Blaine was sleeping deeply; his whole body was heavy and aching. His awkward position didn't help the pain in his back, yet Blaine didn't move to a more comfortable position, for he was too tired to even try that after another exhausting day of hard work in the field.

The room where he was sleeping was small, the walls were blackened and stained by moisture, and there weren't any frames or pictures that could make that place look like a home. Even his few clothes were hanging around the place without any organization. His new room was just a place where he was supposed to sleep before waking up to work hard in the field, and was quite different from the cozy atmosphere of his old room in London, where he used write songs and poetry.

In London, Blaine's room was neat and warm. The walls that his mom had painted were cream colored with blue and everything else was either marine blue or tobacco color. His clothes weren't hanging around the room; Blaine's mom would kill him if they were. He had a small closet full of shirts, suits, and bow ties.

But Blaine didn't remember that room anymore. Actually, he choose forget those cream colored walls and his old bow ties. It was easier if he did. In fact, forgetting everything about London and his old life made it easier for him to live his new life.

The brunette man didn't want to remember, but before Europe was taken by the darkness of the war once more, forcing his escape for the countryside, he was happy. In those days, before everything changed, he lived in Londonwith his family, always dreaming with music and art. He used to be communicative and funny, always jumping and singing like a small child. No one that knew him in those days would recognize him now.

In a contrast to the person that he used to be, a cheerful and happy young man, now everyone thought Blaine was an pathetic orphan that lived alone in small farm and wasn't good enough to enlist and defend England against the German's threat. Almost no one knew him or his secrets; Blaine didn't had friends or confidants. In that small village close to the farm where he lived now, there wasn't anyone, besides Mr. Montgomery, that knew that his real name actually was Biagio Andrenni, not Blaine Anderson, and that he actually was Italian.

Blaine didn't choose to lie, pretend, or even leave Italy, his father did. When the fascist ideology began to grow and gain followers in Italy, Blaine's dad, Antonio Andrenni, veteran of the First World War and philosophy professor, ran away from Italy. He hated the fascist ideas and defended freedom and democracy. This kind of beliefs weren't safe anymore in a country that was being taken by the fascist principles.

Running away from Italy, Antonio, his wife Dianna and his son, Biagio, went to London to live close to a friend's house. There, he found a job in cleaning the streets while his wife worked cleaning houses. Blaine still was a small child and didn't understand why his dad, who used to be loud and proud of his Italian nature, became quiet and discrete like the other Englishmen were. Antonio didn't sing Italian songs or cook Italian dishes anymore, and that annoyed little Blaine. He was a small child and didn't understand why he couldn't call his father "Papa" anymore. Daddy didn't seem right to the boy, but he got used to this with the time.

Blaine was too small to understand, but the tension between the countries and the people was growing. Everyone feared another war, for the First World War had ended just a few years ago and the scars were still everywhere inEurope. Mothers had lost their sons, wives had lost their husbands, and the financial crisis was devastating the European economy. It wasn't a good time to be a foreigner in Europe; jobs were scarce and people didn't like foreigners. Antonio knew which side Mussolini would chose if a war really began.

So one day, knowing all of this and fearing deportation, Antonio did more than forbid his son to call him Papa. Antonio changed his name to Andrew and his wife became Daisy and his son now was called Blaine. Form the day that his dad changed their names, "Andrew" and "Daisy" didn't talk about Italy anymore and always warned Blaine to the same.

Things began to change that day, but changing a name and repressing their identities were nothing compared to the changes that were about to happen.

Years later, when the Second World War officially exploded in Europe, all that Blaine knew began to disappear. Things that he loved were gone as his friends enlisted and rumors about bombings started to spread. Even his beloved city changed; London turned even more gray and dark. A lot of people, taken by the fear, started to build shelters, buy gas masks, and run away from there.

Seeing these changes and being of the age to enlist, like any healthy British young man in 1940, Blaine wanted to fight for England and for the King like his friends were doing. But against Blaine's will, his father forbade him to enlist; Antonio wouldn't to risk his family to deportation. Italy had joined the German side and become the enemy, and if people discovered that Blaine was actually Italian he would be arrested and his family deported, ruining everything his father had worked for.

Yet Blaine was na�ve, didn't believe his dad's words, and underestimated people's paranoia, thinking that they wouldn't do that to his family, that everyone in the neighborhood knew how good the Andersons were. The young man thought that way until a cold night later in that same month, when their house was invaded by the police, whose heavy kicks broke down their door. The angry officers, sore that the new war was beginning and that this Italian family denounced as spies by Mussolini was the closest thing they had to an enemy at the moment, they took our their anger on the Andersons, who had been denounced by some envious neighbor who had depicted the family as Italian fascists planning to attack London.

Checking their documents and registers, it didn't take long for the police discover the truth of their origin. A few hours later, they were invading Blaine's house and arresting his dad and mom.

