England x Reader

Shadows

The rest of the two months were horribly gruelling. Stretching and strengthening my ranges was hard enough without the strict teaching methods of Roderich. "Jou begged me to let jou learn zis piece, now jou'll learn it!" He said sternly. But every time I was tempted to complain, I reminded myself that I was doing this for Arthur. "From the top!" I began to sing again, the tedious scales burning into my mind. My determination and love for Arthur were the only things keeping me going. "Nein[1]! Jou've fallen flat again!" Roderich scolded. My self-esteem was taking a beating. I could hardly wait for Arthur to resume his teaching with me. As much as I loved Rod as a brother...he was one of the harshest teachers I had ever had.

Arthur and I had written to each other quite a lot but his letters were becoming less frequent and he hardly ever messaged me. 'He's probably just busy' I'd remind myself but it still didn't stop the pain of missing him. I was shocked and saddened when he sent me a message, apologising that he would have to stay away a few more weeks as a friend needed help with something. My heart ached for him but I was glad for the distractions of my university, my job and singing lessons. It was now mid-October and I had just started university doing [Course]. My Saturday job as a waitress at [Restaurant] kept me busy when Roderich wasn't teaching me. Elizabeta had returned to Hungary as she needed to get back to work and Dad was healing fast. My depressed feelings during Arthur's absence were soon suppressed by the busyness of day-to-day life.

It was a cold Saturday night and my shift had just come to an end. I untied my apron and hung it up on the hooks in the changing room. After changing out of my uniform, I folded my clothes neatly and placed them into my bag. "See you next week, [Random name]," I called to my colleague and they smiled and waved at me.

"Goodnight," They replied. I echoed their words and exited the building. As I stepped outside, a cold wind ruffled my hair and breathed down my neck, sending shivers along my spine. I hugged my coat tighter and began walking in the direction of the bus stop. My car was having repairs done at the moment after I found my door had been dented and one of my wing mirrors had been smashed to pieces by a speeding car. I huffed in annoyance. 'I wish I had my car' I mentally whined. As I waited, I glanced at my watch. 11:30pm. I anxiously looked at the bus times. It was 5 minutes late. "Come on," I muttered under my breath as I shivered and tapped my foot impatiently.

15 minutes passed. To walk from here to my house would take an hour. I grumbled incoherent words and clicked on my phone, deciding to check the bus' progress. Buses cancelled due to poor weather conditions. I frowned and put my phone away. "Poor weather conditions my ass!" I grumbled as I started the long walk home. It was too late to call my family since they'd all be asleep. I wasn't sure about any of my friends but I didn't want to disturb them. I'd always been too polite for my own good. 'Besides, what could happen?' I asked myself.

Leaves crunched underfoot as I trudged along the dimly lit street. About 10 minutes passed and I was beginning to feel the darkness closing in. Whenever the sound of crunching leaves stopped, I would feel lonely and afraid. It was as though the rhythm of my feet upon the dead foliage comforted me and kept me safe. Though I knew that was impossible. I glanced up at the street lamps and a couple of them flickered. I walked faster, my heart pounding in my chest as I willed the lights to stay on.

CRASH!

I yelped and spun around in fear. A cat shrieked and hissed at a fallen bin and I breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me," I whispered to the cat, who licked its paws and walked away nonchalantly. I began walking again, picking up the pace as more night sounds echoed across the landscape.

It's funny how, at night, our senses become more aware. Every sound becomes a thousand times louder and the slightest movement can set our minds into a panic. I glanced behind me every now and then. It was a painful feeling, the feeling of being watched. Now, I'm not one to feel paranoid easily...But right now? I'm freaking out.