Day 2: The first step
When Russia woke up the next day, he was confused by the fact that his head was vibrating. He had never felt his head vibrate like that before, so he was rather confused. Blinking, he noticed that something brown and fluffy was obscuring his vision. Looking up, he saw Hero dozing on top of his head, and that it was his tail that was covering part of his face. Chuckling, he picked Hero off his head and sat up. Hero blinked tiredly and glaring at Russia he flopped back over on the bed and started to doze off again.
Checking the clock, Russia saw it was eight in the morning. It was a little early, but Russia decided to get ready anyways so that he would be ready to go out. Walking out of the bedroom, he was surprised to see America sitting at the table in his pajamas. He had always assumed that America was a morning person, but America's tired face told him a different story. America was wearing what looked to be a T-shirt and a pair of loose pajama bottoms. His hair was sticking up in odd places, and he wasn't wearing his glasses, so his eyes were squinted. He looked tired and was holding a cup of coffee in his hands like his life depended on it. Russia noted that America looked much younger without his usual business outfits. Hearing Russia, America looked up with a start.
"Oh, I forgot you were here." America said, looking back down at his coffee.
"That is not a very nice thing for a host to do." Russia tusked.
"Fuck off." America muttered, taking a sip of his coffee. "It's too early."
"Then why are you up?" Russia asked as he walked over to the table, raising an eyebrow at the younger nation.
"Got to get work done. Fucking England." America muttered. Sighing, he noticed Russia staring at him. "What? Do I have something on my face?" America asked.
"Nyet, you do not." Russia said. "I do not know where your breakfast foods are."
"Oh, right." America said. "The plates and bowls are in the rightmost cupboard, and the cereal is on the left. The forks, spoons, and knives are in the drawer. If you want eggs, there should be a few in the fridge."
"Thank you." Russia said as he wandered around the kitchen. America watched his as Russia walked around pulling things out of the cupboards. Honestly, he had barely gotten any sleep last night. He had been reviewing England's notes until around two in the morning. That and he had been stressing about Russia in his house. America's stomach growled and with a grumble America walked over to the fridge and pulled out one of the pizza boxes and grabbed a few slices out. Without getting a plate he just went back to his seat and started to eat them. Russia just stared at America in shock.
"You are eating pizza for breakfast?" Russia asked in disbelief.
"Yep." America said.
"Cold pizza?"
"Uh-huh."
"Why?" Russia asked in with a mixture of confusion and disgust.
"Because I can." America said with a yawn. Scanning the room, America frowned. "Hey, have you seen Hero?"
"He decided to spend the night in my room." Russia said as he pulled out a frying pan and put it on top of the stove.
"Ah, that doesn't surprise me." America said with a hint of amusement in his voice. With a piece of pizza still in his mouth, America got up and walked over to one of the cupboards and pulled out a small bowl with fish patterns on it and a small can of tuna. Taking a can opener out from one of the drawers, he opened the can with a hiss. The moment he did so, there was a bang from Russia's room and the sound of running paws was heard. A second later Hero came running into the room and jumped onto the counter purring loudly. America lazily rubbed his ears and put the tuna into the bowl which Hero ate happily.
"So, did you decide where you wanted to go?" America asked, throwing the can into the trash.
"I believe we agreed yesterday to walk around the city and stop if anything caught our eye." Russia reminded America as he cracked an egg on the side of the pan.
"Ah, so we did." America said, finishing his coffee. Looking a little more alert, America finally got a good look at Russia. To his shock, Russia was only wearing pajama bottoms and no shirt. America's face went pink, and he quickly looked away.
"Dude, put a shirt on." America huffed.
Russia raised an eyebrow. "Am I making you uncomfortable?"
"Uh, duh." America said.
Russia thought for a moment, then turned back to his cooking. "Then I will not."
America glared at Russia. "Asshole."
They sat in tense silence for a few minutes. Finally, America got up and walked over to the coffee machine. Glancing at Russia, he frowned.
"Why aren't you using the small frying pan?" America asked suddenly.
"This is the smallest one." Russia said with a frown.
"No, it's not." America said with shake of his head. Bending down and opening the cupboard, he pulled out a frying pan no bigger than his hand. Russia stared at it in bewilderment. "I call it tiny pan, and it is adorable." America said with a grin.
"Why would you need a frying pan that is so small?" Russia asked.
"Well, when you live alone you don't need to make a lot of food." America explained as he put the tiny frying pan away. "I like using the tiny pan because it makes just enough for one person, and there's less to clean up afterwards."
"I suppose that makes sense." Russia said with a slow nod, turning his attention back to his cooking.
"I also make mini pancakes with it." America said happily as he grabbed his coffee cup and took a sip. "Mattie really likes them."
"Mattie?" Russia asked, giving America confused glance.
"Oh, sorry." America said. "I'm talking about Canada, my brother."
"Ah." Russia said, taking his eggs and tipping them on a plate. Russia sat down at the table, and America sat down again at the table as well. Hero jumped up on the table and tried to sniff at Russia's food, but America grabbed him and sat him down in his lap.
"You already have food, you little fatty." America said, rubbing Hero's ears.
"Your cat, what breed is he?" Russia asked curiously.
"This little fatso?" America asked, holding up Hero who meowed in irritation. "He's a Maine Coon."
"He is rather large for a house cat." Russia observed as Hero squirmed his way out of America's grip and onto the table again.
"Well, Main coons are the largest breed of house cats." America said, running a finger along Hero's tail.
"Why do you keep calling him fat? Is he over weight?" Russia asked as Hero walked over to him and started to head butt Russia's face.
