That's What You Get [2a/?]
anonymous
February 14 2010, 15:43:12 UTC
Gilbert furiously copied down the few remaining lines from the notebook - with just a few alterations to make it different enough, of course, he was not that stupid - before he shoved it back into its proper place in Arthur's backpack. Arthur would throw a fit if he caught Gilbert copying his homework again; not that he was afraid of the little guy, but getting caught would mean Arthur taking his backpack everywhere he went. And Gilbert certainly did not want that.
As usual, he turned his homework in without any problems; his handwriting was immaculate, which gave the impression that he actually spent time on it, unlike some of the other chicken-scratching morons in the class who almost always got reprimanded for doing last-minute copying.
He couldn't wait for school to be over so he could head off to the local music store with Antonio. Antonio wanted to get some new strings, while Gilbert wanted to tag along so he could drool (well, not literally, he was too awesome to do that) over the Ludwig Epic Modular drum kit the store had on display. He was still mentally picturing the gorgeous seven-piece chrome and blue kit in his head (those awesome 20x8 twin kick drums combined would knock down walls! Oh god oh god!) when school was over and he made his way to the gate to meet Antonio.
He was so lost in thought that he nearly jumped in surprise when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Shit! Antonio, don't scare me-"
"Ah, sorry, but I'm not this Antonio," interrupted that Tall Freak from this afternoon, beaming. "Anyway, I am pleased that you agreed to wait for me, yes?"
"Huh? Look here, Blotski-"
"Braginski," he corrected. "But please, call me Ivan."
"Yeah, whatever. Look Ivan, I wasn't waiting for-"
"Gilbert!"
Gilbert groaned. Was anyone actually going to let him finish a sentence today? He turned to find a smiling Antonio heading towards them.
"Oh, hi there!" Antonio greeted Ivan, who politely smiled back.
"Hello."
Cheerful and polite as always, Antonio said, "Gilbert and I are going to grab something to eat before we head off to that new music store. Want to come?" he offered, totally oblivious to the not-too-discreet kick Gilbert gave him in the shin.
"No, it's okay. I just want to tell Gilbert something before we all go, yes?"
Antonio and Gilbert exchanged a puzzled look.
"Tell me what?" Gilbert asked.
Ivan smiled and placed his hands on Gilbert's shoulders. "I would like to ask you out, yes?"
Gilbert's jaw dropped.
Writer-anon curses this annoying character limit, yes?
That's What You Get [3/?]
anonymous
February 15 2010, 10:18:13 UTC
Long part is long because this author!anon wants to get all the tiresome plot bits out of the way so the ridiculous antics can be written. Also, author!anon has a terrible habit of making everything epic-length so this may take a while to finish? Och nooooo.
To say that his friend was dumbstruck was an understatement, Antonio observed in a rare moment of astuteness. Gilbert's brain was probably screaming something along the lines of 'Befehl oder Dateiname nicht gefunden' on loop, which would explain why he was just standing there doing absolutely nothing except for staring at Ivan and doing a very good impression of a hyperactive goldfish.
Then again, Antonio was absolutely certain that this was the first time anyone asked Gilbert out. It had always been the other way around, and the answer was always in the negative. He could not really blame his friend for not knowing how to react. After all, as far as Antonio knew, Gilbert's actual dating experience was nil and what little he knew about the whole thing he had learnt from Francis' stories, or from secretly playing those dating sims Kiku lent to Ludwig in exchange for German films; not exactly reliable information.
His hands still on Gilbert's shoulders, Ivan smiled and said, "If you do not object, I will pick you up at eight tonight. We will go see a movie, yes? I think you would like that. Oh? You do not say anything, so that means you do not object, yes? Okay. See you tonight then."
By the time Gilbert had recovered enough of his composure to snap out of his trance-like state, Ivan had already disappeared from view. That did not stop him from trying to go after the Russian, and Antonio barely managed to yank his reckless friend back just in time to prevent him from being hit by a car when he tried to rush across the street.
"What the hell did you do that for?" Gilbert grumbled.
"Would you rather end up a broken and bloody mess on the street? Your brother would kill me."
"Ah shit, now there did that freak go?" Gilbert turned this way and that, trying to spot the Russian.
"Come on, let's go. You'll see him tonight anyway, on your date!"
"I'm not going to go out with him!" Gilbert yelled in reply, startling some of the other students around them, who then could not help but stare at the ruckus.
