Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia.

A/n1: Maybe some of you know this already, maybe some of you don't, but I'm apparently nominated by many readers for the Hetalia Awards 2015!
Christoph Andretti's the organizer of this awards show (I don't really know what else to call it, it's apparently like the Academy Awards but with Hetalia fics instead of movies) and if you want to vote for me, you should PM or review him. If you want to, naturally.
Anyway, I'm nominated in four categories:
Best Imagery (detail, action and scenery);
Best M-rated Fic;
Best Author, and
Best Fic.
So… yeah! I… really don't know what else to say about this, I had no idea awards like these existed in the first place! But I'm flattered so many people apparently think so highly of me – I mean, whoa, I'm even nominated in the Best Fic and Best Author categories. Amazing! I wonder who nominated me, really, but I'm very flattered and excited about this! ^^
Expect me to keep you up to date about this event!

A/n2: So, we're entering the final stage of this fic, I believe. Time to change the quotations again!
This time, I'll only write down words and sentences from songs that are about fathers. I know I did that once before with a song from Stromae, but ssssshhhht just ignore that hahahaahahah yay. Um. Yes, so now, it's only going to be lyric-quotes. Yup!

A/n3: I can't say I'm a huge fan of Madonna, but I have to respect the woman for always doing exactly what she wants to do, regardless of age, setbacks or what other people might think about her or her music. I mean, she's quite the role model for girls, if you look at her from that perspective, and that's good! ^^
Also, I do like some of her songs very much, and this particular song seems pretty well-suited for a certain young lady in my fic.

~~ And Three Makes Five ~~

Chapter 90:

Daddy daddy, if you could only see
See how good he's been treating me
You'd give us your blessing right now
'Cause we are in love
Madonna
(Papa Don't Preach)

A letter came for me and Stefano.

It was a personal letter – not a standard gas bill or other unsettling kind of message. I saw it right away when I picked it off the doormat, and my heart started to race in excitement when I opened it and read the – handwritten – letter.

'Dear Ángel and Stefano,

We thank the two of you from the bottom of our hearts for having taken care of our annoying demon children for all these years. We know it must have been hard at times, since we are very much aware of how much of a hand-full the three of them can be, even now that they are adults. No, scratch that – especially now that they are adults. We can imagine they gave you sleepless nights.

Just as other reasons might have given you sleepless nights.

We know that Luisa, Alejo and Matteo have told you about them finding and meeting us, but still – we felt the need to tell you that we are grateful for having them back in our lives again. And we're thankful for you two. If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't have known what would have become from our children.

You are two of the best parents our kids could have.
Two of the best – and don't let anybody or the past tell you something different.
We invite the both of you for our 20th wedding anniversary, next month (exact date and time will follow ASAP).
Please allow us to thank you there for real for all your help, support, love and friendship.

Never stop caring for our children, as they will never stop caring about you.

Your friends,

Antonio Fernandez Carriedo and Lovino Vargas.'

'Oy, Ángel – what's that? What are you reading?' Stefano asked, when he noticed me smiling sheepishly in the middle of the living room.

I looked up at him, grinned even more broadly and handed him over the letter.

He eyed me weirdly. 'Who is it from?'

'Friends!' I beamed. 'The oldest we have, Stefanito!~'

\0o0/

Okay, so most things had been arranged by now.

No no, believe me on this one, I checked and asked Raquel many times and each and every time she confirmed to me that most things concerning the wedding anniversary party had been arranged, planned, paid off and delivered.

'Alright,' Raquel said, with a very serious tone in her voice as the two of us walked through the Sagrada Família's grand hall and ignored the others running around in the old church-like building, 'the flowers you wanted will come in next week, the drinks have been delivered, just as the decorations – well, the ones that can't wilt or go bad otherwise, that is – we have ordered all the food and treats you asked for, we have sent the final invitations—'

'To both countries and humans, right?' I wanted to know, cutting her off.

Raquel frowned and flipped a few pages over in her notebook, before nodding. 'Yes, personifications have gotten invitations and their kids have gotten them as well. Oh, and Dr. Tosca, Ángel and Stefano received them, too.'

