Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia

The day was gorgeous like any other—the sun was bright and scorching beyond the horizon with no means of surrendering its golden regime. Large, conspicuous clouds endlessly roamed across the azure blue sky, as if displaying a live mural for all to see.

Down below at the heart of the city, specifically the Central Plaza was as hectic as ever, the constant hustle and bustling atmosphere becoming quite the iconic activity within the area.

Not too far away from the photo booth were a collection of wooden tables and chairs that were organized into one secluded section. From there, a certain trio is settled in comfortably at one of the tables, each with their own respective food.

Crushing his Pepsi soda can, the albino closed the lid of an empty, cylinder-shaped plastic container that was once filled with vegetation and salad dressing. Taking the container in his hands, he carefully put it inside of a plastic bag along with the crushed soda can.

Pushing them aside, Gilbert then shoved a free hand into one of the pockets of his sweater, unveiling a rolled up piece of paper. Unwrapping it, he proceeded to present the paper in front of his best friends. "Hey, check this out!"

Looking up, Alfred opened his mouth to speak. Unfortunately, his words were quite difficult to decipher as his mouth was stuffed with hamburger meat, "Whet's thaw?"

Witnessing this, Kiku rolled his eyes as he shook his head, "Alfred, finish eating your food." He advised to his bespectacled best friend who sat right next to him. Placing his chopsticks on top of his bento case, he stretched his arm outward, pulling the flyer forward for better inspection. Narrowing his eyes, Kiku began to read aloud the large heading imprinted on the flyer, "Lantern festival?"

Gilbert produced a cheeky grin. "It's this awesome event that occurs once a year in the city," He explained with a rather cheerful demeanor, "So, how about it? You guys wanna go or what?"

"When is this festival going to happen?" Kiku asked curiously.

"Today!" Gilbert said immediately, "Starts from around eight o'clock till noon."

Absorbing in the new information, Kiku furrowed his eyebrows, "Gilbert, you are aware that the third and final round is tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, I know," Gilbert responded casually. When he received a glare from Kiku, his shoulders slumped as he groaned, "Are we seriously gonna talk about this? Come on, we gotta go!"

Once Alfred finished consuming the rest of his hamburger, he decided to join in on their conversation, "Sounds pretty fun!"

Gilbert nodded his head enthusiastically. "See that, Kiku?" He persisted, "Alfred's interested in going!"

Kiku heaved a sigh. Feeling a headache coming in, Kiku placed a hand on his forehead. "Why would you inform us about this right now when you could've mentioned it during the beach trip?"

"Hey, it ain't my fault I'm bad with timing!" Gilbert cried, raising his arms up in defense.

Alfred laughed, "Gilbert, is there something you aren't telling us?" He asked in a teasing manner.

Suddenly, the albino rose up from his chair, slamming his bare hands against the wooden table. "Wha—there isn't anything to talk about!" He cried, his cheeks turning beet red. "And for your information, that woman's got nothing to do with this!"

Taking notice of a few people in the background pausing to watch them, Kiku cleared his throat, "Gilbert, sit down." He muttered with a surprisingly calm tone. "You are causing a disturbance."

Unfortunately, Gilbert ignored him. "Heh, what about you, ace?" He asked, directing his question toward Alfred. As he said that, a hint of mischievousness seeped in his voice. "Still up on cloud nine because of that Lien girl?"

Alfred scratched the back of his head, blushing. "Was it that obvious?" He said, laughing away.

Gilbert snorted, "Pssh, what do you think?"

Three days passed since the beach trip that they all attended together with their orchestra band, World gig. Upon hearing that their rivaling band, Star Fest was spotted at the same beach; Alfred was determined to find Lien.

Along the way, he encountered Basch and Lukas who were involved in a heated argument about which one of them was the better brother. Luckily for Alfred, he was miraculously saved by Emil and Lily. And just when he thought that it couldn't get any worse, Alfred bumped into Carlos who requested that he play volleyball. As he resisted the urge to do so, it wasn't until Ivan appeared that prompted Alfred to be more than willing to accept. Because of this, his ambition to search for Lien left him to get sidetracked momentarily.

On the bright side, Alfred was able to find her afterward. However, it was because of his clumsiness that he's able to see her again.

A smile unconsciously spreads through his lips. Regardless of how he was able to have about fifteen minutes to interact with Lien, the discussion that he had with her was one that he'll never forget. From randomly talking about his glasses, his late parents and to the bet in which they both agreed upon—every single minute that Alfred got to spend with her was definitely worth the wait.

And if that wasn't enough…

Alfred blushed as he was suddenly reminded of the unexpected kiss in which they shared. It started when he suggested a bet to her and if he ever won, he would be rewarded with a kiss. Shortly after attaining victory from his volleyball match, Alfred quickly rushed to find Lien once more as the thought of her lips interlocking with his own made him excited. And by the time he approached her, Alfred suggested that she should be the one to start their kiss off.

To Alfred, it felt like a scene that came out from a movie. There they were—standing side-by-side, alone on the beach and under the dazzling, blue sky.

It was everything that Alfred had ever dreamed of...

...Only to go downhill as his friends interrupted their intimate moment. At that point, Alfred thought that it was all over.

That is until Lien surprised him with a kiss.

And in that moment, his whole world turned upside down.

"Hopefully, that'll satisfy you in the next few days."

Recalling the words that Lien said to him, Alfred couldn't help but fall even more in love with her.

How can such a simple, innocent kiss impact him so much? Although Lien said that her kiss would satisfy him, it didn't. Was it bad that he was secretly hungering for more? Damn, and who knew that she was such a great kisser? Knowing that, Alfred frowned a little.

If so, that would mean that Lien was already experienced. Compared to him, this was actually the first time he had ever kissed anyone outside his family. 'I'll have to ask Lien what she thinks.'

"HELLO? EARTH TO ALFRED!"

Alfred blinked immaculately. Peering up, his sky blue eyes clashed with the color of scarlet red, "Yeah?"

"Don't 'yeah' me!" Gilbert cried as he seated himself back down on his seat. "Are you okay?"

"This is about the sixth time Gilbert had to shout your name," Kiku added in with a concerned expression. "Is something troubling you?"

Alfred quickly shook his head, laughing, "Hahaha! I'm fine!" He assured to them as he pushed his specs to the bridge of his nose. "Got distracted, is all."

"You've been spacing out lately," Gilbert began, folding his arms over his chest. "You sure you're okay?"

Alfred shook his head firmly, "'Course I am!"

Exchanging quick glances with Gilbert across the table, Kiku heaved out a sigh before muttering, "…If you say so."

"Anyway, we were calling ya 'cause we wanted to know if you still wanna go," Gilbert explained further as he anticipated for an answer.

"To the Lantern Festival?" Alfred asked, gaining unanimous nods from his best friends. "Totally!"

"Alright!" Gilbert cried as he raised a fist toward his best friend, who gladly accepted as he, too performed the same gesture back at him.

Turning his attention to his other best friend, Alfred asked, "What about you, Kiku? You going?"

Kiku frowned, "Honestly, I don't know." He muttered quietly, "Tomorrow is the final round. If we keep on fooling around, we won't be able to—"

"Didn't I tell you not to talk about that crap?" Gilbert interrupted, "If you keep on yapping about the future, you're only gonna make yourself, even more, stressed out!"

"Look, I just don't want something to happen again like what it did in the second round," Kiku explained in an attempt to justify behind his reasoning. Switching his focus from the albino and toward the bespectacled young man, he continued, "As for you Alfred, the next time you pull a stunt like that, make sure to tell us what you'll be doing before disappearing off."