America let out a chuckle. "He's had his moments, but no it's just an affectionate term. I'm afraid he has just a healthy appetite as I do, so it's hard to keep him from eating me out of house and home. I think at the moment he weighs around eighteen pounds. That's a healthy weight for his breed, but he's pushing it. I was thinking of putting him on a diet. He's starting to gain a little too much chub."
At the word 'diet', Hero's ears flattened on his head and he let out a growl.
"Don't you growl at me in that tone of meow." America said sternly, picking Hero off the table and back on the floor.
"And who's fault is it for feeding him too much?" Russia asked in amusement.
"Hey, don't pin that on me!" America said, pointing at Hero, who was grooming himself. "He may play innocent, but he's a little devil! During the night he'll go into the kitchen and open the cupboards and chew his way through the cat food bags and eat them! If you look where I took the food out, you'll see I've put a twisty tie on the handles to keep him out."
Russia turned around and just as America said, there was a tie around the cupboard.
"Do you own any cats?" America asked as he stirred some cream into his coffee.
"Da, I do." Russia said as he turned back around. "He is a Siberian Forest Cat."
"What did you name him?" America asked.
"Milashka." Russia said, his cheeks turning a light shade of pink.
America started laughing. "No way, you named your cat Cutie?"
"I thought it to be an appropriate name." Russia argued, his face turning a darker shade of pink. "He is small and cute." Then a look of realization came over his face. "You know Russian?"
"A little." America confessed. "Not enough to know how to speak fluently, but enough to get by if needed."
"I thought you only knew how to speak English and were too arrogant to learn any new languages." Russia said as he finished his breakfast.
America pouted, much to Russia's amusement. "I don't get why everyone thinks that. I speak Spanish fluently! I also know French, German, some Italian, Japanese, a bit of Russian and a few bits in other languages!"
"How do you know so many?" Russia asked, taken aback by how much America knew.
America smiled. "What kind of country would I be if I couldn't understand my citizens! I've put in a lot of time trying to learn the languages of the immigrants who move here. After all, they worked hard to be citizens!"
Russian was speechless. He had always heard American's were too prejudiced towards foreigners, and that they demanded that everyone spoke English. "But I thought-" Russia started to say when America cut him off with a sigh.
"Yeah, and to be honest some of my citizens do want everyone to speak English." America said with a shrug. "Then again, as a country I have no official language. However, the states do have official languages, but which one's depend where you are. For example, many of the southern states have Spanish and English down as official languages."
"That is interesting." Russia said standing up and walking over to the sink. Then a thought accrued to him. "Just how did you know the word for 'Cutie' in Russian?"
"I overheard a Russia couple using it once." America said. "I didn't know what it meant right away, but I asked them."
"You interrupted a couple on their date just to ask what a word meant?" Russia asked in disbelief.
"Yeah, but they were nice about it." America said as he finished his coffee and stood up. "They actually were excited that I understood them a bit in their native language, so they talked to me for a while."
Russia didn't reply, but just gave America an unreadable look.
"Oh, and just put your plate in the dishwasher." America added as he walked out of the kitchen and headed towards his room. "I'm going to be in my office for about an hour. I need to get some work done before we go. We'll head out in around one o'clock, that sound good?"
"Da, it does." Russia said, opening the dishwasher.
"Cool." America said cheerfully, walking into the hall. America walked into his room, and as soon as he closed the door he let out a sigh of relief. So far, so good. He was quite pleased with how things were going. Despite a few awkward pauses, they hadn't gotten into any major fights.
America walked over to the small desk that was shoved against the wall and sat down in the spinning chair. He spun the chair around a few times for fun, and then he looked down at his phone. He saw that he had a text message. Looking closer, he realized that it was Mattie.
MapleDude: How is it going? America read. Sighing, America typed a quick reply.
Me: We haven't killed each other yet.
America heard the bathroom door open in the hall and close, and a second later heard the shower running. Ignoring it, he felt his phone buzz.
Mapledude: That's good. What are your plans for today?
Me: Not sure. I'm just going to be wandering around the city today.
Mapledude: That sounds fun. Are you going to take Russia with you?
Me: No, I'm going to leave the commie alone in my house.
Mapledude: I get a feeling that you're being sarcastic with me.
Me: No, really?
America swore he felt his brother's eyes roll.
Mapledude: You should take him to that coffee shop.
Me: Which one? This is New York City, there are like a billion coffee shops here.
Mapledude: The one in Hell's Kitchen. The one we went to last summer.
Me: The one that's kind of hidden from the street?
Mapledude: Yeah, that one. They have great maple drinks!
Me: I swear, your head is full of Maple.
Mapledude: Maple Syrup is the best thing that's ever happened to me.
Me: Excuse you! What about me?! I'm your bro!
Mapledude: Not even close.
Me: I thought Canadians were supposed to be nice! :(
Mapledude: One name. Justin Bieber.
Me: I hate you so much right now.
Mapledude: :)
Mapledude: Have you heard about England?
Me: Yeah, he left me a voice message about it.
Mapledude: Do you need help with setting up the meeting?
Me: Nah, everything's done for the most part, I just need to go over England's notes.
Mapledude: Ok, just tell me if you need help though. I gtg, I'm helping France make England some soup. Text you later.
Me: Later.
America sighed as he placed his phone back on the desk. Looking over at the stacks of paper on his desk he cringed. There was nothing on this planet that he hated more than paper work. It was so boring! God, he could feel his brain shriveling up from how much paper work bored him. And he had just gotten it done yesterday when Fucking England had to send more!
Sighing, he grabbed the first paper on the stack and started to read it.
Meanwhile, Russia had just gotten out of the shower and was getting dressed when he heard a wail of despair come from America's room. Deciding that he really didn't want to know what was going on, Russia ignored the noise. Walking out of the bathroom he was greeted by Hero, who dashed towards him and started to snake between his legs purring loudly.
