My roommate is making her own choice:

"I'm fine," An'na insisted, pressing the iron onto the sleeve of a shirt. "Since when did it become a state of emergency for me to wash and iron clothes?" Steam whiffed in the air as she lifted the iron and pressed the same spot.

Because you're washing my clothes too, Ludwig thought, and you've been pressing and folding them into perfect symmetrical squares all morning. That's a bit scary, even for me. "Because you clean when you're upset," is what he actually said.

The hiss of the iron as it was sat atop of the ironing board along with the look on An'na's face was strikingly similar. It was enough to make Ludwig take a step back for his safety and the safety of his shirt. "I'm not upset," she clarified, and set about buttoning up the shirt. "Just thinking about stuff."

He glanced around them at the neat stacks of freshly washed and pressed clothing. Whatever was consuming her thoughts must be something serious "Is it about Matthias?" Ludwig ventured.

An'na gave him an irritated scowl, "No, it's not." Once the last button was fastened, she turned it over with great care, and grabbed the book that'd been sitting on the table, "Mat and I are just friends, okay? He's good company..." She trailed off, focused more on the vanishing creases in his shirt then their conversation.

Ludwig cleared his throat and sighed, stepping over the laundry basket toward the kitchen. He was both relieved and mildly offended at her statement. Had he not been good company? Which of the facts had lifted an unknown weight from his conscience? With no immediate answer, he resigned himself to making coffee for both him and his roommate. Granted, it was early evening, but there was never an inappropriate time for coffee and An'na didn't seem ready to stop her cleaning rampage any time soon.

Reaching for the fillers and freshly ground coffee beans, he placed them on the counter and readied the coffee machine. After placing the fillers, Ludwig poured in a generous amount of coffee, added water and left it to brew. He was in the process of cutting two pieces of cake (courtesy of Roderick) when she spoke up again.

He looked up, unsure if he'd heard correctly. An'na had started a new shirt and was avoiding any eye contact.

"What was that?" he hesitantly inquired, setting the knife down.

She smoothed fingers over the collar, her eyes downcast, lips stretched thin remaining closed for a few tense seconds, "I said, I'm taking that job in America." An'na repeated at last. "Mat and I talked about it and I think it would be good for me, you know."

Yes, that was what he'd thought she'd said. Ludwig frowned, then furrowed his brow and crossed his arms, only to drop them and frown again before crossing his arms once more as he mentally weeded through his shifting emotional responses. He finally settled on one that he deemed most fitting. "Why?"

An'na was on the defensive quicker than it took him to cross back into the living room. "Because," she justified, "I just need to get away from…stuff." Iron and ironing board abandoned, she settled for gathering his clothes and walking toward his room. He was right behind her.

"So you're running?" Ludwig asked at her retreating back, forgetting for the moment that she was going into his room uninvited.

An'na huffed, holding the pile down with her chin. "I'm not running. This is a great opportunity for me, for my career and just my happiness, I guess, I don't know..."

Ludwig tsked, walking around to the other side of the bed to see her face, "What kind of stuff would influence such a big decision? You're going to the other side of the world."

"It's personal." She gently sat the pile on his bed and looked up at him curiously, "Why are you so worked up by this anyway?"

"I don't want you to go," he responded immediately, probably surprising her as much as he surprised himself.

Her eyes glittered with something and the corner of her lips appeared to curl up for a heartbeat, but that was gone in seconds with a sigh as she turned towards the door. "It's only for the summer." Was she reassuring him?

An'na turned halfway to face him on the way out. "And it's not like you'll be by yourself. You have Gilbert, Elizaveta, and…Felicia and the others. So, it's not that big a deal."

But it really was a big deal.

A/N: Greetings from the UK! Finally got settled in, well, for the most part anyway! I still have things to buy and such. I'm keeping a lookout for Arthur and Prince Harry (what? it could happen!...in a few more years maybe). So far, no luck on either! lol