I'm sorry I took so long to repost something... I hope you enjoy this chapter thou.

Palestine tries to move his fingers to test the resistance of Israel's bandage on his right hand. It was tight and comfortable, didn't restrain the movements of his fingers, although he couldn't move them totally due to his sore hand.

His attention is broken as Israel's fingers touch slightly the top of his bandage, and despite the thickness of the tissue, he could feel her careful moves tease his hound almost pleasantly, although he felt innerly nervous and focussed on her fingers before she pulls them away.

"It's good, it will heal." She says before resting his plate in front of him. Once again, he would have the rare blessing of her hospitality, she must be really bored and lonely to accept to stand him for that long, but he wouldn't complain just yet. It was always better to stand her and annoy her than be at the place she had picked for his people. And a lot better than coming and going from his land to hers and waste hours on the checkpoints.

He looks at the food enjoying the smell but, he forgets one simple detail as he tries in vain to grab a fork with his hand.

"Damn it, I can't eat." He says as he tries to force the fingers to touch - to copy a grab - but he was incapable of it. He looks unconsciously at Israel, who had sat in front of him, and her exposed teeth in a huge smile made him shiver and blush right away knowing what she was thinking. "I can eat alone!" He shouts.

"You sure…?" She asks teasingly as she hisses while leaning on the table to be more near him.

"Yes!" He picks the fork with his left side trying as best as he could with his most unpracticable hand. He never thought it would demand such attention and persistence to pick the food with a fork, even turning the material in circles just to catch the pasta was proving to be a huge challenge but was a hell of a lot better than accept Israel's help!

"You know I could just…"

"No."

"No one would…"

"No."

"It would be cute."

"NO!" He shouts breaking his intense concentration and making the fork somehow fly away from his hand. "Damn it!"

Israel giggles and startles Palestine as he hears her dragging her chair next to him.

"Come on Palestine, it's not worth to make yourself difficult, I promise I will keep this only between you and me." She speaks smoothly, too much for his liking, and uses her cutlery to cut the food for him. "Open up your mouth now." She says sweetly and before he could think, he obeyed with his attention focused on her eyes. Only after he swallowed the food that he saw her eat too, using the same fork. He realized just how much weird it was that situation and didn't feel comfortable to continue to accept this type of help.

"I'm no longer hungry…" He looks the other direction to hide away his discomfort, but Israel follows his mouth and rests her free arm on his shoulders to distress him enough to convince him to open the mouth, in a vain hope she would get away right after.

"Don't be silly." She says highly enjoying her quiet tease. "You're starving." She leans on his shoulders again and he was getting frustrated just how she managed to manipulate him to obey her one more time.

She comes again and his mouth speaks before she could get any closer with the food.

"About the children?" Her amused stare wide opens in shock and surprise, but soon her good mood starts to shatter as she sighs and rolls her eyes before looking at him vaguely again.

"What about we talk after dinner?"

"You said before it would be after taking care of my hand, I won't let you procrastinate what you promised me anymore." She sighs and sits back on her chair letting his shoulders free for his relieve.

"You're breaking my appetite, you know?"

"Good, I want you to speak, not eat." She grins at him, taking another bite of food into her mouth and prepares another fork for him. Clearly, just for the pleasure to oppose him.

"Fine, but I will continue to feed you, or else I won't speak." He nods shyly and opens his mouth to accept her offer. "Keep your mouth well-closed or you will spill."

"Is-!"

"Shut up." She blocks his mouth with her hand and sighs getting very serious now. "There was some trouble on the other side, one of my soldiers that were securing the queue to get in was injured." Palestine makes sure to gulp before speaking and takes her hand away from his mouth with his good hand.

"What that has to do with the children?" Israel intensifies her gaze on him, leaving him aware she wouldn't soon be giving him any pleasant information. She pushes another fork on his mouth first, as vain open to keep him quiet for a while, and silent.

"My soldier was attacked by a group of kids who thought to be a good idea to throw rocks at him. One hit right on his forehead and he started bleeding and fainted with the impact. The soldiers around thought it had been some snipper's shot because of the amount of blood coming from his head and fired warning shots, and the children run in panic."

"Israel… You didn't…!" She shuts him with another fork.

"When I got there, the soldiers had caught two of the kids. They were not sure if any of them was the one who had thrown the rock, so they were taken for custody." Palestine gulps in a hurry to speak.

"How old are they?" Israel takes her time, trying to remember.

"I believe one has ten, the other twelve."

"Israel, they're children, despite what they might have done, you took them without their parent's supervision!"

