All you could see was darkness. You didn't know where you were and tried to feel for some kind of light switch. Something that could help you see. Something that could help you figure out where you were. You felt nothing. No wall, no floor. You were floating in endless darkness with no way out, searching for anything that might help you.
As you looked in confusion, wondering why your memory was betraying you, you began to hear a distant sound. It felt like someone yelling in the distance, "(Y/n)..... need..... wake....can't.... please." The voice kept fading in and out and you tried to pinpoint where the sound was coming from.
---------------(Gilbert's POV)----------------
I sat in the waiting room, my leg bouncing in anxiety and anticipation. I looked down at my hands, trying to stop the tears that desperately wanted to fall. How could I have been such a dummkopf? She had given me a chance, a chance I didn't deserve. How could I have hurt someone like her? She gave me her world. She saved me when I gave up on myself.
"Freak"
That's what he was known as- the freak of the school. Someone inhuman, tan object lacking the soul for any love or appreciation. His blood-red eyes and snowy white hair made people either afraid or disgusted. Yet, he would laugh it off, calling himself awesome with his two friends Antonio and Francis, sleeping with girls who took advantage of his looks. He knew they did, but it came to a point where he didn't care. He needed to feel loved, even if it was by different women who used him every night. Yet, he knew he wasn't fulfilled, that his heart wasn't complete because of these women. He knew, deep down inside him, he wanted to love someone too. He wanted someone to care for, someone that he could go to for anything and she would trust him enough to do the same.
He was starting to lose hope in these aspirations, however, and slowly brought himself into depression. He hated the way that he looked and despised those who had found their significant others. He would constantly avoid eating and he hung out less with his friends, preferring to spend most of the time in his room. After realizing he needed a breath of fresh air and a break from the constant worry of his younger brother, he put on his red sweatshirt and went to the park. He looked at his feet as he walked, not paying attention to what was in front of him. Everyone avoided him, some telling him to watch where he was going but he was still staring at the ground, lost in his thoughts. Then, he bumped into someone and heard a thump. He looked slightly up and found that he had knocked someone over. He looked at her, with her hair in her face, and was about to walk away when she asked,
"Hey, are you okay? That nearly knocked all of the wind out of my lungs, but somehow, you're still standing." The woman said, adding a little laugh at the end. She then moved the hair out of her face and looked at him, and he stopped.
She was beautiful.
She had (h/c) hair and her smile made him feel like he was worth something. But then, he saw her eyes. He felt a sense of guilt when he realized that she had cried, and wasn't sure what to do.
"No, I'm not, but not because of you though." he answered with caution, "Are you?" He offered her a hand, and she gladly took it, standing up. She pursed her lips and looked down.
"No," she looked up, "but is anyone?" She answered giving a small smile, a tear rolling down her cheek.
He had no idea what had gotten into him, but he reached up and wiped the tear off her face. She smiled, chuckling a little, and her hand reached up to his face. She wiped a tear off, and that was when he realized that he had been crying. He looked down and put his face in his hands, letting out every emotion as his hands muffled my screams. He then felt arms wrap around him, and his shoulders became wet as well. They stood there for a few minutes, in each other's arms, crying and pouring out every emotion in their body to a complete stranger. She then let go and pulled my hands off my face.
"I just cried on the shoulder of a man I have neither met before nor know the name of. So what's your name, stranger?"
I smiled at the memory. We found a nearby coffee shop and spent the day there, listening to each other's stories. I had found out that she had just come from a funeral. Her mother had passed away due to cancer and needed to take a walk to clear her mind after the funeral.
As she talked, I realized that even if I don't see her again, she would still make an impact on my life. If a complete stranger could look at me, not my hair or eyes, but just as who I was and talk to me like I was human then those who have been there for me should be more appreciated.
We had shared numbers and continued talking to each other. The more time I spent with her, the more I realized that she was what I needed. I asked her out a couple of months later, and we were happy for a while. She brought out a part of me that I didn't even know I had. Heck, she was the first one, besides me, to have ever called me awesome.
Now as I look back at the memories spent with her, I realize that I became more narcissistic. I spent less time with her and more time with my friends or flirting with other women. I took the confidence that she gave me and used it to become something that I believed was the highest of society. I wanted to be the person that every woman dreamed to be with and the person that every man wanted to be. But throughout that journey of my life, I hadn't realized that I was losing the woman I needed the most.