"Hello." Russia said, crouching down and rubbing Hero's whiskers. Hero started to sniff Russia's shirt in interest. "You must be smelling Milashka." Russia said with a small chuckle. Picking Hero up, he walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. Grabbing a remote, he turned on the news. For a while, nothing of interest was talked about other than the weather. Growing bored, Russia started to play with Hero by running his hand up and down the couch and letting Hero chase it.
"In further news, there has been a rise in crimes throughout the city." The news anchor said. Curious, Russia stopped playing with hero and turned up the volume. "In the last month, there has been a steady rise in small crimes, such as muggings and pick pocketers. While we are not sure what the reason for this is, police say that people should keep an eye out for suspicious individuals and to be cautious when out at night. I know I will. And now Tom with the latest on the political world."
Russia tuned out after that. He had no interest in America's politics, as he already heard enough about them in his own meetings back home. Turning down the volume again, he started to channel surf until he landed on a comedy show. It was ok, so he continued to watch it until America came out of his room a few hours later. America was dressed in a simple hoodie and jeans, and he was wearing his glasses again. He looked a little frazzled, but cheerful. Glancing at Russia, he nodded towards the door.
"So, are you ready to go?" America asked, glancing at the clock on the wall. "Time's a ticking."
"I am." Russia said. He gently lifted the sleeping cat off of his lap and walked over to the door where America was grabbing his coat.
"Cool." America said, grabbing his coat from the hook by the door. As well as his gloves and his hat.
"Are you cold?" Russia asked in confusion as he watched America wrap up.
"Yeah, it's freezing out there." America said as he put on his gloves. Glancing at Russia's thin jacket, he frowned. "Aren't you going to put on something heavier than that?"
"No, it isn't very cold." Russia commented with a shrug as he grabbed his scarf from the hook and put it around his neck.
"Speak for yourself." America sniffed. "Unlike you and my brother, I thrive in warm weather."
Russia just chuckled a bit and pat America on the head. "You would never survive a day in my country." With that, Russia opened the door and stepped out into the hall. Annoyed, America followed him.
After America locked up the apartment, they made their way down to the lobby where Greg was hanging out at the desk again. He gave them a small wave, but as soon as he saw Russia he started to watch him again, making Russia a bit uncomfortable. He didn't like how he was studying him like something under a microscope.
"Why does he keep watching us?" Russia asked America as they walked out onto the street.
"Who? Greg?" America asked, looking at Russia with a confused frown. "Ah, he was probably just bored." America said with a shrug. Stretching a bit, America looked around with a thoughtful look. "If we go straight, we're going to end up near the Museum, and if we go left we'll end up in central park. Which way do you want to go?"
"It has been a while since I have been to the park." Russia said. "Why don't we head in that direction?"
"Sounds good." America said turning around and walking in that direction. "It's just a ten-minute walk from here."
"Your apartment seems to be in a very nice location in the city." Russia observed.
"Like I said, I got a good deal on it." America said with a smug look.
"And how did you get such a good deal on it?" Russia inquired as he looked around him observing the city.
"Trade secret." America said, winking at Russia. Russia rolled his eyes at the answer but didn't press further as they rounded a corner. America felt himself relaxing a bit as he walked through the familiar city. Honestly, he could spend the rest of his life here and he could never get bored. Everything was always on the move and changing enough where things never got stale. He let the loud noises of the cars and people wash over him as they walked, feeling the city.
"It is very busy today." Russia observed.
"Well, yeah." America said with a roll of his eyes. "It's New York, I'd be shocked if it were quiet."
"That's not what I meant." Russia said, looking annoyed. "There seem to be more people out than usual. I was wondering if there was a reason for that."
"Oh, yeah. That's probably because it's the holiday season. Christmas is only three weeks away you know." America said with a slight shrug. "People are trying to get their shopping done early so they don't have to worry about it later."
"You have not decorated your apartment yet?" Russia asked as they stopped at a crosswalk. America let out a dry laugh, his breath clouding around him from the cold.
"I haven't had time. I was planning to spend most of my time down south actually, so I sent all my Christmas stuff to my home in California. I still need to find some way to get it up here."
"Oh." Russia said, feeling a bit guilty. He knew how much America adored Christmas and he hadn't realized before then that he was intruding in on his plans.
"It's fine." America said, noticing the shift in attitude of the taller nation. "It's not your fault. If anything, it's our bosses shitty timing that's to blame. And speaking of stuff that needs to be shipped, did the airport ever send you an email about your luggage?"
As the crosswalk sign went from red to green, Russia shook his head. "No, they never did." Russia grumbled. "I am afraid I will never see my luggage again."
"It's your own fault dude." America pointed out as they crossed the street. "If you didn't try to make the guy at the desk nearly piss himself from fear he might have been more willing to help."
"Then he should have not lost my luggage in the first place." Russia said darkly. America considered telling Russia that it wasn't his fault, but he decided against it. It wasn't worth it.
They walked in silence for the rest of the time, until they made it to Central park. There were a number of people of people milling around. There were joggers and people walking their pets on the paths, while on the grass there were children playing in the snow building snowmen and throwing snowballs at each other.
"Why don't we walk down one of the paths?" America suggested.
Russia hummed in agreement and they set down a random path.
They had just been walking for about ten minutes making random comments here and there when Russia stopped walking. Confused, America looked over at Russia and saw him looking over to his right. Following his gaze, he saw Russia was looking at people ice skating nearby.
"I had forgotten you had an ice rink in this park." Russia said.
"Oh yeah. That's Wollman Rink." America said. "It's been awhile since I've thought about it. I usually go to the Rockefeller Center Rink."
"Isn't it more crowded there?" Russia asked.
"Yeah, but that's why I like going there." America said with a shrug. "I like watching people on the ice."