"They have been warned, don't worry." She says calmly, annoying his guts, but she speaks before he could spit his displeasure. "I wish you were equally worried about the innocent soldier as much you're for these rude brats." Palestine has to bite his lip harshly to not start firing insults without thinking. For someone as Israel, who didn't want to start an argument at first, seemed to lose respect and the control of her tongue pretty quickly.

"You assume he was innocent, only God knows what he does when you're not watching. Anyway, just say what happened to him if you want." She frowns making him realized she had gotten equally offended as much as him, although he was certain his choice of words was far from as offensive as hers.

"He was just injured, he got up after a couple of minutes and he was stitched by one of my medic soldiers."

"Meanwhile the kids were crying in a room full of people they don't know, don't speak the same language and without any parent to protect them because of something they might not have been responsible for." He speaks calm, surprising himself for being able to speak in such manner despite his heartbeat increasing. "Are they still there?"

"They are, and they will stay locked for the night and will go back home tomorrow morning."

"Why?"

"The parents didn't come to pick them on time, they couldn't pass the checkpoint."

"Why didn't you give him an easy pass?!" He shuts immediately not wanting to lose control already.

"They were troublemakers, I have them on my records. I'm sure my soldiers caught the right criminals, although they shall never admit, after all, apples don't fall far from their trees."

Instinctively out of rage, Palestine grabs Israel by the collar, fighting to don't do something he would regret, but her serene eyes patiently waiting for him to do something that would justify her violence was driving him mad.

"They are just scared kids."

"With a lack of proper manners." She adds, not fading her cocky tone of flinching her stare fro him. "If the parents don't know how to educate the brats, I will."

"By locking them?!" He was losing, he felt his timbre shake with rage as his breathing rhythm becomes too unstable.

"Give them a taste of consequences. They will stay this night on a cell, and they will think twice the next time they think about starting a mess. Their names are on my records now, I will keep them in check and I won't be so tolerant in the future again."

"They're kids, Israel!"

"A five-year-old child would already know he shouldn't be playing with fire! If yours don't know when they have crossed the line, it's all your fault and the parent's for not caring about their safety!" She shouts ending up losing her temper too.

"I'm done." He lets her go and gets up looking around for his bag to go away.

"Where are you going?" She asks getting up after him. "You haven't finished your meal."

"I have already said I wasn't hungry, and I can't stand being near you anymore. I'm going back to the rented house." He grabs his bag with his left hand, but Israel pulls his bag back making him turn to her, annoyed for her persistence to piss him off.

"Are you insane Palestine? Look at you! Do you want your people to see you like that?! Rest here, I will give you a day or two off." She says more calmly in the end as she caresses his arm making him feel right away outraged for her fake sympathy.

"You don't care about me, you only care about the troubles you will get after they see what you did to me!" He pulls his bag back.

"That's not true! Do you think you're able to work like this? You look a mess; you will only shame yourself!"

"This! This! And this!" He shouts pointing at his face and lifting his right hand. "It's all proves that you abused me! You the one who should be ashamed!"

"Your hand!? You the one who harmed yourself, you dirty liar!"

"The handcuffs were yours, weren't they? You locked me with no reason! I have this all because of you, now taste the fucking consequences!" She frowns and keeps quiet, not saying any other word. He takes it as a silent surrender and turns to the door to get out, but had he barely opened the door, she was right next to it and easily forced the door to shut with her hand. "Isra-!"

"Please, don't go." She whispers and before he could process what she had said her arms were already around his torso tightened into a hug.

He lets his bag fall as he understood what she was doing. She was smaller than her female neighbours and even more than him, but her training skills left her with a strong grip, too much for him don't see just how much desperate she was. He holds her shoulders intending to push her away, but the squeeze tightens, and he immediately knew she was not willing to let him go no matter what he tried to do or say.

She was making him feel so weird, everything about that was weird. They just had a discussion, and she dared to now hug him? For the worst, her embrace was making him cosy and warm. That was uncomfortable.

His brain gets blocked by guilt while his heart beats strong as he reciprocates the embrace, daring to close the eyes just to remember how it feels to love instead of hate. It could last for hours for him and it still wasn't enough, and it seemed like she wished the same as she didn't relax at any second. But his mind was getting slowly back to his senses as guilt was too much unbearable for him to handle.

Gradually, he moves his hands on her back to her shoulders again, hearing her relaxed breath against his chest, then, a small push, just to make her notice it was time to end it. Israel gives him some space but doesn't let him go just yet only the enough to be able to look him in the face, and nothing more. He wished she didn't.

"This will be the last time I sleep in your place." He speaks low and she agrees with a nod.