hey man i've never left a review on something but jesus hell this piece cut me deep.

you really broke free of the archetypes of the characters and breathed a lot of life into them, they felt like real multifaceted people instead of stock characters, and the ending really broke my heart.

i went into this expecting ludwig to get with feli and lovino to be mentioned once in a while but mostly pushed aside to focus on (what would surely eventually be) ludwig and felis inevitable romance, but when feli died and the fic carried on i was thoroughly shocked. i'm also sorta glad that there was no romance, normally i'd get bored without any dizzying love struck crushes, but i think i've read so many fics where one half of a couple dies and it's just angst that having it be a close friend that dies made this story much more emotionally poignant for me. it also made ludwig and lovinos friendship more pronounced, and they're friendship felt very real and believable and mutual rather than forced for plot reasons, so thank you for that.

I was feeling very depressed and alone and quarantined when i opened this, but after reading the ending where even after eight whole years of his life gone leaving nothing but a painting, sketches and bittersweet memories to show for it, ludwig still moves forward and finds meaning in his life. i envy that kind of purpose and determination, and it made me feel motivated to get out of bed and start being alive too.

Despite being very short I think this was the perfect length, and I want to thank you for writing such a beautiful and tragic story, and thank you even more for sharing it with us. I don't think i've ever read such an emotionally saturated and colourful piece of fanfic. I count myself very lucky to have been able to read something so lovely.

Oh gosh, this fic is amazing. I'm not usually a fan of Gerita (a bit too overhyped if I'm being honest), but this was an amazing read! I love researching into different disorders and psychoses, this one I haven't heard before. And when I read through it and saw the symptoms and the repercussions during the different stages, shoot...you had my crying faster than a dripping facet.

What I really liked most about this fic, was the characterization, the simplistic use of language, and the interactions between characters. You made every single line and phrase useful and work. The foreshadowing is so subtle, and yet so poignant when you reread the passages.

Ludwig slowly embracing the brothers, to the brothers embracing him back-it's all so bittersweet and beautiful. The way Feliciano deteriorated hit me to the gut-my gosh, he never got to paint Ludwig! Damn it! And how Lovino, that lovable little *insert curse here* slowly warmed up to Ludwig amidst his own insomnia after a year of no response...

And that final decision in the end with Ludwig and the overwhelming sound of footsteps. Never before did I think that such a simple little title like "Footsteps" could resonate so well within the reader.

I've never had insomnia, but I know for sure that I'd rather not have this condition. The writing really shows your experience it and I hope that you are well.

Great job with this wonderful masterpiece of storytelling!

And thanks for making me cry.

(Those last six lines of this story really does it for me. Simple and poetic).

I'm SOBBING. Omfg this...was so beutiful but I am so SAD now holy shit. That's...oof.

this utterly destroyed me in every conceivable way

YOU BROKE MY FUCKING SOUL-

Actually, I want to applaud you for this TEAR-JERKING, HEART CRUSHING, AND PAINFUL MASTERPIECE. It was amazing and it was almost like a rollercoaster ride.

The beginning started off happily; y'know, light-hearted and pretty bright. I was looking forward to the character development and I love how much Lovino and Ludwig got along so well through witty replies and playful banters. Also, the ridiculousness these three had. It was very infectious that I was laugh to myself as well or smile at my phone's screen. But then came that last line from the first chapter about Feliciano not being able to sleep.

I was going nuts in that part. It was very subtle and it made so much sense as to why little Feli couldn't sleep, but then a few days stretched to weeks, and God, that's where everything crashed. The constant worries, the guilt, the regret, and the unspoken words between Ludwig and Lovino as they watched Feli. It was devastating. Heck, I cried all throughout the damn thing.

Then here comes the death and fail attempt at coping. Then the pretending. When I thought you were finally going to heal us with some more character development between Ludwig and Lovino, ANOTHER PLOT COMES IN AND HITS ME LIKE A TRUCK. Seriously? YOU HAD TO DO THAT?

