Belarus POV:
I lie in bed, my stomach in knots and pain almost every moment I lie awake. I swear on my life that our last break didn't hurt this bad, maybe this time I know he won't come around and we will never see each other again.
My brother has called a doctor, thinking I'm sick since I can't seem to move or eat. I say I have no appetite, since I only vomit it up an hour later. I roll over onto my side and look out the window, which my brother had opened when the sun had risen and graced us with its presence.
"My dear sister, may I come in?" I hear a faint whisper and I nod, not truly caring anymore. It seemed like people only came and went, they never stayed or if they did it wasn't for long. I'd only have to humor her for ten minutes before she found something she'd needed to do as Ivan's wife. She came in and sat by my bedside, my worn chair creaking as she sat.
"Natalia, be honest with me," She whispers and I turn over, curious as to why she would say such a thing, as if I were never honest with her.
"There have been rumors that you were with a man, for perhaps years, and that night he discovered you were with Miss Monaco, and…well he and you are no longer speaking…" She seems enthralled by the idea, as if it were a story to her.
In her mind, it's probably a heart-wrenching love story, the kind that always end with the damsel dying in distress. I frown, not answering her, and she grabs my hand, sighing.
"You know, I once had someone I loved, it was hard, he was everything to me…and then he died, just like that and I never saw him again." I see a tear fall from her face and land on her lap. She smiles towards me and kisses my forehead, as if she were mothering me.
"What I'm trying to say, is that…well…things may seem dark, but the sun will always shine." She stands up and walks to the door, her hand caressing the walnut-wood and her head twisted, looking back at me.
"If you ever need anything, I'm here for you." I nod, as if I am humoring her and turn over, sighing and looking back at my window. I am still, tired, as though the people around me find me to be a joke.
They still believe Monaco is my lover, which I merely brush off. I've tried to get in touch with Alfred, but he wants nothing to do with me, which is like a stab in my heart. I thought we had something that would be eternal.
I feel a few tears leak from my eyes as I think about Alfred. I hear another knock on the door, my heart drops, hoping they go away.
I'm no longer in the mood to entertain anyone anymore. I hear the door open, and I roll over, expecting to open my mouth and tell them to go away, but my voice has other obligations and leaves me when I need it most. I see the doctor my brother had called for and I sit up and stare at him, he closes the door behind him, hoping to keep his patient confidentiality.
"I've heard you're sick." He says to me and I only nod, acknowledging him. "Alright then, let's cut through the basics. When were you last sick and when was your last menstrual cycle?" He asks and I draw a blank.
"Besides this round of a flu or whatever, I think it's been a few years since I'd last gotten this sick…" The older male merely nods and writes in short hand the information I've told him.
He pauses, "When was your last course, you never answered." He licks his parted lips and steps close to me, putting his hands around my neck and feeling my glands to see if it's a viral or bacterial infection. I look down to my hands, trying to think of my last course. I'd been extremely saddened so the past few months are honestly a blank.
"Let me ask this way…" He grabs the wooden chair next to me and nibbles his lip. "when was the last time you had sex…?" My face turns absolutely red and I search for words that never seem to come. I nibble my index finger, hoping he'd drop the question, but his hands go to my ankles. I feel him squeeze them tightly, first the right then the left. He makes a note before he looks at me.
"Are you going to answer or proclaim you're a virgin like Mother Mary?" He snickers to himself as his hands grab and access my sides, seeing if it's merely a cold or not. I only glare at him, refusing to answer him at this point. He only chuckles and takes a seat back by my bedside, his assessment over for the time being.
"I swear, between being called for some infected scratches and for your nonsense…I sure do waste my time." He mutters and I turn to him.
"Someone called you for infected scratches?" I cock my head, wondering why someone would call about such a stupid thing. The doctor nods, as he writes something on his note book.
"Poor guy, he lied about how he got them, said he'd been fighting a massive monster and got hurt." The doctor shakes his head, bursts out laughing.
"only when I examined him he had the biggest hickeys all over his chest!" The doctor only smiles at me as he grabs my hands.
"My dear, if you truly don't wish to answer because you fear your brother will know, relax. I maintain confidentiality." He winks and I wrinkle my nose.
"But your patient and his hickeys…" He leans in and bops my nose.
