A Year at the World Academy...
Chapter 14:
My eyes shot open at the rather terrible pick-up line. I then proceeded to sit up, also coughing out the remaining water in my lungs. Ew.
"Hey, kid, are you alright?," the P.E. teacher asked, putting a hand on my shoulder.
"Y-Yeah, I think so.," my voice slightly quivered.
"What the hell were you doing? You were unresponsive for a good five minutes!," Alfred came running over from the locker rooms, I noticed that he had changed back into his regular uniform. Ugh, perhaps P.E. class was already long over. "Being the hero, I sat by my damsel in distress-!"
"Your what?," I interrupted. "Excuse me, but I kept on telling you people that I can't swim. But did you listen? NOOOOO!"
"Hey! Aren't you forgetting somebody?," I turned my head to my left. What the hell was Denmark still doing here? It was Alfred's and his fault that I'm even in this situation! They should be apologizing!
"Um...," I thought.
"Hey, how about the guy that saved your life?"
"Oh! Yeah, just where is he?," I looked around, only to find a rather disappointed Denmark. "Wait, what!"
After thinking hard about the situation for a moment, I had an epiphany: O.K., just how does the same guy that provoked me to jump into the water in the first place just happen to be the one that saved me from a watery grave? Was anything going on right now even making a miniscule amount of sense?
"But, seriously: how does a twig like you sink like a rock?," Denmark asked casually.
Embarrassed and offended, I retorted, "You know, muscle weighs more than fat, and I go to Tae Kwon Do at least three times a week... What, do you think I'm fat?"
"Wha-? No! Whoops, I didn't mean that!," he replied.
"Mm-hm… thanks for the boost in self-esteem, jerk!," I crossed my arms, then proceeded to go change and get my stuff in the locker rooms.
I'm such a mean bitch, aren't I?
Thank the ramen gods that no one stole my stuff while I was slowly dying! I changed out of my soaked swimsuit and headed to the dorms to take a shower after all of that commotion. Really, after nearly dying twice in the past few months, I think that a long afternoon nap suited me well.
After scrubbing out all of the chlorine off my body, I changed into my usual jeans and t-shirt. To start off my lazy afternoon, I plopped myself in front of my laptop. Oh, that's a surprise, I've got mail! At a first glance, I didn't recognize the e-mail address, but upon closer inspection…wait, how the hell did Denmark get my e-mail address? I know that we hung out during the Christmas Break quite a lot…but this was just random beyond comprehension to me.
Say, you haven't properly repaid me for saving your life, let's talk.
Gulping, I suddenly felt guilty in having walked out on him and the others. I then checked the date on which it was sent: Today, also not too long after I stormed out of P.E. Dang, just what kind of shit do I keep getting myself into? I then closed the e-mail inbox window with a single click. Ugh…maybe I should just keep to myself until this whole thing blows over…
Well, a couple of uneventful weeks passed. It was rather disappointing, too. How could April Fools' have passed so smoothly? Something was up…but, whatever, I can live without some childish pranks.
But honestly, how did I not notice before that Mei (Taiwan) still has a thing for Kiku?
"Awwwww!," I cooed as Mei clutched this precious piece of paper to her chest, we girls were sitting at a table together during lunch. This piece of paper, which reeked of cherry blossoms, was basically the Japanese man's way of asking a girl out. Really, I think that Kiku could've chosen a more, I don't know…romantic way to ask out Mei again. I knew that it must've felt SOOOO awkward since they kind-of broke up last year, but I don't care: this is another chance for me to play as the Matchmaker among my friends! Mwahahaha…
"He was just asking me out to have some coffee on Sunday, it's no big deal…," Mei protested, trying to hide her cheeks that were quickly turning red.
"Sure it is…," the rest of the girls: Elizaveta, Liechtenstein, Seychelles, and Belgium and I retorted. We were soooo going to dictate the poor girl's love life for the next few days…
"Ugh…what should I wear?"
"I say the pink one."
"No, the blue one!"
