The rest of the week went by in a pleasant blur. Iceland's days were spent talking with Hong Kong in class, in the breaks and after school. He slowly started learning bits and pieces about the quiet Asian nation and in turn, sharing things about himself.

After getting the answer to the haunting question he wanted, Iceland could finally calm down. He knew what sort of relationship they had; now he could act accordingly to it. To most people that might seem a bit planned or strange but to Iceland, it was liberating. Now he could finally breathe and just enjoy the time he spent with his new friend.

Or at least that's what he thought…

Iceland sighed, lying face first on his pillow, 'It's over…'

It was Saturday and starting next week, Hong Kong would no longer hang out with him after school. Hong Kong didn't have to wait for China anymore which meant he had no reason to stay after school. And that left Iceland sitting alone once again. Sure he would still be there in class or at the breaks but it still felt like a loss in Iceland's eyes…

'Don't be ridiculous, he'll still be there!' Iceland's mind encouraged, 'There's no need to sulk...'

"Yes, there is…" Iceland mumbled.

'No, there isn't. You don't need to be with him all the time you know.'

Iceland lifted his head from the pillow, pouting slightly, "I know that…"

'If you did then you wouldn't be acting like this.'

Iceland frowned, "Oh, shut up!"

'Hey, I'm just speaking the truth here.'

Iceland slumped, hugging his pillow, "Yeah, well, I didn't ask you to-!"

"What are you doing?"

Iceland turned his head to see Norway standing in his bedroom doorway with two mugs in his hands.

"…Nothing."

Norway raised an eyebrow, "Were you just talking to yourself?"

"…Maybe."

Norway shook his head, walking further into Iceland's room, "You really need to go outside more…"

"What do you want, Lukas?" Iceland asked, plopping his head back into his pillow.

"I made you some hot chocolate." He replied, holding out the mug for him to take.

Iceland peeked out from his pillow to stare at his brother untrustingly, "…Why?"

Norway simply shrugged, "I wanted it and you would whine if I didn't make it for you as well."

Iceland whipped his head back up, "Oh c'mon, I only did that once! And I was 5 at the time!"

"Just take the mug, Týr."

Iceland sat up cross-legged and took the mug offered to him, "…Thank you."

Norway nodded, taking a seat on the corner of Iceland's bed. Iceland watched his brother sceptically as he gently blew on and took a sip of his drink.

"So" Norway began, sipping his drink, "What's wrong?"

"What are you talking about?" Iceland asked, passively staring into his mug.

"You've locked yourself in your room and are sitting here, mumbling to yourself; I assume something is wrong."

"And how is this any different from what I usually do?" Iceland replied calmly, taking another sip of his hot chocolate.

"Because usually you're reading, not sulking into your pillow." Norway replied back, equally as calm.

'Dammit…' Iceland's eyebrow twitched slightly as he lowered his mug and looked back at his brother's steady gaze. 'He picks up on things way too fast…'

"…So?" Iceland asked, a hint of nonchalance and aggravation present in his voice, "What's your point, Lukas?"

Norway shrugged, "I have no point, I am simply asking you a question. It's you who is making this difficult, Týr."

Iceland stood up quickly, placing his mug on his nightstand, "There's nothing to talk about. So why don't you just drop it."

After a few moments of silence, Iceland glanced back to see his brother's eyes still steady on his turned form. A few more moments passed before Norway spoke again.

"…This is about China's little brother, Hong Kong, isn't it?"

Iceland froze.

'Shit…! How did he figure that out?'

"…So it is." Norway concluded, letting out a small sigh, "You know I heard about the bet that was going on between the two of them."

Iceland glanced back curiously to see Norway looking straight into his eyes.

"Are you sulking because he won't be there after school anymore?"

Iceland's eyebrows twitched, 'Why does he have to be so fucking spot-on with these things…!'

Norway sighed, shutting his eyes, "Honestly, Týr… sometimes you think too much…"

"I hardly think you are in any position to lecture me about over-thinking things…" Iceland mumbled, plopping back down onto his bed face first.

"You know you can just ask him to stay with you, right?" Norway continued; seemly ignoring Iceland's last comment and glancing back at the sulking nation, "It's not unusual to ask that of someone, Týr."

"…But how exactly am I supposed to ask something like that without making me sound clingy?" Iceland asked, lifting his face up from the bed.

Norway placed a hand on top of Iceland's head, "You'll find a way."

Iceland let his face fall back into the mattress and groaned, "It's going to be a long, long week…"

By the time Monday rolled around, Iceland was more than dreading going back to school. He had spent his entire weekend thinking about what to do with this whole 'after-school situation' with Hong Kong. No matter how many times he tried to push it out of his head, it always found a way to creep back into his thoughts. His mind was turning into a jumble of insecurities and constant replays of the worst case scenario. Between the vicious inner discussion and lack of sleep (due to said inner discussion), Iceland was a total mess.

Walking to school with Norway, the Icelandic felt like a zombie; mindlessly stumbling forward, feeling an uncomfortable mix of light yet heavy-headed. Norway asked multiple times if he was okay but Iceland would simply brush it off with a simple "I'm fine…just tired." As much as he didn't want to go to school, Iceland knew that staying home with his thoughts would be ten times worse…

'I just need to get to school first then I can sit down.' He thought.

When the two got to school, Iceland headed straight inside. He caught Norway saying something about if he needs something to call him but Iceland didn't really pay attention; all he wanted was to get to the classroom.

Luckily for him, he had Biology so that meant the classroom would be open. And since he arrived 20 minutes early, Iceland had time to take a nap before class started. That is… if Hong Kong wasn't there…

Sliding the Biology room door slightly open, Iceland peeked inside to see if anyone was there. Seeing that he was alone, Iceland opened the door fully, stepped inside and shut the door. Strolling over to his usual spot, he flung his bag onto the table and plopped into his seat. Shutting his eyes and snuggling his face into his sweater sleeves, Iceland fell into some well-deserved sleep.