Thanks to Lalahona for reviewing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

Chapter 7

Feliks tried to focus on his class, but he couldn't help but think about Lovino. He hoped that the other wasn't in some kind of trouble, like the other students seemed to think he was. Even Feliciano, Lovino's own brother, seemed to think that Lovino was getting scolded at that moment, but instead of enjoying it like the others, Feliciano just looked worried.

That was another thing that made Feliks furious. The other students seemed to enjoy the idea of Lovino being in trouble. He was just glad that Lovino wasn't around to hear some of the things they said.

"Feliks, can I have a word with you?"

He turned to see Elizaveta, sitting next to him. She had a concerned look on her face, and Feliks felt his worry grow.

"Like, what's wrong?" he asked.

"It's about Lovino Vargas," she said. "You shouldn't get close to him."

Feliks felt his worry grow into anger, but he kept it under control. There wasn't much of it yet, after all.

"And, like, why not?" he asked. "Because of bogus rumours?"

She blinked in surprise, before she sighed.

"Look, I've known him a lot longer than you," she said. "And I've seen how he is. Trust me when I tell you that he's a bad influence. He's a bully towards anyone that tries to be his friend, as well as his brothers. I'm only looking out for you."

Feliks shook his head. He knew that Elizaveta didn't know what she was talking about. Lovino was the one that was bullied. And if he was a bit hostile, it's because he wasn't used to people being nice to him. Feliks had seen as much.

Give or take a few weeks, you'd be wishing me dead too.

"I also think that you should ask for a different history partner," Elizaveta continued. "Lovino will just let you do all the work. Honestly, it's not worth it."

Now Feliks knew for a fact that she didn't know what she was talking about. So far, Lovino was the one that did all the work. He'd started before the scheduled time. They were supposed to start that afternoon at Feliks's house, but Lovino had already created the outline of the project, and had already identified several sources. Feliks was actually worried that he would be the one holding Lovino back.

"Like, did you ever actually try to get to know him?" Feliks asked.

"Of course I…" she started.

"If you did, then you would know that the rumours are just that: rumours, and lies."

"How do you know that?"

"Because I have eyes. I can see."

Feliks turned away from Elizaveta, silently telling her that he no longer wanted to discuss this. He felt horrible that everyone seemed to think poorly of Lovino. And none of them seemed to know him. They also didn't seem interested in getting to know him.

Feliks felt saddened when he thought that everyone believed the lies told about Lovino, and Lovino had to live with the knowledge that they believed the lies. That certainly explained why Lovino didn't seem to even be trying. Because he must have tried before, and he could have seen that it wasn't working. He must have given up.

He looked around the class, eyes falling on the one person that might be able to listen to him about Lovino: Feliciano. He wanted to see how much Lovino's twin knew. And perhaps, with Feliciano's help, he could show Lovino that there were people that cared for him.

…

Lovino arrived at the gate, and he waited for Feliks. Of course, the other students in his previous class had told the teacher that Mr Zwingli had held him back. He found it interesting how everyone automatically thought that he was in trouble.

If either of his brothers were held back, then everyone would ask them if everything was alright. They would be concerned. That was not the case with Lovino. No, they enjoyed the possibility of him being in trouble.

"Like, sorry for making you wait."

Lovino turned around to see Feliks approaching. The smaller male smiled when he reached Lovino, before he looked around.

"Like, there's my mom," Feliks said, grabbing Lovino's arm.

Lovino allowed Feliks to drag him towards a dark purple car. Feliks released him, and Lovino could see the woman waiting inside. Feliks made his way to the backseat, opening it. He turned back to Lovino, and he realised that it was an invitation. As Lovino drew closer, Feliks sat in the back, sliding along the seat to allow him space. He hesitantly followed him.

"You must be Lovino," Feliks's mom greeted. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too, senora," Lovino greeted politely.

"Feel free to call me Felicja. There's no need for formalities."

"I'd feel more comfortable just calling you Senora Felicja, then."

Felicja chuckled, before she started the car. It was strange for Lovino. He couldn't recall a time when an adult actually laughed at something he said. Or laughed at all in his presence. He was usually met with scowls, and with scoffs of disgust, and comments about him being rude.

Lovino didn't really pay attention as the mother and son conversed. He decided that it would be best for him to stay out of it. Instead, he looked at the scenery out of the window, trying to get his mind off the conversation he'd had with Mr Zwingli.

Since when did any of the teachers care?

He learned that Feliks didn't live far from the school, about three minutes driving. Feliks could easily walk, but Felicja was kind enough to pick him up.

"Like, dzięke, mama," Feliks said as he got out of the car.

Lovino was confused that Felicja wasn't making a move to shut off the car, but followed Feliks out. Felicja waved at them, before backing out of the driveway.

"Why isn't she staying?" Lovino asked.

"Like, she still has work to do," Feliks explained. "She works during her lunch hour so she could take the time off to pick me up from school."

