Chapter 88

Gil looked at Johan's face as the young man slept. He'd been careful. No lungs were punctured that they could see, and he was at the hospital only for the night. Gil sighed, turning to the window. They were on the 7th story. Even with a Nation's strength and healing, it wasn't a jump he'd want to make if he had any choice, and for a human it would be more than impossible. He shook his head. At least his new boss trusted him. There was only one other guard, and he was at the door. Gil didn't want to take him down, but he would if he had to. But Johan had to trust him first, and there wasn't time for that.

Gil shook his head with a sigh. What kind of mess did he get himself into this time? He'd made a promise he had no idea how to keep, and he had less than seven hours before he would need the drugs again. Leaving Johan's side wasn't something he planned to do. Too many people thought he wasn't worth keeping alive. He considered getting the names out of the kid again, but mentally kicked himself for it. It was the easy way, but it certainly wouldn't make Heinrich any happier with him, and that was something he wanted to avoid. He tried to ignore the guilty ache in his stomach.

He glanced up at the clock in the room. Almost midnight. He sighed again, standing and walking to the small switch that would alert the people at the desk that he needed something. He needed food. He knew the hospital wouldn't have a beer for him, but he would settle for food.

A nurse walked in. She had a pretty face with short blond hair, pinned back at side with fluffy bangs, and a little too much lipstick.

"Is there something I can do for you, Herr Beilschmidt?" She asked.

He nodded, "Food? Is there anything you have?"

"This late?" The nurse sighed, "I could get you a soda and sandwich from the vending machine? They had a few left the last time I checked."

"Ja, Danke," he nodded, leaning forward to rub his forehead.

"Are you all right, Herr Beilschmidt?" the nurse asked, gently concerned.

He nodded again, "Ja. Just a headache… I'll be fine." As soon as I get the drugs… he kept to himself.

"I could bring you some Tylenol… coffee?"

Gil gave another nod, "Ja, that would be nice actually. It might take the edge off," he looked up at her smiling gently.

She smiled back, "I should check how he's doing while I'm here…" she walked to Johan's side, quickly but intentionally checking the monitors, "Well he's sleeping soundly, so that's good news. The pain medicine is working, and he's resting," she smiled at Gil again, "I'll get those things for you now."

"Danke," Gil smiled again, letting it fade as soon as she was out of the room. He hated how sick he felt. He wasn't sure if it was the drugs or nerves. He tried to tell himself it was the drugs, but he'd felt awful since November started. He didn't want to imagine being nervous enough to feel sick. He wasn't one of Russia's Baltics, he was stronger than that. The idea of getting in trouble wasn't supposed to scare him. He as doing this for a… friend. Someone he owed at least. He wasn't sure if Heinrich was a friend or not. They could have been, he tried to tell himself that, but then there'd been the almost getting him killed. Few things got in the way of friendship faster than almost getting someone killed.

Gil leaned forward again, pressing his forehead into his hand, trying to rub away the headache. He looked up suddenly as the nurse reentered the room. He glanced at the clock. He'd slept for almost 15 minutes. He tried to shake himself awake, looking up at the nurse with a soft smile as she walked closer to him, setting the food on the table next to him: Water, a soda, and a decently sized packaged sandwich.

"Danke," he smiled at her, noticing her hand brush the back of his shoulders as she walked behind him.

She smiled back, turning to look at him, "So, you must be pretty important…?" she motioned towards his jacket on the chair beside him, "How did you get so many pins? You're so young! You can't be much older than I am…"

Gil smiled, "No, probably not."

The nurse nodded, almost awkwardly, biting her lips into her mouth for a moment, before smiling again, dimples appearing on her cheeks, "Did I get you the right kind of soda?"

"Mhmm," Gil nodded, reaching back to the table to get the small bottle, opening it and taking a drink, "It's perfect, danke," he smiled at her again, amused to see her blush. "So," he glanced at her neck, "Who's the lucky man?"

"What?" she asked, pushing back nonexistent flyaways, her cheeks turning a much deeper shade of pink.

"Someone gave you that necklace, didn't they?" he motioned towards the entwined silver hearts around her neck.

"This?" she reached up to feel the piece, "Oh, no, my sister gave it to me," she smiled, trying to look down at the necklace, then back up at Gil with a shrug, "Not a guy…"

"Are you trying to tell me you don't have a boyfriend?"

She shook her head with another blush, "No…"

"I find that very hard to believe," he leaned forward, looking into her face with a tempting smile.

"Oh?" she shrugged again, her blush deepening again.

Gil nodded, "Of course!"

She bit her lip, shrugging again.

"You know…" Gilbert smiled, making a point of letting his eyes drift down from her face, then back up into her eyes, "I think they told you to… lock the door for the night? From the outside?"

She nodded, "Yes…?" she smiled too.

"Well," Gil motioned to Johan, still unconscious on the bed, "He's not going anywhere, and the guard at the door left a while ago… there's really no reason for it to be locked… don't you think? Besides… what if I…" he smirked, "Wanted to spend some time somewhere else…? I don't need to babysit someone confined to a hospital bed… do I?" He smiled to see her breath catch and her cheeks go red.