'No cancellations? Everybody wants to come?'

'It's a bit too early to say that already – last minute cancellations aren't uncommon – but… I think all the guests are more than happy to come and celebrate your big day with you and Mr. Spain.'

'Okay. Okay, that's good.' I breathed out tiredly. Throwing a wedding anniversary party was more difficult that I had imagined – which was very stupid of me, because god, I know how troublesome organizing my own fucking wedding (and the party afterwards) was, so why the hell wouldn't an anniversary party be at least just as exhausting?

'I need to call the firma that delivers the chairs and tables again, though…' Raquel muttered, scribbling something down and flipping open her cell phone, '… if you excuse me for a moment?'

I smiled. 'Sure. Thanks, Raquel. You're a huge help.'

The funny thing with Raquel was that she was very serious-minded and professional about all the things she found important – but that she, on the inside, still was a shy, unsure young woman that was looking for herself and a purpose in life. And a young woman that loved my youngest and most moronic son dearly, which was wonderful for both of them.

'O-oh, I-I…' Raquel blubbered, completely caught off guard by my compliment, and almost dropped her phone. 'T-thank you, M-Mr. South Italy, I-I… u-um… I-I don't know what to say…'

I grinned and wanted to say more, but then, Matteo came running into the hall. He was panting and his face was red and radiant with excitement.

'Raquel! Papa Lovi! The chairs and tables – they've just arrived! There are so many of them! It's fantastic – it's like a wooden playground! Mia couldn't contain herself and now I lost her! Ahahahaha!~ Come check it out – sweetie, come on!'

'You lost Mia in a heap of tables and chairs?'

'Yup! She got kidnapped by them. Those wooden bandits.' Matteo however smiled very widely at her, grabbing her hands. 'Let's go look for the princess – it'll be like a quest! Oh! Oh, wait, I should hide as well – wait here, I'll go get kidnapped by the tables and chairs as well!~ Then you must come rescue us, My Highness!'

'Are you serio—' Raquel started, but shut up with a bright, timid blush when Matteo interrupted her with a firm kiss on the lips – before he fucking bolted.

…

The fuck.

We were all here arranging all the necessary things, and Mr. I'm-A-Fairy-Princess over there thought it was a good idea to go and fucking frolic around.

'Hey! Stop procrastinating, you dweeb – and stop making Raquel a quivering teenage mess, dammit, I need her mind to be clear right now!' I yelled after Matteo – but it was too late, he had already dashed into the other room and Raquel was too mesmerized to do anything else but try and control herself.

'I-I'm sorry,' she stammered, 'he… he means well, but—'

'Like hell he means well, he wants you to fucking play with him.' I snorted. 'Come to think of it, I think only Matteo can pull it off to say "play with me" as a full-grown man and still make it sound innocent as fuck.'

Raquel chuckled and glanced into the direction Matteo had ran off. 'Um… s-so, what should I…'

I dramatically rolled my eyes. 'If he's even remotely as annoying as Antonio, I think it's best to play along for now and go rescue my son and granddaughter – we'll see what else we should so later. Consider this a break or something.'

Raquel nodded happily, turned around and left the room.

'Matteo! H-hey, hold on, Matteo, I-I'm coming, I'm coming – s-sheesh, y-you're so impatient!'

That's what she said.

…

Oh come on, you knew it was going to happen. I regret nothing.

'Lovino? Everything okay?'

Antonio, who had been sweeping the floor of this specific room of the basilica with a huge broom, stopped his activities to come and hang out with me for a bit.

I made a noise that could be considered a confirmation of his question, but since Antonio's always kind of slow with these kind of things – and since he understands actual words better than grunts or glares, most of the time – I explained to him what I had been doing all this time.

'So everything's right on schedule, huh?' he concluded, after I told him that the tables and chairs had arrived as well, and leaned on the broom. 'That's good. I'm glad everything's going so very smoothly – and we didn't even had to hire Hungary for this! Not with our kids around!'