Alfred nodded. "Okay," He said before emitting a goofy grin. "Then you guys will be the first to know the stupid things I'll do."

Kiku scoffed, "You better."

Hearing this, Gilbert slanted his head slightly to the side, "Wait, I'm confused. So, are you going or what?"

Kiku shrugged, "Someone is going to have to be there if one of you do something stupid," He said casually, "So, why not?"

"Woohoo, it's settled then!" Gilbert cried, pumping a fist into the air.

"Now that we've got that covered, there's another problem." Kiku began, his lips forming into a straight line. "Where do we meet up?"

Gilbert ruffled his silver hair, frowning, "Damn, that's true."

Inspecting the flyer that Kiku held in his grasp, he continued, "How about we meet at my place? The address on this flyer is pretty close to my place."

Alfred grinned, forming thumbs up. "Sounds good!"

"Sweet!" Gilbert commented, his scarlet eyes twinkling with excitement. Taking out his phone, he swipes the phone screen. Pressing the call app, he began dialing numbers on impulse.

Curious, Kiku asked, "Who else are you planning to invite?"

Gilbert paused what he was doing and peered up, "Huh? Oh, Mathias." He said before shrugging, "Poor guy still couldn't get over the rejection. Might as well let him tag along to cheer him up, ya know?"

Kiku turned silent and nodded in response.

Alfred, on the other hand, dipped his head down. As he did so, his fingers reached inside his collar and took out his dog tag. Touching its metallic surface fondly, Alfred grinned.

'Today is going to be a great day.' He thought happily, 'I can feel it.'

The shimmering sun rays had long since disappeared over the horizon, replaced with a collection of illuminated stars. The vast expanse of blackness darkened as nightfall wore on, engulfing the entire city. Normally at a time like this, the local streets of the neighborhood were expected to be dull and lackluster with barely any people wandering around.

However, this wasn't an ordinary night.

"Thanks a bunch for letting me tag along!" Mathias began as he rotated his body to get a clear, full view of his friends. Flashing a grin, he continued, "Man, this is gonna be awesome!"

Quickening his pace, Gilbert gave the Nordic a pat on the back. "Yeah, you know it!" He exclaimed, placing his arms behind his head, followed by a hearty chuckle. "Ain't that right, Alfred?"

Hearing his name being called, the bespectacled young man smirked. "Sounds about right," Alfred said, still focusing on the road ahead. His ears perked up by the sound of high-pitch shrieking, causing Alfred to peer over his shoulder and take note of the small gathering of children and their families passing by them.

Seeing this, he couldn't help but produce a smile.

"Hey, what's with that look, Alfie?" Mathias asked teasingly.

Alfred halted in his tracks, motioning his head to face them, his smile lingering on his lips. "Oh, nothing." As soon as he said that, he then raised one arm up, extending one of his index fingers to point toward a building. Putting his free hand on his hip, he cried, "Hey, would you look at that? We're already here!"

Both Gilbert and Mathias frowned. As their line of vision followed the extension of Alfred's finger, they were greeted by the sudden presence of Kiku's house.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, Gilbert decided to step forward. "Damn, I still wanna trade houses with Kiku." He said, licking his lips.

"I'm with you on that," Alfred chimed in, admiring the white-bricked building as well.

"Holy shit, this is where Kiku lives?" Mathias cried abruptly, causing the two to get his attention. "Why didn't anyone tell me?"

"You didn't know?" Gilbert asked before snickering, "Dude, you are missing out on life!"

Pushing the front gate wide open, Alfred cried, "Come on guys! Kiku should be waiting!" He didn't bother to wait for his friends to catch up and marched onward, leading the way.

"Hey, wait up!" Gilbert cried. Just as he was about to follow his best friend, he realized that the Nordic was no longer near his side. Bringing his hands close to his mouth, he shouted, "Math, over here!"

Snapping from his intense gaze on the building, Mathias looked up in confusion. It wasn't until realization had hit him that he quickly made his way to his friends who patiently waited for him in front of the doorstep.

"Sorry for that. The house is just…" Mathias trailed off, trying to choose the right words carefully. Something pressed on his shoulder, causing him to jump slightly from contact.

"No worries, Math. Believe it or not, I also had the same reaction as you." Gilbert assured his friend.

Meanwhile, Alfred proceeded to raise his hand up. Just as he was about to knock, the front door abruptly opened, revealing a familiar figure.

"Kiku!" Alfred greeted happily, "Ready to go, buddy?"

Kiku nodded silently, closing the door behind him.

Making sure that it was officially closed, he pulled out a ring of keys. Fishing one into the door slot, he turned it in a circular motion. Shortly after, he reached for the doorknob and attempted to turn it again. A tiny smile appeared on his face when he learned it was firmly locked. Patting the front of his black jeans, he carefully inserted the keys inside one of the pockets. Twisting his heels around, Kiku turned to face his group of friends once more. "Alright, let's go."

As they began to walk away from the front door, all of a sudden, Alfred stopped walking.

Noticing the lack of his presence, Kiku asked, "What's the matter, Alfred?"

Ruffling his sandy blonde hair, Alfred looked up with a sheepish smile, "You don't suppose Lien and Xiao Mei could come?"

"Whoa! Great idea, Alfie!" Mathias piped in.

Unfortunately, Kiku didn't approve one bit. "I'll have to decline."

Gilbert clicked his tongue, "What are you talking about?" He cried, "Aren't you living with both of them?"

"Yes, but—"

"That means you know their schedule, right?" Gilbert pressed on. When he gained a nod, he continued, "What's the harm of letting them join then?"

Kiku pursed his lips. "I don't know." He said quietly. "I just feel like we could be bothering—" He didn't get to finish the rest of his sentence upon catching sight of his best friend who bent his knees to get something from the ground. Creasing his eyebrows, he asked, "What are you doing?"

Gripping onto the small pebble within his grasp, Alfred casually shrugged, "Only one way to find out."

Before Kiku could say anything, it was already too late.

With the swing of his arm, Alfred flung the pebble with all his might, aiming it toward the windows above the entrance. Much to his dismay, he threw the pebble too high up and as a result, barely hit the glass pane.

"Dammit," Alfred muttered under his breath, "One more time!"

Squatting back down, Alfred eagerly searched for more pebbles to use to throw.

Mathias beamed, "Hey, Alfie! Let me help you out!"

"Sure! Go right ahead!" Alfred responded back, laughing, "I'm gonna need all the help I can get!"

Witnessing the scene unfold before him, all Kiku could do was stand there with a blank look.

It wasn't until he heard Mathias volunteering to provide some assistance that he unconsciously slapped a hand against his temple. "What idiots," He whispered to himself. Thrashing his hand back inside his jeans, he fished out his house keys again. "You guys do realize that I have keys to open the door, right?"

Shooting his head up, Alfred dramatically gasped, "What? And leave out all the fun?" He cracked a smile. "I don't think so!"

Gilbert stifled a chuckle, forming thumbs up. "Alright, that's our ace!"

Kiku's left eye twitched in annoyance. "Gilbert, don't encourage him!" As he said so, he began retracing his steps back to the entrance.

"Huh? Kiku, where are you going?" Gilbert cried almost in a hurry, "Oh god, don't tell me you're backfiring on us!"

"You guys insisted we get Lien and Mei right?" Kiku replied back without bothering to look back. "Well, that's what I'm doing!"

"But that's boring!" Mathias complained, "Can't you accept that we're doing something cool for once?" When he didn't get a response, the Nordic snorted. "Party pooper."

Rising up from the ground, Alfred frowned a little. "Hey, don't blame him." He said, defending his best friend. "He's acting like this because his big brother happens to be home."