Russia didn't respond, then glancing at America he made his way towards the rink. "It is a good day for skating." Russia commented lightly.
"Uh, I guess." America said, taken aback. He hurried up to catch Russia. After getting their skates, Russia slid onto the ice with no trouble at all, making large circles in the ice. However, America hesitated on the edge. Noticing this, Russia slid back over to where America was standing.
"Why are you not skating comrade?" Russia asked, smirking at America. America glared up at Russia.
"Something tells me you know exactly why." America snapped.
"I have no idea what you are talking about." Russia said innocently.
"It's nothing." America muttered, carefully stepping onto the ice. He clutched the edge of the rink, but after taking three steps on the ice his feet slipped out from underneath him. Letting out a cry of alarm, America fell on his butt.
Russia let out a snort of laughter and America glared up at him. "Man, shut up." America grumbled, as he grabbed the wall again and tried to pull himself up.
"Do you not know how to ice skate?" Russia asked, leaning against the wall as America struggled to get up off the ice.
"Jeez, I don't know. Do I look like I know how to skate?" America snapped as he struggled to get his footing.
Russia watched America struggle for another minute, then with an exaggerated sigh he leaned over and picked America up by his collar and placed him on his feet. Surprised by the sudden movement America almost fell over again but Russia caught him and dragged him over to the entrance and made him step off the ice.
"Thanks." America muttered, his face red from embarrassment.
"Why did you not just say you did not know how to skate?" Russia asked, looking far more amused than he had any right to be.
America muttered something that Russia couldn't understand and refused to look Russia in the eyes as his face turned a bright scarlet color.
"I did not catch what you said." Russia said.
"Because it's embarrassing." America snapped.
Russia frowned. "I fail to see how it is embarrassing to not know how to ice skate. Many people do not know how."
"I mean… I don't have to tell you!" America said defensively, folding his arms over his chest with a huff.
Russia looked at the embarrassed younger nation and mentally rolled his eyes. Grabbing America, he pushed him back towards the ice.
"Dude, what are you doing?!" America yelped, trying to get out of Russia's grip. "I just got off that death trap!"
"I am going to teach you the basics of ice skating." Russia explained as they got to the edge of the ice.
"Really?" America asked in surprise, forgetting to be angry and starring at Russia with his mouth hanging open.
"Do not be mistaken. I am only doing this because it is physically hurting me watching you butcher the ice. It insults me." Russia said calmly.
America snorted. "If that's the case then I shouldn't learn so I can cause you pain on demand."
"Oops." Russia said cheerfully as he pushed America back onto the ice with a smile.
"You asshole!" America yelled as he waved his hands franticly to try and stay upright. But he ended up losing his balance again and falling forwards. Before he hit the ice, Russia caught him again.
"Lesson number one, do not insult the instructor." Russia said as he dragged America back off the ice. "You will be punished."
"What the hell is this? Boot camp?" America muttered as he stood up again, fixing his glasses which had become crooked from the fall.
"The first thing you need to learn is how to step on the ice." Russia said, positioning America next to the ice. "First, put your hand on the barrier." Russia said, showing America where to put his hand.
"Okay…" America said unsurely, putting his hand down.
"Next, instead of walking onto the ice like you did before I want you want you to walk onto it sideways." Russia said, demonstrating the movement as he stepped onto the ice. "Then place your feet into a V formation."
America glanced at the ice unsurely, then hesitantly stepped onto the ice like Russia instructed him too. He was surprised to find that his feet didn't slip out from underneath him again and he felt a bit more balanced.
"Good." Russia said after he looked over America's posture. "Now, keep holding onto the barrier and what I want you to do is practice picking up your feet. This is going to help you learn how to keep your balance." Russia continued, showing America the foot movement.
After that was done, Russia pushed him out towards the ice again. Panicking, America was about to throw his arms out when Russia stopped him. "Don't wave your arms." Russia said, placing America's arms in front of him. "Instead, put your arms out slightly like you were leaning on a desk. Also, bend your knees a bit, loosen up."
"God, I feel like I'm at a dance practice." America joked as he followed Russia's instructions.
"Many people do take dance lessons and skate." Russia said. "They are surprisingly related to each other in a way. Both dancing and Ice skating require a certain amount of flexibility, balance, and form. So, if you took the elegant movement of someone who practices Ballet and combined it with the fluent motion of an ice skater you get quite a beautiful picture."
"I've never really thought about that." America said with a frown.
"Do you dance?" Russia asked.
America laughed. "I know a few dances, but nothing that would help me on the ice, trust me."
"Somehow, I believe you." Russia said with a chuckle. "Now, I want you to pick up your feet and try and glide forwards a bit while keeping your hands out."
America slowly started to move forwards doing the same foot movement, and to his shock he started to move forwards.
"DUDE!" America said excitably. "I'm moving!"
"Very good." Russia said as he watched America get the hang of it. About ten minutes later, America was able to skate a little easier, but then he ran into a different problem.
"Uh, I have a small question." America asked as he glided across the ice.
"And what would that be?" Russia asked as he skated next to America.
"How do I stop?" America asked.
"Ah, I forgot to tell you that. How silly." Russia said, shaking his head. "Push on the inside edge of your skates and quickly turn your hips and push out on the inside edges. Remember to center yourself so you don't fall over." Russia grabbed America and stopped him, then skating ahead a bit he demonstrated for him. Then he made America copy him. After a few failed attempts, America was able to get the hang of it.
"Dude, this is awesome!" America said excitably as he zoomed around on the ice. "I've always wanted to ice skate. It's just as fun as I thought it would be!"
"Why have you never learned before now?" Russia asked curiously. "Staying on the sidelines for so long must have been boring."