Cheerfully obtuse to Gilbert's protests, Antonio dragged his friend away, one hand firmly around Gilbert's arm while the other reached for his cellular phone. "Let's go and get something to eat!" he cheerfully suggested, at the same time texting Francis, asking the other student to meet them at their destination.
"Are you listening to me, dumbass?"
"Relax, we can discuss your first date later over a sandwich or something. I'm hungry!"
"For the last time, I'm not going out with that Russian freak!" Gilbert growled, then proceeded to call Antonio a bunch of obscenities in German. Antonio endured the verbal abuse with a smile and an occasional nod, having developed an immunity thanks to his long friendship with Gilbert to be upset with his friend's behaviour.
Fifteen minutes later found them both sitting at a table in Antonio's favourite pizza place, it being his current favourite due to the sole reason of his latest crush working there after school. Antonio had forgotten about his original intention of going to the music store, his friend's current predicament more important than some new Ernie Ball strings for his guitar.
"What do you want?" a surly-looking Lovino Vargas growled, slamming the menus on the table. Antonio sighed. Lovino was just so adorable when he was annoyed. And since he was in a sullen mood all the time, that meant he was permanently cute.
That's What You Get [3a/?]
anonymous
February 15 2010, 10:21:50 UTC
"To punch this idiot's lights out," Gilbert grumbled, glaring at Antonio.
Lovino shrugged. "That's a choice I can agree with. What's stopping you?"
"I'm paying," Antonio explained.
"So punch him after you're done."
Antonio laughed. "Just the usual, Lovi. And a Coke for him."
"Whatever." Lovino retrieved the menus and left, muttering how he should not have bothered with the menus if they were just going to order drinks.
"How about a side order of a kiss?" Antonio called out, chuckling. Lovino gave him the finger in reply.
"Gilbert!" Francis called out dramatically as he rushed into the restaurant. "Ooh! I heard it from Antonio, but I need to hear it from you! Is it true?" he said, sliding into the seat next to Gilbert. "Did that Ivan ask you out?"
"Yeah, he did, but I'm not-"
"That's just wonderful!" Francis cried, giving his friend a bone-crushing hug.
"Listen here, you stupid French drama queen-"
"Don't worry, my dear Gilbert! Your good friend Francis will help you every step of the way!" Francis grabbed Gilbert's hands and held them up as he continued, "Antonio and I, we will make your first date with Ivan a success~!"
"I'm not going out with Ivan!" Gilbert yelled as he stood up, glaring at Francis.
The silence in the restaurant was downright uncomfortable. Practically all the other patrons - mostly students from school - were staring at the trio's table. Some of them obviously recognised the three seniors from the looks on their faces, and quite a number started whispering among themselves.
Francis threw Antonio a look. Antonio chuckled; he knew that look and what was coming next.
"Oh, all right," Francis said, with a non-chalant shrug. "I should have known better. It's something to be expected from you, anyway."
"What?" Gilbert growled, rising towards Francis' bait.
"That you're just hopeless. Seriously, I think this is why all those girls refuse to go out with you. It's because they already know that you're too hopeless and pathetic to handle a date with any of them."
Antonio decided to add a few things of his own. Smiling, he picked up from where Francis left off. "And here you have someone actually willing and not to mention making the first move to go out with you, and you throw that away? Man, looks like you realised it yourself."
"Hopeless."
"Pitiful."
"Fine! I'll go out with Ivan! I'll show you that I can handle one stupid date!" Gilbert announced before he stormed out of the restaurant in a fury, leaving more confused people whispering in his wake.
That's What You Get [3b/?]
anonymous
February 15 2010, 10:26:30 UTC
---*---
"Hey Ludwig!" Francis greeted, while Antonio was noisily dragging a protesting Gilbert up the stairs, stopping only to give a quick wave. "How are you? Oh, don't bother making dinner for your brother, he's got a hot date tonight!"
Ludwig blinked in confusion. "Date?"
Francis checked his watch. "Oops, look at the time. We need to get him ready!" The senior rushed upstairs and into Gilbert's room.
Shaking his head, Ludwig followed after him and knocked on the door. "Gilbert?" he called out. "Are you sure you don't want any dinner-"
"Stop it or I’ll fucking knock you out!"
Ludwig froze. That was Gilbert's voice.