He stood up, getting ready to leave when his phone started to ring. He looked at the screen and saw the name flash "Queen Awesome". He smiled remembering when he had put her name as (Y/N) in his contacts and she had changed it, protesting that if she was going to be his girlfriend, she at least had to have a cool contact name. He picked up the phone and put it on the speaker while doing his hair.
"Hey Beilschmidt, I wanted to know if we were still up for dinner tonight." She asked. He paused, suddenly realizing that they had planned to go on a date that night.
"Oh Mein Gott, frau. I completely forgot. I thought it was supposed to be tomorrow, and planned to go to the bar with Antonio and Francis tonight."
"But, Gil, you've forgotten the past two times as well." She said, trying to keep her cool. He had done this to her multiple times and she tends to be patient, but she recently started to doubt herself, thinking that maybe he wasn't spending as much time with her because she was boring or not good enough for him. She always brushed it off those, charting it up to her own insecurities.
"Okay, how about this? Why don't I pick you up and we can go to the bar to see the boys. You haven't seen them in a while and the awesome me thinks that I should take you out tonight to go see them."
(Y/N) thought about it. Although it was true that she hadn't seen those two in a long time, she still wanted to spend the night solely with Gil. She looked down at her hands, which carried a small black box. Her finger gently ran over the engraving on the inside of the ring.
"Never to part", she whispered to herself.
Although, she was still frustrated, looking at the ring made her remember all of the reasons why she loved him.
"Sure Gil. I'll be ready." She placed the ring on the table, and as she was getting ready, she heard a knock on the front door. She quickly put on her coat and looked at the box. Having a quick mental debate in her head, she put the box in the pocket of her coat and went to answer the front door.
-------
When someone is left with their own thoughts, they start thinking of the worst. That's why those in isolation eventually go crazy, alone with their thoughts constantly. So as she watched the boys laugh loudly and joke about random memories with the girls they'd been with and the people they'd pranked, her mind was racing and she was practically having an argument with herself.
He almost forgot the date.
It's okay.
But it wasn't just once.
It's fine.
You deserve better.
Maybe I should've just reminded him more.
He hasn't talked to you since you got here.
He's just talking to his friends, though.
When's the last time he talked like that with you?
As they laughed, Antonio looked behind Gilbert and saw (Y/N), biting her lip as she stared at Gilbert with a dazed, perplexed look. He caught her eye and he made a small smile, which she returned. He then looked at Gilbert and asked,
"So how are you and (Y/N) doing? Still crazy in love with her?"
"Not as in love with her as she is with me." He said laughing arrogantly, then taking a sip of his beer. (Y/N)'s face flashed with confusion and disappointment. Although she quickly masked it, Antonio saw her. Both he and Francis knew that Gilbert wasn't paying attention to her as much as he used to. They tried to tell him about it, but Gilbert wouldn't listen, insisting that the "awesome me cares for her enough".
"Oh come on, amigo. Tell us something about you two. We haven't seen both of you together in so long. You must have something to tell us." Antonio said, again trying to help (Y/N)'s situation.
"Nothing eventful has happened. Besides the awesome me teaching (Y/N) how to properly kiss." He then looks over at one of the waitresses. "That woman, on the other hand, looks like a professional."
That broke her.
"That's it Gilbert! I'm done!" She says, slamming her drink down. Gilbert, about to go talk to the waitress, turns to her in surprise.
"I'm so sick and tired of being treated as if I'm your servant. I don't know where we went wrong, but you treat me as if I'm below you and brag about yourself as if you're some kind of god when you're not. For fuck's sake, Gilbert, I wanted to be treated as your equal, not a tool you can use to improve your own status. I thought we had some kind of connection when we met, some sort of bond that we had shared. I love you, and that will never change but you seem to pay attention more to women that look like her than the one that's been here for you. I've spent countless nights awake, wondering if you ever loved me or cared for me. I don't know what I did, but it turns out that my love for you was a one-sided deal because you are certainly not the man I used to know. So have fun, Gilbert Beilschmidt. You got what you wanted." She ran off, out into the dark streets, with tears flowing freely from her eyes.
Gilbert couldn't believe it. He sat there in shock, gaping at the door where his world just exited from. Suddenly, he got a rough shake in the shoulders from Antonio and a slap from Francis.
