Disclaimer: Hetalia, don't own it, but here's to pretending that I do!

A/N: You all have been so wonderfully supportive of this story, and of me as a writer; so, I would like to open this by giving each and every one of you a big, cyber hug! With out you guys, I wouldn't be so inspired to write, and I thank you very much! Through the long gaps between updates, and the chapters that might be less than spectacular, you have stuck by me and I am very grateful. I'm a little sappy right now, since once again I have a killer cold and being sick makes me rather emotional...

So, without further delay, let us revisit Ludwig's perspective, and see a bit more of Feliciano's tragic past. Please, enjoy :3

Chapter Eight: Revealing your past, is always best when eating ice cream with a friend

~O-O~

12th July, 1968

Oh how unbearably awkward those first few nights were, living with Feliciano...

The poor man tried his hardest to make me as comfortable as possible, but getting used to new surroundings is easier said than done. Especially with that evil twin of his, shooting me glares and protruded middle fingers, whenever Feliciano wasn't looking. As petty of me as it is, I thanked the heavens above when that little bastard moved out, a few days after I moved in. I was very briefly introduced to the man Romano would be staying with, an old friend from what Feliciano had told me; who turned out to be some spacey Spaniard named Antonio.

In the end, a very large fraction of unease was lifted from the household, and some of my guilt absolved now that Feliciano took up residence in Romano's room, instead of on the floor besides the pullout couch he insisted I sleep on. The mattress was rather thin, but nice and wide; giving me ample space to sleep. In fact there was enough room for two people, but Feliciano refused to make me feel uncomfortable. Well, unless I don't count that one night, the day Romano moved out.

Just before I fell asleep, right on the edge of awareness and oblivion, a muffled sort of scream tore through the silence. At first I passed it off as the sounds of nighttime deviance, until the noise grew louder and more distinct in tone. I realized, with a start, that it was the sound of my Italian friend crying out, but just as suddenly it ended. I lifted the covers off of myself, preparing to go and check on my friend, when his bedroom door swung open silently; his thin silhouette shuffling towards me through the darkness.

In the moonlight, I could see tear tracks glistening down his cheeks; I could just make out the quiver of his bottom lip, and chin. He stopped, when he noticed my eyes fixated on his face, and he looked away as if he were ashamed of something. "I'm s-scared Ludwig... I-I had a bad dream," he turned to look at me again, big brown eyes pleading, and rimmed with a wild fear. "C-can I sleep with you? I... don't want to be alone tonight."

My face heated up at the thought of sharing a bed with him, because besides my brother's and Lili a couple times when we were children, I had never slept with another person. But, that terrified, desperate look in his eyes broke my heart; so, I scooted over, and lifted up the covers for him. Feliciano smiled weakly, and shuffled his way over to crawl in beside me. I tucked him in, and whispered a shaky, "Goodnight," hoping to calm his nerves a bit, by acting a little parental.

It was quiet for a while, as I lay there trying to ignore how warm it was to have some one laying beside me, even if we weren't touching. My eyelids began to grow heavy though, and sleep was dragging my limbs deep into the comfort of this makeshift bed. So when a pair of thin, warm arms tangled themselves into mine, I barely registered it before my dreams had claimed me.

~O.o.o.O~

19th July, 1968

Life proceeded as such for a whole span of seven days. Wake up for work and eat breakfast, walk to work alongside Feliciano, spend eight hours apart until we walked home together, to eat dinner and wind down for the night; Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

Everything began to fall into a comfortable schedule, and it felt good to have such structure again.

Tonight commemorated my eighth day beneath this cracking roof, housed alongside a man who never forgot how to smile. We sat across from one another comfortably at the dining table, enjoying some leftover Bolognese. "So, Ludwig," the conversations always went the same way. How was work? Or, anything exciting happen while I was away?

"I want to run a few errands tomorrow, like grocery shopping and such- and, well I also wanted to visit Toni, see how Fratello is doing... I'm sure he doesn't want to see me yet, since he's mad, but I just thought I'd try. I... was hoping you could come with me?" He gave me those puppy dog eyes, that were getting increasingly harder to say, "No" to...

"Sure," I set him with a hard stare, "as long as you let me pay for the groceries this time." Of course my gaze was devoid of any real anger or disappointment; how could one even feel such things towards this gentle, charming man?

