Hey there, it's me. I feel like I'm really rushing chapters, but I wanted to get one more chapter done before school. This will probably be uploaded on Monday, and I just wanted to get this out. It's probably a bit longer than other chapters, and I hope that's okay. I have the usual warnings of: Anorexia/Bulimia, cursing, and improper grammar/spelling.
Britain sighed, wishing he could drink himself to a stupor, but he knew that was a bad idea in more ways than one. If he was home in London, he would have gone to the bar, with or without Wales or Northern Ireland to be a designated driver, and drink until he was seeing double. However, he was not in London; He was in New York City, sharing a hotel room with a man who might take advantage of him coming in drunk, plus he had a very important meeting tomorrow, and he had to go see America. The last one was his most important reason, because Britain's hangovers tended to last a very long time, and he didn't want to snap at the poor lad as soon as he got to the hospital. To replace the numbing wash that alcohol could give him, Britain decided to buy a pack of cigarettes, and take up smoking again. "Again?" France asked, and Britain shrugged," Can't stop me, can you?" He replied, and the Frenchman sighed, moving to stand beside the Englishman in the alley," You know, Alfred would get on your ass for smoking, in his country none-zhe-less" France remarked, attempting to lighten the mood. "Yes, yes, Alfred does not like many of my habits, but Alfred isn't here now, is he?" Britain said dryly, and France folded his arms across his chest, leaning onto the cold wall," No need to be rude, I am simply trying to be a comedic relief" Britain rolled his eyes, taking a strong puff from the stick of nicotine and lung cancer. "Comedic relief is what got us in this mess, isn't it?" He asked, and France looked away for a few minutes. The duo was silent, until Britain dropped the remains of his cigarette on the concrete ground, stamping it out with his foot. "We should get back inside, we need to rest for tomorrow" Britain sighed, and France nodded in agreement. They made small talk for the short two minute walk to the hotel, the smell of smoke still fresh on Britain's breath.
"You came back finally" Came a quiet, almost unnoticeable voice. France turned his head to see his former colony, and little brother Canada. "Bonne nuit, Mathieu, me and Arzhur were just out talking" France lied, and Canada frowned slightly. "Don't lie to me, I know what Arthur was doing... I can smell it from here" Britain's face flushed in slight embarrassment, and he covered his mouth with his hand. "Canada, what do you want?" France sighed tiredly, and Canada shrugged," Dunno, I was just worried. You two weren't in your room and I was afraid you went and did something stupid..." Britain frowned, stepping beside his little brother, and placing a hand on his shoulder," We wouldn't do that to you now, would we?" He asked, and Canada looked uncertain. "The answer is no, but I understand why you worry. Honestly, I was worried I'd go out and get drunk, and I'm glad France came along before I made up my mind to do it" Canada nodded, before stepping away from Britain's hand. "C-can we all go to sleep now? It's nearly midnight" Canada said, and the two elder nations before him nodded. "Oui, our rooms are close, so we will see each ozher in zhe morning; and when zhe morning comes, we'll be able to zhink wizhout zhe 'elp of nicotine or alco'ol, oui?" Britain and Canada nodded, before calling an elevator.
America groaned, rolling onto his side. He stared at the darkness that covered his room, and he rubbed an eye tiredly. It had gotten colder the more the night progressed, and he was barely covered by a blanket or comforter. His pillow seemed to have gotten harder, and he couldn't seem to get comfortable. "Dammit" He croaked, reaching tiredly for his glasses. His tongue and lips felt dry, he needed a glass of water before he could ever fall back asleep. He finally put his glasses on, and sat up in his bed. America usually preferred to wear close to nothing when he slept, usually settling for a pair of briefs, or a tank-top and running shorts, but found himself wearing sweatpants and t-shirts more often now. "Alright, to the kitchen. Go, legs" He said hoarsely, his voice gravelly from lack of use. America couldn't see much in the darkness of the night, and he ran a hand along the wall to feel for corners and turns. Before he knew it, he had the lights turned on, and was getting a cup of water in a Captain America cup. "This isn't the kitchen, but it'll do" The blond sighed, taking a gulp of the cool, clear liquid, a bit of it dribbling down his chin. He wiped his mouth, and stared at himself in the mirror. The bathroom, of course, was where he ended up, dirty clothes strung on the floor, and towels lying in a pile on top of a cabinet. America was drawn to his reflection, to say the very least. He saw that his cheekbones were slightly more prominent, and his eyes stuck out a bit, but he never minded; he found those attributes to be attractive, and he did not care for his face one bit. The American proceeded to lift up his shirt, and eyed his torso strictly in the mirror. His pecs were still slightly flabby, and his gut still hung over the waist-band of his pants.
