Kapitel 5.

We make promises.

What scared Ludwig the most wasn't the fact that the brunette knew about Feliciana; it was her last sentence. It had lingered in his head wherever he went and whatever he did as if the sentence were constantly echoing in his head. A day had completely passed without him noticing. Not only he found himself barely functioning in his work and got scolded from his boss, but also he couldn't remember how and when he got home from work. The elevator which Ludwig rode was escalating but the higher the elevator went, the more he felt that he was plunging down to earth. The train of thoughts was interrupted when the elevator reached at the floor Ludwig lived. The only thing he could do was to sigh and to walk out of the elevator.

If there was one thing that didn't oppress Ludwig, it was Feliciana: an angel who perched on his shoulder. With her chirping "Welcome home, Luddy!" and the smile shined only for him, he thought— he knew, she would make everything to go away. However, Ludwig also knew that he had to plan for a proper apologize for what he had done to her last night.

In front of his apartment door, Ludwig stood with shivery hands. He had never felt this nervous in his life. He breathed in, and breathed out. His hands didn't shiver anymore.

When Ludwig put his keys into the door, he heard laughs of at least three people and a faint smell of food in his apartment. He halted and placed his ear against the door. There were three voices. One of definitely from Feliciana; the other one was from a woman who had an accent which Ludwig couldn't tell which; last one, he knew the owner of the voice far too well.

Ludwig clenched the doorknob hard enough that his knuckle was turning paler than white. What the fuck is he doing here! There were three people in his living room chatting joyfully while eating a pizza. They accompanied with each other perfectly well. Smiles on their faces, cheerful tones of voices, giggles, and jokes. Feliciana was the first person Ludwig saw. She looked happier than ever. She always loved meeting new people. The other woman seemed to be Gilbert's fiancée Elizabeta. He could vaguely remember her from the picture Gilbert sent. The last person he saw was Gilbert: one of the three of the last people who Ludwig wanted to see. Seeing him right in front of him in his house gave him disgust.

They didn't noticed Ludwig until he stood near them. When he was close enough they noticed him and greeted individually. Among them, Gilbert was the first. He turned and faced his brother.

"Lange nicht gesehen (long time no see), West." He greeted his brother in their mother tongue. Despite his characteristic smirk, in his mind, he was afraid of how his brother would react: how furious he was about to react.

Elizabeta was the second to react. "You're Ludwig, right? Hi. Glad to finally see you, I'm Elizabeta." She stood up from the couch and introduced herself. She reached out her hand warily, hoping Ludwig would reply her handshake.

"Ve? Luddy! Welcome home!" Lastly, Feliciana hugged and peck Ludwig's cheek: her usual greeting. However, for once, she greeted him the wrong time. "Ve~ Gil bought us a pizza! Come and eat some!" She grabbed his hand with both of her hands and led him to the couch, but he shook her hands away discomfortantly.

You let Gilbert in house? Rage devoured Ludwig. How dare you. The blood in his veins flowed furiously. He had never been so livid. The anger of betrayal overwhelmed him like a tsunami devouring its victims. All the glad and expectation that Ludwig had thinking about Feliciana evaporated. Hatred, rage, ferocity, and betrayal filled his empty mind. "Gilbert, what the fuck are you doing here!" He exclaimed. Everyone stunned.

"You think you'd be welcome if you just barge into my house? Did you really think I'd be smiling and welcome you here?" Ludwig bawled. Within a second, everything in the living room changed. Feliciana was sitting with her knees pulled to her chest and quiver fearfully.

Elizabeta winced. "Calm down. Just listen to him for a min—"

"Give me a reason I should calm the fuck down when the person "

Gilbert pulled Ludwig by the collar and pressed him against the wall. "Mind your tongue, Ludwig."

Ludwig twisted Gilbert's wrists and punched him across the face. With a wince, Gilbert fell down. Elizabeta tried to help him but he signed not to. "My house, my rules." Ludwig straightened his collar and continued. "Now get the fuck out of my house. I won't say it twice."

Gilbert slowly got up and faced his brother. Ludwig thought he'd be glaring but there were disappointments in his eyes. He left the house wordlessly left the house and Elizabeta hesitantly followed her. After they left, Ludwig turned his head and glared at Feliciana. She flinched as she saw how he was glaring at her.

