This was written in answer to a request I got on Tumblr!

Original request: Can you write a ficlet where America is jealous of Cuba for how much he hangs out with Canada?

Summary: America makes the unpleasant discovery that his little brother has other friends as well.

Missing Piece

Alfred stretched himself with a sigh, straining his back until he felt something pop.

"Another day, another job done!" he complimented himself as he stood up from the chair.

In truth, it was only lunchtime – the conference would resume in two hours. Nevertheless, Alfred thought that he deserved some praises, world conferences were always so stressful! And that one had been particularly bad, with everybody trying to undermine him at every turn. It was high time to do something fun and brighten his day.

Fortunately, Alfred knew exactly how to accomplish that. Whistling under his breath, he sauntered towards the hall.

His objective was exactly where he would have expected him to be, fidgeting on his feet next to the door.

Alfred's lips opened into a small smile. Matthew didn't look as dejected as he often did during conferences, he wasn't hunched over himself as if he wanted to disappear. However, Alfred knew how hard being in such a high-stress and crowded environment was on his little brother. He would surely welcome a break – and even more, he would welcome Alfred's company.

"Hey, Mattie!"

Hearing the greeting, his brother turned and reciprocated with a nod and a smile. Alfred's mood was already soaring. Conferences were boring and often felt like a useless waste of time, but making his brother happy? That was the opposite of useless, it was an accomplishment that always made Alfred feel better.

"So, how hungry are you? I saw a burger joint not far from here that looked quite promising, I think we should give it a try and—"

"For lunch?" Matthew interrupted him, his forehead furrowed.

Alfred rolled his eyes internally. He didn't understand why his brother would always be so surprised that he wanted to spend some time with him – they were brothers, for crying out loud! – but he had enough experience to know he couldn't change that. Besides, he couldn't deny that the way Matthew's eyes lit up any time he realized Alfred wanted to include him was quite gratifying…

"Of course! It's lunchtime now, so we're having lunch!"

As he was accustomed to doing, Alfred grabbed Matthew's forearm to steer him towards the door – only to be met with unexpected resistance.

"Oh! Al, I'm sorry, you didn't tell me anything about having lunch together this morning…"

Alfred frowned at the apologetic tone in his brother's voice and gave his arm another tug.

"Well yeah, I don't see what—"

"So I've already made plans," Matthew concluded. His free hand rose to detach Alfred's fingers from his forearm, gently but with firmness.

"You have other plans?"

That didn't sound like Matthew at all. Maybe it was some sort of joke… but Matthew looked serious, even if not regretful enough.

"Uh, yeah. I'm really sorry about this… If you want we can have dinner together, but right now I'm going with Carlos and— ah, there he is. See you later!"

Without wasting another second, Matthew walked towards the approaching figure of Cuba. Alfred was left staring at them, his mouth agape.

This has to be a joke…

But Matthew greeted Cuba with warmth, a genuine smile on his face. His voice was lively, his eyes bright… Alfred couldn't believe his eyes.

Yet, as he witnessed the two walk outsides and then down the main stairs, the situation didn't change. Matthew even threw his head back and laughed at something Cuba said.

Something unpleasantly bitter stirred inside Alfred's stomach. He was the only one who made Matthew laugh with such abandon, that was just… wrong.

Not to mention, Matthew would never look so at ease with somebody he didn't know well. Whatever… that was, it had to have been going on for a while now.

Trying to ignore the cold ball growing in his chest, Alfred grabbed his phone and scrolled through Instagram. He had never even thought about following Cuba, but he was sure that somebody like Romano did… and true to his prediction, there was Cuba's profile. It was public, too. Without thinking, Alfred clicked on it.

The first swipe down was like a punch to the chest. Not even ten pictures in, and there was already one of him and Matthew at some beach, smiling in front of the sea. Matthew looked a bit bashful as he always did in front of the camera, but his shoulders weren't tense and his eyes were bright. No matter what he would have liked to pretend, Alfred was aware that that smile was genuine.

Even worse, it wasn't the only one picture. With growing dread, Alfred kept scrolling down and was met with several similar scenarios: once again at the beach, in the snow, even at a festival… the location changed, but Matthew was always there. His rident face settled inside Alfred's stomach with the weight of a rock.

An alien, unpleasantly cold feeling coiled inside his chest.

That fool! Cuba's going to hurt him, Matthew can't trust somebody like that!

…Even though Matthew clearly did. Moreover, that had to be going on for years – Alfred wasn't stupid. If something bad had to happen, it would have already.

Still… there was something unfair in that. Matthew spending so much time with somebody else as well… his brother having his own friend should be something good. But there were so many pictures… Alfred should have been in them.

The bitterness on his tongue tasted like loss.

(word count: 901)

Note: I actually think Canada still spends more time with America than with Cuba, but well... America doesn't like sharing.