The Outside [Lovino]

Hospitals weren't meant to be exciting, so why did Feliciano feel so happy right now?

As much as he wanted to leave that dreadful room he had been assigned, whenever he got to leave lately it was for a test or meeting, or something that he generally didn't wish to do. Today was different though, he wasn't going to another irritatingly white room filled with machines. No, he was going outside. Outside, filled with color and sound, and the fresh air that he craved that a simple open window couldn't satisfy. This was the first time that he could really be outdoors in what felt like forever. Sure, where he was going wasn't him being free from the confines of the hospital, but he wasn't complaining.

What made it even better was, he wouldn't be alone. Feliciano hated being alone. After all, fun times were even more fun when you had someone to share it with. Lovino promised that he would meet him out here today, and hoped that he was excited as his younger brother was. Since his brother worked here, it was actually quite simple for the two to be able to meet without a hassle (or that is how it looked from his point of view in the least). All he had to do was sit here on the bench with the nice nurse who led him here, and wait for his brother. Then she said she would leave the two alone. A little piece of him wanted her to stay, as she was rather cute.

According to her, he should be here any minute now. There were so many doors leading out here, that Feliciano hadn't a clue which way to even look for him. Besides, he was too distracted by his surroundings. It was so pretty, such a nice feeling. As much as he cherished this opportunity, his heart longed to go home even more so he could do things like this everyday...

_{((My head hurts but look, I posted. Sorry if it is lame.))}

Almost immediately after he noticed Lovino close enough to him to talk, Feliciano was distracted. Not so much by his brother's appearance at all, but by the fact that he had a bag shoved into his lap so quickly. As the two chatted, he stared at it debating on if he should peek inside or not. On one hand, he didn't want to get yelled at, and on the other it was just so tempting. Luckily for Feliciano, the conversation between the two was short, and he watched the cute woman wander off to finish whatever other duties she had for the day. He didn't get a chance to play with the bag, as now his brother had his attention.

Looking up at him, Feliciano gave him a smile, truly happy to see him. The nurse had been nice company, but this was a different kind of happy. "Aww come on Lovino, they are pretty nice for doctors!" he insisted, knowing that his brother knew that Feliciano hated doctors in the first place. Really, they were not as bad as he imagined a hospital to be. There were rare occasions that he had to see a needle of any kind, and he hadn't been chopped open or anything like on television horror shows. Making a little thoughtful noise, he added "Though if they kept you from coming here, maybe that is a little bad."

A pause. Now, Lovino was far from the most perky person on earth. Feliciano was well aware of this fact for a good portion of his life. The older male always seemed to look grumpy but...well something was a bit different today. Sadly, he could not place his finger on what exactly. Maybe it was his imagination? "But hello! I am glad you came! I am outside today, see?" Feliciano motioned to the area around them with his free hand rather excitedly. "Isn't it pretty?" Sure, he had seen prettier, but compared to everything he had been seeing daily lately, this was pretty amazing. Plus if Lovino was upset the pretty flowers and fresh air would help him, he hoped.

Feliciano let out a small laugh. "Aww come on Lovino! This isn't one of those hospital dramas on tv! I am sure that they are all really nice!" Of course, those shows had to be based off of something, but that thought wasn't really crossing his moment as he said that. "Ve, besides! You work here too, so does that mean that brother is just as bad? Grandpa too!" His expression was filled with amusement. Of course, he was only joking, though it probably wasn't what Lovino needed at the moment. He didn't know that really. Feliciano was pretty sure that his brother wasn't the type to get all caught up in that silly doctor drama if it really existed. His grandfather, maybe, but that was a different story. Besides, Lovino looked like he could use a joke right now!

Smile still stayed on his face, but he couldn't help but feel something was still a bit off with Lovino's smile. Perhaps he was just imagining things. The elder Vargas never had an exactly cheerful aura around him but now it was even more weird. Before he had a chance to blurt out something that would have probably not helped in the least, his hair was ruffled, causing him to glance upwards at if he could see his own head with a small pout. Now his hair was all messy!

Now distracted, his attention was focused to gently patting back down his own hair. In reality it only took a moment, but it was long enough for him to miss any other clues that his brother was thinking about rather depressing things right now. After Feliciano was sure his head was back to normal, he looked back to his older brother.

