OKAY PEOPLE, ARE YOU READY TO GET YOUR FLUFF ON?! LET THE CUTENESS BEGIN! :3
"Alright, we're heading out now Mrs. Carol!" Alfred yelled from the coat room, and Mrs. Carol stuck her head around door and gave them a large smile. They had been there for about three hours, and the building had been filled up with hungry people, which Mrs. Carol lovingly referred to as 'her loyal customers'. Russia had been amazed to see how Alfred interacted with his citizens after the kitchen had opened. As soon as they walked in and saw him, their tired and haggard faces would brighten and more often than not, the people would walk up to him and greet him like a long lost friend. Without fail each time, Alfred would greet them just as warmly, giving each person a hug or a handshake. Alfred would ask about their health, their living arrangements, or with one older gentleman ask how his search for aliens was going, to which he received a toothless grin and a laugh. It was rather obvious that Alfred knew these people well, which intrigued him to no end.
Russia didn't know what to make of the whole thing. While it wasn't unheard of for nations to help their citizens in times of need, that was usually reserved for times of great hardship and war. Most governments liked to keep the nations close as to keep an eye on them, so nations, especially the older ones like himself, often stayed near their ruling bodies unless they were going to world meetings. Russia himself usually was always with his government or at his own home alone in Moscow. England usually stayed with his royal family or one of his mansions in the country side, and he was pretty sure China kept mostly to himself in his house, not even bothering to deal with his government half of the time because they annoyed him. Not to say that they didn't have personal lives, but he didn't know of many first world nations that liked to get down in the slums and help people personally. Hell, he was pretty sure Austria would die if he had to do hard labor.
Not to mention that this wasn't a side of Alfred that he was used to seeing. For the last few hundred years all he had seen from the younger nation had been determination, stubbornness, obliviousness, and even on a few rare occasions' true anger and anguish. But here he was seeing something he never had before. Alfred looked relaxed, even peaceful as he had been speaking to his citizens. Like he truly was content to spend the rest of his life talking to these people. He looked happy. And not that loud and crazy kind of happy of his where he would laugh loudly and make jokes, but truly happy. It had been fascinating. As he pulled on his coat, he couldn't help but wonder if he would see Alfred like that again. Surprisingly, he found himself hoping so.
"Heading out already Alfred?" Mrs. Carol asked, and Alfred smiled and gestured to Ivan, who was standing behind him.
"Yup, I would usually stay longer, but the big guy and I are going to be touring the city today!" Alfred said brightly, patting Ivan on the back. "I want to show him a few my favorite hang outs."
"I see. Well, don't let me hold you two up then. Thank you for joining us today Ivan." She added turning and beaming up at him. "Whenever you visit again, you should stop by again."
"I will make sure to do so." Ivan replied with a small smile, and Alfred glanced up at him in mild surprise before smiling slightly.
"Welp, don't forget to send me the schedule for next month." Alfred said as they walked over to the door and opened it, letting the cold air blow in and push his hair back. "Come on Ivan, we've got a lot of ground to cover today. See you Carol!"
"Bye! Stay warm!" She yelled back, giving them a cheerful wave as they let the door shut behind them. As soon as they were back on the street, Alfred stretched and grinned up at Ivan.
"So, where too first?" He asked, hopping down the steps happily. "Should we go back the park, or do you want to finally take that tour of the Statue of Liberty? Oh, maybe we could go up to the top of the Empire state building! It's been awhile since I've been up there. Although," Alfred said with a sudden grimace, "it would probably be too cold up there. That wind chill would probably kill me."
"I see." Ivan said with a small smile, following Alfred down the stairs and tightening his scarf a little to block out the wind. "I would not be opposed to go on the ferry tour. I have been on it once before I believe, but that was a few decades ago. It would be interesting to see if they have any new information available."
"Probably not." Alfred admitted as they started to walk down the road. "But they might talk about the damage from Hurricane Sandy on Ellis Island."
"I heard about that." Ivan said with a small hum. "It caused quite a bit of damage, did it not?"
"That's an understatement." Alfred said with a grimace. "All the artifacts survived, but most of Liberty Island and Ellis Island were flooded. It cost around $77 million in damages if I remember right. Although, that was just a small portion of the city that got damaged. I think the total cost of damages after everything was said and done was $19 Billion."