Mathias sneered, "Really? Ugh, that sucks."

Alfred shook his head, "Tell me about it," He said, agreeing with him, "So, who wants to go first?"

Reaching out toward the stack of pebbles in which they gathered earlier, Mathias took hold of one and gripped it as tightly as he could. "I'll go!" He proclaimed with confidence etched in his voice. Standing up once more, he stretched his dominant arm back while lifting his opposite leg, almost as if he were imitating a pitcher-like stance. Careful not to use too much of his strength, Mathias swung his arm forward, his action quite identical to what his bespectacled friend recently performed. "Watch this!"

Though much like Alfred, Mathias didn't hit the target as much as he had hoped.

While Alfred threw his pebble a bit too high, he, however, threw his too low.

Regardless, such failures didn't prevent the two to keep on trying.

Meanwhile, Gilbert silently watched on the sidelines. Taking a quick glance over to the entrance, a light chuckle escaped from his throat as he saw Kiku fumbling to get one of his keys into the doorknob. With this in mind, an idea popped into his head. Ever so stealthily, he approached his struggling friends.

"You guys are such losers!" Gilbert exclaimed, loud enough for Kiku to stop what he's doing and take the interest.

"Heh, good thing I'm here!" Crouching to his knees, he didn't bother to carefully inspect the ground, grabbing the first thing that he took. 'That's strange,' He wondered as he speculated over the round object resting on his palm. 'Are pebbles generally this large?'

"Gilbert, what the hell are you doing?"

Setting his thoughts aside, Gilbert grinned from ear to ear. "Don't be such a worry tart, Kiku!" He cried over to his best friend near the front door. Fixating his attention to his other friends, he gestured to himself as he began, "Now, let the master show you how it's done!"

Wasting no time, he threw it.

"Lien?"

Lien stopped moving and turned around only to come across a silhouette figure. Even though the hallways were dimly lit, she didn't need the assistance of a magnifying glass to identify who the individual was in front of her. "Pleasant to see you, Yao." She addressed the ponytailed man.

Yao put a finger under his chin as he tilted his head. "Why are you still up, aru?" He questioned before adding in, "Let me guess. Last minute jitters?"

Lien bobbed her head respectfully, a smile spreading on her face. "You know me so well."

Hearing this, Yao chuckled. "Of course! We've known each other for so long, after all." He confirmed to her.

When he still got the silent treatment, he sighed deeply. "Don't stress yourself, Lien." He continued with slight worry etched in his tone. "You are going to be fine, aru."

Lien crinkled her eyebrows, muttering softly, "I'll try my best."

Walking a bit closer to her, Yao then wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her close. "I'm proud of what you've become." He whispered softly in her ear as he stroked her back soothingly. "You know, if your father was still here with us, surely he would say the same thing as well."

In response, Lien tightly held onto him. "Thank you, Yao," She said simply, positioning her head to lean on his shoulder. After a few minutes of silence, the two eventually released their hold from one another.

"If you can, try to sleep early." He suggested her. "You'll be needing all the strength you can get tomorrow."

Lien bit her bottom lip in hesitation. "I'll take your word for it." She confirmed, "Goodnight Yao."

"Goodnight to you too."

Giving her a quick peck on the forehead, Yao headed toward the end of the hallway in which his bedroom was located. Lien waited until Yao disappeared inside his room. Once he did, she moved forward, quietly relocating her own room that she shares together with her sister Xiao Mei.

Ever since Lien was a little girl, all she ever dreamed about was to become a successful violinist one day. Years passed and here she was, close to accomplishing that childhood goal. However, in order for her to secure such achievement, this meant that she would have to do her best tomorrow.

Lien unconsciously clenched her fists.

Yes, tomorrow would be the day when she'll shine onstage. Pouring all of her emotions into her solo, she would surely capture the hearts of her audience and judges. And who knows? If her performance was a stellar success, Star Fest could finally become the winner and for the first time ever, take the champion title away from World gig.

Knowing that, Lien frowned a little. The first time she found out that she got accepted into Star Fest, she vowed to do whatever she can to make her orchestra band succeed. At that point, she imagined herself to feel delighted and prideful like she could take on the world.

But for some reason, she wasn't.

Aside from the final round, there's also something important that she must do.

Upon reaching the guest room, Lien pushed the door open and went in.

"There you are, sis!" Xiao Mei greeted her older sister with her usual cheerful smile, "What took you so long?"

"Yao wanted to talk to me," Lien said matter-of-factly, "In regards to tomorrow."

Binding her right hand onto her opposite arm, she attempted to face Lien once more. Only this time, her bangs seemed to be covering her eyes. "I see."

Sensing the strange, gloomy atmosphere surrounding her sister, Lien took this opportunity to walk over to her sister. "Mei, don't look at me like that." She said ever so gently. "It pains me to not see you smiling."

Xiao Mei sniffed, "B-but sis—"

Bringing her sister's hands together with hers, Lien tightly gripped onto them as she continued, "Mei, don't you worry. Everything is going be fine."

"No, it's not!" Xiao Mei exclaimed, careful not to raise her voice while trying her best not to cry. "You're being forced to get married but I'm not doing anything to help you!"

"But you are helping me," Lien insisted, "You need to be strong, Mei. Not just for me but for mother too."

Xiao Mei rapidly shook her head. "I don't think I can keep this promise forever, sis,"

"Mei, you've got to try!"

"I can't!"

Before Lien could say anything further, the sound of glass shattering erupted, catching the two sisters and their dire need of attention. Seconds after, a high-pitched scream broke out from nearby.

"S-sis, what was that?" Xiao Mei squeaked, clutching onto her sister's arm for dear life.

Lien paused to get a moment to think before finally muttering, "Mei, can you check if Yao is okay?"

"What—"

"Mei, please."

The desperation in her sister's voice caused the younger girl to zip her mouth shut. Freeing herself from Lien, Xiao Mei hurriedly ran out of the room and into the hallways, the loud thumping of her footsteps evident that she was abiding by her sister's request.

Lien let out an exasperated sigh. Now that that was out of the way, the next thing that she needed to do was to find the original source that caused the abnormal sound. Walking over toward the window, Lien tugged on the curtains before pushing them aside. Pulling up the window vent, she proceeded to pop her head out.

A blast of voices exploded from outside, causing Lien to cringe on the spot.

"GILBERT, ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR F**KING MIND?"

"HEY, I DIDN'T KNOW THAT IT WAS A ROCK!"

From the sound of it, Lien could tell that the first voice that she heard belonged to her childhood friend, Kiku.

Putting the pieces together, it was then that realization hit her. Minutes before he left, Kiku mentioned earlier that his friends were coming to pick him up. If that's the case, that could only mean…

"Kiku, we didn't mean any harm at—huh? Oh, Lien!"

Lien jumped a little upon hearing her name getting called. Tilting her head a little bit closer to the window, a familiar blob of sandy hair caught her eye. "Alfred?"

Long and behold, her suspicions were confirmed.

"It's been awhile, hasn't it?" Alfred shouted as he hysterically waved his arm back and forth.

Lien inwardly shot a glare at him, "You gave us such a fright."

Walking forth, Mathias pointed to the other window in which they broke. "Sorry 'bout that!"

"Hey, is Xiao Mei alright?" Gilbert chimed in with a concerned look.

"It's fine," Lien calmly responded. "Yes, my sister is alright."

Alfred frowned. "Wait, so who was the one screaming then?" He asked curiously.

Just when Lien was about to respond, something lightly tapped on her shoulder. Turning around, she smiled when she found out that it was her younger sister. "Mei, there you are." She said, "How's Yao?"

Raising her hand up, Xiao Mei formed thumbs up. "He's A-OK!"

