I Will Be Your Knight

Chapter 4

It's been a few days since Ivan walked out your door that crisp Monday afternoon. You haven't seen him since. You are currently sitting at a small, round table at Lili's house with a teacup in your hands. You kept your promise when you told her you'd come over. She had greeted you warmly when she opened the door, and informed you that Switzerland would not be joining you. Personally, you don't mind because, honestly, the dainty girl's older brother makes you uneasy. He watches you no matter what you're doing, like he thinks you're going to steal something, or break it.

"M-more sugar?" Lili's quiet voice asks.

"Yes, please. And some milk, if you don't mind," you say as you set your cup down and start nibbling on a cookie. Lili made sure there's plenty of delicious snacks for the both of you to munch on as you drink your tea.

You stir a few sugar cubes and a dash of milk into your tea and take a tentative sip. You wouldn't call yourself a girly girl who loves having tea parties, but there's something relaxing about sipping some warm tea on a chilly day. You sigh contently. The only thing that would make this better is if Ivan were here. Ivan. You sigh again thinking about the purple eyed man.

"(y/n), what's on your mind?"

"Huh?" you say, suddenly pulled out of your daydream. "Oh, well...um..." you blush, "Ivan," you whisper slightly embarrassed and you quickly start sipping tea.

"Of course," Lili replies with a knowing look and a smile. You had already filled her in on the details of your last encounter. "You like him, don't you?"

You almost spit out the tea you're drinking all over the table. "W-what? Why would you-? H-how? What?"

Lili lets out a tinkling laugh. "Don't try to hide it (y/n). You can't stop thinking about him, and you've hardly talked about much else either."

You blush when you realize she's telling the truth. "Oh, I'm sorry."

She waves your apology off. "No need to apologize. It's only natural after all." She smiles sweetly and holds up a plate. "Another cookie?"

You sheepishly take one and start nibbling on the edge. Lili is right. You do like Ivan. Probably since the moment you met him. You always had a thing for tall guys, and you couldn't resist his eyes. His voice makes your heart beat a little faster, and his strong, masculine scent puts you at ease. Lili had hit the nail on the head. You had fallen head over heels for the mysterious Russian man.

"So what are you going to do about this?" Liechtenstein asks, interrupting your thoughts.

"I...I don't know," you say with a frown. "I don't know how to contact him."

"Well, he must live around here if you've run into him so often."

"Yes, he goes to our college," you say, brightening as you remember your conversation with him.

"Then there's nothing to worry about," Lili tells you as she takes a sip of her tea. "From what you said, it sounds like he'll find you."

It's true. He had hinted at seeing you again. So maybe all you have to do is wait. How mysterious. Some people might think that's a little creepy, but you're too infatuated with him to think poorly of him. Besides, he doesn't seem like a bad person, so in a way, you trust him.

Suddenly, the clock strikes 7:00. You finish the last of your tea and put your cup down. "I should probably be leaving soon," you inform Lili. "I still have some stuff I need to get done before work tomorrow."

"Oh yes, that's perfectly fine. Feel free to take some food with you. Brother won't be too happy to know I bought this much."

You usually wouldn't accept, but knowing how upset Switzerland can get over spent money, you decide to help Lili avoid being scolded. You and Liechtenstein put some of the treats into a bag, and then you place that bag into your purse.

"Thank you so much for having me over," you say as you give Lili a hug.

"Thanks for coming," she says in reply. "Feel free to come back anytime."

She sees you to the door, and you wave back to her as you walk out the door. It's dark out now, and you pull your jacket tighter around you. The frigid night air makes you wish you still had Ivan's scarf. You start to walk in the direction of your house. Lili's house is further away than Gilbert and Ludwig's house, so you put in your earbuds in preparation of a long walk.

Your walk is uneventful until you notice movement in the peripheral of you vision. You turn to see what it is, but it's already gone. You don't think much of it, but a little while later you see something again. This time it's closer. You start to feel a little nervous, so you pick up your pace and turn your music off. That's when you notice a shady looking person leaning on the lamppost at the corner. You lower your head and begin to walk past him.

"Hey there, babe," the man at the lamppost calls. He reaches out and grabs your arm. "Where do you think you're going," he growls in your ear.

"I'm going home, if you don't mind," you respond, jerking your arm out of his grasp.

"I don't think so," he croons. He picks up a baseball bat that is leaning against the light pole. You look at it cautiously. It's stained an ominous color, and there are many crooked nails stuck in it. You look up at the awful weapon's owner. He looks vaguely familiar. He looks quite a bit like Alfred, except his hair is a strange reddish color and it seems like his teeth have been sharpened into points. The dim light must be playing tricks on your eyes.

You back away from the man and his horrible looking bat. As you continue to back up, you leave the small pool of light created by the lamp. He walks to the edge of the light and watches you with an evil smirk. You continue to back up slowly, not daring to look away from the Alfred lookalike. Then you bump into something.

"Where are you going, love?" snarls a voice right behind you. The voice's British accent sends shivers down your spine.

You turn to see a man that looks like Arthur. Only this man has a slight pink tint to his hair, and he's carrying several knives. You flinch away from him. Your mind is racing. He must've been the shadow you kept seeing as you walked. Both men slowly close in on you.

Your mind flashes back to bullies in high school. You never did anything to set yourself up as a target, but they didn't care. It get to the point that it was hard to keep track of who was picking on you. Sometimes it was a group of girls pulling at your hair and clothes while calling you awful names. Sometimes it was several boys threatening to do things to you just because they could. You've been pushed, hit, teased, and told how worthless you are. At first you believed them, but soon you realized the reason they did this was because they were insecure themselves. After that you didn't have as much trouble with bullying, but the memories of the abuse still haunt you.

Those memories come flooding back, and your eyes threaten to start leaking from the pain they bring and the hopelessness of your current situation. You back into a wall that surrounds someone's yard. Everyone has walls around their yards in this neighborhood because they have the money for it. Rich people like their privacy.

"I hope you're ready for some fun, love," the not-Arthur says as he licks one of his blades. There's a sick bloodlust in his eyes.

"Be a good little girl and come with us, okay?" coos the not-Alfred as he steps towards you.

You desperately press yourself against the wall hoping it would let you through. The tears are freely rolling down your face now as the reality of the situation sinks in. There's no hope for you. Maybe one day they would find your body in some dumpster. Death would be a comfort if they do to you what you imagine they will do. You can't bear to see what comes next, and you close your eyes. If only you could've seen Ivan one more time. Maybe you would've mustered the courage to tell him how you feel.

"Ivan...I'm sorry," you whisper ever so softly. Sorry that he would never see you again. Sorry that you wouldn't be able to keep your promise and cook for him.

"Sorry for what?" a familiar voice asks you.

Your eyes fly open and all you can say is, "Ivan."