"An impressive number." Ivan said, letting out a low whistle. "Didn't you have a bad head cold from that?"
"I did." Alfred admitted with a chuckle. "My nose was running for weeks after that storm hit. England started to yell at me during one of our meeting because I was blowing my nose too much. Not like he would understand, the lucky bastard. He never get's hurricanes, only rain." Alfred added with a pout.
"Hmm, and here I thought idiots could not get colds." Ivan said with a small smirk. In response, Alfred turned around and gave him an exasperated look.
"I don't want to hear that from you!" Alfred said with huff, crossing his arms and giving Ivan an unimpressed look. "Or do I need to remind you about the time you jumped out of a plane without a parachute because, and I quote, "Snow is soft.""
"I survived, did I not?" Ivan argued. "I do not see what everyone was getting so upset about!"
"You broke your back in three places! How the hell is that not a big deal?!" Alfred asked in disbelief.
"Technicality's." Ivan huffed, waving away the younger nations words. "I made it to the ground."
"And people call me stupid." Alfred said with a shake of his head.
"I am not the one who asked the world to make a robot superhero to save the world from global warming!"
"Hey, we could have made it work if you guys just went along with the plan! And don't change the subject! We're focusing on your stupidity, not mine. Like the time you sat on my brother for three hours because somehow you were too stupid to notice you were sitting on a fully grown man!"
"You actually noticed him there?" Ivan asked in surprise.
"Well, no." Alfred admitted guiltily. Then with a shake of his head he brushed it off and pointed at Ivan. "But even I'm not so stupid as to not notice when I'm sitting on him!"
"I was wondering why that chair was so comfy." Ivan said with a small chuckle, and Alfred punched him lightly in the shoulder.
"I expect you to apologize to him about that. He was pissed off about it for a couple of weeks after it happened." Alfred scolded.
"If you tell him to never pour maple syrup on my pancakes ever again I will."
Alfred stared at Ivan in disbelief. "You don't like his maple syrup?"
"No, I do not." Ivan confessed. "It is too sweet for me. I prefer my breakfast to be plain, and not give me type 2 diabetes before noon."
"What kind of blasphemous taste buds do you have?!" Alfred asked in horror. "Oh my god, what's wrong with you? No one has ever said that about my bro's pancakes!"
"Says the one with no taste." Ivan said with a slight huff. "And no one has ever told your brother that his pancakes are not to their liking?" Ivan asked in disbelief.
"No one! You better not tell him that you didn't like them either. It'd break his poor maple heart." Alfred said, suddenly looking upset for his brother's health. "I don't think he'd be able to take it."
"Is your brother that obsessed about maple syrup?" Ivan asked.
"He has a freaking maple leaf on his flag, and he has a maple syrup reserve. What do you think?" Alfred asked.
Ivan suddenly had a flashback to Canada pouring maple syrup into his coffee and he had to suppress a grimace at the memory. "Maple syrup reserve?" Ivan asked in confusion.
"Yeah, it's a long story. Anyways, to put it simply, maple syrup for him is the equivalent of hamburgers to me. Hell, I don't think I've seen him without a bottle of the stuff since we were kids. So don't ever diss it in front of him, okay? He might start crying. Or kill you. One or the other."
"Kill me?!"
"Uh-huh. He can be like that sometimes." Alfred said causally, looking down at the watch his wrist watch with a frown. "Speaking of time, if we're going to get anywhere today we better get a taxi." He suddenly turned around to face the street. Raising his hand, he whistled sharply at a passing taxi, which stopped for them. "Come on, let's get going. We're burning day light." Alfred said brightly, racing over to the taxi.
"Wait, what do you mean kill me?!" Ivan asked worriedly, chasing after the younger nation. "Answer me!"
_SometimeLater_Russia's P.O.V_
After they had gotten their tickets and boarded the tour boat, they were finally heading to Liberty Island, much to Alfred's delight. However, that delight had turned into disappointment when just a few minutes into their journey it started to snow again, causing the world to suddenly white out the view around them.
"Aw man." Alfred said, looking outside the window with a pout. "This blows. Watching the statue come into view is one of the highlights of the trip."
Ivan glanced up at Alfred from the brochure he was reading. "I thought the weather was supposed to be nice today." He commented.
