A/N: Hello guys! I'm back with a new chapter. I know it's been almost two months since I last updated this, and I'd like to thank everyone who remained patient with me and cared to read this far into the story (or if you even bothered to give this story a chance at all to begin with). I just wanted a break from writing and I didn't want to stress myself out, since school started a month ago. I'm taking a lot of difficult classes this year, and I had no idea whether or not I was going to be able to handle it. I honestly thought I was going to have four hours of homework every night, or something, but so far, it hasn't been too bad. I hope it doesn't end up overwhelming me.
Speaking of things that are overwhelming, for those of you reading my story "Overwhelmed", I do have five pages written for the fourth chapter so far. I might update that story soon, since it's a story I like to write during school, but I'm not making any promises.
I hope you guys like this chapter. It may seem like filler, but the next one will be more exciting. I promise.
America awoke the next morning to find it was difficult for him to move his limbs. Though this didn't bother him too much, as he was aware it wouldn't take all his energy to remove the thick blankets wrapped around his body. The warmth the blankets provided to him also kept him in a relaxed state, despite the fact that he wished he was still cuddling with his caretaker. He understood his caretaker wouldn't have wanted to spend hours with him on his lap, though, as he himself cringed at the idea of being stuck with someone else on his lap for a long period of time.
America tried to urge himself back to sleep. He laid there with his eyes closed until blue light from the early morning sky filtered into the room through the window. His attempt for more sleep was to no avail, much to his misfortune, as for one, he had too much energy to want to lay still on the couch any longer, and for another, his stomach was begging him to eat something.
Since he could no longer stand laying on the couch, in a futile attempt to fall asleep, America figured it would be best for him to move off the couch and check around the house to determine whether or not anyone else was awake. Maybe they would be willing to make him breakfast as soon as they became aware he was awake. If no one else was awake, he wasn't going to bother waking the others for some food, though, despite how hungry he was. He didn't enjoy being scolded by them the one time he made the mistake of waking one of them up when it was still dark out. Scoldings were a rare occurrence, but they always left him with an uncomfortable clenching sensation in his throat, which would always occur when he was putting all his mental energy into preventing himself from crying. He hated how unfair it was for them to get away with disturbing his sleep, while it wasn't okay for him to do the same to them. Though he understood he had no right to complain. They could be treating him much worse if they wanted to. At least they gave him lots of food and a comfortable place to sleep.
Upon removing the blankets from his form, America regretted his decision of escaping from their warmth, as contact with the frigid air in the living room caused him to shiver. He corrected his mistake by grabbing the smaller of the two blankets and wrapping it around himself. This way, he would be able to leave the comfort of the couch and still be warm, while he checked to find out whether or not the other humans were awake. He listened for any noises a human would produce and searched all over the house for a moving figure. He was disappointed to find they were all still asleep.
Figuring it was going to be a while until he would be able to eat, America wandered into the kitchen and focused his gaze out the window. He'd never paid the outside world much mind, as he'd either always been fascinated by everything in the house, since it was all so new to him, or he was busy trying to figure other humans out and accustom to their way of life. After what had happened the last time he set out to explore the house, while the other three humans were asleep, he'd made a mess in the kitchen, and the people who were caring for him weren't too pleased. Needless to say, he didn't want to be yelled at again and have everyone be angry with him for an hour.
America couldn't help but be amazed by the sight before him. Stars still littered the sky, despite the faint sunlight coming from the horizon during the early dawn. Instead of being black in color, as a starry sky would normally be in a city, due to all the light pollution making it impossible to view fainter bands of stars, the sky was dark blue, though near the rising sun, it was leaning more towards light blue. Yellow light from the sun gave the sky surrounding it a greenish tint. America couldn't remember another time he'd ever witnessed such a beautiful gradient of colors. If the outdoors were always this engaging, he wanted to spend a lot more time outside.