Lien took a deep breath and sighed. "That's a relief."

"Huh? Hey, why is the window open?" Xiao Mei asked with furrowed eyebrows.

Sliding a bit over, Lien broadened the gap between them, giving her sister enough space to squeeze herself in so she too could poke her head out of the window as well. Once she was able to do so, Xiao Mei smiled. "Hey there, boys!"

"Oh, Xiao Mei!" Mathias addressed with a salute. "Nice to see you too!"

"Mei, is everyone alright?" Kiku asked, getting straight to the point.

Xiao Mei nodded excitedly. "Yup!" She said before adding in, "Oh, and if you guys were wondering, Yao was the one who was screaming earlier!"

"Oh my god, that was Yao?" Gilbert wondered with growing amusement. When he got a confirmation from Xiao Mei, he threw his head backward before breaking into a maniacal laughter.

"Why are the four of you still here?" Lien wondered, changing the topic.

Hearing this, Alfred sheepishly smiled. "Well, we were hoping if you and Xiao Mei would wanna come."

Xiao Mei slanted her head to the side. "Where are you guys going anyway?"

"To the Lantern Festival," Kiku explained. Holding up his house keys, he continued, "If you want to join us, let me know now and I'll open the door."

"Come on, ladies!" Mathias cried aloud, "I guarantee that tonight is gonna be the best night of your life!"

Kiku and Mathias's words of encouragement were enough for Xiao Mei to instantly get thrilled. Nudging her older sister, she whispered lowly, "Let's go with them, sis!"

Lien's eyes slightly widened. "Mei, are you out of your mind?"

"Sis, think about it!" Xiao Mei urged on, though not loud enough for the others outside to hear. "You are about to get married tomorrow! For once in your life, take advantage of this and live in the moment!"

Lien bit her bottom lip, hesitated. "I don't know."

Looking back outside the window, the younger sister's eyes landed on a certain trumpeter. Switching her focus back toward her sister, Xiao Mei softly uttered out, "Let this be the last time you get to be with Alfred."

Silence impregnated the room.

"Sis?"

Taking a deep breath in, Lien spoke out, "Okay, I'll go."

Xiao Mei beamed. "You hear that, boys? We'll be joining you!"

Alfred's sky blue eyes twinkled with excitement. "Really?"

"Stay put," Kiku advised to the sisters before making way to the entrance once more. "Give me a second to open up the front door."

"What? But that's gonna take forever!" Mathias complained.

Alfred stood still for a moment, rethinking it over. Snapping his fingers, he cried, "Wait, Kiku! How about we do something different?"

Kiku abruptly stopped. "What do you have in mind?"

Without thinking, Alfred shouted, "Lien! Xiao Mei! Jump!"

Kiku took a step back, bewildered. "Alfred, are you insane?"

Alfred cocked an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?" He asked before emitting a goofy smile. "Don't worry! I watched something like this happen a bunch of times in the movies and it's totally safe!" Craning his neck up, he cried, "We'll catch you!"

"You hear that, sis?" Xiao Mei said, wriggling her eyebrows playfully, "Your prince charming is waiting down there for you."

Lien remained quiet. Bringing her hand close to the right of her chest, she could feel her heart thunderously pounding. Life is a series of moments and she knew that she had to take advantage of such a golden opportunity. Jumping out this window would be the very first step of doing so. As her eyes trailed off to the window railing, a thought occurred to her.

Tonight really was the last time that she'll ever be free. Not only that but this could also be the last chance for her to spend time with the trumpeter. Lien felt her heart break. 'This is what I get for realizing my feelings a bit too late.'

Too consumed with her thoughts, Lien failed to realize her sister sneaking up behind her.

With hands pressed on the back of her sister, Xiao Mei began to push her body directly at the window.

As they neared the end of the railing, Xiao Mei emitted a smile. "Brace yourself, sis!" She shouted, "Because here we…go!" The instant her words fled from her mouth, Xiao Mei shoved her. And before they knew it, Lien fell out of the window.

Witnessing this, Alfred could've sworn his heart dropped. "Holy shit!" He cursed and ran forward with his arms spread out. "LIEN!"

Sadly, Lien couldn't hear him. As her world spun uncontrollably around her, she shut her eyes tightly. She automatically tossed her arms out in front of her in an attempt to shield herself from the impact.

…Only, it didn't happen.

A pair of strong arms tightly enveloped around her torso, prompting Lien to question how she managed to land safely on the lawn without any harm.

"Lien, you alright?"

'I know that voice…' She thought to herself. Ever so slowly, Lien pries one eye open, followed by another before looking up. "Alfred?"

In response, Alfred boldly laughed. "Told you I'll catch you!"

Lien blushed furiously. Oh no, their noses were dangerously close. Looking the other way, she quickly said the first thing that popped into her head, "T-Texas is crooked."

Alfred blinked before bursting into laughter. "Is that all you're gonna say to me?"

Lien rolled her eyes. "Dummy," She muttered. Discarding her discomfort, she began to assist him with his specs, in which appeared to be somewhat slanted, back to its proper place.

"Are you two okay?" Kiku asked as he ran over to them, his expression mixed with relief and concern.

Alfred fixated his attention at his friends. He grinned, revealing his white teeth, "Yeah, we're fine!"

Taking a deep breath, Kiku sighed. "Thank goodness." As he wiped a hand pass his forehead, he frowned. "Wait, where's—" His words died in his throat as a sudden mass of weight was pushed onto him, causing him to get toppled and into the field of grass.

"Nice catch, Kiku!" Xiao Mei complimented her childhood friend who she happened to land right on top of. Removing herself off of him, she began dabbing the invisible dirt on her salmon pink dress. From the corner of her eye, she noticed the albino and Nordic heading toward them.

"Alright, the whole gang is here!" Mathias cried, throwing his arms at the back of his head.

Putting his hands on his hips, Gilbert smirked. "Everybody ready to rock and roll?"

"Yeah, you know it!" Xiao Mei chimed, pumping her fist into the air.

Getting back to his feet, Alfred quickly dabbed the invisible dirt on his pants. Turning back, he extended his hand out toward Lien. "Ready to go?"

Lien bit her bottom lip. 'If this is the last time,' She thought, her eyes fixated intensely on Alfred's awaiting hand. 'Then I'll do what I can to spend as much time as I can with him.'

Without a moment to lose, she accepted.

Located at the far edge of the city was a large port bay. Large cargo ships and boats were nowhere in sight, perfect timing for a celebration to actively commence. A wave of pennant flags decorated the parking lot in which currently became filled with street vendors, offering their knick-knacks and trinkets for sale. On the left side of the area were long, horizontal bamboo cords with colorful lanterns made of silk, attached onto them. Bright yellow lights danced luminously throughout the area, originating from the lanterns.

Despite how the Lantern festival does live up to its literal name, there were no proper words to describe how brilliantly enchanting the place was. The whole landscape really appeared like it came straight out of a storybook.

Twisting his heels to face his group of friends once more, he crossed his arms. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you," He began, dramatically raising his arm high over the large sign framed by balloons. "The Lantern Festival!"

Leaning close to her older sister, Xiao Mei quietly whispered, "Doesn't this remind you of home?"

Lien slowly nodded. "Yeah."

"This is so exciting!" Mathias cried, frantically looking back and forth in an attempt to absorb his colorful surroundings all at once. "Where should we start?"

Putting a finger to her lips, Xiao Mei slightly tilted her head to the side. Unknown to the group, she seemed to be plotting something. Snapping her fingers, she then linked her arms with Kiku and the Nordic, "Let's start by splitting up!" She suggested, "Kiku, Mathias and I would be a group!"

