Be prepared for a long ass (hopefully exciting) chapter XD

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Lukas

What I did not expect this morning when I came back to the house was a fuck ton of people. Yet, here they all are. I thought I had the perfect plan: don't tell anyone when my birthday is and spend an entire day without the presence of others while I turn 18. You might be wondering why I wouldn't want to spend my coming of age with people I care about. It's simple really, I don't want to be a nuisance to anyone (I mean, they'll find it obligatory to get me a thoughtful present that I don't deserve) and most of the birthdays in my life have sucked. It's simply a matter of learning from the past. Plus, since my birthday has fallen on a Saturday, there's no school! My plan would have been fine. That is, if my brother hadn't of mentioned it to Arthur. Dammit Emil.

So, this was why he wanted to take me out to catch up. Sure, he wanted to celebrate my birthday with me, but I was slightly suspicious. After all, Emil doesn't normally want to small talk with me in a café. I thought it had something to do with the fact that he's been dating Yao's younger brother for a few months now, but the conversation never appeared. I still don't get why he hasn't told me. What's so bad about dating someone? Why doesn't he want to tell me? I try not to think about it because the topic rather upsets me that he can't just say, 'oh yeah, I'm dating this guy'. Is it a matter of coming out? Is that the problem? Because trust me Emil, I may not be sure of my sexuality but I sure ain't straight. Perhaps it's just that he's scared to come out. I'm going to go with that one.

However, it seems the chat was all a ruse whilst Arthur let a fuck ton of people into the house for a 'surprise party'. And my plans of celebrating a birthday alone promptly went out the window. Looking round the room, I try take in the people he's invited. Mathias smiles at me (the sweetheart), Berwald looks his usual blank faced self with Tino clinging onto his arm, Vlad smirks (oh shit, I'm in for a lot of teasing- as usual), Yao greets me with a wave, Lovino looks as indifferent as normal, my brother's 'not' boyfriend is standing there and obviously Arthur, who planned this whole charade. Yay... people... I guess it's ok because I like these people, but they really didn't have to go to this effort for me. "Lukas!" Vlad runs up to throw his arm around me, "Why didn't you tell us it was your birthday, huh?" His right-hand lands on my head and he uses the opportunity to mess up my hair, ruffling it with said hand. "Didn't want to bother everyone," I mumble which earns a "It's not a bother! It's our pleasure to give you a good party!" In response from Vlad. I guess we're doing this then.

"Hey," my brother greets me from my side after everyone turns to chat with the people around them. "Hey," is all I reply. "I've been instructed to give you this," he holds out a slip of paper. I take it from him and open it up.

Dear Lukas,

This will be the last note I write you. I'm ready to reveal who I really am. Please look out for my present to you. It will be a gift relating back to Norway as you are born on your country's constitutional day. Then, you will know who I am (granted that no one else gives you a present relating to Norway!).

From, anonymous.

And my birthday just got a lot more interesting and a lot more stressful at the same time. Since I can be quite impatient, I take another look around the room, searching for a clue that will reveal who the person is. Mathias, the other person I like, who's always been there for me when I need him, he's single (I highly doubt the person behind these notes is in a relationship- that would be really cruel to the person they would be dating). Berwald, head over heels in love with Tino, taken. Tino, head over heels for Berwald, taken. Definitely not either of them. Vlad, in love with his childhood best friend, taken. Yao, in love with Ivan Braginsky, taken. Lovino, doesn't seem to have a crush on anyone, single. Would it really be Lovi though? Then again, people can surprise you. Yao's brother, very obviously dating my brother, has never talked to me, taken. Arthur, realised a few months ago that he's in love with Alfred, has been pining over him ever since, single. And then there's Emil but he's my brother so obviously not him. Are the only options here really Mathias or Lovino if I narrow it down? Damn. This is weird.

