Dear Reader:

After this all that is left is the Epilogue.

LISTEN CLOSE:

I do not want to see any reviews talking about what Belarus' decision is, understand?

NOBODY SPOIL THIS CHAPTER, please

please... please... please... NO SPOILERS!

...please?

Special thanks to Krasavitsa for the Torquato Tasso quote and to The Scheming Turtle for all the beta-reading help.

By the way, this story now has over 200 reviews, over 7,000 views, more than 30 favorites and more than 50 follows... and it got all that in under six months. Thank you, everyone, for all of that! All of those lovely reviews encouraged me and let me know that you do care about this story, and all the favorites and follows also let me see that you truly do appreciate this. Please, if you have not left a review, please do so on this chapter or the next one because I want to know if this touched your life in any way... or at least made you feel some kind of emotion. Thank you again for everything!

~+~ The pioneer with a heart for people and a thousand stories to tell ~+~

Chapter 25

Love is when he gives you a piece of your soul, that you never knew was missing.

-Torquato Tasso

Immature love says: 'I love you because I need you.' Mature love says 'I need you because I love you.'

Erich Fromm

Love is a force more formidable than any other. It is invisible - it cannot be seen or measured, yet it is powerful enough to transform you in a moment, and offer you more joy than any material possession could.

Barbara de Angelis

Love isn't something you find. Love is something that finds you.

Loretta Young

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Such was the beginning of one of the most memorable days Lithuania had. He sat on one of Poland's couches, weeping into his hands, his thin frame shuddering with every breath he sobbed. As for Poland, he himself was standing nearby, eyeing his best friend with sorrow, searching for something to utter to comfort him. Poland rocked from his toes to his heels, determining what to say as he ran his pale fingers through his blonde hair slowly in deep thought. His green eyes did not carry their usual positive light, but Lithuania's were completely shrouded in heartbreak, which was revealed when he managed to pull his face out of his hands for a tissue. Poland's heart tore at the thought of his dear friend going through such torment that at length he finally sat beside him and stared at the ground, propping his elbows on his knees and clasping his hands together as he tried to form a sentence in his mind to say. At the very least, Poland wanted to make sure that this was not the worst day in Lithuania's memory, but it seemed impossible to prevent that from happening.

"She's signed the papers, I know it," Lithuania gasped for the third time that day when his crying calmed down slightly. His heart was breaking, and it was heard in every word he gasped.

"Liet, you don't know that for sure," Poland gently reminded him as he looked at his friend again.

"Poland, she never said she loved me... what reason does she have to stay with me?" Lithuania whispered as he locked eyes with his friend, his face being the epitome of utter sorrow and heartbreak.

Poland struggled to not start crying at the sight of his friend's tear-streaked face as he responded, "Well... that doesn't mean she doesn't love you... and... maybe... now that she has seen just how much you love her..Like... you know... maybe... she'll totally love you in the near future."

Again Lithuania buried his face in his hands and sobbed,"Why? What's the point? She knows what it's like to be married to me... why would she come back to that after leaving me? Besides... maybe I'm just not good enough for her... maybe it's best like this..."

At those words, Poland stood up and began pacing around the antique coffe table, repeating in his mind what Lithuania just sobbed. The more he thought about it, the more he became frustrated and angered. He refused to let his best friend talk about himself like that. He knew Lithuania didn't deserve such comments. He knew it. At last, he stood at Lithuania's side and quietly said, "Liet, stand up now."

Confused, Lithuania gazed at him and stood up, pondering what Poland wanted.

After a few seconds, Poland slapped Lithuania hard in the face and shouted, "LIET, DO NOT SAY ANYTHING LIKE THAT, LIKE, EVER AGAIN!"

Lithuania, who had fallen onto the couch with the unexpected impact, stared at Poland in shock and confusion as he blubbered, "What on earth do you mean?"