America looked embarrassed, and looking around, he grabbed Russia and headed towards the edge of the rink where no one could hear them. "Look, it's pretty stupid, but because you actually taught me how to skate I'll tell you so we're even. It had to do with something when I was smaller."
"Oh?" Russia asked, interested.
"When I was still a colony, England left me and Canada alone a lot. We kind of took care of our self's and for the most part we didn't have that much trouble. But one day Canada and I went out playing out near a frozen pond and he wanted to go ice skating and offered to teach me. I was all for it, but after a while Canada disappeared, and I got scared. I ran out into the weaker part of the ice looking for him and I fell through. I almost ended up drowning, but Canada came out of nowhere and saved my ass. After that Canada made me promise not to go out on the ice without him or someone else I know around, so I haven't."
"Even on ice rinks?" Russia asked in surprise.
"Yeah, a promise is a promise." America said with a laugh. "I've tried to get him to teach me again, but ever since he's started playing hockey he's gotten aggressive on ice and he keeps disappearing, so he gave up teaching me years ago. England's temper is too short to teach me, France didn't want to teach me because he said ice skating was an art and I was a bull in a china shop, and I was too embarrassed to ask anyone else. Although Japan tried after a show came out in his country about it, but he was a surprisingly bad teacher." Then looking alarmed he added, "Don't tell him I said that."
"I would never." Russia assured, but filed it under potential blackmail.
"So, yeah." America said awkwardly. "Before now I just watched people skate around this time of year. I was always too busy to hire someone to teach me, so I kind of gave up."
"Why did you never ask me?" Russia asked. "You know I know how to skate."
"We don't exactly have a friendship to the point I would ask you." America admitted. "That would be like if you came up to me one day and asked me how to make a burger from scratch. I would probably think you were punking me or something."
"Ah, I see." Russia said with a nod. Just then, he noticed America was shivering slightly. "Are you cold?" Russia asked.
"I'm actually freezing right now." America said with a laugh. "I just didn't want to be a kill joy. Plus, I just learned how to skate for the first time in my life, no way I was going to let a little bit of cold stop me from enjoying this."
"You should say something." Russia said with a frown.
"Nah, you looked like you were having fun." America said, waving away Russia's concern. "I don't mind."
Russia looked down at his watch. "It is almost time for lunch. Did you want to go get something to eat?"
"Do I ever." America said happily, gliding over to the exit. "Hey, I know this great little coffee shop near here. Actually, seeing as it's in Hell's Kitchen we might have to take a taxi. But it has the best sandwiches!"
"That sounds fine." Russia said, following America to the exit. After returning their skates, they made their way out of the park with America excitably telling Russia about the little coffee shop.
Just before they reached the edge of the park it started to lightly snow. America looked up and smiled. "Aw yeah, fresh snow!" America said happily, stopping to admire the falling snow flakes around him.
"I thought you didn't like the cold." Russia said.
"I don't for the most part, but I love snow." America said with a large grin. "You can do all sorts of stuff with snow! You can go skiing, snowboarding, have snowball fights, make snow sculptures, and build snowmen."
"I am afraid I find it to be nuisance." Russia admitted.
"Then you just aren't looking at it right." America said with a laugh.
"I am doubtful of that." Russia said dryly, blinking as the snowflakes started to stick to his eyelashes. "Snow is nothing more than an inconvenience that must be dealt with before it becomes a problem."
"You sound like a grumpy old man." America huffed.
"I have lived in the snow for much longer than you." Russia said with a bitter tone. "I have lived through many harsh winters, struggling to survive. Snow brings no joy to my land, only chilling me to the bones and taking all the life that once thrived there before it. Once you have seen one winter, you have seen them all, and the once beautiful snow turns into something ugly. So no, I am not looking just looking at it wrong."
"Well, aren't you a ray of sunshine today." America muttered, putting his hands into his pockets.
"It is the truth." Russia said as they continued to walk towards the street. "It is not always pleasant."
"Yeah, but jeez man, you don't have to sound like the undertaker." America pointed out as they stepped out onto the sidewalk. "Cheer the fuck up, you're making me depressed."
"Then I shall continue as I am." Russia said with a slight smirk. "You are too cheerful, it might do you some good to be sad every once and a while."
"And here I thought you were warming up to me." America joked.
"Unlikely." Russia said with a snort.
Shaking his head in amusement, America hailed a taxi and gave the taxi driver the address of the Coffee shop. As the taxi sped off, Russia found himself holding on to the door handle for dear life as the taxi driver sped down the streets at high speeds and whipped around tight corners. To Russia's horror, the taxi driver was laughing gleefully each time he jumped a curb or almost hit someone. Clearly, the man was insane, and they were going to die. Glancing over at America he saw that the younger nation had turned green. When the taxi barely missed getting hit by another car as it went through a red light, that's when Russia decided he had had enough. He shouted for the driver to stop, which the driver did almost sending him and America face planting into the front seats. He opened his door and stormed over to the driver.
"You are crazy." Russia said angerly.
"Part of the job." The driver laughed.
"I'm not sure if that's true." America muttered as he stumbled out of the car, holding his stomach.
"Ah, you're just being a pair of baby's." The driver said with a huff. Then he held his hand out towards Russia. "Pay up."
Russia's aura turned dark in a second, and he stared down at the cabbie with all his fury. "You expect us to pay after you almost got us killed?" Russia asked angerly, his hands balling into fists.
"I've got to make a living pal." The cabbie huffed, not even phased by Russia's livid look.
Russia narrowed his eyes, and he made a movement like he was going to strangle the cabbie when America grabbed him and pushed him out of the way. "Dude, it's fine." America said, pulling out money out of his wallet and handing the cabbie some money.
"You should be more like your friend." The cabbie said to Russia with a smirk as he reached for the money. "But I guess you Russian types don't have manners."
