SO I wanted, really really wanted, to get this up on Valentines day (or, single's awareness day, or the eve of discount chocolate day...or just February 14th, whichever you prefer XD) And I was almost successful, except I got distracted by Majora's Mask 3D... ...
Anyway, here it is! I'm so glad for all the support and to everyone who enjoyed my New Year's (and Valentines?) story~
Enjoy! I own no Hetalia.
January 1
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The red numbers on the clock read 10:43am. Many of the guests had left in a rush soon after midnight hit, their happy and slightly intoxicated minds eager to spend some alone time with their beloved partners and significant others.
There were only a few people left in Mathias' house; all of who he was working towards awakening and kicking out. Spain and Romano were among the first to leave once midnight hit, and Elizaveta and Austria among the last. Of course, the main reason for that was because she was taking pictures of the drowsy, lovey-dovey, kissing couples.
Germany and Italy had left a little after midnight, returning to Germany. Gilbert and Matthew also left rather quickly, apparently boarding a private jet in an attempt to beat the clock and return to Ontario, Canada before New Year's passed there as well.
The only pair left was that of Arthur and Alfred, neither interested in boarding a long flight back to the United States. There was also the lone, single Belgium sleeping in his guest room and a lone, snoring Romania that invaded his bathtub at some point last night. He wasn't worried about Belgium, knowing she would depart soon after she awoke, and would take on evicting the sharp-toothed European sometime after lunch.
Mathias entered his living room to find the American already awake and watching the Brit, who was sleeping on the couch. With a soft snort the Dane placed a mug of coffee, a cup of tea, and a glass of water on the table.
"When he wakes up make him drink the water before he starts on the tea, it takes his grouchiness away when hung-over" Mathias informed, knowing full well the Brit went overboard with the alcohol, even with the limited quarry.
Once he got a nod from the world-power, the Dane slipped back upstairs. His eyes lingered longingly on the shut and locked door that Lukas resided behind. Was he awake? Mathias was sure the male was still in the room, but for how much longer? The Dane could just break into the room, seeing as he had the key, but he respected the Norwegian's request to be left alone.
With a quiet sigh he shuffled to his own room, shut the door, and settled back in his bed with the intent of sleeping the rest of the morning away.
Lukas had left sometime after Mathias had fallen asleep, heading back to his own home in Norway.
When Mathias woke again, the clock read 1:27 and his house was empty…aside from the nation slumbering in his bath tub and all the leftover food. He still didn't quite feel like dealing with Romania, so instead Mathias set to work cleaning up from the night before.
He had to do something to keep him busy, after all that had happened.
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February 14
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Mathias opened the bedroom door quietly, his eyes immediately focusing on the small body bundled up beneath the bed's blankets. A small smile stretched unto his lips as he walked over and set a hot mug of coffee on the bedside table. The form began to move and groan softly as it reentered the conscious world.
"Morning, beautiful" He murmured, sitting beside the body with his own coffee. He chuckled when all he got in response was a soft grunt.
"Here, take your morning fuel" Mathias laughed, pressing the second coffee mug into the man's waiting hands.
This time he received a louder grunt, followed by a quiet "thanks."
"Did ya sleep well?" he asked, feeling light and happy in the other's presence.
"Fine" Lukas huffed, yawning. He sipped at his coffee before shifting his eyes over to the Dane.
"It's rather early for you to be up" he commented, turning his eyes back to the dark, fragrant liquid.
Mathias smiled, looking into his own mug. "I couldn't really sleep, so I figured I would get up and watch you sleep" he answered with a wink. A laugh bubbled up past his lips as a slight blush crept up on the Norwegian's cheeks.
"I'm just joking, Luke. I was actually up thinking" he admitted, shooting the other another grin.
Lukas raised an eyebrow, "You? Whatever could your simple mind have been thinking about?" He snorted, finishing his coffee.
Mathias set his half-empty mug down before turning to gently gather the other into his arms. "My New Year's Eve party" he murmured, placing a kiss between Lukas' brows. The winter's grasp was beginning to slowly loosen its hold over the North, but that day was forever ingrained in Mathias' mind.
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January 1—Flashback
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Mathias had just watched Lukas flee into his guest room, securely locking the door behind him and shattering his heart into tiny pieces.
"Mat! Mathias!" A voice called, coming up behind him. He turned to find Elizaveta grinning up at him, holding her camera out to him proudly. "I got a picture of that kiss! Want me to print one out for you?"