Ah, I just felt so girly today…we were helping Mei pick out her outfit for her "date" with Kiku that afternoon. Even though this was a huge change from my usual stoic-ness…I felt myself smile while I was reading latest issue of The Hetalian. Seriously, when was the last time you read your school newspaper? Well, being a sap on the inside, I turned to the Horoscope section of the paper.
"Virgo: Hey, there's not much more that you can say, so don't waste your voice or effort…"
Geez, talk about a positive outlook on the future…
"Move on or you'll just get frustrated."
Hmph...well people have always told me to relax.
"Romance seems likely this week."
Bullshit. O.K., screw Horoscopes. Stuffing the newspaper back into my bag, I said, "Say, Mei, have you chosen something yet? You don't want to keep your Kiku-kun waiting!"
"S-Shut up! It's not like that!," Mei came out blushing in some pink dress with a light blue sash at her waist. "Do I look O.K.?"
"Oh my gosh, it suits you so well!," Belgium said.
"Yeah, pink is so your color, but adding in something different couldn't hurt.," Liechtenstein quietly commented.
"Alright, now you'd better get going, Kiku's probably pacing in circles, just absolutely crazy for-"
"Jackie, you didn't do anything!," Hungary said, crossing her arms.
"Hey, I was here for emotional support!," I protested.
"Emotional support, yeah right!," Seychelles added, agreeing with Elizaveta.
"Ugh, fine, then what do you want me to do?," I asked.
"You are going to bring her over there, make sure she doesn't chicken out-"
"Sure! It's not like I'm right here, listening to you!," Mei said out loud, obviously not appreciating them talking about her like that.
"If you insist…," I groaned. "Alright Mei, let's go."
We were quickly approaching the coffee place and Mei was starting to freak out.
"What do I do?"
"What can we talk about?"
"What if I run out of things to say?"
"What if-!"
"Listen to me, Mei.," I cut her off. "You look stunning, you know this guy…you got this!" I should soooo be commended for my oh-so inspiring pep talks that I give like, once in a blue moon.
"You really think so?," her brown eyes lit up. "Thanks-"
"Don't mention it, now when we get there-"
"Oh, look! He's already here!," Mei interrupted, then she practically dragged me over to where Kiku was waiting for her. Gosh, her grip was rather tight. Well, I could obviously see that Kiku himself was nervous about the whole thing and-
Wait, who the heck is that?
"Hi Kiku!," Mei happily greeted him, making his cheeks immediately flush a light pink.
She had let go of me, but my gaze didn't let go of the friend that Kiku had brought along. I'll give you a hint: who else in this dang school has the ability to fall asleep in every single class and probably loves cats more than Kiku? Goddammit! Why? Fate is such a bitch, or maybe it's me that's the bitch…
Gosh, I was so lost in my own thoughts that I didn't notice Kiku and Mei walk off together, leaving me alone with his friend. Wanting to say something to Heracles, I kept my mouth shut. Seriously, my life would be so much less complicated if I had always shut my mouth, right? A good forty-five seconds passed with nary a blink or eye contact made. Once I had built up the courage to say a word, he took a few steps towards me. Aw crap, what do I do-!
…My fears were put to rest as Heracles simply walked away.
I was relieved, at first…but a little hurt inside. O.K., NO, this doesn't mean that I like him, but…after leading on a girl like this…you'd think that he would have had the guts to do something.
Pfft, whatever. At least now I can relax, dealing with these conflicting emotions is just not my forte.
"You want me to do WHAT?," I looked at the Geometry teacher like he was crazy that following Monday morning.
"I'm so sorry, but if you looked at his grades, they're nothing compared to when you were tutoring him.," he handed me Alfred's recent geometry test.
Scanning over his work, my heart just fell into the deepest depths of my chest. All of his mistakes were stupid ones, which was what bothered me. Was he seriously stupid or just not trying?
"I'm afraid he won't pass this semester if he doesn't brush up on his test scores.," the teacher grimly said.