The hazel-eyed man only escaped with the help of his mom. He didn't want leave them, but Dianna cried and begged, convincing him to escape. He jumped from the window of his room and ran away with only the clothes on his back and a little money hidden in his socks. With a help of a friend and ex-choir roommate, Blaine took a train and went to the countryside to an old family friend's house.

In that small village, everyone knew Blaine's old family friend Ted Montgomery, a rich philosophy teacher known for his life full of eccentricities. No one was surprised when he gave a complete stranger like Blaine a piece of his land and said that the young boy was his nephew. Everybody knew that Mr. Montgomery was an only child and a little crazy, and just assumed that the young boy was his bastard son and didn't question Blaine's origins. Mr. Montgomery secretly helped Blaine, giving him new documents, this time trustful ones that wouldn't raise any suspicion. The old ginger man really felt sorry for Blaine, for he was friend of Antonio and could see how Blaine was closing himself off from the world after his parent's arrest.

As the time passed, a lot of people escaped to the countryside like Blaine, mostly woman and children running from the bombing that began in '41 that destroyed English cities. They were always concerned about the war. When one of those people saw young and healthy Blaine in the city leaving vegetables in the market, he was always asked why he wasn't fighting for his country. Blaine always quietly answered that he had a heart problem and couldn't join the army.

Trying to avoid the questioning and pitiful looks, Blaine, who always dreamed of doing music, began to work hard on the land, and forgot his music and avoided going to the village and seeing people other than Mr. Montgomery as much as possible. He was afraid that he would raise suspicion socializing; it was safer be the weird boy, for weird people couldn't be spies. Since he didn't have his family anymore, he could at least be safe for them and survive like he promised his mother moments before his escape.

His loneliness and guilt for lying and not staying with his parents led Blaine to often wake up feeling angry and depressed. When this happened, the young man worked even harder, working until his body couldn't take anymore, until exhaustion.

Today was one of those days. Blaine's body ached so badly that night and he couldn't even move to a more comfortable position. He had woken up feeling especially guilty, so he worked and worked until his fingers bled and his legs didn't have strength to move anymore. Remembering his dad's laugh, his mom's smile, and their family dinners, Blaine worked so hard so he could not dream about these happy memories, for it was too hurtful, wake up remembering his parents. That night he did not dream, and only darkness filled his found, remaining until it was abruptly replaced by the thunderous sound of an explosion.

"What the hell is happening?" Blaine screamed as he fell out of his bed and ran towards the commotion. The Germans couldn't be attacking the small village as that would be pointless because it was not a big city like London. As he crossed through the door into the night outside, Blaine saw fire and smoke coming from the field where he planted his vegetables.

He grabbed a knife and went see what was burning in his field. He walked through the trees, hiding himself and carefully approaching the source of the smoke. As the object came into view, Blaine was shocked; it was a huge German plane.

Blaine never had seen one of these, but the giant swastika painted on the wing of the plane made the machine's origin pretty clear. He looked at the large steel monster;

other than all the fire, he didn't see any signs of danger or anything that could cause the plane to collapse.

"How the hell did this plane fall here?!"

He couldn't see any other German or English planes, and there weren't any signs of a fight or of a German invasion either. What that was that plane doing there? Blaine was about to turn away and go back to his home to call Mr. Montgomery when something caught his attention.

Close to the plane but still safe from the flames by a small distance was a body. Blaine couldn't identify who it was and thought that it could have been one of the neighbors' children or some curious kid that was hurt. Blaine ran towards the plane; the ball of fire was becoming bigger and whoever was there was in danger. When he got close enough to the slim figure, though, he noticed that wasn't a child, or anyone from the neighborhood or even from England for that matter. His mind was going crazy with the realization:

"Shit, it's a German soldier!"

The young man covered with blood and ashes was wearing a uniform that only could belong to a German and Blaine knew that he should leave the man to avoid any complications, for he would probably die regardless from being too close to the rapidly spreading fire. Even if Blaine did save him, he was probably too hurt. Blaine just needed to leave the German there. The explanations he would need to give would be easier and his identity would remain safe.

"I will just leave him and call Mr. Montgomery he will know what to do..."

He was already turning back to leave the enemy behind when he saw the German open his eyes and stopped cold. Blaine was entranced by the intense blue of the German's eyes, glowing through all the ashes and blood. For some reason he could not explain, his legs wouldn't move anymore; Blaine tried and tried, but his body didn't respond to his commands, as those eyes, those pure blue, angel-like eyes continued to stare at him. He was frozen.

Blaine knew he couldn't let that man die anymore. This stranger was a German, and he knew what people said about German soldiers: soulless, evil beings. But Blaine wasn't seeing evil. He was seeing a soul of another human being through this man's eyes. This intense blue made it impossible for the Italian man to leave the injured German behind. He wrapped his arms around the German's waist and heaved his body from the fire.

"Shit, I am saving a German soldier!"