"Antonio, hold his arms! That's it, keep him still!"
"Hey, get off me! Francis, don't you dare touch me there - aaaaah!"
The mental klaxons in Ludwig's head made loud WHOOP WHOOP noises, and he wisely backed away from the door, shuddering as he went back downstairs and into the kitchen. Yes, Gilbert probably did not want dinner, like Francis said. Just concentrate on that. Try not think or imagine what on earth Antonio and Francis were doing to him in that room. No dinner for Gilbert. Focus on that.
He managed to do so for roughly twenty minutes or so before he decided, oh screw it, he needed to get back up there; what if those two idiots were really molesting his brother or something?
He heard muffled sounds of scuffling and shouts of, "Stop squirming!" and "Gilbert, you'll ruin all the work I did on your hair!" He was about to kick the door open when Antonio opened it.
"Ta-da!" he announced with a big grin.
Gilbert was sitting on his bed, a scowl on his face. His hair was not the messy mop of platinum blond Ludwig was accustomed to seeing. Instead it was artfully styled into a seemingly careless, effortlessly tousled yet sexy look that Ludwig had only seen on stars on TV and knew was almost impossible to create without hiring a very expensive hairstylist - or in this case, having Francis as a friend.
And Gilbert's clothes - well, they were all indeed Gilbert's, but Ludwig had never seen his brother wearing them in that combination before. Black jeans, white dress shirt - the Iron Cross Gilbert insisted on wearing wherever he went stood out nicely against the white hue - and that jacket; his brother looked more than just presentable, he looked... looked...
"Gilbert, you... you actually look nice," Ludwig blurted.
Francis clapped his hands in delight. "See? I told you so! Oh no, it's almost eight! Hurry, we need to get you downstairs. Ivan will be here any minute!"
"Ivan?" Ludwig repeated as the trio squeezed past him out the door.
"Your brother's date," Antonio explained. Right on cue the doorbell rang, and they all hurried downstairs, dragging Gilbert with them.
Re: That's What You Get [3b/?]
anonymous
February 15 2010, 10:56:19 UTC
ANON!!! I'm not usually one for Russia/Prussia, but I do love Highschool AU so I decided to give this a try, and it's GREAT so far! I like that Prussia is still his egotistic self and Ivan is oddly creepy in a happy sort of way.
That's What You Get [4/?]
anonymous
February 16 2010, 07:54:07 UTC
Ivan checked the address one last time before he rang the doorbell. It was not hard to obtain Gilbert's address; apparently almost everyone in school knew he lived, it was just that no one really wanted to go there. The only people who went there willingly were his few friends, or friends of his brother Ludwig.
The door opened and a tall, well-built blond stood in the doorway. This must be Gilbert's younger brother, Ivan decided. "I am Ivan. Is Gilbert here?" he asked politely.
The blond nodded and a startled Ivan suddenly found himself with an armful of Gilbert, who was pushed out the door by Francis and Antonio, both of them snickering. "Have fun!" Francis called out mischievously before he slammed the door shut. Gilbert growled, pushed himself away from Ivan and turned to give the door a hefty kick, shouting something in German.
"Hello," Ivan greeted.
"Huh?" Gilbert turned around. "Oh yeah. Hi."
"You look really nice," Ivan complimented. Those dating advice websites said it was a must to give your date a compliment, especially if it was your first date. And Gilbert did look very nice, Ivan thought. He certainly was less... hooligan-like, yes? Perhaps Gilbert did look forward to this date, since he clearly took some pains with his appearance. It almost made Ivan feel guilty that he was only dressed in a simple sweater and jeans, and his favourite scarf.
"Yeah, whatever. Come on, let's just go."
"Ah, yes. Please, this way," Ivan said, leading his date to the car.
"The car's yours?" Gilbert asked when he climbed inside.
Ivan shook his head. "It is Mr. Winter's." When Gilbert looked at him, he explained, "Mr. Winter is my host family for the student exchange program. He said that I could use his car provided I take good care of it. He is not home most of the time anyway, so I could drive it every day if I wanted."
"Man, I wish I could get one," Gilbert mumbled.
"Why don't you?" Ivan asked as he started the engine.
Gilbert shrugged. "Am saving up for something else. So what movie are we going to see?"
"That new action film that just opened yesterday, yes? I thought it looked interesting," Ivan answered cheerfully as he drove. "Unless of course, you would prefer to see something else?"
