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“Come on, ████!”
“Wait for me!”
He wobbled on his skates as he tried to catch up to his brother, the ice too slippery beneath him. But it was so rare for him to be allowed outside, and he didn’t want to waste any of this precious opportunity. To be safe, he’d been wrapped up well in so many layers that he could barely move, but it kept him warm as he half-stepped, half-slid over the ice.
“No, that’s wrong! You need to push off, like this!”
Ciel skated back over to him, perfectly balanced as he watched, eager to learn but even more desperate to be able to play with his brother.
“Be patient with him, Ciel!”
“Don’t push yourself too hard, ████!”
Their parents called encouragement toward them from the edge of the lake, where they sat with Aunt Angelina and Uncle Klaus, sipping hot chocolate. It made him even more determined to succeed, to make his parents proud and show them that even if he wasn’t as good as Ciel, he could still support his brother in the future.
So as Ciel pushed away again, he followed him, awkward and clumsy but still moving forward, even if his arms were flailing as he tried to keep his balance. Somehow, he managed to make it to the other side of the lake with his brother, but when Ciel turned smoothly to start to head back, he continued to drift toward the edge.
“████, get away from there! The ice near the reeds is thin!”
His mother’s voice rang out clearly in the crisp air, sharp with worry, but he didn’t know how to stop! Panicking, he tried to plant his feet more firmly, and he heard the ice crack before it gave way under him, plunging him into the icy water.
He gasped in surprise and shock, water flooding into his mouth as he struggled toward the surface shining above him. But the skates on his feet were too heavy, and the water that soaked his clothes worked together with them to drag him deeper. He knew that he was supposed to hold his breath, but he didn’t have any air left as he struggled to tug off his clothes, to try to reduce the weight, but it felt like they were only getting even more tangled around him.
He didn’t want to die. He wanted to see his parents again. See Ciel again. He wanted to have tea in the garden with Tanaka-san and hug Sebastian. Why weren’t any of them here? Why weren’t they saving him?
It was cold. So cold. Even with all his clothes, the cold seemed to seep into his skin as he kept trying to flail toward the sun that seemed to grow more distant with every moment.
Another desperate gasp filled his lungs with more ice instead of air, and he choked on it, wanting to cry. There was still so much that he wanted to do. But his vision was starting to fade, as if a layer of ice was crawling over his eyes, and his struggles grew weaker as the shivers set in. His eyes hurt, too, so he closed them, plunging himself into darkness as he tried to curl up on himself, feeling tired. This wasn’t fair… all he’d wanted was to not be alone anymore.