"Feliciana, you too. Get out of my house." Ludwig pointed at the door, forcefully using her full name.

I was mistaken. I should've kicked her out at the moment she crashed into my apartment.

"V—ve…? Luddy, but I don't have anywhere to—"

Ludwig kicked the coffee table in front of the couch. Sliced of pizzas and broken glasses and plates were everywhere. Feliciana flinched.

"GET OUT! NOW! BEFORE I PULL YOU OUT OF HERE MYSELF!"

Feliciana ran out to the door with tears on her eyes. She had never been so frightened. She could not believe how much she was scared of Ludwig. He slammed the door ferociously.

This is it. This is how it should have been done.

Ludwig fished out his phone and called someone. When he thought the receiver was not going to answer, the familiar voice with an accent took the call.

"Moshi moshi (Hello)?"

"Kiku, do you have time for a drink?"

Kiku made a hesitant sound, but accepted. "Of course. Where do you want to meet?"

"I'll text you the address." Ludwig hung up and texted the bar's address to Kiku. However, he didn't feel any better. But it didn't matter. The only thing mattered was the way to extinguish the stress and anger.

The smiles and laughs in the living room are nowhere to be found.

SLAM—!

Feliciana knelt down as the door slammed shut behind her. There was nothing she could do besides to kneel down and cry. Unless her wings worked to deliver her to Heaven, she had nowhere to go. Nowhere to stay. No one to wrap their arms around her and say that everything is going to be alright. I wished everything went back to the way it did before… She wanted Ludwig to come out of the door and wrapped his arms around her and tell her that he was sorry to yell at her and he wanted her to stay.

However, Feliciana knew that will never happen. She saw how Ludwig was glaring at her. Although he raised his voice to her but he had never looked at her the way he just did. A glare full of disappointment, ferocity, and despise. Feliciana sobbed when she thought about how much hurt her. It felt like he had stabbed her heart repeatedly until it torn out to countless pieces which no one could recognize. Ludwig didn't even laid a finger on her, but Feliciana wished that he had. Getting hit must've been less painful than this…

"Shhh, it's okay, Feli." Someone wrapped their arms around Feliciana and cooed. It relaxed her shudder but her tears flew more since she knew it wasn't Ludwig. No one. No one could made her to feel safe and happy like he did. However, she appreciated the care.

Elizabeta whipped her head to Gilbert. "I told you that this was a bad idea, Gilbert. Look what you've done!" Feliciana silently hugged back, sobbing in Elizabeta's arms.

"I know, it's just that I…" Gilbert clenched his eyes shut. He wished he hadn't done it. He shouldn't have broken into his brother's house like that. Looking at the poor girl who was thrown out, the guilt of the consequences tore him apart. "I'm really sorry, Feli."

While weeping, Feliciana shook her head and barely managed to answer. "Y—you only t—tried to put your family back together…"

Gilbert couldn't say anything. He blamed himself for putting Feliciana into their family's mess. She didn't deserve any of this. But because of him, she became the most injured casualty. He knew that his brother would be infuriated by him much before he planned his visit. However, Gilbert had no idea someone would be caught into the crossfire between him and his brother.

I should fix this. I will make everything right. Gilbert swore in his thought.

"Thanks for the tip, Baby."

A naked woman pecked Ludwig's cheek before she crawled out of the king size hotel bed like a cat and stretched flirtatiously, revealing her sexy figure. The thickness of the roll of banknotes from him did make her to grin satisfyingly. She gathered her lingeries and provocative outfits on the floor blended naturally with Ludwig's drenched and violated sex toys. Without a word, he glanced at her as she was making her auburn hair into a bun; they weren't braided into two but her auburn was quite the similar auburn hair that he desired.

As soon as he arrived at the hotel, he threw her into the bed, took each other's clothes off, used his toys, and pounded her like a sex-craving teenager. He didn't know how long nor how many times they did it. The only thing he knew was that though his body was satisfied, but his mind was even more broken down.

It had been awhile since the last time Ludwig had sex. At least once a week he went to bars to find people with same interest or he used an escort service. However, he didn't feel the necessity of sex for the last couple weeks; he didn't want to. Staying with Feliciana was everything he ever needed. Nothing, no one could replace her.