"What else is playing?" When Ivan told him, Gilbert replied, "Oh fuck no, I'm not some stupid simpering girl who screams at horror movies or gushes over some stupid romance flick!"
Ivan made a mental note of that outburst. Do not take Gilbert to see horror or romance films, yes? "Very well, we stick to watching action movie. So how are you?"
"Annoyed and pissed off at my so-called friends, so this movie had better a damned good one."
"I see. Good, good!"
"Huh?"
"You answered honestly! I do not like it how the people here always say 'I am fine' when I ask that question, even though it is very obvious that they are not fine, yes?"
That's What You Get [4a/?]
anonymous
February 16 2010, 07:57:08 UTC
So far, this first date business, Gilbert decided, was not too bad after all. Francis and Antonio certainly made it seem like it was a lot more complicated; that would teach him to listen to those two idiots again. He did pretty well, he thought; Ivan seemed to be very happy with his company, and found most of his part of the conversation amusing.
The movie they watched was pretty good too, which put him in a better mood compared to how he was feeling when he left the house. The fact that Ivan paid for their tickets, drinks and popcorn certainly was a plus. At least someone in school appreciated his awesomeness, even though it had to be a Russian guy who talked a bit funny.
Heck, he was such in a good mood that when Ivan asked him to explain a few things about the movie as they left the theatre, the Russian having some problems understanding some of the slang, he obliged. In fact, they were both too engrossed in discussing the movie that he never noticed that damned telephone pole and literally walked into it, spanging himself as hard as possible right in the face.
One thing - just one, damn it! - Gilbert decided that he liked about Ivan, it was how the Russian never laughed at him, or even if Ivan did, kept it quietly so he would not hear.
Francis and Antonio would be in hysterics by now if they were here, while Arthur would likely be giggling like a loon. Hell, even boring, goody-two-shoes West would probably let out a snicker or two.
Not Ivan. He just looked at Gilbert with a genuinely concerned expression. "Are you all right?" Not understanding Gilbert's muffled replies, Ivan gently pulled Gilbert's hands away from his face. "Let me take a look."
Why was he even letting Ivan fuss over him while making those ridiculous cooing noises anyway? Oh right. Because his nose hurt like hell and he could hardly see anything with those tears (of manly pain!) in his eyes, that's why.
"I do not think your nose is broken," Ivan announced, satisfied. "And there is no blood, so it should be okay, yes?"
Gilbert mumbled some obscenities in German under his breath.
Ivan gave him a puzzled look. "Gilbert, you are very cute, yes, but I do not understand what you're saying."
He froze. Did Ivan just call him cute? Very cute, even? No one called him cute, not since he was a five-year-old who dragged his Mr. Bunny plushie wherever he went. Fortunately, his inability to make an appropriate response to Ivan's comment was saved by his stomach, which made a loud, rumbling noise. A trifle embarrassing, but hell, he had already walked into a telephone pole a minute ago, so screw it.
"Oh, hungry? Ah, do you want to go and get some pizza?"
Gilbert shrugged, trying to act casual. "Pizza sounds good."
That's What You Get [4b/?]
anonymous
February 16 2010, 08:02:51 UTC
"Hey, Francis! They're back!" Antonio announced.
"This early? Oh well, it is only their first date."
"Shh!"
Francis and Antonio tackled their friend as soon as he stepped inside. "Well? How was it?"Antonio asked, grinning.
"It was okay, now just get off me!"
"You were pathetic, I bet," Francis teased.
"Hell no, I was awesome!"
"Wait, just who is this Ivan person anyway? And Gilbert, why did you agree to go out with him if you knew nothing about him in the first place?" Ludwig objected. Francis and Antonio had briefly explained to him the circumstances of the date during Gilbert's absence.
Francis sighed. "Ludwig, just because you've decided to guard your virtue," he complained, while Ludwig sputtered and turned a bright red, "it doesn't mean you ought to guard your brother's."
"Yeah, just because you've got a stick up your ass, doesn't mean you shouldn't let Gilbert get a different kind of stick up his!"
The other three young men stared at Antonio in a mixture of surprise and horror, plus a touch of amusement on the part of Francis. "What?" Antonio said in all innocence.