"So did I." Alfred said with a sigh, fogging up the window slightly.
"You are making it even harder to see." Ivan pointed out with chuckle.
In response, Alfred drew a happy face on the window and grinned at Ivan. "All better!"
"You are ridiculous."
"And that's why you love me." Alfred said, winking at Ivan, who simply shook his head in amusement.
They fell silent for a few minutes, Alfred squinting out the window to try and catch a glimpse of the statue, and Ivan watching the people around them. Ivan was rather surprised to see a large amount of people on the tour, but Alfred had just laughed and said that the summers were twice as bad. Most of the people on the tour were chatting casually, or basking in the warmth that the heater provided. Eventually, Alfred let out an irritated huff.
"I'm going out on the deck." He said, suddenly standing up and walking to a nearby door.
"It is cold outside." Ivan pointed out.
"No, really?" Alfred replied sarcastically as he opened the door.
"You do not like the cold." Ivan said, giving Alfred a questioning look. Catching on, Alfred let out a laugh.
"Oh, I get it. I'm only going out to see the statue come into view, not enjoy the weather. I can't see a thing out that window. Want to join me? We'll have the whole deck to ourselves. Best seats in the house. You only have to freeze your butt off for a few minutes to get them." Alfred asked, and Ivan shrugged before getting up to join him. It wasn't like he had anything else to do.
They stepped out onto the deck and Alfred closed the door behind them, cutting off the voices inside. Alfred led them over to the side of the boat, and he leaned on one of the railings, squinting into the fog to try and catch a glimpse of their destination. As they stood there, Ivan was struck by how quiet it was around them. There was no wind blowing, so the snowflakes around them were lazily falling down on them. Looking around them, he saw that the snow had started to stick to some parts of the deck, and was already building on some of the hand rails. Even the noises of the other boats on the water seemed to be muted in the fog. It felt…odd.
He had been in this country for almost for almost two weeks now, and excluding the first couple of days, each day had been full of some sort of excitement. They had been loud, full of people and places, and ever changing. It was so much different than what he was used to, and surprisingly, he had found himself slowly enjoying the experience. He had never had so many people talking to him before, even if they were arguing with him. So suddenly being surrounded by silence made him uncomfortable. It made him think of the empty house waiting for him back home.
"What are you thinking about?" Alfred asked suddenly, and Ivan started a little at the question.
"Huh?" Ivan asked, blinking in surprise. Alfred laughed a little at Ivan's behavior.
"Earth to Ivan." Alfred teased. "Don't go following sputnik into space."
"No, I do not think that would be wise." Ivan said with a small smile.
"So, something on your mind?" Alfred asked, giving Ivan a questioning look.
"I was just thinking of home." Ivan admitted with a shrug.
"Home sick?"
"Something like that." Ivan said, his smile dropping slightly.
"Ah, I see. Well, don't worry, you'll be back home before you know it." Alfred said brightly, giving Ivan a large smile. "I'll be out of your hair before you know it!"
"I see." Ivan said, turning out to face the ocean again. Alfred frowned as he caught a slightly sad look on Ivan's face. Alfred hesitated for a moment, before he came to a decision. Exaggerating his shivers from the cold, he leaned into Ivan's side. Ivan looked down at Alfred in confusion and Alfred grinned up at him.
"I'm stealing your body heat." He explained.
Ivan couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter, but he didn't stop Alfred either. "Get your own body heat."
"Why should I?" Alfred asked, leaning further into Ivan's side. Truth be told, he actually was really cold, and leaning on Ivan was helping. "Share the wealth."
"Alas, I am no longer a communist; therefore I do not share anymore." Ivan teased, pushing Alfred off of him and holding him back at arms length.
"Nooo!" Alfred whined, struggling to cuddle up to Ivan again. "Come on, sharing is caring, and I'm freezing my ass off!"
"Sounds like communist propaganda to me." Ivan hummed happily.
"How dare you use my meme's against me!" Alfred gasped, giving Ivan a look of betrayal.
Ivan couldn't help but laugh at the pathetic look Alfred was giving him. Taking pity on him, Ivan sighed and stopped pushing Alfred away, and Alfred leaned against him again with a huff.
"You're mean, you know that?" He grumbled. "If you weren't so warm I would have thrown you overboard."