I looked around the hall. I could see Luisa walking around with pillows and a deep frown, probably looking for a nice way to put them around the chamber here and there (the pillows, not the frown), I saw Alejo, trying to push a huge and heavy statue that was worth thousands of euros out of the way like it was a fucking ordinary rock and I saw Seb, mopping the floor where Antonio had swept already, accidentally making dusty footsteps on the places he had cleaned already.

'They're a huge help, alright,' I nodded. 'Too bad they're also complete morons.'

'Yeah, we might need more help with the final touches next week,' Antonio agreed.

'That's already been taken care of as well – Feliciano, Germany and some other countries have told us they'd gladly help us out. Even the Netherlands was more than willing to come over and help with the heavy work.'

Antonio snorted. 'That punk probably thinks I work his son to death or something like that.'

'Well, then let's show him how wrong he is, because let's face it, Antonio – you are doing great.'

'Y-yes?' He stopped huffing as he looked at Seb and instantly looked at me, his cheeks changing colors just a bit while he watched me smile at him.

'Don't act all surprised and shit, you dork – of course you're doing great!'

I laughed, poking him playfully in his arm (which probably looked gay as hell but fucking let me, we were only surrounded by family now anyway so what the fuck ever).

'I have seen you communicate with Seb – you're really doing your stinking best to get along with him, and that's so cute. God, it's the cutest thing since… since Mia, Matteo and puppies.'

'And puppies? I don't know, Lovi, that's a whole lot of cute you said there.' Antonio chuckled and swayed back and forth on his stupid broom a bit. 'Also, I don't really understand what's so adorable about me and Seb communicating. I mean, yeah, I'm trying hard to accept him – to accept him more I mean – but… well…'

My whining-senses started to tingle and I gave him a snide glare. 'But well what?'

'I don't want to say.' Antonio moped and demonstratively turned his head away from me, like the adult he was. 'You'll laugh at me and I don't want you to laugh at me.'

'Oh come on, I won't laugh at you!'

'No.'

'Antonio, I mean it!'

'Nope.'

'I'll let you do me in the tub if you tell me.'

'So that Seb-kid always gives me the strangest nicknames,' Antonio instantly said (he had spun his head around so fast he might have sprained a nerve in his neck).

I grinned as he rubbed his aching neck and flushed ever so slightly because of… well, things. But that wasn't important now.

'S-so Seb gives you embarrassing nicknames?'

'Yes, and it's really annoying, too.' Antonio frowned and sneaked a peek over to Seb, who was spacing out randomly as he looked up to one of the great windows/leaded lights in the church. The interior of the church was breathtaking and cave-like – all those vibrant and vivid, yet at the same time so very mysterious and dusky colors that danced around in the stale air, those rough details, those fine details, the fact that every single piece of the building looked like something that belonged in the museum… it would shut up every artistic soul.

But Seb wasn't artistic, he cared around art about as much as Alejo cared about safe sex.

So what the hell was he zoning out about?

'You know how he calls you?' Antonio in the meantime complained. 'Mr. Romano. And that's very nice and very polite of him, I guess he holds you in a certain, careful high regard ever since you charged after him and made him feel like he was going to die.'

'Terrifying my daughter's boyfriend. Certainly one of the proudest accomplishments in my life, yes.'

I said it so sarcastically, I should watch my teeth weren't going to get damaged by the sourness of it.

Antonio smiled at me for a moment, adored by my indignant behavior for some reason, but then his smile made place for a childish pout.

'You know he thinks of me as a friend, Lovi? As a… a comrade?' Antonio shivered. 'The way he talks to me and calls me ridiculous nicknames, like Antoon and Toon and even Annie – Annie, Lovino, he called me ANNIE – it's really uncomfortable! I mean, calling me by my human name would have been awkward enough, but making a friendly nickname out of it… I'm still one of the fathers of his girlfriend! The most unstable one, too!'

'So you're saying he should show you some respect, is that it?' I said, getting bored with the conversation's subject now. 'You can just tell him that, you know – he's pretty straightforward anyway, and I have more things to do than listening to your sulking about something this… petty.'

