A week passed, and the change seemed to make it pass quickly.

Lukas had never been shy about his relationships; he preferred to think of himself instead as simply being a private person. But, Mathias didn't seem to care about any of that. He excitedly kissed him every morning and before and after breakfast, if he could steal them before Lukas was awake enough to push him away. The Dane tried to call him pet names, too, but Lukas didn't respond to anything other than his name. Especially in front of the others in their group, who had gotten over the initial awkward change, and now, instead of looking away or shifting in their seats when Mathias kissed him, they just rolled their eyes or told them to get a room.

Still, Lukas had no trouble carrying around the pink stuffed bunny he had been given. He held it in his arm like a small child, and slept with it every night. This token of affection often elicited remarks from the others, but he held his head high and always had something to say back. He liked his bunny. He thought to perhaps name it after one of the mystical creatures he had left in Sweden or maybe even England.

As he was sitting on the couch in the living room, his bunny propped up in his lap while he held a book as though he were reading to a small child, Tino and Emil entered with the dog, Hana, and they all flopped down on the couch. They were breathing hard, presumably from playing soccer again, which was now more common since the weather was improving.

"You hold that thing like it's your baby or something," Emil told him after a moment of staring.

Lukas glanced over the top of his book. "Are you jealous?"

Emil frowned immediately and Tino laughed lightly, petting the white dog as it situated itself on his lap, as if to mimic the way Lukas held the stuffed animal.

"It's cute," he said, smiling so widely his eyes closed. "And you're so happy when you carry it around,"

It was Lukas' turn to frown. "I am not."

"You are too," he cooed at him.

"No, I'm not."

"Yesterday you smiled at your stupid book for an hour," Emil told him, folding his arms.

Lukas would have blushed but instead he simply adjusted in his seat, coincidently shifting his bunny, too. It made him smile.

"See?"

"Shut up." Lukas snapped at Tino, but he was still smiling; fighting was futile, but he did it anyway.

"Even you can be happy sometimes," the Finn told him, causing him to scoff.

Emil looked at Tino, and then back at Lukas and sighed. "He's blushing again."

"I am not!" he argued, but felt a little like trying to hide his face in his book.

Tino laughed again, making him smile even more, and making Emil roll his eyes.

But then, Berwald came down the stairs, glancing around and nodding solemnly before heading through the kitchen and out the back of the house. They fell silent.

Ludwig wasn't feeling well again. Although it seemed he and Berwald had made up, there was still a sense of distance between them that even Lukas could sense. He had been trying to convince himself that it wasn't his fault, that he shouldn't go interfering in others' relationships, but this had been eating at him for days now. He had to at least say something to Berwald; they hadn't really spoken to each other since the incident.

Lukas stood and shut his book, leaving it on the chair behind him and debating on taking his stuffed bunny, but then realized that if he left it alone with Tino and Emil, he might never see it again. So, he tucked it securely in his arm before he exchanged a glance with Emil, nodded at Tino, and left to chase down Berwald.

As he went through the kitchen to get to the back door, however, he heard the soft pattering of small feet, and looked down to see that Hana had followed him. He stared for a moment, and then nodded. As soon as the door opened far enough, the tiny dog leapt out, and bounded down the stairs. Lukas shut the door behind him, smiling a bit as the dog sniffed and then barked, and ran in the direction Berwald had gone.

As he headed towards him, the high-pitched barking gave his presence away, and when Berwald stopped and turned as the dog reached him, he saw Lukas coming up, too.

"Luke?" he asked quietly, holding the dog as it excitedly lapped at his fingers and hands.

He seemed wary of him. That hurt a bit, in a strange way, but Lukas ignored it. However, it realized that he had nothing ready to say to him, and shifted awkwardly on his feet.

"Is Ludwig…?"

Berwald glanced at the house. "Yeah."

"Oh," he looked around and then they walked a little ways towards the water, stopping when they reached rocks large enough to sit on.

Hana squirmed impatiently in Berwald's arms after a bit, and when he let her down, she excited ran towards the water, only to come yelping back when a wave surged forward. For a while they said nothing, but even with watching the small dog play adorably, it wasn't the normal, comfortable silence he knew with Berwald.

It was tense. They were both waiting now.

"Ber, I'm sorry." he finally said.

Berwald didn't look at him. "Me too."

"I mean it," he emphasized.

Berwald looked at him, seeming genuinely surprised. "So do I,"

Lukas closed his mouth and looked back at the water. He sometimes forgot how little he had to say with Berwald, but, somehow they both just knew. Berwald knew he was sorry for the problems he had caused between him and Ludwig, and Berwald was sorry for making him cry. They were both sorry they slept together, but no one could honestly remember who instigated it, so, Lukas just concluded that they were both sorry.

"Luke?" he asked suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"I want to ask you something,"

"What?"

"…What's with the bunny?"

He punched Berwald in the arm. "Shut up!"

The Swede began to smile, leaning away from him. "What?"

"Just shut up," he said, smiling back.

They sat side by side for a bit longer, but even though the wind blew colder, they kept a gap between them. Strangely, Lukas felt better about the cold when it came from his left side, and the silence with Berwald suddenly became comfortable.

They could be friends. Honestly, that's probably what they should have been all along.