Natalya sighed heavily, staring out the window at the light snowfall. If she'd known her brother and sister would be late to the party, she would have waited a few more hours to arrive...

"Hey Nat, what's up?"

She rolled her eyes, knowing all too well who that voice belonged to. "America... I thought I made it all too clear last time that I hate being called that."

"Oh, did you? Sorry, I probably forgot. But I like it! It has a nice sound to it."

"The sound of a bug." Sure, he'd forgotten. As if...! She crossed her arms, still staring outside. She'd arrived before any of the other girls and she felt out of place in America's huge house. But she was most definitely not going to engage in conversation with the likes of France or any of the other weirdos that tended to swarm together.

"Whaaa? No way it's the sound of a bug! It's way too pretty!"

Belarus snorted, and looked out of the corner of her eye at him. He was wearing a hideously ugly Christmas sweater, possibly the ugliest she'd ever laid eyes on. Apart from the Christmas tree design it looked like someone had vomited tinsel all over it. He was wearing a red scarf too, but it did nothing to salvage the outfit. It was a lost cause. "What the hell are you wearing that for? It hurts my eyes," she grumbled.

"But you haven't even seen the best part! Look!" He pressed on a star design and little tiny lights woven into the fabric began to blink. "It's totally crazy, right?!"

"It's stupid." She looked out the window again. She needed people to talk to, and she needed them now. Hurry up...!

"You don't like Christmas very much, do you?"

Surprised at the question, Belarus turned to face him. He was looking at her with sad eyes and she inwardly cursed. He could be such a baby! "It's not that I hate it or anything. It's just... Too much." She narrowed her eyes. "People go all out for it, spending way too much, getting all stressed out, and they either fake enjoying it or are openly rude about it. That's what I don't like about it."

"I know..." America's shoulders drooped, and for a moment she thought that maybe she'd broken him. His gaze dropped to the floor, then he suddenly straightened and flashed one of his super confident smiles. "But it's not all bad! There's plenty of good stuff about Christmas too, you know. Liiiiike~!" He pulled out a wrapped package from behind his back, and Natalya stared at it. Had he been hiding that the entire time? He held it out to her. "Presents! Like this one! Here!"

She continued to stare at it. "...Why did you get me a gift?" It wasn't like they were close or anything. They were acquaintances from back when she'd tried to become more independent from her brother, but could she even consider him a friend? Maybe he thought so. Shit, was she supposed to get him a gift now? What a fucking pain...

"I wanted to," he answered, shrugging and still smiling.

She looked at him, still refraining from taking it. "But I didn't get you anything..."

"I don't care! I wanted to get you something, so..." He shook the package. It was lumpy and flimsy, making her curious about what was inside. She finally reached a hand out for it, giving him a cautious look as she did so. He laughed. "Relax! It won't bite!"

"I might, if it's something weird," she warned him with the tiniest of smirks. She gingerly tore the wrapping paper and a length of fabric fell out. She let the wrapping paper fall to the floor as she held out the mystery gift: a frilly dark blue scarf with a white lace overlay and frills along the ends. She stared at it, looking it over. Okay, it actually was a normal, nice gift. And it actually was something she really liked.

"Well...?" America gazed at her, eagerly waiting for her response. "Do you like it?"

She turned back to the window and wrapped the scarf around her neck, letting the one end dangle in front. It was rather pretty, the white lace complimenting the dark blue fabric perfectly. She looked her reflection over. The navy dress with white snowflakes patterned on it... The scarf... They were a perfect match. She nuzzled the scarf, the soft fabric hiding her smile. "...I do. Thank you," she mumbled, lifting her head and turning to face him again.

Her eyes widened as he pressed his lips against hers, and she was overcome with confusion. What the fuck? What the hell? What...?! She staggered back, a hand darting to her mouth. She felt her face burn as she stared at him. He was smiling! The nerve! "What the hell did you do that for?!" she demanded, eyes darting around the room. No one was paying them any attention, and she focused on him. Or tried to, as he distracted her by pointing above her head. She looked up. That fucking...!

"Mistletoe!" He beamed at her with an especially annoying grin and wisely ran off, laughing that obnoxious laugh of his.

She clenched her hands at her sides, angry but also... confused. "Seriously, what the hell?!" she called after him, her tone not entirely deadly. She just couldn't manage it. He disappeared into the hallway, shooting her a wink as he rounded the corner. She grit her teeth as she turned back to the window, crossing her arms. That arrogant idiot! Just when he was being tolerable...!

She glared at her reflection for a moment, then her eyes wandered to the scarf. ...It was a beautiful scarf. Not that she was going to tell that moron and inflate his ego even more. She nestled her chin into the fabric, the lace tickling at her skin. Yeah, he was a moron. An arrogant, egotistical moron! Kissing her like that...

The memory made her lips tingle, and she narrowed her eyes as she looked up at the mistletoe dangling from the window frame. It seemed to be taunting her and she reached up, yanking it from its post. She looked at the offending object in her hands, and her fingers curled around it tightly.

"...Mistletoe is stupid. ...Idiot."