Sighing, I finally conceded. Honestly, it's not that I didn't want to help Alfred get his grades up again…but why was he suddenly failing so badly? Really, after I tutored him back long before Christmas break, he really didn't need it anymore. Now, it just seems like he was really distracted, or something…
"All I'm asking is that he can at least pass his next test-"
"I'll be sure to make him practically ace it.," I said proudly, giving back Alfred's test paper.
That afternoon, I ran back to the Geometry classroom after Orchestra practice, where Alfred was waiting, drumming his fingers on his desk. Really, it just felt awkward being back in that setting, almost like déjà frickin' vu.
"So, Alfred?," I timidly opened the door just a crack.
"Hey, what's up?," he happily greeted.
"Yeah, now would you care to explain this?," I pointed accusingly at his test paper's grade on his desk.
"Oh, um, yeeeaaah…about that…!," Alfred nervously replied. "I guess I was having a bad day?"
"The Alfred F. Jones that I know wouldn't dare say that "the HERO" had a bad day.," I retorted.
"Well, I guess it's because things are different now-"
"Seriously, your tone is scaring me, there's obviously something wrong.," I took a seat next to him. "Really, you can tell me, or perhaps Erin-"
"Erin wouldn't know about this.," Alfred interrupted. "…It's just that…"
"What! Spit it out already!"
"…I've missed having you around, you know?," he looked down. "I mean, I love Erin and all…but it was different hanging out with you."
SAY WHAT? I was just flabbergasted at his excuse. Gosh, Alfred could really be so silly sometimes, right? "Ugh, don't worry about it, Alfred! I've been neck-deep in schoolwork, and I'm sorry for not hanging out as much. In fact, I haven't been hanging out with anybody as much lately."
"Really?," Alfred asked, picking his head up. "I could've sworn that I heard Seychelles and Poland say that-"
Grrrr… If they told him about my drama audition, I'm going to kill her…
"Whatever, let's just forget about that for now and I'll help you with this.," I tried to completely change the subject as I reached for his geometry work, but his hand grabbed mine before I could even pick it up.
"Just…," he held my hand tight and made me look him straight in the eye before saying, "…don't forget about your hero, O.K.?"
"Uh…," my mind went blank for a moment, allowing him to seize this opportunity to wrap his arms around me. Breaking off the hug I reassured him, "Of course I won't, alright? Now, with these theorems-"
"Say, we should totally hang out this weekend! Does Friday work for you?"
"Um-"
"Awesome! I guess 3:30 is also cool with you, right?"
Realizing that I couldn't argue with him, I smiled, "Yeah, Friday, 3:30…I got it."
After that awkward moment was engraved in my head for all eternity, we went on with his work, and as promised…well, let's just say that Alfred was able to pass Geometry for the semester.
Well, it's finally Friday again…nothing much really happened throughout the rest of the week, aside from classes, Orchestra, and drama rehearsals. However, I was still pretty shaken up by what Alfred said to me the other day. "Don't forget about your hero?" Geez, this is too depressing for Alfred F. Jones. But I had to admit, I could still feel that awkward embrace and to be honest…I really didn't mind it-
OH GOD, what's wrong with me today? Even if I did feel something for this guy, …he's Erin's guy now. Speaking of Erin, I wonder how she was doing nowadays-
My cell phone's ringtone interrupted my train of thought. Hm, I wonder who was calling me now? Glancing at the caller I.D., it was Alfred. Speaking of Alfred, where is he? He's 15 minutes late!
"Hello?," I answered.
"Hey, sorry Jack, but I gotta bail on you now.," Alfred replied, it sounded like he was in a rush or something.
"What? What happened?," I demanded to know.
"It's Erin, we're kind of in a tight situation here…and I don't want to leave her so angry at me-"
"Someone's mad at the hero? What the hell did you do to her, Alfred?," I was fuming at the fact that he would do something like that to my friend.
"It's a long story, and I'll talk to you later, 'kay?," and with that said, he hung up on me.
Still fuming, I had to find out what the hell had happened between the two of them. I thought that they were totally into each other! Just what the heck was going on-
"Hey, what's up?," is it just me, or has Denmark been popping out of nowhere lately?