Antonio gave me a hurt look. 'You're harsh.'

'I just told you you can totally have your way with me in the bathtub – I'm allowed to be as harsh as I want with you, dimwit.'

'I can't wait for that.'

There was something in the way Antonio spoke those five little words that made my heart skip a beat and my face turn a darker shade of red. To be honest, it had been almost a week since the last time we had sex (because of the preparations and stuff), and that hadn't even been really mention-worthy sex. And it had been fucking ages since the last time we did the nasty in bath – wow, I actually couldn't even decently recall the last time anymore.

'W-w-well.' I gulped and hastily looked away from Antonio's smug, smirking face before I'd fucking start panting. 'If you excuse me now, I have to go do important shit now. Matteo-questing and such.'

'But what about me and Seb?' Antonio said, immediately getting rid of the sexy look and undertone. 'I told him before I don't like his stupid nicknames, but he keeps coming up with new ones when I tell him to stop!'

'Then I guess that's the reason he's completely out of it – your nagging discouraged him. Tssssk.'

'But Lovi—!'

'TSSSSSSSSSSSSK, I SAID.' I pushed away the arms he wanted to embrace me with (for comfort or good luck or whatever) and made a stern face, pointing to Seb. 'Now go talk it out with the father of your future second grandchild, you big wimp, before his random standing around will infect the rest!'

And with that, I left, since I had a stupid son to pull out of a heap of tables and chairs.

o\00/

I looked at all the decorations I had put down here and there in the Sagarda Família, and I felt like I was making the beautiful place looking worse instead of, you know, better.

Or, for a lack of better words, I was destroying the place and making interior designers within a 100 meter radius weep in despair.

…

Maybe volunteering to help out as an assistant-decorator wasn't such a very good idea of me, especially not when you're a person that has zero fashion sense and a pair of older brothers that constantly nag at you to please stop molesting something as pure and innocent as the Sagrada Família already.

But hey, I wanted to at least do something! I didn't want to sit on the side of the scene and watch Alejo move tall things to make place for other tall things, Raquel walk around with a checklist, Papa Lovi helping her and asking her questions, Papa Toni sweeping and Matteo gush over architecture/Raquel/Mia/fucking FURNITURE – I wanted to help my fathers out, too! I felt like I needed to do that, especially after all the trouble they have gone through. Discovering so many crazy secrets of your kids kind of ruffles your feathers, after all. I can imagine it does, is all I'm saying.

So here I was, placing pillows down on places of which I thought it could look good.

But it didn't look good.

I knew, because I heard Alejo yell 'get rid of that junk RIGHT NOW or I WILL make sure the toilet's clogged the next time you need to take a dump' every time I thought I had made something prettier.

WELL FUCK YOU TOO, ALEJO.

He had a point though, and I hated it when he had a point.

I glared at the pillows, as if they were the reason of my incomprehensible suffering, and finally sat down on them. I wanted to take a break anyway, so why not in the fucking middle of the damn chamber.

'You better take those pillows away as soon as you're done sitting on them like a chicken,' Allie croaked out somewhere behind me – he was now dragging a tall structure of some sort around – and I replied by flipping him off.

'And a unfashionable door-scarecrow-chicken at that!' Alejo's response was to that.

'Allie! Don't chew out your sister!' Papa Toni shouted from somewhere else – lots of loud noises going on today as well, the echoing walls of the building certainly gave it an interesting dimension.

But I digress.

I sighed and put my hands down on the pillows. Seriously, if assisting him with decorating wasn't going to work out, then what else could I do to help Papa Lovi and Papa Toni with the preparations for the wedding anniversary?

Before I could decently put my mind on this question, though, something or someone else suddenly crashed down next to me. Almost of fucking top of me, since there wasn't that much pillow to sit on. A pregnant lady took up a lot of space, after all.

'Hey! What the fu…' I started, but kind of forgot what I was going to snarl about when I recognized Seb's face.