Gilbert let out a howl of rage and lunged for him, but Antonio was rescued from certain death by a quick-thinking Francis, who promptly yanked him out of Gilbert's way. Ludwig quickly grabbed his brother, restraining him, but from the furious look from the younger man's face it was clear that he would like to punch Antonio a few times as well - something which Francis could see happening if Antonio made another remark like the one just now.
Definitely time to leave, Francis decided. "Okay, see you tomorrow in school! Bye, you two!" Francis said loudly amidst the cursing in German as he tugged Antonio by the collar out of the Beilschmidt residence. Antonio smiled and waved goodbye, still clueless as to why Gilbert was angry with him.
"What's Gilbert so mad about?" he asked.
Francis rolled his eyes. "God, I don't know how you made it this far with that thick skull of yours. Just don't say something stupid like that again when those two are around."
"What? But I thought it was funny," Antonio complained.
Francis threw his hand around Antonio's shoulders and gave his friend a squeeze. "It was," he replied, snickering.
As usual, he turned his homework in without any problems; his handwriting was immaculate, which gave the impression that he actually spent time on it, unlike some of the other chicken-scratching morons in the class who almost always got reprimanded for doing last-minute copying.
He couldn't wait for school to be over so he could head off to the local music store with Antonio. Antonio wanted to get some new strings, while Gilbert wanted to tag along so he could drool (well, not literally, he was too awesome to do that) over the Ludwig Epic Modular drum kit the store had on display. He was still mentally picturing the gorgeous seven-piece chrome and blue kit in his head (those awesome 20x8 twin kick drums combined would knock down walls! Oh god oh god!) when school was over and he made his way to the gate to meet Antonio.
He was so lost in thought that he nearly jumped in surprise when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Shit! Antonio, don't scare me-"
"Ah, sorry, but I'm not this Antonio," interrupted that Tall Freak from this afternoon, beaming. "Anyway, I am pleased that you agreed to wait for me, yes?"
"Huh? Look here, Blotski-"
"Braginski," he corrected. "But please, call me Ivan."
"Yeah, whatever. Look Ivan, I wasn't waiting for-"
"Gilbert!"
Gilbert groaned. Was anyone actually going to let him finish a sentence today? He turned to find a smiling Antonio heading towards them.
"Oh, hi there!" Antonio greeted Ivan, who politely smiled back.
"Hello."
Cheerful and polite as always, Antonio said, "Gilbert and I are going to grab something to eat before we head off to that new music store. Want to come?" he offered, totally oblivious to the not-too-discreet kick Gilbert gave him in the shin.
"No, it's okay. I just want to tell Gilbert something before we all go, yes?"
Antonio and Gilbert exchanged a puzzled look.
"Tell me what?" Gilbert asked.
Ivan smiled and placed his hands on Gilbert's shoulders. "I would like to ask you out, yes?"
Gilbert's jaw dropped.
Writer-anon curses this annoying character limit, yes?
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(Great story author-non! Can't wait to see where this is going...)
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(But Ivan probably thinks the kink meme is so much fun....)
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To say that his friend was dumbstruck was an understatement, Antonio observed in a rare moment of astuteness. Gilbert's brain was probably screaming something along the lines of 'Befehl oder Dateiname nicht gefunden' on loop, which would explain why he was just standing there doing absolutely nothing except for staring at Ivan and doing a very good impression of a hyperactive goldfish.
Then again, Antonio was absolutely certain that this was the first time anyone asked Gilbert out. It had always been the other way around, and the answer was always in the negative. He could not really blame his friend for not knowing how to react. After all, as far as Antonio knew, Gilbert's actual dating experience was nil and what little he knew about the whole thing he had learnt from Francis' stories, or from secretly playing those dating sims Kiku lent to Ludwig in exchange for German films; not exactly reliable information.
His hands still on Gilbert's shoulders, Ivan smiled and said, "If you do not object, I will pick you up at eight tonight. We will go see a movie, yes? I think you would like that. Oh? You do not say anything, so that means you do not object, yes? Okay. See you tonight then."
By the time Gilbert had recovered enough of his composure to snap out of his trance-like state, Ivan had already disappeared from view. That did not stop him from trying to go after the Russian, and Antonio barely managed to yank his reckless friend back just in time to prevent him from being hit by a car when he tried to rush across the street.
"What the hell did you do that for?" Gilbert grumbled.
"Would you rather end up a broken and bloody mess on the street? Your brother would kill me."
