Author's Note : Sorry if this showed up in your inbox twice ^^; OTL I just had to get this chapter up quickly because I was on vacation the past few ANYWAYS... I LOVE YOU ALL WHO READ MY STORY OMG IT MEANS SO MUCH TO ME TO SEE ALL OF YOU GUYS REVIEWING AND SUBSCRIBING AND EVERYTHING JEEZ I LOVE YOU GUYS REALLY 3
andIhaveastalker... YAY I LOVE YOU STALKER! 8D
well anyway just know it is much appreciated~ (I support caps lock abuse. sorry)
The rest of the morning was spent through the wonderful task of target practice.
Toris's every move was scrutinized by the blond's watchful emerald eyes. If Feliks wasn't happy with Toris's form the brunette was promptly corrected, or the gun was taken from him and the blonde demonstrated the proper form, followed by a perfect shot to the target's center.
By lunch Toris's shoulders were sore and the day was only half over.
Feliks grinned widely as he and Toris made their way to the kitchen for lunch.
"Sore?" The blond asked, smiling.
Toris shrugged, wincing as the movement pulled at the muscles he wanted most not to move.
"Good." Feliks stopped and turned to the brunette.
"You go get lunch and, like, meet me back at the shooting range in an hour." The blond looked slightly slightly nervous.
Toris's eyebrows knit together in confusion. "You're not coming with me?"
"No." Feliks turned on his heels and walked into another short hall. "One hour."
Toris continued toward the kitchen.
Raivis, Matthew, and Antonio were sitting at the dining table as Toris walked in. Antonio called him over with a smile and the brunette quickly obliged. Matthew and Raivis were preoccupied and didn't seem to notice Toris's appearance.
"I saw him up today." Matthew said quietly.
"B-But Feliks s-said he w-wouldn't be up. N-Not for a c-couple of days." Raivis shook slightly.
"Well, apparently it wasn't as bad as Feliks thought." Matthew replied. "He was a little bruised, but fine."
Toris took the seat next to Antonio, directly across from Raivis. His brothers violet eyes met Toris's and they were fearful, almost weak looking compared to others he had seen. It frightened Toris to see how fragile his brother looked.
Antonio placed his hand over Raivis's and smiled. "Ah, you'll be fine Raivis."
Toris's gaze met Matthew's. The blonde remained quiet but mouthed a single word. Gilbert.
The brunette clenched his fists but this muscles protested.
"Are you okay?" Antonio asked quietly. "You look sick Toris."
The brunette stared down at his hands. "No, I'm fine. Just a little sore..."
Antonio chuckled. "It only gets worse from here."
"I believe that." Toris mumbled, trying to stay calm.
Antonio turned his attention back to the blonds sitting across from them.
Matthew shifted in his seat. "Francis should be down soon." He whispered, his cheeks turning a soft shade of pink.
"Everyone else. should be busy. This is usually the busiest time of year for this business." Antonio said, smiling widely.
"Really?" Toris asked. It seemed strange to him having this time of year be the busiest. The leaves on the trees were just changing color, green changing to rusty oranges and yellows, and the wind becoming ever colder with the days passing.
"Yes, odd I think." Antonio replied.
More employees entered as the Spaniard spoke. Francis, Berwald, and Lovino took seats at the table - Francis to Matthew's right, Berwald to Toris's left, and Lovino at the head, positioned between Raivis and Antonio.
The brunette turned to Berwald. "Where's Tino?" He asked, Toris had never seen them apart since he had started working in the Braginski household.
"W'rk'ng 'n th' D'r'ng'r 'rd'r." The Swede replied, looking uncomfortable and slightly worried without the short Finnish man at his side.
"Oh." Toris turned back to Antonio and the others, who were laughing hysterically at a snide comment that Lovino had made.
Lihn walked out of the kitchen bearing a large plate of sandwiches for the men sitting at the table. Francis reflected on how lovely Lihn's hair was, while Matthew tried to keep the Frenchman from leaping across the table at the girl. Antonio harassed Lovino about his tomato-face, and all the while Raivis, Berwald, and Toris sat quietly where they were.
Toris took a sandwich from the plate after Lihn set it down and thanked her quickly so she could get away from the Frenchman annoying her.
The rest of the hour Toris had was spent much like this, sitting and listening to their conversations. The bickering was all teasing, much like a child would tease its sibling. It was more like a family than anything else, a very close-knit family.
When Toris got up to leave, everyone - including Lovino - seemed mildly sad to see him go.
"Au revoir, mon chere!" Francis said, and every one else waved goodbye, knowing that Feliks had most likely told him to be back by then.
The trip back to the shooting range was made quickly. The door was found and opened, and Toris descended the stairs. About halfway down the brunette noticed voices - hushed and fast - down where he and Feliks had been before. Toris went down a few more steps, and the whispers became clearer, the words more distinct.
"... can't pretend it never happened Feliks." A raspy male voice said.
"Can't I?" Feliks replied.
"Don't pretend you didn't want it to happen."
"i didn't want it to happen Gilbert." Feliks spat. "We were young and it was a long time ago."
"Two years is a long time?" Gilbert laughed.
"Yes. You have to leave. Toris should be here any minute."
"I'm not done here Feliks."
"I think you are." Feliks huffed. "H-Hey! Get off me you-" The Pole's sentence was cut off.
Toris continued down the stairs quickly, not knowing what to expect. And what he saw was nothing he could have ever expected.
Feliks's back was pressed to one wall, looking uncomfortable, with his wrists pinned on either side of his head by a pair of pale hands. Gilbert's face was pressed to the blond's, their chests touching. Toris hadn't been noticed, a fact for which he was thankful.