Kiku glanced at the younger girl in confusion. "Huh? But, what about—"

"Heh, I'm my own man tonight!" Gilbert said before gesturing to the last remaining individuals. "I'll let the two lovebirds here have fun."

Alfred grinned, "Thanks, bro!"

Winking, Gilbert cried, "See ya later!" And then scurried off.

Listening to his words, Lien's cheeks tinted red as she simply stood there in shock. When she attempted to raise her concerns, it was too late as Xiao Mei was already skipping off with the two young men forcedly dragged in along with her.

"Mei, wait up!" Kiku cried, quickening his pace to catch up.

Once their group was out of sight, Xiao Mei abruptly halted in her tracks, causing Kiku and Mathias to stop as well.

"Whew! That was quite a workout!" Mathias huffed as he arched his back.

Kiku put his hands on his knees, breathing tirelessly. "Mei," He addressed, heaving in another deep breath before continuing, "What was that all about?"

Xiao Mei shrugged her shoulders, "Is it bad that I just want my sister to spend time with Alfred?"

"Yeah, but…" Kiku trailed off, "This isn't like you to be pushing people together out of nowhere." He then narrowed his eyes. "Is there something that I don't know?"

Xiao Mei forced a smile as she shook her head, "You're overreacting, Kiku!" She said, "Stop worrying too much or you'll get gray hairs!"

Mathias laughed, "That's true,"

Kiku sighed. "I guess you're right." Folding his arms, he quirked a questionable eyebrow. "What do we do now?"

"Good question," Xiao Mei muttered to herself, fixating her attention through the sea of markets and joints. Her eyes slightly widened upon recognizing a familiar figure distributing lanterns to random people. "Boys, follow me!" She didn't give them enough time to try to keep up as she sprinted once more. "Hey, Gupta!"

The man called Gupta jolted from where he stood. As he turned, his golden earring dangled from his left ear. At the same time, so did his white, cotton headdress in which was tied around his head with a grayish-brown string. "Greetings, Xiao Mei." He said politely with a blank expression. "How do you do?"

"Pretty good!" Xiao replied back, "Say, what are you doing?"

"You mean this?" Gupta asked, motioning to the collection of lanterns he was carrying a bamboo cane over his shoulder. "I am volunteering tonight to give these out to the people." After a minute of silence, he said, "Would you like to have one?"

"Really? Oh, thank you so much!" Xiao Mei thanked, bouncing up and down. As she reached her hand out to get a hold of a lantern, she felt something pressed into her shoulder. Without bothering to turn her body around, she giggled, "Took you long enough to show!" She said, sticking out her tongue.

"Hey, what's that?" Mathias asked, pointing to the lantern.

Once he managed to steady his breathing, Kiku resorted to answering his friend, "It's a lantern made of thin, colored paper." He explained. "In some traditions, they use it for decorations."

"He is right," Gupta said, joining in. "But in this case, these lanterns are no ordinary lanterns. They are sky lanterns."

Mathias furrowed his eyebrows. "Sky lanterns?"

"Unlike other lanterns, these will go up into the air." Xiao Mei explained thoroughly. "I find them more fun because we get to light them up with a candle and let it fly."

"Really? That's awesome!" Mathias cried, getting excited. "Can I get one?"

Gupta nodded. "Of course," Pinching one off from the bamboo cord, he then handed the lantern toward the Nordic. Shortly after, he also distributed the same objects to Kiku and Xiao Mei.

"Thank you, my friend," Kiku expressed his gratitude.

Gupta's lips curved a little upwards. "Anytime," He said. Pointing his finger to the port, he continued on, "I very much recommend the three of you to go there. That is the ideal spot to raise the lanterns."

Xiao Mei saluted. "Will do!"

Mathias flashed a smile, "Thanks, dude!"

Bidding farewell to the Egyptian, the three individuals scurried off to the port bay where a small gathering of people was beginning to grow.

A few minutes passed by since the group decided (in their defense, it was more of Xiao Mei) to split up. As a certain couple made their way through the crowd, Lien frowned. This wasn't quite what she had in mind. Funny enough, such a scenario reminded her of the night when both she and her sister were invited by Kiku to a karaoke party.

Discovering Alfred there, she remembered how desperate she was of her sister's assistance. In the end, Xiao Mei had left her side in the blink of an eye, much like what happened now.

Unlike her past self that was more self-conscious and reserved—this time, however was different.

Noticing the silence of his partner, Alfred worriedly asked, "Everything okay, Lien?"

Lien blinked and looked up, "Y-yeah," She stammered. "I'm fine."

And there it was, that eccentric smile she loved so much.

"So, where do you wanna go?"

Ignoring the burning sensation of her cheeks, Lien turned the other way to avoid his mesmerizing sky blue eyes. But as she did so, she froze.

"Huh? What's the matter, Lien?"

Lien didn't bother to reply as she started to walk away from him. Seeing this, Alfred frowned. "Lien?"

When he still didn't receive a response from her, Alfred quickened his pace to follow after her.

Advancing to a near trinket joint, Lien paused in her step. Ever so gently, she bucked in her knees, letting her long áo dài dress cover over her black sandals. With a graceful smile, she softly asked, "Are you lost?"

A small figure emerged from the shadows, revealing a little boy. A small top hat was placed on the left side of his shaggy brown hair with two pieces of hair sticking out in various directions.

Scrutinizing her eyes, it slowly dawned to Lien. She knew this boy. "Ilie?"

By the call of his name, the boy hurriedly rushed and tackled her with tears overflowing his cheeks.

"What's going on here?"

Alfred's voice prompted the woman to turn around. Holding the boy closer to her, Lien looked back to the bespectacled young man, her amber eyes burning with intensity. "Alfred, we need to help him."

Alfred nodded. Crouching next to her, he proceeded to take his brown bomber jacket off of him. Wrapping the clothing around the toddler, he smiled. "Hey, kiddo," He began, "You lost?"

Ilie poked his head out from Lien's arms and sniffed, "Y-yes, mister."

Alfred laughed. The way the little boy acted, being shy and quiet, reminded him so much of his younger twin, Matthew. "Call me Alfred," He said, ruffling the little boy's head playfully. "What's your name?"

"Ilie…" The boy introduced himself meekly while gripping onto Lien for dear life.

"Cool name!" Alfred commented before gesturing to his partner, "This beautiful lady here is Lien."

Hearing this, Lien blushed.

Switching his focus from the woman and to the young man before him, Ilie nodded. "Yeah, I know her."

Alfred blinked. "Wait, you do?"

Ilie giggled, "Uh-huh! She's the ace of Star Fest!" He said before adding in, "That's the band that my big brother plays in!"

"Big brother?"

"His brother is Vladimir," Lien replied, getting straight to the point. "Ilie must have gotten himself lost."

Alfred nodded. "I see." Adjusting his specs, he grinned as an idea occurred to him. "Hey, Ilie?" He asked, directing to the toddler, "Wanna do something cool?"

"Something cool?" Ilie wondered, tilting his head innocently. "Like what?"

Alfred looked up to face Lien, waiting for her permission.

Realizing what he was about to do, Lien sighed. "Try to be careful."

Ilie looked at them in confusion. All of a sudden, he was lifted off from the ground. Panicked, Ilie reached out for Lien in desperation.

"It's going to be okay, Ilie," Lien assured him in a comforting way.

Taking her word for it, Ilie meekly nodded. Seconds later, he felt something stiff below him. Blinking, Ilie looked down only to find that he was stationed on top of Alfred's shoulders.

"Liking the view up there, kiddo?" Alfred asked, carefully lifting his chin up to see the toddler.