Glaring, I said, "It's none of your business."
"Doesn't look like it, just why are you so upset, anyway?," he started walking toward me.
"Like I said, it's none of your damn business!," I turned to walk away when his strong grip secured my poor wrist. "Hey, let go!" My muscles immediately tensed up as I tried to yank out my hand, and of course, I had no such luck.
"Say, since your "hero" can't be here now…," he leaned in closer so that we were face-to-face. "…how would you like to spend the rest of the day with the King of Northern Europe?" (A/N: Just as America constantly calls himself the hero, Denmark often refers to himself as the "King of Northern Europe.")
"Um…no?," I felt my cheeks instantly flush pink, trying to avert my eyes to avoid my cheeks from turning into a deeper color. Geez, why did he have to be so close?
"Hm, that's weird, I've never seen you blush-!," Denmark chuckled, then ran off to the campus gates, of course dragging me behind.
"W-Wait! I didn't agree to this!," I protested, trying to resist against his firm grip.
"Relax, O.K.?," he grinned, still dragging me along on this little escapade.
Gulping hard, I glanced at my watch, then at the clear skies above my head. I had a few hours to kill…what could go wrong?
"O.K., it's rather weird that you're dragging me out here like this, just what the heck is going on?," I asked him. Really, first Alfred, and now Denmark? This past week has sort of been some sort of nostalgia trip of the first half of the year: me tutoring Alfred in Geometry again and now just randomly hanging out with this guy since Alfred' s not around. Honestly, have you ever felt like fate is pulling your chain just to mess with you? Well, that's how I feel right now…
"What? We haven't seen each other much lately, so what's up?," Denmark casually replied.
"Oh, nothing much- Wait! Don't go changing the subject!," I replied.
"Pfft, just because America doesn't want to see you anymore, it doesn't mean that you have to lash out at me.," he pouted, looking the other way.
"What!," I exclaimed. "He promised that we could hang out today, it's just that he and Erin aren't doing too well nowadays, so I'm letting him ditch me, for Erin's sake-"
"Hm? Really? Sounds like she could be jealous or something…," Denmark smirked.
"Hey! You don't know Erin, so shut up!," I retorted in my friend's defense. "I bet Alfred just said or did (or both) something stupid, and I'm pretty sure that he's not cheating on her, 'cause if he did…" Cue in me cracking my knuckles menacingly.
"God, you're pretty oblivious, aren't you?," he sighed, tousling my hair.
"Just what do you mean?," I proceeded to fix my hair as Denmark stopped in the middle of the bustling sidewalk and grabbed my shoulders, practically forcing us to look into each other's eyes. "…What the hell's going on?"
"Seriously, wouldn't this Erin girl be a bit suspicious of Alfred wanting to suddenly hang out with you? Especially with a face like yours?"
Pardon my language, but what the fuck? I stayed silent, not having a smart-assed retort this time.
"Listen, has anyone ever told you before that you're pretty cute?," he came out and said it to my face, literally. Gosh, this guy's got guts…
"U-u-um…n-n-no, b-but I-I u-um, appreciate the c-compliment-," I stuttered, obviously torn between feeling embarrassed or flattered. Really, I should've borrowed Ludwig's copy of "Relationships: For Dummies" if I had known something like this would happen.
"You know what? You're freaking hopeless.," Denmark's head just fell, looking rather disappointed.
"Hopeless for what?"
"I know that you're not this stupid and oblivious, but just sayin'…," his vague dialogue left me in suspense.
"Out with it, already!-"
An ominous smile crawled onto his face, his grip tightening on my bony shoulders.
"Hey, quit messing around!," I hissed.
"But I'm dead serious about this.," leaning in closer, his lips were literally just a few inches away from mine.
"No, please!," I begged, pushing him away. He backed up a good deal from my face almost instantly. "Oh gosh, I'm so sorry! I didn't mean-!"
"Nevermind, just forget about it, O.K.?," he finally let go of me, to my relief, but what was that all about? "I'm sorry about what I said about Erin, I totally take it back, it was none of my business. I gotta meet up with Norway and the others anyway, later."