He smiled sheepishly, small hands wringing his poor napkin into a horrendous, twisted mess. "Sorry about that Ludi... you were busy with work, and I had the time to do the shopping that day... forgive me?" Feliciano looked away, his thin fingers writhing nervously against the table for a moment, before they took up residence within his lap. A sigh full of absolute exasperation pushed through the gap between my lips; that sweet man causing me gut wrenching guilt for feeling even just a tad bit agitated by his actions.

"There is nothing for me to forgive Feliciano, but... you shouldn't go out of your vay for me. I'm the one who should be doing that; it's your home that you are so kindly letting me live in, you know."

His bright, warm eyes met mine slowly; a tiny smile giving life to those cupid's bow lips of his. "I know," dark lashes hooded his eyes for a moment, in a rare display of shyness it seemed. "But... you make me want to go out of the way for you; you're just... too kind for your own good."

I shook my head, always surprised by Feliciano's innate humble, and giving nature. All I could do in the end, was offer a tiny smile of my own.

20th July, 1968

"What would you like for dinner tonight, Ludi?" That simple question was hard to answer, because my head felt like it was swimming in some thick, humid fog. The sweltering heat shimmered like shattered gold around us, causing skin to grow sticky and shirts to cling to slick flesh. I could just make out a bead of sweat that rolled down Feliciano's petite neck; to fall into the crevice where shoulder, clavicle and neck all met. Dear Gott, why was the sight so damn distracting?

"Uh... vwell... maybe I could make dinner tonight, i-if you don't mind trying German food?" Not even the late July sun, could rival the intense brightness of that cheerful smile.

"Sure Ludi, that sounds super yummy! I bet you're an amazing cook!" Feliciano threw his arms into the air excitedly, and I marveled at his ability to have so much energy, on a day such as this.

Even though it was the last the thing I needed, my cheeks burst into flames; making my skin grow even warmer through this haze of maddening heat. "V-vwell, I'm not bad at it... but, I doubt it's as good as your cooking, Feliciano."

He just waved a dismissive hand, and gave me a look that seemed to say, "I don't like it when you say things like that." Still, regardless of the seriousness that he was trying to display, he still came off as criminally adorable. An odd niggling feeling writhed in the back of my brain; and then I realized with a start, that I did not recognize where we were.

"Ummmm... Feliciano," he just gave a soft hmm in response. "Vhere are vwe going exactly?"

"Oh, I guess I forgot to mention that yesterday! We're going to the place where Toni sells his produce; his family grows the best tomatoes! I always go there to pick some up, because our families have known each other since we moved to America, and they give us some for free." Our footsteps continued to slap against the pavement, as we traveled in silence.

~O.o.o.O~

"Feliiiiii~" The man I knew as Antonio cooed, as he threw his arms enthusiastically around Feliciano; who seemed used to this kind of attention from the older man. I silently appraised the Spaniard, dark curly brown hair framed a deeply tanned face, making his bright green eyes stand out in contrast. A gigantic smile brightened up his entire face, something that seemed as natural as the sky being blue.

Feliciano pulled away and asked, "Hello Toni, how is Fratello doing?"

Antonio shrugged, "Ah, he's doing fine; albeit a little on the grumpy side..." The Spaniard seemed to pout at the thought, reminding me strongly of a petulant child.

"That's good to hear," Feliciano cheered, "it means Fratello's back to being himself!" I didn't even want to fathom how odd that sounded...

The two of them laughed at that, exchanging happy smiles and knowing glances; and it was hard not to feel a little left out. "All joking aside, what brings you here today mi amigo?"

"Ludi needs some tomatoes, he's going to make dinner for me tonight, isn't he sweet?!" I blushed fiercely, finding myself incapable of looking Antonio in the eyes; why did Feliciano have to say such embarrassing things?

"Si si, you seem to have found a fantastico friend! How did you two meet?"

With a big smile, Feliciano launched into the story excitedly; his hands moving as rapidly as his mouth. "Well, it all started one sunny evening in June-" From there I subconsciously tuned out his rambling, retreating into my own personal thoughts. Have I really known Feliciano for almost two months now? It seemed like just yesterday, that I met this joyful man on the street corner.

To think we were now living together, as if we had been the best of friends since infancy. I guess, Feliciano just had that affect on people; he made you feel like you were the most wonderful person in the world, if you were just simply kind to him. The thought made my heart swell with adoration for my Italian friend- he made me feel secure, in a place where it was easy to lose yourself.

