Chapter Twelve
Norway heaved a breathy sigh as he lugged the tall Dane outside and into the blinding sunshine. Mathias hissed and shielded himself from the light like a vampire, rubbing his eyes and grumbling about lack of sleep and absence of a caffeinated drink. Used to such complaints, the Norwegian disregarded the man's whining and pulled the reluctant Dane along the sidewalk with an air of unwavering aloofness. Oblivious to Norway's growing irritation, Mathias continued to grumble about his woeful life and rude Norwegian friend.
Norway felt his eye twitch in annoyance. His ability not to snap and yell at the Dane in public was rapidly diminishing, if he didn't find relief soon who knows what would happen.
It was as if God himself was listening to his plea for help, a coffee shop stood proud in all its glory not fifty paces from the Norwegian's current position. He was snapped out of his thoughts by another pitiful complaint being uttered by the sulking Dane. Before his mind could short-circuit, Norway shoved enough money to pay for a drink into Mathias's unsuspecting hands and shoved him roughly towards the shop. The Dane scowled and rubbed the spot on his arm where Norway had pushed him and stomped off without a backwards glance. He strolled into the store, stopping just for a moment to flip off the smaller man through the glass. The Norwegian mumbled a faint "good riddance" and seated himself on a bench to wait.
Soon enough Mathias emerged from the shop toting a steaming cup of creamy liquid. The frown lines on his face had disappeared and he seemed to be in a much better mood now that his caffeine needs had been satisfied. The Dane ambled over to the bench and handed over a styrofoam cup that had been previously veiled from sight to Norway. He gratefully accepted the drink and sipped at it while he and Mathias strode along the street, eager to reach their destination.
After a what seemed like hours of hiking, Mathias spotted the vague outline of a statue, just visible over the horizon. To their immense relief, the crowds of tourists had thinned out and navigating through them had suddenly become effortless. A short span of time passed before Norway and Mathias had gotten close enough to clearly make out the details and fine lines of the imposing figure.
The world famous mermaid statue loomed above the pair, managing to appear intimidating and welcoming to visitors all at the same time. The tarnished model was situated so it was leaning on a cluster of rocks while it gazed out into the ocean with a forlorn expression, as if longing to leap in and swim away. It was portrayed as the epitome of despondency, yearning for freedom and release yet unable to attain or accomplish it.
For many minutes Norway and Mathias admired the mermaid with undisguised awe. They marveled at its melancholy complexity at both emotional and physical levels. Norway took out his phone and snapped a few memorable pictures while Mathias stepped backwards and loosened a low hum of appreciation. He glanced at the statue adoringly before turning to look at his shorter companion.
"Do you know how many times this statue has been defaced or destroyed?" Norway curiously turned his attention towards the Dane who had already begun to speak again. "Her head was knocked off three times, her arm came away once, she was covered in paint five times, and once she was knocked off of her pedestal by explosives in 2004. Yet against all odds she still is intact… I find that fascinating." Mathias stared at the figure with a prideful gleam in his eye. He sighed contentedly and returned to regarding it with a respect filled gaze.
Meanwhile, Norway's mind was still wrapping itself around what Mathias had just spoken. When he finally was able to comprehend what the Dane had just recited, the Norwegian barely restrained himself from keeling over in shock. He forced his breaths to even out and replaced his stunned expression with a forced, curious one. He walked over and cautiously placed his hand on Mathias's forearm.
"Mathias, how did you know that?" The Dane's brow furrowed in puzzlement. He gnawed on his lower lip as he attempted to recall how he had learned the facts. With a half-hearted shrug he gave up, simply surmising he must have had read a brochure.
"I must have picked up a pamphlet or something. Does it matter?" Norway shook his head no, unable to decide whether to view the situation optimistically or pessimistically. On the positive side, if Mathias was beginning to remember different things then his memories would be back in no time. If he thought about it negatively, that would mean Mathias would remember all memories, including the ones Norway would rather stay hidden. The different perspectives swirled around inside the Norwegian's head in a mess of confusion and indecisiveness. His inability to organize his mind lead Norway to make the split-second decision of pushing everything into the corner, leaving it for later. He rejoined Mathias by the base of the mermaid, promising himself that he would sort the dilemma out as soon as they arrived back in their hotel room.