"I never said his name." He clarifies and stands up. "I will tell you this, if you're positive you've been safe with your partner, whomever he is, and it's been longer than six weeks then you're pregnant, if you're not active with anyone, well it's just a cold and you're going to need a few days to recover. Whichever you decide to tell your brother, I'll go with it." He smiles over his shoulder at me and I can feel he truly is honest.
"It's been a month since I slept with the father…but I've felt sick for nearly two months, maybe longer." I sigh, looking towards the window. "Please, say nothing. The father and I aren't talking anymore. He hates me and never wants to see me again…despite the years we've been together." The doctor frowns and begins walking towards me, taking a seat on my bedside he turns my chin to meet his.
"Natalia, my dear…you're going to hear stories about how people have loved and lost, but do you truly think that this person, whomever he may be, truly wants nothing to do with you? If you had a fight, so what? I've had many fights with my wife, fights that have had us screaming at each other until dawn, but you know what…I still love her. She's been with me for almost 30 years, and I wouldn't change a thing. Being young; you make mistakes, you learn from them." He pats my head before getting up and walking to the door.
"I suppose it's safe to say you're pregnant. Please take care of yourself. You're growing another powerful nation, mind you. I'll order prescriptions and have them delivered. Please eat something and rest. It's vital." He opens the door.
"I'll be marking it as stomach flu, so no worries." I nod in appreciation and he leaves. I slip down into my bed, rubbing my stomach and sighing.
"Do I tell Alfred? Do I not tell Alfred? Do I keep it to myself…or do I tell someone?" I nibble my lip and sigh. I sit up in bed and look out the window, which overlooks the garden. I get up and slowly shuffle to the window seat, sitting down and enjoying the light, fragrant breeze that rolls in.
"Oh Ivan-!" I hear a woman laugh and look in that direction. I see Ivan and a woman, someone I saw at the wedding, strolling hand-in-hand with my brother. He leans into her, whispering what I assume to be sweet-nothings as his hands cling to her waist and small of her back.
"You're watching too, huh?" Ana walks in and slumps next to me. "I wish that stupid Ambassador would leave my husband alone." I hear her sigh as she rubs my back. "What did the doctor say?" She asks, patting me softly. I look at her soft face, she's always genuinely cared about me, no matter how I felt towards her.
I fake a smile and say how he found a slight bug and how some sleep with cure it in no time. She lets out a smile and caresses my cheek. "Good, I'm glad. I'd hate for something to happen to my baby sister." She laughs, then directs her attention towards Ivan.
"You know, I've only been married for a month, most women fall more in love with their husbands in that time frame. I've only come to despise mine." I hear her sigh and turn around, her butt plopping down next to me. She rests her head on my shoulder and I look at her, astounded at what she just told me.
"What?" Is the only thing I can manage to form. She nods and looks at me, into my deep indigo eyes.
"You heard me…I don't love him. I don't know if I ever did." She sighs and grabs my hand. "Natalia, I'll give you words I wish I had followed…don't give a damn about who your family likes and dislikes. If you love them, go after them!" I laugh and nod, I have to admit I like seeing this side to my new sister-in-law and agree with her.
"If you love Alfred, or any other gentleman…go after them." She smiles and taps my shoulder. I look at her, my eyes as wide as they could be. Her brunette hair hiding one of her eyes as she looks into my soul.
"What did you say?!" She stands up and laughs. "Alfred F. Jones, you know the man whom has been coming and going for the past few years…The man I watched as he scrambled to put on his shirt and button his pants as he left your rooms almost a month ago…" I cover my mouth and shake my head.
"Oh god, no, no, no…T-This can't be, this can't happen. It's not like that, I swear…I've never been alone with him in my life!" Ana sees me freaking out and grabs me, pulling me into her grasp.
"Natalia, dear, calm down. There is nothing to fear. Merely relax, I've told no one. I only brought it up because…I wanted you to confide in me. I love you as though you were my own sister…I want us to be close." She whispers into my ear and rubs my back. "Just relax and breathe, please." I hesitantly nod and we sit down in bed, I'm curled into her and she strokes my blonde locks.
"So, tell me, my dear sister, why did you pick him…of all people? I mean you could of picked someone less…flamboyant, like Lithuania or maybe even Japan, why the hero, as he proclaims himself to be?" I turn on my back and look at the ceiling, frowning as I recall why I love him.
"He's passionate, he actually can be courageous, and I know that if something happened to me…he'd be there in a heartbeat…or I thought." I turn on my side.
