Dear Annabelle,

I have a problem. Usually girls really like me. I mean, what's not to like? I'm handsome, athletic, popular… But the girl I really want to be with doesn't seem to care about that stuff. And I think she might like someone else! How can I change her mind?

Cincerly,

Sinecerly,

Sincerely,

Her True Hero

Dear Hero,

If she is taken, there is nothing stopping you from asking her out, mon cher! Tell her how you feel, and if you are meant to be, she will come around eventually.

-Annabelle

Alfred didn't realize he had fallen asleep in Geometry (again) until the dismissal bell jarred him awake. He quickly got his things together and made his way to the door, until something stopped him.

"Mr. Jones," the math teacher's icy tone made him jerks to a stop. "I'd like to speak with you for a minute."

Alfred slowly turned around to face him, a man with thin, long white hair and a glare permanently glued to his face. If he had a beard, he'd look something like Gandalf the Grey… The thought made Alfred snicker despite himself.

"What seems to be the problem Mr. G?"

The teacher sighed. "Alfred, do you know the school's policy for student athletes?"

Alfred glanced at the clock, not wanting to waste any time. The longer he was here, the slimmer his chances were… "Yeah, sure, of course."

"The policy," Mr. G said through gritted teeth. "Is that students maintain a C average in order to be on the team."

"Well, what's my average?"

"C minus, which means you need to…" All Alfred heard was a chorus of blah blah blah as he kept looking at the clock. "…Do we understand each other?"

"Don't you worry, Mr. G!" Alfred said, inching towards the door. "I'll take care of it!"

Alfred ran to his locker and ran out the door, not slowing until he saw her, sitting on one of the benches at the school's entrance. She was just as pretty as she was Saturday night. Even in her school uniform, she stood out somehow. Her long blonde hair was tied back with a bow, and her violet eyes glimmered in the sunlight.

But the first thing Alfred noticed was that, while most of the benches were crowded, the one she sat on was empty.

Perfect.

"Hey!" Alfred greeted cheerfully, plopping down next to her. "How's it goin'?" She tensed just enough for him to notice.

"Fine," Natalia said, refusing to look at him.

"…So, are you doing anything tomorrow night?" She nodded.

"…Next Thursday?" No luck.

"…This weekend?"

This is the point where most guys would have given up. But Alfred was not most guys. And frankly, he was kind of an idiot to begin with.

"Well… Are you doing anything right now?"

She answered simply with a glare. An if you value your life I suggest you leave right now kind of a glare.

Alfred was a little intimidated, but he didn't back down. "Come on, let's get some ice cream. I swear if you aren't happy then tomorrow you can ignore my existence forever."

Natalia sat silently for a minute, before standing up. Alfred didn't give her time for second thoughts, quickly grabbing her arm and leading her to his truck.

It was like she'd never had ice cream before. She ordered a small vanilla cone, but instead of eating it, she just glared at the treat, and Alfred almost expected it to melt on the spot out of pure terror. And he wasn't sure how he felt about her refusal to look him in the eye. Maybe it wasn't so bad- Alfred quite liked his insides when they weren't liquefied in an instant… I really need to cut back on the sci-fi…

But after consuming the top three scoops on his waffle cone, he figured he'd better start making conversation. "So," he said suddenly. "How's the ice cream?"

She shrugged. "Fine."

Another awkward silence. "So… What do you like to do?"

"I like going out with my brother, going to my brother's football games, and being alone." She shot an icy glare his way, and Alfred thought he felt his heart melting faster than the ice cream.

"Oh…" God, this was not going well. He had to think of something to say. Something smart. Sophisticated. Impressive. Cool. "I-I.. You… I think you're really pretty!"

The silence following was deafening.

What just happened? He never let things like that slip! He was Alfred F-ing Jones for crying out loud! He never made mistakes.

This was the end. It had to be. She'd never speak to him again. And after Ivan found out, he'd be a laughing stock at school…

"You do?" Her words made him jump. They were quiet and unsure, unlike how she usually spoke.

"Of course I do!" Alfred answered, his confident smile quickly returning. "You have really pretty hair, and pretty eyes, and… And… You're indescribable!" Thank God he'd paid attention in English that day.

"No one…" She looked down at her feet. "No one has ever said that to me before."

"Not even your big brother?" Alfred asked, trying to keep the distain out of his voice.

She shook her head.

"We'll they're crazy," Alfred's heart swelled. "Because you're crazy beautiful."

Natalia looked at him, and for the first time, she wasn't glaring. "I'd like to do… This, again."

"Uh, how's Friday?"

"Sounds good," She looked down and dug through her purse. "You will pick me up at 6 o'clock and take me somewhere nice. If you're more than 10 minutes late don't bother showing up at all." She went to hand him a slip of paper, but stopped herself. "And if you enjoy having your testicles attached, I suggest you call me the next day."

Alfred could only nod, his mouth suddenly very dry. "Sounds cool," he finally said.

"Good," she handed him the paper. Written on it, in firm, yet almost graceful handwriting, was a phone number. A real phone number, with 10 digits and everything. Alfred felt like jumping up and yelling "VICTORY!" But instead he decided to stay quiet.

After a minute, Natalia stood. "You may take me home now." Her ice cream cone was still untouched when she threw it away and got back into his truck.

He'd done it. He'd gotten a date, a real date with his dream girl. But it wasn't exactly what he had expected. The realization hit him like an oncoming train- now he'd have Ivan to deal with.

Author's Note: Before anyone says anything, the SuFin portion of the story will be up soon! This is just what I was inspired to write, okay? But it will be up soon, I promise!

Also, if anyone is interested, you can now write letters to Annabelle yourself so I can add them to the beginnings of chapters! I'd appreciate if you wrote the letters as the Hetalia character of your choice, but remember that these letters are "anonymous." But as you already learned, it's not hard to figure out who you're portraying. Of course, you can write as anyone you want, if you are so inclined. Can't wait to get your letters!

Sorry for the lengthy author's note. Talk to you guys soon!