The woman winced and caressed her wrists. "Phew! Could you loosen up the cuffs next time? I think my wrists are much sore than elsewhere." She winked and displayed her ass while slowly wearing her lingeries as a bonus. Ludwig was still silent.

"Who's this 'Feli', by the way? You moaned her name a lot. Your crush? Someone's wife?"

"None of your fucking business." First time Ludwig replied to her after their fervent coitus.

The woman shrugged off. She didn't need to know after all. "Call me whenever you need me again, alright?" She made a call-me sign to Ludwig before leaving the hotel room with satisfaction. He just stared at the ceiling.

Feliciana lied on the bed motionlessly with eyes full of tears. That was everything that she did during the whole week. She was lost. However, she sincerely thanked Gilbert and Elizabeta for letting her to stay in the guest room when she told them she didn't have anywhere to go. The guest room was mainly for Gilbert's father who visited occasionally after he became sober or Elizabeta's parents whenever they came to New York. The couple told her that none of their parents would be visiting for awhile so she could stay here as long as she wanted.

Only one word echoed in Feliciana's head: a name. Who she missed desperately.

Luddy… Luddy… Luddy…

No matter how desperately and wholeheartedly Feliciana called his name, Ludwig wasn't there for her. He was too far from her.

Knock— knock—

"Ve… it's opened." Without looking at the door, Feliciana answered timidly.

Elizabeta slightly opened the door and peeked in. "May I come in?" She asked softly; her eyes were full of compassion and sympathy. "I brought you something to eat. Hope you like Hungarian food." With a smile she put down the wooden tray of bowl of házi húsleves and few biscuits on the bed and sat right next to Feliciana.

"Thank you…" Feliciana whispered.

"How are you doing, Feli?" Elizabeta fiddled Feliciana's hair and asked. It hurt her to see Feliciana like this. Even though Elizabeta only saw Feliciana's bright side only for few hours when they first met, she was truly enchanted; she was surprised to see how one's smile could be so… pure, bright, and warm. Now Feliciana was abandoned and heartbroken. It broke Elizabeta's heart. She could do anything to make her smile again.

Feliciana never got out of her bed since she arrived at Gilbert and Elizabeta's home. Everything she did was holding Ludwig's dress shirt and crying. She ate minimum amounts of foods which Elizabeta cooked for her because she didn't want to refuse someone's help and care.

"I miss Luddy." Feliciana weeped. "Ve, I—I've only seen him for few weeks but I want to be with him! I wish Luddy was here. Do you think Luddy's doing okay? Do you think he's eating nice dinner everyday? Do you think he's not… he's not alone?" Whether Ludwig was alone or not worried her the most.

"Ve… no one there for him before I crashed into his apartment! A—and I… I…"

Feliciana couldn't continue. She squeezed her arms around Ludwig's dress shirt and started to sob frantically. Everything Elizabeta could do was to pat her shoulders. There was nothing that came out of her head that she could say something to her. She had never met anyone who could sob so poignantly.

Elizabeta gritted her teeth silently and spat at Ludwig in her thought. You got some fucking balls kicking away someone who loves and cares for you this much, cunt. You were even worse than I thought. Though you shouted and kicked Feli out, but she's only thinking about you.. She was beyond livid. Only handful of time in her entire life that anyone had made her to reach the point where she wanted to murder that person. She wanted to make Ludwig to realize what a grave mistake he made when she stormed into Ludwig's house and beat him to death.

Elizabeta wondered what Feliciana meant by "crashed into his apartment", but she knew this wasn't the right time to ask.

"I'll be in the living room if you need me." Seeing how lamently Feliciana cried, Elizabeta got up she wanted to give her some time alone.

"Ve… Lizzie…?"

"Yes, sweetie?" Elizabeta turned around and asked.

"Could you… could you stay here with me? Until I fall asleep?" Feliciana asked wholeheartedly.

Elizabeta sat on the bed again and caressed Feliciana's head with a warm smile. "Of course, I can." I can't say "no" to a face like that. She thought and slid herself into the bed. Immediately, Feliciana wrapped her arms around the bed's newcomer and nuzzled her face in her chest. Elizabeta was taken off for a bit, but soon she smiled and embraced her into her arms.

"Don't worry, Feli. It's gonna be okay."

"I said keep them coming!"