"But Monaco drew a wedge between us." I hear Ana start laughing and I turn over to look at her. "So she went after Mr. America too? Will that girl never learn? I tore her a new one for trying to sleep with Ivan…on our wedding night! Like honestly, I have to wonder if she just wanted to take my place on the alter!?" She sighs softly and rubs her stomach, sighing softly.
"I wanna say Ivan's an idiot, but I think he's a manipulative psychopath." I sigh and look down, shaking my head.
"I actually have to agree, he had agreed to marry me before he saw you." I turn on my side and she looks mortified.
"No, oh no!" She bolts up and grabs my hands, freaking out she pulls me into a tight hug. "If I had known, I would have kept walking and told him to get lost! Jeez, what kind of bastard does that? He makes me so-" There is a knock at the door and I call whoever is there to come in. I see Ivan and he casually strolls in.
"Oh, it's so wonderful to see the most important women in my life come together as a family should. Ana, we have a meeting to discuss foreign policy with, so get out of bed. You'll look unkempt and I don't need that in front of the others." Ana shuffles next to him and stands up, brushing away any wrinkles in her dress before Ivan takes her warm hand and begins to lead her out of the room.
"Oh, Natalia, you come too." He smiles as he leads Ana out of the room, closing it behind him to allow me some privacy in getting ready. I sigh and shuffle, slipping out of the robe and allowing it to drop to the floor. I look at the mirror noticing that I look fuller than I typically do. I quirk my nose and notice my stomach's more round as well.
"Looks like I might need a bigger dress…or something less tight." I go over to the closet, grabbing the small glass doorknob and stare at a few dresses, my eye is drawn to a purple and black gown that reaches the floor, which will cover my swollen ankles. I smile and slip it over my head, pushing my arms through the holes I shake and shimmy until the dress hugs the curves of my body. I look at myself and I laugh, noticing I finally have the bust to fill out the dress. I grab a coat, just in case it's cold in the meeting room and rush to meet up with my brother and Ana, hoping that this meeting dissolves the issues between my brother and America.
I walk into the meeting room, my hair pulled back into an intricate braid, neat and clean as it sways along my back. I look around and smile at my family and even some close "friends" of my brother. I see Lithuania and Estonia, they come marching over. Lithuania can't seem to take his eyes off me as he grabs my hand and kisses it.
"You're so beautiful, Belarus." He whispers as he considers my eyes and the emotion they express. His words, though kind as they are meant terrify me.
I kindly smile and give a nod before Estonia leans in and kisses my cheek.
"The stars would kill you if they knew how much you shine." He whispers into my ear, making us seem more intimate than we are, which causes Lithuania to get jealous in front of me. If I'd not already had my heart stolen and my head full I'd think they'd both be wonderful company.
"You're going to scare her." He huffs and I look towards the floor.
"You're both very kind, now…if you'd excuse me." I mutter tenderly, my stomach already churning in knots as I slip across the room, sliding into my position next to Anastasia. She leans into my ear before grabbing my hand and giving it a firm squeeze.
"You're certainly on everyone's mind." She whispers, feeling happy for me
"I'm most certainly not on Alfred's…" I mutter, cynically. She frowns, yet keeping a tight grip on my cold, pale hand. Ivan steps away from us, walking into the center of the room, becoming the vocal point.
"My friends, my family…" He looks towards me and Ana and we both smile towards him, since we do love him. "I've come here because we must assert ourselves as the best group of nations in the world. America thinks he can push us around and rule the world, well I have a newsflash for everyone…he can't! He is weak, but we are strong!" He turns around, half the room staying quiet and the other cheering at Ivan's words.
"We must come together, we must sacrifice at times, we must move forward in exposing our greatness!" He shouts, lifting his arms, expressing that it's right to express how right he is. "And to bring us all together-I have an idea!" He extends a hand out to me, waving me by his side.
'What could he be thinking now?' I think, placing one foot in front of the other as I take in a deep breath and stand in my place next to him. All eyes are on me as they wait for Ivan to express his idea.
"The nation who expresses how he would make this our world, by any means necessary, will be her husband!" I can see Estonia and Lithuania lift their chins to this idea and cheer with my family. I look back to Ana, a look of pure fear expressed across my features.
"What?!" I ask, looking in Ivan's purple eyes, but only being looked at with a mischievous smirk.
"My dear Natalia, you're finally going to be of use to me." He smirks, his eyes hoovering over my features.