'Seb.' I frowned – because that's what I do – and wiggled a bit to the side to make more room for him, but it only caused me to get closer to him. Also, it looked really weird and Seb stared at me like I was… I don't know, like I was a fucking worm – the hell I know!

'Don't listen to Allie,' Seb said as soon as I decided to just… stop with whatever I was trying to do, 'You make a very cute chicken.'

'I'm not a damn chicken,' I growled, already more than just fed-up with the stupid comments. 'I'm just sitting down in a pile of pillows. What's so chicken-esk about that!'

'It makes you look like a mother hen. You even have a living being to keep warm and cozy.'

'Yeah, you know all about that, asshat.' I grumbled, but I didn't protest when Seb nuzzled my shoulder.

'How are you, cutie?'

'I-I'm okay.' I averted my eyes as I leaned into his body. 'Just a bit tired. I wish I could do more than just putting things down, and then removing them again because my bastard brothers think I'm slaughtering everyone's efforts. It's bringing me down a bit and I feel pretty bad and even kind of useless about that right now.'

'That's great.'

I now did look at him, first with puffed cheeks since I thought he was being dry and sarcastic – but then I noticed something about Seb was a bit off, and he apparently hadn't even listened to my answer.

To think about it – Seb had been out of it for a few days already now. It was like something was bothering him. I firstly had thought that he'd snap out of it soon enough, or that he'd told me automatically if it got the best of him, but it was starting to worry me now.

'How are you, by the way?' I decided to ask him, pulling back a bit so I could look at him. 'You seem stressed, for some reason.'

'I am stressed,' Seb said. 'I'm so stressed, I might barf.'

'Why?' I stared at him. 'No, seriously – why? And why didn't you tell me?'

'Because of reasons.' Seb aloofly looked up to the – I give the designer of this obnoxious basilica that – drop dead gorgeous ceiling. 'I should tell your father though. Maybe your father as well. And your other father and father. Them, too.'

I was getting irritated by his vague explanation. 'What is it you can't tell me, but can tell my huge collection of dads!'

'I can't tell you.'

'Smart ass.' I glared at him. 'At least tell me a bit!'

That seemed to work on Seb – he finally gave me a long, solemn look, as if he was thinking about what he could and couldn't tell me. Then he let out a puff of air and gave me a very determined look instead.

'Your dads are all very cool, Luu. Especially Annie. He's awesome. But he doesn't like the nicknames I make up for him.'

…

…I already had no idea where this was conversation was going, but I talked along anyway, since he still seemed very troubled.

'Well, let's be honest: you do have a very stupid taste for nicknames.' I pulled up my legs. 'Plus, I don't think Papa Toni appreciates it very much when people that aren't his close friends or family call him by embarrassing nicknames.'

He nodded understandingly. 'That is very annoying. You should tell me who does that – I'll go tell them to take a walk already.'

It's YOU, you big, dense OAF, I wanted to say – but I was afraid that would break Seb's heart a bit.

'I have thought about a new nickname for Annie,' Seb continued. 'It took me a lot of energy and stress and imagination, but I have thought up a new one, and I want to tell him. But I'm worried. What if he doesn't like this one, either? I'll need to go through that tiresome process again and that bugs me.'

I exhaled in relief. 'So that's what this is about – you've been ridiculously tangled up in pleasing Papa Toni with the right nickname.'

'Sure,' Seb said.

'But what do my other fathers have to do with that?'

'Everything.'

'I don't get it.'

'Neither do I.'

'What the hell?' I couldn't help but laugh at that. 'What are you even… god, you make no sense at all!'

Seb looked at me laugh and smiled as well.

'You're gorgeous like that.'

'Oh shut it. I'm run-off-the-mill.' I still blushed though, and wrapped my arms around one of his arms, hugging it. 'B-but thank you. I… I hope you'll keep finding me gorgeous, even when I get all fat and disgusting.'

'Disgusting?'

'Disgusting, yes!' I pouted and looked up from his arms. 'My legs will look HORRIBLE once I swell up! Popping veins! Back pains! Leg cramps! Trouble with shitting! Hemorrhoids! Stretch marks! Tantrums and moods wings!'