"Ah shit, now there did that freak go?" Gilbert turned this way and that, trying to spot the Russian.
"Come on, let's go. You'll see him tonight anyway, on your date!"
"I'm not going to go out with him!" Gilbert yelled in reply, startling some of the other students around them, who then could not help but stare at the ruckus.
Cheerfully obtuse to Gilbert's protests, Antonio dragged his friend away, one hand firmly around Gilbert's arm while the other reached for his cellular phone. "Let's go and get something to eat!" he cheerfully suggested, at the same time texting Francis, asking the other student to meet them at their destination.
"Are you listening to me, dumbass?"
"Relax, we can discuss your first date later over a sandwich or something. I'm hungry!"
"For the last time, I'm not going out with that Russian freak!" Gilbert growled, then proceeded to call Antonio a bunch of obscenities in German. Antonio endured the verbal abuse with a smile and an occasional nod, having developed an immunity thanks to his long friendship with Gilbert to be upset with his friend's behaviour.
Fifteen minutes later found them both sitting at a table in Antonio's favourite pizza place, it being his current favourite due to the sole reason of his latest crush working there after school. Antonio had forgotten about his original intention of going to the music store, his friend's current predicament more important than some new Ernie Ball strings for his guitar.
"What do you want?" a surly-looking Lovino Vargas growled, slamming the menus on the table. Antonio sighed. Lovino was just so adorable when he was annoyed. And since he was in a sullen mood all the time, that meant he was permanently cute.
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Lovino shrugged. "That's a choice I can agree with. What's stopping you?"
"I'm paying," Antonio explained.
"So punch him after you're done."
Antonio laughed. "Just the usual, Lovi. And a Coke for him."
"Whatever." Lovino retrieved the menus and left, muttering how he should not have bothered with the menus if they were just going to order drinks.
"How about a side order of a kiss?" Antonio called out, chuckling. Lovino gave him the finger in reply.
"Gilbert!" Francis called out dramatically as he rushed into the restaurant. "Ooh! I heard it from Antonio, but I need to hear it from you! Is it true?" he said, sliding into the seat next to Gilbert. "Did that Ivan ask you out?"
"Yeah, he did, but I'm not-"
"That's just wonderful!" Francis cried, giving his friend a bone-crushing hug.
"Listen here, you stupid French drama queen-"
"Don't worry, my dear Gilbert! Your good friend Francis will help you every step of the way!" Francis grabbed Gilbert's hands and held them up as he continued, "Antonio and I, we will make your first date with Ivan a success~!"
"I'm not going out with Ivan!" Gilbert yelled as he stood up, glaring at Francis.
The silence in the restaurant was downright uncomfortable. Practically all the other patrons - mostly students from school - were staring at the trio's table. Some of them obviously recognised the three seniors from the looks on their faces, and quite a number started whispering among themselves.
Francis threw Antonio a look. Antonio chuckled; he knew that look and what was coming next.
"Oh, all right," Francis said, with a non-chalant shrug. "I should have known better. It's something to be expected from you, anyway."
"What?" Gilbert growled, rising towards Francis' bait.
"That you're just hopeless. Seriously, I think this is why all those girls refuse to go out with you. It's because they already know that you're too hopeless and pathetic to handle a date with any of them."
Antonio decided to add a few things of his own. Smiling, he picked up from where Francis left off. "And here you have someone actually willing and not to mention making the first move to go out with you, and you throw that away? Man, looks like you realised it yourself."
"Hopeless."
"Pitiful."
"Fine! I'll go out with Ivan! I'll show you that I can handle one stupid date!" Gilbert announced before he stormed out of the restaurant in a fury, leaving more confused people whispering in his wake.
Francis sighed. "And he calls me a drama queen?"
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"Hey Ludwig!" Francis greeted, while Antonio was noisily dragging a protesting Gilbert up the stairs, stopping only to give a quick wave. "How are you? Oh, don't bother making dinner for your brother, he's got a hot date tonight!"
Ludwig blinked in confusion. "Date?"
Francis checked his watch. "Oops, look at the time. We need to get him ready!" The senior rushed upstairs and into Gilbert's room.
Shaking his head, Ludwig followed after him and knocked on the door. "Gilbert?" he called out. "Are you sure you don't want any dinner-"
"Stop it or I’ll fucking knock you out!"
Ludwig froze. That was Gilbert's voice.