"What are you doing, mon amie? The love of your life just ran out of the door in tears because of you. Go after her!" Francis said, knocking some sense into him. Gilbert fell out of his daze, looked at his two friends, whispered "You're right" and ran out the door. He frantically searched until he saw her (f/c) dress in the distance. He ran as fast as he could to catch up to her, but it was too late. Both of them hadn't seen it coming. A car with broken headlights drove right around the corner, right into (Y/N).
Gilbert went numb. He couldn't feel anything at that moment. He might lose her. He might lose his (Y/N). He caught up with her and the driver of the car called the ambulance, continuing to apologize profusely to Gilbert. Yet, he wasn't listening. He held (Y/N) close to him, his heart beating rapidly as he whispered into her ear. "(Y/n), I need you. Wake up, I can't do this without you. I'm so sorry. Es tut mir leid. Please wake up. I love you. Ich Liebe Dich, please don't die on me yet. I'm sorry."
My thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the sound of a nurse walking out of the room. "Who is here for (Y/N)?" All 6 of us stood up. She took us to (Y/N)'s room and the doctor exists.
"I'm her boyfriend. Please tell me she's okay."
"You're lucky, son. She survived that. She has many cuts and bruises, as well as a broken arm from the crash, but luckily the driver wasn't driving very fast so she came out with minor injuries."
"May I go visit her?"
"Yes, she just woke up."
--------------(Your POV)---------------
You swam in the darkness for a while, no longer hearing the sound you had once heard hours before. You became somewhat accustomed to the darkness, spending some time within it. You continued waiting, not knowing how long you had been there when a white light blinded you.
You woke up eyes not accustomed to the intense amount of light being shown. You see the doctor to your right and she checks on you. She explains what happened, and your condition.
"Before I leave, I wanted to tell you that there's a young white-haired gentleman outside. He's been here every day waiting for you to wake up. Would you like me to let him inside?" I hesitated. Did I want to see him?
I took a deep breath and slowly nodded, preparing myself.
-------
He walked in, seeing (Y/N) sat up, looking down at her hands.
Everything he'd rehearsed, everything he thought he'd tell her when I saw her left me and I was struck speechless.
She was beautiful.
Even in her lowest points, she was so beautiful. I wanted, so desperately, to run up to her and give her the biggest hug. I wanted to see her smile.
Her smile. The smile she gives me. The one that empowered me. The one that reassured me. The one that made her strong and made me feel strong too.
"Hi, stranger." She said as a few tears finally escaped from his eyes.
"H-hi", he managed to get out before taking a deep breath. "May I sit down?"
She slowly nodded, moving over on the bed. He looked at her, smiling a little.
"I meant on the chair next to you," he pointed.
She bit her lip, biting back a laugh herself, as she whispered, "Oh, yeah, of course." He sat down and looked into her eyes.
They sat like that for a bit, neither one knowing how to start but also taking in the other.
"I'm sorry"
"Oh, is the awesome and powerful Gilbert apologizing?"
He shook his head at himself and took a deep breath,
"Es tut mir leid, (Y/N).
I took advantage of you when I shouldn't have and I left you when you needed me most. I never should have put you through the pain and suffering of worrying over me. I was a horrid boyfriend who let pride and arrogance get the best of me. I can't believe it took an angry speech and a slap in the face to make me realize, but I'm here now. Ich liebe dich. I never stopped. I've been really stupid recently, and I haven't been valuing you as you should be. You are incredibly important to me and I'm so sorry."
She tilted her head and gave a sad smile, "Gil, I should apologize as well. I should've spoken up and talked to you instead of having an outburst. Thank you for saying sorry, but I don't think it's going to make the relationship okay for right now. This is a really great first step, and I want us to get better. I love you way more than it is possible to comprehend. Cutting the beer and the flirting down would be nice and a thank you once in a while. But I still love you and I want us to be better, okay?" She says, with a hopeful look in her eye.
He nods, looking relieved and hopeful, "Of course, thank you. How can I say no to such a thing?" He pondered about something and looked back at her, "Can I hug you?"
Saying nothing, she opened her arms up, which Gil happily welcomed and hugged her lightly, careful not to hurt her. As she looked at her coat pocket and reminded herself of the beauty that their relationship had the potential of becoming again, he was thankful of having another chance to truly love her as she deserved.
They both held the world in their arms.