Russia's expression turned murderous, and America smile froze on his face. Russia made to crush the man's skull, but America put his arm out to stop him. "I'm sorry," America said as he pulled the money away from the man's hand with a cheerful smile, "what did you just say to my friend?"
The man sneered at them. "You heard me. He's a damn Russian, they can't be trusted. Damn dirty commie. He's probably a dirty immigrant taking all of our jobs and rigging polls." The man said, spitting in Russia's direction.
America's smile fell off his face, and he glared down at the man. "I think you should apologize." America said quietly.
"Or what? What are you going to do boy?" The man said with a laugh. "Just fork over the money or I'm going to call the cops on you for stiffing me. So just be a good kid and pay up."
America glanced back at Russia, who's attention was solely fixed on the man's face. Then with a sigh he handed Russia the money and in one fluid motion he grabbed the cabbie by his shirt collar and pulled him clear out the taxi window and held him up about a foot off the ground. The man shouted in alarm, and America pulled his panicked face to his furious one.
"Listen to me." America snarled as the man cowered in his grip. "If you don't apologize to my friend right now not only will I throw you through that brick wall over there, I will also punch you in the face until your face is so unrecognizable that your own mother won't be able to recognize you. You will not get payed, and if I hear so much as a peep out of you I'll call your company and sue your ass so hard you'll be lucky to be left with the cloths on your back. Do. I. Make. Myself. Clear?"
The man nodded hurriedly, and America dropped him onto the ground. The man stammered out an apology to Russia, and quickly got back into his taxi and peeled away from them. Russia stared in shock as America sighed.
"Dude, I'm so sorry about that." America said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.
"You defended me?" Russia asked, still trying to understand what the hell just happened.
"Well, yeah." America said, looking down at the ground worriedly. "What he said was unacceptable. You're a guest in my country and I won't let people treat you poorly. Dude, Russia, I'm so sorry that happened. I swear, not everyone is like him!"
Russia frowned as he saw America stressing out. "You threatened one of your own citizens for me?"
America's face went dark again. "I don't like bullies. Never have, never will. I won't tolerate anyone one being spoken down too just because they come from somewhere else, and I sure as hell won't stay quiet when someone is doing something wrong. If that means threating someone to make them back off, then so be it." Then America looked ashamed of himself. "Not that defends my actions right now. What I did was wrong. I shouldn't have threatened him like that, even if he said all those things. I just got really pissed off."
Russia stared at America for a moment, then he started to chuckle. America looked annoyed. "Dude, what's so funny? I could get in serious trouble if my boss finds out about this!"
"I just never thought I would see the day I would see you fight someone for calling me a commie." Russia said. "Seeing as not a week ago you called me the exact same thing."
America opened his mouth to respond but stopped short. With a conflicted expression on his face, he closed his mouth and stared at Russia. Then turning around, he muttered, "I guess I did." There was a tense silence, then America cleared his throat. "So, Coffee." He said, gesturing up the street. "The place is just a block away." And with that America practically ran up the street with Russia following him. They walked in silence, both lost in their thoughts.
Finally, after what felt like forever, they walked up to an alleyway, and America turned down it. Russia followed and saw that the sign of the coffee shop. It read, "The Little Coffee Shop." A little on the nose, Russia decided, but not the worst name he'd ever heard. As they entered, Russia realized that the sign had not been exaggerating when it said 'small'. There were only four tables with two seats each, and a small counter where one person was standing, looking extremely bored. The person behind the counter looked up when the bell above the door rang, and his face lit up when he saw Alfred.
"Al!" The guy said happily. "It's been awhile. What can I get you and your friend?"
"I'll take the usual. Uh, what did you want?" America asked Russia awkwardly.
"I will have a black coffee." Russia said with a shrug, wiping off the snow that had built up on his shoulders.
After getting their drinks, they sat down by one of the tables next to one of the windows. They sat in silence, Russia staring out the window watching the snow fall and America just staring down at his cup. At some point, Russia glanced over at America, and saw that he looked upset, even angry about something. Looking back at the snow, he saw a group of children running through the street, throwing snowballs at each other and laughing. He watched them for a while, the glancing back America he saw the younger nation just looking blankly at his mostly untouched drink. Bored by the lack of conversation, Russia spoke up.
"This coffee shop, how did you find it?" Russia asked, taking a sip from his drink. America jumped at Russia's voice.
"Oh, uh… Me and Mattie were hanging out and he spotted the shop from outside the alley. I don't know why, but he has a knack for finding little unknown shops." America said with a shrug. "Mattie really likes this place, and he always comes here when he visits New York. Apparently, he likes the Maple drinks they serve here."
"Are you very close with your brother?" Russia asked.
America's face brightened up and a big smile grew on his face. "Yeah! We're very close! We hang out all the time whenever we aren't busy." Then his smile dropped a bit. "But I haven't seen him as much recently due to some political stuff."
"Are you two fighting?" Russia asked with a frown.
America shook his head. "No, of course not! Geez, I couldn't ever see myself really fighting with him these days. I mean, the guy is literally flawless! I've never heard anyone say anything bad about him." America added with a laugh. "Although he gets annoyed with me from time to time, but whatever. We always work it out in the end."
"I noticed a few pictures in your living room with him." Russia said with a small smile. "You have a rather unique bond with him. I doubt I have ever seen such a close bond between two countries before."
"Oh, we've had our moments." America said with a grimace, his hand coming up to where his heart was. Then he smiled again. "But like I said, we've always gotten over our fights. We're too alike each other to feel too much resentment to each other."
Russia frowned thinking of his own sisters. Then he remembered something from the day before. "May I ask you a question?" Russia asked.
"Sure, shoot." America said, taking a drink from his cup.