"I… I really shouldn't leave the door open…" she glanced behind her.

"Do you ever do things you shouldn't?" He smirked again, leaning back in his chair, watching her eyes drift down from his face this time.

She nodded, "Sometimes…" she bit her lip again.

"Leave the door open?"

She nodded again, "Ok…" she whispered, turning to the door again, "I… I work until 5 am… so…." She shrugged again with a smile, closing the door behind her, but not locking it.

Gil leaned back in his chair with a smile, turning to the food and eating quickly. He didn't have much time, less than three hours before it was 5 am, and the nurse who's name he hadn't asked and didn't care to, would know something was wrong. He looked up at the monitors. Johan was unconscious, but only through sedation. Gil immediately turned off all the meds they were giving him. Any pain would help wake him up. Then he waited, planned. He watched the clock, the door, the monitors, the hallway through the little window in the door… once Johan woke up he'd have to move fast. The nurses would notice the change and come into the room. He'd have to get him out quickly. He instinctively touched the gun on his hip. He didn't want to have to use it, at least not against any hospital staff, but he wasn't afraid to if he had to.

He returned to the chair, leaning back and waiting. He wasn't as tense as he thought he should be. The stress seemed minimal compared to every day at Russia's house. He at least had some control over this situation. And he had a gun. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to mentally rehearse his plan. It wasn't a great plan, but it would have to do. He just hoped he wouldn't have to shoot his way out of the building. He glanced up at the clock. It was 3:26 am. He took a deep breath. A little over an hour and a half for Johan to wake up.

Gil stood, slowly, and walked towards the bed. He looked down into Johan's face. He hadn't paid much attention before to how much he looked like his brother. A faint smile found its way to Gil's lips. He and his brother barely looked related at all, let alone like brothers. He smiled a little more. Ludwig was the handsome one, and always had been. Strong jaw, blonde hair, blue eyes, and much nicer skin… not weird translucent skin that hated sunlight just as much as the red eyes. The 'demon child' eyes Gil wasn't sure if he liked or not. It'd been centuries but he still hadn't decided. He didn't mind being different, looking like absolutely none of the other countries, that didn't bother him. It was the reactions he got from his eyes that he didn't like. He sighed deeply. The reactions were less violent in recent years, but… he tried to make himself understand that seeing eyes as red as his could be a bit unsettling at first.

His eyes traveled down Johan's body, surveying the damage he'd dealt. He'd been careful, precise. The hospital was less necessary than he'd led them all to believe. Johan could walk and breath just fine, albeit through more than a little pain. That Gil couldn't help. His eyes darted to Johan's again as he saw the young man's eyebrows press together in waking pain, then the blue eyes fluttered open. Gil immediately pressed his hand against Johan's mouth as the man opened it to cry out for help.

"Shut up," Gil snapped, "You're not supposed to be awake."

Johan's eyes were wide with fear, but he frowned with defiance.

Gil smirked. He liked this kid. "I'm going to move my hand," he explained, "And you're not going to make a sound. Is that understood? I'm on your side."

Johan raised an eyebrow, but nodded very slowly.

Gil removed his hand, ready to use it against Johan's face, and hard, if he tried anything.

Johan shook his head, "My side, huh?" he whispered harshly, wincing in pain, "Sure feels like it…"

"I'm sorry about all that, but I can get you out of here much easier than I could get you out of there. I told you that."

Johan nodded.

"You still don't believe me?"

Johan shrugged, "You've done a lot to prove it so far," he said sarcastically.

Gil would have been more amused if there was time, "We need to leave. You can walk," he said as fact.

"Oh really?" Johan asked again with a dry half laugh.

"Trust me. I didn't do anything that would stop you walking. I'm not stupid. That last thing I would need to help you escape is to have to carry you, now get up," Gil snapped the last few words.

Johan looked down at the needles in his arm and hand, motioning towards them.

Gil rolled his eyes, stepping forward and removing them quickly, pressing a tissue from a nearby box onto the vein in his elbow, "There, happy now?"

"Ow," Johan said simply, staring up at Gil, not at all impressed.

Gil half laughed again, "Get. Up." he snapped, more than a little fed up with Johan's sense of humor.

Johan obeyed, surprised he could stand.

"How bad is the pain?" Gil asked, trying to prove whose side he was on. It didn't actually matter and he didn't actually care.

Johan shrugged, "I've been through worse," he nodded, trying to sound tough.

"Mhmm," Gil said simply, not believing a word of it. He pulled out his gun and looked around the room, glancing out the window in the door.

"You do have a plan, right?" Johan asked, looking around the room for his clothes.

"What do you think I am, some amateur?" Gil snapped again, still looking out the window, "Small cupboard on the left. Top shelf."

"Hmm?"

"Your clothes," Gil rolled his eyes again with an annoyed sigh. Of all the idiots he had to rescue… He waited to turn until he heard the zipper of Johan's pants, "Ready?" he asked as the man pulled on his slightly bloody tee shirt.

Johan nodded.