"No! Wait!," I protested. "I don't understand, I-" He was already walking away into the distance. "Den-!" I went to call for him, if wasn't for the cursed storm clouds that started to gather overhead. "Shit!" Now insert some corny music to complete this cliché, soap-opera scene.
Honestly, I hate rain sometimes, how about you? Luckily for me, I managed to go out and quickly buy an umbrella to ensure that I won't be soaked by the time I get back to the campus. Seriously, what was Denmark's problem nowadays? He wasn't acting all confident (and perhaps arrogant) as he usually does…so something was up. In fact, I think that there's something up with everybody here now!
…After I thought long and hard about it for a second, the answer hit me in the form of some epiphany as the rain started to let up. Ah!~ How could I have forgotten? Spring's in the air, and when you add some hormone-charged teenagers… Geez, what kind of messed up analysis of the situation have I concocted?
But, whatever. I think I'm starting to forget that I'm a teenager too. Sad, I know-
Wait! Who was that? I squinted as I caught eye of a human figure ahead as I approached the dorms. Whoever it was, why were they sitting (or maybe sleeping?) out here in the pouring freakin' rain?
"Hey! YOU!," I ran over to the rescue with my umbrella. See? I can be considerate, too! Upon closer inspection of this lone individual, …who would've freakin' guessed that it was everyone's favorite cat-loving nation? Really, doesn't my life just seem like one of those predictable click-flicks? Ugh, well, there's no use in arguing with fate, so I proceeded to attempt to wake him up.
"…Wakey, wakey!," I said. No response.
"Greece…" Goddamn, this guy was a deep sleeper.
"Heracles?"
…Was anything going to work out for me today?-
Wait, I got an idea…
"Meow~"
His blue-green (A/N: In the anime, Greece's eyes are green, but according to the Hetalia Wikia, they're blue-green or some other color like that. Personally, I think the anime kind of screws up some of the character's colors, so whatever. Plus, I think he looks cuter with blue-green ones anyway.) immediately opened with my poor imitation of a meowing kitty.
"Um, hi!," Boy, do I know how to make a conversation, don't I? "What're you doing out here, don't you know that you can get freaking sick from staying out too long?"
"…Yes…but I guess that I was…too caught up in my own thoughts…and I fell asleep.," he replied, obviously still a bit drowsy. "…Sorry for making you worry-"
"Worry? Whoever said anything about me being worried, huh?," I retorted. Crap, UGH! I'm such an idiot, now why do I come up with a smart-ass comment now? "Never mind, the least I can do is help you dry up."
Where I got the idea to bring this guy into my dorm, I do not know…but one thing's for sure…just how long was Heracles out there? He was practically soaking wet! Once we got to my dorm, I rushed to get a towel, not wanting to risk soaking my floors too.
"Here, you can dry yourself off with this for now.," I threw it over his shoulders. "Just what were you thinking about so much about that made you fall asleep out there anyway?"
"…Well…I was looking for one of my cats…and I kind of dozed off…"
Really? Well, there'll be no missing kitties on my watch! But first, I went to go find more towels, or something of the sort to help dry him off when I heard him start sneezing.
"Sounds like you're starting to get a cold, too.," I sighed, then went to go search my medicine cabinet. Having peanut allergies, I always keep antihistamines close by, that and some over the counter stuff for the cold and flu. Ah, I could always count on my mom for providing me with prescriptions for all this stuff…
Now that I've gone and explained the contents of my medicine cabinet, I took out a bottle of some of that over the counter stuff I mentioned. "Here, this should help." He didn't respond much as I held out the medicine. "Or would you want to swallow it with something? Drinking a lot of fluids helps with stuff like this."
"…Sure…"
Not one for words, isn't he? I grabbed a glass of water from my tiny kitchen and he was finally willing to swallow it. While he slowly swallowed the medicine, I couldn't help but notice some small droplets of water still dangling from his hair. Sighing, I said, "Hmph…you didn't dry yourself completely." Taking the towel, I had to get on my tip-toes to reach the top of his head. "There, that's better."
