Two Worlds (Hetalia X Reader)

27. Willow

The ash from the paper had left your hand black. You had tried to wipe it off on your pants but it didn't work.

"I'm sorry." M. Roussel was the first to break the heavy silence. "You've lost a lot today."

Your throat was too tight for you to speak. So you just nodded numbly, tears slipping down your cheeks. M. Roussel groaned and he shuffled towards you he patted your back awkwardly. "Your shoulder." You finally speak.

"Ah yes," He mused. "That."

"You're rather calm about the entire ordeal." You note.

"It's happened before." He smiled partially. You didn't want to ask.

"Let's get you to the hospital." You forced yourself to your feet and help M. Roussel up. As you help him walk towards the door, a thought comes to you. "Do you know Willow Roussel?"

He paused. "She's my sister." He frowned and started moving again. "Why do you ask?"

"Gilbert needs closure." You say.

***

After M. Roussel was taken care of in the hospital, he told you the nursing home Willow was residing in. You thanked him and went on your way.

At the desk of the nursing home, you identified yourself as an old friend and a nurse lead you to Willow's room. "Thank you." You bowed your head slightly when you reached the door. The nurse smiled and went on her way.

You open the door quietly and peered into the dimly lit room. An old woman was sitting upright in a bed, a book open in her wrinkly hands and a pair of glasses propped on the bridge of her nose. The only source of light was the lamp at her bedside and a faint glow from outisde. Natural light wasn't really an option today due to the heavy overcast.

She looked up at you with big brown eyes and smiled. "Hello. "

"Hi." You whispered nervously.

She put her book down and waved you in, a lock of her silky white hair falling from behind her ear. "No need to be shy." She patted the bed beside her. "Please, come sit."

You complied with a slight nod and made yourself comfortable beside her. "Thank you."

"Oh I love having visitors." She smiled mournfully. "Even my own brother doesn't pay me any attention. How horrible is that?"

You hesitated. "About your brother..." A look of concern crossed your face. "He's been stabbed. I dropped him off at the hospital and they are taking good care of him."

She let out a sigh of relief. "I thought you were going to tell me he lost the art centre." She waved her hands around as she spoke. "He's been stabbed before." Again, you didn't want to ask.

"And I'm also here to talk about Gilbert." You say slowly and quietly. Something pinches at your heart strings.

Willow leanes back against her headboard, a sad smile settling across her lips. "That's a name I haven't heard in awhile."

The two of you stare at eachother for a few silent moments. "He told me about you." You said. "He was still in love with you when I first met him."

She laughs. "That silly man!" She was grinning. "Doesn't he know it's been sixty years since we last saw eachother? I moved on and had myself a family." She trailes off in thought.

You watch her silently. "He doesn't know how long it's been since he last saw you."

Willow smiled sadly. "We parted on good terms, you know? He gave me my first child." You tried not to seem to shocked. Gilbert was a father? "Of course, my poor boy died before his eleventh birthday. He was always sickly, you know? Arthur did warn me."

So she knew Arthur as well. "What was his name?" You took her hand, trying to appease her.

"Philip." She said. "His name was Philip. He was beautiful. Red hair, blue eyes, little freckles all over his face." She giggled, remembering her son.

"I'm sorry." You give her hand a squeeze. She squeezes back.

"Oh my dear girl," She smiled. "If there's one thing that I've learned in the eighty years I've been on this earth, is that nothing gold can stay."

You smiled at her sadly, Gilbert's face flashing in your mind. A tear slips out of your eye and rolls down your cheek.

"Oh, don't cry!" Willow reaches out and wipes the tears away gently. "I know it hurts now, but it gets better. Life must go on."

You nod. Your throat had constricted making it hard for you to breath. "I'm sorry." You shake your head and suck in a shaky breath. "It hurts."

What Gilbert had said to you before you severed the link between your two worlds still rung in your mind. Had he really meant it or was it all a ruse to get you to let go? You guessed you'll never know the answer to that now.

"Now, now," She pulls you towards her in a hug. Once your breathing evens out and the tears stop flowing, Willow pulls back and looks into your eyes. Her cold hand settles on your stomach. "Did he leave you with something?" She smiled lightly.

You freeze. Had he? Oh god. You stood up. "I have to go."

Willow laughed. "Nice to hear he's still young." She mumbles to herself. "Wait!" She calls after you as you reach the door. "I don't even know your name."

Your hand on the doorknob, you turn to look at her. "(Y/n)." You say. "(Y/n) (L/n)." And you take off at a run out of the nursing home, avoiding the shuffling old people gracefully, bursting through the front doors into the cold air and head down the road to the nearest pharmacy.