"I am sure." Ivan said in amusement. They stood like that for about a minute before Alfred suddenly perked up. He leaned over the railing and with a large smile, pointed into the fog excitably.
"Look! I can see her!"
Ivan squinted into the snow with frown. "I do not see anything."
"Just wait a second!" Alfred said brightly. Then, just as Alfred said, a shadow appeared through the snow, appearing like a giant in the distance. The closer they got, the more detail was reveled, until finally, like a curtain drawing back, the fog cleared up and there the statue stood in all its glory. She towered in the distance, holding her torch high for all to see, and seemingly staring down at the little boat they were on with a neutral look. Ivan guessed that the boat had been directed in such a way that the statue was facing them head on when it appeared. Probably to give the tourists some wow factor.
"That was some entrance." Ivan said.
"What can I say? She has the flair for dramatics." Alfred joked. "After all, she's been making a good first impression for me for over a hundred years now. I mean, she's had a lot of practice and all, seeing as she was one of the first thing immigrants saw when they came over here."
"I see. It is one of France's finer works, da?" Ivan asked.
"Yeah, the statue is a thing of beauty." Alfred said with a small smile. "Yet," he added with a slight huff, "people always seem to forget that I helped build the damned thing too. That pedestal wasn't cheap you know!"
"No one comes here to look at the pedestal."
"They better look at the damned thing! I built that thing with love and money that I had to beg for. I wasn't exactly fanatically well off at the time you know! Plus, you wouldn't see her as well without it, now could you?" Alfred argued.
"I guess not." Ivan agreed.
They fell back into silence again, admiring the statue. Suddenly Alfred perked up again. "Oh, I just had a great idea!"
"About what?" Ivan asked curiously.
But Alfred wasn't listening. Instead, he was searching his coat pockets for something. After a second, he let out a happy, "Ah-ha", and pulled out a disposable camera out of his right pocket.
"A camera?" Ivan asked.
"Yup! I almost forgot that I brought it." Alfred said, giving Ivan a bright smile. He held the camera up and gestured for Ivan to pose in front of the statue. "Come on, let's take some pictures together."
"Why?" Ivan asked with a frown.
"Why?" Alfred asked, echoing Ivan's question, his smile falling slightly. "Why not? Don't you take pictures when you go on vacation?"
"Not really." Ivan said with a shrug. "Who would I share the photos with?"
Alfred didn't respond right away, studying Ivan for a moment with an unreadable expression. Ivan wondered what he was thinking. He couldn't help but feel a spark of annoyance at the younger nation as he wondered if he pitied him.
"What?" Ivan asked, snapping slightly.
"Who the hell wants to share vacation photos with people?" Alfred blurted out. "That shit is boring as hell."
Ivan stared at Alfred. That was…not what he had been expecting him to say.
"I mean, sure, I take a bunch of photos on my vacation, but I don't actually share them with people." Alfred continued, ignoring the stunned look on Ivan. "Why the hell would I do that to someone? No one gives a shit about where I went or what I did. God, I remember when England would show me his hunting trips in Africa before the meetings about eighty years ago. I was bored to tears! Tears! And he would go on and on-"
"Then why do you take vacation pictures?" Ivan asked Alfred, quickly interrupting his rant.
"Hmm? Oh, I take them because I like having pictures of my friends hanging out with me." Alfred said brightly. "Why else would I take them?"
Ivan was speechless. It was such a simple reason, but for some reason he couldn't quite believe it. "That is the only reason?" He finally asked, and Alfred nodded with a grin.
"Come on, hurry up. If we wait anymore we're going to miss having the statue facing us!" Alfred said, and wrapping an arm around Ivan's shoulder, he held the camera up so that that they were taking a selfie. "Say cheese!" Alfred said with a large smile, and before Ivan could do anything, Alfred had already taken the picture.
"Wait, I was not ready." Ivan said, slightly flustered.
"Oh, okay. We can just-" Alfred started to say, but just then the tour guide made the announcement over the speaker that the statue was in sight. Suddenly the door behind them opened and the rest of the tour party poured onto the deck, talking loudly and taking pictures. The peaceful atmosphere was all but shattered as the group surrounded them, and Ivan couldn't help but feel a little irritated at the sudden interruption, as well as at the probably poor picture Alfred had just taken. Alfred just laughed at the interruption though, and taking Ivan's hand, he pulled him through the crowd and back towards the door. For some reason, Ivan's heart seemed to jump at the touch although he couldn't understand why.