"If that's the case, why don't you take the bus? Or walk?"

Feliks winced.

"…A lot of my bullies attacked me on the bus, or cornered me when I walked home," Feliks explained.

Lovino nodded his head, leaving the subject there. Being bullied himself, he knew that the bus and the streets were dangerous places. Feliks's parents were forced to see that their son was in danger, and they were taking precautions. But Lovino knew that his father wouldn't care enough about him if he learned of Lovino's own attempt. He would just be disappointed that Lovino failed.

With those heavy thoughts, he followed Feliks to the front door, avoiding the blond's eyes. Feliks led him inside, and Lovino looked around at the living room.

"Like, are you hungry?" Feliks asked. "Thirsty?"

"No, thank you," Lovino said quietly.

Feliks frowned, before he disappeared. Lovino looked at the furniture, trying to figure out where to sit. Not that he felt worthy of sitting there. He didn't want to make a mess of their living room, which would inevitably happen with his presence.

"Like, you can sit wherever you want."

Lovino jumped in surprise, before he spun around to see Feliks standing behind him, holding two glasses of some sort of soft drink. Lovino stared at the glasses blankly as Feliks pushed one of them towards him.

"Like, I know you said that you don't want anything, but I got you something to drink, at least," Feliks said.

Lovino hesitantly accepted the glass, and Feliks smiled.

"Like, why don't you sit down?" Feliks asked.

Lovino looked towards the furniture, before choosing the armchair. Feliks sat down on the loveseat across from him.

"Like, do you want to start immediately, or do you want to relax first?" Feliks asked.

"We should finish this as soon as possible, so that I can get away sooner," Lovino responded.

He saw the look of hurt on Feliks's face, and Lovino knew that he sounded harsh. It came out completely wrong. He understood that Feliks would interpret it as Lovino wanting to leave his presence, while in fact, Lovino wanted to remove his presence from Feliks. It was best for the Pole. He didn't need Lovino around to drag him down.

And he didn't want Feliks to hate him too.

He knew that it was inevitable. Feliks would hate him, just like everyone else. It was just a matter of time. He already knew what Feliks would say when that day came: 'I should have let you hang'.

"O-okay then," Feliks said, removing the book he checked out of the library from his bag. "So, like, should we write or type it?"

"The school prefers if everything is written," Lovino said. "Something about knowing that you actually did the work, and that you didn't just copy and paste it, or that you didn't get your parents to do it for you."

"Oh. Well, then, like I totally understand why they want us to write it. But… Like, I don't have a nice handwriting."

"I'll write. Just help me find everything, alright?"

Feliks nodded, and the two of them went to work, with Feliks rifling through Lovino's notebook, searching for all the pages Lovino had marked as important in the two books they had at their disposal. Lovino had already mapped out a timeline, but they needed citations and references. The two worked in silence for a long time, until Feliks leaned backwards, stretching and groaning.

"Like, my back is totally starting to hurt," he said.

"Then go stretch your legs or something," Lovino said.

"…Don't you want to take a break? Oh! Like, why don't we listen to music?"

"If it's any of that pop crap I'm going to have to get your ears tested."

Feliks deflated slightly, but then he cocked his head to the side.

"So, like, what type of music do you listen to?" Feliks asked.

"Something that's easy to ignore," Lovino said.

"Huh? Then what's the point?"

Lovino didn't answer. It was the normal response for the few times when someone asked him about his taste in music. He only played music as a source of background noise, and it was usually when he was working or reading. He feared that if he remained in silence, his mind would fill the gap with the sound of the others' voices, telling him to die. The terrible trio's voices were the ones he heard the most.

Feliks pursed his lips.

"So, like, Elizaveta told me something earlier," he said. "She said that you bully anyone that tries to be your friends."

The words were like a punch to the gut. Lovino curled in on himself, avoiding Feliks's eyes as he searched for the next citation.

"…Like, that's a lie, isn't it?" Feliks asked.

Lovino shrugged. He honestly didn't know. The people that wanted to be his friend thought that it was an invitation for them to do whatever they wanted. That they could touch him when he didn't want to be touched. That they could say whatever they wanted and call it a joke. That they could give him nicknames when he neither wanted nor accepted them. And then they got upset that Lovino didn't like it.

"…And what about your brothers?" Feliks asked.

"Can we stop talking about this and get back to work?" Lovino demanded.

Feliks quickly nodded, and Lovino felt that he had messed up again. This had happened in the past, after all.

They continued working in silence, until they heard a car. Lovino looked up, and soon enough he heard the front door opening.

He listened for a while longer, and soon Felicja made her way to the living room. She smiled at the two teens.

"How's it going?" she asked. "Are you making progress?"

"Tak," Feliks said. "I'm almost finished with all of these citations. Like, I might need another book."

"That's good. I think. Oh, Lovino, would you like something to eat or drink?"

"No thank you," Lovino said, before checking his watch. "Actually, I think I should head back home."

"Okay then. Come on, I'll drop you off."

"No, you don't have to," Lovino quickly said. "I'll walk."

Felicja smiled.

"It's not a problem," she said. "I'm glad to take you."

"Oh, but we should decide when we'll work again," Feliks said. "Well, like, I know we'll probably work on it during lunch. But I have therapy tomorrow afternoon, so, like, Friday at your house?"

Lovino caught the surprised look that Felicja sent Feliks, probably since he mentioned his therapy session, and Lovino was also surprised that Feliks would freely admit it. But he shook his head at the last part.

"I don't think my house would work," Lovino said.

"Why?" Feliks asked. "Like, will your parents have a problem or something?"

"You're not registered for the bus," Lovino explained. "And I highly doubt you would walk that distance."

"Then instead of dropping you off here, I'll drop you off there," Felicja offered. "It's really not a problem."

Lovino looked towards Felicja, seeing that she had a stubborn streak that her son probably inherited from her. Lovino sighed in resignation.

"Alright then," he said.

He quickly packed up his things, before saying goodbye to Feliks. He followed Felicja to her car, and she started to drive back to the school so that Lovino could show her the way from there.

"I'm surprised that Feliks was so open about his therapy to you," Felicja said. "He's normally very shy."

"That's not the impression that I got," Lovino said.

"He's comfortable around you. That's good. Did he tell you that he was bullied at his old school?"

Lovino nodded his head.

"He also told me that… he tried to kill himself," Lovino said.

"Tak," Felicja sighed. "Feliks told me a bit about you. He said that he saw that you are suffering just like he did."

Lovino tensed. Exactly how much did Feliks tell her? He could feel his guard being raised, ready to push her away.

"I hope you realise that you're not alone," Felicja said. "You have family, and Feliks wants to be your friend. If life starts being too difficult, then you have people to support you. You don't have to suffer on your own."

Lovino said nothing, knowing that there was nothing that he could say. She was wrong. His family wouldn't help him. His father didn't care, Feliciano was clueless and hopeless, and Marcello was afraid of him. He couldn't tell them anything. Feliciano would most likely be the only one trying to help, but his efforts would just make things worse. And he would also announce his weakness to the entire school, making things worse. Just like when he told the others what Lovino's name meant.

Once they reached the school, Lovino started giving her directions. After a few minutes, she frowned.

"This is quite a distance," she said. "And you wanted to walk?"

Lovino shrugged.

"It's a good way to relieve stress," he said.

Felicja clicked her tongue, and Lovino could tell that she wasn't impressed. Though, he could tell that it wasn't him that she was annoyed with. It was strange, having someone annoyed about something that he said, but to not have it directed at him.

Eventually, Lovino indicated his house, and she parked in the driveway. He grabbed his bag, but Felicja quickly stopped him.

"Just one more thing," Felicja said. "Feliks isn't one to make friends easily. He doesn't trust easily. Especially not after everything at his previous school. Feliks believes that you need him to be your friend, but he's also hoping that you would be his. So, please, don't hurt my son."

Lovino nodded his head, unable to get his voice to work. Of course, it made sense now. Feliks was desperate for friendship, and he saw Lovino trying the same thing he tried to do, and he figured that, since they had something in common, they could be friends. But Lovino was the last person that had any right to be anyone's emotional crutch. Feliciano would be better suited for something like that.

"Thanks for the lift," he said, before opening the door.

It wasn't until he'd unlocked the front door that Felicja's car started. He realised that she was waiting to make sure that he went inside. He didn't know what to think of that. When he stepped inside the house, it was silent.

Knowing that it probably wouldn't last, he started to make his way to his room. He was about halfway up the stairs when he heard his father's voice.

"Who was that?" he demanded.

Lovino stopped and turned around.

"I told you that I was working on a group project," he said. "That was the other guy's mother, dropping me off."

"That's very kind of her," Romulus said. "I hope you thanked her."

"Si, I did. We're also working on the project here on Friday."

"Oh, I like how you tell me that you will, instead of asking my permission." Romulus sighed. "But at least now I can make sure that you actually do your work."

Lovino narrowed his eyes, and he started going up the stairs again, when he was stopped again.

"Feli said that you were held back by a teacher," Romulus said. "Care to explain what that was about?"

"It's nothing," Lovino snapped, before he rushed up the stairs.

He knew that Feliciano would tell their father. It was what he always did. It was why Lovino knew that his twin brother couldn't be trusted. Feliciano and his mouth always made things difficult for Lovino.

As he made his way to his room, he almost bumped into Marcello, who exited his own room. The youngest brother jumped in surprise and plastered a nervous smile on his face.

"Ciao, Lovi," Marcello said.

"Don't call me Lovi," Lovino snapped, before reaching his room and slamming the door shut.