Swapped Around

Six~ America's Wife

"All hands on deck!" I hear the Captain yell, his voice carried over the roaring of the ocean. The six sailors who work on the ship clatter up from below deck and jump to work.

I stand by the edge of the boat, my feet on one railing and hands on another, looking out over the sea. Cormorants and black headed gulls dust the tips of the choppy waves, occasionally diving underwater and returning with fish. The other day I saw a shoal of massive fish which the Captain said were Dolphins.

I have now decided that I want to be a sailor when I grow up. It's very fun, you get to see loads of really interesting marine wildlife, and there is so much to do. The captain even let me steer the boat for a few seconds!

"Hey Iggy!" America's loud voice calls. I turn around, jumping off the railings and into his arms.

"Hello Daddy!" I smile into his fluffy jacket. I like calling him daddy, it makes me feel like I have a family again. He lifts me up, tucking my head under his chin and rocking me slightly.

"Ya havin' a good time?" He asks, and I nod. "We'll be arriving in Spain quite late at night, so ya' might wanna get some sleep now, instead of later, cos you'll be asleep when you arrive."

"But I would like to stay up here." I reply. "I want to be a sailor when I grow up. It looks fun."

"Sure! I'm sure you'd make a great sailor when you grow up! But big strong sailors still need to sleep, otherwise they'll be too tired to work!"

"Can I stay up just a little bit?"

"Fine, fine! But only a little bit. And remember that when you're a sailor, don't become a big bad pirate like the ones that sometimes raid the ports around the world. You don't want to be mean and nasty like them."

"Yes! I am going to be the braverest sailor in the history of ever and get rid of all the mean pirates! And then I will go back home and I will tell stories to the little people who are even littler than me and they will all want to be my friend!"

"I'm sure they will." America grins, his eyes closed behind his glasses.

"Mmm hmm! And then I will get married to a lovely husband and we will have lots of babies!"

"I'm sure you- Wait, husband?!" America exclaims, his happy expression changing to one of shock in a heartbeat. "I- I don't think you can have b-babies with a husband....." He stammers.

"What's wrong? My old parents said that they were husband and wife, and they had babies. Why can't I have babies too?"

"Um... Look here, Iggy. The husband is the boy, the wife is the girl. Two boys can't have babies together." He looks very uncomfortable telling me this. I wonder why? I mean, it's not like there's anything wrong with it, right?

"Why can't two boys have babies?"

"I'll tell you when you're older, kay?"

"I want to know now!" I wail.

"Well.... I-it's something that only big boys know about. You're still quite little, so you don't need to know." He smiles awkwardly, placing me back on the deck.

"What's up, America?" I hear a tiny whispered voice behind him. I look to see another man, who looked just like America!

"Daddy, why are there three of you?!" I wail, before looking again, and counting on my fingers. "I mean, Daddy, why are there two of you?!"

"I'm Canada." The other-daddy whispers, hugging a strange looking dog to his chest.

I smile and wave. "My name is England! Are you America's husband?"