Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia

White cotton clouds conspicuously drifted in the empty blue sky with a wink of sunlight streaking its golden filter through the glass windows, rooftops, and doorsteps of the neighboring houses. The bustling and lively façade of the central plaza was like that of an illness – easily spread and contagious – its welcoming atmosphere beguiling citizens and pedestrians alike under its spell. Combined with the refreshing ambiance and amplifying cries frequently heard through the public streets, it was a sight to behold.

Plopping his rear down on the wooden bench, Alfred proceeded to take out the contents of the brown plastic bag beside him: revealing a hamburger and a can of coke. Tearing the wrapper, he then took a big bite of the hamburger. While doing so, he hoisted his right leg over the other for a comfortable sitting.

Three days had passed since the preliminary rounds of the gig.

Despite the intense performance brought by Star Fest, it was his orchestra band, however, that dominated the stage, retaining its unwavering reputation of excellence. Although they had won, it doesn't give them the right to start slacking off. It was only the first round. Everything would matter when they do reach the third and final round. According to Arthur, their next gig was going to be held in the third week of April. A smile traces its way through his lips.

Three more days left.

Three more days until Alfred could finally see Lien again.

Thinking back to the night of the karaoke party, shortly after storming off, he was startled to discover that it was Lien who had gone after him. For a brief moment, he was able to spend time with her as well as getting to show her the place he had loved the most. When he got the courage to ask her for a picture, she quickly dismissed it, reasoning that she could not smile. Without warning, he slowly dove in, touching her nose and forehead and then almost kissing her.

Alfred lowered his head in dismay, sinking his teeth further in the burger. For god sake, he literally just met her for one day and then he suddenly had the nerve of making the first move! 'But it felt right…' He thought, trying to bypass the inner guilt. Once he had finished with the burger, he tossed the wrapper into the plastic bag. Afterward, he took out the can of coke, popping it open and began drinking. That woman, no—Lien, was making him go crazy.

"Thinking about her?"

Alfred spits out the contents.

"What the f**k?" He cried hysterically, clutching the right side of his chest while coughing brashly in a fit. "Don't scare me like that!" Breathing heavily, he turned around. "Gilbert?"

The albino puffed his chest out, "The one and only!"

"Shouldn't you be taking pictures?" Alfred asked, wiping his mouth with a napkin.

Gilbert shrugged. "What, is it a crime to hang out with my best friend?" He asked teasingly. "'Sides, my shift's already over."

"What about Kiku?"

Gilbert gestured over to the photo booth. "He's checking out," He answered. A foxlike grin appeared on his face, "Anyway, are you thinking what I think you're thinking?"

Alfred cracked a grin nervously. "You gotta be more specific, dude."

"Come on, you know who," Gilbert wiggled his eyebrows, nudging him on the shoulder. "It's that Lien chick right?"

When Gilbert received silence for an answer, he laughed. "Hah! I knew it!"

"Is it really that obvious?" Alfred wondered, chuckling.

"I don't know. I mean, you had that weird look on your face so I assumed," Gilbert confessed, throwing his arms behind his head.

"Weird look?"

"Yeah," Gilbert said matter-of-factly. "Like a fool in love."

"Oh? Like how you look at Elizabeta?"

"Yeah, I guess," Gilbert trailed off. His eyes suddenly widened like saucers upon realizing what he had spilled. "Bastard, it ain't like that!"

"Excuse me for my lateness!" Kiku said as he approached his two best friends with his Canon camera in tow. "Did I miss anything?"

"Nope!" Both Alfred and Gilbert simultaneously cried.

Kiku blinked before eventually brushing it off. Carefully placing his camera inside of his black shoulder bag, he continued. "Anyway, there is something that I would like to discuss." Folding his arms, he stuck out one index finger. "As you may recall, the next gig is roughly about three days away," He explained to them. "With the limited amount of time we have left, we would need to enhance our skills to the up most potential."

Gilbert furrowed his eyebrows. "Yeah, so?"

