Thanks to HighOffBananasFo for reviewing.

Disclaimer: I don't own Hetalia.

AmeCzech: Ironic

"So, are you ready to do this?" Alfred asked. "You feeling okay?"

Clara nodded as she looked into the tent. She could see people in medical uniforms going around, and one of them made her way to someone lying on one of the beds. Clara had never donated blood before, and she was a bit nervous when she saw the packet next to one of the people on the beds.

She and Alfred received forms that they needed to fill out. She went through the long list of yes/no questions. Most of them were no, but there was one or two that she had to tick 'yes'. Finally, she was finished, and she went over towards the next station.

The nurse went through the responses, before zeroing in on one point.

"You said here that you drank a painkiller recently," the nurse said. "Could you tell me more? When did you drink it and what did you drink?"

"I drank some ibuprofen two days ago for a migraine," Clara said, her temperature dropping. Was there some sort of problem? Judging by the way the nurse pursed her lips, it was possible.

"How much ibuprofen?" she asked.

Clara reached into her purse and handed over the packet. The nurse looked at it for a moment before setting it aside.

"How often do you have these migraines?" she asked. "Is it common or uncommon?"

"C-common," Clara replied. "I get these migraines maybe once or twice a week."

"Do you know what causes them?" Clara shook her head. The nurse handed her form back to her. "You understand that this might be a risk. These migraines might be a symptom of something serious. So, before you donate, you may want to see the doctor to establish that it would be safe, for you and for a potential recipient."

Clara felt her face fall. Even though she had been apprehensive about the process, knowing that she wouldn't be able to participate due to the potential health risk was disappointing. She nodded her head, before she joined Alfred, who was lying down on a bed. She kept her gaze away as the nurse tending to Alfred searched for a good vein.

"So, I apparently can't donate unless I go to the doctor to find out about these migraines," Clara explained.

"Oh," Alfred said. "That sucks. But I get why they don't want to take any chances."

Clara nodded. She had been growing worried about the migraines, which had become more frequent and also more intense. She tried very hard to not imagine the possibilities – it wouldn't help her. But she'd promised herself that she would go see a doctor about it, eventually.

…

The day after Clara had been rejected by the blood service, she had another migraine which lasted about twelve hours. She was glad that it was the weekend, so she could spend the entire day in bed. But that Monday, Alfred called the doctor to make an appointment for her. She was annoyed that he'd done so without her consent, but she acknowledged that he only did it out of worry for her.

She went to the doctor the next day, and the next morning she had to go for blood tests. Of course, none of this eased her nerves. In the meantime, she had been given magnesium to drink.

…

Clara waited in the doctor's office, Alfred sitting next to her. He'd asked to come along to offer moral support in the event of it being very bad news. Clara was torn between feeling touched by the motion and terrified that he even thought it was a possibility.

Doctor Beilschmidt greeted them when he came in, and the man didn't hesitate before he opened the folder and flipped through the blood test results. Clara couldn't understand much of it, but she could at least understand the things that the doctor pointed out to her. And then came the part where the doctor explained what the most likely cause of the migraines was.

"As you can see, your iron levels are very high," Doctor Beilschmidt explained. "Do you donate blood? That is the best way to lower your iron levels."

"Are you serious?" Alfred groaned. "They didn't want to take her blood because of the migraines!"

Doctor Beilschmidt smiled a bit at this.

"And donating blood would be a good way to lower the iron levels, which would, hopefully, help with the migraines," he said. "It's funny how these things work."

Clara didn't think it was so funny.

Yeah… My first experience with blood donation didn't go so well, and it took me years to feel comfortable to go again (that, and they usually pick the wrong time of the month to come to my town). And when I did, when they found out I suffer from migraines, they refused to take my blood until I went to the doctor to find out what the cause is, since it's obviously a health risk. The next day, I spent the whole day in bed with a migraine (while making a mental note to get darker curtains). Then I made an appointment with the doctor. There are a few possible causes, but the doctor placed emphasis on my iron levels being too high, and suggested donating blood. The last part of the chapter are my thoughts about this.

I also did some research regarding painkillers, since I wanted to know what would be safe to drink if I'm planning to donate. You're not allowed to donate if you drank aspirin, and ibuprofen is also risky. Paracetamol is the best option, just not the strongest, in my experience.

I decided to go with America, since blood donation would be a heroic thing.