America frowned, dropping his shirt. His legs, they were fine; Smooth skin covering hard bone, and tan enough to look like he exercised a lot (Which he did). His arms were lithe and muscular, perfect for bearing the burdens of a superpower. The American pulled off his shirt and turned around, looking over his shoulder to see his back. It... wasn't as bad as the front, but it was still bad. The skin between his shoulder blades would bunch up into a small pile if he reached behind himself, and you could barely see the trail of his spine beneath all the fat. America's bottom lip quivered slightly, but forced himself to remain silent. He was America, the great US of A, and he would not cry over something as small as his weight problems. America bit his lip, and pulled his t-shirt back on to cover the fat of his body. "Time to go to sleep buddy" America told himself, flicking the lights off, and nearly running into a wall before adjusting to the dark.
Britain felt like slamming his head down the table, but he knew doing that would only attract unwanted attention to himself. They had reached the end of the meeting, and final words were something that were always exchanged at the end. Usually it was "The next meeting is on this day in this country" or "It's someone's birthday and we should sing", but today was different. China had begun to speak, hoping to get some of the information on America's debt to him, as he was ever persistent on getting his money. New England looked incredibly uncomfortable as China began to list all the ways America could start paying him little by little, hoping that the American representative would accept a method. "W-well den, Mr. China, dose sure are some wicked idea-ers, I'll bring dem up wit America" New England said uncertainly, and China frowned, pouting in a child-like manner," But you are America aru! At least, for today you are!" "And dat's why I should tell America, because I'm not in a position ta make dese long term decisions" China looked as if he wanted to argue, but New England cut him off," Tanks for respecting my choices, is dat all for today?" He asked Germany, who had taken over as host since America was not there to run everything. Germany nodded," Zhe next meeting is in London, zhe United Kingdom. Also, Greece vas very generous in inviting us to spend a day undisturbed on his coast, I shall hope to see jou all zhere! Dismissed!" Everyone sighed in relief, before rushing out of the room. The only ones left were Italy (Surprisingly), Germany, Japan, Britain, France, Canada, and New England. "If Greece is inviting us down to his beaches it must mean he wants money from us" Britain chuckled, and France nodded in agreement," Oui, 'e 'as always found a way to scam us out of a quick buck, or twenty"
Canada, Britain, and France all gave hearty laughs, walking out of the conference room. New England hurried after them, hoping to talk to them; well, one of them in particular. "E-excuse me, Mr. Canada" New England said, feeling nervous. Dear God, he hoped Canada wouldn't take this the wrong way. "Yeah, ya need something, New England?" The mentioned nation asked, and New England pulled on his collar uncomfortably. "I-I was wondering if I could s-see y-you w-without-without a shirt on" The trio of countries was silent for a moment, before Canada let out a confused," EH!?". France was laughing, leaning over, but had a slight protective glint in his eye. Britain's mouth was opening and closing like a fish, stunned. "I-I just wanted to see what America was so obsessed about! H-He'd always come back from a beach party, comparing himself to Germany, or Scotland, or Greece, but a lot of the time, he compared his body to yours, Canada, and I wanted to see what he was going for..." New England explained quickly, his eyes filled with nervousness. Canada was silent for a minute or two, before pulling New England into a bathroom, and lifting his shirt over his head.
America was doing sit-ups on his bedroom floor, grunting as his stomach growled loudly. "Jeeze dude, I just woke up!" He laughed, placing a hand on his gut. Ah yes, the familiar pudge was still there. America now weighed around 143 pounds, about 64 kilograms. America had always eaten when he was bored, but since he couldn't do that anymore, he spent his time learning conversions; miles to kilometers, pounds to kilograms, inches to centimeters, etc. He thought it was a great way to pass time, but it would never beat exercising. There was something... thrilling about jogging down the street, turning into the park and passing other joggers who couldn't go as fast for as long he ran. It was empowering to feel a weight in his hands, to feel himself push his endurance and collapse on numb legs. It was perfect, the way he felt his stomach churn and sting as it was emptied quicker; he loved the way his arms quivered in exhaustion as he performed too many pushups, and the way his lungs burned in lack of oxygen. He'd never admit it, but the pain made him feel strong, it made him feel invincible. "Alfred, yuh have a party ta host!" came the Southern Drawl that could only belong to Louisiana Territory. "Fiiiine!" America whined, stopping his morning routine so he could eat something. Of course, there was a difference between the pain of exercise, and the pain of hunger; Hunger stabbed him, basically killed him, exercise was just that, exercise. "Alright! Thanks for letting me use Alabama for today!" America called, standing shakily. "You having a bagel for breakfast?" Florida asked as America stumbled into the kitchen, and he nodded. "Thanks Flor" He yawned, and Florida nodded," No problem, honestly you should eat more, but it's a beach party, so there's probably a lot more food there for ya" America nodded, and flopped into a wooden chair at the table.
