Chapter 13: Magda
"How does it feel?" Canada asked me as he stretched out my leg. I would lie if I said that I didn't feel anything because I did but it wasn't a particularly sharp pain and I could live with the soreness that would come afterwards.
"It hurts but not too bad," I said. He let go of my leg.
"And you can walk without any problem?" he asked. He sounded so much like a doctor but I didn't say anything. He had let me be his doctor when he was wounded and he was just returning the favour.
"If you mean without falling to the ground crying out in pain so, yes I can walk," I replied.
"I suggest you to only take walks as training for a few days so you can build up your strength," he said. I nodded and was quite glad that I wouldn't have to join the others in their training sessions. It was not that I didn't want to learn. On the contrary I was looking forward to learning how to shoot an arrow and use a sword but I also knew that Ladonia would be a lot tougher on me than anyone else and I wouldn't be able to stand his bossy attitude for too long and I feared what I would do if he made me cross.
"Where have you learnt about all the medical stuff?" I asked. He had shown a lot of expertise in the field lately and there had to be a story behind it. Sure he had probably liked me learnt a thing or two during wars but it was more to it, I just knew it.
"It's a good knowledge to have," he said and shrugged his shoulders.
"There is something you aren't telling me," I stated.
"Maybe, maybe not," he said and I knew that he wouldn't tell me anything at the moment about it but I wouldn't give up. I would find out it someday. Canada had been a great friend during my stay here. While Tino seemed to grow more distant by the day, Canada was the only one I could trust. We had been through a lot together and I knew that he shared my concerns about Ladonia and whether we could trust him or not.
"There you are," a perky voice said and Belarus walked over to us where we sat in the kitchen. Although she hadn't exactly asked me again if I wanted to have an alliance with her I knew that was what she was aiming for with her friendly attitude towards me and Canada. I had thought about her proposition. It would be good to have an ally but I couldn't be sure if she was one of the good ones or not.
"You should have been there when Ladonia lost his temper when Finland accidentally shot him with an arrow," she said and giggled at the memory.
"Is he okay?" I asked. I might not be his biggest fan but getting struck by an arrow was quite painful and I didn't wish for him to be harmed, at least not until I had found out whether he was one of the people behind this mess, then Tino could fire as many arrows at him as he wished.
"It just grazed his right shoulder but he completely lost it," she explained. When she spoke of things like that she always sounded like she thought it to be very funny that another person had got harmed. It didn't really help her cause if she tried to win us over. When we didn't seem to react to her story she seemed to lose the perky act.
"Thought you would think it was funny," she said and looked at me. She knew that I didn't trust Ladonia after she caught me looking around Ladonia's room. Canada looked at me with a questioning look. Belarus looked between the two of us.
"Oh you didn't tell your boyfriend about your suspicions," she said.
"He's not my boyfriend," I said quickly.
"Right," she said with a tone like she didn't believe me. I was just about to tell her about Antonio but decided against it. I wasn't even sure if I could say that he was my boyfriend anymore.
"I'm going to go and check on Ladonia," Canada said and left the table. I didn't want to be alone with Belarus but wouldn't be so rude that I would leave the table.
"Thought he never would leave," she said and leaned closer to me. "I know that there is nothing going on between the two of you." So the only reason she did it was to make me feel uncomfortable. Great.
"What I do know is that something happened between you and Finland," she says. I looked at her. I thought that it hadn't been that obvious. We hadn't talked that much since we got here and I hoped the others would just believe we didn't know each other that well. But of course, Belarus would know since she must have noticed it during our time at the meetings.
"I prefer not to talk about it," I said.
"I know you aren't but Finland sure is," she said. That got my attention. I thought he just ignored me and tried to forget that the entire never happened.
"You don't know?" she asked and I shook my head. "He's saying all kinds of things about you to Ladonia and Molossia." For the first time in a long time, I felt like I was going to explode with anger. How could he? Just because I rejected him? Without saying anything more to Belarus I stood up and marched outside to where the others were. I forgot about my sore leg and walked over to where Finland was currently fencing against Hutt River.
"How dare you?" I asked clear and loud so that everyone could hear. Everyone stopped what they were doing and looked at me. Belarus had followed me outside and was looking at the entire thing with amusement. Finland looked at me like he didn't understand what I was talking about.
"I rejected you, yes but don't think for a second that gives you a reason to talk about me behind my back," I said and I could see the embarrassment in his eyes which told me that it was all true. Never before had I felt so betrayed. Not even when Éloïse left with her brother had I felt so bad. But I didn't cry. I wouldn't let him see that what he did actually hurt me.
"I thought you were my friend," I continued and I kept my voice high without screaming. I wanted everyone else to hear so that he would feel as foolish as I did for trusting him.
"You are my friend…" he said but I wouldn't let him finish the sentence.
"Apparently my friendship isn't enough," I interrupted. "I will never forgive you for this." It was the last thing I said before leaving him standing there.
I hurried to my room and locked the door just in case someone wanted to follow me and ask me how I felt or in the worst case, Finland coming and trying to apologise. I wouldn't let him though, not in the first place. I didn't even know what he had told the others but he had probably revealed a lot of secrets and talked how a horrible person I was for rejecting him. But I wouldn't allow him to have that power of my life. If he couldn't accept being just my friend I saw no point in trying to be nice to him. This was his doing and I hoped that he would regret it for his entire existence. It felt quite good to have confronted him and it felt like the future could one change for the better now.