'Sounds like my uncle Hendrik when he's drunk.'

'Your uncle gets hemorrhoids, poop problems and stretch marks when he's drunk?'

'You don't know my uncle Hendrik.' He gave me a complex look. 'Keep it that way. You'll live longer.'

…

Well okay.

'Um… Seb?'

We both looked up and saw Papa Toni standing in front of our pillow nest, smiling but his left eye twitching slightly, as if some things annoyed him. Those some things probably were my boobs, pressing against Seb's arm, and Seb being perfectly fine with that.

…yeah well, sorry, dad, but grow up already, you don't see me getting all pissed off and uncomfortable about seeing you and Papa Lovi eating face in the fucking front of the damn Sagrada Família, even though it was very embarrassing for me and the twins and those twenty tourists (although a few made pictures of it).

But anyway…

'Ah.' Seb gently pulled himself free and got up from the pillows. 'Annie. I was just thinking about talking to you.'

Papa Toni gave him a strained smile. 'Seb. Please don't call me Annie. Because… um. It makes me wants to cry.'

Seb nodded. 'Rest assured, I know. That's why I have thought of a new nickname for you.'

'Oh good god. Again? Why… why don't you think of a nickname for Lovino already?' Papa Toni tried, giving me a 'help me already' –look. But really, I don't think I could help out much, so I just shrugged and grinned apologizing at him.

'A nickname for Mr. Romano? No way – he'd shred me apart for my insolence.' Seb paled a bit, even though his facial expression never changed.

'What? No, Lovi wouldn't do that, he—'

'No, Mr. Romano isn't as open-minded as you are yet, I'm afraid. That's why I hope you'll help me to get him to like me.'

I got up from the pillows just in time: the expression on Papa Toni's face was so priceless and hilarious, it almost made me burst out laughing – and you shouldn't try to get up from the ground when you're about to burst out laughing.

'…you need me to make him like you?' Papa Toni summed it all up.

'Yes,' Seb said. 'We're cool, after all. And good buddies.'

'We're not good buddies.'

'We're good friends, then.'

'I…' Papa Toni started, but paused halfway to think about what he wanted to say carefully when he saw me.

'…I… I guess we're… good friends, then,' he eventually finished, smiling weakly back at me when I beamed a thankful smile at him.

Seb's reaction to dad's words was so adorable – he seemed to stand up straight a bit more and he actually got a tad giddy. Yes! Giddy! Aww! Not that normal people would be able to see that… but I did!

'Yo! Luisa!' I suddenly heard Alejo's voice bawling through the large hall. I looked over to where he was and noticed he was carrying some sort of… I don't know, a blanket of some sorts?

'Hey! You wanted to help me out, right?' Alejo reminded me. 'Then come over and help me with this rug!'

A rug. Of course - I knew that.

'Fine,' I sighed, actually very happy to finally be able to make myself useful, and excused myself to both Papa Toni and Seb, after which Seb abruptly pulled me closer, hugged me and gave me such a warm and gentle kiss that I could even feel it tingle in my toes.

'S-Seb!' I hissed as I pushed him back afterwards, my face on fucking fire yet again. 'D-don't kiss me so suddenly, d-dammit, y-you really surprised me…!'

I didn't look at Papa Toni at that point, but I could sense very dark-purple-black dad-vibes intensifying right next to me, right away, so he probably wasn't too happy with Seb's action. When he instinctively grabbed Seb by his arm and pulled him away from me with a smile that was bordering on psycho-maniac ('Let's NOT do that right in front of me, okay, Seb?~'), I actually wanted to forget about Alejo and his lame rug-problem, but Seb seemed to feel completely at ease.

'No, it's okay, Luu. You go help out Allie. I'll rap on a little longer with your father. About men-things. Maybe we can discuss our lovers and exchange hints and the like.'

'Discuss what – who – how about NO,' Papa Toni almost cried out, overwhelmed by Seb's randomness. I simply gave Seb a very warning look – 'please don't freak him out like that' – and then, I just… went. To where Alejo was, I mean. Maybe the conversation between the two of them, without me, would go better that way.