America flinched at the sound of footsteps approaching him. He whipped his head toward the person who interrupted his special moment; irritated. Since discovering the beauty that was the morning sky, he wanted some quiet time to himself. To admire the sight before him without anyone dragging him away from it, or becoming judgmental towards his recent fascination. He wasn't sure if Russia, the person who'd entered the room, would appreciate his discovery. There were many things that amazed him, which didn't appear to faze his caretaker at all. How anyone could be so indifferent towards these magnificent discoveries he made, he had no idea, but the young nation found the lack of enthusiasm from the other humans to be annoying. What in the world was wrong with them!?
Russia strode over to the window so he could stand next to America. He glanced out the window to find out what fascinated the one he was caring for so much, and he couldn't blame the other for wanting to stare at the morning sky. There were hardly any clouds and the stars were still vivid in the small amount of sunlight there was. He turned to face the young nation and asked, "It's very pretty, isn't it?"
America gave him a blank stare; not understanding a single word he spoke. Russia smiled at him and continued, "It seems like you want to go outside right now. If that's the case, I don't blame you. I can already tell it's going to be nice out today and you've been spending a lot of time indoors. But it's too early."
America continued to stare at him, but was interested in everything he had to say. Even if he couldn't understand what was being said for the life of him. He loved the sound of Russia's voice. Especially since at that moment, his tone was quiet and friendly, and he was more enthusiastic than he expected him to be. It made him less insecure about his fascination for the sky, as he sometimes was with anything that interested him.
"Are you hungry?" Russia asked, "Why don't I make you something to eat? I'm sure by the time you finish eating breakfast, it will be light enough to go outside, and we won't have to worry about disturbing the neighbors. Not that I believe it's likely you'll make a lot of noise, but just in case."
America grew excited at the words 'hungry' and 'eat'. Observing the sky had caused him to forget about his hunger. Even though he was dealing with typical morning hunger pangs. He hated how hungry he always was in the morning. Sure, it was better than when he was with the scientists, where he'd been starved for so long, his body had given up on making him suffer with hunger pangs; almost as if it was aware of the fact that the scientists didn't care for whether or not he was hungry. Though he didn't understand why his stomach had to punish him with discomfort for sleeping ten hours and, understandably, not eating anything while he was asleep, but he figured it was wise not to ignore his body's requests either. It was difficult for one to become detached from their physical being, so unless he was able to numb the pain with his mind, he was going to have to abide by his body's commands.
America strode over to the table and sat in a chair; eagerly awaiting his caretaker's offering of food. Russia grabbed a plum from the fridge, washed it off, and handed it to the young nation. It would be a while until he'd have breakfast ready, so he hoped a piece of fruit would hold the one he was caring for over. He made sure to push the blanket America had dragged into the kitchen away from the plum, so it wouldn't become sticky from the juice. It was okay for the other to try and keep warm with a blanket while he ate. It was difficult for him to regulate his body heat, and his body was still used to being wrapped with thick overlays throughout the night, but Russia wanted to make sure the blankets didn't become sticky from the fruit's juice.
Within a couple minutes, the plum had been devoured. Though it annoyed Russia to halt his cooking and take care of the sticky mess America had produced, he still remained patient with the young nation. There were worse deeds he could be committing, and at least the other wasn't making a mess on purpose.
Though the plum had soothed his hunger pangs, America was still eager to consume the plate full of food his caretaker was preparing for him, and by the time his meal was ready, saliva threatened to trickle from his mouth, due to how appealing the food was to him. However, since most of the food would require a fork, he waited for the human caring for him to scoop some food onto a fork and offer it to him.
After feeding America, Russia prepared a plate of food for himself, and ate it as quickly as possible, as the one he was caring for appeared eager to go outside. The young nation was, once more, observing the sky. This time, he was impressed by how the colors changed from various shades of blue and a bit of yellow and green, to orange, peach, yellow, red, and light blue. It was possibly one of the most beautiful sights he'd ever had the privilege to witness. The way the early sun's colors illuminated the clouds added to the sky's beauty. Even with the absence of the stars, he pondered if it was possible for anyone to be unimpressed by this sight.