I decide to retire to the garden and slip out while no one is watching. This whole anonymous person thing is making my head ache. I have developed a bit of a crush on the mysterious note writer; however it doesn't compare to my crush on a certain Mathias Køhler. Stupid love triangle-ish dynamic. The worst dynamic. It just causes people's feelings to hurt. I sigh and lay down on the grass, staring up at the sky. I don't think anyone's noticed that I've disappeared, and, at the moment, I really take comfort in that fact. Social gatherings aren't my scene in the slightest. "Hey, Lukas," I hear and immediately start cursing inwards until I recognise the voice. One that sounds like it probably didn't drop at all during puberty. Mathias. I sit up, "Hi, Mathias." He grins and takes a seat cross legged next to me, a wrapped gift in his hands. "What are you doing out here?" Our eyes meet, of course he would notice that I disappeared, he can be strangely observative at times. "In a bit I'm going to have to make a choice and I'd rather try delay it. The problem is, I like this anonymous person, I do but I also like another person. It's between the safe choice of someone I like that likes me back or the risky choice that I really like but I don't know if they like me back. Choosing is hard."

"There's a way to go about this. Imagine your life with each one and whichever one makes you happier, then you choose that person. Sometimes it's better to take risks if that risk will make you much happier than the safe option. You shouldn't settle." He smiles slightly at me, and I swear to God, every time I see that crooked smile I fall harder. My life with each? With the anonymous person, I feel they would shower me in words of how 'amazing' I am, much like their many notes. I would be happy, I think. It's hard when you don't know who the person is. With Mathias, there would be loads of love and support, he's the sort of person I could depend on, a person who seems the type to show their love through their actions. It would be amazing to date Mathias; I would be over the moon. Oh wow, there's a clear winner in who I would be happier with. And the answer's the guy right next to me. "Thanks. That really helped." He grins again and squeezes my arm. Then, he passes his gift over to me.

"Happy birthday, Lukas. By the way, I'm really loving your bunad." Oh yeah, I'm dressed up for the constitutional day. I forgot for a while, thinking that I was wearing 'normal' clothes. I grab the gift and mentally choose Mathias. My hands are trembling as I slowly unwrap the present. I finally finish unwrapping it and pull out a small Norwegian flag. A Norwegian flag. I meet Mathias' eyes and he has suddenly become incredibly sheepish. No fucking way. It's him. It's always been him. "Mathias, you fucking jerk!" I playfully punch him in the arm. His eyes widen, not expecting that reaction, "Wait, what did I do wrong?!" I stare at him in annoyance, nostrils slightly flared, "What you did wrong was fucking mess with my emotions, dude. The two people I like are the same fucking person! You realise what you did to my brain?! I was in agony here!" He maintains direct eye contact and his expression changes once he comprehends what I said, "Wait, I was both the people you were talking about? Oh crap, I'm sorry, Lukas."

I decide he's suffered enough and pull him into a hug, "Don't get me wrong, I love the fact that you're both the people I like but don't mess with my head like that again." Our eyes meet again, and his lips are slightly parted in shock, also trying to comprehend this whole situation. He looks so cute. It hits me again, Mathias likes me. This is the best scenario. I smile the widest I've ever smiled and start to grab him by the front of his shirt. "I'm so fucking happy it's you, Mathias," Is all I whisper before pulling him into me, my lips colliding with his. It's much better than the first time we kissed; we have an idea on how to actually kiss someone now. His arms wrap around me and deepens the kiss, my hands tangle up in his hair, seeming to ruin his gelled hairstyle in the process. We pull apart and he starts laughing. I'm caught off guard at first until he wheezes, "You're sending me some goddamn mixed signals here, Lukas." "Well, let this put your mind at ease, will you be my boyfriend, Mathias Køhler?" This time I swear his smile almost touches his eyes, "It would be an honour, Lukas." And just like that, I have a boyfriend. My first boyfriend to be precise.

"It seems I'm interrupting something big, sorry," It seems Arthur has arrived. I'm still not used to this whole romance thing, so I start getting very flustered and mumbling incoherent things. "It's fine, Arthur. We'll come in in a second." Mathias replies, taking my hand in his which does not help my flusteredness. I decide to pay him back. Let's see how flustered he can get. I pull him in for another kiss and, when I let go, he starts blushing and mumbling incoherent things. How do you like it, huh? I'm not going to be the only flustered one in this relationship. God, he's so adorable.