—
After their baffling trip to the statue, Norway decided to call the quits on sight-seeing and returned with Mathias to the hotel. As they walked through the lobby, Norway glanced discreetly around and was relieved to find that the desk attendant from the previous day was absent from her post. Nonetheless he ushered the Dane through the lobby, all the while eyeballing any makeup-clad female that dared approach. The pair reached their hotel room with no incident and little restraint. Mathias flopped onto Norway's bed and snatched the television remote from the bedside table. Instead of shoving the Dane onto the floor, Norway opted to nudge him to the edge so that there was enough room for them both to sit in comfort. The Norwegian eased back onto the mountain of pillows decorating his bed while watching the T.V. channels rapidly flip by in sync to the Dane's thumb pressing the button to change them. He had just begun to doze off when a sudden exclamation from Mathias startled him from his slumber.
"Lukas, look! The Little Mermaid!" Norway groggily opened his eyes to see the animated Disney version of The Little Mermaid. He blinked wearily at the grinning Dane as the man hummed along to the movie's soundtrack. Ariel was currently surrounded by objects from above sea, singing yearningly in desire to join the land-dwellers she fantasized about. Her performance and voice were mesmerizing, and Norway soon found he was unable to look away. He became so wrapped up in the movie that he didn't notice Mathias had leaned back on the bed until he was parallel with Norway's body. Only when he felt hot breath on the side of his neck to the Norwegian acknowledge the presence beside him. Using all of his self-restraint not to jump up or blush, the smaller man selected to whisper-yell at the offending man.
"What are you doing?!" Mathias blinked nonplussed at Norway's flustered face.
"I'm resting."
"On my bed?!"
"Yeah, so?"
"You have your own bed."
"Your's has a better view of the T.V."
"No."
"Yes."
"No."
"No."
"Ye— Mathias!"
"Lukas!"
Deciding bickering was getting him nowhere, Norway elected to drop the conversation, but not before solidly whacking the spiky-haired man on the chest with a thump. Mathias grunted but thankfully decided not to retaliate with a hit of his own.
A comfortable silence settled over the room like a thick blanket. The pleasant temperature of the room and the radiated heat from the man next to him began to slowly lull Norway into a peaceful and secure rest. The drone of the television faded into background noise as the Norwegian's head drooped forward and his lids gradually pressed shut. Finally, darkness came in a benign wave of warmth as Norway slipped from reality into the wonders of dreamscape, unaware of the careful and subtle movement around him.
Mathias glanced downward as he felt a sudden pressure upon his shoulder. To his surprise Lukas had fallen asleep mid-movie and was heavily leaning on Mathias for support. The Dane was aware of the hostile shields he had purposely built in order to protect himself from these situations, but he found his mind was unwilling to wake the Norwegian and push him off of his chest. Mathias was content with watching the rest of the movie, but something about Lukas kept his eyes lingering on his face. Mathias allowed his gaze to trace the shorter man's features, from his perfectly shaped eyebrows to his delicately curved nose. The Dane's eyes roamed a bit more before he jerked, not enough to wake the slumbering man but enough to snap himself out of his trance-like state.
With a soft smile Mathias ruffled Lukas's hair before turning his attention back to The Little Mermaid. Eventually he fell prey to the same soporific aspects the smaller man had, and began to drift into a comforting doze with the aid of the environment around him. Not completely lucid and aware of his actions, Mathias's last conscious movement was to place his hand on the Norwegian's shoulder in a protective and possessive gesture. A small portion of his mind had been nagging at him from day one to protect this man at all costs. What the hell, maybe it was time to stop ignoring it.
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Hope you like the chapter, please review constructive criticism or just something nice. I only got 3 reviews last chapter which was kind of disappointing. Thank you to everyone who does review, I really appreciate the support and encouragement to keep writing.