The next and final day.
After the both of them had woken the next morning neither of them moved from the positions that they were in for a very long time. They lied like that, wrapped in each other's arms for hours on end, afraid that if they let go then the other would be gone sooner rather than later.
As the hours past their time together was steadily growing shorter and shorter.
Six hours left.
Lovino and Antonio came over to the house to spend time with Ludwig in his final hours in the States.
Five hours left.
Gilbert along with the rest of the crew came over as well. Nobody was ready to say goodbye, so they avoided the topic altogether, acting as if this was some normal day.
Four hours.
The bags in the corner of Feliciano's bedroom had made their way out next to the front door.
Three hours.
The unspoken problem within the group of friends was steadily weeding its way out into the open. Stories were being told, memories shared.
Two hours.
Everyone began to say their goodbyes to their friend. It was tough, but they promised to meet Ludwig at the airport before his plane left at five. They all had made a silent agreement to leave early to give Ludwig some time alone with Feliciano before he had to leave.
Feliciano had felt numb all morning. It was different than all of the other mornings this past week, where he would cry and hurt. Today was different, he felt almost as if someone was trying to tear his heart right out of his chest, but at the same time, he couldn't feel anything at all.
Once everyone was gone, Ludwig came up from behind Feliciano and hugged him. Neither of them knew what to say, or even do for that matter, so they stood there in each others warmth until the inevitable came and it would be time for them to leave.
One hour.
It was 4:00; it took a half hour to get to the airport and then with the added time for security if Ludwig wanted to make his 5:00 plane, they would have to leave right now. They did a quick sweep of the house, making sure that they didn't forget anything before making their way out of the front door.
Before they stepped into the car Ludwig paused. "Feliciano," he said looking down at the keys in his hand. His mind was spinning with so many emotions, and if this wasn't going to be his last ride in a car with Feliciano then he never would have done it. He tossed the keys to Feliciano, "Can you drive?"
Catching the keys, Feliciano looked at him, surprised. "Are you serious?"
Ludwig nodded his head and began to walk to the other side of the car. "I want my last moments with you to be memorable, and I know for sure that if you drive I'll remember it."
Feliciano snickered before getting into the driver's seat. He knew that he wasn't the safest driver, but just this once he told himself that he will watch his speed a little and maybe not make such as sharp turns. He didn't want him having a heart attack before they even get to the airport.
The drive there was relatively quiet minus the car radio playing in the background. They weren't even in the car for ten minutes before that song played. As soon as it began the memories started to flood to Feliciano, he could feel his heart take on a weight. Not even 45 seconds into the song Feliciano reached over and changed the station, silencing his demons that were once his most treasured angels.
Ludwig looked over to Feliciano, but Feliciano could tell in his eyes that he felt the same.
"Not now," he said looking between Ludwig and the road, "not now."
* * *
About a half hour later they arrived at the airport. Neither of them could believe that this was actually happening. That Ludwig was actually leaving. That last night was their last night together, and that tonight, they would both go to bed alone. Just the mere thought of it almost made Feliciano start to cry, but today, no matter what, he refused to cry; for Ludwig's sake.
They walked through the building's doors and there sitting in the entrance area were his friends, they had kept their promise. Gilbert stood first, he walked over to Ludwig and stood in front of him. They looked into each other's eyes, obvious pain being held there before Ludwig held out his hand between them to shake. Gilbert looked at it and laughed before enveloping his brother into a tight embrace.
"I'm going to miss you, little bro," he said as he pulled back. "I'll come back and visit when I get the chance to. Damn, it had been so long since I saw you and now you're leaving." He let out a breath full of pent up stress before hugging his brother once more. "Just make sure you tell Grandpa that I say hi okay?"
Ludwig chuckled before pulling away. "I'll tell him, don't worry, and I'll miss you too."
"Hey! German bastard!" shouted Lovino, making his way up from Antonio's lap. Ludwig could feel the dread seep into him with each step that he took in his direction. He stopped a few feet in front of him and looked him in the eyes before sighing and hanging his head low, his hand coming up to rub the back of his neck. "Alright so listen. I don't like you–"
"Yeah I already know that," said Ludwig, cutting him off.
Lovino just put a scowl on his face and glared at him. "I wasn't finished you asshole. Anyway, what I was going to say was that I don't like you, but I can't hate you because of how happy you make my brother..." Both Feliciano and Ludwig were shocked into silence, he continued. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm glad that he met you and it's a shame that you have to leave. So..." he breathed heavily, it was almost as if what he was trying to say was a very difficult task for him to do. "So if you ever visit the States again, you can come see him." Antonio, who had been standing quietly beside him, elbowed him in the side. "And us... and so you don't have to worry about a hotel or anything you can stay at the house."
Ludwig was at a loss for words, he didn't know what to say, or even do for that matter. After a few seconds, he composed himself and smiled. "Thank you Lovino, I'm glad I finally have your acceptance."
Lovino rolled his eyes, "Don't take this the wrong way, I still don't like you."
Ludwig wrapped an arm around Feliciano who was standing at his side. "I understand."
Feliciano smiled and leaned into Ludwig's touch. He was happy to hear that his brother was okay with Ludwig coming back to visit, the thing was that he didn't know when that would happen, or if that even would happen. He hoped dearly that it would, and soon.
After they all chatted for a bit it was time for Ludwig to go through security, and by the time he was out, they only had ten minutes left until his plane would departure for Germany.
They all sat together in the waiting area for Ludwig's plane to be called. Francis, Antonio, and Gilbert were talking about one time whenever they went to Germany, and how they should do that again soon so they could visit Ludwig. Ludwig caught bits and pieces of their conversation, but his mind was currently at a blank. The only things floating through his consciousness were Feliciano, and the ticking of a clock, marking down their final minutes together.