Mathias forced a smile before letting it fade to a pained grimace. "You can just delete it… I, it didn't go as planned. He ran off…" his fist clenched at his side, eye drifting to the closed door. He let loose a watery laugh before looking back at the Hungarian, "He doesn't feel the same, Liz."
The woman frowned, eyebrows creasing in confusion. "No," she stated, fiddling with her camera, "That can't be right. Look" she held the electronic out to him, showing the captured moment.
What Mathias saw took his breath away: he and Lukas kissing. Himself with eyes fully shut, but Lukas with his eyes opened a sliver; his face relaxed with one of his hands hovering just above Mathias' chest. As he continued to study it he noticed something that made his heart skip a beat, hope welling in him.
"He… he was smiling…" his voice came out quiet, barely registering as a breath. The picture clearly displayed the slight curve in Lukas' lips, so minute that Mathias hadn't felt it.
Elizaveta nodded, "Yeah. If I had to guess, he panicked and fled not because he doesn't feel the same way, but because he does." She flashed him a smile, "Because he likes you, Mathias. You just gotta chase him."
At that the Dane shook his head, "No, Luke needs some time to think. But… I'll try talking to him later, after most people leave" he decided.
The female gave a quiet hum, grabbing Mathias' hand. "Don't give up when there's still hope, Mat" she smiled once more before returning downstairs to an Austrian being harassed by an albino.
With great reluctance, Mathias tore his eyes away from the locked door and returned downstairs to the party.
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He stood by the door until the footsteps faded from the stairs and the hallway outside was silent. His body sagged to the ground as a heavy sigh passed from his lips.
The same lips that had been connected to Mathias' minutes before.
Lukas curled his trembling body into a tight ball and stared blankly into the guestroom. His face was an unhealthy red and his ice-blue eyes were dulled and unfocused, fogged over as his mind whirled with too many emotions.
Yet, as many thoughts that spun in his head, Lukas could catch only one of them: He kissed me.
His mind could focus on nothing other than that fact. He couldn't catch the "why did Mathias do that?" or "why did I let him?" or "Did I enjoy it?" or even the simple "where am I?"
No, besides the fact that the Dane had kissed him, Lukas was disconnected from the world—from himself, even.
After a few deep and even breathes, his heart and mind gradually slowed to a healthier speed. A pale, shaky hand reached up to touch its owner's lips, his mouth slightly agape in disbelief.
With his mind finally back in his control, Lukas could finally start sorting through the questions antagonizing his mind.
'Mathias claimed he had something to tell me. Then he kissed me. Are they related..?' Lukas asked himself before shaking his head, refusing to jump to that conclusion. 'There had to be another reason for it. A bet, perhaps?'
His heart clenched in his chest and disappointment rose like bile in his throat because, to Lukas, it sounded like something the stupid Dane would do.
Yet, to Lukas, Mathias could have also been stupid enough to mean the kiss and had been, ultimately, telling Lukas something through it.
His mind flew through all the times Mathias had complimented, flirted, smiled, grinned, and invaded Lukas' personal space in the recent past. 'Does he actually l…love me?'
'When did he fall in love with me?'
The Norwegian took another shaky breathe before staring at his hands. 'And I…I returned the kiss, so does that mean that I also…?'
Suddenly, dread filled the nation's small body, causing a sob to erupt from his mouth. Lukas realized his folly; he realized that he had pushed Mathias away and fled. Horrified, Lukas curled onto the ground and began to cry.
'I pushed him away… I denied him…'
Another sob wrecked through his body.
'When did I fall in love with him?'
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Mathias flashed a small smile at the remaining Countries as they prepared to leave. By one in the morning, all but six were gone; three were sleeping, one was pouting, the other was practically drooling over the pictures on her camera, and one was locked away in a guestroom. Overall, the house was quite.
Yet, Mathias found no comfort in that because it caused his mind to be filled with thoughts of a certain Norwegian.
A soft hand gripping his arm drew the Dane out of his dramatic thoughts.
"How are you fairing, Mat?" Elizaveta asked, concern and worry clouding the delighted and perverted shine in her eyes.
With a sigh, Mathias decided to share his inner turmoil with her: "I can't stop thinking about if I did something wrong, ya know? What if Lukas doesn't forgive me?"
"And before you mention the picture again," he huffed, cutting the Hungarian off, "it could have been a mistake. Maybe he was drunk or something…"
"Mathias" the female nation's voice was hard, "You'll never know unless you go and talk to him. Confront him, you idiot. Norway isn't the type to drink and you know it; nor is he one to smile" she snorted, "at all. I don't see why you're worried."