America looked around the beach of Alabama, grinning as he saw the nations all enjoying themselves. It was a warm summer day, and America wore a tank-top and shorts, leaning on a beach towel next to a cooler full of sodas and fruit juices. He eyed an auburn-haired Scotsman walking by, talking loudly to the Frenchman next to him, and America found himself admiring Scotland's body. He had a broad chest and rather large biceps, triceps, quads, and calves, his stomach firm. Scotland caught him staring, winked at him jokingly, and had France laughing at a joke a few seconds later. The American turned away, a slight blush dusting his cheeks, before settling his gaze on Germany. Germany was absolutely jacked. His arms bulged with large muscles, as did his legs. His back displayed fluid muscle working hard at teaching Italy how to swim, and the guy had better abs than America's hottest models! America looked away, deciding that a muscular physique was too much to hope for right now. His eyes roved across the nation-filled beach of Alabama, and he nearly groaned in annoyance. Every country was either shorter than him or muscular, and he knew he couldn't hope at being either of those! Finally, he found someone who was the same height as him, and had a perfect body type. Canada wasn't scrawny, not at all, but he wasn't as well-built as Russia, or Germany, or England's older brothers (Minus Wales). Canada had smooth skin, but was thin enough to display a collarbone without trying, and his shoulder blades stuck out ever-so-slightly, which made him look beautiful in America's eyes.
America could go on for days on describing the ways his Northern neighbor and twin was perfect in every shape of his body, but he focused on the torso. America wanted to show his collarbone, and wanted to have his shoulders show from his back. He wanted his spine to leave the tiniest bit of a ridge on his back, and he figured he wouldn't even mind having his hip bones stick out a bit. That was it, that was America's goal. He mentally stored a picture of Canada in swim-shorts, hoping he could compare himself to it later, when he wouldn't be mistaken for being a pervert.
Britain was the one driving the car, tapping his fingers on the steering wheel on beat with the song on the radio. France was listening to an audio book on his phone, and Canada was playing Plague Inc. next to New England. New England sat beside Canada in the back of the car, staring out of the window. He had visited America many times, but he would never get used to seeing him so frail, so sickly and insane looking. He wondered how the FCE of the 'FACE Family', as Alaska had named them, would take the sight of America in a hospital bed, multiple tubes sticking out of his arms, breathing slowly as if it hurt, and trying to laugh as if everything were fine- New England nearly slapped himself to stop these thoughts, but realized he had no time to compose himself, as they had pulled into hospital parking lot. It took a few minutes, but they were able to convince the front desk that America was well enough to see all four of them at once. They took an elevator up, and a young man, around fourteen or fifteen, came into the elevator. He had dark brown skin, and frizzy black hair in a ponytail, as well as blue eyes. "Good evenin' Louisiana" New England greeted, and the new kid nodded to him. "Are these the countries that 'Mericuh's been talkin' 'bout?" he asked, and New England nodded. "Yep, dis is Britain, France, an' Canada" Louisiana nodded, a tired look in his eyes. They all exited the elevator together, and the two territories took the lead as they talked lowly on the walk to America's hospital room. They knocked on the door and opened it quickly, Louisiana jumping into a tackle-hug.
"Oof! Jeeze Pierre, you need to lighten up on the ribs, you're gonna break mine" America joked, wrapping a thin arm around the Southerner. "Hush you, I left Floriduh in charge so I could visit ya, I'm not movin' 'till I have to" Louisiana mumbled, and America rolled his eyes. "We got more visitors" New England said as Britain, France, and Canada walked silently into the room. "Sup dudes!" America said, attempting to use his 'Hero Voice' but his weak lungs didn't like that, and forced a coughing fit to erupt from his throat. "Bloody hell Alfred!" Britain exclaimed, rushing over before realizing he couldn't do anything to help. "It's-it's fine g-guys" America choked out between coughs, and everyone wore a disbelieving look. "Alfred, would you like for big brozher to tell you a story?" France asked, and America shook his head no. "Timothy's been bringing me books from his home for me to read" He said contentedly, and France took a glance at the stack of books by Stephen King, J.K. Rowling, and Susan Collins. "What about an electronic of some kind?" Britain asked, and America shook his head no," Timothy brought me a DS" "Can we do anything to help you?" Canada asked in a voice that was loud for him. "Nope, sorry dudes" America said, before thinking. "Well... you can always stay and talk to me..? Timothy and Pierre are doing all my paper work for me while I'm here, so... can you stay and talk to me?"
Britain rolled his eyes, but sighed," Wales is rather good at turning paperwork in on time, I can have him do my work for a little while" America smiled brightly, before looking to France and Canada. "I.. can have New France do my work for me, I suppose" Canada sighed, and France pouted," I can not stay for very long, but I will try to video-chat everyday" He said unhappily, and America nodded quickly," That's good! Now, have I missed anything important from the meeting?" He asked, and Britain was about to tell him about China, but New England cut him off quickly," No, you din't miss anyting"
I got a few notes (Again).
1.) In two days, I will be starting my school year, so updates will not be very frequent, maybe one or two times a month at the most
2.) More likely than not, the next few chapters to come will be shorter than the others because of my schedule
4.) I skipped number 3
5.) You're thinking I'm very unoriginal
6.) I love y'all, see you later!