"Plane to Berlin, Germany is now boarding at gateway seven. I repeat, plane to Berlin, Germany is now boarding at gateway seven, thank you," called a woman's voice over the intercom, breaking them all from their thoughts.
They all stood. "I guess this is it," said Gilbert.
"Yeah," said Ludwig. Feliciano reached over and held Ludwig's hand as they made their way over to gateway seven, people were already in line to board the plane. There was a man at the very end of the line, only allowing the people who were going to board the plane to enter. They couldn't go any further. Having already said their goodbyes, Ludwig gave them all one last glance and a weak smile before walking towards the security man at the end of the moving line.
"Ludwig wait!" called Feliciano. Ludwig turned around just in time to have his lips meet his for one last time in a kiss. A few people in the surrounding crowd shied away at the sight, some acted like they hadn't seen anything while others watched with sad, understanding eyes.
Feliciano's hands were wrapped around Ludwig's neck, bringing him closer, not wanting to let go. He didn't care that they were in the middle of a crowded airport, he didn't care about anything at that moment, anything besides Ludwig. He made sure that his kiss was filled with passion and love as he tried to cover up the shame that he was feeling deep inside of him. He was ashamed that he never gave him anything more than a kiss, and even more ashamed that he didn't even have the option to anymore.
"This is the last announcement, the plane to Berlin, Germany is currently boarding. Please arrive immediately because it is about to leave for departure, thank you," said the woman over the intercom once again. A few more people scampered up to the line, going past the security guard and into the tunnel to board the plane.
When they broke apart, it felt like their kiss had lasted for hours, even though in reality it only lasted a few seconds. "I have to go," Ludwig whispered.
"Call me when you land in Germany, I don't care how long it takes I'll stay up for your call."
Just before Ludwig stepped past the security guard and into the tunnel he looked back at his friends before his eyes lingered on Feliciano. "I love you too," he mouthed to him.
Feliciano watched as his one and only true love stepped through the tunnel and out of his sight. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, his head was numb, his eyes were wet, and he couldn't move, or think or anything. All he knew was that Ludwig was on that plane, and this was it. He may never see him for a very long time. When he regained control of his legs, he walked back over to his group of friends who watched with sad eyes. He was a few feet away when a little girl approached him, she couldn't have been more than six years old.
She tugged on his shirt, getting his attention. "Excuse me, sir, do you love that man?" she asked.
Feliciano bit his lip, holding back his tears. "Yes, I do," he croaked out.
She shuffled her feet before looking at him again, "I know how you feel. I love my Daddy and he just got on that plane too, but he's left before, but he always comes back, it just takes him awhile. Mommy says that he has to go be the hero in some other country before he can come back and be the hero in ours. One time he was gone for a whole year, and I was very sad. Do you wanna know how I keep myself from not getting so sad?"
She was trying to help him, he realized. Feliciano felt his lips curl up in a sad smile. "Of course, maybe you can help me."
She smiled happily, "Okay, so what I do is I talk to him over the phone whenever Mommy calls him, and we also talk through the computer too so I can see him. But my favorite thing to do is to look at old pictures of him and listen to the music that he always plays when he's cooking. It reminds me of him and whenever I hear it it makes me happy because I know that he's probably listening to the same music right when I do."
Feliciano crouched down to her height and ruffled her hair, "Thanks for the advice kiddo. I needed that."
Just then a woman who looked to be in her early 30's came walking over, her face contorted into a worried expression. "Oh my God I'm so sorry sir," she said to Feliciano before grabbing her daughter's hand. "Ryliee, I thought I told you to stay by Grandpa," she scolded.
"But he fell asleep! And I wanted to walk around a little," she said, looking at the ground.
Ryliee's mother then looked back at Feliciano, "Again sir I'm sorry, she didn't bother you did she?"
Feliciano stood and put on a smile to cover his pain, "No, no, no it's okay. She actually helped me a little bit." He bent down and ruffled Ryliee's hair again, "So, thank you Ryliee."
Ryliee smiled happily as her mom looked on at Feliciano, she seemed to be thinking before realization spread across his face, relaxing her features. She gave him a tender smile, "I know it's hard, but just know that you'll see him again someday okay?"
Feliciano gave her an appreciated smile, "Thank you," he said.
The woman returned his smile with one of her own before turning back to her daughter, "Alright Ryliee, let's go to the window so we can wave bye to daddy."
Feliciano watched the two of them walk over to the window, the little girl frantically waving out of it.
Francis walked up behind Feliciano and tapped his shoulder. "We should go," he said. He nodded his head and turned with him towards the group waiting by the building's doors. Once they stepped out, they heard the sound of the planes engine gradually become louder and louder as it prepared for takeoff.
They all lined up in front of the fence separating the parking lot from the runway areas of the airport. Feliciano let his fingers curl around the wires of the chainlink fence. As the plane's engine grew louder and louder, a few of them began to cover their ears, but Feliciano still could only feel the numbness that he was burdened with from this morning. He wondered how long it would burden him, how long it would stick with him like an annoying cold.
The wind around them began to pick up, swishing his short hair around his face, causing his single curl to flick around his head. He reached up to move his hair from his eyes, watching as the plane slowly began to move. Suddenly, it didn't feel like someone was trying to take his heart out anymore, it felt as if someone had already done so, leaving a gaping hole where his heart once was.
Even though he had no clue which side of the plane Ludwig was on or whether he could even see him or not, he slowly raised his hand and waved as the plane began to turn down the runway in the other direction.
The others followed suit, waving at the plane. They watched as it sped down the runway, gradually picking up speed as it went until finally, it was off the ground.