad I am that she's gone home!" Ivan exclaimed.
"I have a pretty good idea – hey!" Gilbert groaned when Ivan crushed him in a tight embrace. "You idiot, knock it off!" he growled, wriggling rather unsuccessfully in Ivan's stronger arms, while the people around them looked at the two boys with undisguised curiosity. It was only when he managed to thump Ivan in the sides with one fist did the Russian let go, albeit with a slightly disappointed, then annoyed look on his face.
"Why do you keep doing that?" Ivan asked rather crossly.
"Because you're being a sappy freak?" Gilbert retorted, then froze when he heard Ivan's soft reply. Oh no. He did not just say that. That fucking Russian did not just say that.
When he realised that he had not imagined it, he did the first thing that came across his mind.
He slugged Ivan right in the face.
--x--
Ludwig placed his books and notes in his backpack before he glanced at the clock on the wall. He still had enough time to get to his study group at Kiku's; he knew that Kiku appreciated punctuality as much as he did. He went downstairs and was about to open the front door when Gilbert came bursting in, swearing viciously.
"Gilbert! I thought you're out with your boyfriend," Ludwig said, startled.
"Well, obviously I'm not!" Gilbert growled as he stomped up the staircase and headed for his room. "And that freak can go fuck himself sideways for all I care!" he added before he slammed his door shut.
Ludwig blinked. What was going on? He glanced at his watch; if he did not leave now, he would be late for his study group. But Gilbert was obviously upset. And when Gilbert was upset, he was prone to doing some really stupid things that would drive Ludwig crazy.
The younger Beilschmidt decided that checking up on his sibling would be far more prudent than being late; Kiku would probably understand, or more likely, too polite to inquire further. He went upstairs and knocked on the door to Gilbert's room. "I'm coming in," he announced when there was no answer.
He opened the door to find Gilbert curled up on the bed, facing the wall as his brother clasped one of his huge stuffed pandas to his chest. Normally whenever Ludwig entered Gilbert's room he would make some comment about how his brother should really be more mature and cease buying random stuffed animals since the shelves were almost filled to bursting with them, but the sight of a very dejected Gilbert stopped him from doing so.
He sat down on the edge of the bed. "You... you okay?" he asked somewhat awkwardly. Normally Gilbert would be the one doing all the inquiring on current emotional states – not that Ludwig ever thought it was necessary, since Gilbert would usually come up with 'awesome' yet ridiculous responses to his answers – but at least his brother had a bit more practice at this.
Gilbert choked out a rather desperate-sounding laugh. "I'm fine," he mumbled, refusing to look at the younger boy.
Definitely not fine, Ludwig decided. When Gilbert was hugging stuffed pandas, that probably meant something awful. "What happened?"
"We broke up," Gilbert muttered.
"Oh." That was all Ludwig could manage to utter in reply. He knew that he should probably say more, but he could not think of anything appropriate to say to his brother. "You sure?" he tried, then winced when he realised just how ridiculous that sounded.
Another one of those desperate laughs. "I fucking punched him, so yeah, I'm sure."
Ludwig remembered that when they were much younger, Gilbert used to hug him close and would pat his hair soothingly whenever he was upset, and that certainly calmed him. However, he certainly could not bring himself to do the same now, and he doubted that Gilbert would appreciate similar gestures anyway. Ludwig knew well enough that unless Gilbert was the one who initiated them, such things were deemed 'mushy' and 'not awesome'. He settled for giving his elder brother a clumsy pat on the shoulder, then hesitated a moment before he gave Gilbert's shoulder a gentle squeeze. That seemed to do the trick, since he felt Gilbert's tense shoulders relax slightly.
"I need to go to my study group, but if you want to...." Ludwig could not find the right words to finish. To what? To talk? To go hit Ivan a few more times because I would be more than happy to help? To cry?
He almost laughed. No, he corrected himself, Gilbert never cried; even if he did, Ludwig knew that Gilbert would rather kill himself than let someone else see him in such a state. And Ludwig was almost certain that the other options were not quite applicable anyway. Even though he felt like finding a certain Russian exchange student to demand for an explanation, since Gilbert would be furious at him for meddling in the older boy's personal business.
Gilbert shook his head. "No, you go ahead. I'll be fine. What the hell do you take me for, some – some stupid angsty girl about to cry into dehydration?"
Ludwig ignored that final remark. "Sure?"
"Yeah. I'll be fine! Hell, I'm awesome all by my lonesome!" Gilbert declared, but Ludwig thought his brother sounded less sure of himself.
"Okay," Ludwig said softly before he got up and went out of the room. He left the house several minutes later for his study group, after making sure that there was a tub of ice cream in the fridge.
And he would make pancakes for breakfast in the morning.
--x--
"It doesn't matter now," he had said at the airport.
Fuck.
"I guess we don't need to see each other anymore, yes?"
And he fucking said it with such fucking cheerful indifference.
Fuck fuck fuck.
At first Gilbert had not quite understood what Ivan meant. Then he thought he had just imagined it all, or maybe he was having one of those really strange dreams he would get if he ate one of Francis' weird cheeses before bed, but that look on Ivan's face was too real.
It had not been hard for Gilbert to put it all together; Ivan's rather unusual way of making advances at him, then spoiling him, and of course, Natalia's somewhat odd conversation with him before she left. He had not quite understood at first why she had said all those things about her brother finding someone special quite like her, how she first thought he was being coerced into the relationship. And then of course, Ivan's words to him after she left to board her plane.
Confusion then gave way to comprehension.
Ivan simply used him to get rid of Natalia. And now that Natalia was gone, Ivan no longer had any need for him.
Comprehension then moved aside for rage to take over.
Fucking Russian bastard had more than deserved that punch. Hell, Gilbert would have given him a few more if it had not been for airport security. The security personnel had moved in quickly to separate the two boys and then questioned them for a bit before letting them go with a stern warning.
Like he cared.
The taxi ride back home had cost him a minor fortune, but it was better than going home with that fucking bastard who still had the gall to offer him a ride and with that stupid smile, nonetheless.
Like he needed that Russian freak.
Ludwig had tried to talk to him when he got home, but the only thing he had admitted was breaking up with that Russian bastard, knowing that the last thing he needed was to burden his younger brother with his personal crap. Sure, he had no doubt that Ludwig meant well, but his younger brother was so prim and proper, the kid would not be able to deal with it anyway. It was better for him just to go to his study group instead of fretting over his brother.
Fuck all this shit.
Hours later Ludwig came home and then promptly went to check up on him; when he heard the door open he closed his eyes and pretended to be asleep, not in the mood for any conversation. He heard his brother move around a bit, probably shuffling his feet in a mixture of confusion and concern. Then he sensed Ludwig moving closer to the bed to draw the covers over him, tucking him in with an awkward gentleness, before the younger boy turned off the lights and left the room.
Fuck all this stupid, sappy shit. He did not need any of it.
Oh screw it, he was still awesome all by his lonesome, wasn't he?
He did not need anyone. Served him right for thinking otherwise. Yeah, being alone was a whole lot more fun, he kept repeating to himself, hoping that it would lull him to sleep like usual.
It was not until the wee hours of the morning did Gilbert finally fall asleep.