"I'm exactly right for you. You know how easy being with me would be." Gilbert said, just loud enough for Toris to hear.
"Well I don't want that anymore Gilbert." The blond pushed the albino away from him forcefully. "Get out."
Gilbert shook his head and stepped away from the blond. Feliks looked directly at Toris and gave him one of those if-you-saw-anything-you-had-better-not-bring-it-up looks.
The albino stormed past Toris and up the staircase, slamming the door behind him.
"you guts weren't-" Toris blurted out.
"Shut up." Feliks turned his back to the brunette and went into one of the compartments. Toris followed.
"You were together."
"No shit." Feliks spat.
"You and Gilbert. Were together."
"Okay." Feliks turned to the brunette. "If you want me to shoot you for saying the same thing over and over again, feel free to continue." The Pole pulled out a handgun.
"I can't believe this." Toris blushed.
Feliks shoved the gun into the brunettes stomach. "Target practice."
"Again?"
The blond snapped his fingers. "Go."
"Feliks we-"
"Go and maybe I'll tell you about my relationship with that German."
The brunette frowned and made his way to the spot in front of the target and lifted the gun to arms-length and held it with both hands.
Feliks stared at Toris angrily. "Don't lock your elbows." He tapped his foot when the brunette didn't shoot. "Well? What are you waiting for?"
"I want the whole story." Toris glanced down at the shorter male, smirking.
"All of it?" Feliks huffed, his cheeks darkening slightly.
"All of it. Then I'll shoot." The brunette moved his arms back to his sides.
The Pole sighed. "Fine. Like, where do I start?"He put his hand on his hip and bit his lip, staring up at Toris for guidance.
"How did you meet?"
"Master Braginski hired him."
"And...?" Toris asked.
"And what? He was new. He liked me and I liked him. I trained him when he first got here, but Master Braginski assigned him a chemist position. We hardly saw each other. It didn't work out."
There was an awkward silence. "Did you love him?" Toris blushed and stared down at his hands.
"No. He loved me." The brunettes head snapped up. "I broke it off when he said it. Theres no room for love here. You'll only end up getting hurt." Feliks chuckled. "Love makes you do stupid things Toris."
"But you still care for him."
Feliks sighed. "Yeah. Yeah, I do." The blond glared at the brunettes face. "Now shoot the damn target."
Toris laughed. "Of course."
Feliks gigggled as he watched Toris try to walk without moving his arms.
"Stop that. It really hurts Feliks." The brunette groaned.
"Oh, I know. It's just, like, funny for me, I guess." The blond stared at the door to the kitchen in front of them.
Toris sighed. "You're kidding, right?"
Feliks laughed and opened it, stepping aside so Toris could get through.
"Thanks."
The dining room was packed. Everyone was there, Gilbert, unfortunately, included. Laughter was heard from every direction. Toris expected Feliks to pick up on the cheerful mood, but the Pole looked deeply concerned.
"This never happens... not unless..." The blonde's eyes widened. "Shit."
Toris stared at Feliks blankly. "Hey... what's wrong? Feliks...?"
The blond grabbed Toris's hand and pulled him through the dining room into the hall leading to Master Braginski's office.
"He, like, couldn't have... not this soon..." The Pole mumbled to himself.
"Feliks." The brunette stopped dead in his tracks. "What's wrong? Everyone looked... happy."
"Well that's not always a good thing, now, is it?" The Pole's emerald eyes studied the brunette's concerned expression. "Come on. You'll need to be there." He continued to pull Toris along with him.
"Well, for what?" Toris asked.
"I think..." The blond sighed. "I, like, think that Ivan has set up a deal. Like... soon."
The brunette's face paled. "A-A deal? Now?"
"No. Not now... Maybe, like... a week? If not that no more than three months."
"Well thats a good thing, right? A month would-"
"No. Thats barely a=enough time to train you. We'll need a month and a half... at least."
Toris stumbled. "Feliks I'm a fast learner."
The blond glanced at the brunette. "You think that matters?"
"I would think so."
Feliks stared up at the looming mahogany doors in front of them. "Just shut up and don't speak unless spoken to."
The blond pushes open the doors, and for the third time in three days, stepped inside.
Feliks rushed in front of the brunette. "Master Braginski, surely you couldn't have-"
"Ah~ Feliks! And Toris as well!" The Russian's violet eyes lit up as he saw the pair walk in. He sat up in his chair. "What could bring you here, moi dorogoi?"
"Ivan you know that Toris just started training. A deal too soon could get him killed." Feliks said defiantly.
"You have plenty of time to train him, malyutka. Five weeks is enough, da?" The Russian smiled.
Feliks visibly relaxed. "It could be risky, Ivan."
"But you will train him, da? I trust you Feliks."
"Thank you Ivan." Feliks said. "Like... who is the deal for?"
Ivan leaned back, smiling. "We will discuss that in the morning, da?"
"Alright." Feliks turned back to Toris and pulled him out of the poorly lit office once more.
"You're lucky, you know that?" Feliks said when they were halfway back to the kitchen.
Toris stared at him, confused. "What?"
"Any sooner than five weeks and you, like, wouldn't be ready. Ivan must be highly confident in you." Feliks smiled a little, his eyes alight with humor.
"I... I guess." Toris smiled back at the Pole.
Feliks laughed. "We're going to have to train, like, twice as hard now, you know that, right?"
The brunette sighed. "I figured that much."
"Hope you're up for it." The blond grinned.
"Of course I am." The brunette replied, a little uneasy.
"Good."