(A/N: Wow, I'm actually updating this story! Sorry about the super long wait. I really am. My story, Artistic Expressions, has taken over my life and it's seriously all I've wanted to write. Plus this story kind of has like 0 plot whatsoever to it. Idk when this will update again, so consider it on hiatus until I can come up with a plotline and I finish Artistic Expressions. Super super sorry, everyone :c)

Matt and Gil were walking down the hall to Al's room, when they saw Ivan walking towards the elevator. That's weird, did he go to visit Al? "Hey, Ivan, I didn't expect to see you here!" Matt called, and Ivan smiled. "I came to see my fellow teammate. When I heard about the crash from the coach, I immediately drove to this Catholic hospital." He said. "Oh, yeah, you're Orthodox, aren't you? Sorry, my Papa is Catholic-" Matt said, and Ivan cut him off. "Oh, no. I'm atheist. It's just that the place I was born was very much still Soviet, and acts that way until this day, and I've never seen a religious hospital before." He smiled, like this was amusing to him. "America is truly a wonderful place. But I have to be leaving now, Matvey. Give my regards to Alfred." Ivan said, and got onto the elevator.

"He's a little weird. Why does he call you Matvey?" Gil asked quietly as they walked to Al's room. "He can't say Matthew. He's a good dude, Gil. He's just got culture-shock." Matt whispered. "Oh, I feel him, then. America is fucking weird." Gil said. "I don't really remember Canada, but I can agree with that." Matt said, and they were quiet again until they reached Al's door. Matt took in a deep breath, and walked in. He was surprised to see that his dads weren't in the room, and that Alfred was alone.

"Hey, Al," Matt said softly, and Al grinned at him. He still looked a bit broken to Matt, and the bandages and casts and tubes that were all over him didn't help. "Hey, bro!" Even in a hospital bed suffering from life-threatening injuries, Alfred was still his usual, enthusiastic self. It made Matt smile. Alfred was a hard kid to break, and Matt was terribly glad for that. "So, uh, Ivan visited you?" Matt asked his brother while he tried to find a place to sit that wasn't covered in his parent's belongings. "Yeah. And honestly, you were right. He isn't such a bad dude, and he's definitely no commie. He was talking so much shit about the Soviet Union, because I asked him why he was so in awe about the crucifix above me." Alfred was beaming, and Matt laughed. "Looks like someone has a crush!" he teased, and Alfred scowled at him.

"Looks like you've got a crush. Who is this bitch-ass white boy in my room?" Alfred asked, and it was teasing, but Matt saw Gil recoil slightly. He was sensitive about his albinism. Matt gave Al a look that said to cut out the 'white boy' jokes. "His name's Gilbert." Matt said, and he felt Gilbert's arm wrap around his waist. "And I'm a bit more than his crush, bitch-ass white boy." Gilbert said. Was he really that mad about the comment? Either way, Al must have missed Gil's comment, or he just didn't care, and kept talking.

"So have you heard anything about the other guys who were in the wreck? The doctor told me I was the least injured in the group, so I kind of want to know what happened. None of them are in this stupid Catholic hospital Papa forces us to always go to." Matt didn't know how Alfred could sound so casual after just undergoing major surgery. "I don't know anything about the others. Papa surely has talked to all their parents and has all the gossip though, it's just a matter of waiting until they get back. Where are they anyways?" Matt asked, and Al shrugged the best he could with all the medical equipment attached to him. "No idea. They probably went to eat."

As if on cue, Arthur and Francis walked into the room holding a bag of Wendy's. "Mathieu! You're here!" Francis beamed, and Matt waved awkwardly. "Hello, Gilbert," Arthur nodded at the albino, and Gilbert smiled and nodded back, happy that he was included in the hellos. "So, dads, do you have any gossip about the other teammates that were in the wreck?" Alfred asked, and Francis's face dropped.

"I do, though I am not sure you want to hear it." The Frenchman said, and Alfred dismissed him. "No way! I can handle it." He said defiantly. "Okay… You're the only one who's woken up yet, out of the 3 survivors. Honestly, Alfred, why did you think it was a good idea to get in that truck with all those people?!" Francis exclaimed, then sighed. "The only ones who survived the wreck were you, Toris, and Leon." Francis said softly, not making eye contact with his son. He didn't want to see the hurt in his eyes, the guilt of him being one of the few survivors. Matt saw it, though, and seeing Alfred's face drop the way it did was one of the worst things Matt had ever seen. His own face dropped, and he felt Gil grip his hand, but he didn't even register it.

Not only was his brother forming the beginning of survivor's guilt, some of the people who had died were acquaintances of Matt's. Francis let Matt know the names. Heracles, who was one of the few people Matt had talked to in his homeroom besides Gilbert, had died in the wreck. Then there were the people Matt didn't talk to, but the school he went to was small enough that he knew of them. Milen and Tai, two exchange students from Bulgaria and Thailand respectively, were also dead, and Matt thought that hurt him more than Heracles being dead. These people, though he didn't know them, had families thousands of miles away that were just now getting the call that their children were dead. They thought they were going to be getting a better education, a learning opportunity, and they just got dead. School the next day was going to be really hard.