We arrive back inside. We both seemed to have calmed down and are trying to act like nothing happened while we were outside, but Arthur keeps smirking when he catches my eyes. It's hard because all we want to do is grab each other's hand, but we don't want to draw attention to it. That would mean everyone would just keep asking questions about it. My brother approaches us, "Hey, Mathias. Did you, um, did you do the thing?" This he follows with a thumbs up and then a thumbs down. "Ja. Thumbs up, Em." Is all my boyfriend says in reply. "Cool. Congratulations you two," He pats my arm and walks away. "I'm glad he was really calm about it when I asked him to help me. He did give me a whole spiel of how he'd kill me if I ever hurt you, do whatever you want with that info." He grins at me. It's really sweet to hear how protective Emil can be over me. I guess he feels I don't need more crappy things to happen to me. Thanks, lillebror.

"Lukas! Mathias!" Tino drags Berwald over to us. "There you guys are- you disappeared for a while!" Berwald's mouth twitches slightly, the closest to a smile you will ever get from him. "We've got a gift for you. Lukas, I mean, not you, Mads." He adds matter-of-factly and pushes a large parcel towards me. I unwrap it, revealing a beautiful hand-crafted chair. "We felt since you're now 18, you will eventually need furniture for when you buy your own place to live. Berwald should really get the credit for the chair though, I feel I just delayed its finish," Tino exclaims, slightly laughing at the end. Berwald places his hand on his boyfriend's shoulder as if to say 'no, you were a big help'. "Thanks guys, it's beautiful. I love it." This earns me a large beam from Tino and a nod from Berwald. As soon as they leave, I turn to Mathias, raise an eyebrow, and ask, "Mads?" I'd wanted to question someone about it the entire time but, when presented with a gift, it would be rude to change the subject. "A nickname, short for Mathias. Just like how I sometimes refer to Tino as Ti and Berwald as Ber." It's a cute nickname. I'm surprised I hadn't heard it before now. "It's a sweet nickname. I like it." Then, he kisses my cheek and quickly glances away, pretending he wasn't the one who did it. Crazy guy.

About two hours and a lot of small talk later, the only people left in the house are me, Mathias, and Arthur. Arthur excuses himself to make a cup of tea, the Brit. "So, we'll need to start preparing to leave if we don't want to run into anyone... we'd rather not want to run into," Mathias glances at his phone. Ever since I found out about the whole magical world situation, Mathias has been keeping me updated. Tomorrow there's going to be a large meeting at the Wangs' house, planning what we need to do to overthrow the government. What Mathias is talking about is the fact that the government will probably send people over here to take Arthur and I away, so we can't become a threat to them. We've got to remain on guard, especially since Arthur has no idea about anything. We're going to pack some things and make our way over to Yao's before anything can happen. My boyfriend is just waiting for the signal from Vlad. Arthur returns, a steaming mug in hand, still no idea what's going on. Mathias' phone then chooses that exact time to begin buzzing before Arthur's even had a sip of his typical British beverage. I check the caller ID, Vladimir.

My boyfriend accepts the call, placing it to his ear, "Hey, Vlad. Is it time?" Arthur's expression displays a mixture of surprise and confusion, bless him. I hear snippets of shouting, added to Mathias wincing at the volume. "Oh crap. Ok. I'll get them out of here immediately." He hangs up and it's clear we need to leave right now. "Arthur, I'm sorry but you're going to need to put your cup of tea down. The both of you need to pack your most prized possessions and a few changes of clothes. We need to leave as soon as possible." Arthur's eyebrows furrow as he frowns, "What on earth are you talking about? Why do we need to leave?" Of course, the downside of Arthur not knowing anything is this reaction exactly. "Arthur, I can't explain right now. It'll take too long and possibly endanger you both. All you need to know right now is that my job is to get you both out of here alive. Please just listen to me." Arthur makes eye contact with me and, in response, I send a look telling him to do what Mathias says. He sighs and puts his mug down in compliance. Thank you, Arthur. We'll explain later.

Following Mathias' instructions, we try to pack as quickly as possible. I grab my completed sailor's outfit, not wanting to lose the hat that came with the first anonymous letter my boyfriend wrote me. Some other clothes go in, along with my violin (yes, I play violin but now's not the time for that) and other important objects. I finish packing in under five minutes, considerably faster than my British friend. While we're waiting for Arthur, I notice Mathias tapping away on his phone. "Do we have anyone who can fight if we need to? Because Arthur and I will be useless." I ask, causing him to look up at me. "Let's hope we won't need to, but your brother and Leon are nearby. They're more than capable." I hope Emil will be ok. At least there are people ready for necessary offensive. I love Mathias, I do, but his ability isn't one that you can fight with. However, it is still useful in this scenario. Arthur finally finishes packing, an expression of bewilderment spread on his face. I do feel bad for him, he must be so confused.

We are about to head downstairs to leave when Mathias pauses, eyes widening. It's in that moment I know something happened, something he picked up on with his ability. "No time," he mutters, "We've got to go out of the window." Arthur picks up on this, "The window?" Mathias just nods and although Arthur sighs, he grabs his suitcase, opens up the window and steadies himself to jump out. "You sure about this, Mathias?" Gotta make sure before you jump out of a window. "Definitely. We need to hurry. They're here." So, that's how Arthur Kirkland ends up jumping out of a window and chucking his suitcase before himself. It's a strange sight but I can't revel in it. I know my turn is next. My turn then appears. I throw my suitcase out the window and watch it fall. Then my own body falls towards the ground and I try aim it away from where my stuff landed.

What can I say about jumping from a window? It hurts. It hurts so goddamn much. At least I manage to roll when I land so I don't break any bones. Arthur helps pull me to my feet and I stare at my boyfriend's figure at the window. Above the house, a white plane is flying low. Far too low. It's a suspicious sign. I glance around, also taking in some police cars making their way down the street. Oh crap. They've got us cornered. "Mathias! What are you doing?! Jump!" I yell up at my boyfriend who's done nothing, still standing at the window. My words shock him into reality and his miniscule eyes widen. There's a blur and he's no longer there. There's a thud to my left, presumably his body.

As soon as he lands, the first strange thing happens. There's a large flash, followed by a bang. I see bricks from the house flying towards us. That's when the second strange thing happens. A blue light, a barrier kind of thing stops the bricks from colliding with us. I'm trying to comprehend what's going on. Where's this blue light coming from? What was that large bang? More debris hits the shield and I come to the conclusion that Arthur's house has just been blown up. All my thoughts come to: holy shit. What the ever-loving fuck. This is getting out of hand. I glance to my left, noticing the blue light shield appears to be projecting from my boyfriend's chest. The fuck. This keeps getting weirder and weirder. Is this my life now? A series of weird events? Each one weirder than the last? After a couple of minutes, the debris stops falling. Mathias falls back onto the grass, beads of sweat covering his forehead, the blue light disappearing. "What. The. Hell." Is all Arthur manages to say and to be honest, I don't blame him. This whole situation is a lot to process even for me, and I know the background context. Poor guy.

"Mathias, you ok?" I touch his arm, "What was that?" He meets my eyes, his wide and confused, "I think that was my soul. I don't know, Lu, I've never done that before. And I'm ok, just very tired." Lu? I'll ask him about that later. Now's not the time. My eyes tear away from him and back up the street, the policemen and women have emerged from their vehicles and are starting to run down towards us, slightly delayed probably due to bewilderment. Mathias sits up, turns to see what I'm seeing and then says to the both of us, "We gotta go. Now." Stretching out my hand to him, I pull him to his feet. He begins to scan the surroundings wildly, an expression of concern spreading rapidly across his face. The police are getting closer. Oh man, we are screwed. "What the hell is taking him so long?" Mathias mutters, scrunching up his face in annoyance. This is quickly replaced by a look of relief whilst I hear tyres squeaking, the noise getter louder by the second. This all becomes apparent when a bright red car hurriedly pulls up to the curb and grinds to a halt, the screeching gradually disappearing. "Everyone, this is our ride, I suggest you get in as fast as possible," my boyfriend looks back at us and starts sprinting towards the eyesore of a car. Arthur and I swiftly follow suit.

I decide to go through the backseat doors, Arthur circling round to the passenger seat. As soon as I collapse inside, my seatbelt snugly in place, I get a good look at the driver. Alfred Freaking Jones. Quiet for once, he turns the keys in the ignition and we head off, swerving past all the police officers. Thank God. "I was worried you weren't going to show up in time, Al. What was taking you so long?" Mathias sighs, the sigh being one of relief. "Traffic was a nightmare, dude. But everything's ok now!" He grins back at us from the car's mirror. Mathias stretches his hand out to me, an invitation to hold it and I do. I really hope today is not the way I die. I'd like to be in control of my own death thank you very much. "Hello there, Jones. Haven't seen you in a while," smooth Arthur, very smooth. Not taking his eyes of the road, Alfred smiles, "Hey there, Artie. Yeah, I wasn't feeling great for a long time but yesterday I decided to do something about my situation instead of moping. Now I'm involved in all this."