Ilie rapidly nodded, opening his mouth to reveal a pair of fangs. "Yeah!"

As Lien watched Alfred and Ilie interact, a tiny smile unconsciously materialized on her face. 'Was Alfred always this good with kids?' She thought, giggling. She could picture it now: the bespectacled young man playing around and surrounded by his own. Meekly thinking about the future made Lien feel bitter.

Once the final round was over, she'll never get to see him again. What's more, she'll never get to see how he'll grow up to be in the future. With that in mind, she couldn't help but ponder over whom Alfred might choose as his bride. Lien sighed deeply. For one thing, it was obvious she wasn't going to end up with him. Even if he decided to pick her, it was already too late. She was, after all, getting married tomorrow.

Suddenly, something warm was pressed against her hand, causing Lien to escape her daydream-like trance. Disregarding the plans for the future, Lien let her eyes travel down to their intertwined hands.

"You okay, Lien?"

Lien bit her bottom lip in hesitation. Was she?

"…Yeah."

Now wasn't the time to be moping around.

'Don't think about what would happen tomorrow,' She told herself, letting the words of her younger sister ease her discomfort. 'Live in the moment.'

Securing her hand with his, Lien took a step forth. "Let's go find Vladimir."

On the other side of the Lantern Festival, Gilbert wandered on his own. Although he proposed the idea to go, ironically, he was the one having much fun. As much as he hated to admit, there was a specific reason of why he wanted to come here so badly. And just the mere thought of it sickened him to the bone.

"You have to help me!"

"Why should I?"

His ears perked up at the sound of familiar voices in the distance. Curious, he decided to check it out. By the time he had reached the place, his crimson eyes widened like saucers. There standing before him was none other than Elizabeta and as much as he disliked it, Roderich was there as well. Glancing over to the other figure, a smirk grazed through his lips.

Well, here's someone you don't see every day.

"Vlad, you can't just storm here without a proper explanation!" Elizabeta cried, standing her ground.

"Proper explanation?" The man named Vlad barked back, exposing a fang on the left side of his mouth. His small hat, in which was accompanied with two ribbons, swayed slightly on top of his shaggy, strawberry blonde hair. "There isn't any!"

Gilbert chuckled as he silently watched their supposed fighting.

It's exactly what the rumors said: these two really do act and fight like cats and dogs. Then again, it didn't appear to surprise him or anything. Before he came to the States, he already knew them—guess in a way, they were sort of childhood friends. Of the three, Gilbert first met Elizabeta—who happened to be the daughter of his mother's best friend. Oh, what fun times the two had: pretending to be conquerors of the world and playing swordfights. The more they continued hanging out, the more Gilbert began having a thing for her. Once the faithful day came for him to confess: he immediately rejected due to one problem, which in his case, didn't add up.

Elizabeta firmly believed she was a boy—and didn't realize she was a girl. It was quite understandable as her family, particularly her father badly wanted to have a son to inherit their family's fortune. As the one and only child of the Héderváry household, Elizabeta was born and raised to be one.

Thinking about it made Gilbert stifle his laughter as he remembered the time when she grasped on her sexuality. Long story short, it pretty much occurred when she turned twelve and at the time, had gotten her first period. At that point, she stopped hanging out with him. The last time he heard about her was when he heard rumors about her in an arranged marriage with Roderich.

And just like that, the memories of him and Elizabeta playing hide and seek; fishing and swimming in the lake were all washed away in the drain.

Ten years later and when Gilbert immigrated to the States to live with his younger brother; by a chance of faith, their paths were crossed again. The tomboyish Elizabeta was all grown up.

After such a long time of being separated—Gilbert and Elizabeta were still at each other's throats. The fact that she still remembered him secretly made him glad. What made it even better was when he found out about her and Roderich breaking up.

Maybe now, his one-sided feelings could finally be reciprocated. And yet, it pains him to see her still willing to be by that Austrian's side.

'Girls are so weird.' Gilbert thought, 'Too bad I've fallen in love with one.' Cracking his knuckles, he then began clapping his hands, causing the three individuals in front of him, including a few pedestrians to stop and stare at his unexpected arrival.

Elizabeta inwardly glared at the albino. "What are you doing here?" She seethed under her breath.

Walking close to her, Gilbert leaned a bit closer and whispered, "Saving your pretty ass."

Elizabeta's left eye twitched in annoyance. Folding her arms, she said, "I have this under control, thank you very much."

Gilbert rolled his eyes. Quickly glancing over to Roderich, who patiently waited for his female companion to finish her argument, he frowned. "Why are you even here anyway?" Gilbert asked. "And of all people, why that glasses freak?"

Elizabeta snorted, "That's none of your business!"

"Hey, don't you dare ignore me!" Vlad cried, accusing a finger at them.

Quirking an eyebrow, Gilbert asked the obvious question, "I heard you needed help? What's the issue?"

Vlad produced a concerned look, "I can't find my baby brother."

Gilbert pursed his lips to a thin, straight line. "You mean that small midget?"

"He's not a midget!" Vlad cried, getting irritated. "You know what? Why am I wasting my time talking to you guys when I should be out there looking for him!"

Elizabeta looked at Vlad as if he produced two heads. "Then why aren't you?"

Vlad clenched his teeth, shouting, "Well, I am now!" before storming off without a word.

As she watched the Romanian disappear into the crowd, Elizabeta heaved a sigh. "I can never understand that guy."

Gilbert nodded. "Same." Turning around to face her, he asked, "But seriously, why are you together with Roderich?"

Elizabeta glared before emitting a mischievous grin, "Oh? Do I sense some jealousy here?"

Blushing, Gilbert cried, "Hell no!"

All Elizabeta could do was roll her eyes. As she motioned her head the other way, she beamed. "I'm very sorry about that!" She addressed to the pianist, her demeanor completely changing at the drop of a hat.

Witnessing this, Gilbert wanted to throw up. Why does she keep concealing her tomboyish side?

'Doesn't she realize that just being herself is way better than pretending?' He wondered, groaning. 'Why can't she be with someone who appreciates that kind of side of her?'

Roderich politely bobbed his head at his female companion before turning to focus to the albino once more. "Hello, Gilbert." He greeted, "We are heading to the port to get a closer watch of the lanterns. If you want, feel free to come join us."

Elizabeta gawked. "You can't be serious!"

Roderich stared back at her listlessly. "We are comrades in arms, are we not?"

Gilbert smugly grinned before nudging the woman beside him playfully. "Yeah! Aren't we?"

Elizabeta opened her mouth to retort before quickly shutting up. As much as she wanted to scream her head off, she couldn't let something as idiotic as this ruin her feminine image she tried to maintain for so long. Forcing out a smile, her next set of words startled Gilbert.

"Of course, we are."

Under the glow of the lanterns, Alfred and Lien walked hand-in-hand, at the same time, bellowing out the name of a certain Romanian. Ignoring the weird looks and negative comments by the passing pedestrians, they kept going. That is until Alfred stopped in his tracks.

Elevating his chin up, he laughed. "Haha, do I hear a belly rumbling?"

Ilie blushed, knowing that the older man was referring to him.

Gripping Lien's hand, he led them to the sidelines until they found a bench. With Lien's assistance, Alfred was able to successfully get the toddler off of his shoulders without difficulty before setting him down on the bench.

"Stay here. I'll get food, okay?" He informed to them. Alfred didn't bother to wait for their response as he ran, vanishing into the mist of the crowd.

Seating herself next to Ilie, Lien let out a sigh. It's roughly been an hour since they bumped into Ilie and there were still no signs of Vladimir anywhere. 'I hope he is still around,' Lien thought worriedly.