"Come on, we can take retake the picture again when we leave. Let's go warm up for now." Alfred said with a grin, and Ivan couldn't help but give him a smile back, completely forgetting about the picture for a second.
_Later_
They spent a good amount of time on the small island, not only climbing up to the top of pedestal, but also touring the museum inside of it. Alfred had acted like a tour guide for Ivan, explaining some of the history of the statue and explaining how they constructed it. Unfortunately, they weren't able to climb up into the crown due to not being able to get the tickets. Alfred had explained that the waiting list for the tickets could be up to half a year, and that he hadn't had enough time to prepare to get them, much to his disappointment. According to him, the view from up there was quite impressive when the weather was nice. Speaking of which, the weather had steadily gotten nicer while they were there, until the snow stopped and the sun had started to weakly shine through the cloudy sky.
Eventually, they had ended up at the gift shop. Alfred didn't buy anything much, except for a small key chain of the Statue, as he claimed that he was getting bored with his current one. Amusingly, the old key chain had been a small flag that had said, "I love the U.S.A."
Ivan was causally looking over the mugs and other useless trinkets, when he spotted a small display of clearance items in the corner. Looking at them, he saw a tiny hand held electric fan on the counter. Picking it up, he turned it on and the blades of the fan lit up, displaying the message, "New York State", and "Statue of Liberty."
"What ya got there?" Alfred asked curiously, peaking over his shoulder. To Ivan's amusement, he was wearing a small foam crown.
"A fan. You are not going to buy that, are you?" Ivan asked, plucking the crown off Alfred's head and throwing it in the bin next to them.
"Kill joy." Alfred said, sticking his tongue out playfully at Ivan. "And no, not now." Looking down at the fan, Alfred let out a chuckle. "Oh, those are summer items." Taking a closer look, Alfred couldn't help but laugh. "Wait, are those the electric ones? Those things are hilarious! I've seen so many people complain about those things!"
"What do you mean? They are just fans, what is there to complain about?" Ivan asked.
"You see how it says New York State?" Alfred said, pointing at the message the fan was displaying. "Well, that happens to piss off some of my citizens in New Jersey."
"Why?"
"Look, it's complicated and all England's fault, but for some reason the borders between New Jersey and New York were are kind of wonky. To make it easy, let's just say the two states have been fighting since they were made, and they had been squabbling about where to put the state lines on the river. Liberty Island was given to New York so that New York would give New Jersey half of the river for trading ports; however Liberty Island is kind of still in New Jersey's territory. So I ask who owns Liberty Island. Is it New Jersey, or New York?"
"New York?"
"Technically, no. Liberty Island is federal land." Alfred explained with a grin. "Sorry, trick question. The island is officially mine. So the real question is which state is the Statue of Liberty in?"
"Ah, I see the problem."
"Yep. The statue is in New Jersey territory, but some of the island is owned by New York. So the states keep bickering over it." Alfred said with an eye roll. "I really don't care which state it's in to be honest. I keep out of those arguments."
"So, when someone from New Jersey sees this fan-" Ivan started to say, holding up the fan in his hand.
"Yep, they get pissed off. I once saw this older fellow get grumpy at his grandkid for showing him that fan. He was from New Jersey, and he started to lecture the poor kid on how New York State was a state full of liars and thieves, and that they stole the statue from right under their noses. The poor kid looked so confused. He was like, eight I think." Alfred said with a snicker. "I think his mother set him up too, because she was the one to tell the kid to show the fan to his grandpa because he would like it."
"She knew what she was doing." Ivan agreed, putting the fan back down on the counter. "So, do many of your states fight among themselves?"
"Well, there was that one time that they got into a civil war, but not really." Alfred said with a shrug. "At least not in modern times. A lot of the states used to bicker when the states were more like their own little countries, but they only bicker over little things here and there now. Well, unless the Federal government starts throwing its weight around. Then all of the states start arguing over everything again." Alfred said with an eye roll. "Like when elections come around. God, I hate election years. I get nothing more than paperwork, headaches, and squabbling politicians."