Slamming his wooden tankard on the bar, Ludwig shouted at the closest bartender. Couple of guests shot their glances at him in shock but he didn't care. Two weeks had passed since Ludwig had permanently kicked Feliciana out of his apartment. He thought that he should feel liberated. Getting rid of the burden he wanted to. However, he was slowly dying on the inside. Like the plant that didn't get any sunlight.

Ludwig looked dreadful. His normal sleek hair was a mess, his clothes were wrinkled, he hadn't shaved, and his eyes were red with fatigue.

After the other night when Ludwig called for an escort service for the first time after Feliciana crashed into his apartment, everytime he called them he specifically requested for cute girls with auburn hairs. No one had to tell him that this wasn't the way to think about or erase Feliciana out of his mind… and heart. But drinking and whoring were only two ways he knew how to cope with the pain.

The bartender wordlessly took Ludwig's pitcher and brought a pitcher full of German beer to him. When he was sure that Ludwig wasn't looking, he discreetly eyed him with disgust but pitiful look. Poor bastard. He muttered in his mind. But who was he kidding? He didn't give shit about his guest's sobriety as far as he could tell. In fact, the only thing that interested him right now was that this pathetic blonde was giving him heavy tips every time he ordered his drinks.

Last night, Ludwig even had a dream about Feliciana: he woke up from his bed feeling relaxed than ever and she was greeting him a "good morning". He wanted to find her but after what he had done to her, he didn't have the right. At this moment Feliciana could be living in someone else's house cooking dinners, hugging, kissing, and sleeping in the same bed.

No…

Ludwig rolled on fists. He didn't want that. He didn't want her to be with anyone else. Subconsciously, Ludwig grasped his chest: his heart.

Ve~ I think your heart is starting to get warmer.

When the familiar voice whispered in his ears, Ludwig lifted the wooden tankard.

"Stop."

Half of the beer splashed all over Ludwig's jacket when someone grasped his arm and forced him to land the wooden tankard on the table. When his arm was forced down, he accidentally knocked down the pitcher, spoiling the beer everywhere.

"Fuck…"

"You had more than enough." The brunette handed more napkins to Ludwig.

Swiping down the stains on his jacket with the napkins, Ludwig scoffed. "Why do you care? You don't have any jurisdictions on me anymore."

The brunette shrugged. "But I can still worry about you." She realized something. "Feli isn't with you."

"I kicked that person outta my life you said. Sounds good, right?" Ludwig spat in sarcasm. He avoided talking about Feliciana. He didn't even use her name but it hurt him nonetheless.

"You're drinking just like your father." The brunette coldly accused. Her blue eyes shot fire. She realized she couldn't stop Ludwig by going softly anymore. Both Ludwig and the brunette knew that no matter how much Ludwig liked drinking beer, he never drank to the point to get himself drunk. He despised drunk like his father, who became an alcoholic since the incident.

"Don't worry. I never get drunk, Adelheid." Ludwig reciprocated as equally as cold and emphasized her full name. It was the first time in his life he had used her full name. "Never have and never will." As he thought, Adelheid winced; she looked hurt. Nonetheless, she revealed the reason why she reappeared to him.

"I want to help you."

Ludwig shook his head. "That's not an answer. You shouldn't be here. You should not be in front of me!"

"There's a long story behind this."

"Sure there is." Ludwig scoffed. "It doesn't matter anymore. Nothing can stop you from showing up in front of me, I think."

Adelheid silenced. She was contemplating: she was conflicting to tell Ludwig about this or not. However, she decided that this was necessary. "You know? I'll answer one question you want if you promise me to do one thing."

"Ja, sicher. Was ist es (Yeah, sure. What is it)?"

"Don't ignore or avoid the next person who's going to enter this bar."

Ludwig sighed but nodded. That wasn't such a hard request after all. "So why are you keep appearing in front of me?"

"I'm the part of you who wants you to be happy. Why else would I be here?"

It was a vague answer but Ludwig couldn't talk back. He knew that was true more than anyone. He shut his eyes tightly to fight himself from shedding tears.

"But you left me… us. All of us."

Adelheid placed her hand on Ludwig's. "I never chose to leave you, Ludwig. Can't you see? I love you." The warmth of her hand same warmth as Feliciana's but it had different color. Ludwig turned his face to see her but she was gone. Like she was never there. Only thing she left was her warmth. The warmth which Ludwig could make a small smile.