"Your boyfriend's nice."

Lien blushed. Peering over her shoulder, she asked, "Pardon?"

Ilie looked back at her with his big brown eyes. Tilting his head to the side, he repeated the same sentence, "I said that your boyfriend is nice."

Lien raised her hands up in defense. "We aren't in a relationship."

"Really?" Ilie wondered, "Then why do you guys act so much like Mommy and Daddy?"

Lien tightly pressed her lips together. Despite how it was such an innocent comment, why did Ilie's words seem to mock her? Wrapping her arms around her waist, Lien bit her lower lip.

Ilie creased his eyebrows. "Lien?" He asked in concern.

"Forgive me, Ilie," She said softly, closing her eyes shut with her head still lowered down. "But I don't have the answer to your question."

Three weeks ago—if only she hadn't turned the corner and bumped into Alfred, maybe then this whole arranged marriage would've been a lot easier for her to deal with. And these alienated feelings that are bottled up inside of her—they would never exist in the first place.

Though she thinks that, why was it difficult for her to push these feelings, these memories and him away?

It wasn't fair.

All of it wasn't fair.

Of all things that could've happened, why did she have to fall in love?

And out of millions of people on this earth, why did it have to be him?

"Is that you, Lien?"

Lien slowly fluttered her eyes wide open before gradually looking up. A tall masculine figure towered over her. Aside from the glasses—the dark, wavy hair that the stranger had was quite distinctive to the eye. Much like her encounter with Ilie, this particular person was recognizable as well.

Raising his little arm, Ilie pointed out his index finger toward the young man and cried, "Kasem!"

Kasem chuckled upon hearing Ilie's straightforward remark. "That's right, little man!"

"What are you doing here, Kasem?" Lien wondered.

"I could say the same to you," Kasem said before smiling, "Oh, that's right! You asked about me first! Well, to answer your question, I came here with family."

Lien nodded. "I see."

Shoving his hands into the pockets of his trousers, Kasem then gestured over to Ilie. "Are you babysitting?"

"Not necessarily."

Putting a finger over his chin, Kasem wiggled his eyebrows, "So, are you on a date then?" When he took note of how stiff she suddenly became, he chuckled. "Did I hit the jackpot?"

Unfortunately, their conversation was cut abruptly by a sound that Lien knew so well. Startled, both Lien and Kasem turned to find the Alfred approaching them along with—

"Big brother!" Ilie cried aloud. Jumping out of the bench, he ran as fast as his tiny legs could take him before getting engulfed by the familiar arms of his older siblings.

Vladimir, however, didn't stop running. Spreading his arms out, a large grin appeared on his face as he was tackled by the small form of his baby brother, causing him to fall down on his rear on the dry ground. Even so, the injuries didn't matter to him.

Because after what seemed like eternity, the brothers—once separated, were finally reunited in each other's arms.

Rising up from her seat, Lien hastily walked over to Alfred and the brothers. "How did you find Vladimir?" Lien asked in astonishment, directing her question to the bespectacled young man.

Alfred fixated his eyes on her and smiled, "I was in the line for cotton candy until I suddenly bumped into him." He explained. "The minute he told me that he was looking for his brother, I knew that he had to be him."

Lien's facial features softened. This guy really was full of surprises.

"Thanks for finding him," Vladimir spoke out, breaking the silence.

Alfred shook his head back and forth, at the same time, performed a casual wave. "Oh, don't thank me," He said before gesturing to the woman next to him. "If it wasn't for Lien, all of this wouldn't happen."

Averting his attention from Alfred to his female band mate, he asked, "Is that true?"

Lien dipped her head politely. "I believe so."

Vladimir smiled. "Again, I'd like to thank you," He said, emphasizing word after word. Looking down at his brother, he couldn't help but laugh at Ilie's strange attire. "What's this now? Trying to be a pilot?" He asked teasingly.

Ilie flashed a toothy grin. "No, Alfred let me borrow it!"

Vladimir simply nodded before proceeding to gently remove the bomber jacket from his brother. "I believe this is yours." He said, bestowing the article of clothing to them. Alfred took a step forth, eagerly accepting it.

Hoisting the toddler into his arms as he arose from the ground, Vladimir's grin widened. "I can't thank you two enough for finding Ilie." He said, tightening his grip on Ilie.

"No worries, dude." Alfred said, "Families should always stick together."

"Even if I'm such a bad big brother?" Vladimir asked further.

Alfred shrugged, "Good or bad, it doesn't matter." As he said that, he was then reminded of his own siblings. Bringing his hand inside his collar, he lightly touched the metallic surface of his dog tag. "Because in the long run, you guys are still family."

"You're right," Vladimir said, nodding in approval. "It's best we get going. The lantern show is going to start."

Alfred shook his head. "You hear that? We'll see you later, kiddo!" He said, ruffling Ilie's brown hair. He then formed thumbs up. "It was awesome meeting you!"

Ilie's big brown eyes sparkled, mimicking Alfred as he raised his own. "Uh-huh!"

Lien gently smiled. "Make sure not to get lost again, okay?"

"I won't!" Ilie chirped, followed by a childish giggle.

With a final wave, the two brothers gradually left the scene.

Something poked Lien on the side of her left shoulder, causing her to face Kasem once more.

Clearing his throat, Kasem began, "I should get going too."

Lien frowned. "But you just got here."

Kasem shrugged. "It can't be helped." Taking a few steps forward to approach Alfred, Kasem stretched a handout. "Salutations. My name is Kasem Chao."

Alfred stood there, his head tilted in confusion as he tried to process what was going on. Finally, he extended his own before shaking their jointed hands. "Nice to meet you, Kasem." He greeted, "I'm—"

"Alfred F. Jones." Kasem cut in, his expression remaining carefree. "Yes, I've heard of you. The prized ace of World gig, correct?"

Alfred forced out a smile. "That's right."

As they let go of their hands, Kasem adjusted his glasses. "So, you two are on a date?"

Lien blushed, "That's—"

"Exactly right!" Alfred interrupted, finishing the rest of her sentence. Pulling the ends of the long sleeves of his bomber jacket, he began binding them around his waist. Crossing his arms, he asked, "Is there a problem?"

Hearing this, Lien blushed redder. "Alfred!" She exclaimed.

Kasem chuckled at the sight before responding, "No, I just find it rather amusing."

Alfred raised a questionable brow. "Really? How so?"

"For starters, the two of you are aces of different orchestra bands." Kasem pointed out. "It's rare nowadays to find people like you dating."

"Is that a bad thing?" Alfred pressed on.

"Not really," Kasem replied back, reinforcing his opinions with a mellow attitude. Heaving a breath, the tone of his voice became softer. "But if you really are doing this, I request that you take good care of her, Jones."

Alfred cracked a smile, nodding his head firmly. "I will."

"Good," Kasem said, retaining a carefree look. Averting his attention to Lien, he began, "I'll see you later. Have fun, okay?"

Lien shyly peered over her shoulder. "You too, Kasem."

And shortly after Kasem had left, another moment of silence erupted in the area. Once he was out of sight, Lien finally lets out the breath that she was holding for quite a while. "What a day." She groaned.

Alfred laughed, "The fun isn't over yet, you know."

Taking out his phone, his eyes slightly widened. At the center of the phone screen read 10:30pm.

"Crap, the lanterns are gonna start!"

Bringing in his hand with Lien's own, Alfred pulled her along, their silhouettes merging into the crowd once more.

It took them five minutes to eventually reach the port bay. Alfred slowed down his pace, resulting in Lien to do the same. A large, dense crowd appeared in front of them. Scanning through his surroundings, the bespectacled young man smiled. Good, it seemed like the lantern show hadn't started without them yet.

