Hero: A person who is admired or idealized for courage, outstanding achievements or noble qualities.

America was a hero. No one could truly deny it, not even Russia. Of course they disagreed whenever he boasted about it but in their heart of hearts, they knew it was true. America was strong, bold and fearless. He never cried… Right?

Maybe.

Or maybe not.

No one had seen him cry in hundreds of years. In fact, England was basically the only one who had seen him cry, and that was when he was just a chibi. So when the nations visited him after the Boston marathon and the explosion in Texas they saw no tears. He'd accepted their condolences cheerfully and assured them everything was completely under control. As they left he smiled and waved goodbye. Then the door closed on the last visitor and he was finally alone.

America sat on his couch in the living room and stared at the blank TV screen for hours, simply lost in thought. A feeling stirred in him, growing bigger and more noticeable with every minute. But he fought back against it. He was determined not to give in to such weakness. The door banged open with a harsh suddenness but America didn't flinch or ask who was there. There were only three people in the world who had earned the right to barge into his house without knocking. England was flying back across the Atlantic and his brother had already visited him.

He could hear her moving around in the kitchen before stomping into the living room and flopping beside him on the couch.

"Ey, idiota, ya no tienes chile.(Hey idiot, you're out of chile.)" Mexico grumbled. America chuckled softly and fought back the lump in his throat.

"Lo siento, (I'm sorry)" he whispered. Mexico looked at him carefully. Now that he wasn't smiling his forced, idiotic smile his face looked haggard and weary. His eyes betrayed sleepless nights and poor Nantucket was practically drooping. Mexico reached out and placed a hand on his shoulder. America looked at the hand, then slowly up to her face.

"Llanto no te hace menos de un héroe Alfred. (Crying doesn't make you less of a hero Alfred.)" When America didn't respond Mexico sighed and shifted her hand so it rested on the back of his head. Then she slowly guided his head until it rested on her shoulder. "I'm sorry I couldn't come sooner," she apologized in English.

There was hardly any warning, just a quiet sniffle before he burst out sobbing. Mexico didn't say anything, words were useless here, as she slowly rocked him and ran a hand through his soft dirty blonde hair. The sobs soon quieted to cries and from there quieted to occasional whimpers. Mexico was relieved when his breathing became deeper and she felt his body go limp as he felt asleep. She remembered her terror when she'd heard about the bomb and explosion. It had been 9/11 all over again. But now her baby brother was safe in her arms – well, as safe as a nation could be – and she could relax a little. She almost never showed it, but she cared deeply for her North American brothers and worried over them from afar.

A quick look outside informed her that it was now nighttime. She carefully maneuvered herself until she was standing up and holding Alfred in her arms, he was deeply asleep and didn't even murmur as his head lolled on her shoulder. Mexico may not have been as tall or powerful as her brother but that didn't mean she was a weakling. However, she wasn't eager to hold him for too long so she nimbly climbed the first flight of stairs and deposited him in his bed. She sat by him for a while taking off his glasses and setting them on the bedside table and removing his shoes and jacket.

"You still need to learn that a hero is allowed to cry hermanito," she finally said before standing and leaving the room, turning off the light as she went. The hero stirred, giving a long, shuddering sigh of relief before sinking even deeper into slumber.

Okay... so this is more about America than Mexico, but I really wanted to include this. What happened at Boston and Texas was truly tragic and my prayers go out to them.

Also, if you thought these chapters were going in chronological order, you were wrong, I'm gonna be all over the place.

Please Review!