"Your future husband…is going to help me kill America!" He bursts out laughing and I yank my hand away, falling back towards Ana's side.
"He's gone mad!" I shout to Ana and we pace towards the door, hoping to escape this hellish meeting.
"We will consult one week from today; the best idea will be married to Belarus once we manage to overthrow those damn American bastards!" Everyone is cheering and I feel Ana push me out into the hallway. I cling onto her hand and she yanks me towards my room, locking the door once we both enter.
"Natalia, we need to think of something…perhaps a plan." She looks in my indigo eyes before grabbing my phone, searching for a way to save me.
*America's POV*
The bedroom shines bright in the early April air, it's wet and cool out, which cools the muggy room.
"I wish I'd never left that bedroom, that I had stayed and trusted her to keep her word to me, but I didn't…and she didn't keep the trust we held dear." I frown as I roll over, the thin sheet clinging to my lower back as I stretch out in my large bed.
"Would she be with me now, if we had talked that night? Would she be here next to me, exposed to my harshness, my love, and my honesty?" I shake my head, knowing that living in the past never truly helps anyone. It still breaks my heart when I think about her chasing after me in the little yellow Corvette as I hauled ass out of the estate.
"As much as she hurts me, I hope she's safe now." I whisper, as I turn over in bed, rolling my hand down my bare chest. I hear my phone ringing and turn to look at it, the bright screen lighting up to reveal it's not who my heart yearns for, but I answer it anyway.
"Hello?" I grumble and speak through a rough, scratchy voice.
"Good morning, brother." The other voice sighs as he can tell I've just woken up.
"Please tell me you're just awoke because you were up last night because you were looking at battle plans, formations and other things that will help you in your war with Russia and not lazing about because some woman didn't call you back…" I can hear him click his tongue as I try to find an excuse for sleeping in.
"I—It's not just some woman…" I mutter and I hear silence through the phone.
"Arthur…I still miss her. Things didn't go well at Ivan's wedding." I slump down in my bed and Arthur contemplates what he's going to say.
"Alfred, you don't have to tell me. Monaco said she never wants to see you again, and…she expressed that if she saw Ms. Belarus…that she'd stab her in the neck." My eyes go wide as I process what I've heard. "WHAT?!" I scream into the phone, "where does she get off on hurting Nat? After all she was feeling up MY GIRLFRIEND that night! Jesus-Fucking-Christ!" I get out of bed and stumble to the kitchen, on my way to grab an icy, cold beer.
"Women are fucking crazy…" I mumble as I open the fridge, only hearing Arthur laugh in the receiver of the phone.
"Alfred, you realize that you went after the queen of the crazies, right? Like you cannot look at Ms. Belarus and think she is the picture of a sane woman. She just screams 'I'll kill you by torturous means'." I can tell Arthur likes bashing the one woman I've had feelings for.
"Thanks, Arthur, you're real reassuring. Thanks for never letting me marry someone that crazy." I don't think he can tell I'm joking before he shifts our conversations to meeting up and discussing the solution to Ivan's craziness.
"I've heard he's using Ms. Belarus in his plans, but due to her stress level, she hasn't been feeling well. She's only attended one meeting and intelligence has stated that he plans to auction her off to the man who can think of a way to kill you in the most inhumane way possible." I take a seat and sip my beer, I grumble at the thought of Ivan using Natalia, but it truly boils my blood to hear that he wants to treat her as livestock, but I know that we are viewed as enemies and must act like it.
"It's honestly whatever, I can tell that she never loved me and that she faked everything we'd been through."
"Alfred, I need to ask you something very important…are you ready?" I nod, awaiting what he's going to ask me. "If the time comes and we need to…dispose of some Russian scum, will you allow it? Please note, this include Natalia too. If you need time to process let me know, we'll think of something." I drop the phone on the couch, speechless on what I just heard Arthur say.
"Natalia's off limits." I whisper into my hands, hoping the Englishman on the other side of the phone heard and hang up on him.
"Natalia, if something were to happen to you…" I trail on, feeling ill at having her not by my side. I shake my head, slumping into the couch.
"Arthur is ready to kill anyone of them if they step out of line, I've involved foreign diplomacy and can't even promise anything to anyone." I mumble, trying to find a path that allows me to secure Natalia's safety and put that damn Russian prick in his place. I walk around the house, going into the armory and grabbing a colt .45, I try to ease my mind as I take part in some target practice.