Russia couldn't help but smile at the enthusiasm. He was happy for the young nation. It was only seven weeks since America had been rescued from the scientists, and he'd already recovered enough to appreciate the beauty in life. He didn't appear to be embarrassed about his elated mood either.
Russia cleaned both their plates before changing America's clothes, zipping him up in a jacket, and putting on his shoes so they could head outside. The caretaker wasn't worried about taking care of what sausage and hash brown, which remained from breakfast, as he'd informed the other two nations caring for America of the food before they drove off to run a few errands. It wouldn't take them long to return home. As for Canada's polar bear, he made sure the food was too high for the bear to reach it. Kumajiro may have been intelligent, compared to other members of his species, since he was able to talk, but intelligence and loyalty to his owner didn't stop him from craving any food within his reach. It was in his nature to want to eat as much as possible, as it was for many other animals.
The moment Russia opened the back door of the house, America bolted outside; eager to explore the backyard. The caretaker wasn't worried about the young nation running away, though, as there was fencing surrounding the backyard. Escape would be impossible for him, as he would have to climb over a fence in order to run away from the humans. Doing this would give Russia enough time to catch him. Not that America wanted to escape. The humans were kind to him, most of the time, and he would have no where to go and nothing to eat if he ran away. It was becoming evident to him how dependent on humans he was. He had no idea where all the food they fed him came from, and with a world full of strangers he didn't trust, he didn't have any faith in surviving on his own.
America grew interested when he caught site of a flower garden. The flowers came in all sorts of different colors and he was wanted to study each and everyone of them. However, before he was able to put his finger anywhere near them, in order to study their texture, he was scolded by his caretaker, "Get away from the flowers!"
America backed away from the garden; shocked by the disapproval he was given for his curiosity. He didn't understand what was so harmful about him wanting to touch the flowers. Were they dangerous? They didn't appear to be able to cause any harm. They were small, fragile in appearance, and there was nothing sharp on them. There was no way they could be dangerous! Did this mean his caretaker believed he was a danger to the flowers? It wasn't as if it was his intention to cause the flowers harm. He wanted to stroke their tiny petals and poke at their centers (if they had one that was visible). He couldn't help but be hurt by the assumption that he would ever try to hurt something so small and fragile, but alas, his caretaker didn't appear fond of his proximity towards the flowers, so he backed off.
The young nation wandered around other areas of the backyard to distract him from the scolding he'd recently received. It didn't take long for him to find something else to do, rather than observe the flowers growing in the garden. Half an hour passed with him exploring the backyard, before he settled for sitting next to Russia on a garden bench. He hadn't had any exercise in a long time, which was why wandering around the vast yard for half an hour wore him out. Even if he was only running for half that time.
Russia didn't blame America for wanting to rest. He'd be tired too, if he'd explored this large yard. Especially after not exercising for two years. Some would probably consider the short duration in which the young nation explored the backyard a pathetic reason to become exhausted, but his caretaker wasn't going to judge him for it. He shouldn't be overexerting himself too much, anyway. Not with how thin he was.
America closed his eyes and rested his head against Russia's shoulder. He was enjoying the sun's warmth seeping into his skin, hair, and clothing. He hadn't any clue it could be so pleasant outside. Every other time he'd been outside, though it was for short periods, it'd been cloudy and chilly. In this weather, he was tempted to take a nap in the soft grass.
Russia pulled America closer to him, so he could be even more warm. Though the warm weather was a bit uncomfortable for him, he still preferred it over the frigid, snowy climate he was used to dealing with for half the year. Besides, the young nation was enjoying this weather quite a bit, and he was happy about that. He wanted the other to be as comfortable as possible.
America smiled at being pulled closer to his caretaker and nuzzled his head into his chest. His mind went blank with relaxation while his hair was stroked. If he understood the concept of heaven, he would've believed he was there. He'd been shocked by the kindness the humans had shown him for a while, but he was still awed by how caring Russia was being towards him. What did he ever do to deserve to have an understanding, gentle human in his life?