Prologue
Ivan's normally bright, innocent lilac eyes were dulled and empty. Some kind of spell had been cast upon him, and he found himself under Alfred's control. His mind did no thinking on its own anymore, shown by the lack of excitement in most things he did. The only thing he seemed to be enthusiastic about anymore was chanting about how he loved Alfred so dearly, whether it be true or not, and expressing it in his own... unique ways. Due to his improper state of mind, though, he had to be chained to a heavy dresser right in the Americans bedroom, where he had to stay, as when he roamed freely, he'd end up in some kind of trouble, because he would not feel any pain if he ended up injured. He couldn't make wise decisions. All he wanted was for Alfred to be home again, that's all he ever wanted anymore. He didn't even live for himself at this point, only for the other whom he claimed to care for so deeply and need so badly. Speaking of, the front door could be heard creaking open at that moment, announcing the other man's arrival home. Ivan perked up and tried moving, giving a rough tug to his cuff that chained him to the furniture, ignoring the fact that he cut himself slightly on the metal.
When Alfred entered, Ivan was doing as he normally did, his empty eyes staring up. "I love you, I love you, I love you..." He murmured in his now eerily monotonous voice, continuing to say that as he hoped for the one above him to repeat his words back. Alfred smiled, just a little, and sat down on his bed to watch Ivan. He thought about saying something, and eventually decided to speak in a hushed tone so that Ivan would not hear. He smiled again, looking directly at him.
Ivan had the same distant look in his eyes as he always did, giving him a mindless look. That wasn't too far off. He gave a small smile, but as always, it ended up looking rather creepy due to the fact that it didn't quite reach his dull eyes. After his grin faded he gave another rough tug to his cuff, leaving a bright red mark along his wrist. Alfred glanced at the cuff, letting out a small sigh. He hugged Ivan, hoping he would stop tugging on the cuff for even just a few minutes.
Ivan tensed up for a moment, slightly shocked since he rarely got affection from the American. His cheeks were pink and his smile widened and for a second his eyes had a flicker of light in them but it was gone quickly. He returned the hug with his free hand, chuckling slightly and continuing his mantra. Alfred looked at the cuff for a moment before carefully taking it off the Russian man, who backed away to the wall as to not take up too much space.
Alfred stood up and left the room, only to return with a bunch of sunflowers in his hand. He placed them in Ivan's hand and smiled. Ivan's eyes brightened faintly as he looked at them, even in this state of mind he still had a love for the flowers in his hand. Smiling, he looked at Alfred, who hugged him, whispering "I love you" in his ear.