"Me? Hmm..." Glancing away from Lovino, he thought about it. The food sucked that came from the hospital itself, and the only time he was saved from that torture was when Lovino brought things. His bed was hard, and he really missed his own. People always wanted to do scary things to him like take his blood. He was prone to scary chest pains and fits of coughing, which was only followed by panic and hushed whispers from doctors. Oh, and the fact that he thought he was going to not wake up in the morning sometimes. In the least he was able to leave his room more often.

Feliciano took a deep breath, giving his brother a smile again. If Lovino really was sad, he didn't want to make him more sad by telling him those things. He could complain later! Maybe call him on the phone where he didn't have to see his reaction and feel guilty. After all, Lovino did want him to call him more often. "I'm good! The lady nurses are really nice and always talk to me. And I have been using the gifts that you bring me so I am not at bored anymore!" There, the bright side of things could still come out. "I still miss my bedroom though." Feliciano sighed lightly, adding playfully "Have you been taking care of my room for me?"

Though he was attempting to make some kind of emotion other than grumpiness on his brother's face, it really didn't appear to be working much. In all honesty, he was tempted to say something about how he was going to call up the television producers and tell them a great new television drama idea with Lovino and their grandfather as the stars. Perhaps the world was in Lovino's favor today, since the simple action of messing up his hair was indeed enough to distract from any further teasing about his brother and his job. The two always did seem have a different sense of humor, after all.

Now Feliciano was more focused on the latter part of their conversation about himself, and how he was doing here. Or maybe it was more about the things he had. His brother had been so kind to him all of the time he had been staying here. The snappiness and grumpiness that always seemed to come hand in hand with Lovino wasn't as much there, and it was strange after having dealt with it for nearly all twenty years of his life so far. He was far from complaining though, it just confused him greatly! And he actually smiled...

He always liked when Lovino smiled. Feliciano had to admit that he was really adoring all the nice gifts and general acts of kindness from the older Vargas. Not that he enjoyed any of the other experiences in the hospital really, but that was certainly something that he could get used to. That being said, he didn't really wish to stay here forever. He hoped the nice treatment would last even longer back at home and that his brother was a changed guy!

His comment about being bored wasn't really directed at Lovino, it was just a general statement. The gifts were helping more than he could ever explain with words. Luckily for him his older brother knew the types of things that could temporarily hold his abnormally short attention span. "I know, I know! Brother brought me nice things! I try to use them everyday so I don't have to read the newspaper." Really, the hospital needed to invest in some better entertainment.

"You really do that for me?" Parts of that statement may have been lies, but Feliciano didn't notice. It made him happy to think that his room would be clean when he went home. It was always a task that he never wanted to do himself, so it was a treat hearing it was cleaned up a bit, even if it was just the bed. That was a very important part, after all. "When I go home I will get to lay in a nice clean bed without having to shove all the clothes on the floor!" It was simple, but an exciting prospect. As much as the Italian loved sleeping and lazing around in bed some days, something told him that when he was okay and could go home, he wouldn't want to be sitting in bed. His time spent in bed here was enough to last half a year. It all brought a smile to his face though, looking at his brother thankfully.

Despite the frown and general grumpiness that was all too familiar once again around Lovino as he spoke, even when turned away, Feliciano couldn't help but excitedly lean over and latch onto him in a forceful hug. "I will be sure to ask you for lots of things!" He wasn't going to let that offer fade. Still...what was with that sudden sad face again? Lovino had looked almost happy a moment ago. Although his brother wasn't really facing him, he could have sworn he looked a little flustered.

Maybe he was sick? That would explain things! Sick people acted strange, like he was one to think that. "Ve, Lovino, are you sick?" he asked, curiosity with a hint of worry in his voice. Still leaning against the older brunette, he reached a hand up and felt his brother's forehead for any signs of a fever, since that is what people normally did to him.

Despite popular belief, Feliciano wasn't a complete idiot. All those smiles were nice, of course. It was to be expected, there was probably no decent sibling in the world that didn't want to see their brother or sister happy and he was no exception. That being said, he also knew that constant smiles from Lovino weren't something that were seen often.

