Work Text:
pres·ent
noun
/ˈprez.ənt/
something that you are given, without asking for it, on a special occasion, especially to show friendship, or to say thank you
“Are you sure about this, Feli?”
“Ve~! Sì! He-a will be delighted at your-a present, bella!”
You glanced at the sleeping puppy in your arms. Her white fur lifted and lowered with every slow, deep breath she took. With a furrowed brow, you looked back at Feliciano who was standing next to you behind an old oak tree in the front yard of the German brothers’ house.
Feliciano grabbed your hand and squeezed it in an encouraging manner. “Non ti preoccupare! He-a will love your-a present, I’m-a sure of it! Ve~!”
“But you have to distract him, so I can smuggle her inside. It’d be no fun to give him the puppy right at the front door.”
“Sì capisce! Stay put, bella!” Feliciano left your hiding spot and skipped over to the front door, ringing the doorbell. While waiting for someone to open, he rocked back and forth on his heels.
You petted the small German Shepherd. You really hoped she wouldn’t wake up until you were inside the house. It would be next to impossible to sneak in a wide-awake pup.
“Ve~! Ciao!” Feliciano chirped. He flung his arms around Ludwig who had opened the door a moment ago. “Tanti auguri di buon compleanno!”
Ludwig hugged his friend back. In the meantime, he looked around, searching for someone or something, but luckily didn’t notice you standing behind the tree. “Danke sehr.” He let go of Feliciano. “Do you know where [Name] is? She usually is on time, but now she is not. Perhaps something has happened to her on her way here.”
“Don’t-a worry, Ludwig! She’s-a going to come, no doubt! Dai! I want-a to see your-a presents!” Taking of hold Ludwig’s wrist, he pulled him inside the house, kicking the door shut.
You cursed under your breath. “How am I supposed to get inside now, Feli?” you muttered through gritted teeth. You tiptoed over to the front door and, upon closer inspection, noticed that it wasn’t actually closed, just ever so slightly ajar. You heaved a sigh. “My bad, Feli.”
Pushing the door open, you slipped inside and carefully closed it behind you. Then, you sneaked through the hallway, slowly approaching the living room where you expected the presents – and the other guests – to be.
You managed to get near the living room without coming across Ludwig. You just had to round one corner and take a couple of more steps, and then you would be in the living room, your destination. But, of course, your stroke of luck ended right then and there when you bumped into someone. Just your luck.
Slapping on a bright smile, you looked up, only to sigh with relief the next second. “Oh, Gil, it’s just you. I thought you were Lud. Lucky me!”
Gilbert pouted, arms crossed over his chest. “‘Just’ the awesome me, Mädel?” His frown loosened up into a big smirk. “You better be glad it’s ‘just’ the awesome me and not my unawesome Bruder! Or should I say, your awesome crush?”
You felt your face flush hot red. “Keep it down, Gil!” you hissed.
“So what? Everyone knows it – well, except for my Bruder. Even Alfred knows of your crush on Lud, and that’s saying something!”
You shook your head, sighing again. “Yeah, whatever. Is Lud in the living room?”
“No. He’s in the kitchen, keeping an eye on Feliciano.” Gilbert looked at the white Shepherd puppy, and the ghost of a genuine smile flitted over his lips. “He’s gonna love your gift, Mädel.”
“You sure?”
“Hell yeah! C’mon! Bruder’s worrying about you since you’re late!”
You followed Gilbert into the living room where your other friends were gathered: Kiku, Roderich, Elizaveta, and Lovino. The latter had been dragged to Ludwig’s birthday party by his upbeat brother, and was now glowering at the floor, visibly malcontent. (He had gone on ahead while Feliciano had stayed behind to give you one last pep talk.)
Elizaveta greeted you with a sly smirk. “Today’s the day, huh, [Nickname]?”
“What do you mean?” you asked as you sat down between her and Gilbert on the couch, stroking the puppy’s back to wake her up slowly.
“Aren’t you gonna confess to him today?”
Once again, you flushed a deep crimson. “N-N-No!” you spluttered. You struggled to fight back the blush before Ludwig would enter the room and see you in this flustered state.
“Aw man!” she whined. “Today would be the perfect day for a confession, don’t you think? It’d be the perfect gift, too!”
“Don’t talk so loudly, Elizaveta,” Roderich scolded her. Afterwards, he gave you a warm smile. “I’m sure [Nickname] doesn’t want Ludwig to hear you talking about her crush on him.”
“I agree,” Kiku piped up. “That was very tactless of you, Elizaveta-san.”
Elizaveta rolled her eyes.
“And what if he rejects me?” you murmured, more to yourself than to anyone else. “It would ruin his day, let alone mine. No way I’m gonna confess to him today. Perhaps tomorrow. Or the day after tomorrow.” You sighed and nudged the puppy’s wet nose. “Perhaps never.”
Lovino muttered something under his breath. It sounded a lot like an insult regarding your lack of courage and confidence, so you chose to ignore it.
Gilbert and Elizaveta exchanged knowing looks, and both grinned crookedly.
Having noticed this uncharacteristic exchange, you arched an eyebrow. “What’s going on between you two?” you questioned. “The only looks you usually exchange are menacing ones.”