"Woohoo!" Alfred cried, pumping a fist into the air. "We're early!"

Lien rolled her eyes at his childish antics. "What do we do now?"

Alfred turned to look back at her and shrugged, "Guess we better hang out for awhile until it starts."

Lien quiet nodded.

A moment of silence impregnated the area until…

"You know, you surprised me earlier." She began, starting the conversation.

"Hmm? What do you mean, Lien?"

Lien gently smiled. "I never knew that you were so good with children,"

Turning to face her, the bespectacled young man smiled brilliantly. "Am I?" He asked, scratching the back of his neck. "If I gotta be honest, I really love kids." He explained. "Actually, I always dreamt of having my own someday."

"Really?" Lien asked, getting interested. "How many do you want?"

"Enough to make an army!"

Lien choked on her spit, "You can't be serious!"

Alfred laughed boisterously as he shook his head. "Relax, I'm joking!" He cried, emitting another grin. "What about you, Lien? How many?"

Peering up to stare at the night sky, Lien pursed her lips. "I would like to have two."

"Two is pretty good," Alfred replied with delight in his tone as he agreed with her. Recalling back to the time when he and Lien encountered Ilie, images of her pampering the toddler with such a motherly look melted his heart. This only strengthened his urge to want to get to know her better. In this case, he wanted to get to know the different sides of her.

Like a Pandora's box, Lien concealed in her emotions quite well and thus, it was a rare sight to see a different expression that was unusual on her face. With that in mind, Alfred wanted to take up the challenge of unlocking every single one of them. May it either be mischievous, greedy, doubtful, and optimistic—Alfred didn't care.

He wanted to see them all.

"You're gonna be a great mom one day," Alfred tells her.

Lien giggled. "You think so?"

Alfred nodded firmly, tightening his hold on her hand. "I know so."

The sound of applauses and cheering caught their attention. Furrowing his eyebrows, he turned to glance at the large crowd, wondering what was the commotion. It wasn't until he looked up to face the night sky that he had found his answer. Alfred's lips partly opened. A flock of paper lanterns was dancing in the air, almost as if it were performing a ritual choreography.

"This is amazing!" Alfred commented, followed by a laugh.

Lien looked up as well and smiled. No words could describe what she was feeling right now. Taking a swift peek over at Alfred, she fractured a tiny smile as she averted her focus back to the lanterns. Jumping out the window and getting to attend the Lantern festival was definitely worth it. 'I'll treasure it.'

While Lien was busy admiring the view before her, she failed to notice Alfred slowly walking backward. It wasn't until she felt something cold on her collarbone that she became aware of reality.

Lien put her hand close to where the strange coldness was. Dipping her chin down, her eyes slightly widened.

"Alfred, what—"

"Keep it," Alfred said, interrupting her. "It's yours to keep."

Lien furrowed her eyebrows. "But your parents gave this to you." She reasoned. "It's important to you, isn't it?"

"I know and it still is." Alfred continued, flashing a smile. "But I want you to have it. Believe it or not, dog tags symbolize good luck so you're going to need it more than I do. " He then let out a hearty laugh. "Besides, you look better with it anyway."

Lien blushed. "…I don't know what to say." She trailed off.

"Say no more, Lien," Alfred said, "Consider it a gift from me to you."

Lien nodded. Thinking for a moment, she spoke out, "Since you gave me something, it's appropriate that I give something back to you as well."

Hearing this, Alfred's cheeks turned beet red. 'What could it be?' He thought, his heart throbbing more rapidly than it was before.

"First, close your eyes," Lien instructed him.

Alfred tilted his head, "Are you planning to take away Texas again?" He asked rather playfully.

"No, dummy," Lien said, rolling her eyes as she resisted the urge to elbow him on the chest. "Just trust me, okay?"

And he did.

Closing his eyes as he was told to do, Alfred silently anticipated for the mysterious thing that Lien would be giving to him. 'What would it be,' He wondered. Perhaps a kiss? Well, whichever was the case; he would be satisfied either way. This was Lien after all and anything that she'll present to him, he would respect her for it.

Meanwhile, Lien swallowed her saliva thickly, hesitated. This was it, the moment that she's been waiting for. But was he ready?

Her body trembled—but it wasn't out of nervousness. She then let out a measured breath. Taking a minute to study Alfred's face, she then looked down.

Their hands, however, remained intertwined. Shaking it off, Lien clenched her fists tightly before taking a step forward.

Leaning close to his ear, Lien smiled bitterly.

It was now or never. With the best of her ability, Lien mustered out the very words that she always wanted to say to him.

"Thank you for everything, Alfred," Lien croaked as her vision started becoming glossy. "Em Yeu Anh."

Alfred creased his eyebrows. 'Why does Lien sound like she's in distress?' He thought, getting worried. Something wasn't right here.

"Lien?" He cried with his eyes remaining closed.

There was no response.

"Lien?" He repeated, this time, louder.

Unfortunately, all that he received was the same outcome.

Without hesitation, Alfred opened his eyes, only to be welcomed by the roaring cheers and applauses erupted from nearby. The woman in question in which he yearned to see however, was nowhere in sight.

Author's Note:

Hello, everyone! I would to humbly apologize for my two to three weeks of absence. Due to my class field trip, I couldn't properly write anything which is why I ended up extending the release date. Now, the wait is finally over and I'm just going to say, this is by far one of my favorite chapters to write! With a lot of time in my hands, I made sure to carefully insert as many emotions as I could within this chapter!

Hahaha, and once again, I overdid it again!

And as requested, the characters: Gupta (Egypt), Ilie (Moldova), Vladimir (Romania) and Kasem (Thailand) are finally here! If I have to be honest, I'm actually glad that you guys picked these characters for this chapter because I just so happened originally planned them to appear here! (great minds think alike, as they all say!)

Ahem, anyway-let's dive in!

Starting from Gilbert purposing on going to the Lantern Festival, to a hilarious yet epic window scene, the party split, the explanation of the Lantern Festival (courtesy of Gupta), Ilie found by Alfred and Lien, Gilbert spotting Elizabeta arguing with Vladimir, back to Ilie, Alfred and Lien only to have Kasem added in the group. Ilie and Vladimir's reunion, Alfred's slight jealousy over Kasem, the lantern scene, Lien's confession and finally, Alfred's heartbreak.

If any of you are wondering, Lien said, 'I love you' in Vietnamese. (FINALLY!)

Now the question is, what is Alfred's reaction over all this?

One thing to point out: this chapter leaks with A LOT of foreshadow!

The next chapter will officially begin the third and final round (who's excited?)

Oh, and another thing: the Lantern Festival was based off Tangled in case you guys didn't know! (which means that the 'I see the Light' karaoke song Kiku and Xiao Mei once sang back at Chapter 6 was a foreshadow to this! Cool, huh?)

I would like to thank you once again for the fellow readers, reviewers and fans who have constantly supported me! It's because of each one of you that I'm still writing such a beautiful story! So once again, thank you so much!

As for the next update, it would take awhile as I am going to prepare for my regent tests in the next few days (with one of them being tomorrow, unfortunately...) I will try to post the next date on my profile for the next update once I'm done with my regents! Wish me luck!

Once again, I'm open for more character requests!

And as usual, your opinions are greatly appreciated!

P.S. I highly recommend listening to both songs If Only and If Only (reprise) by Dove Cameron (main inspiration of this chapter and also exclusive look into Lien's situation!)

P.S.S The part when Gilbert threw the rock into the window was actually based on a senior prank we did earlier except one of us happened to accidentally punched the window of a door with their bare fist!