"Antonio, hold his arms! That's it, keep him still!"
"Hey, get off me! Francis, don't you dare touch me there - aaaaah!"
The mental klaxons in Ludwig's head made loud WHOOP WHOOP noises, and he wisely backed away from the door, shuddering as he went back downstairs and into the kitchen. Yes, Gilbert probably did not want dinner, like Francis said. Just concentrate on that. Try not think or imagine what on earth Antonio and Francis were doing to him in that room. No dinner for Gilbert. Focus on that.
He managed to do so for roughly twenty minutes or so before he decided, oh screw it, he needed to get back up there; what if those two idiots were really molesting his brother or something?
He heard muffled sounds of scuffling and shouts of, "Stop squirming!" and "Gilbert, you'll ruin all the work I did on your hair!" He was about to kick the door open when Antonio opened it.
"Ta-da!" he announced with a big grin.
Gilbert was sitting on his bed, a scowl on his face. His hair was not the messy mop of platinum blond Ludwig was accustomed to seeing. Instead it was artfully styled into a seemingly careless, effortlessly tousled yet sexy look that Ludwig had only seen on stars on TV and knew was almost impossible to create without hiring a very expensive hairstylist - or in this case, having Francis as a friend.
And Gilbert's clothes - well, they were all indeed Gilbert's, but Ludwig had never seen his brother wearing them in that combination before. Black jeans, white dress shirt - the Iron Cross Gilbert insisted on wearing wherever he went stood out nicely against the white hue - and that jacket; his brother looked more than just presentable, he looked... looked...
"Gilbert, you... you actually look nice," Ludwig blurted.
Francis clapped his hands in delight. "See? I told you so! Oh no, it's almost eight! Hurry, we need to get you downstairs. Ivan will be here any minute!"
"Ivan?" Ludwig repeated as the trio squeezed past him out the door.
"Your brother's date," Antonio explained. Right on cue the doorbell rang, and they all hurried downstairs, dragging Gilbert with them.
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I'm not usually one for Russia/Prussia, but I do love Highschool AU so I decided to give this a try, and it's GREAT so far! I like that Prussia is still his egotistic self and Ivan is oddly creepy in a happy sort of way.
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The door opened and a tall, well-built blond stood in the doorway. This must be Gilbert's younger brother, Ivan decided. "I am Ivan. Is Gilbert here?" he asked politely.
The blond nodded and a startled Ivan suddenly found himself with an armful of Gilbert, who was pushed out the door by Francis and Antonio, both of them snickering. "Have fun!" Francis called out mischievously before he slammed the door shut. Gilbert growled, pushed himself away from Ivan and turned to give the door a hefty kick, shouting something in German.
"Hello," Ivan greeted.
"Huh?" Gilbert turned around. "Oh yeah. Hi."
"You look really nice," Ivan complimented. Those dating advice websites said it was a must to give your date a compliment, especially if it was your first date. And Gilbert did look very nice, Ivan thought. He certainly was less... hooligan-like, yes? Perhaps Gilbert did look forward to this date, since he clearly took some pains with his appearance. It almost made Ivan feel guilty that he was only dressed in a simple sweater and jeans, and his favourite scarf.
"Yeah, whatever. Come on, let's just go."
"Ah, yes. Please, this way," Ivan said, leading his date to the car.
"The car's yours?" Gilbert asked when he climbed inside.
Ivan shook his head. "It is Mr. Winter's." When Gilbert looked at him, he explained, "Mr. Winter is my host family for the student exchange program. He said that I could use his car provided I take good care of it. He is not home most of the time anyway, so I could drive it every day if I wanted."
"Man, I wish I could get one," Gilbert mumbled.
"Why don't you?" Ivan asked as he started the engine.
Gilbert shrugged. "Am saving up for something else. So what movie are we going to see?"
"That new action film that just opened yesterday, yes? I thought it looked interesting," Ivan answered cheerfully as he drove. "Unless of course, you would prefer to see something else?"
"What else is playing?" When Ivan told him, Gilbert replied, "Oh fuck no, I'm not some stupid simpering girl who screams at horror movies or gushes over some stupid romance flick!"
Ivan made a mental note of that outburst. Do not take Gilbert to see horror or romance films, yes? "Very well, we stick to watching action movie. So how are you?"
"Annoyed and pissed off at my so-called friends, so this movie had better a damned good one."