"Ok," Gil sighed again, "I think it's only fair to warn you that I have a plan, but I didn't say it was a very good one," he shook his head, "We're meeting your brother. I know where, and I won't tell you yet. But getting out of here… we're walking out. Or… trying to. There's no good way out of here, but at least none of them will be armed."

"Security guards?"

"Hopefully we'll be gone by the time they realize something is wrong. Now, you're going to be confident, and calm," Gil nodded, slipping his hand, still holding his gun, into his left pocket. He kept his right hand at his side, "Now, let's go." He opened the door slowly, checking the hallway quickly before exiting the room with Johan. No one was there. They walked quickly. Gil tried to calm the pounding in his chest. He wasn't sure if it was nerves or if he needed another hit. It didn't matter. He glanced over at Johan, clearly seeing the pain in his face. He didn't have time to deal with that. They made it to the elevator and started down to the ground floor from the seventh. Gil traced his left index finger along the trigger guard in his pocket, taking a deep breath. If he needed to shoot it would be once they got to the ground floor. If there was security guards, if anyone saw the blood on Johan's shirt, if anyone had told about the door not being locked from the outside, if the nurse had called on him for what he'd tried to bribe her with, if she'd told his boss that something was out of the ordinary, if Heinrich's plan somehow was leaked about the rescue, if his men were onto him… he tried to stop his brain from thinking of all the possible scenarios, but the soldier in his head wouldn't shut up about it. Besides, it was good to be prepared.

The elevator door opened.

Prussia brought his gun to aim at the face of the security guard in front of him, "Move. Get out of our way, and maybe I won't kill you," he said calmly, quietly, looking into the terrified face of the young guard, the very young guard. Gil quickly estimated his age at barely 20, if that.

"W…what are you…?" the guard didn't move, staring at Johan's bloody shirt, "What's going on, sir?" he asked respectfully, seeing Gilbert's uniform.

"That doesn't concern you. What does, young man, is that you get out of our way, and you never speak of this again. Is that clear?"

"I… I don't think I can do that, sir…"

Prussia saw the man's right hand twitch towards the gun on his hip.

"Don't." he reemphasized the gun in his hand, "I will kill you before you touch it." He could feel Johan's eyes on him. He didn't care what the other man was thinking. He was getting him out of here, "Now, kid: Move."

"No, sir!" The young man reached for his gun.

Prussia sighed, firing the gun. He was dragging Johan out of the elevator before the body fell. He glanced at Johan quickly, not surprised by the complete shock he saw there.

"You… you just…"

"I'm not happy about it either," Prussia shook his head. "But I couldn't let him shoot you."

"Or you…"

Prussia glanced back at Johan again, surprised by the words, "Didn't think you cared that much."

"I don't know if I do anymore."

Prussia shrugged. Johan didn't have to like him. He wasn't doing this for him. He looked around at the front doors as the stopped running. He could hear voices of other guards in the distance. They would have heard the gunshot. Stupid kid. He looking into Johan's face, putting his hands on the young man's shoulders, "I need you to trust me."

"O…ok…" Johan shrugged.

Prussia nodded, "Your brother said it was a meeting spot that only you would know. He said to tell you the words 'Little Red', do you know what that means?"

Johan nodded, his eyes lighting up with realization.

"Good. You're going to go there alone. Now. Run, and run fast. I don't care if it hurts. I don't care if you can barely breathe when you get there. Just run. Go around the back, don't let anyone see you. You're not new to hiding and spying. Use that. Go. Now!" Prussia half shoved him out the door, turning to face the security guards himself, hoping his uniform would at least give them second thoughts about just shooting him. He wasn't afraid of it, but it wasn't exactly how he wanted to spend his morning.

He didn't raise his gun, slipping it back into his belt, holding his hands up. He wasn't trying to run away. They could return him to his boss, who'd probably return him to Russia, who'd probably beat the life out of him, not that he cared anymore. He closed his eyes as the footsteps got closer. He wasn't going to enjoy this.

A/N: I'm alive! ;) Here's another chapter! And I'm already halfway done with the next one, so expect that soon too Yay! Sorry it took so long! The holidays and such have been busy, then I had strep throat, then I got asked to speak at a convention about cosplay (which I enjoy so very much!) so I've been swamped! But here you guys go! Hoping uploading schedule will speed up a bit again. We're REALLY getting to some very exciting stuff coming up so soon! VERY exciting! :D :D :D

Anyway, Gil successfully rescues Johan and buys him time by staying behind... now what will his boss do...? hmmm... this boss is nicer of course than his previous one, but he certainly won't be happy. Also, Gil's methods during the rescue were... questionable, at best. He's not a 'good man', and he's ok with that. I find that kind of character interesting. But yet it's those kinds of things that he knows make him like Russia, which he hates to think about, and also what's causing him so much trauma... *Sigh*

Thank you all for the reviews! And thanks to the guest who complimented my OCs! I write real-life books too (historical fiction, none published yet...) and so I really enjoy good character development. I try to work hard on it! Love to you all! Thank you for still reading faithfully after over 2 WEEKS (ahhhhhhhhhh!) I'll update soon! :)