I apologize for my late update! I know that I had previously been doing rather well on keeping my promise on updated every Tuesday and Friday, and now it's been so long. I hope you still like the story, even though it's been so long. My apologies!

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Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia Axis Powers

Age Twenty-One

Changes

Ludwig and Feliciano walked hand-in-hand down the street, Ludwig sharing random stories about Gilbert from his childhood to keep them entertained as they made their way to their destination.

"And then, Gilbert being the genius he is, decided that it'd be a great idea to bring the hose inside the house..." Ludwig muttered, recalling the disastrous event from when he was young.

The brothers had just gotten home from a long car trip and Ludwig, being seven, fell asleep on the couch almost immediately and it had apparently been impossible to rouse him. Thirteen-year-old Gilbert had gotten bored playing by himself and decided that the best method for getting his brother to play with him was to drag the hose throughout the house from the backyard and spray freezing cold water on his younger brother until he woke up. Needless to say, it worked, albeit not with the results Gilbert wanted.

As the blond recalled details about the story, Feliciano gripped his hand tightly as his body shook with silent laughter. As the Italian boy's laughter subsided, Ludwig squeezed his hand gently before speaking again.

"Feli, where do you want to go after the movie?" He looked at boyfriend, thinking of all the possible places. They were currently headed towards the small movie theatre nearby, to see some romantic artsy film Feliciano had been wanting to see. "Café? Museum?" Ludwig pondered, although he knew they would probably end up going to some quiet little place for a snack.

Feliciano smiled at him, swinging their entwined hands back and forth between them. Ludwig –although he had officially been dating Feliciano for two (almost three) years– still wondered how he managed to get such a perfect soulmate. Hell, he still wondered how he got a soulmate at all. But he knew that he'd rather have no soulmate then be with someone who wasn't Feliciano Vargas.

Silky auburn hair and glowing eyes, soft skin snd hands that were always warm to the touch. Sophisticated, quirky paintings and a passion for pasta, he was someone Ludwig had never thought he'd have the good fortune of meeting. Every time he glanced at Feliciano, it made his heart beat quicker. When Feliciano smiled, he had to repress the urge to smile as well. Love was such a strange thing.

To think, three years ago, he was pondering on when he should just end it all for good. Three years ago, he was a scared eighteen-year-old boy who no longer knew what to do with their life. He had been terrified and alone. He had hurt himself to get a glimpse of what he thought was happiness. Three years ago, he never would've guessed that he would be walking down the street, on a date with his soulmate.

Unconsciously holding Feliciano's hand a little tighter, they continued their stroll in silence. After passing a bakery, Feliciano stopped suddenly and motioned for him to wait, a smile on his face. Ludwig obliged, standing still as he watched Feliciano happily trot away. Still staring at his boyfriend's retreating form, Ludwig felt a thump, and he looked back to see a guy who had been more concentrated on his phone than the road in front of him.

"Fuckin'..." The man –who appeared to be around the same age– muttered sharply under his breath, squaring back his shoulders. "Watch where you're goin', man." He snarled, brown eyes fixed on Ludwig before his mouth dropped open slightly in shock before curling into a malicious smile. "Is that you, Beilschmidt?" He grinned, "or should I say, freak?"

Ludwig's previously peaceful expression fell from his face, replaced by a look of something close to a mixture of resentment and boredom.

"It's me, your old buddy Todd." Todd said with a smile, an expression similar to a wolf before is eats it's prey. "Did ya miss me, fag?"

By the ugly words, Ludwig knew it was indeed Todd who he hadn't seen in five to seven years. Todd had always been an asshole, and apparently he hadn't changed for the better over the years. He was donned in a boring grey suit and a simple dark black tie, as if he had just come from an early morning meeting. Ludwig towered over him, Todd's eyes only reaching his nose.

"Not particularly." Ludwig replied, throughly bored with the exchange. Had this been three years ago, he might've been terrified by this encounter. He might've stood down and let Todd say whatever words came to mind, but that wasn't the case. He glanced behind him, seeing Feliciano slowly approach them from the bakery, a small paper bag in hand. That's right. Ludwig had Feliciano now. He didn't need to put up with Todd's bullshit.