"LIET," Poland shouted, "I NEVER WANT TO HEAR YOU INSULT YOURSELF LIKE THAT! How... how could you even think that you are NOT good enough for Belarus? HOW? Like, all you have ever done is, like, be the nicest guy in the whole world to her! If you are not good enough for her, THEN NOBODY IS!"

As the words settled into his mind, Lithuania sat up straight and sighed, "Okay... but even if I am good enough... she may not want me. I've done all I can, Poland... I did everything I know how, but... she never said she loved me... even if I am good enough... in the end she will have to decide for herself who to love... and it may not be me."

At that, Poland flopped onto the couch beside his friend and sighed, knowing that he was correct. Lithuania, meanwhile, continued to quietly cry. For a year he poured himself into loving Belarus, trying everything he knew to woo her. Now, when he was so close to finally winning her, she was slipping through his fingers. It tormented his heart to think of losing her now, when he almost won her heart. On the other hand, he knew that if she didn't want him, he wasn't going to make her stay, because he loved her too much to pin her to himself.

Meanwhile, the war in Belarus' heart had begun fully. She placed her pen on the signature line, but found herself unable to sign. After trying and failing several times to sign, she put down the pen and contemplated what she truly desired. For a few moments, she gazed at the office with the simple, worn furniture, and the piles of papers on the edges of the desk, wondering what to do. Slowly, her memories came hopping back into her mind as she recalled how many times she saw Lithuania clean this room, and how many times she assisted him. For a moment, she pushed the divorce papers away and propped her pale face onto her hand as she considered her near past.

Lithuania and she had accumulated many good memories together in this simple, quiet house over the past year. She remembered the delicious meals they made together, the books they read together while she leaned on his shoulder, the sunrises they witnessed in awe, the conversations they had... there were so many lovely things to remember here. At first, she barely talked to him more than fifteen minutes, but now she truly enjoyed being with him... and now with that one slip of paper, that could be taken away from her. Did she want that? As she questioned herself, she remembered darker things that happened over the past year: her rudeness towards him initially, how much she hurt him physically, the days she made him bleed... and the day when she broke his heart by not saying that she wanted him physically. Indeed, she had a plethora of both good and bad memories with him in this one house in such a short time.

The more she recalled the dark memories, the more guilt clogged her heart and mind. Finally, a tear rolled down her cheek as she remembered all the times she screamed at him, and how he was always gentle with her, even when she deserved punishment. She also remembered the speech Russia gave her, and again the words pierced her, now coupled with all her new memories. For centuries, she pursued love from a source that never could give it to her the way she wanted it, and when she finally recieved it, she rejected it, cursed it, scourged it, and denied it. Nevertheless, she still recieved it; it seemed wrong that she should be loved in such a pure, unconditional way after how she treated the giver of this love for all this time.

Indeed, it wasn't just this past year that Lithuania loved her; it was centuries ago that he first was gentle with her. In fact, he was probably always kind to her, and all she ever did was beat him or scorn him somehow. How could he still love her after all this time? How could any man love her after all this time? By this time, she was crying, and she laid her face on the dark wooden desk as tears rolled down her cheeks and she breathed deeply. Suddenly, it hit her: in all her life, she would never find a man comparable to Lithuania; nobody would ever be kinder to her, surely... At that thought, she slowly raised her head and stared out the window in front of her and realized that she didn't want any other man... ever. After all these centuries she finally decided that she didn't want any man but Lithuania.

No, not Big Brother, not some other man, no man would suffice but Lithuania. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that even if she did SOMEHOW miraculously find a kinder man, she wouldn't want anyone besides Lithuania. At last, she realized that the reason why she enjoyed watching the sunrise with him, the reason why she wanted to sit as close to him at mealtimes, why she wanted to lean on him and listen as he read to her, why she wanted to help him clean, why she wanted to please him, why she wanted to look pretty for him, why she willingly laid in bed next to him under the same blanket, and the reason why she was crying now was that she was in love with him, and no one else would take his place in her heart that he earned there through his unconditional love towards her.