Oh who was I kidding – I was just happy I could get away from that suffocating aura.

/0o0\

On the one hand, I was happy that Luisa had left me and Seb behind to go help out Allie, because that way, I didn't have to feel like keeping myself from kicking Seb's head off his torso every time he touched/kissed her. I may have accepted their relationship, but that didn't mean I was perfectly a-okay with her and him making out right in front of me, the dad.

JUST WHAT KIND OF BOYFRIEND DOES THAT?

…

But anyway, on the other hand, now that Luisa wasn't here to assist me by silently reminding me of the importance of being nice to Seb, I was afraid I might get too honest with him and accidentally hurt him or something. I promised Lovino, Luisa and myself I wouldn't do that, but Lovi was searching for Matteo and Lulu was helping Allie with unrolling the rug, so this could get tough.

'So. Alone at last,' Seb said, as soon as Luisa wasn't able to hear us anymore. 'Time to get real.'

'What… do you mean?' I slowly asked, trying to move away from him – but he got closer to me instantly, every time I tried to sneak away.

Seb stared at me. Down at me, of course, since he was a giant blunt Dutchman and I a puny small Spaniard. Ugh.

'Hey Ant,' he started and I can't believe it, oh my god, was it ANT now, did he mean that literally or figuratively, 'I want to thank you again for being such a cool guy.'

'Oh it's my pleasure…' I darkly mumbled, biting on the inside of my cheek.

'So far, you're probably the only dad-guy of all Luu's dad-guys that accepts me.'

For some reason, I stopped wallowing myself in repressed frustration and gave Seb a confused look.

'You're not accepted by Stefano and Ángel?'

'I'm tolerated, yes,' Seb said. 'Just like Mr. Romano tolerates me. But you, Ant, you are the very first father that had always been on my side.'

My eye started to twitch again.

Oh, how very awkward.

'It's probably a dad-daughter-thing, I get that much, but still. It's weird. My adoptive parents weren't too happy either when my sister came home with her first boyfriend, but it wasn't like they were constantly glaring daggers at him. I wonder what I could do to make the other three fathers to accept me.'

Seb looked into the distance, as if the answer to all his questions was somewhere there.

'You don't… really have to do or prove anything,' I carefully muttered, studying the wooden handle of the broom like it was a masterpiece of work, 'but… well… Luisa's… you're her first love, right? Most first loves are meant to… you know, fail. And then you get the first heartbreak. And then you get a second love. And… well… maybe we're all unconsciously afraid you might hurt her one day, and make her suffer for the very first time from something like that?'

'It's a sermon.' Seb looked at me in awe, as far as that was possible, coming from a guy with limited expressions. 'Ant's giving me an official father-to-boyfriend-sermon. What wisdom. Wow. I should write this down.'

'NO. No. Don't write anything down, don't…' I sighed, rubbing my temples – while still keeping hold of the broom, '…look, Seb, just… just make Luisa happy. Okay? As long as you're keeping my daughter happy, I – and all other dad-figures in her life – will be pleased with you, even if we don't look like it. But it'll get better. I promise you, the rough sides will get smoother, the painful silences will become more pleasant and you will gain everybody's respect. Just be there for her, always.'

Seb – who ended up writing down everything I said anyway what the hell – eyed me rather… happily.

'So you're giving me your blessing, then.'

My thoughts stopped right there. 'What?'

'Cool.' Seb scratched the point of his nose and actually started to flush – no, really, he blushed, and kind of heavily, too. 'Um. Wow. This is weird. But I'm happy.'

'Blessing? What blessing? Blessing for what?' I in the meantime babbled.

Seb smiled. 'I love Luisa. I want to marry her.'

I must have dropped my broom at some point, because when I wanted to grip the stick firmer, all I felt was nothingness and my own flesh.

'Marry her?'

