Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia. I also don't own any songs/bands that are referenced in the story. I'm still a poor high school student, you know. :/
Warning: Fluff, boy love, language, interchanging names
Pairing: US x UK
Setting: Post-WWII, more into our time.
Me: Yay! I did it, I did it~!
England: Oh, shut up you stupid, American-born Scotswoman twat.
Me: Way to ruin my celebration of finally making a Hetalia fic. D: Anyway, I apologize for any OOCness, since I've only seen the…first seven episodes. :sweat drop: Oh, yeah. Although I'm American, I'll use British spelling 'cause of the POV. :D
England groaned and rubbed his eyes tiredly. He glared at his cell phone as it vibrated and blared out "God Save the Queen." Reluctantly, the Briton picked it up and flipped up the screen.
"What?" He bit out, knowing exactly who called him. On the other end came nervous chuckling and the clearing of a man's throat.
"Uh, well, good morning to you, too?" America's voice sounded more than a little nervous. England merely rolled his eyes and glanced at the clock.
"You dolt, it's the afternoon over here," England was more than a little tempted to just end the call right there. Still, that wouldn't be gentlemanly, would it? He decided to just listen to whatever the hell the bloody git wanted to say.
"Oh, right. Uh, well…I wanted to talk about…two things? Um…First off, are you coming over July—" the American didn't even get the chance to finish when England cut in.
"No," a sigh sounded from the other end, one that held what sounded suspiciously like disappointment. England winced a little. The Fourth of July just held too many painful memories for him. He couldn't even look at the younger nation during that month.
"All right…well, I also think that I left my iPod at your place on accident. Eheh, think you could drop it off or something later?" the Briton could just feel the kicked-puppy eyes the damn fool was giving him. Why did he have to have such a weakness for those eyes, even when the two were only an ocean away? England sighed.
"…Fine. Where'd you put it? Actually, how the hell did it wind up in my own home?!"
"Uh…it should be on the couch. And…duh…I think I left it when I visited last week,"
"…Bloody git," England sighed and shook his head. He then hung up and stood from the chair in his bedroom. Grumbling intelligibly, the smaller nation went down the stairs and sighed as he stood in front of his living room. He walked towards America's "favourite" couch, but didn't see the star-spangled banner of an iPod.
Just my luck for it to have fallen in between the damn cushions. He sighed and ran his fingers through short gold locks in agitation. England got down on the ground and searched between the cushions, relying on his sense of touch. He made a disgusted look, feeling mainly crumbs and dust, until his fingers met a cool, metallic surface. Triumph sparkling in his emerald eyes, England grabbed the cursed thing and pulled it up. He then glared at the dirty music player.
I just wasted a minute of my life looking for this stupid thing. England shook his head and went to find a cloth to clean it off. As he cleaned the iPod, his curiosity got the best of him. America didn't really let people see what the hell was on his playlist, so it naturally made others fairly curious as to what songs he was interested in. England sighed and dug into his pocket, pulling out his earphones. He gave them a disgusted look, unsure as to how the youngsters in the world could stand the minimal sound quality and the fact that it went into the ear. Still, they were portable, so England had to keep a stiff upper lip.
He plugged in the earphones and turned on the iPod. England selected music, and then went into playlists. He saw titles that covered two or more bands through a creative combination of their names. That made him a little proud of the younger nation, but then he saw that America had a top ten playlist. Curious, England selected that list, put his earphones in, and selected the tenth song (America was weird with his music, since his started from 10 and ended at 1).
England immediately disliked the song. It was "Celebration" of all things! He moved onto the next song and winced. Britney Spears. Of course America had to have one of her songs. England moved on to number eight. He made a face. It was a techno remix of some game. The blond glanced at the title and saw Legend of Zelda. He sighed, admitting reluctantly that it was fairly catchy. Still, he got impatient with it and moved on to the next song. That song happened to be "Riot" from Three Days Grace. It was all right, too, but he moved on again. "Misery Business" from Paramore made him a little uncomfortable. The next was "Teardrops On My Guitar" by Taylor Swift. He liked it, a little, and moved on about halfway through the song.