"Oh, that reminds me," Arthur turns to glare at me and Mathias in the backseats, "What the hell is going on? Would either of you care to explain before I go crazy?" I don't think this is the right time. Sure, I would hate being in the dark but we're not safe yet. And the context is very long and confusing. Mathias just mumbles, "Alfred, go left up here and then right two times," he then focuses back on Arthur, raising his voice slightly "Too long. Sorry Arthur, but you're going to have to wait until we're safe. I'm really sorry." The Brit groans, clearly unsatisfied with this response. The ride remains mainly silent, apart from the occasional order on which way to turn from Mathias and music blasting from the stereo, a song called 'Still Breathing' or something like that. The song hits quite heavily with me, a particular lyric standing out, 'As I walked out onto the ledge/ Are you scared to death to live?'. Hey song, suggestion, please don't have lyrics that hit too close to home. All it makes me think of are the things I really don't want to think about right now. As if sensing this, Mathias squeezes my hand when the lyric is playing. We share a look as I silently thank him. He gives me a sad smile in return.

Everything is going alright until we pass a house. This house is no normal house. No, it's on fire. Of course. Why is everything being destroyed today? This is definitely number 1 on my 'weirdest birthdays' list. There wasn't even a list until today. Arthur pales, "That's Vlad's house. I'm sure of it." For fuck's sake. Of course it is. "Oh shit," Mathias replies and scrambles for his phone, dialling a number. "Pick up, pick up, pick up," He mutters. Nothing happens until I hear, "The number you're calling can't be reached right now." Alfred slams down on the radio, turning it off immediately. "Fuck. Come on, Vladimir," my boyfriend mumbles, dialling the number again. "The number you're calling can't be reached right now." And again. "The number you're calling can't be reached right now." And again. "The number..." Mathias still doesn't give up the futile attempt at getting hold of our Romanian friend. I swear, I start going crazy the 20th time we've heard that voicemail message, tears beginning to blur my vision. "The number you're calling..." Nothing. "...can't be reached right now." "The number..." "...can't be reached..." "...you're calling can't..." Absolutely nothing. "The number you're calling can't be reached right now." Ugly sobs start coming out of me, mixing with everyone around me. Nothing. Please, something else. Anything else. "The number..." And yet, nothing happens.

Matthew

Looking up from my phone, I sigh heavily. Of course I haven't heard from Alfred since yesterday. What stupid shit has he gotten himself into this time? Not saying my brother's an idiot, though he is a dumbass (crucial difference) and has a tendency to get involved with stupid things. He did tell me that he was at a friend's house yesterday, but he paused between his words, as if trying to come up with a lie. Al is a terrible liar, and I know this. I think it's great that my brother is going outside again, he seems to have perked up more yesterday. It took a couple of months to see him smile again. My only issue is that he's probably gone and done something dumb. God, I swear I'm going to go grey early thanks to constantly worrying over my twin. Just last week I found a grey hair. Typical.

I don't exactly know why I am down here, in the cul-de-sac that contains the rundown shack, known for not being demolished for no reason. I just felt like I should be here. Just some proof that I am probably going insane. Going grey and insane. The full set. "Matthew! Hi!" A cheery voice greets my ears, it's Feliciano Vargas with his brother Lovino, guys in the year below me. "Hello, Feliciano, Lovino." Lovino is scowling, though I try not to take it personally. I'm surprised Feliciano knows my name; he is an extremely friendly guy. Probably knows everyone's name. "How's everything going?" He struts up to me, grinning. Lovino stands back, unwilling to move. "Good, thank you. You?" Might as well distract myself from whatever Al could be doing. "I'm really good! I've just come back from a date with Luddy!" His hands move widely, gesturing constantly. Ah, Gil's younger brother. The two are nothing alike on the surface from what I've seen. Both are incredibly organised though. "That's cool. I hope you had..." I start to reply but a loud boom drowns out my response and every other sound.