'Yeah.' Seb nodded. 'Luisa told me she loves me, for the first time. That was the last confirmation I needed. If she says she loves me, she really does love me, and since I love her as well, I should marry her. I've been thinking and worrying about it for days now, not only because maybe Luisa won't have enough courage yet to take the next step in our relationship, but also because of her fathers. And their responses.'

He looked me straight in the eyes.

'Hence why I wanted to ask you for your blessing, first. You're the nice guy. And my friend.'

…

I…

…

…well, after the first shock, my mind became a bit less hazy. I knew that what Seb was planning to do, actually wasn't that strange or bizarre. He and Luisa have been dating for years now, and since Luisa's quite a lot like Lovi, I can imagine how Seb's feelings have been tested, waiting for her to tell him she loves him – and how frustrating that was as well, every time she shot his hopes down or was distracted at the very last minute.

He probably had been pretty desperate about it at one point, too. But he stuck around her anyway, never planning to leave her or dismiss her because of something as 'unimportant' as the ability to say 'I love you, too'.

Oh god.

I saw it now.

Seb wasn't like the Netherlands – the Netherlands wouldn't have kept up with Lovino's behavior, not like that.

Seb was like me.

I breathed out, and in again, and out again. I felt I calmed down upon this revelation.

Seb was like me.

So I could trust Luisa, who was like Lovino, to him.

What a nice feeling that was.

'Ant?' Seb cocked his head as he watched my face get less white and more normal again. 'Is everything alright?'

I chuckled, searched for my fallen broom, and picked it off the ground. Then I leaned on it again and beamed a teasing grin at the Dutch kid, feeling so very relieved I thought I was going to break down in tears.

'S-so, you're planning to marry Lulu. Some ambition you have, young man!~ Just tell me, how are you going to pop the question, hmm?'

And while Seb got more excited than I had ever expected him to become and started to tell me about the how and where and when, I resigned in this, in this whole situation, in everything.

Almost as if I had grown up at last.

\0o0/

We worked every day of the week on the preparations for the wedding anniversary – Antonio, the kids, their lovers and me.

And the very next week, we got even more help: not only the Netherlands came over to help us out, but Feliciano, Germany and Mimi – yes, even Mimi – as well. I'm not really sure what happened, or why and how Feliciano and Germany had decided to contact with their daughter again, but I guess some things must have started to click when they heard about all the other countries that had accepted the nation kids as theirs - as actual real, biological kids.

Antonio's creepy-ass best friends wanted to help, too, but France firstly had to promise he wouldn't bring along Desiree, since Alejo was still having a hard time coping with his feelings. Prussia, who had met his and Canada's son already as well but didn't really know what to think of him yet, supported France by letting Emile stay with Canada.

Another good friend of Antonio (and me, I suppose) that offered to help was Femke, and she brought along her daughter Anya. Russia wasn't able to come, but that was okay: Anya was creepy enough for the two of them. Which was a bit sad: she really was a very nice and plain girl, only with… hum…

Well, she just was scary as fuck is all.

Um, and Hungary and Austria also came to help, and… well, it looked like Hungary had finally come to term with the fact she and the Austrian nerd actually had a son, and they now accepted Wolfgang – who by the way had become a famous author of smutty candlelight-books and was still very gay for Matteo.

He was brought along as well. Matteo was amused, because he apparently viewed 'Wolfie' as a very good friend after five seconds of small talk. Raquel was not amused, because Wolf-face wanted to put Teo in a dress and make pictures of him. And Mia attacked the perverted photographer's ankles, since she didn't like him either and besides, 'he's no real wolf!'.

And…

…well, that was it, I guess, this was the army of friends, family and humans that had come to help me and Antonio out with the final preparations in the last week before our wedding anniversary.

…

Soon, it would be over.

I'm not talking about the preparations, but about the party, the big, European gathering that our wedding had started to become: it wasn't just a wedding anniversary any longer. No, this party would be a huge Family Day for all the nations that had a kid, lost it, and found it back again.

I realized that when I watched all of the others work during that final week.

I couldn't help but feel a bit melancholic about it.

Because what would happen when the party was over?