Knowing what she must do, she tore up the divorce papers into small shreds, threw it away, leaped out of the chair and rushed towards the front door, crying as she ran. Before she opened, she noticed her hand and stopped thoughtfully. Quickly she turned around and sprinted up the stairs to the bedroom, where she rifled through all the drawers until she located her wedding band. Sobbing, she placed the ring on her finger and then wiped her eyes so she could see as she charged back towards the front door.

Throwing open the front door, she called for Lithuania, hoping that he was nearby somewhere. Sadly, his car was missing. Feeling that she would have to wait all day for him to return, Belarus sighed sorrowfully. Then she remembered that Lithuania had a best friend who he always went to when things went wrong: Poland. Determining in which direction was Poland's house, Belarus dashed forward, across the lawn, down the driveway and along the dirt roads. Repeatedly she tripped and fell and picked herself up again to keep going forward, tears streaming down her face the entire time. She ran continuously, fueled with her determination to find her husband and tell him how much he meant to her. No, he was not quite nearby, but to her the distance she ran flew by in seconds and was a mere stretch of the legs.

At length, she arrived, panting heavily, at Poland's house and knocked on the door fiercely. Surprised, Poland walked over to the front door while Lithuania watched, wondering who it was. As soon as the door was open, Belarus flew into the room and found Lithuania sitting on the couch.

Instanly, Lithuania was on his feet, unable to do anything but study Belarus, barely believing that she was truly panting before him. There she was, slightly sweaty, with traces of dirt and leaves in her hair and her clothes, panting like an exhausted dog. Nevertheless, to Lithuania she was stunning, and as she spoke to him his heart raced faster and faster.

"Toris, I am so sorry for everything I put you through in the past year... you didn't deserve... any of the pain... that I gave you... and I... just... I just want you to know that... I love you," She breathed, finally catching her breath on the last three words, which made Lithuania gasp quietly in amazement.

"You... love... me?" He whispered, unable to fathom the idea.

Poland was nearby, closing the door and listening to every word.

"Yes... I do... I do love you, and I don't want anyone else but you! I... I want to spend the rest of my life with you, and... I don't want to be just someone in the same house with the same last name as you-I want to be your wife." Belarus sobbed as she stood in front of him.

"Tasha... are you sure you want me, for the rest of your life? We could be alive another thousand years... are you sure you want me?" Lithuania questioned, hardly able to comprehend that this was not a dream.

Belarus nodded and wiped tears from Lithuania's eyes lovingly while Lithuania did the same for her. They could both tell that the other was crying at first because they feared losing each other, but now because they knew they would be together. Lithuania threw his arms around Belarus and buried his face in her pale hair as he allowed more tears to stream from his eyes. For a few moments the two watered each other with their tears as they realized that they didn't have to fear losing each other. After a few seconds, Belarus pushed back from him slightly so she could gaze into his eyes. Soon, she leaned forward, closed her eyes, and deeply kissed him. For the next few minutes the two exchanged kisses, happy that they would be together.

As for Poland, at first he was excited, but then the moment became increasingly awkward as he realized that the two love birds may be... osculating for a while.

"Uhm... like... I'm just gonna... uhm... get a... uhm... I'll... like... just... go and... uhm.. yeah... just... do your... happy... moment thing without me, okay?" Poland declared, heading towards the door as he spoke, unsure of what else to do.

At that, Lithuania withdrew from Belarus for a moment and assured him, "No... I'll leave... and I'll take my wife home with me."

After that, he scooped Belarus into his arms and carried out the open door while she nuzzled him happily. Poland watched as Lithuania placed Belarus in the car and then drove off with her as if they were going on their honeymoon. As soon as the car was out of sight, Poland shut the door and began dancing around his home, glad that his friend FINALLY got the woman he loved.

Lithuania, meanwhile, escorted Belarus home and carried her bridal-style into the bedroom, where the two finally became one.

Dear Reader:

I dedicated this to people who needed help to keep loving.

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Thank you all for keeping up with this and waiting for me, thanks!

The pioneer with a heart for people and a thousand stories to tell