The hell was that? Feliciano, Lovino and I stare at the horizon, a massive visible smoke cloud in the distance. It should be noted though, that it is a perfectly pleasant day, no grey clouds in sight so that boom was not thunder. Then what was it? "Hey, dickheads, there's another smoke cloud to the right of the one you're looking at," Lovino snaps us out of our thoughts and we follow his finger. He's right. There are two smoke clouds on the horizon which is clearly not good. I'm so confused right now. What on Earth is going on? Al, what did you get involved in this time? I just know that you have something to do with this. Jesus Christ. Pulling out my phone, biting on my lip in annoyance, I punch my brother's number in and wait for him to pick up the call. Pick up the call, dumbass. "Hey dudes! I currently can't answer my phone so leave a message! Later!" His voicemail message plays. Nothing. Of course. Should I bother calling again? Or will it go the same way as what just happened? Alfred... what have you gotten yourself into this time?

"What do you think caused the smoke clouds, fratello?" Feliciano pats his brother's arm hurriedly, a visible expression of concern written all over his usually cheery face. "The right one looks like smoke from a fire, the other... I think an explosion which would explain the loud as fuck bang. Probably someone did some stupid shit in their microwave or something like that," He folds his arms, slightly content with his reply. Although it sounds reasonable, something in my gut tells me the explosion was caused by something else. Something doesn't seem right here. I mean, two smoke clouds at the same time? It's at least an unlikely coincidence. But all I do is hum in response, still worrying over my brother. I should probably start becoming less concerned over Al since we're almost eighteen, but he just gives me too many reasons to feel worried over him. It's complicated, to say the least. My fingers punch in his number again, letting the phone ring. There's a long flat ring tone for a while, which gives me hope. That is, until "Hey dudes! I currently can't answer my phone so leave a message! Later!" Nothing. Again.

There's a pause between the three of us. Screeching tyres can be heard, and a red automobile pulls into the cul-de-sac. Hold on a minute, I know that car. Alfred Fucking Jones, what the hell are you doing driving like that? I let out a sigh, let's find out shall we? The doors open and people start pouring out, moving at the speed of light. They're going so fast that I cannot make out who they are, they just appear as blurs. Police cars start pull up behind Al's car. Oh my God. I knew he got into something stupid. But this is a new low point even for Alfred. The police are involved! Come on! What even is my life at this point? It's like something out of a book, for God's sake! The four people are coming towards us, and I can finally make out my brother (of course), Arthur Kirkland (Al's crush), Mathias Køhler and Lukas Bondevik. An unlikely crew, I don't see at least two of them committing crimes. What the hell is going on? Policemen are getting out of their vehicles, weapons in hand. Al's group starts hurrying, they're getting closer and closer... until their bodies collide with ours.

Lukas

Oh my God, what the hell just happened? Firstly we were running, not having any time to take in the surroundings, my vision still blurred from crying. And now we're sprawled on the ground. Crap, my knee stings. Bet I scraped it. Wow, we just crashed into people. Yikes. I sit up slowly and glance at my knee. Yeah, that's bleeding. Fucking shit. I look around, my eyes catching Lovi's. "I'm so sorry! Are you ok?" I start to stand up, reaching my hand out to pull him up, wincing from the pain in my leg. The others around me get up as well and I notice Lovi's twin, Feliciano, and a blonde guy I haven't met before. A small "what the fuck" escapes Lovino's mouth, saying not much else. "We've got to keep moving," Mathias whispers, looking back at the gradually getting closer police. "Won't these three get in trouble if we leave them?" I question everyone. "I guess they will. Guess they've just got to come with us." Mathias states, earning confused looks from the three themselves. In order to clear it up, Arthur adds, "Do you want to be arrested or not?" Small "no"s are uttered and just like that, we now have three extra people.

