2December 2001
Natalia sighed, shaking her platinum blonde fringe out of her eyes. The Soviet Union had disbanded ten years ago, after which her older sister packed up and went home to her own country, leaving Natalia, Ivan and the Baltics all alone in a far too big house. Although most of the rooms had never been lived in anyway, it seemed empty without Katyusha and her constant upbeat demeanor.
Natalia sighed again, Katyusha would be coming over later for dinner and a catch-up. Wear something pretty, Ivan had told her and she wasn't going to disappoint her Big Brother.
She searched through her closet, eventually coming out with a knee-length navy dress she hadn't worn for a long time. Her slender fingers stroked across the dark blue satin, a shadow of a smile ghosting across her lips. I hope Big Brother likes it. Natalia thought, smile becoming more opaque at the thought of her brother.
The Belarusian girl left the dress on her bed for later, and went off in search of Ivan.
Eduard sighed, polishing the silverware and wishing little Raivis was made do his job, instead of shovelling the snow from the front path, without a coat, as he'd talked back to Ivan at breakfast that morning. Oh, Raivis, when will you learn to keep your mouth shut? Eduard thought to himself.
Eduard sighed again. Light footsteps were heard on the stairs and his crush's beautiful face appeared at the doorway of the cosy living room. "Have you seen Big Brother?"
The blonde Estonian resisted the urge to roll his eyes. Natalia's desire to be with Ivan was pitiful, comparable to chasing after clouds, or sailing into the horizon. Composing himself, he answered, "Kitchen, last time I saw him." Natalia nodded in thanks and left. If the terrified "Ah, Natalia!" was anything to go by, she'd found him.
Feeling sorry for Ivan, yet at the same time dispising him as a shivering Raivis clattered the front door open, Eduard returned to his duties.
The mahogany grandfather clock in the downstairs hallway chimed five, alerting the occupants of the household that Katyusha would be there in half an hour.
Natalia stepped out of the shower and dried herself off as quickly as possible. Someone, likely Raivis, tried the door handle and found it locked. He scurried off down the hall.
Wrapping a bathrobe around her body, Natalia unlocked the door and closed it behind her before strolling down three doors to her bedroom. She pulled on plain underwear and stood drying her hair for a few minutes. She slipped the beautiful dress over her head and adjusted the material around her figure.
She brushed her hair and scraped her fringe back, pulling it into a sophisticated updo and securing it with about a hundred bobby pins and a hair elastic.
Natalia held a mascara wand in front of her left eye, looked at the intricately patterned ceiling and fluttered her lashes against the brush before doing the same to her right. She rubbed a small amount of strawberry lipgloss on her full lips and sprayed herself with the perfume Ivan had gotten her for her birthday a few years ago. Slipping her chunky criss-crossed black heeled sandals on, she checked her appearance one last time in the full length mirror on her bedroom wall, and left.
Eduard glanced nervously at the mahogany grandfather clock in the ground floor hallway. Ten minutes until Miss Katyusha arrived. There was a rush of movement and Natalia composedly jogged down the stairs, tripping over her own feet three steps before the bottom and Eduard dove to catch her.
She landed in his arms, unharmed, albeit shocked. Eduard set her gently onto her feet. Jumal, she looked twice as beautiful as usual. Her light blonde hair was pulled back into a bun making her look a few years older, closer to Ivan's age. The dark blue silky dress she was wearing matched her eyes, (Eduard was no fashion expert but he supposed you'd call it a scoop-neck, if such a thing existed) it rimmed around just under her collar bone, accentuated her curves and fell just below her knees, showing off well-built legs. Her beautiful face was nearly make-up free, a little mascara, he assumed, because her lashes were darker and thicker, and her lips were rosier shade of pink than usual.
"E-Eduard," Natalia stuttered. "I- uh - thank you."
"Uh, n-no problem." Eduard smiled, watching her as she went to find Ivan, while he stood guard by the front door with Raivis.
The evening went without a hitch but after Katyusha left and Ivan was in the kitchen washing the dishes, which he'd insisted on doing, Natalia came in.
"Hello Brother."
"Oh hello Natalia. Lovely evening, da?"
"Da."
There were a few moments of silence.
"Big Brother?" the petite blonde asked.
"Da?"
"Marry. Me." she hissed, like it was an order to be followed.
"No! Bloody hell Natalia, I thought we'd been over this! You're my sister, there is no way in hell I would ever consider marrying you!" Ivan yelled.
"Fine! I'll just go and talk to my friends!" Natalia contered, before realising how pathetic her comeback sounded.
"What friends?" Ivan roared after her as she flounced out of the kitchen.
Eduard found her half an hour later on the fifth step of the disused third floor staircase, sobbing into her hands. He approached quietly so as not to startle the distraught Belarusian.
"Natalia," he said gently, causing her to glance up at him and look back down again, embarrassed. "Hey, it's ok."
"I was an idiot to ever think Big Brother would love me like that." she muttered, her thick accent creeping into her voice like it always did when she was upset.
"Natalia, you're not an idiot. He's the idiot if he doesn't want someone like you."
"Oh, please," she laughed bitterly. "Someone like me? What makes me so great? And why do you care anyway, geek?"
"It's nerd, actually, and I care because you're the sweetest, kindest and most caring girl I know." Eduard smiled.
Natalia let out a genuine chuckle at the first part of his sentence, making the Estonian teen fall even more deeply in love with her. "Thanks."
"N'talia." Eduard mumbled. She met his blue eyes and they inched in, slowly closing the gap between them, their lips about to meet in a passionate and all-consuming kiss which woul-
"Eduard." Toris said from the twenty eighth step on the second staircase, two down from the landing. "It's getting late."
Natalia started, and suddenly became fascinated by the green, black and blue diamond patterns on the dark red carpet, as a similiar hue crept across her cheeks.
"Ah, right, uh, thank you, Toris." Eduard said, shooting the Lithuanian a dark look. He nodded and went back the way he came.
Ensuring Toris was out of sight, Eduard sighed and turned back to Natalia, who was now extremely interested in her hands. "I-" he began then tailed off, unsure of what to say.
"I have to go." she answered, accent taking control of her shaking voice as she stood and walked away down the hall to her bedroom, not looking back at him even once.
Natalia felt numb as she closed her bedroom door, stripped off her dress and cleaned the smears of mascara from her cheeks. She climbed into bed, barely noticing the soft sheets brush against her bare skin.
Natalia pulled her pillow so that it slanted diagonally towards her, buried her face in it and cried until her head felt like it was being split open with a rusty crowbar and she passed out.
"Why would you do that? You know how much I love her! Do you still have a crush on her, Toris? Is that why, huh?" the normally calm Estonian was yelling at the brunette man in front of him. He didn't care if Russia heard, he didn't care who heard, he just wanted Toris to know how angry he was.
"I don't have a crush on her-"
"But you used to! You'd talk on about her for hours, how gorgeous she is, how her time would be better spent chasing after you, that you wish she loved you and-"
"That is in the past, Estonia." Uh-oh. Toris only called him by his country's name if he was beyond pissed.
"I only interrupted because I don't want Ivan to hurt you."
"Oh, please, I can handle myself and he leaves me alone, because I am smart enough to stay out of his wa-" Eduard was cut off by a hand connecting with his left cheek.
It stung a little but it was mostly his pride that was hurt.
"Shut up and go to bed. I'd watch myself were I you." Toris said coldly, before turning on his heel and walking out, leaving Eduard to curse in Estonian, change, and fall asleep wishing Natalia felt the same way about him as he did her.