"Plus" Elizaveta continues, eyes gaining that perverted glow once again, "You two would be beyond perfect together. You complement each other's personalities but you both have the potential to bring the best out in each other."
The Dana felt his spirits life, "You're right, Liz, tha-"
"And" the excited female interrupted, holding her camera snug against her breasts, "You both have an air of dominance, which means that in the bedroom-"
"Okay, you're done!" Mathias squeaked—yes, squeaked. Like a mouse. Sure, the Dane was guilty of fanaticizing about Lukas naked, in bed, and… well, just because he's Denmark doesn't mean he isn't a man.
Either way, he didn't want Elizaveta thinking about him and Lukas, well, possibly being intimate and—
'Why the hell am I letting this muddle my mind?!' Mathias thought, a light pink dusting his cheeks.
Elizaveta's loud laugh echoed through the house, causing the two slumbering, English-speaking nations on the couch to stir. At once she ceased her laugh and watched as they settled back together, the American on the bottom with the Brit curled on his chest.
With a quiet squeal, the trigger-happy Hungarian began to do what she does best: take artisan pictures of two gay men.
Mathias flicked his eyes over to Roderich, "You might want to take her home now."
With a sullen sigh, the exhausted pianist set to work collecting his eccentric girlfriend and heading home.
With a "Thanks for everything, Liz," and a "Good luck, Mat," the two set off for home.
Gathering up every scrap of courage, Mathias walked up the stairs, down the hall, secured a key, and went to stand in front of the door to the room Lukas had escaped to.
Just like hours before, Mathias did not give himself time to think before he acted; he shoved the key into the hole and turned it, relaxing at the reassuring click.
The door echoed a slow, whining creak as it opened and allowed Mathias to see inside of it.
There, curled on the hardwood floor to the left of the bed, was Lukas. His body looked small and venerable.
Mathias felt his heart clench with worry. He attempted to move the Norwegian off the floor and into the guest bed without waking him. As he held the smaller male, he noticed how the beautiful body trembled and curled closer to his chest, as if seeking warmth and some comfort from the uneasy sleep.
Gently as he could, the Dane tucked Lukas into the warm bed. He removed the hairpin before caressing the pale, slumbering face in hopes to ease the tense facial expression.
"Oh, Lukas…" he murmured, a frown creasing his normally jolly face. He felt responsible for the state of the petite male, and it made guilt eat at his being.
He spent a few more moments watching his beloved sleep before turning away to exit the room.
Once he was within the reach of the door, he heard the bed creak and the quick approach of footsteps. Within seconds, small but strong arms were wrapped around his midsection and a face was pressed between his shoulder blades.
With his heart thumping against his ribcage, Mathias looked down at the hands clenching the shirt covering his stomach. His head felt light and dizzy as he carefully placed his hands over the smaller, balled up fists.
"Lukas..?" He whispered, trying to crane his neck around behind him.
"I'm sorry."
His heart skipped a beat and his breathe caught in his throat at the sad, broken voice. Mathias eased the fists open and turned around before embracing the Norwegian.
"You have nothing to be sorry about, Nor. It was my fau-"
"No, it's not!" Lukas snapped, dragging himself from the enclosed arms. "You did nothing wrong, I did! I ran away like a coward" he growled, face twisted in pain.
Confused, the Dane frowned deeper. "What do you mean? I stepped over a line and you reacted-"
A loud sigh cut him off. Lukas appeared to shrink in size and he averted his eyes guiltily. "Tell me why."
Mathias blinked in confusion, "Why what, Nor-?"
"Why did you do it" Lukas whispered.
Everything clicked for the Dane in that moment. Lukas was nervous, but not mad. Had he hated the Dane, none of this would be going on right now.
"Why I kissed you?" He asked quietly, trying to catch the other's blue eyes. When he failed to do so, he let loose a sigh before explaining:
"It's simple, really" he began, gently grasping the Norwegian's chin and forcing their eyes to meet. "I kissed you because I love you, Lukas, and I was tired of not knowing how you felt about me.
"Perhaps it was selfish of me" he continued, entranced by the emotions swirling in the ice-blue eyes, "but I didn't want to wait anymore. I wanted to know if you liked me, in any definition of the word."
The ice-blue eyes closed and the silence ticked by tensely.
With a soft sigh, Mathias sunk onto the bed, "You don't have to say anything, Luke. I just wanted you to know how I feel—how I've felt for the longest time."
Lukas bit his lip before finally turning to face the Dane, who was staring calmly at him.
Taking a page from Mathias' book, the Norwegian stepped towards the other and quickly kissed him square on the lips.
With a relieved sigh, both melted into the sweet kiss; before it ended, Mathias pulled the other against him. Once they broke apart, a grin stretched across his lips and he pressed a chaste kiss against Lukas' forehead.
"Does that mean…?" came the hesitantly hopeful question.
All Lukas did was nod and lean heavily against the taller blond, closing his eyes.
Within moments the Norwegian was drifting to sleep, and all Mathias could do was grin and wrap both of them up in the bed covers. Soon after the pleased Dane followed suit and fell into the comfort of sleep.
He had his beloved, after all these years, and he would never let him go.
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Present Time – February 14
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Mathias grinned as he saw a smile form on the Norwegian's lips. The fond softness of Lukas' eyes made his heart leap into his throat and his hold on the other tighten.
"I'm so glad everything worked out that night" he muttered, pressing his face to Lukas' soft hair. "I was real worried that you'd hate me afterwards" Mathias let loose a happy, breathless laugh, "I'm so happy."
Lukas turned to Mathias and pressed a kiss to his cheek, murmuring bashfully, "I'm …happy, too, Mathias."
The Dane's eyes met his, silently begging him to continue and say more. In response Lukas closed his eyes and placed his head on Mathias' shoulders, complying.
"I thought I hated you, at first" he softly admitted, "you made me…feel things I didn't understand. I, well, I took it for granted that you were always around, annoying me. When you agreed to leave me alone in exchange for going to the party I...honestly thought you would fail."
Lukas took a deep breath, waiting for Mathias to say something—anything. Instead, he nodded and placed a kiss to the other's forehead, urging him once again to continue.
"I can't remember the last time you left me alone for more than a day" he scoffed, "If you weren't barging into my house, you were calling. And when I tried to ignore that, you would just continue calling until I picked up or would come burst into my house.
"I had so much time to myself, and I truly had no idea what to do with it." Lukas continued, admitting "I grew bored. I had nothing better to do besides indulged my thoughts." He hesitated before adding, "Most of them were about you. Thinking back, it was obvious that I…w-well,"
"That you loved me, too" Mathias finished for him, giving a sweet, gentle smile.
"You weren't mad that I…left, were you?" he asked softly. Lukas remembered waking up later the day of their first (and second) kiss, and panicking. He could barely believe what had happened, and had to retreat home to sort out his thoughts.
Not before, of course, leaving a note for the Dane.
The Danish man grinned softly, "Of course not, Luke. I've known you for a long time" he placed a kiss to Lukas' temple, "You had to organize the chaos you felt. Either way you returned and became mine."
Lukas snorted with laughter, "Oh, I'm yours? How do you know you're not mine?" he growled.
Mathias smirked, excited at the Norwegian's attitude. In the last month and a half, Lukas had become very comfortable around the Dane and began to show more of his true personality.
The taller pulled the smaller flush against him, relishing the feeling of Lukas' lips on his.
He could get used to this.
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Meanwhile, elsewhere in the world, two blonds arrived at a barren airport—one sleeping peacefully while the other loaded their bags into the rented truck.
Once the luggage was taken care of, the American returned to the small plane to carefully wake the snoozing Brit.
"Hey Artie, wake up. We're here."
The green-eyed blond cracked an eye open and wrinkled his nose.
"Why the bloody hell is it so cold, then?" He grumbled, "I thought South Carolina was warm."
Alfred laughed, "South Carolina is warm, Art. The thing is, we're in Alaska right now" he gave a sneaky grin.
Arthur took a moment to process that in his sleepy brain, before exploding with a "What?!"
"Well, I wanted to go someplace away from everyone" Alfred shrugged, reaching for the other's hand. "Ya know, it a cabin in the middle of the woods. Where we could hike, ice-skate, build an igloo, or cuddle…"
The Brit sighed, "I should be mad, but I also should have expected this."
"It is my holiday for love today, Art" Alfred hummed, sweeping the smaller male into his arms bridal style. "And we're off!"
"A-Alfred, what—no, put me—put me down!"
"No way Artie! You're mine for the rest of the night!"
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Gilbert watched with a bored expression as the padded nations floated back and forth across the ice rink.
Four Countries were facing off in two's in an aggressive game of hockey: Finland and Sweden against Matthew and Russia.
Gilbert felt his face twist in annoyance at the sight of the Russian bastard. Yet, at the same time, he felt his lower region stir at the sight of his Canadian cursing, snarling, body-checking, and still gliding gracefully at the same time.
He was just perfect.
He didn't know if he could control his awesome five meters.
He was really lucky the game was almost over. Finland launched the puck towards the goal; Matthew dove towards it in an attempt to deflect it, but failed; the puck hit the net and the timer went off.
He watched as his Canadian threw his helmet at the (also aggressive) Fin and they started to size one another up.
He laughed as Sweden flung Finland over his shoulder and trudged off towards the locker room, successfully breaking up the fight before it began.
He grinned as he caught Matthew's dark purple eyes—enraged with loss but bright with excitement and adrenaline.
Knowing what the Canadian wanted, Gilbert exited the rink and set off to warm up the car in the fringed Northern Winter.
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Gilbert shivered as he was pressed against the bedroom wall, his body trapped by the blond currently attacking his mouth.
Just before the moment could get too steamy, a sound reached their ears that neither wanted to hear: the ringtone of a cell phone.
"Ignore it" he rasped, capturing Matthews mouth in another heated kiss.
Moments later, Matthew's cell could be heard. Immediately the two recognized the ringtone—the one a perverted Frenchmen had picked for his "son."
With a quiet sigh, the blond answered the phone with a polite yet strained, "Hello?"
Matthew's eyes flickered to Gilbert and he smirked, "Oui, he's in the room." He then laughed, face becoming slightly pink, "Oui, you did, but it's fine."
"Gilbert, Francis wants to talk to you" he chuckled, handing the phone over. He then leaned over and whispered, "Meet me in the kitchen once you're done" before exiting the room.
Once the Canadian left, Gilbert snarled, "What the hell Francis?"
"Ah, hello to you too Gilbert. How are you?"
"Me? I'm freaking annoyed" he growled out, "You disappear for over a fucking month, and they you call now and completely cockblock me and Matty!"
"Well good! Why should I let you do whatever you want with mon petit Mattieu?" the Frenchmen laughed on the other line.
"You-just—shut up you slut" Gilbert huffed, "What hole have you been in all this time?"
"Ah, well, it was a very moist—"
"Don't continue that sentence, Franny, please" Gilbert laughed, plopping down on the bed.
"Ah, well, you could say that I was on a journey for love~" Francis purred. "I traveled to remote villages in my Country in search of beautiful men and woman."
"So, you've just been bed jumping."
"Oui, you could say that. I did meet someone, though. A very nice someone."
"Oh really? Some human chick?" Gilbert grunted, looking longingly in the direction of the kitchen.
"Ah, perhaps so. Or perhaps not~"
"Well, whatever. You're back now, so we gonna get together sometime? I owe you a punch for that damn voicemail stunt you pulled, you ass."
"Oui oui, as soon as I can we shall swipe Toni. I must bid adieu now though, my dearest Prussian."
"Fine. See ya, Frenchy."
He ended the call and tossed the phone on the bed before stalking out of the room, looking forward to what was to come.
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The girlish giggle echoed through the large estate. Tucked safely in her dark room, the Hungarian worked on processing and copying photos for later use.
A sharp knock on the revolving door broke the yaoi trance, along with the call of "lunch of done."
With a dull sigh, Elizaveta finished the photo and hung it up to dry. Carefully she cleaned up the darkroom before exiting it and wandering into the dining room with the waiting Austrian.
"Have fun, Elizaveta?" Roderich asked, his voice dry and accusing.
"Hm..?" the woman hummed, taking a seat besides the other. "What do you mean, dear?"
The cravat-wearing pianist sighed, face falling sullenly, "You have been so focused on developing all your pictures the past few weeks."
Elizaveta smirked, letting loose a chuckle, "What, are you jealous Roddy?"
She snickered as his face blushed.
Padding quietly over to him, she straddled his lap and pulled him into a slow, sweet kiss. "You have my attention for the rest of the night, Roderich" she whispered lowly into his ear, "What have you got in mind?"
Well, there you have it! The Epilogue of New Year's Kiss. I feel like I botched a lot of the fluff...hopefully it's not as bad as I think. I just... can't do romantic/mushy stuff very well, I guess?
I shall start working on some other stories (yes, including LaCH) but I still have school to worry about (because seriously, 18 credits was too much... bleh).
Leave a review and let me know what you thought :) Not that I'm done with this, I'm going to go back through and edit it all because I found a lot of small mistakes that bother me and I need to fix.
ALSO ALSO ALSO, I might add an extra Epilogue chapter next New Years. So look forward to that :) I don't know what I'll put in it yet, but I have a loong time to worry about it.
For now, I'll let you leave everything up to your imagination *wink*
Thank you all for the patients! Hope it was worth it for you.
~Cheetay