Who Are You and What Have You Done to My Italy?
Part 4
Spain's Frustration
Spain had to admit that he was rather delighted about Romano's new personality. Sure, it was a bit awkward (especially when the Italian suddenly held his hand without any warning—which resulted in Spain feeling a warm sensation in more places than one...) and strange to see Romano this happy and open about his feelings and thoughts, but Spain just loved to see that beautiful smile on his face. It was so rare—he had to work extra hard just to see that smile once a year. But now? He was seeing it almost every five minutes.
"Why did we leave Ototou and Germany?"
"Ah, well, I think that they might be having an argument of some sort. We should let them work it out by themselves. ...Oh, um, Romano?"
"Yes?"
The Spaniard blushed lightly in embarrassment. "About yesterday... I'm sorry I broke my promise to you. I shouldn't have talked to Ita-chan the entire time... Um, yeah..." He laughed nervously and gave Romano the irresistible smile, hoping it would help lower the Italian's anger. If he was lucky, Romano would spare him the physical pain and just yell at him in an adorable mix of Italian, Spanish, and English. Ah, it was so cute when he did that... Oh! Must not get off task! Back to smiling.
Romano just stared at him blankly, looking as if the entire apology had gone in one ear and out the other. Now, Spain had to admit, the clueless look on his face was probably the most adorable thing ever, but right now, he wanted to know if he was going to be forgiven or go home with bruises. "Um... Romano? Hey, did you hear what I just said...?" Unfortunately, there was no reply other than Romano blinking and looking past him. Ouch. "Romano? Did you even hear what I just said? Romano? Romano!"
Okay, now he was getting a bit frustrated.
What the hell? He looks like he's daydreaming! Usually Ita-chan does this, not Romano!
"Romano, can you please say somethi—?"
Now Spain could honestly believe that God was trying to ruin his almost-perfect day, because instead of replying to his frustrated plea, Romano ran past Spain and said cheerily, "Kitty!"
...Wait, what? Spain turned around in surprise, watching as Romano ran over to some random stray cat that had been peacefully sleeping nearby. The Italian scooped the unsuspecting feline into his arms, giggling as it let out a small meow of surprise. "Hello, kitty~! My name is Romano~ Can you say Romano? Ro-Ma-No~!" His voice was light and full of giggles, which was like a type of rare music to the Spaniard's ears. It was so cheerful and, well, beautiful. He had never heard something so lovely.
Spain smiled faintly and followed Romano, watching as he petted the cat gently. "Romano, it's a cat, not a baby. Cats cannot speak, silly~! They can only meow!"
Romano smiled a bit, kneeling down and letting the cat scamper off. "I know. But it's a nice thought, being able to talk to cute little animals. I wish I could~ Then I wouldn't be lonely anymore..." The Italian trailed off, his voice suddenly fragile and sad. He quietly kept his eyes on the ground, feeling the familiar melancholy feeling settle in him once again. Lonely... He was always lonely, wasn't he?
"Romano..."
"Yes?"
"You know... I'm always here for you. If you ever feel lonely, you can always call me or find me. Okay?" Spain offered the Italian a reassuring smile, hoping that it would cheer him up. If Romano didn't cheer up soon, he'd have to use his magical charm! Fusosososo~! A magical charm! Oh, wait, back on track. He kept smiling at Romano, waiting for a reply.
Romano pouted. "You say that, but will you actually answer? You like my little brother more than me... Everyone likes him more than me. He's cute, talented, nice, and he doesn't snap at people all the time like I do! I'm just in his shadow..." The Italian sighed and stood up, wiping his eyes. Oh no... Was he crying? Spain panicked, quickly standing up as well. A crying Romano... As cute as that would look, it would be horrible to have happen! Romano should be smiling, not crying!
"R-Romano! I don't like Ita-chan more than you! I like you equally! You're both important to me!"
"...UWAAH! TWO-TIMER!"
"W-Wait, what?"
Romano turned and ran, crying as if he had just been dumped days before the big prom. It was actually kind of odd, seeing Romano actually display his emotions. Usually, it was Italy that acted like this (only around Germany, though). Since when did Romano even care about what Spain thought of him and Italy?
"Romano! Wait! Come back!" Spain shouted, quickly trying to run after his precious Italian. Right as he began to move forward, someone's hand shot out and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, yanking him backwards. He let out a small yelp of surprise before twisting around, only to see...Italy. Oh, God was definitely on his side today. "Um, hola, Ita-chan..."
"Don't you 'Ita-chan' me! Why did Romano run off like that? What the hell did you tell him, you fucking moron?" Italy hissed, eyes laced over with murderous intent. "You better spill your guts, fucker, or else I'll rip them out with force!"
Spain felt like fainting. This was just scary. Seeing the cute little Ita-chan he always knew threaten to rip out his innards was like seeing a little girl cry over Justin Beiber like a maniac. Oh, wait... Damn you, Canada. Damn you to hell. Spain could hear that annoyingly feminine voice echo in his mind, singing, "Baby, baby, baby, oh~". To be honest, the provided soundtrack in his mind was making this situation a lot worse than it was.
"U-Um, Ita-chan, you see..."
"No, I don't fucking see! Tell me now, damn it!"
"I told him that I like you both equally! That's all!"
Italy stared at him for a few moments before releasing his grip, allowing Spain to breathe and move back a little in case anything else snapped in the Italian. "You... You're an idiot. All this time, you still haven't been able to tell that he..." Glancing up at Spain, he noticed the clueless expression. Why did Romano have to fall in love with such an idiot?
"He what?"
"...Nevermind," Italy grumbled, pushing past Spain and running off to find Romano.
Spain just stood there, blinking curiously. "...What did I do?"
SORRY FOR THE SUPER LONG WAIT. -bows a few times to apologize-
Hetalia © Hidekaz Himaruya.