He didn't comment and push the subject about his room. In the least, he could tell that it was safe and sound back in their apartment. As rude as Lovino could be at times, he knew that his brother wouldn't do anything bad to his room and it was fine. Whatever Lovino was hiding with his words was fine, he decided with a light sigh. Anything that was taken was probably the few things that were brought to occupy him here in the hospital, though admittedly he noticed that his older brother had been bringing him many items that seemed new, and that he had never remembered owning. Even if it seemed he wasn't getting smiles anymore, he kept his own on his face. "Mmm I am happy! You know I don't like cleaning my room, thanks." It wasn't the worst thing to have to do really, but it wasn't something he looked forward to. And him offering more things was such a plus! Maybe being sick wasn't too bad.

Okay, maybe that was a lie.

"You aren't?" Feliciano was quite glad that Lovino wasn't sick. Since he did work in a hospital, he did tend to pick up some colds every so often that always worried him a bit. All those news stories about horrible diseases that patients and staff picked up that were deadly were always freaky. Good thing Feliciano didn't watch the news too often. Lovino's forehead didn't feel warm, which meant that he didn't seem like a liar, much to his relief. He removed his hand from Lovino's head and brought it back within his own personal space, but the worried expression stayed. "Sure! Advice on what?" If this really was about some sickness, he wasn't sure he was the right person to go to. Surely Lovino had made plenty of doctor friends in this hospital who could be a better judge on what was making him feel bad. Unless he really wasn't sick and it was something else?

Feliciano sat there, fidgeting slightly as he waited for whatever Lovino needed advice about. His brother hardly ever asked him for important advice, so he was horribly curious as to what he needed help with! He guessed that it wasn't really about being sick anymore, since he knew Lovino really would rather ask his doctor friends about something like that. The best advice Feliciano could give for illnesses was medicine, bed rest, and some warm soup. It had to be something else...

But a love problem? He blinked a few times, debating on what to say, and feeling a bit bad for poor Lovino. Breaking up was never fun, whether you were the person on the giving or the receiving end. Feliciano had to admit that he got dumped more than he ever broke someone's heart. Still, he was happy that Lovino actually trusted him enough to share something this important with him. Addmitedly, he probably would have found out on his own later. That would explain why Lovino wasn't looking too happy ever since he had gotten here in the courtyard. If he thought about it, for the past week there was something a bit off about him.

"I'm really sorry Lovino! Are you and Heracles okay?" Sure it would have probably been better to ask about just Lovino himself, but he didn't want either of the two being upset. Though Feliciano had only met Heracles a few times, he seemed like he was a pretty nice guy. He hoped that in the least, it wasn't a messy breakup. Those were always no fun. Not that breakups were typically happy. Since Feliciano hadn't been home in a long time, it was hard to even guess why the two would break up in the first place. Feliciano made a thoughtful little noise, trying to catch some kind of eye contact with Lovino. "Did he do something bad to you?" He certainly hoped not but he knew that much like himself, his older brother was kind of easy to push around.

Feliciano didn't want to mess this up. Lovino was always so locked up and secretive with his emotions that this was a rare occasion between the two of them. Not only was he telling him about his life, he was asking for his input and not calling him an idiot or anything of the sort. This made things even more rare. Usually it was Feliciano who was the one babbling his feelings to his brother, not the other way around. He couldn't mess this chance up or Lovino would never ask him for advice again. It felt so weird, but he liked it. Trying his best to hold his tongue and not say anything odd, he debated on what to say. It was really hard to not actually ramble out things.

He breathed a little sigh of relief to himself, more inwardly than anything. If Heracles had actually done something to his brother, he wouldn't really be able to forgive the other man. "Ve, he didn't?" Well, that didn't sound too good. When people he liked broke up with him, he always made sure to beg a little for them not to if he really felt like he loved him. He wouldn't tell Lovino that though because it wasn't helping the situation. "Maybe he just didn't know what to say! Maybe he liked you even if you are a little bit moody?"

Okay, a little bit was kind of an understatement. He was often told that Lovino needed a complete personality adjustment or if they were more rude they would call him nasty names, but that wasn't fair. Sure even Feliciano had his scuffles with his brother, but deep down he knew that Lovino was a really nice guy and didn't deserve this. He gave Lovino a little pat on the back.