"That's quite the story Feli!" Antonio chuckled, casting me a brilliant flash of pearl white teeth. The man's green eyes grew soft and warm, as they surveyed Feliciano's beaming face; and it made him look like a caring big brother. "It's so good to see you smiling again..."

At those words, Feliciano's smile fell just a tad, his enchanting golden-brown eyes growing dull in unmasked heartache. "Yes, it feels good to smile again..." The look of overwhelming hurt and loss in Feliciano's eyes left me reeling and confused to its meaning; but as quickly as it reared its ugly head, it was vanquished by the radiance of his smile.

"Well, we've got to get going Toni. Thanks for the tomatoes, Oh! And tell Fratello I love him!" Antonio nodded, and waved goodbye as Feliciano grabbed for my hand, and led me back the way we came.

~O.o.o.O~

It was almost 2:15 by the time we were done grocery shopping, and on our way home. Paper bags swung at our sides; the faint rustling sound the only thing filling up the silence. It gave me time to myself, to quietly contemplate the peculiar mood Feliciano had displayed earlier. How could I have not wondered upon the fact, that there was something deeper behind those brilliant simpers? That... there could be a darkness the Italian wished to hide behind upturned lips, and sparkling eyes.

"Ludwig, are you okay?" Feliciano's soft voice brought me back to the present, and looking down at my smaller companion, I could see concern etched into the tiny creases in his forehead.

"Ja, sorry Feliciano. I vwas... just lost in thought." I replied, making sure to smile reassuringly.

"Oh, that's okay Ludwig," a subtle tilt of the head, "I was just wondering why your gaze looked so far away." He simply shrugged, and looked away; seeming to me, to be caught up in tangled thoughts of his own for the moment. I opened my mouth, to just outright ask him about his uncharacteristic mood; but an audible gasp spilled from Feliciano's mouth, his dainty hand gripping into one of my shirt sleeves and shaking my arm excitedly. "Do you hear that? It's the ice-cream man Ludi! Can we get some, pretty pleeeaaase?!"

My eyes widened in shock at Feliciano's sudden outburst, and I could faintly pick up the tinkling sound of a ringing bell; and the crunch of wheels against gravel. "Of course Feliciano, you don't have to ask me to get anything..." I simply supplied, blushing while I noticed the adorable pout playing across the Italian's plump lower lip.

Just as he had predicted, a small white truck pulled around the corner slowly, the tinkling bells growing louder as it drew closer. Feliciano waved his free arm spastically, the other still gripping my left one loosely. The truck slowed to a stop as it finally reached us, and a man with shoulder length brown hair and field green eyes, greeted us. The young man smiled sheepishly as he said, "What would you two Gentleman like?"

Feliciano stared intently at the pictures displayed upon the side of the truck, advertising what ice cream was available, as if his decision was something of great importance. After a few more moments of heavy thought, Feliciano pointed at the picture of a fudge pop and exclaimed, "This one!" I couldn't help the blush that spread along my cheeks and down my neck; because really, he needed to stop acting so damn cute!

"And for you sir?" The brunette ice-cream peddler asked me.

"Ummm..." I looked wildly about for an option, and ended up just picking some thing random, "I'll take the uh... lemon ice."

"Coming right up!" The brunette smiled, rummaging around and serving up our desired treats. "That'll be ten cents."

Feliciano started searching through his pockets for loose change, but I beat him to the punch by handing the man a dollar, and then accepted our frozen treats and extra change. I handed my small friend his fudge pop and smiled, "It's my treat."

The ice cream man pulled away shouting, "Have a good day fella's!" Once the truck pulled out of sight, Feliciano turned and frowned at me; but began unwrapping his ice-cream bar none-the-less.

"You didn't have to do that you know..." he pouted, giving a small lick to his chocolate sweet. That pink little tongue was quite distracting, as it traced the contours of the ice-cream bar; innocently unaware of my staring.

"I-I know," I stuttered uncomfortably, "but I did it anyvay. Besides, it vas just small pocket change, that's hardly any skin off of my nose..." Unwrapping my own popsicle, so it wouldn't melt before I could enjoy it, I stuck the tip against my lips and savored the tangy taste it left there.

"Thank you Ludwig," Feliciano mumbled softly, his cheeks glowing a faint pink; his eyes trained on our uniform steps along the pavement.

"No problem Feliciano- besides, eating ice-cream vwith a friend is something I haven't done since I vas a child; it's nice to share this experience vith you."

