Disclaimer: Seriously, I have to answer that?

Pairing: Sufin.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

A Dreamy Reality

Pipip. Pipip. Pipip. Pipip. Pipip. Pipip. Pipip.

"Augh! Enough already."

A pale hand rose out from the layers of sheets, silencing the shrill monotone of the offending alarm with a slam that clearly stemmed from pent up frustration with life.

A not-so subtle yawn escaped peach colored lips as a pair of mauve eyes stared at the hour hand of the clock that pointed towards 9.

After much fumbling with the bed sheets, a triumphant smile was etched on a heart-shaped face with a blackberry nestled in one hand. Said phone was stabbed away as the man with a bird's nest for hair looked through the IDs popping up on his cell phone.

Two mails from the office, one voice mail from an obnoxiously persistent Frenchman, but not a single peep from a certain number saved under the name of Berwald Oxenstierna.

None, nada, zip, zilch, nil.

Not even bothering to hide his disappointment Tino Väinämöinen flopped back on the bed, the phone clutched tightly in the palm of his right hand. A heavy sigh filled the room as he closed his eyes; as if trying to block out the rest of the world from his field of view.

"Damn it! What's happening?"

He mumbled to himself, as if expecting the answer to somehow materialize in his bedroom. While the answer failed to make an appearance, a small ball of fur did introduce itself to Tino's exposed stomach.

"Ooof! Ooof!"

Black beady eyes stared into his own violet orbs, and a pink tongue darted out from behind a row of sharp canines to gently lick his cheeks.

A soft ripple of laughter followed the mellow, yet energetic barks.

"Alright, alright! I am up!"

Gently lifting the small white Bolognese pup off his lap and onto the floor, he made his way to the shower.

As the cold water cascaded down his shivering lean frame, he found himself trembling in remembrance to a similar downpour; one that had ruthlessly washed away the warmth that had accumulated over the months, weeks, hours, minutes and seconds.

Clutching his head in his quivering hands, he slid down the coffee colored tiles, the water pouring from the shower head.

"Why………?"

His breath hitched, as he tried to stop a sob from raking up his body.

"Berwald. Berwald. Berw…"

Hugging his knees tightly as he whispered that name, he cried, for the nth time in the last 168 hours.

Seven days.

It had been exactly a week since the night Berwald showed up at his door, drenched from the rain outside, pouring out his heart to him, only to run off into the dead of the night, leaving behind a baffled, shocked and scared Tino in the middle of the road.

Since that day, regardless of how many times he had tried to contact the man, he had been met with

'The number you have dialed is currently unavailable, please try later. Thank you.'

He had left countless voicemails for the man, saying how much he wanted to meet up with him, how much he missed him, and that he had been thinking about him for a painfully long time, and how sorry he was for not being able to give him a response on that fateful night. For not being to tell him what his heart truly felt, and for letting his fears get the better of him.

Yes, truth be told he was petrified when the older male professed his love for him. It wasn't because of who confessed but rather what was said that terrified him to his very soul.

Love.

It was just too strong a word for him.

The minute it escaped Berwald's lips, he felt as though he was being bound by heavy chains that simply refused to let him breathe. He couldn't move an inch, and the sense of falling down a dark, eerie pit unlocked a buried chest of emotions. Emotions that were meant to have been hidden in the farthest corners of his hearts. Emotions that were born the day he had to lower the casket carrying his mothers' fragile body into the ground.

Losing his mother at an early age of thirteen had made the next few years of his existence a living hell. Passed down from relatives to foster families, his sense of bearing was more damaged than he admitted himself. Not being able to belong anywhere for over five years was too deep rooted a fear for him to discard in a matter of hours.

When Berwald had spoken of his feelings, Tino's immediate thought was of Berwald deserting him; leaving him alone one day, just like his mother had…just like his father did. After all, didn't they say the same thing before they were taken away from him by the cruel hands of fate? What was to stop the man he had met months ago from falling into the same routine as well?

Then, why am I feeling as though my heart has been ripped into two?

As the last remnant of his tired sobs left his body, he propped himself up.

When he finally managed to dry himself off, an hour had passed by.

Giving Hanatamago his feed, he settled for a cup of lemon tea and nothing else, his appetite non-existent.

As he sat at the counter staring at his cell phone, he felt a small tug on his pants. Looking down, he found his adorable little puppy with the leash in its mouth.

"Alright, let's go for a walk, okay?"

The wispy breeze that swept over his body carried off a small portion of the turbulence around him with it. With a cheerful puppy by his side, even he felt as though he was waking up from a long and dreadful nightmare.

Lost in his thoughts, his grip on the leash slackened, and the perky dog took full advantage of it. Barking along the bushes, chasing down a fluttering butterfly, Hanatamago bounced up and down, leaving behind a startled Finn on his trail.

"Come back here, Hanatamago! Hanatamago!"

So engrossed he was in running behind the energetic pup that he almost didn't see the timid man appear at his side, clutching the pup in question in his arms.

"Tino! Hey, Tino!"

Turning around, his eyes fell on the soft features of Mathew Williams.

"Ah, Mathew! It's been a while."

"Yeah, it has been. Though that's good, 'cause that means Hanatamago has been healthy, eh?"

The Canadian laughed at his own joke, half expecting the other man to follow suit like usual.

"Tino, is there something wrong?"

Concern laced his voice as he took in account the puffiness of his friends' eyes; angst vividly etched on the others face.