"When I was looking around your apartment, I saw an old empty picture frame on one of your shelves. I was just wondering why you would have such a thing on display."
America laughed and put his mug down. "Oh, that old thing? It's just waiting for a picture to put into it. I'm saving that frame for a special occasion.
"And what would that be?" Russia asked, intrigued by what America had said.
"It's a secret." America said with a wink.
Russia couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed by America's explanation but before he could press the matter a snowball whacked at the window and looking over at the window they saw the group of children from before laughing at them and running away. America chuckled at their antics and waved at them.
As soon as the kids were out of sight Russia faced America again.
"Would you have beat that man up earlier like you said?" Russia asked. America sighed.
"No, of course not." America said, shaking his head. "He's one of my citizens. In all honesty I would never harm one of my citizens unless I had no choice. And even then, I don't enjoy it. All I simply did was use a scare tactic."
"He didn't seem frightened of me." Russia said with a frown.
"He was probably being over cocky." America said with a shrug. "When people have prejudices against people, they tend to underestimate them and not take them very seriously."
Russia nodded, well aware of what America was talking about.
America picked up a sugar packet off the table and threw it at Russia. Russia blinked in surprise as the packet hit his forehead and then he glared at America, who looked amused.
"What are you doing?" Russia asked, a little miffed.
"That's for trying to hurt one of my citizens." America explained. "Although in his case I'm not as mad. So instead of punching you I'm going to throw sugar at you. That and it was to break up the tension a bit."
Russia stared at America, then he chuckled as he peeled the sugar packet off his head. "You are a very strange person."
"So everyone keeps telling me." America said with a small laugh. They finished their coffee in comfortable silence, and eventually America glanced down at his watch. "Did you want to head back now?" America asked. "I think I've had enough excitement for one day."
"Da." Russia agreed, and after taking a none crazy taxi back to America's apartment, they walked back into the lobby. Much to Russia's relief, Greg wasn't at the desk. There was an older lady at the desk who was doing something on the computer though, but they didn't stop to chat as they made their way up to America's apartment. Like before, America opened the door and had to shoo Hero back into the room, but this time Hero was meowing loudly and snaking around both of their legs.
"Oh my god, I know." America complained as he picked up Hero who was still meowing loudly. Making his way to the cupboard, he plopped Hero on the counter and as he opened the cupboard Hero tried to stick his head into it, but America pushed him out.
"Cut that out." America scolded as he pulled out a can of food and taking a bowl out he fed Hero, who eagerly attacked the food.
"He's rather eager." Russia said with a chuckle as he pet Hero.
"Hmmm." America hummed as he washed out the can. "That's one way of putting it."
After he was done eating, Hero groomed himself and watched as Russia went and sat in the living room and America rummaged around in the fridge. More interested in what Russia was doing, he walked over to his him and rubbed up against him, and Russia lifted him onto his lap again.
"Hey, I'm going to be making stew tonight." America called out as he pulled out a large slab of meat and vegetables. "It's going to be awhile before it's ready, so if you wanted to go take a nap or something go ahead."
"I think I will just watch the news." Russia said as he turned on the tv.
"Suit yourself." America said as he started to make the dinner. About an hour and a half later, Russia smelled something rather good. Hero must have agreed because he stretched out his body, and then hopped off the couch and wandered into the kitchen.
America had his earbuds in and he was sitting by the pot as he was watching a video on his phone. Hero jumped up on the counter and was about to sniff the pot when America looked up and let out a cry of alarm. Jumping up, America grabbed Hero and dragged the cat away from the hot stove.
"Bad kitty." America said, putting Hero back on the ground.
Hero just glared at America and hid under the kitchen table sulking again.
"Why are you mad?" America asked as he sat back down at the table. "I stopped you from hurting yourself. Stop being mad at me."
His only response was a nip on his toe. Rolling his eyes, America went back to his video.
After another half an hour, the timer went off and America started to pull out the plates when Russia wandered in.
"Is the stew ready?" Russia asked.
"Yeah, it just got done." America said as he handed Russia the plates. "Here, why don't you set the table while I finish up here."
After the table was set America served out the stew, along with a few pieces of bread. Then to Russia's confusion he pulled out a chunk of meat off his plate and put it on a small plate next to his and started to cut it up into shreds. America noticed Russia watching him and laughed. "This is Hero's share." Calling Hero, he placed the dish on the floor, and Hero attacked it eagerly.
"You would have thought I never fed that beast." America said with a chuckle. "Alright, lets dig in."
"I was not aware you could cook." Russia said as he sampled the stew. He was pleased to find that it had a pleasant taste.
"Yeah, how on earth did I ever feed myself before fast food. I wonder." America said sarcastically, dipping his bread into the stew and eating it.
Russia laughed at the sarcasm. "I did not mean to offend. It is just that I have rarely seen you without some sort of burger or fast food near you."
"Well, you see me at the meetings most of the time, so of course you only see me with fast food." America said with a frown. "It's easier to grab something from a fast food place then it is to get up and prepare something beforehand."
"It really is not that hard." Russia said. "You just have to get up early."
"Uhh, no thank you." America said, making a face. "Sleep is way too important to me. I love food, but I can eat whenever I want. I can't sleep whenever I want."
Russia studied America. "I always took you as a morning person before now." Russia admitted.
America burst out laughing. "Oh man, that's a good one." Russia just raised an eyebrow. Noticing this, America stopped laughing. "No way, you really thought that?" America said in surprise.
"You have always been loud and cheerful at even the most early in the day meetings. I just assumed." Russia said with a shrug.
"That would be the miracle of caffeine." America said. "Why do you think I always have a soda on hand at those meetings? They're just full of the stuff and they're cheaper than buying a coffee from Starbucks."