He smiled brightly, the sky lighting up just a little more with him it seemed. "I know what ya' mean Ludi! I remember when we lived in Italy, Nonno used to take us out every Friday for Gelato." Just as suddenly, he fell into that strange melancholy once again. I felt awkward, because I just couldn't figure out how to make him smile; figure out what made him so damn sad. "There was a time, I forgot how to smile..." Feliciano's voice was soft, a whispered hush full of pain and longing.

"It was a day just like this one funny enough; perfect, and happy. Nonno took Fratello and I out for Gelato, just like every Friday since I could remember. We were ten then, Romano and I... living our fairytale life, in a beautiful city by the sea. We came home to nothing... our whole house, nothing but ashes and crumbling wood. We never found out how the fire started, but that day we lost more than just our childhood home...

"Nonna. Mama. Papa... all died; it was like every trace of their existence went up with all that black smoke. A few weeks later, Nonno bought us one way tickets to America, where we could leave the past behind us, and move forward. And after a while, we could all laugh and smile; almost like we we were back in Italy, as if we hadn't lost the people we loved the most. We had each other, we had a home, and we had our memories but... then Fratello got sick. At first we thought it was just another cold, until he started coughing up blood... we knew, even before the Doctor's diagnosed it, that he had Tuberculosis.

"So, Nonno took on two more jobs, to pay for all of his hospital bills... so I could keep going to school, and get an education. You see, I-I wanted to go to college, and become a painter. Nonno... was becoming so tired, he could barely stay awake through dinner some nights. He still brought so much warmth and laughter when he could, still told us every day, how much he loved us. Then, one day... he never came home.

"Toni's father called, told us that Nonno collapsed in the field; he died of a heart attack. I cried for days, for weeks I couldn't even find the will to get out of bed. I dropped out of school, and just drew into myself, wallowing in my own self pity." Feliciano stopped for a moment, to inhale a deep, shaky breath; and I could see how hard it was for him to relive this.

"Then... Fratello got really, really sick. He started having a seizure, so I called an ambulance and they came and took him to the hospital. Later, I found out that Romano had run out of his medicine, and we had no money left to buy some... so he had just gone without it for a week. That... that's when I snapped back into reality, and realized that I was his caretaker now. I couldn't just, mope about feeling sorry for myself- Fratello needed me, so I got up and did something about it."

Feliciano fell silent then, the corners of his eyes brimming with unshed tears. A droplet of chocolate ran down his trembling hand, reminding him of its presence; so he took a small bite, but remained silent. I felt so many emotions raging like a maelstrom within me, my own eyes stinging uncomfortably. I knew the last thing he needed was my pity, no... I may not have been very good at interacting with others, but even I knew exactly what he needed.

Coming to an abrupt stop, I looked down and into Feliciano's eyes to find them glistening with untold anguish. I wrapped one arm firmly about his waist, and the other around his thin shoulders; burying my face into his thick, auburn hair. I whispered against those silky strands, "It's okay Feliciano- you don't have to be strong right now. Go ahead und cry, be as vweak as you need to be; I'll be here to protect you from now on."

His ice cream fell from his limp grasp, and he wrapped his wire thin arms around my torso; fingers clenching desperately into the fabric of my tank top. He buried his face against my chest, and then he cried- he cried like a child who had lost his favorite toy; loud, and unabashed. I didn't tell him to stop, tell him to man up like I would have long ago, before I met him. No- all I could do, was run my fingers through his pretty hair, and pray that he never found out... that I was crying too.

~T.B.C.~

Translations:

Nonno- (Italian) Grandfather

Nonna- (Italian) Grandmother

E/N: heh, I initially didn't plan on this chapter ending on such a.. somber note but, well I just kept writing what came to mind and it just, happened. At the time I was heavily inspired by cute/depressing GerIta amv's, that I watched for like 2 hours before I got off my lazy ass and finished this. Next chapter will be in Antonio's perspective, and it will be the last perspective change for a while; the next 3-4 chapters will stay in Ludwig's point of view. Aaaaaaannnnddd, on Valentine's day, I will have chapter nine up because, it will have this stories very first lemon in it! Now you guy's will finally see, why this story is rated M ;)

Oh, and who can guess who the Ice-cream man was? He was a Hetalia character, so post with your reviews who you think he was, just for funsies. :3

See you all very soon!