CHAPTER 5

Nearly two weeks had passed since Alfred, Mathias, and Gilbert were confronted about their bullying. Once Alfred's dad had found out, Francis said, he began to realize that his actions may have been affecting the boy. He began to straighten himself out and take responsibility, drinking less and less. Alfred's attitude started to improve majorly; he regarded Ivan and his friends in a more friendly manner, and hadn't said one rude comment since. Though Ivan didn't know how Mathias and Gilbert's parents reacted, the three of his former bullies had approached him at school and actually.. Apologized. Though he still held a little grudge against them for the pain they had caused, he gladly accepted the apology.

Ivan himself had become even more of a cheerful person. Usually he was stressed out by his bullies, worrying about when they may come after him next, or whether he deserved the beatings; since it had stopped, he was free to truly be himself. He still got teased every once in a while by other boys, but it didn't affect him nearly as much as it used to. The same went for Eduard and Toris. Ivan had noticed that Toris wasn't nearly as nervous as he used to be. The poor kid used to shake, he was so anxious.

When his sisters found out about his ordeals, Natalya was furious and Katyusha was so worried she ending up bursting into tears. They both fawned over him, asking why he hadn't told them, if he was okay, and saying that they loved him very much. Ivan actually had to hold Natalya back in the cafeteria the next day; she almost leapt onto Alfred. Though she was only armed with a plastic fork, Ivan didn't want to see what would've happened if she hadn't been restrained.

Then came Francis. He and Ivan had begun to draw closer to each other ever since that day almost two weeks ago; well, Ivan had been, at least. He wasn't sure how Francis felt for him, but the man had been questioning: Was he in love? He followed the Frenchman around like a lost puppy, and they had become good friends in such a short amount of time. Francis didn't even push the other away, or try to back off. That made Ivan happy. You could say he had developed a little crush for his "hero". Even Natalya began to warm up to him a bit, since he had helped her brother.

It was Wednesday. Ivan was at school, sitting in the cafeteria. He was chatting with Toris, Matthew, and Eduard while he ate his lunch. Today, a smaller kid had joined them; he was a ninth grader named Ralvis, and was apparently one of Toris's friends. He was shy, and didn't talk much, but Ivan didn't mind it. The more people, the merrier. They all made idle conversation, talking about each other's day or their classes. Ivan was just about to take a sip of his milk (which the school provided), when he felt a pair of hands on his shoulders. He nearly jumped out of his skin, almost thinking it was Alfred once more. However, when he turned to see who it was, a particular blonde-haired man was standing there.

"Bonjour, Ivan~" He purred, taking a seat next to the man. Ivan instantly smiled.

"Hello, Francis. What are you doing at my lunch?"

"Well, I have only a few minutes to myself, so.. I thought I would come and talk to you." Ivan didn't question the flimsy response.

"Oh. That is okay." He said, welcoming Francis to the table.

"In fact, I have a question to ask you." Toris, Eduard, Ralvis, and especially Matthew went silent as they began to focus on Francis and Ivan's talk.

"Hm?" Ivan hummed, turning towards the other man. He didn't notice how the others went quiet.

Francis slid off of the seat, kneeling to the floor on one knee, as if he were proposing.

"Eh-? What are you doing, Fran-?"

"Ivan," he began, cutting the Russian off, "I have been thinking lately, and I have come to the conclusion that I.. Well.." Even he, the most flamboyant person Ivan knew, seemed flustered. What was he going to say? Ivan's heart beat quickened. "I love you, Ivan. I have been attracted to you since I first laid eyes on you outside of school. Please, will I have the honor of dating you?" Francis held out a hand, the other resting on his chest dramatically. You could almost see the sparkles around him. Not to mention, he had said it fairly loud; the two had garnered quite a bit of attention from the other students.

Ivan's lips parted in surprise. Francis was asking him to date? He did seem rather sincere about it.. With all the dramatic movements and wording. It was almost like a play. He looked into Francis's cerulean eyes and smiled. There was no way he could refuse. The older boy had done so much for him already.

"Yes." He said, before quickly getting out of his seat and tightly bear hugging the Frenchman. The wavy-haired blonde yelped and patted Ivan's back, nearly gasping for air.

"E-ease up, Ivan!"

While Francis and Ivan caused a scene in the middle of the cafeteria, the four others at the table looked at each other in confusion.

"Ivan's a homo?" Eduard asked slowly, looking at Toris. The other teen shrugged.

"Well, I guess so." The two glanced over as they heard Matthew giggle.

"Heheh, that's my big bro." He said, looking at the two "love birds" fondly.

"He's your brother?!" Yelped Eduard, who was obviously caught off guard.

"Yep. Alfred's my twin." This time, both Toris and Eduard exclaimed,

"He's your brother?!"

EPILOGUE

After Ivan and Francis began dating, they both faced the challenge of telling their parents; well, for Ivan, it was his sisters. Francis simply waved it off, saying his mother was an avid supporter of gays and love equality. Ivan wasn't too worried about his sisters accepting him, but he was worried about how Natalya would act, with her over-protective ways. As it turned out, she acted much calmer than he expected. She simply gave him a warning, of not to let himself get hurt. He promised that he wouldn't.

The two of them were very happy together, always seen walking next to each other in the halls, outside of school, and at each other's houses. Ivan's mood was miles better; he couldn't believe how much things had changed ever since he met Francis. Most of his stress was practically gone, and now all he had left to worry about were his grades. Francis even helped him with those, too.

Ivan gained some new friends in the process as well, which he liked. He and Matthew bonded some more, which they had never done before he and Francis had started dating. He had thought about trying to become riends with Alfred after another week or two. Maybe even Gilbert and Mathias, too. He always enjoyed the idea of having lots of friends.

Before they knew it, a year had passed. Francis graduated from school, and Ivan was entering his last year. They both had fallen deeply in love with each other in the months past. They were very affectionate with each other, and not afraid to show it. Ivan especially. Katyusha often picked on him, asking when the two would be having their wedding. He laughed it off, and assured that it wouldn't be for a while.

However, little to Ivan's knowledge, a wedding may have been coming up sooner than he thought.

Francis thanked the woman at the jewelry counter, walking out with a small, velvet box in his hand. Once he made it back out to his car and sat down in the driver's seat, he opened the box, revealing a large, silver, diamond-studded ring. He let out a sigh, a small smile forming across his scruffy lips. It had cost a few hundred dollars, about a week's pay for him, but it was worth it. Now he only had to find the right setting to propose to Ivan; that was the real challenge.

He set the box aside, starting up his car engine. He had to admit, he was excited for the future the two of them would have together. So excited, he almost wanted to drive straight to Ivan's apartment and propose to him at his doorstep. He would figure it out sooner or later.

END