Hetalia Angst

Love Me Longer

⚠️Trigger Warning: Military battle, death, parental/familial abandonment, suicide, death of loved one, gore⚠️
Characters: Basch Zwingli (Switzerland), Lili Zwingli (Liechtenstein), Unnamed Mrs Zwingli, Gilbert Beilschmidt (Prussia)
Word count: 2341 words

The last of the gunshots rang out through the dust filled air as the other side retreated, joyous calls surrounding the blond as he panted to try and regain the breath he’d lost while fighting. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, dirt smearing across the pale skin as he smiled. They’d won. A grin was sent over to his albino partner and he laughed a bit, something that was so rare for him. “Gil, we did it! We won!” He said excitedly, expecting to hear the other man getting excited with him. When he didn’t, that was when Basch realized that something was wrong. Oh so very wrong. “Gil..?” He asked hesitantly, taking a step towards him and hesitantly reaching out.

Shakily, Gilbert pulled his hand away from his body where it was rested against his side. Basch gasped as he saw the blood covering the porcelain skin. Crimson eyes gazed at him sadly, fear barely visible past the acceptance. It had taken so much energy from every soldier to drive the enemy back and it was clear that Gilbert’s wound had been festering for a while now, blood staining the clothing and skin around it. There was another wound in his chest, also spilling blood. “I’m sorry.” He whispered, voice choked by the blood that insisted on forcing itself from his throat. That was all he could get out before he stumbled, falling forward soon after.

Basch moved quickly to catch him, falling to the ground with the person who he’d devoted his entire life to. He’d left his country, his family, his friends, his loved ones, all for the love of his life. He’d left everything behind for the man whose blood now tainted his hands and uniform. The world seemed to slow to a stop, everything moving in slow motion. He hadn’t even realized he’d let out a scream of agony, of fear, of pain, everything crashing and crumbling around him. “No, no, stay with me, come on you can’t leave me…” He begged, one hand pressing to the wound in his chest while the other ran through the dirty white locks of hair, hoping to be of some sort of comfort. “MEDIC!” He screamed frantically. “WE NEED A MEDIC!” His words were choked with tears as he held Gilbert. “Please, please, you can’t leave me…” His own wounds were no longer felt. The only thing he was able to focus on was the deep burn in his chest where his heart was being shredded by the million daggers of loss.

Gilbert coughed hard, blood spilling from his lips as he tried to hold on, trying to get a good look at the light of his life through his tears. “Goodbye, Sonnenschein.. I love-” He choked again, the deep red dripping down his chin as he pushed it from his mouth. “I love you… So much…” He grimaced, leaning against the Swiss man. His Swiss. The embrace was almost comforting as he slowly fell limb, breath slowing to a stop.

“No, NO! GILBERT!” Basch cried out, holding the albino close, not caring that his uniform was definitely ruined by this point. He screamed and cried, begging for Gil to come back to him as he gently pet his hair. He was shaking so much, tremors running through his entire body. This couldn’t be happening. Gilbert promised him they’d be together no matter what but here he was, getting forced away from Basch even as the blond held him tightly. This was it. This was the end.

.  .  .

“Basch, you have no idea what you’re saying! You can’t just run off to another country just for some guy and you especially can’t join his military!” The exclamation was expected but it nevertheless surprised the young Swiss. His mother continued. “Why would you even think about that?! You have a family and friends here. How could you be so selfish?

The blonde lowered his head slightly, feeling angry that his mom was reacting in such a way. Sure, he hadn’t expected her to react entirely positively but he didn’t think she would call him selfish. The only person in his family who really cared about him was his little sister but she was always favored by their parents, spoiled a lot more than he had been. “Mueter, I’m almost 19. I was planning on moving out of the house soon anyways.” He said firmly, trying to control his slight trembling. He was never one to cross his parents and what they thought, usually obeying them without question. He was always the good kid. However, he knew that Gilbert was worth it. Anything was worth it if he could be with Gilbert. “I wasn’t asking for permission, I was letting you know what I’ve decided on. I’ve already packed my stuff anyways. You can’t stop me.”