"I suggest that we do a practice session."

Hearing this, Gilbert beamed. "Hold on! So like, a sleepover right?"

Kiku sighed lowly, murmuring to himself as he shook his head. "Of course, you would say that."

"What about your brother? Isn't he going to be there?" Alfred pressed on.

"Fear not. I talked to him beforehand and he claimed that he would be working overtime tonight. Which means, we would have the whole place to ourselves." Kiku clarified before quickly adding, "But that doesn't give you guys the right to start messing around!"

"Woohoo! Count me in!" Gilbert cried, throwing a fist into the air.

Kiku nodded before turning his attention to the bespectacled young man. "What's your response, Alfred?"

The young man in question was deep in thought, rethinking it over. "I'm not sure. It's pretty risky."

"To do a practice session?" Kiku asked.

"No, I mean visiting your place." Alfred reasoned. "I don't think I have the right to go there."

"Alfred, you're talking bullshit." Upon hearing a dramatic gasp from the albino, Kiku quickly included, "Yes, I cursed, I know!" Before confronting back at Alfred, "You know that my brother doesn't think of you like that anymore."

"Come on, Alfred!" Gilbert urged, joining in on the conversation. "The three musketeers gotta stick together!"

Alfred grinned cheekily, scratching the back of his neck fondly. "Well, if you put it that way…"

"And you said yes?"

Alfred shook rapidly, putting his hands on his hips, smiling widely. "Yeah!"

"You bloody idiot," Arthur clenched his teeth, raising his voice. "You do realize that you're walking in enemy territory?"

"Bro, relax," Alfred said gently in an effort to calm the gentleman from losing his mind. "For the last time, Kiku is one of us now and I trust him. Do you?"

"Of course, I do!" Arthur quickly remarked. "I'm just worried about your well-being."

"Hey, it's awesome that you are looking out for me," Alfred began. "But I'm nineteen. You can't keep treating me like a kid forever."

"You know I can't," Arthur lamented, lowering his head.

It was true. For as long as he could remember, Arthur had always been protective around his younger brothers. Since the unfortunate death of their parents, Arthur took it upon himself to raise his brothers the way he knew that they would have wanted: to be proper gentlemen.

Long before and believe it or not, Arthur was once a rebel himself, dressing in preposterous rock music tee shirts and playing the electric guitar. Obviously, their parents detested his immature taste, with his father usually the one to quarrel with Arthur. It wasn't until one faithful day that changed everything; on their way back home to the States from a business trip in Ukraine, it unexpectedly resulted in an airplane crash, killing them in the process. Although the twins were minor toddlers at the time, the news hit the eldest like a truck.

Such a haunting memory reminded Arthur to take the responsibility of being a guardian for Alfred and Matthew, promising to never again walk down on that path and guide his brothers to a respective one that he knew that would please their parents.

"It's already been seven years, bro." Alfred urged, giving him an assuring tug on the sleeve. "Just let me do what I want."

Arthur groaned, "Alfred, please—"

"Brother, just let him go."

The two brothers stopped, promptly turning to face the youngest member of their family.

"Matthew," Alfred began, addressing his sudden presence.

"Just let him go," Matthew repeated softly, cutting the gentleman's words short. "I appreciate your concern for us but we have three years left attending college. Whether you like it or not, we are going to have to learn how to be adults on our own."

"Matthew, you don't understand—"

"Yes I do, brother," Matthew explained, taking a stand. "It's hard, but you have to give Al here a chance. He doesn't seem to look like the part—"

"Hey!"

Matthew put a finger on his lips, shushing his twin. "But he has a heart of gold and should be given a chance."

Arthur crinkled his nose before finally heaving a sigh. "Alright, you got me," He said, smiling bitterly. Turning his attention back to Alfred, he continued, "Take care of yourself, understand? I expect you to come back home tomorrow at 10 am sharp, safe and sound."