"I see. Good, good!"
"Huh?"
"You answered honestly! I do not like it how the people here always say 'I am fine' when I ask that question, even though it is very obvious that they are not fine, yes?"
Gilbert stared at him. "You're weird."
"No," Ivan cheerfully replied, "I am Russian."
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The movie they watched was pretty good too, which put him in a better mood compared to how he was feeling when he left the house. The fact that Ivan paid for their tickets, drinks and popcorn certainly was a plus. At least someone in school appreciated his awesomeness, even though it had to be a Russian guy who talked a bit funny.
Heck, he was such in a good mood that when Ivan asked him to explain a few things about the movie as they left the theatre, the Russian having some problems understanding some of the slang, he obliged. In fact, they were both too engrossed in discussing the movie that he never noticed that damned telephone pole and literally walked into it, spanging himself as hard as possible right in the face.
One thing - just one, damn it! - Gilbert decided that he liked about Ivan, it was how the Russian never laughed at him, or even if Ivan did, kept it quietly so he would not hear.
Francis and Antonio would be in hysterics by now if they were here, while Arthur would likely be giggling like a loon. Hell, even boring, goody-two-shoes West would probably let out a snicker or two.
Not Ivan. He just looked at Gilbert with a genuinely concerned expression. "Are you all right?" Not understanding Gilbert's muffled replies, Ivan gently pulled Gilbert's hands away from his face. "Let me take a look."
Why was he even letting Ivan fuss over him while making those ridiculous cooing noises anyway? Oh right. Because his nose hurt like hell and he could hardly see anything with those tears (of manly pain!) in his eyes, that's why.
"I do not think your nose is broken," Ivan announced, satisfied. "And there is no blood, so it should be okay, yes?"
Gilbert mumbled some obscenities in German under his breath.
Ivan gave him a puzzled look. "Gilbert, you are very cute, yes, but I do not understand what you're saying."
He froze. Did Ivan just call him cute? Very cute, even? No one called him cute, not since he was a five-year-old who dragged his Mr. Bunny plushie wherever he went. Fortunately, his inability to make an appropriate response to Ivan's comment was saved by his stomach, which made a loud, rumbling noise. A trifle embarrassing, but hell, he had already walked into a telephone pole a minute ago, so screw it.
"Oh, hungry? Ah, do you want to go and get some pizza?"
Gilbert shrugged, trying to act casual. "Pizza sounds good."
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"This early? Oh well, it is only their first date."
"Shh!"
Francis and Antonio tackled their friend as soon as he stepped inside. "Well? How was it?"Antonio asked, grinning.
"It was okay, now just get off me!"
"You were pathetic, I bet," Francis teased.
"Hell no, I was awesome!"
"Wait, just who is this Ivan person anyway? And Gilbert, why did you agree to go out with him if you knew nothing about him in the first place?" Ludwig objected. Francis and Antonio had briefly explained to him the circumstances of the date during Gilbert's absence.
Francis sighed. "Ludwig, just because you've decided to guard your virtue," he complained, while Ludwig sputtered and turned a bright red, "it doesn't mean you ought to guard your brother's."
"Yeah, just because you've got a stick up your ass, doesn't mean you shouldn't let Gilbert get a different kind of stick up his!"
The other three young men stared at Antonio in a mixture of surprise and horror, plus a touch of amusement on the part of Francis. "What?" Antonio said in all innocence.
Gilbert let out a howl of rage and lunged for him, but Antonio was rescued from certain death by a quick-thinking Francis, who promptly yanked him out of Gilbert's way. Ludwig quickly grabbed his brother, restraining him, but from the furious look from the younger man's face it was clear that he would like to punch Antonio a few times as well - something which Francis could see happening if Antonio made another remark like the one just now.
Definitely time to leave, Francis decided. "Okay, see you tomorrow in school! Bye, you two!" Francis said loudly amidst the cursing in German as he tugged Antonio by the collar out of the Beilschmidt residence. Antonio smiled and waved goodbye, still clueless as to why Gilbert was angry with him.
"What's Gilbert so mad about?" he asked.
Francis rolled his eyes. "God, I don't know how you made it this far with that thick skull of yours. Just don't say something stupid like that again when those two are around."
"What? But I thought it was funny," Antonio complained.
Francis threw his hand around Antonio's shoulders and gave his friend a squeeze. "It was," he replied, snickering.
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