Isolation

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

Matthew smiled running his hand through Kumajirou's soft fur. The cub was curled up in his lap on the deck as he read. The pair had gotten reacquainted quickly, it was almost like they were never apart. The bear would follow the Canadian around the house and would occasionally help him with a chore. Both had made a habit of not quite remembering each other names and it drove Bryce crazy.

Kumajirou seemed suspicious of the ginger always watching him closely at first. He got used to the man and didn't seem to mind him anymore. Bryce liked the bear once he got over the fact he talked and was as old as Matthew.

The green eyed man was out of town on a job for the next few days. He was just tailing a random man and collecting information on him for his wife while he was away. She probably suspected he was cheating on her.

The Canadian groaned closing his book and setting it on the coffee table. He always seemed to read way to fast and finished books way to quickly. He didn't know what to do now, he felt empty after finishing a book.

"Where are you going Max?" The cub asked as Matthew shifted to get up.

"To the bookstore." He replied standing up with the cub still in his arms.

"You should just get a library card. You wouldn't have to buy all these books." The polar bear pointed out. Matthew shrugged and sat Kumajirou down on his bed. He changed into jeans and an oversized hoodie before grabbing his book bag.

"I'll be back in an hour or two." The Canadian said and Kumajirou nodded curling up on his pillow. "Bye Comma!" He called shutting and locking the front door.

Matthew started down the side walk. It was a nice and breezy spring day. He smiled loving the sun on his face. The sun was warm, but the air was cool.

"Good afternoon." The owner greeted him as he entered her store. The blond nodded in her direction with a small smile. He started to browse through the books picking up a few as he went along.

"That's a really good book." Someone said next to him making him jump. Matthew hadn't heard them come over and looked over to see the loud albino from the bar. "Hallo again Birdie." He greeted with a small nervous looking smile.

"Birdie?" Matthew questioned raising an eyebrow.

The albino scratched the back of his neck. "I don't know jour name and jour hair reminds me of a chick's feathers."

"Oh, well my name's Matthew, but Birdie is okay too I guess." The blond said with a small smile. He didn't know why he was talking to this guy let alone telling him his name.

"Okay, Matthew. I kind of like Birdie better because the awesome me came up vith it. I'm Gilbert by the vay." Gilbert said extending his hand. The Canadian took and shook it politely. "Do jou maybe vant to go for a coffee?" He asked slowly slightly stumbling over his words.

Matthew thought about it for a second. He was planning on getting coffee after anyways and if he said no, he could run into Gilbert and it would be awkward. "Right now?" He asked and the albino nodded biting his lip. "Okay." The Canadian agreed.

The albino seemed to bounce with happiness as soon as he heard the reply. Matthew smiled as well, he had to admit that this guy was pretty charming. The blond picked the book Gilbert had said was good and they started towards the coffee shop. The pair made a bit of small talk about the weather and local news.

The more Matthew talked to him the easier it was. He was nervous about letting something slip by accident, but he and Bryce had a cover story for being mercenaries. Matthew and Gilbert got their coffees and sat down across from each other.

"So, your accent? You're from Germany, right?" The Canadian asked curiously taking a small sip of coffee.

"Prussia actually." The albino replied. Matthew nodded accepting the answer not wanting to offend the Prussian. The Canadian noticed Gilbert looking at his hands and he rubbed his knuckles self consciously hiding his hands under the table. "Jour knuckles are bruised, did jou get into a fight?"

"Kind of, it's from work." Matthew admitted.

"Vork? Vhat do jou do for vork?" He asked raising an eyebrow. He didn't seem to mind the bruises and was genuinely curious. "Are jou a boxer? No offence, but jou don't really look like the type."

"No, not a boxer. I'm a private detective, well apprentice private detective." The blond easily lied. "Sometimes people don't appreciate every detail of their lives being dug up."

"That must be an exciting job." Gilbert said. "Do you vork on old murder cases and stuff?"

"It's okay, there's a lot of reading and waiting. Sometimes we work on unsolved things, not often though." Matthew sighed assuming that's what a private investigator did. "What about you? What do you do?"

"I'm a politician, I represent Canada." The Prussian said taking a sip of his coffee. "I meet and talk vith representatives from other nations."

"That sounds so cool. You must get to travel a lot." Matthew smiled. He had noticed the albino staring again. The blond blushed and looked down.

"It's pretty boring to be honest. So much papervork, it's mind numbing." Gilbert groaned running a hand through his hair. "The traveling is pretty awesome and all my family is in the same line of vork. It's not too bad."

"I've never done much traveling. I remember going to the US once when I was younger." Matthew sighed. He'd always wanted to travel and see the world, but it would be next to impossible without a passport. He looked up again to see that the albino was still staring.

"Sorry." Gilbert apologized looking down and scratching the back of his neck. The Canadian could see a hint of a blush on his face as well. "I've never seen someone vith violet eyes before. They're beautiful."

"O-oh, thank you." Matthew stuttered. No one had really ever given him a genuine compliment before. He was a little bit flustered, but took a sip of coffee and recomposed. "What's your favourite book?" He asked.

"I've read so many it's hard to choose." The Prussian said. Matthew nodded with a smile understanding the feeling. "Imperium, it's a German book and it very veird or maybe Prince of Thorns. Also veird, but it's still pretty cool. The veird ones seem to stick vith me." Gilbert explained. "Vhat's jours?"

"I'm not sure, maybe Silverwing? I loved how the point of view was from a bats perspective. There weren't many humans in the story either." Matthew said. He thought for another minute. "Or The Giver, I could read that book a thousand times and never get tired of it."

"That's the sign of a good book." Gilbert said and the blond nodded in agreement. Matthew noticed that he was at the end of his coffee and sighed setting the mug down. It looked like the albino was almost done as well. "Vell, Birdie. I enjoyed taking to jou."

"I did too. We should do this again sometime, Gil." The Canadian said as they stood up from their table. Gilbert returned their mugs while Matthew waited for him. He hadn't noticed how fluffy yet spiky the albino's hair was. It kind of reminded him of Kumajirou's fur, it was even the same colour. He also noticed that Gilbert was quite a bit shorter than him too. Matthew still didn't know why he was so drawn to the albino.

"Vhich vay do jou go?" The Prussian asked once they were on the street. Matthew pointed and Gilbert frown. He sighed and pointed the other way. "Can I have jour number?" He asked.

"I don't have a cell phone." Matthew frowned. Gilbert looked surprised. "I don't know my house number by heart. You could give me yours?" He suggested. The albino nodded and Matthew dug through his bag to find a marker. Gilbert wrote his number on the blond's arm.

"Call me vhen jou get a chance." The Prussian said with a smirk. He winked as they went their separate ways.