Lovino and I bring Ivan back inside, and roll him over to where Emil was playing a game. "Oh, hi, Ivan!"
"Hey," Ivan says slowly, gazing at the game. "What's that?"
"It's a spongebob game. We have to go to all the stops, and sell them krabby patties. Do you want to play?"
Ivan's eyes light up and he smiles. "Yes!"
Lovino pats my my back and walks over to join Ludwig, Feliciano, Emma, and Antonio. I decide to take this chance and talk to my grandmother about Nikolai.
"Grandmother?" I whisper, peeking my head into her room.
"Yes, honey?" She looks up from her book, and motions for me to come in.
I quietly close the door behind me, and sit in the chair beside her bed. "Can I ask you a question?"
"Of course, dear. Anything."
I take a deep breath, and I let the words leave my mouth. "What happened to Nikolai?"
My grandmother's body stiffens at the sound of his name. "H-How do you know him?"
"What do you mean?" I question, my eyebrows creasing in confusion.
"Oh, (Name)," she whispers. "Why hadn't you brought this up before?"
I shrug my shoulders, my heart beating out of my chest. "I don't know..."
"Nikolai... Never lived."
My eyes open wide in horror. "What...?"
"You were the one who was in a crash, and almost died."
"I-I don't understand..."
My grandmother starts to sob as she continues her story. "You were only a little girl, before the boys were born. Your family was on their way to begin a family trip, and crashed. Your father, sadly, didn't make it, but you and your mother lived. The ambulance came, and brought you to the hospital. I stayed by your side for months, but... You wouldn't wake up."
"No..."
"When your mother was well enough, she came and sat by your bedside, as well. Then, the one time we leave to go get food from the cafeteria, we come back and see you wide awake and smiling, ear-to-ear. We rushed to your side and embraced you, apologizing that we weren't there to see you wake up. You giggled, and whispered, 'Don't worry! Nikolai was with me.'"
"N-Nikolai..."
"Was a figment of your imagination."
"No..." Tears stream down my cheeks as she tightly grasps my hand.
"Your parents had a baby before you were born."
I wipe my eyes and dry my hands off. "W-What?"
"He was named Nikolai. But, he didn't make it through the night. He was a sickly baby, with beautiful silver hair and frosty blue eyes..."
That's when it clicked. "N-Nikolai was buried on that hill, wasn't he?"
"Yes," she nods sadly. "We brought you there once, to visit his grave. You grew super attached to that spot, and we watched you from the car ad you say there and laughed to yourself, like you were having a conversation with him."
I stay silent for a few seconds, and I ask her a question. "Do spirits grow up?"
"What?"
"Do spirits grow up?" I repeat myself. "Nikolai died as a baby... But I remember him vividly as a teenager."
"I'm not sure, (Name)," she sighs, wiping her eyes with a tissue. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner."
"It's alright..." I reply with a faint smile. "Those memories were rather comforting to have."
"What memories?"
"I remember Nikolai and I talking on that hill for hours..."
"Yes. We often brought you there," she says. "You spaced out quite a lot."
"I see..."
Trying to lighten the mood, she says, "Oh, remember how I said that we went to the cafeteria? That's where we met Matthias' mother. She was put in the hospital because her baby would be due any day."
"So that's why we were there at his birth," I whisper.
"Yes."
I stand and kiss my grandmother on the cheek, and quietly walk from the room. Lovino walks into the hallway, seemingly searching for me. "What happened, in there?"
"Nothing at all..."
I AM SO SORRY. I HONESTLY FORGOT ABOUT NIKOLAI AND HAD TO COME UP WITH SOME CRAPPY BACKSTORY THINGY. THIS IS THE BEST THING I COULD COME UP WITH PLEASE DON'T KILL ME BECAUSE YEA.
AND DON'T WORRY. I'M PRETTY SURE THE NEXT CHAPTER WILL ACTUALLY CONTINUE THE STORY. PREPARE FOR YOUR FEELS TO BE FUCKED UP CUZ THAT'S WHAT I DO BEST.