Putting his empty glass on a nearby side table, Heracles asked, "…Why did you help me?...Weren't you and America supposed to go on a date today-?"
"It's not a date, I swear!," I oh-so rudely interrupted. "Ugh, but that's beside the point. I couldn't help but wonder why you would go out and get yourself sick like this. That and I consider you a…rather close acquaintance of mine." Yeah, now don't you go thinking that "close acquaintance"="I like you," O.K.? "Now how about that lost kitty?"
"I think I last saw him running down… this alley.," Heracles pointed to a rather shady area of the campus.
"Hm, you sure?," I asked. "Doesn't look like the place where a kitty would like to hide."
"…I'm pretty sure that I saw him…," he replied, running off to the alley.
"Wait up!," I ran after him with my umbrella.
Perhaps running off with a man to find his cat in a dark alley wasn't the brightest idea. I looked up, down, left, right, all over, and no trace of the missing kitty.
"Greece?," I walked over to him, he was farther in the dryer depths of the alley, very little rain trickled down here. But I could see that he was once again, soaking wet from running out here again in all of a sudden. Geez… "Yeah, I don't think he's here…"
"Oh, …well, thank you.," he said. "I wish I could repay you…"
"Don't mention it, just…well…I don't know…," I continued rambling on, not knowing what else to say, until I let out one of my infamous loud sneezes. Crap, maybe running out in the rain wasn't such a good idea after all…
"…So you're sick too?"
"N-No! It's probably nothing.," I replied with a nervous laugh. Aw, who am I kidding? Spring is here and so is allergy season.
"…You're shivering, too.," Heracles said, bringing to my attention that my hands were still shaking from the damn cold outside. Really, how the heck did I forget that I was also pretty soaking wet? My entire back was freezing cold, and so was my neck, and from experience, I knew that this was a bad sign. Leaving such vulnerable points on your body was just an invitation for illness. Taking the jacket loosely place on his shoulders, he wrapped it around my back. "…Well…thanks again for your help…"
"No problem-"
"Say, …I should thank you…in some way…," he gripped my chin, making me look up.
"Um, no thanks!," I said. "Why don't I just-"
Before I could further explain myself, he immediately pulled me into him. Geez, what was the big deal with everyone suddenly having a strong grip? And this is coming from a martial artist, mind you…
"U-Um…Heracles?-," I asked, well, it actually sounded more like a whimper. Ugh, I can't sound so pathetic in the close proximity of a hot guy- no! Um… 'good-looking' is the term I'm looking for!
"…I don't want to seem so…ungrateful for your help, so I hope this is enough for making you worry your pretty face about me…," O.K., is it just me, or is that the longest that he has ever talked? Oh wait, what did he mean by "this?" I could just feel the butterflies in my stomach whirling up a storm. But that was nothing compared to when our lips touched.
…Wait, OH HEEEEEEELLLLL NO! There is no way this is happening! I attempted to break it off, but in opening my mouth, that just left me completely hopeless as his tongue slipped in. Oh, God… seriously, don't get the idea that I'm enjoying this- Aw, who am I kidding?
I tried to beg him to stop, but my "Please…" came out more like a moan. Ugh, he was sooo waiting for me to hear me say that. Not wanting to give him the satisfaction of practically dominating the kiss, I closed my mouth shut. In response to denying him entrance, I was thrust against the wall. Crap, getting out of this wasn't going to be easy, but thank GOD we finally separated for the sake of air!
"So, that's it?," I asked in a sly tone. Yeah, there was no way I was walking out of here with him having practically claimed my mouth his!
"Well…that depends…but if you'll stay-"
"Ah, I think I'll stay…but only for a little while longer."
I'll leave it to your sick, twisted imaginations of how that "little while longer" turned out, but let's just say that my mouth is still some "uncharted territory."
Say, is it considered treason if I, a human, kiss a nation other than my own? Well, if it is, I'm totally guilty.
To be continued