'I'm Sorry For Your Misery'

I sat on my bed in my small crowded bedroom, holding my wrist in pain as Estonia rubbed my back soothingly. This isn't an uncommon procedure in our life time in Mr Russia's house, since Estonia and I always end up comforting Latvia whenever Mr Russia picks on him (in rather painful ways I should add). Estonia was kind enough to give me a cold, wet water cloth to wrap around my wrist, and it was starting to feel better already. I guess you could say I owned Estonia in return for helping me with my physical injury.

However, the stabbing, mental pain I felt inside of me didn't seem to disperse in the slightest. It hurt a lot more than my twisted wrist. Tears stains ran down my cheeks, my throat dry and sore from crying. But still, the intense pain I felt tearing at my heart just didn't seem to disappear. It felt like someone had shoved poison down my throat; that said poison eating its way through my body.

'Why? She knows that he won't love her back. I mean, they're siblings for Christ's sake!'

"Um, Lithuania?" I look up to see Latvia with a glass of water in his hand. His face showed one of concern, and he was not trembling like he usually does. "Would you like some water?"

I shook my head. "No thanks. But… thanks for your concern. Both of you"

Estonia smiles kindly. "We're comrades, aren't we? We always look out for one another. Don't think about Belarus, she doesn't deserve you."

Estonia mumbles something, probably something that he won't let me hear, but nonetheless I heard it anyway, "Although I don't know why you were after her in the first place. After what she's done to you"

I felt my eyes fill with salty water once again, as I remembered how I got in this state in the first place.

I was sitting on the maroon couch in the living room, exhausted from cleaning the entirety of the area. Today was a rough day, and Mr Russia wouldn't allow us to carry on about anything. We learnt that the hard way, when Latvia ended up passing out after Mr Russia pulled out his pipe, scaring him. As Latvia was left in the room to recover, Estonia and I were given chores to complete by the end of the day. Of course, we didn't dare disobey Mr Russia, unless we had a death wish.

'He could've at least let us work together! That way, we would've finished things faster!' my thoughts grumbled in annoyance.

I sighed, looking at the soapy water-filled bucket and mop, as if asking the inanimate object about what to do next.

'I should probably go clean the bathrooms. Wouldn't want Mr Russia to get upset for slacking off'

I stood up off the couch, smoothed down my green, military uniform, and walked over to the bucket and mop. Placing the mop in the bucket, I picked up the necessary equipment I need and walked out the living room door.

If I were here working just a year ago, I would've been completely lost in the gigantic building. It may seem huge from the outside, but, believe me, it was much bigger in the inside, with the many hallways and doors covering the large amount of space. However, once you find all the necessary rooms to sleep, eat, and work, you get used to it in time.

As I came to the hallway leading to Mr Russia's bedroom and bathroom, that's when I heard it. The soft, slow footsteps that came closer and closer to me, following me. I spun around, only to find the girl I had fell in love with as soon as I first laid eyes on her. Ms Belarus, with her long, platinum blonde hair, deep blue eyes, and white hair bow perched on her head. Her long, navy blue dress swayed slightly as she walked, while her white waist apron clung close to her body. Her black thigh-highs hid her pale legs, her black shoes clacking slightly with every step she took. Her arms are behind her back, and there's a vicious look in her eyes. I wonder what is wrong?

"Hello, Ms Belarus. You look very pretty today." I compliment her, hoping to lighten up her mood.

However, she doesn't seem to accept this compliment. Instead, she pushes me against the wall harshly, and that's when I noticed the sharp knife she held in her hand. That must've been what she was hiding behind her.

"Don't give any of your dumb flattery you son of a bitch" She snarls at me, approaching closer to me. At this point, I was starting to feel a little scared, but confusion was more of what was taking over my emotions at the moment.

'What's going on? Why is Belarus so mad, and what's with that knife?' My thoughts wondered.

"Ms Belarus, what's wrong? Did something happen?" I questioned.

Belarus growls and she grips my shoulder firmly, keeping me in place.

"I'll tell you what you faggot. Big brother has rejected me again, and has pushed me away. I now know why he does this though; I know why he won't accept my marriage papers and become one with me." She narrows her eyes and leans in closer, her face inches from mine. "It's because of YOU"

"What?" I was beyond confused now; why would I be the cause of Mr Russia not wanting to marry Belarus? "What do you mean by that?"

Belarus glared darkly, as if she was trying to drill holes through my head. "He's always paying attention to you pathetic excuses for countries. Estonia doesn't get too close to Mr Russia, so he doesn't concern me. Latvia always gets too close, so I enjoy my time threatening him to back off. But with you, brother's always watching you, always making sure you don't slip up, always seeing if you're okay. You have NO idea how much it PISSES ME OFF!"

Wait a minute… what? Mr Russia pays most of his attention to me? More confused thoughts travel through my head, causing a slight headache to form. Miss Belarus could be exaggerating, but she normally never jokes about things, especially when it comes to Mr Russia. So… what does all of this mean?

"And now… I understand what I have to do now," Belarus whispered, and my attention was now directed to her knife that she slowly pulled up towards my stomach,

"I must kill off what my brother cares about most"

My throat constricted as I felt the knife being pushed slightly against my skin, cutting a small hole through my uniform. Panic filled me as I contemplated on what to do. I had to get away, but, despite the situation, I didn't want to hurt Belarus.

'Why is she doing this?! Mr Russia doesn't care about me that much! He only just wants me to work for him… right?'

Right now, I had no time to think about that, as Belarus's blade started to pierce my skin, drawing the slightest amount of blood. My instincts kicked in and I pushed Belarus with as much force as I could muster. She stumbled backward, the knife leaving my stomach and her hand leaving my now aching shoulder. I could've taken this opportunity to run, but I stood there frozen instead. Belarus snarled and raised her knife and began to run towards me. My instincts kicked in again and I quickly moved out of the way. However, Ms Belarus must've known I was going to make that move, as she grabbed my right wrist just as I moved to my left.

As soon as she grabbed my wrist, she tugged it back harshly to pull me closer towards her, causing my wrist to twist in a weird angle. The pain exploded as I landed on the ground in front of her, and I gave out a cry once she let me go. It hurt to lift my wrist upward, so I clutched it in my left hand, wincing when I accidently applied too much pressure.

"It hurts, doesn't it?" I looked up when I heard Belarus's voice. She was standing directly in front of me, knife gripped tightly in her hand. She glared darkly, something she seemed to do often now, and slowly lifted the knife above my head. I wanted to run; I really wanted to dash away from this and lock myself in my room and hide for hours upon hours. But I didn't. Instead, I just watched with fear and sadness as the girl I loved positioned herself to kill me.

"Now, let me show you the actual pain I felt. When YOU took my brother away from me" she whispered roughly.

There was nothing left to do now, nothing at all but to shut my eyes and wait for my fate to come plunging down towards me.

But it never came.

"SESTRA! THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Mr Russia and Lady Ukraine had apparently heard my cry, and came rushing up the stairs to see if I was okay. Ukraine bought me into the room that me and the rest of the Baltics shared, and apologised profusely before Mr Russia came into the room with Estonia and Latvia, calling off their chores and ordering them to help me. Why, he didn't answer. Well, not that Estonia or Latvia ever questioned him anyway.

Though, I was still rather curious as to what Belarus said. Did Mr Russia really care about me that much? If so… why?

The sudden knock at the door made me snap out of my thoughts, causing me and my friends to jump. Latvia looked pleadingly at Estonia to answer the door; to which Estonia sighed and got off the bed to do so. I looked down at the floor; it was probably Lady Ukraine coming in to apologise again.

"M-Mr Russia!"

The sound of Estonia saying those exact words caught my attention and I turned towards the door. Indeed, standing there, staring down at Estonia was Mr Russia himself. My eyes widened slightly when I saw him. What is he doing here?

"Thank you for your help Estonia, Latvia," he nodded his head to Latvia, to which he jumped and nodded back quickly "But I'll take over now. I want you two to make my dinner for me"

Latvia shot me a look, as if asking me if I'm fine with this. I gave him a small nod, indicating that I'll be okay. Latvia shakily stood up and walked up to Estonia, who began to make his way out the door. As they made their way out, Mr Russia closed the door and walked towards me. I gulped nervously, honestly slightly afraid of what his intentions were.

"How do you feel, Lithuania?" he questioned me.

I was silent for a minute before I spoke. "I'm fine, thank you"

Mr Russia sat on the bed beside me, causing me to jump. I urged myself not to move away, though, in fear it will make him upset.

"You must be wondering why I'm here, da?" Mr Russia turned his head towards me.

I nodded slightly.

"Well… I came here to apologise"

The answer caught me off guard. He was… saying sorry? What for?

"I'm apologising on behalf on my sestra's behaviour; for her hurting you" Mr Russia answered as if he had read my mind.

"Oh… it's okay. I'll be better by tomorrow, I promise" I assured him.

Mr Russia shook his head. "No. I don't care if you're better, you're going to take a break from working tomorrow; I'm sure Latvia and Estonia can take care of tomorrow's chores."

I looked up at Mr Russia, my eyes slightly wide at his sudden show of kindness. This was all very new to me, and it was starting to make my head spin. I remembered Belarus's words, and it was starting to become more believable. I took a deep breath. Better to ask now than never.

"Mr Russia?" I questioned.

He smiled softly, "You don't have to call me mister, you know?"

I blushed slightly. "Oh, okay. Well… Ms Belarus said to me that you… always paid attention to me and cared about me a lot. Is… is that true?"

Russia went silent, now looking down at his entwined hands. I noticed a faint blush appear on his face. I turned away as well, my own blush starting to creep up.

Suddenly, two strong arms wrapped around me, pulling me into an embrace. I stiffened as Russia put his head on my shoulder, feeling his warm breath on my neck.

"…Da. It is true. I have been watching you for a while now, Lithuania. Ever since I was a kid, I always wanted to be your friend. But I was also afraid of what you would see in me; if you would see me as a psychopathic, scary man with no sole purpose but to hurt everything in sight. When I took you away from Poland… I knew you weren't happy. I really did. But I let my own greediness have its way with me. I'm really sorry, Lithuania. For hurting you, for letting my sister hurt you, for making your life miserable… I'm sorry."

I felt my body relax slightly after hearing Russia's confession. I understood everything now. Russia was only looking for some company, a friend that he could talk to. He wanted someone to help him through his troubles, someone to play with him, someone to stay with him. All he ever wanted… was just someone to be with him. Sympathy filled me as I wrapped my arms around him, patting his back soothingly.

"…It's okay, Russia. I forgive you"

Russia pulled away from me, and smiled a genuine, cheerful smile. "Thank you, Lithuania. Thank you very much"

I chuckled at his child-like behaviour, and, without thinking, I leaned up and kissed him on the forehead, blushing as I did so. I looked into his violet eyes and smiled. In return, he pulled me into another hug, holding me tight, but not tight enough to hurt.

"…I love you, Lithuania. I always have" Russia's soft whisper was barely heard by me.

I closed my eyes, soaking in his second confession for today. "I love you too, Mr Russia"

I heard him chuckle, and he turned his head to kiss my cheek. I flushed a dark shade of red, though I kindly returned the gesture. Right then and there, I forgot about everything that had happened today, about Belarus, about my still slightly aching wrist. I forgot about it all.

The only thing I knew and cared about now was Russia's warm, comforting embrace.