"I am fine, don't worry."

"You say that while looking like that? What happened? And please don't say nothing happened."

"I…I…Berwald…he…I…"

"Sssh! It's okay, it's okay. Come on; let's sit over there on that bench alright? Now please stop crying, okay Tino?"

A sniff was the only answer he got.

"Now tell me what happened from the start."

As Tino echoed the incidence on the rainy night, Mathew couldn't help but want to smack both parties involved. Berwald for not staying to hear Tino's side of the story and Tino for being scared to come to terms with his own feelings. But at the same time, he could still empathize with them as well. And so he did what any friend would do, prod his love-struck friend's heart.

"You're scared aren't you? And not because he is a man as well, right?"

"Hmmm."

"It's okay to be scared Tino. Strong emotions like love can be frightening at times. But the question is do we let ourselves be scared out of being in love? Do we close our hearts, hoping that it would keep the fear at bay?"

"But…I haven't been able to reach him for over a week. What if he doesn't want someone like me anymore? What if…?"

"There are no what ifs, Tino. Regardless of what he might think of you now, if you don't get to tell him how you feel you'll regret it for the rest of your life. Do you want that, Tino?"

"No, I don't. I want to tell him that I am scared, but not of him, but of myself. I want to tell him that he means the world to me, that he has a place in my heart. I want to tell him that I am in love with him…Jumala…I love him!"

"There you go. Now try telling HIM what you've just told me."

"I…I will. I am going to tell that to his face. You're right, even if I am scared, if I don't try I will never know, and I don't want to live with that."

"Good for you!

A jovial Mathew patted his back, encouragement lining his every word.

"Thank you SO much, Mathew!"

"I am just glad to have been of help. So, what do you plan on doing now?"

"I am going to go over to Berwald's place right now. I should've just done that from the start. But first I need to take Hanatamago back home."

"Don't worry about him, leave him to me. It's the weekends, so the clinic is half-day, I can look after him till you get back."

"Thanks a lot, man! So, I'll leave him in your care. Ummm…wish me luck."

"Remember to breathe, Tino."

A small chuckle issued from Tino as he sprinted off to hail a cab, leaving behind Mathew to muse over the swaying of the heart.

"It must be nice to be able to love someone like that. I wish I could feel that way as well."

He whispered out loud to no one in particular. Little did he know, he was well on his way to get his wish granted, as a pair of intent eyes traced the outline of his image holding a snow white pup close to his heart.

But that's another story, for another time. For now, let's go back to Tino standing before Berwald's apartment.

He rapped the door enough to wake up the sleeping dead mustering up his courage and the need to tell his feelings to the man, and he indeed did wake someone up; a tall, brooding, heart-broken Swede to be exact.

"Tin…?"

Before Berwald could get over the initial shock of seeing the man haunting his nights standing on his doorway, he lost whatever function his brain had as a pair of soft lips pressed against his own in a fleeting kiss.

"W'at…T'no…?"

"I am in love with you Berwald. I love you!"

Facing a blushing Tino whose voice shook with every word, but whose eyes never wavered from his own, Berwald did the only think he could think of at that moment.

He pulled the younger man against him, sealing their embrace with a kiss that felt as though it had stopped the very essence of time in itself.

If Tino had thought of the moments before this as a nightmare, then right now, he felt as though he was living a dream that was very much real…as real as the firm lips against his, the strong arms that were now cradling him.

And even though they both had plenty of questions to ask each other, none of them broke the enchantment they had created around them. Because, they both knew, there would be plenty of time for answers.

For now they would just enjoy this dreamy reality.

Jumala is God in Finnish.

Dear God that was LONG! Damn I gave Tino such a sad past, I am sorry. Please do tell me how this was and would you like an epilogue to this chapter, 'cause I plan on writing one.

And I am really happy that so many people reviewed and wished me happy birthday. XD

Tino Vainamoinen, PianoIsLove, S.I.R.E. Ruby-san, A Girl Called Fabian and Demoness Drakon: Thank you people SO much for saying such nice things! Really I have nothing more to say! Enjoy chapter 9!

Maikyaera: Thanks a lot for your help earlier; you really helped me out a lot! Please do tell how you found this one to be.

LittleGirlInRed: hehe thanks!

Kenpachi-sama: Over 90 out of? :P Just kidding, I am just happy that you liked it.

Lightning-Destructive-Light: Thanks! XD

Shounen-Ai: I am beyond flattered, oh n by the way awesome job with the Ask series, loved the background narration. XD

xXxSilverMoonxXx: Your smacking habit is contagious…lol! Thanks for that EPIC review, best of luck with your SATs (English is a disaster zone there *sniff*)!

TinyFlame4: Your birthday singing abilities are better than mine! Thanks for that lovely review.

Talentless Freak: I am really sorry to hear that, I wrote about 3 versions and that was the one that made more sense. I hope chapter 9 doesn't let you down.

Anina-chan: hehe I appreciate Poland as well…ooooooooh whose name is on it now? *sneaky eyes* (Yes, I love to tease!) XD

iCheyenna: Thanks! XD

Rainak: haha that would be pretty cool if I could set it up like that…I am glad to hear you say such nice things, my style changed over the days. Ah yes I did almost poke my left eye out in my sleep. Hope you like chapter 9!

Picks up her just-turned-two niece,

"Pleath pleath pleath review pweopel!"

(You dare say no to those big, round eyes?)