Well, for the third chap: I feel absolutely horrible. You know the feeling that despite knowing the outcome, you still fight? You fight till the end and UGH. Still, I can't deny that despite the heartaches and snots flying, I loved the part where the German was immensely worried about Lovino learning his language and right when the friendliness was becoming too realistic, he lists all the curse words he knows. In that part, I was laughing, but it turned into a sobbing mess, then laugh again, and more brokem sobs. LET'S JUST SAY THAT THIS IS DRIVING ME INSANE. I'm genuinely in pain, even at this moment. It hurt so bad that I could almost physically feel it. I might even have, but was too busy crying over it. You, my friend, are absolutely amazing.

KUDOS TO THIS AND TO YOU.

I'm crying.

you know it hurts. it fucking hurts. it's like you took my heart and just mercilessly stepped on it.

Very sad and beautiful. Heartbreaking at times. It was very original and interesting. There were moments when I was smiling, moments when I even laughed (when Lovino cursed in german, for instance), and moments when it was very painful and heartbreaking. Chapter 3 was even sadder than Chapter 2 in my opinion, but I was still hoping, in the beginning, that everything would be allright. But then Lovino said to Ludwig that he couldn't sleep, and it was like a punch in the stomach. And then Lovino reached out for Ludwig's hand... it was that moment which made my heart break.
I love how you ended the story. "Footsteps". Every time you wrote about them, I was feeling anxious. It was it, especially, which made it so easy to imagine how terrible the whole thing must have been for Ludwig. And let's add it : it was beautifully written.
So thank you for this one !
kimi-ebi

Why tho.

Man, this was truly, heartbreakingly beautiful. You're style of writing is amazing. Everything seemed so perfect and then it just went to hell. You really know how to mess with people's feelings. In a good way

Hello! Long time reader here! I have been reading your stories since I was a pre-teen and you fictions have a very dear place in my heart. Now that I am older I am rereading your beautiful stores and I must say they are absolutly amazing! I could compliment you all day long on how well you write but nothing I say can do justice! I was wondering if you have ever thought of writting a book? You have so much talent and the plots you have are so unique I can't even be able to tell that it is a fanfiction! My absolute favorite story you have so far is "Footsteps" and if you were to make the story a bit longer and change the characters slightly to fit into your own story, you would certainly have a wonderful book! I can ot tell you how much your writing means to me and if you ever wrote a book I will certainly be the first one to buy it! You spend all this time writing fanfiction, but if you invested some time in writing books I would die of happiness! Im really serious about the book thing! Anyways, I just want to thank you for bringing me so much joy reading your masterpeices, and I hope there is more to come! (But really though, you would make an amazing author, if you ever decide to actually write a book im sure you have plenty of fans who would be willing to support you! Me included!)

Goddammit. Extremely well written, with a lot of well placed foreshadowing, and actually loyal to the disease (almost as if you knew someone suffering with it...) I'm crying.

Well, someone posted a link to this and said it was sad and then I got interested, and I can honestly say...

You killed me.

You see, from the first chapter, we all knew this wasn't going to be happy. Because you told us that. However, the happiness of the first chapter is so prolonged that eventually, you just forget. It was nice and fluffy and simply enjoyable and very well-written. But then, the last two lines come to get you. And then, you remember.

Then comes chapter one's deliquent, "bad boy" boyfriend, chapter two, who pretends to be your friend for about a week, but then jumps you, kicks you while you're down, steals your wallet/purse/man purse/backpack/etc. and runs off with it, leaving you crying whilst on the ground and in pain.

After this comes chapter two's second cousin twice removed who never liked chapter one to begin with, and decides to take that out on her friends, AKA you. He, like chapter two, starts out nice to you, but then breaks into your house, stabbing you thirty-seven times in the chest, buys your house, and somehow gets ahold the money you had on the credit cards you canceled after chapter two stole your wallet.

In short, you killed me, I'm dead, and I applaud you for that.

Jolly good show!

/weeps quietly in a corner

No, it's okay. I didn't need my heart anyway... God, this is so SAD! It's beautifully written though. Good job!

It is 3:30 A.M. My pillowcase is soaked with silent tears and choked breaths. I only wish I could leave a more eloquent review for such a story. Thank you.

Oh ohhhh my gosh, that was so hauntingly beautiful! This really touched my heart, great work!