"Do they ever fight over petty things?" Ivan asked.
"Of course they do." Alfred scoffed. "Oh, they like to squabble like any other governed body, believe me. Texas and California fight over everything, whether that be politics, religion, weather, lifestyle, or how to make a sandwich. They're basically on the opposite side of the spectrum from each other. Of course, Texas is always bragging about themselves and saying they're better than other states, so they tend to piss all their neighbors off. New Jersey and New York have been squabbling with each other since their creation. Then again, New Jersey doesn't really like anyone or anything. No one likes Florida, including Florida. Then there are the more broad things like East Coast Vs. West Coast, or North Vs. South. But I've had enough of that last squabble myself." Alfred joked.
"I would imagine so."
"Then you get more trivial stuff, like sports. Like the Red Sox Vs. the Yankees. I know Ohio and Michigan have a really big rivalry when it comes to football. South Carolina has a rivalry with Georgia in football, as well a few border despites, and I think peaches."
"Peaches?"
"South Carolina produces more peaches than Georgia, even though Georgia is called the peach state. When South Carolina pointed that out, Georgia said their peaches are three times as sweet. It started a fun back and forwards between them."
"You would think that they were alive like us." Ivan said with a chuckle, but Alfred grimaced at the thought.
"God forbid." Alfred said with a slight shudder. "It's bad enough dealing with the rest of the world. I don't think I could stand having fifty of us running around in my backyard squabbling every day."
"I do not think the world could handle fifty of you." Ivan agreed with his own grimace. "It is hard enough dealing with you."
"Hey, what's that supposed to mean?" Alfred asked, and Ivan just gave him a smirk and patted him on the head.
"I will tell you when you are older." Ivan teased, and Alfred jabbed him in the side in retaliation. Ivan let out an involuntary squeak at the poke, and Alfred paused for a moment before an evil glint formed in his eyes.
"Oh?" Alfred said with a smile Ivan could only describe as predatory. "I didn't know you were ticklish."
"No." Ivan said, narrowing his eyes at the shorter nation. He quickly moved to the side so the counter was separating them. "You stay there."
"Aw, what fun would that be?" Alfred asked, and he tried to move around the counter to grab Ivan, but Ivan kept moving back. It soon became a game of cat and mouse, with Alfred attempting to grab or corner Ivan in the small store, and Ivan either avoiding him or just barely managing to escape getting caught. At one point, Ivan had exited the building to try and get Alfred off his trail, but he had no such luck. In fact, he only made himself an easier target by having nothing to put between himself and the younger nation, who was now chasing him across a stretch of grass. Alas, Alfred was slightly faster than him, so he ended up being tackled into a snow bank. Ivan soon found himself being attacked. Alfred was ruthless, and Ivan found himself helplessly laughing into the snow, tears pouring down his face as he tried to push Alfred off of him, to no avail.
"S-stop!" Ivan begged between peels if laughter, pushing on Alfred's face.
"Nope!" Alfred said with a grin. "You have to say uncle!"
"Never!" Ivan declared, before Alfred poked him again in a particularly ticklish spot and he started to wheeze out another laugh.
"Say it!"
"Fine! Uncle! Uncle!" Ivan gasped, and Alfred rolled off him with a triumphant grin.
"I win!" Alfred declared.
"That was not fair." Ivan wheezed with a slight pout. "You cheated."
"If I had known you were that ticklish, I would have sent men with feathers after you during the Cold War. We could have stopped fighting twenty years earlier at least."
"Please." Ivan huffed. "It would have done nothing. I would have worn something to protect myself from them."
"Hmm, I guess you have a point." Alfred said as he stood up. He offered a hand to Ivan, who took it. As soon as they were both standing up, Alfred realized that they were both now covered in snow. And that he was even colder than before.
"I'm cold." Alfred whined.
"It is your own fault." Ivan replied, giving Alfred an unimpressed look. "What did you think was going to happen when you tackled me?"
"Umm…I didn't think that far ahead." Alfred replied with a sheepish grin.
"You are helpless." Ivan sighed.
"Aw, but that's why you love me!" Alfred said, winking at Ivan. In response, Ivan pushed the laughing American back into the snow bank.
