CHAPTER 1
It was nearly 01h30min in the morning, but the boy couldn't sleep. Not that he didn't want to, but he was so scared that, every time he closed his eyes, images of horrible monsters came to mind, making him moan softly. And, to be honest, it didn't help at all that there was a storm outside. The noise of the rain and the wind whistling made the whole scenery three times scarier in his little head.
Everything was England's fault. I mean, what kind of adult in their right minds would tell a horror story as a bedtime story? It was an imprudence that bordered on stupidity, something no one would expect from the noble human representation of the Great British Empire.
Talking about England, would he be awake? He could go to his room, couldn't he? Surely the nightmares wouldn't follow his if he was by Arthur's side. But on the other hand, he wanted to show he was a big boy. That he was brave enough to stay in his room without pestering his tutor throughout a particularly scary night. After all, Alfred was a hero, wasn't he?
CABRUM! ( That was supposed to be a thunder, please ignore my incapability to represent sounds)
All his determination to stay alone went downhill after this one. Trembling like a puppy, he climbed down the too high to his little size bed, ran to the door, standing on his tiptoes to reach the doorknob and darted outside, passing by the hallway and trying not to think about how frightening that place in particular was in the dark.
He stopped in front of the familiar door and knocked three times, waiting for permission to get in. But… What if Arthur was sleeping? He would have to stay alone in his room, scared to death, until it was clear enough for someone to be awake and make him company. And that wasn't a really good perspective.
The tears were already filling up his eyes when he heard the door be unlocked, letting him see a man relatively tall – at least, in the eyes of a terrified Chibi America -, with messy blond hair and sleepy green eyes.
- Alfred? - for Arthur Kirkland, the vision of his colony, standing in front of his door, during the night, all coiled up in himself and with teary eyes could be summed up in one word: cute
-Arthur – whimpered the younger one, raising his little arms in a muted ask to be held up.
The Englishman looked at him sweetly and took him in his arms, cradling him gently. The little one buried his face in the space between the blond's neck and shoulder, while his hands gripped tightly the other's pajamas.
-Are you scared of the storm? -he asked the child with a soft tone. The boy only nodded in agreement, distracting himself with the comforting smell of peppermint and chamomile tea coming from Arthur's skin.
The man closed the door and went back to bed, leaving Alfred laid down and leaning back himself shortly after. He cradled the boy on his chest and ran his fingers through the soft hair. Alfred already looked calmer, but the darkness still scared him, so he asked, with a sleepy voice:
-Arthur? Can you leave the light on?
England said nothing, but he did get up and lighted the candle, leaving it on the bedside table and going back to bed. A few minutes later, the colony was already asleep and Arthur contemplated the child's face, taking special notice of how his eyelashes would cast shadows on his rosy cheeks. Arthur knew that moments like this were his most precious treasure and, honestly, wished Alfred would never grow up.