His smile suddenly turned into a glower when Ludwig saw "The next person who entered the bar". Verdammt (Damnit). Is this what you meant? Ludwig grilled at the Brunette in his thought. "The next person" was someone beyond familiar. He was a tall man with captivating silver hair and blood-like red eyes.

Gilbert grinned. "Sup, West?"

"What the fuck are you all doing here?" Ludwig grumbled. "You know what? Fuck this. Have fun. I'm leaving." He got up from his bar stool, but Gilbert pressed his shoulders and sat him down. Gilbert wasn't physically more inclined compared to his brother, but he was strong. Though his brother was heavy with all hif muscles and size, it wasn't hard to sit a drunken man down.

"Aww, c'mon, West. Have a drink with me while enjoying this bro-to-bro time." Gilbert whined, knowing that his brother didn't have any choice when his hands on his brother's shoulders. "And~ if I get drunk as much as you, I might accidentally slip some valuable info about the little angel you're drinking to." He whispered mischievously like the devil who was alluring poor souls into his absurd contract which had zero escape.

"Feli's with you?" Ludwig had never felt so relieved and worried all at once.

Gilbert did know how to play his brother. "Maybe she is, maybe she isn't. There's only one way to find out."

Jesus Christ. "FINE!" More than half of the guests looked at the German brothers when Ludwig bawled. After all, he made a promise with the brunette.

"Awesome! By the way, the drink's on you." Gilbert smirked.

He was truly the devil.

Ludwig genuinely contemplated about punching Gilbert in the face. However, at this point he was beyond exhausted to be enraged. If he got angrier even for a tiny bit, his body was actually going to explode into thousands of pieces like the Berlin wall. The only option he had was to order another pitcher with a sigh. He shot a death glare to Gilbert —who didn't give a fuck— when the bartender brought him another pitcher full of German beer and an extra wooden tankard without forgetting to take his money.

Gilbert poured the beer and raised his wooden tankard. "Cheers!"

Of course, Ludwig ignored him. He hoped that it ignored Gilbert in any way, but Gilbert just shrugged like he was expecting this. He drank the whole tankard of beer at once and told his brother. "Feli's in my house, crying every day and night because of you."

Before Ludwig could realize what he did, he jolted up from the bar stool. However, Gilbert pressed his shoulder and sat him down— again.

"Ah—ah—ah. Nein. You're too drunk to go see her."

Ludwig groaned but he felt tipsy. "I'm not fucking drunk!" However, as much as he wanted to run into Feliciana, he knew that he needed to do this the right way and right timing. He stopped resisting.

"Despite you acted like a total piece of shit and you don't deserve her for next trillion years, she still cares about you. And I want both of you to be happy." He continued. "So here's my condition: get your life straight, clean your stinky ass off, prepared to beg on your knees and lick her feet —he ignored his brother's wince— for an apology, and most of all—"

Ludwig raised his eyebrow.

"Do not push her away this time. It's a sin if you don't reply when someone reaches out to you." Gilbert was more serious than ever. Although he addressed to Feliciana, it was something he dearly hoped from his brother as well.

"…Danke." Ludwig whispered. It was quiet. So quiet that Gilbert almost slipped it.

Gilbert shrugged, pouring another beer in his wooden tankard. No conversations were shared between the brothers but they didn't need any. Wordlessly sitting and drinking together somehow made a crack on the wall between them. Today wasn't the day to mend their relationship. There would be much to work out between the two: more conversations to share and more time to spend together. However, this was a good first step.

"Gil, I have something to say." After a long silence and few more tankards of beer, Ludwig spoke.

Gilbert raised his eyebrow. In his mind he wanted his brother to call him "Bruder" but getting called by his nickname was always better than getting called by his full name. "What is it~?" He asked, imagining hopeful confession such as "I'm in love with Feli." because as far as he could tell, his brother wasn't type of the guy who'd say anything close to "love" to anyone. He grinned as he thought the confession was related to Feliciana. However, it was very different from what Gilbert had in mind.

"I met her." Ludwig confessed.

Gilbert paled. All the blood drained out from him and his heart stopped. He prayed to God that the woman his brother referred wasn't the woman who he thought she was. It was impossible. He swallowed, hoping that his brother was referring to someone else. Anyone but her. Yet right now, his legendary powers of observations were screaming that his brother was referring to die Frau (the woman).

"Who?" Gilbert had to ask: he had to know that his brother was talking about someone else.

But perfectly knowing that his brother wasn't type of person who'd make joke or talk nonsense when he was drunk, he clenched the bar table in fear.

The brothers' eyes met. When Gilbert looked into his brother's eyes, chills ran up and down his waist to his neck. There were nothing but truth and sanity.

"You know who." His brother confirmed.

This is bad… So bad…

"But that's impossible…"

"Is it?" Ludwig reciprocated.

The brothers thought about die Frau: Adelheid. The beautiful woman with brunette like the beautiful mane of a stallion and gleaming blue eyes deeper than the pacific ocean. The woman he loved as much as his brother did. The woman who didn't exist in this world anymore.

"But… she died years ago."

Elizabeta's eyes fluttered open. Judging by glimpse of the night sky through the curtain, midnight had just passed. She tried to lean up but Feliciana was still sleeping with her arms around Elizabeta's waist. She didn't want to wake up the poor little girl so she leaned down again.

Huh…? Elizabeta saw something white between Feliciana and her clothes she was wearing.

"Jesus!" Elizabeta gasped.

There was a pair of wings on Feliciana's back. Elizabeta rubbed her eyes over and over again to make sure she wasn't hallucinating. At the tenth trial, she had to admit that Feliciana's wings were real.

She was an angel…?

Elizabeta's chain of thoughts was interrupted when she heard the doorbell. She hesitated; millions of questions circled in her head, but she got up from the bed.

When Elizabeta looked through the peephole, her jaw dropped. There were two visitors standing excitingly: A blonde and a brunette. Are you fucking kidding me? Today out of all day? She knew far too well that she couldn't let them linger, even if she did, they'd find their ways to let themselves in.

Elizabeta snapped the door open and hissed. "What the hell are you guys doing here!"

"Salut, chérie." The blonde with slight beard and blue eyes was a French with nice slim body. He ignored Elizabeta's shining-welcome and waved his hand elegantly.

The tousled brunette was a considerably built and tanned Spaniard. His green eyes gleamed and showed how excited he was. He carefreely greeted as Elizabeta opened the door as well. "Hola, Lizzie!"

"You see, we wanted to go out for some drinks today but Gil didn't answer our phones! So Antoine and I came to see whether you lovebirds were too occupied in your bedroom." Francis winked mischievously.

Elizabeta had no choice but to push Francis and Antonio out of her house. The boys were caught off guards. There were times when she was reluctant to let them in but all of them were friends. Never in their lives she had pushed them out of her and Gilbert's house; not with seriousness. The boys asked at the same time.

"Are you okay, ma chérie?"

"What's going on, Lizzie?"

Elizabeta was practically sweating. Never in her life she had a dilemma like this.

However, looking at the concerned looks of Francis and Antonio with guilt, Elizabeta decided to explain. Her lips moved faster than a machine gun. "Okay, listen. I'm sorry to push you away, but you two are the last of last people I need to deal with right now. I've just encountered something beyond ineffable that I need more than God-knows-how-many answers for it right now. So please, for the last time, get out or at least come back later—"

"Ve… Lizzie? Who are they?"

Oh, fuck… Elizabeta grunted in her thoughts.

Feliciana yawned and rubbed her eyes. She was timidly walking out of her room.

"Feli…?" Antonio muttered in shock.

Feliciana blinked. "Big brother Tonio?"

"You two know each other?" Elizabeta exclaimed.

Antonio saw Feliciana with disbelief. For a second, he even considered the absurd possibility that she wasn't Feliciana he knew; she might be someone who looked remarkably similar to his lover's sister in Heaven. However, the girl in front of him had a gleaming halo.

The sign which only angels could see among each other.

(A/N)

Phew! I hope my update wasn't too late.

Well, at least the brunette's name is revealed! That's a nice start for her identity, right? And... the fact that she might be a ghost ;) I promise you that there will be more plot twists. I dearly hope the twists don't seem them as too out-of-the-blue and you guy would find them fascinating. :)

Grand appearance of the rest of BTT members, yay! xD And Toni turned out to be an angel as well!

Reviews are always cherished and welcomed! And of course, they're the best motivations :)