_Later_
They didn't spend much more time at the Island after that. They ended up opting out of the tour of Ellis Island, agreeing that they could take the tour another time, as it was starting to get late and they hadn't eaten since that morning. Alfred spent most of the trip back to New York City in front of the heater in the boat, only coming out to retake the picture from earlier with Ivan, before huddling back next to the heater. When they did get back to the port, Alfred had suggested a small local shop nearby to eat at. It turned out to be a small pizza shop that had been run by the same Italian family for almost a hundred years. Alfred had explained that he used to eat there all the time about thirty years ago, before he had moved down near the D.C. area for work.
It had turned out to be an interesting place, and Ivan had to admit that the food wasn't half bad. Though, he had to admit to himself that the Italian brother's food was still better. He kept that comment to himself however. When they had left, Alfred had taken him around a few other area's around the city that he liked to hang out at, pointing out a few more of his favorite places to eat, going to a book store that he liked to hang out at when he had free time, and a clothing store that had all the latest fashion in stock. When they were leaving the clothing store, Alfred had pointed out a small arcade store nearby with an excited smile.
"Oh, that place is one of my favorite places in the whole city!" Alfred said. "I go there all the time when Kiku…" At the mention of Japan's name, Alfred snapped his mouth closed, and the cheerful atmosphere suddenly turned heavy. Alfred all but slumped into himself, a sad look replacing the excited smile. "I mean… we used to go all the time…" Alfred said unsurely, giving the store a pained look, before giving out a heavy sigh. "You know what, forget I said anything." He said, forcing a painfully fake smile on his face before turning around and walking down the street faster than necessary.
"Are you-?" Ivan started to ask, giving Alfred a concerned frown, but Alfred quickly cut him off with a forced laugh.
"I'm good, really!" Alfred assured Ivan, turning around and giving Ivan that fake smile. Ivan frown only deepened when he saw it. It seemed so unnatural on his face. It was too practiced, and it didn't meet his eyes at all, which were dull and empty of emotion. It was nothing like the smile he had shown him for most of the day, which practically lit up any room they were in. It was a mask, and they both knew it. "You know, why don't we see one more place and call it a day? It's starting to get dark." Alfred said, looking down at this watch.
"So it is." Ivan said, glancing up at the sky, which was slowly starting to turn orange.
"Anywhere you want to go?" Alfred asked, glancing up at the sky as well.
"I have an idea, but you might not agree to it." Ivan said with a small hum.
"Oh?"
"Well, I have on a bit of a dry spell since I arrived in this country, if you catch my drift." Ivan said with a sly smirk, looking back down at Alfred. He held his hand up to his face and mimicked taking a drink.
"Ah, I see." Alfred said, looking a bit amused. "You know, I think I might know just the place." Alfred gestured for Ivan to follow him.
"Oh, and here I thought big brother would get in the way." Ivan commented as they walked down to the busier part of town.
"Big brother can go fuck himself." Alfred snorted. "I think after how these last few weeks have gone I deserved to get shit faced."
"Can you even hold a drink? After all, all I ever see you drink is watered down beer or soft drinks. We might not be in the bar long if you take after England." Ivan teased.
"Oh, them are fighting words." Alfred said, a small spark of his old fire returning to his eyes as he grinned up at Ivan, and Ivan found himself slightly relaxing. That was better. "Come on, Mr. Vodka Man, I'm going to drink you out of the bar."
"You wish."
A/N: *A hand breaks out from under the dirt and I crawl out from the Earth* You thought I was dead, but I have returned! *Looks back at the author note two chapters back.* So that was fucking lie… Any who, I have returned with the fluff I promised! And so, the romance begins, even if our main boys don't realize it yet. Soon to return, Japan, Canada, France, and maybe England! And Alcohol poisoning. Redemption arcs for our favorite two idiot boys are also on the horizon people!
I actually meant to finish the day with this chapter, but nooo, my brain was like, "Hey, I have a new idea that would further Character development, bring the two closer, and might add a little spice into the story. You just have to write day 11 forever and ever. :)" And I was like, "You son of a bitch, I'm in!"
Man, I am so sorry for the slow update. I have been working on this chapter for over a month, but work is kicking my ass. That said, I suddenly had and influx of reviews on this story, so I was motivated enough to get my ass into gear and finish this chapter. \(*0*)/ I'll try to update within three to four weeks and not make you guys wait that long again.