Gilbert cackled. Wrapping an arm around your shoulders, he pulled you close. “No worries, Mädel! Don’t worry your pretty little head about this!”
Suddenly, a low barking sounded from somewhere outside the house. As an immediate response to this, the white German Shepherd puppy jumped from your arms and ran out of the room on clumsy paws, barking excitedly.
A moment later, Ludwig entered the living room. A smile spread over his lips as soon as he caught sight of you, but it vanished once he saw Gilbert sitting next to you, his arm still wrapped around your shoulders. At last, he scowled deeply, noticing your shocked expression and seemingly misinterpreting the situation.
“Sorry, Lud, I must fly!” You shot to your feet. “Be right back!” You dashed past him out of the living room, nearly running into and knocking down Feliciano.
The Italian darted you a confused glance. “Bella?”
You merely shook your head. You continued on your way, sprinting into the direction where you had last seen a flash of white. When you rushed into the garden, you saw Ludwig’s three dogs Aster, Berlitz, and Blackie running off into the small forest behind the house, with a white puppy in tow.
“Shit,” you spat. You scrambled over the wooden fence, whereas the dogs had slipped through a loose picket with ease. “I should’ve put her on a leash! Damn it! Damn it all to hell!” Quickening your pace, you raced after the dogs.
Branches swiped across your face. Twigs snapped and leaves crunched beneath your boot-clad feet as you pushed your way through the underbrush. You tripped over a protruding tree root more than once. Still, you didn’t give up. When you finally caught up with the four dogs, both your hands and knees were dirty and scratched, even bleeding a little.
Panting, you stumbled into a small, grassy clearing. You trudged over to the dogs which were frolicking around, and unceremoniously flopped down on the grass nearby, leaning back and supporting yourself on your hands. With a deep sigh, you closed your eyes for a moment.
Berlitz jumped at you and licked your face, wagging his tail like crazy.
Laughing quietly, you ruffled his fur. “Love you too.”
The puppy you had got from a shelter clambered on your thighs. She looked up at you expectantly, with her tongue lolling out of her mouth.
You scratched her behind her ear. “I shouldn’t be petting you,” you muttered. “You probably got me into deep trouble, y’know? I hope Lud’s not mad at me because I just ran off. It’d be your fault, you little rascal. Don’t ever do this again.”
“[Name]?” Ludwig’s voice echoed from within the forest and caused you to look up and around. “[Name], where are you? [Name]!”
“I’m here!” you called out.
Seconds later, the blond German emerged from the forest and stumbled onto the clearing, much like you had done earlier. He spotted you instantly. He jogged over to you, looking rather upset. “[Name], how dare you run off for no apparent reason!” he growled.
Scooping the puppy up in your arms, you stood up. “I’m terribly sorry, Lud,” you said. Your apologetic smile turned into a radiant one as you held the German Shepherd out to him. “Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag.”
The moment Ludwig laid eyes on the small dog, his anger dispersed immediately, vanishing into thin air, just like the frown twisting his features that was replaced by a bright smile. He took the puppy from your hands. A laugh escaped him when she ran her tongue over his face. “Vielen Dank.”
“It’s a she,” you told him. “Don’t worry, she gets along just fine with your dogs. She ran off because she heard them barking, and I ran after her, of course.” You averted your eyes, fumbling with your thumbs. “I hope you’re not mad at me.”
Ludwig set the puppy down on the ground. Then, he looked at you, his sky-blue eyes shining warmly. Yet he knitted his brows. “Why should I be mad at you, [Name]?” he asked.
You shrugged. “Well,” you scratched your neck bashfully, “I ran off, on your birthday, at that.”
He cleared his throat. A tinge of pink dusted his cheeks. He gently took hold of your hands, making you return his surprisingly affectionate gaze. “I was just worried about you, [Nickname].” He took a deep breath. “You must know that I – I –”
“C’mon, nun sag’s schon!” Gilbert shouted. He was crouching inside a bush at the edge of the clearing, though he quickly left after a withering glare from Ludwig – but not without roaring with laughter and yelling, “Weichei!”
Ludwig glared daggers into his brother's back until he was out of sight; afterwards, he turned back to you. His face was flushed a deep shade of red. “Ich liebe dich.”
Although you didn’t know much German, hearing this sentence somehow made your heart skip a beat. You could only guess what Ludwig had just said. But you were pretty sure it was the sentence you had yearned to hear. “You mean, you love me?” you breathed.
Ludwig nodded tentatively.
Albeit blushing to the roots of your [length] [colour] hair, you beamed at him. “I love you too, Lud! Ich liebe dich!”
The blush on Ludwig’s cheeks darkened even more. He gave you a shy, yet warm smile and leaned in, his lips meeting yours in a chaste kiss. “You gave me the two most wonderful gifts today, Liebste,” he whispered.
“You still have to unpack ours!” Again, Gilbert disturbed you. Apparently, he had sneaked back to his hiding spot in the bush while you hadn’t been looking. “Don’t jump to conclusions just ‘cause you finally confessed to [Nickname]! You’re gonna like my gift too!”
Ludwig sighed. He whistled, and once he had the undivided attention of his three big dogs, he simply said, “Fasst.”
With a scream of terror, Gilbert turned tail and fled as his brother’s dogs chased after him.