A/N at bottom

1723

"I'm so sorry to leave him like this," Antonio gestured to the couch where a crippled Romano lay.

"Oh, it's no problem," Matthieu reassured.

"Stop worrying!" Coughed Romano, nose stuffed.

"Stop talking! You need to rest!" Antonio scolded. "I won't be gone too long. Just make sure he gets some rest. See you later, Romano!"

"Shut up!" Romano replied. And with that, Antonio shut the door.

"So, do you want some soup or something?" Ludwig felt awkward watching Romano sit there, and he was ready to busy himself with a task.

"Nah, I don't want to bother you guys."

"We can make tomato soup?" Matthieu suggested.

"...Fine."

"It's so weird to see him laying there like that," Matthieu observed. He and Ludwig had began to prepare soup in the kitchen.

"I guess. To be honest, I kind of prefer him like this. Did you find any tomatoes?"

"No. I'm sure there around here somewhere."

"Well, I can't find them, and I don't feel like finding them for somebody who can't even taste anything. Let's just make chicken soup or something." Matthieu, who didn't have it in him to search for tomatoes either, agreed.

"We made chicken soup." Ludwig and Matthieu walked into the room where Romano lay sneezing to deliver the pot of soup.

"I thought you were making tomato."

"Well," sighed Ludwig. "We couldn't find any tomatoes, and I can assure you this soup is just as good."

"Well, I'm not eating it."

"What? It's just soup!" Ludwig prepared for an argument.

"Terrible soup!"

"Ludwig, let's just make more soup," insisted Matthieu, the best at conflict negotiation. "But Romano, you have to eat it."

"Fine, I'll eat it." Ludwig and Matthieu returned to the kitchen for their second attempt.

"I take it back. He's much worse when he's sick," Ludwig grumbled while stirring a freshly made pot of noodle soup.

"Let's just give him the soup," Matthieu sighed. "I'm sure noodle will be fine."

"I'm not eating it."

"Why not!?" Ludwig threw his hands up. "It's just soup!"

"Yeah, but it's not tomato soup!"

"Romano, please just eat the soup," Matthieu gently spoke.

"Sure. Just make it tomato."

"You know what?" Ludwig began to lose his patience. "I'm sure we missed the tomatoes. How about we look again?"

"Fine. Just hurry up."

"What do you mean, 'maybe we missed something?' Theres no tomatoes here!" Matthieu exclaimed.

"It doesn't matter if there aren't any tomatoes," began Ludwig. "He can't even taste them! Let's just tell him there are, and see is he notices. We can make carrot soup. Orange and red are similar, right?"

"Yeah, I guess so," sighed Matthieu. "But If this doesn't work, I'm blaming you."

"Do you swear it's tomato this time?"

"Just eat the damn soup." Ludwig grumbled. Romano took a spoonful of soup into his mouth and tasted it.

"Finally, tomato soup!"

Matthieu let out a breath.

"Thanks guys!"

"No problem," Ludwig sighed.

The front door opened.

"Guys, I'm back with the tomatoes!" Antonio's voice boomed into the room.

"...what?" Romano questioned.

"We were all out! Now we can make soup!"

"... Well Romano, we'll see you tomorrow." And with that, Ludwig and Matthieu rushed out of the house.

And that's the chapter! As always, criticisms are greatly appreciated!

Just as a heads up, I can't guarantee I will be able to update every Friday. I'm back in highschool and it's a ton of work. I'll still continue to update, but it might not be weekly. :)