He drew his hand back into his own personal space once more when he felt that Lovino didn't seem to be loosening up or enjoying it at all, leaving even someone like Feliciano feeling a bit awkward. Instead of on his brother, he made use of his hands by playing with his own fingers to try to relieve some of the odd tension. It was funny how the nice air that he was craving seemed to have changed from the first time he had walked out here. Shifting his position on the bench, he tried to think of something else to say.

Really, he was trying his best to help. Feliciano didn't want to see Lovino be more upset than normal. Sadly, the little advice that he was giving him didn't seem to be what his brother needed. Despite this, he asked him yet another question for him to talk about. That was good...right? He would just have to make everything else he said really good advice so Lovino could be happy. After all his brother was doing for him, he could at least offer him words in return. Feliciano was good at talking.

So Heracles didn't even ask for a reason? The younger Italian might have been rather naive, even in some aspects of relationships, but even he knew that wasn't ever really a good thing to not be hearing during a breakup. "Oh.." was all he could find himself to say in response at first, in a small voice that almost matched the hushed tone his older brother was speaking in. As much as he thought Heracles was a nice guy, that was pretty rude.

For a moment, Feliciano almost thought that Lovino was mad at him when he heard the words 'Damn it, Feliciano' come from his mouth, and was admittedly relieved when it wasn't directed at himself. He sat there, watching the poor ground take a beating from his brother's shoe when it had done nothing wrong. After a moment of watching, he found himself poking at the dirt beneath their feet with his foot too while turning to give his brother a rather confused look. Lovino had just dumped someone, but already had found someone new? The concept was so strange to him, not only was Lovino continuing to show some of the emotions that he rarely got to witness and asking him for help, he was admitting almost so easily that he was caught up in love for a second time in one conversation. It was an odd feeling still.

"That wasn't nice of Heracles at all Lovino. Maybe you should just try your best to forget about him." Advice was easier said than done. Feliciano himself had found himself unable to forget certain people after some time. Forgetting was hard. Maybe Lovino could do it though? "You really like someone else though? Who is it?" He was shoving away the issue of Heracles, yes, but this new bit of information was really surprising to the younger Vargas and was gaining his curiosity. "I really don't think it is bad!" Maybe it was good! If there was someone else that had captured his brother's heart, maybe he could forget Heracles and all the heartbreak that came along with him.

Feliciano really wanted Lovino to start spilling his thoughts and feelings, and most of all an identity about this this secret crush of his. Lovino was already being all too open about all this relationship stuff and he should have been appreciative, even if it wasn't just talking for no reason like his own babbles were. Yes, all of this was making him feel horrible for his older brother, there was no doubt about it.

Maybe it was half his own curiosity and longing for more personal information, but he really did care and want to help Lovino, even if his brother didn't seem to be appreciating his advice. He was trying his best in his own way. It wasn't that Lovino was secretive, he just was far from open in the least. He figured that since this moment in time was breaking the rule, he might as well make use of it. He really wasn't sure if it was another guy, or maybe a cute girl, but whoever it was made him curious. Admittedly, if it was one of the cute nurses that worked here he would be very jealous of his brother.

"Aww come on!" Feliciano put on a mock pout in defense. "I am not being nosy. I am asking because I care and want to know!" 'and I am nosy' his brain tacked on in his thoughts, but this innocent piece of information never made it out. It wasn't harming anyone. Feliciano leaned a bit closer to his brother. "You can trust me, I tell you things all the time, right? Don't worry!" He really did tell Lovino things all the time so maybe his brother just needed a friendly reminder that he could indeed trust him, just like Feliciano expected Lovino not to run around telling his secrets.

He was a bit of a ditz, especially when it came to romance. Feliciano was always the type to think with his heart instead of using his brain. Sure, it was very soon since Heracles and Lovino had just broken up so recently, but maybe this new crush would help ease the pain. "It is never too soon if your heart says so, ve!" As much as the two of them got into arguments, he did want to see his brother happy. Even Feliciano himself was feeling a bit better about this conversation now that this new love interest had been brought up. "Does your secret lover love Lovino back?" Oh...that was right. If the other person didn't like him, then that plan would have fallen to pieces no matter how much Feliciano reassured him.