"I just grouped it with the fast food." Russia said guiltily.
"You should give it a try. The caffeine I mean." America said as he stabbed a potato. "It just wakes you right up."
"I do not think so. I don't want to become dependent on it." Russia declined.
"Yeah, I understand. Arthur is always getting on my case about that." America said, rolling his eyes.
"Who is Arthur?" Russia asked with a frown.
"Whoops, sorry." America said. "I'm talking about England."
"Do you often call the other nations by their names?" Russia asked as he finished his bread.
"Not really." America said with a shrug. "Only a few of them."
"Who would those nations be?" Russia asked. "I know you call your brother and England, but do you call anyone else by their names?"
"Uh, let me think." America said, with a crinkled brow as he thought. "I think the others are Japan and France. So, like I said, not many. So, do you call anyone by their names?" America asked curiously.
"Da, I do with my sisters." Russia said.
"Oh, cool." America said. "So, are you liking the stew?"
"I am." Russia said. "It is very good. Who taught it to you?"
"France." America said with a chuckle. "He just barged into my house one day about a hundred years ago and demanded that he give me cooking lessons. He said something about how England had ruined my taste buds and he was going to save me or something like that."
Russia had a mental image of America screaming as France burst down the door yelling in French and waving a frying pan and he snorted with laughter.
"What's so funny?" America asked.
"It is nothing." Russia said as he finished the stew. "Do you still have cooking lessons with him?"
"Once a month." America said with a small smile. "I'm grateful for them. I think I would have been cooking like England if he didn't step in. He's teaching me how to make a coconut cake next week. If you want, you can ask France if he could teach you as well. I think he'd be thrilled to have another student."
Russia was taken aback by the offer, but then he shook his head. "No, thank you. I do not wish to intrude."
"Then you're going to be our taste tester." America said as he finished off his own plate. "If you're done I can take your plate."
"Thank you." Russia said.
"Hey, I've got some paperwork I need to get done by tonight, so I'm going to be in my office for probably for the rest of the night." America said apologetically. "If you want you can watch a movie or something. If you want to go on a walk just tell me first ok?"
"Of course." Russia said.
"Cool." And without another word America walked to his room and locked himself in. With a sigh, he walked over to his bed and flopped onto it. Truthfully, he didn't have that much paperwork left. He had just wanted an excuse to get away from Russia.
Turning over onto his back, he stared up at the celling with a concerned frown. He couldn't get what had happened with the taxi driver out of his head. He hated to admit it, but he was a damn hypocrite. God, he just wanted to punch himself in the face. How could he not have seen it before? Here he was talking about he hated people who looked down on people who were different from them, and he was doing the same exact thing. That taxi driver sounded exactly like him when he argued with Russia, minus the part about immigrants. He's face darkened when he remembered that part. That had been the part that had gotten him angry. Whether or not someone was an immigrant didn't matter to him, and when people looked down on them it just made his blood boil.
Guiltily, he realized that he should do something for calling Russia a commie. After all, even though he wouldn't admit it most of the time, Russia hadn't been a communist since the early nineties. That was just him being bitter. Sighing, he sat up and leaning against his pillows he pulled his phone out from his pocket and called his brother. After a few rings, a tired voice answered.
"Hello?" Canada said tiredly.
"Hey, It's me." America said nervously.
"Al?" Canada asked in surprise, sounding a bit more awake. "What's up?"
"How to you apologize to someone for being a hypocrite?" America asked. There was silence on the other side of the phone. "Mattie, are you still there?" America asked worriedly.
"Who are you and where is my brother?" Canada asked. "He would never admit his short comings."
"Dude! I'm being serious!" America said angerly.
"Oh my god, you're not joking right now are you?" Canada said excitably. "Does this mean you and Russia are getting along better?"
"Not really. I just realized that maybe I've been a little unfair to him." America said with a huff.
"And how did this realization happen?" Canada asked.
"It doesn't matter." America said. "Look, I'm asking you because you're the nice one. I just want to know what to do, okay? I don't really know how to apologize to people, so I need some advice."
"You could always tell Russia to his face that you realized that you've been acting like a douchebag for years and you're sorry." Canada said.
America burst out laughing. "Very funny, what's the real advice?"
"That is the advice. Stop being stubborn." Canada huffed.
America didn't say anything for a moment, then with a groan he flopped face down on his bed. "Isn't there anything else I can do that won't be so awkward?" America pleaded.
"Al, there is no easy way to say you're sorry." Canada said with a sigh. "If you're not ready to say sorry, at least stop doing whatever it is you feel sorry about. He might notice that you're at least trying to be better."
"I guess that could work." America muttered. Suddenly, he heard someone calling for his brother on Canada's side of the line. "Who's that?" America asked.
"I'm still at England's place." Canada said. "France and England have been fighting all day, so I've been playing peace maker."
"You're fighting a losing battle on that front." America said. "Why even bother?"
"Honestly? I have no idea." Canada said grumpily. "At this point I'm ready to let them kill each other if it means I can get more than an hour's sleep."
"Oh, sorry did I wake you up?" America asked worriedly.
"I was just dozing on the couch." Canada explained. "I've got to go, I just heard something break. Good luck with Russia. And good job for wanting to apologize. I'll make a Canadian out of you yet." Canada joked.
"In your dreams." America snorted. "Talk to you later." After he hung up, he sighed. He had to make a game plan if he was going to apologize to Russia. He still didn't like him, but he had to at least do something about what happened today. Walking over to his desk, he pulled out a blank piece of paper and started to brain storm. It was going to be a long night.
A/N: America has taken the first step to getting along with Russia. Good for him. I hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. If you have any suggestions on where they should go in New York let me know. And a small fun fact, Hero is based off the five cats I live with! I love all my little baby's!