There's a thud behind us and, on instinct, I turn around. My brother, dragon-like wings sprouting out from his back, appears to have touched down. Was he flying? At this point I'm not even surprised anymore. Next to him is Yao's brother who also has wings, though his are like angel's wings, only in crimson. Surveying the group, Alfred and my boyfriend don't seem surprised at this, whereas everyone else's eyes have widened so much they look like golf balls. Emil twists round, shouting at us, "You guys go on ahead. We'll take care of this!" After hearing this, I grab Lovino's arm, ignoring his protests and yank him towards the shack. I stumble slightly, my leg being in worse shape than I thought, but power on. You can do this Lukas; think of all the pain you've felt that's worse than this. This wound is nothing compared to all the others. Don't feel pain. Don't feel pain. Lovino finally goes quiet after glancing at the police approaching us, guns out. He stops resisting, allowing me to drag him towards the rundown building. Next to me, Mathias has Feliciano's arm, whilst Alfred is pulling both Arthur and the guy whom I do not know.

They begin walking through the door, almost safe. I watch my brother, attempting to swallow the fear that's coursing through my body. They have guns. Please be ok, Em. I can't loose you too. I've already lost so many. Mum, Dad (I never knew my father, so God knows where he is), now Vladimir. Please be ok. Please. I hear two shots being fired and my life turns slow-motion. The bullets head forward, aimed at my brother and Yao's brother's chests. Emil leaps onto one foot (I'm not sure what he's trying to accomplish here). He uses this to propel himself backwards, whilst Yao's brother is frozen. I think I shout out my brother's name, though it's unclear. He brings his hands together, like a clap. Just like that, life resumes back to its normal speed. Please no. Please no. No. No. No. No. Tears roll down my cheeks. How long have I been crying? But, just as quickly as life resumes, a large wall of ice spreads across the entire road, separating the police from Emil, and Yao's brother. The bullets are caught just on the edge, inches away from Emil's face as he touches back down on the ground, wings beating like a heartbeat.

'He's ok' my brain repeats to itself in disbelief. He's ok. He's alive. He's ok! My brain still doesn't seem to be responding normally but I think I hear Yao's brother shout, "Holy shit! We could have died! Holy shit!" The police are banging their fists on the ice wall, not penetrating it in the least (the thing's about 10 metres thick and God knows how high). It's impressive to say the least. My brother makes eye contact with me from a distance, smiles slightly and mouths "Get out of here". Typical Emil if you ask me. Still reeling, I head inside the shack, catching up with the others. Mathias grins at me, "Told you they could handle themselves." He seems to have snapped back from serious mode. I guess we're practically safe now. "Let's go everyone!" He drags Feliciano into the centre of the room and the two disappear through the portal. There's exclamations of shock from everyone, but I grab Lovino's arm again and pull him through with me.

A familiar surrounding greets me, and I exhale. We're safe now. They can't get to us here. Mathias' family controls the borders so no bad souls can enter. Normally, regular humans like Lovino can't either, but this is not a normal time. The rest of the group appear, the general consensus of their reaction being "What. The. Fuck." Again, I don't blame them. That was my reaction too. My ears pick up on the border letting people through again and I come face to face with Emil. "You were amazing out there!" I pull him into a hug and then hold him out in front of me, "But don't ever worry me like that again, young man. You hear me?" His lips twitch into a small smile, "Ok, Dad. I won't." Dad? I guess since I am eighteen now I'm kind of his legal guardian. Probably will need to do some paperwork so he will be out of our Aunt's custody. "Whatever kid." I ruffle his hair and he pushes my hand away. Yao's brother comes up next to him muttering, "We could've died. Oh shit. We could've died." Emil looks at me and mouths, "He's still in shock". And you're not? Weirdo.

Not much happens after that. We head down to Yao's (there's now an elevator built into the cliff, so we don't have to be flown down), fill him in on what has happened (including Vladimir), we fill the humans in out everything about this place and we eat dinner. After that, (and in order for Yao to be able to house everyone) Mathias and I head up to his house where I will be staying the night. I have a brief shower, I mean, I was covered in dust, and then I tend to my knee. The cut's quite deep but it'll heal. As I said, not the worst injury I've ever had. And what's one more scar? "I'm just saying," I come out of Mathias' bathroom, "My birthdays were never great and this one is certainly the surrealist." My boyfriend snorts, sitting cross legged on his bed, a book in hand (titled 'Heartstopper'). "I mean, first, you turn out to be the one sending me those notes." He laughs again, "So sorry about that." I pace around the room, counting things off my fingers, "Then, Arthur's house blew up and we saw Alfred F. Jones for the first time in months. After that... you know..." This time he puts the book down and gets off the bed, walking towards me. He pauses slightly when he sees my scars (I haven't put on a shirt yet) but then pulls me into a hug.