Number five made his eyebrows shoot up. "Call Me When You're Sober" by Evanescence. This one he listened to all the way through, wincing only a little. He wasn't sure of what to think as the song faded into number four, which happened to be some song called "Nothing I Won't Give" by a guy called Vic Mignogna. Once again, England listened to the entire song, allowing it to fade into the next song. It was "Our Solemn Hour" by Within Temptation and it made him think about all the wars they (the nations) had been through. Number two was "Ever Dream" by Nightwish, although England had to admit that he never heard of such a band. Still, the song invoked strong feelings of guilt, which confused him.
The number one favourite completely blew England's mind. He glanced at the title and saw "Independence Day" by Carrie Underwood. It was…moving, to say the least. England truly hadn't known what to say or think about that song. When it was over, he had made a grudging decision. England was going to America's birthday party.
***
The blond sighed as he stood at Alfred's door. He glared at it and hesitantly knocked on the door. In his hand was the gift he had picked up for the younger nation and in his pocket was Alfred's iPod. Arthur was feeling nervous and was wondering if he was making the right decision. He honestly hadn't wanted to come on the Fourth, so he opted to visiting on the third of July. It was…more bearable that way.
"ARTHUR!" was all the warning poor Arthur got before he got tackle-hugged by the tall American. The two fell to the ground in a heap, Arthur blushing and sputtering indignantly. After a moment, Alfred got up and helped up the embarrassed nation. The blond Englishman muttered darkly as he absently dusted himself off.
"…Hello, Alfred," he replied curtly. Alfred was too happy to be put off by the words. He pulled the disgruntled man inside the house, barely able to contain himself. Unfortunately, the taller blond's cheery mood was far too contagious, and Arthur was starting to feel only slightly better about the day.
"I just want you to know that I'm only staying for today. I have a plane to catch early tomorrow morning," Arthur warned the other man as they entered Alfred's kitchen. The taller nation seemed only slightly put out, but he bounced right back.
"That's okay! You still came in July!" Alfred replied optimistically. The blond Englishman rolled his eyes, although on the inside he was a little guilty that he never visited during that month. Especially considering the reaction he had gotten from Alfred. It was obvious that Alfred looked forward to his visits and treasured them no matter how bad their fights might have gotten.
The two nations made small talk as Arthur put his gift on the table. Time practically flew by and before they knew it, it was time for dinner. Arthur would never admit it aloud in his life, but he enjoyed his moments with Alfred. It made him forget for a little while that the younger man was a nation and not a colony. Yet, that day also made him realise something very important: Alfred still loved him and hadn't stopped loving him.
It was also in the middle of dinner that he realised that he still hadn't given Alfred his iPod back. Arthur would have face palmed if it wasn't in front of the young American.
"By the way, here's your iPod," Arthur interrupted the taller man. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Nano, which happened to have a case in the colours of the American flag. Alfred took it gladly and returned to what the two were talking about.
Eventually, it was time for them to retire to their beds. Arthur was perfectly fine with sleeping in the guestroom, but Alfred was hearing none of it. The Englishman gave up with a sigh and followed his "host" up into his bedroom (and England would prefer it if you would keep your mind out of the gutter~).
I swear, if that git pulls anything… Arthur thought darkly as he changed into his pyjamas in one of the bathrooms. He sighed and walked back to Alfred's bedroom, only to find that he was reading a book…shirtless. Arthur felt the urge to twitch, but he fought that down and tried very hard not to ogle at the man. There was a very real possibility that if he stared, he might drool, and that was unbecoming of a gentleman.
Alfred looked up from his book and smiled. Arthur merely nodded and climbed into bed wordlessly. He heard the click of the light going out and kept his back to the younger nation. It was silent, except for the soft breathing of his relaxed companion. Until he heard Alfred give a soft sigh, which should have warned the short Englishman that he was about to pull something.
Well, the American did pull someone. In fact, he pulled the smaller nation closer to his body. Arthur was blushing furiously at that point and would have snapped if Alfred hadn't beaten him to the punch.
"I missed you," Arthur paused and sighed, forcing his body to relax into the embrace. It wasn't going to spell the end of the world, after all. In fact, it was the first time in a long while that he was able to sleep peacefully in July.
A/N: Arthur arrived July 2, which is why he isn't jetlagged all to hell. :smiles sweetly: