This is going to be a multichapter fic! Thanks for reading!

Alfred stared at the ceiling of his bedroom. Six different time zones keeping him up at night. He ran his hand through his hair. Looking at the digital clock on his bedside table he found that the red letters said 1:32AM, but in Hawaii it was only 7:32PM. Damn timezones, damn this round planet, damn the whole entire fucking solar system. Alfred sighed and rolled out of bed. His feet making no sound against the plush carpet. He walked to the other side of the room and stared at the wall, trying to think, but all that came to mind was one word.

sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep.

Defeated, Alfred decided to fall back onto his bed. He didn't bother getting under the blankets. He laid there for what felt like an eternity, occasionally rolling back and forth.

It's late freakin' sleep already!

Alfred wished he could say he was exhausted. Ever since his citizens started putting work over sleep he had been doing the same, more or less.

Well, what they say is true. Americans live to work.

And if he wasn't going to sleep, he might as well work.

He shoved his hands into his armpits and walked down to the kitchen to grab a glass of water. He was dressed in a white t-shirt and a pair of grey boxers, and lucky for him, he knew his house well enough to navigate through it without his glasses. Well, almost.

This is only going to wake you up more, the thought nagged at him, do you want to never sleep again?

He pushed the thought away and downed another glass. Once he was satisfied he lazily walked back upstairs and into the study.

Well at least something good is coming out of this, he thought, trying to make light of the situation.

Alfred plopped into his office chair and stared at the office papers. It took him a second to realize what was wrong with the situation. Groaning, he put his elbows on the desk and cradled his head in his hands. Glasses. His glasses would make this go so much smoother.

The boy yawned as he walked through the hallway. He caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror, and to say the least, he didn't look much like a hero. Well, maybe he looked like Batman after an all nighter piecing together clues and trying to find out Joker's next crime. Ok, maybe not one singular all nighter. Maybe it was a busy month for Batman.

Even Batman needs sleep.

But you're much more than Batman.

Alfred chuckled and entered his room. He put on his glasses and looked at the time, 2:05AM. Fantastic.

Alfred spent the next chunk of time doing paperwork. He separated all of the papers into piles, and by the end of the hour his out box had a solid stack of papers in it.

I'm done with work for the night.

He decided to go back to his room and try to sleep again, getting into the soft bed and pulling the duvet up to his chin. The boy took of his glasses and set them next to, not on top of, the clock. What a scare it had been when his alarm went off and he smashed Texas into bits. Arthur was able to fix it with his 'magic' but since then he had been extra careful not to make the same mistake.

He felt himself drifting in and out of consciousness, but never fulling achieving slumber. He was close a handful of times as well!

At one point he glanced over at the clock, which told him it was 3:30AM.

He cursed at himself and picked up his phone, he thought about going through emails but his motivation for work had long dispersed.

Maybe talking to someone will make me sleepy.

He flipped through his contacts until he came across one man he could fall asleep on and it not being too disrespectful.

Alfred hit the call button and pressed the phone to his ear. After a few rings he heard his friend on the other side.

"Good morning Alfred, or as I should say to you, good evening. What the hell are you doing up at this hour anyways?" Arthur said, his voice increasing as the sentence went on.

"Hey man, good morning. And for your information, it's only around 10 o'clock." Alfred paused before adding, "In Hawaii."

"I know damn well you live in New York most the year and I also know you're in your bed, I can hear you shifting under your quilt." Arthur pointed out.

"It's a duvet, black sheep." Alfred said with a yawn. Yes! It was working! Or it was until-

"Don't you dare start calling me that too!" Arthur yelled.

Alfred let out something in between a yawn and a sigh and tossed again in his bed.

"What time is it anyways?" Arthur asked, a hint of worry in his voice.

"Want to grab a bite with me and Matt after the meeting tomorrow?"

"Alfred. What time is it." Arthur's voice firm and low.

"You know there is this really swell café not to far from the conference hall I-"

"If you won't tell me I'll find out myself and you won't be happy when I do." Arthur threatened.

Alfred let out another sigh, "It's four in the morning." He mumbled.

"WHAT?!"

After a series of 'what are you doing up at this hour' and 'I'm concerned for your health' and other shit like that, Alfred decided to hang up the phone. Talking did seem to tire him out a bit more, so he decided to take another swing at sleeping. It felt like an eternity before he felt himself finally drift to sleep.

Even Superheroes need their shut eye.

The sound of the morning radio blasting in Alfred's ear was not a comforting thing to wake up to. The blond swung his arm to the snooze button, and after a few second of his hand clumsily finding the right button on his alarm, the noise stopped.

And now, he was awake.

Alfred rolled out of bed and stood up, took a step, and stumbled onto the floor in exhaustion. He must have fallen asleep because the next thing he knew his phone was ringing.

"Huh." Alfred mumbled into his phone.

"Al? I'm outside ready to pick you up. You weren't answering my texts so I was worried." A soft voice on the other end said.

"Mattie?! Oh god what time is it?" Alfred said with both extreme drowsiness and surprise. His head throbbed and his limbs felt as if they were encased in cement, "Ugh, oh god."

"Al? You okay? I'm coming inside." Matthew announced.

By the time the personification of Canada entered the bedroom, Alfred had managed to get dressed for the day.

"You look like shit." Matthew commented, taking charge of Alfred's tie and fixing the mess of a knot it was.

"Could be worse." the blond responded. Alfred rubbed his eyes and took in a deep breath, yawning during the exhale.

Alfred sluggishly grabbed some files on his desk and put them in his briefcase. Rubbing his face he pulled it off the desk and let it swing by his side before continuing on.

Alfred leaned back in the passenger seat and stared blankly at the headliner. He tried to think about something other than nothing, but insomnia kept him up until around five in the morning.

And since he woke up at six, he had only gotten an hour of sleep.

"Alfred. Alfred. Hey, Alfred." Matthew whispered, grabbing his brother's arm. Alfred jumped at the touch and look over. They were in a Starbucks drive through window.

"Just.. get me the strongest thing they have." America groaned and leaned his head on the window. He heard Matthew order their breakfast and thank the employee. A drink and a hot sandwich was thrust into Alfred's hands. He looked at the food. An espresso with god knows how many pumps of caffeine and an sausage, egg, and cheese bagel.

By the time they arrived at the conference hall, Alfred's coffee was finished and the sandwich was only half eaten, which slightly worried Matthew.

Alfred stepped out of the car and took a deep breath, rubbed his face, and began to walk with confidence.

"Good morning everybody!" Alfred said with a smile as we walked into the conference room. Annoyed looks shot in his direction as he took a seat. England shot him a worried look, yet Alfred could tell he was just as annoyed.

As the meeting went on, Alfred's head pulsed. He didn't notice he wasn't paying attention until he realized his name being yelled at him. Alfred snapped back to reality and looked at the man calling his name. A mix of anger and concern swam on Germany's face.

"Yes I uh… think we should.." Alfred thought. What were they talking about?

"Military involvement in other countries." Germany reminded him, "what is your stance on it?"

Alfred raised his hand to his forehead. This headache was getting out of control. Alfred took a deep breath and stood up.

"My government has not come to a solid decision!" He said, flashing a smile.

"Your government is always having trouble making decisions." England muttered from his seat. He crossed his arms and looked directly at Alfred, as if to blame him for decisions that weren't his.

"England~!" His voice full of enthusiasm, "You of all people should know how my government works! These decisions are hard to make because we have the opinions of many!" Alfred's smile not fazing at the remark. It looked forced against his skin, which was quite pale today. The bags under his eyes were incredibly heavier as well.

Alfred walked over to England and placed a firm hand on his shoulder. He didn't care if he came off as threatening, he was way too exhausted to deal with sassy remarks against him, "I'd be happy to send over a civics textbook if you have forgotten!"

Germany broke the tension with a cough, "Hopefully your government will come to a decision by the time we hold our next meeting."

"Hopefully!" Alfred yawned, taking a seat.

Now if he could just close his eyes for a second-

"Amérique?"

Alfred slowly opened his eyes, "Hey what's up?"

The frenchman looked at the boy with concern, "Have you forgotten about your presentation?"

Alfred's face filled with confusion. This headache did not make it any easier to remember what he needed to present on. He opened his folder and looked at his notes. In sloppy letters a piece of looseleaf read: Agriculture.

When did he write this?

"Is something troubling you, Amérique?" France questioned, leaning on the table to look at his fellow country.

"Ah! No I-" America rubbed his face and stood up, taking the first handful of papers with him. He ran his hand through his hair as he walked to the front. Drowsiness followed close behind, threatening to pounce at any moment.

"Agriculture and global trade involving me." Alfred's voice trailed off into a yawn.

Stay alert! Think! Read your papers!

Alfred looked down at the papers in his hand, he closed his eyes and swayed some.

Heroes don't fall asleep standing up!

America took a deep breath and looked around the room. His comrades offering looks of concern. He gave his face another good rub and started on his presentation with a smile.

"As many of you may know, the drought in California has begun to affect my crops, therefore quality of my trade will decline." Alfred yawned.

"And.." the boy closed his eyes, "That's a bad thing because we don't have water for us…"

Alfred stumbled and managed to catch himself before he hit the floor.

Sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep sleep.

He heard multiple chairs roughly scrape against the floor. Alfred slowly stood up and went to straighten his glasses. He felt around his face for a moment before opening his eyes and spotting them on the ground. A delicate hand lifted them off the ground and handed them to him.

"America, if you are unwell you should go lie down."

"Kiku I- oh I mean- Japan! I'm fine I just didn't get a whole lot of sleep last night." Alfred explained, taking the glasses from Kiku and readjusting them on this face. Alfred swayed again. Japan quickly grabbed the boy's arm to steady him.

"If you keep this up you're going to collapse." Canada pointed out.

"Oh please, Mattie." Alfred explained.

"You've reached your limit!" His brother argued.

Alfred responded with a nervous laugh and shifted his weight.

"America." Germany started, taking a step closer, "I am worried about your performance today. Are you ill?"

"Heroes don't get sick." Alfred huffed.

"America!" England shouted at the remark. He definitely did not raise him to talk in such a tone, "show some respect."

The young nation shoved his hands in his pockets and took in another breath, "My people have been really working hard recently is all."

We should really get more credit for our work.

"Excuses, excuses." China mumbled, "you're probably tired from playing video games all night"

Alfred whipped around to face China. He swaggered over to the shorter nation with an unstable amount of swaying. He placed a hand on the back of a chair and leaned into it. Tension thickened as Alfred's sunken eyes studied the fellow nation.

"Contrary to popular belief," Alfred started, "I'm not dumb enough to do that the night before a meeting."

He took in a deep breath and tightened his grip on the chair. The wood splintered and cracked under his grip, "I wouldn't expect understanding from a country as small as yours. It must be nice having only one time zone." the chair gave out under Alfred's grip, the back collapsing into two parts. The young nation sighed and glanced at his splintered hand.

A problem for another day, he thought.

"Well!" Alfred exclaimed, his attitude making a sharp turn-around, "I think it's time for a break!"

Alfred rubbed his hands together and made his way to the door. He gripped the pull handle with more force than intended, making it snap with pressure. He let out an exasperated sigh and pushed the door open with another hand, still carrying the broken piece of the pull handle.

The remaining countries gave China a handful of glares and mutters of disapproval.

England went to follow Alfred and stopped at the door, looking at the dent in the wood his brother had left behind. He sighed and pushed the door open.

Alfred leaned on the bathroom wall and examined his hands. His right hand had a fair amount of splinters from gripping the chair. Dried blood stained his palms, though he wasn't sure which splinter had caused the bleeding. He winced as tried to clench his fist. Alfred closed his eyes. A non-stop headache was something he could fix for the moment. His stomach growled. That was also something he could fix.

Arthur witnessed Alfred leave the bathroom and head out the door. He decided on following him to make sure he was truly alright.

Alfred was aware he was being followed, and he was sure he would be able to take on some crook if he decided to make a move with the strength that had manifested itself during the meeting. He walked down the street and into a local drugstore. He walked the aisles until he found what he was looking for. Tylenol. This will do the trick for the headache. Taking extra care not to bend or snap the plastic bottle, he made his way to the other side of the store to grab a drink. He looked in the reflection of the glass. Arthur. Alfred stayed quiet and grabbed an energy drink from the display fridge, then to the front of the store, grabbing a Five Hour Energy before paying for his items. After paying for his groceries, he went outside and sat down on a bench. He open the pill bottle and swallowed a few pills, taking a gulp of the sugary drink to help the medicine go down. He put the small bottle in his pocket, stood up, and straightened out his suit. Alfred gulped down the Five Hour Energy and tossed it into a trashcan. Taking out his phone, he checked the time. He had about a half an hour before he needed to be back at the meeting. The weight of the phone made his hand throb. Annoyed at the minor injury, he stuffed his phone into his breast pocket under his suit coat and began walking. Alfred thought about stopping by a hot dog stand, but he couldn't risk staining his suit. He decided on running into a McDonald's instead.

Alfred ran his hand through his hair when decided what to order, ignoring the pain that it brought.

Injuring your hand because some runt got under your skin is so unheroic.

The young country quickly decided on a cheeseburger. He took the bag to go and started walking back to the conference hall.

Multiple thoughts were running through Arthur's head, but the most predominant was the main cause for his worry.

The fucking idiot drank a five hour energy and an energy drink on top of a medicine.

Alfred swallowed the last bit of his energy drink before the meeting began again, discarding the empty can at the door.

The combination of energy drinks did not wake him up in the slightest. If anything it made his heart beat like crazy and the most restless he has ever been in his life. To add to that his headache hadn't even gone away, it had only gotten worse. He swallowed some more Tylenol and tried to focus on the meeting.

The other countries took note of America's jitters and grew annoyed. The hyper country always had problems sitting still but this was outrageous. Honestly, it would be better if he were falling asleep.

Alfred looked around the room and shook his leg intensely. He played with his hands, he doodled on his notepad. He thought about what he was going to do tonight. Maybe to see a movie? There was a new one out about dinosaurs his citizens were excited about. He was too, dinosaurs were mega cool and-

"Earth to America!"

"Yes!" He shouted as he stood up. Dizziness tackled him and stumbled, "woah.."

The room spun as he plopped back into his chair. Alfred's head throbbed intensely. Sweat clung to his forehead and his heart fluttered. The pounding of his forehead drowned out the voices, which were nothing but muffles now. His leg bounced furiously against the floor of the conference hall.

He felt a strong grip on his arm. He looked at the hand, then the arm, then the face of the man touching him. Arthur studied the young nation. Alfred's skin was more pale than before, his eyes were glossed over, and his breaths were shallow and slow. Arthur moved his hand down to America's wrist and took his pulse. His eyes widened at how fast his brother's pulse was.

"Matthew…" England spoke, "Did Alfred by any chance drink coffee today?"

"Yeah, he did." Matthew responded, "It was stronger than what he normally has. He was exhausted this morning."

Arthur nodded and returned his focus to the young nation. He dug into Alfred's pocket and brought out the Tylenol bottle. He found it almost empty upon opening it. England cursed under his breath. He grabbed the boy's chin and forced him into eye contact. Alfred stared at Arthur with a faraway look in his eyes, not focusing on anything.

"Alfred." Arthur commanded, "How do you feel?"

Alfred focused at the sound of his name, making indecipherable sounds as his gaze drifted behind him.

"Hey, Alfred. Hey." The older's nation's voice grew desperate, "this is serious buddy look at me." Arthur gave the boy's shoulders a good shake. The younger nation's face twisted and his stomach lurched. England dashed for the trashcan and got back just in time to catch the vomit.

"Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god." Alfred repeated to himself.

"Alfred." Arthur gripped his shoulder again, "do you feel sick? Are you hurting?"

America gasped and nodded his head. He returned the grip on his shoulder and stood up. He swayed and looked around the room. Sweat dripped down the side of his face and fell to the ground. His pupils shrank with fear and he tumbled backwards. Arthur offered a hand to the younger nation. Alfred looked at his fellow nation's face and screamed. He crawled backwards until he felt his back against the wall. Arthur's voice was muffled against his beating heart. He felt another grip on his shoulder and looked up at the man there. Kiku was looking into his eyes with worry and concern. His face grew soft as it slowly started to melt off.

"Kiku!" Alfred screamed, "You're melting! Everyone is melting!" his words slurred.

Japan showed great concern at what Alfred had said, not breaking the gaze between them.

"Alfred. I am fine. You are seeing things."

"The room!" Alfred gasped for air as he looked around the conference hall. The walls discolored and twisted, a crack formed on the floor threatening to swallow everyone in the room. Alfred rubbed his eyes and gripped his hair. Someone was talking to him. Their voice mushed into a low hum. His hands felt useless as his head slumped and he muttered to himself. His vision blurred. His cheeks flushed and his eyes fluttered. Alfred felt like he wasn't in the room anymore. He felt as if he was floating. His breathing and heart sped up and the muffled voices multiplied and grew. Alfred blacked out, gasping for air.

Reviews are always welcome, thank you for reading!