Alfred couldn't control himself and wrapped his arms around Arthur and Matthew, pulling them both in a bear hug. After a few minutes, the three awkwardly brushed themselves off of each other, with Arthur being the first to tear away.

"Be safe," Arthur, reminded him, retaining his listless expression and then left to go to his study room.

Alfred laughed, stretching his arm to tousle Matthew's hair in a playful matter. "Thanks, bro,"

Suddenly, Alfred felt a light tug between his legs. Looking down, he smiled, bending a knee to greet the Chow Chow. "Hey there, Kumajirou!" He greeted cheerfully, earning a lick on one of his hands.

Matthew kneeled down as well, stroking Kumajirou's soft white fur. "Al?"

Alfred looked up, "Yeah?"

Matthew placed a hand on his twin's shoulder, squeezing it. "Be careful."

In the outskirts of the city laid a large white-bricked building.

Regardless of its dull exterior in which consisted of rock stone material with beige color and its roof painted bluish gray, it held a certain atmosphere of serenity and hospitality. Large white curtains draped over the large windows, making it almost impossible for others to see what was inside. Miniature shrubs and patches of hydrangea resided on the edges of the front yard and of the cobblestone pathway leading up to the entrance. Wooden white fences surrounded the lovely home, adding to its authentic appearance.

Gilbert gripped the strap of his black duffle bag, his scarlet eyes admiring the architectural details of the house before him. "Sweet place," He commented, licking his lips.

"Right?" Alfred piped in, his brown messenger bag stationed on his right side while the other gripping tightly on his instrument case. "Hahaha, it took a long time for Kiku to explain to me that he wasn't rich."

"You serious?" Gilbert gawked, "Damn, I would trade houses with him in a heartbeat."

"Same, dude." Alfred agreed.

Upon reaching the front door, Gilbert quickly flung his duffle bag on the ground and yelled loudly, "Yo, Kiku! We're here!" When he didn't get an answer, he resorted to banging on the door, "Hey, we know you're in there!"

Alfred followed along, ringing the doorbell. "Kiku! Open the door!"

After a few minutes, they heard faint sounds of clicking inside.

Finally, the door opened.

However, the presence of the individual in front of them was who they least expected to be.

"Xiao Mei?" Alfred began, breaking the silence.

"That's me!" Xiao Mei chanted, saluting. "So you're the guests Kiku's talking about?"

"Righto!" Gilbert answered, saluting back.

Xiao Mei stepped aside, giving them access to enter. "Come in, come in!"

The two nodded, entering the house. Once they stepped inside, Xiao Mei quickly hurled back to close the door.

Gilbert let out a whistle, smiling once more.

Besides the exterior, the interior of the house was even more impressive.

Before them was a large room with a fireplace in the center along with two jade colored couches furnished evenly edged on the sides, arranged with pillows of simple tartan patterning.

Between the couches was a small mahogany coffee table accompanied with a glass vase adorned with efflorescence daisies. Posters of handwritten calligraphy hung on the cream-tinted walls. On the far left side, there was a narrow hallway with several doors evenly lined up on each side. At the end of the hall was a staircase, leading upstairs.

"Line up your shoes here," She advised to them, pointing to the wooden rack consisting of other shoe wear.

After arranging their shoes, Xiao Mei proceeded to move forward. "Kiku will be here in a sec," She explained, gesturing to the large room. "In the meantime, why don't the two of you wait in the living room?"

"Thanks, Xiao Mei." Alfred thanked, earning a thumbs up from the girl.

Once Xiao Mei was out of sight, the albino took the opportunity to sprint toward the living room and throwing himself on one of the couches, "This is the life!" He shouted along with a pleasing sigh. "Ain't that right, Alfred?"

There was no answer. Furrowing his eyebrows, Gilbert rose from the couch, searching around the area. He was alone. "Huh? Where'd he go?"

A figure emerged out from the staircase, fuming. "Care to tell me what the hell you're doing?"

"Kiku!" Gilbert greeted his best friend, "Took you long enough to show up!"

Kiku shot a glare. "Was it really necessary to ring the bell and bang on the door?" He grumbled lowly, rubbing one of his eyes in annoyance. His short onyx hair was tousled all over the place, indicating that he had just gotten out of bed from an afternoon nap.

"Hey, least you woke up, so it's worth it!" Gilbert beamed.

From the corner of his eye, Kiku noticed the pile of bags next to the side of the front entrance. Recognizing the brown messenger bag next to Gilbert's duffel bag, he asked another question. "Where's Alfred?"

"That's what I'll like to know." Gilbert groaned.

All Kiku could do was let out a sigh. "Whatever. So long as he's in the house,"

"Woah!" Gilbert cried out, causing Kiku to jump a little.

"What's the matter? What's wrong?" Kiku asked frantically.

"I didn't know you had a PlayStation 4!" Gilbert shouted, pointing at the game console that was sandwiched between the large flat screen television and CD shelves. "Can we play? Can we play?"

"Gilbert—"

"Pretty please with a cherry on top?" Gilbert pleaded, giving him puppy eyes.

Heaving a deep breath, Kiku finally responded. "Why not."

"Sis, sis! You won't believe who's here!"

Lien sighed deeply. Taking a step back from the marble counter, she motioned over to the pair of cabbages and lettuce aligned on the cutting board with a green tinted kitchen knife firmly on her dominant left hand. A yellow apron covered the front of her body, her dark brown hair still kept in a loose ponytail. "Mei, can't you see I'm doing something?"

Xiao Mei quickly clasped her hands together, chanting, "I'm sorry for being inconsiderate!"

Lien giggled. "Why don't you go back and tend to our visitors?" She suggested kindly.

"What about you? Don't you need help?"

Lien shook her head. "I'll be fine on my own," She assured to her.

Xiao Mei stared at Lien blankly before finally responding with yet another shake of her head. "Okay!"

Focusing back on the task at hand, Lien continued to cut the vegetables into minuscule pieces.

It had only been roughly three days since her and her sister was granted the authority to live under the same roof with Yao and Kiku. With this in mind, she did not expect strangers to come over. Before, Lien used to hear stories from Yao of family visits that they would typically get from time to time. When she found out from Kiku that his friends were going to stay overnight, she immediately took the role of providing meals.

Compared to her sister, Xiao Mei was a mess in the kitchen. Although such a thought comforted her, Lien decided to step up her game by planning ahead; making sure to prepare some samples of confectionaries for the visitors.

Just then, her ears picked up the sound of footsteps from behind.

Lien rolled her eyes, "Mei, if you're thinking of sneaking up on me, it's not going to work."

Suddenly, her vision became shrouded in darkness.

Before Lien could protest, a masculine voice erupted.

"Guess who?"

Lien held her breath.

This person wasn't Mei.

Instinctively, Lien grabbed hold on one of their hands that covered her face and with all her might, tossed the person against the counters. She tightened the grip of her kitchen knife and thrust forward, its blade dangerously inches away from their nose.

"Lien! Relax, it's me!"

Lien blinked. She curiously beckoned down, her amber eyes intertwining with sky blue. "Alfred?"

"Good to see you again," Alfred greeted awkwardly.

"Forgive me, I did not know!" Lien quickly apologized, releasing her hold on him.

"It's fine, it was my fault anyway." Alfred reasoned, chuckling. "I wanted to surprise you but I guess it didn't turn out as good as I—" His words faded midway, his eyes slightly widening. "Lien, you're bleeding!"

Lien tilted her head, "Huh? I am?" Looking down, she noticed the scrape of blood on one of her index fingers. "Oh, it's not a big deal." She stated; shrugging it off like it was nothing. "I'll just go and fetch a bandage from the medicine cabinet."

He strapped his arm around her protectively, pulling her body toward him. "There's no time for that!"

Before Lien could protest, Alfred inserted her injured finger into his mouth. She stood there, blushing madly as she tried to process what just happened. Her puzzled face faltered for a brief second. She switches her attention to look down at the tilted jade colored floors, biting her lower lip. This guy was full of surprises.

A minute later, Alfred finally withdrew her finger.

"D-did you really have to do that?" She stammered.

Alfred looked at her as if she produced two heads. "Are you kidding? If I didn't do that, you could've died!"

"Alfred, it was only a paper cut," Lien reassured, placing the kitchen knife on the cutting board.

"To you it is!" Alfred defended.

Lien stifled a giggle.

Alfred noticed this change of behavior and quirked an eyebrow. "What's so funny?"

In response, Lien playfully punched him on the shoulder. "You dummy, I'm fine!"

"You sure?"

"Yes," She confirmed, her lips tugging to form a soft smile.

"Hey, you're smiling!" Alfred commented.

Lien pursed her lips, touching the loose strands of her hair. "Huh? I am?"

Alfred let out a hearty laugh, his grin growing at her oblivious innocence. "It's beautiful," He continued before quietly murmuring to himself, "Just like you."

"So I'm guessing you are one of Kiku's visitors?" Lien asked, changing the topic.

Alfred nodded. "That's right. By the way, why are you and Xiao Mei here?"

"Kiku didn't tell you?" Lien wondered, receiving a shrug. "Something happened in our household and in the meantime, Yao and Kiku allowed both of us to stay with them."

"Is that safe?"

Lien furrowed her eyebrows, "What do you mean?"

"Yao and Kiku are guys." Alfred reasoned, "You never know what they might do to you."

Lien shook her head, "I trust them. We have known each other for a long time. They are practically family."

All of a sudden, a buzzing sound erupted in the kitchen. Lien brought a hand in a big pouch of her yellow apron, unveiling her phone. Clicking the button in the middle, an arrangement of numbers appeared on the screen. She cursed under her breath; "It's that time already?"

Alfred blinked. "Everything okay?"

"Yeah, I had set a timer earlier to remind myself to go grocery shopping," Lien explained to him as she began untying the apron around her neck and hanging it on a nearby hanger on the wall.

"Can I come along?"

"I'm afraid you can't," Lien declined.

"Why not?"

"You're a guest today," Lien explained further. "I don't want you to get involved with my own issues," And then walked away, leaving him.

"Lien, wait!"

Lien gasped as an unknown force took her wrist, jerking her back and forcing her to look over her shoulder.

"I want to help." Alfred declared firmly.

"Alfred—"

"Just let me help you."

Without knowing, Lien was getting lost in his eyes.

She partially opened her mouth, finally surrendering, "…Okay."

Author's Note:

It's been a week since I last updated and so I would like to formally apologize for my absence. I ended up using most of my energy on the previous chapter and needed time to draft this one. Wow, finally the seventh chapter is here! I can't believe how popular this fanfiction has become. Just a month ago, I thought that it was going to be a one-shot but here I am still writing!

I would like to give a shout out and say thank you once again for the fellow reviewers and readers who have always supported me!

This chapter took a lot of toll for me only because of one thing: it wasn't planned in the first place! I had a hard time trying to end this chapter (I had something else in mind) but thought that I should expand Alfred and Lien's relationship a bit more before the next part happens (something big!) Other than that, I was able to expand more on Alfred, Arthur and Matthew's background (I had fun writing the dialogue!).

Originally, Kiku's house was supposed to be traditional but ended up turning out to be a modern style instead (forgive me, I tried!)

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to insert anyone new (unless you consider Kumajirou-showed up back in Ch.2).

If you can, I would appreciate if I can get some more requests for other characters to pop up!

As much as I want to spoil what the next chapter would be, I already gave out some foreshadowing in this chapter so hopefully it would get some wheels turning. Oh and don't worry, next chapter is NOT the end if any of you are confused of what I was trying to say.

It's going to take a while for me again draft, revise/edit, publish (I decided that I would update one chapter per week)

Again, your opinions are greatly much appreciated!