"You know, I thought there'd might've been a chance that you would've changed over the years, but it looks like I was wrong." He laughed to himself, as if he had just told a great joke. "You're still ugly as fuck, and all alone." He continued to laugh, clearly amused. "Awe, does wittle baby Beilschmidt still cry himself to sleep because he's all alone?"

Frankly, Ludwig wasn't entirely sure what he had actually done to deserve such crude language thrown at him, but that didn't entirely matter now. Eyebrow arched, Ludwig stared at Todd for a moment before replying. "And what about you? I don't exactly see a wedding ring on your finger."

Todd's grin turned to a scowl, clearly upset by the topic. "Shut up. I just haven't met my soulmate yet. But at least I actually have one, unlike you, you fuckin' freak!"

At that moment, Feliciano made presence known by tugging on Ludwig's sleeve. Although he was thoroughly confused by the situation, he didn't show it. Ludwig smiled, tugging Feliciano forward gently.

"Then I suppose I should introduce you to my boyfriend." He said to Todd, a confident smile on his face. "This is Feliciano, my soulmate and boyfriend of three years."

Todd's mouth fell open slightly, a confused expression on his face. It was as if someone had just told him that he only had three weeks to live, or that he was adopted. Eyebrows scrunched, eyes squinted as he stared at the tall German man, glancing back and forth between Ludwig and Feliciano. "Wait, but that's not possible..." He muttered, scowling. "You're a freak! You're not ever supposed to have a soulmate. What the hell..."

Clearly the information was too complex for his small brain to handle, Ludwig decided, turning back towards the direction he had been originally walking. "Well, if you'll excuse me, I'm in the middle of a date."

And then, Feliciano and Ludwig left, leaving a very confused Todd behind as the other male frantically scrolled through his contacts to find some of his old high school buddies to tell the shocking news to.

By the time Ludwig and Feliciano arrived home, they had both throughly enjoyed both the movie and the freshly baked muffins Feliciano had snagged from the bakery during the encounter with Todd.

On the way home, Ludwig revealed everything about Todd and the encounter. At the end of the story, Feliciano looked at him as if to ask if that was really all there was to it.

"Yes, Feliciano, that's it. He's just some asshole from high school. I hadn't even remembered that he existed before I bumped into him today."

'Are you okay?' Feliciano signed, eyes glassy and concerned.

"Really, I'm okay." His lips turned upwards in a smile. "After all, I got to show him that I had a soulmate." Although Ludwig didn't say it, he was sure that this encounter would've hurt him if he hadn't had Feliciano by his side.

Feliciano smiled brightly, wiping his eyes. 'I'll go make dinner!' He signed happily, and Ludwig didn't have to ask to know that they were having pasta.

A few moments later, Ludwig popped his head back into the kitchen, trying hard to ignore the spilled flour on the counter –although a large part of him wanted to go grab a sponge and clean it right away, Feli constantly shooed him out of the kitchen when that happened, so he did his best to refrain– and instead walked over to where his boyfriend was standing by the fridge, clad in a apron and bandana.

"Hey, Feli, Kiku wants to know if it'd be alright to visit us next weekend." He said, reading the message from from his phone screen. Ludwig and Kiku were as close as ever, and Ludwig was almost sure that Kiku had been the happiest for him when he met Feliciano, although he didn't express it on the outside. Kiku visited them often, and vice versa, and Feliciano and Kiku got along rather well, although it was hard for Feliciano to not be as affectionate as he usually was.

The shorter male smiled widely, nodding his head happily. It had been a while since Kiku had last come over, and whenever he was over Feliciano got to hear random stories about Ludwig and his college days, so it was always a fun time for them all. Feliciano went back to making the pasta, and Ludwig shoved his phone in his pocket and grabbed a sponge before scrubbing frantically at the stained counter.

Alright, so some things (such as that) would never change. But really, Ludwig knew he was different than he was before he met Feliciano. There was a large change that happened after he met Feliciano. Of course, there were the ordinary changes, like that he was taller and smarter, but that typically happened for most people as they got older.

But no, Ludwig was talking about changes that no one could see. And not just changes in his appearance or intellectual level, not changes in his personality or habits. No, not those kind of changes at all.

For Ludwig, the real change was that after falling in love with Feliciano, he actually wanted to live.

To be continued

Coming next: Age 26 (final chapter)