"Mathias, I need you to promise me something." I say, sinking my head into his chest. "What is it?" He asks, stroking my hair. "Promise me that I won't lose you. I've lost too many people in my life. I can't lose you too. Promise me." He pulls away and looks me dead in the eyes, "I promise, Lukas. I promise." He begins to walk back to the bed. "I mean, I thought I was going to lose my brother today. He almost died." My eyes widen at the realisation, "Oh God. Is that how he felt back in December? Because of me? Oh shit, I did that to him. I..." My hands fly up to my mouth, my body shaking. Why am I shaking? "I did that to him. I made him feel the way I felt today." Mathias has abandoned what he was about to do and is making his way back over to me. I feel sick. Should I feel this sick? How could I do that to Emil? "I'm a horrible person, aren't I?" I let out a shaky breath, "A selfish, horrible person. I did that to him." Suddenly, I can't make out my surroundings. Am I crying? At this point you would think I'd be out of tears. But no. "You're not a horrible person, Lukas," He places his hand on my arm, "Please calm down. It'll be ok." What? He could he- What? "How can you say that?!" I slap his hand away, "Calm down! You don't know a thing about my life, Mathias! You don't get to tell me to calm down." By this point, I've lost control of my limbs, they're shaking uncontrollably.

I keep rambling how I did those things to Emil, all the time breathing quickly. Mathias has frozen. I did that to him. I just made him feel like shit. I really am a horrible person, aren't I? Continuously rambling to myself, I hear voices around me, none registering in my brain. Until someone strides into the room and puts their hand on my arm. Who the fuck? "Lukas, hey. I'm going to need you to breathe for me, ok?" Emil. It's Emil. "Breathe in," He whispers, mimicking the motion, "And out. Breathe in... and out." Slowly, my breathing starts to return back to normal. The shaking seems to be stopping too. I rub the tears out of my eyes, them meeting my brother's once more. "That's it. Well done." His hand moves up and down my arm. I just had another panic attack, huh. "Good job, Em," Mathias says, his tone not too quiet but not it's usual version either, "I didn't quite know what to do." He gives me a sad smile. "Not used to dealing with panic attacks, Mathias?" Emil glances back and asks. "I mean, not as a witness. I've had my fair share but in terms of knowing what to do, I was lost."

"You've had panic attacks before?" I ask, eyebrows furrowed. "Well, you know what my ability does. Let's just say I'm not great in crowds of people I've never met before. Information overload leads to me freaking out." He looks down at the floor, fiddling with his pyjama shirt. "I'm sorry for snapping at you," I sigh. God, I hope I didn't hurt him (emotionally or physically). "It's ok, Lukas," He makes eye contact again, "I know you didn't mean to lash out. I probably should've handled it better. Which is why I called Emil. Figured he might have more experience." We all sit down on the bed after that. I'm still calming down but yeah, I hate panic attacks. "What caused the panic attack, Lukas?" Emil hugs me. "The fact that I thought I'd lost you earlier today. You felt that way back in December, didn't you? I hate that I did that to you." His violet eyes widen, and he purses his lips. "Sure, it felt horrible. But you're ok now and that's what matters Lukas. Also, we can't change the past so what happened, happened." He pulls me in tighter. "Besides," he starts, "How is... you know... going?" Ah, I guess we have to catch up a lot. "I'm trying, Em. I really am trying to get better. It's taking longer than I expected." I sigh. Change is hard. Very very hard. "Recovery takes a while, Lukas. As long as you're trying, that's what matters." Mathias joins the hug on my other side, "Emil's right. You're doing great, Lu." And after a crazy ass eighteenth birthday, it finally draws to a close with me around two of the people I care about the most: my little brother and my boyfriend.

************
Finally this chapter is done! It took forever XD
I've had this chapter planned out for over a year (bar the last scene).

Here's a drawing I did to commemorate this chapter being completed!

It's Denmark with Dragon Norway :)

Hope you enjoyed this chapter and I'll see you in the next one!
Please let me know your thoughts.
Bye!
~Peanutsfan1