Eight Mortal Secrets [Hetalia Drabbles] (Completed, to be Edited)

LXI. Go Big or Go Home

"Shelberoni." Alfred called from the front door as he peered inside the house, his eyes gleaming with an excited, yet anxious light.

Shelby glanced up from her iPad, smirking slightly. "Since when did you start using that nickname? Have you began hanging around my dad?"

"HAHAHA, hell no. I just like the ring of it. But, dude, get ready. I'm about to blow your freaking mind." Alfred explained, smiling brightly. "Close your eyes, bro."

"Okay, okay, but if I open them and you're in my face, I'm slapping the crap outta you." Shelby stated, setting her iPad aside and shutting her eyes, taking a deep breath in an attempt to prepare herself for whatever Alfred had planned.

Once her eyes were closed, she heard the screen door swing shut, but since the wooden one hadn't, Shelby figured that Alfred had momentarily stepped outside. Against her better judgment, she kept her eyes closed until it opened again, and then the wooden door followed behind it. She heard something moving, but she couldn't pinpoint what exactly could be creating the soft sound.

Then suddenly, something jumped up on her lap and began aggressively licking her face. Her eyes snapped open instantly to reveal a golden retriever puppy, happily lapping her nose and smiling. Her mouth fell open, her throat beginning to burn as tears of joy brimmed in her eyes. "It's a doggo!" She squealed with glee as she began to feverishly pet it's flanks. "What's it's name? Oh my goodness gracious, you're just the cuteness little puppy, yes you are!" She asked Alfred, before slipping into a very high-pitched voice as she cooed at the dog.

"I don't know, whatcha wanna name him?" Alfred inquired.

Shelby's head snapped up in the country's direction. "What?" She whispered in disbelief.

"Yeah, I mean, he is your dog." Alfred explained.

Shelby sat speechless for a few moments, before she began blubbering like an idiot and holding the puppy close to her chest. The dog, in turn, licked her chin and neck feverishly, panting with all the excitement happening around him. Alfred laughed, walking further into the house and stuffing his hands in the pockets of his pants. "Yeah, I know you love dogs. I wasn't sure if it was too soon to get you one, since Angel passed, like, seven months ago, but you always get so excited around dogs, and I love seeing you smile, so I got him. We can keep him here so your parents don't get pissed."

"I want to name him Apollo." She sobbed, "I love Apollo. The dog and the Greek god. I love them both so much."

"Okay, Shelbs, pull yourself together. I've got his collar right here. Look, Stars and Stripes!" He laughed, handing her the red, white, and blue collar and standing above her, bouncing on the heels of his feet slightly.

"It's perfect." Shelby breathed, holding the rectangular tag that his name was to be inscribed on between her thumb and the index. Then, she noticed that it had tiny hinges. "Oh, it's a locket."

"Open it." Alfred insisted.

Shelby, shaking slightly with shocked nerves, didn't even question the blonde as she flipped open the locket, revealing a piece of white paper, bulging slightly from being folded and forced into such a small space. She grabbed it out of pure curiosity, unfolding it. She flipped it to the side that had words sloppily written in America's penmanship.

I swear on Ole Glory I'm not trying to bribe you with a dog, but I needed to go big or go home, ya know?
Anyways, will you be my girlfriend?

Shelby stared at the paper. At first, she thought the excitement of the moment had her mind jumbling the words in her head. So she read them over, but they still said the same thing. She read one word at time, like she did when editing an AP English paper. She noticed all the i's were dotted with stars, and all the letters were slightly shaky and rough in appearance due to America's writing speed being too fast for his own good. But it still read the same words.

She looked up in shock, the puppy now on the couch cushion next to her, chewing on his own hindpaw. Alfred was grinning ear-to-ear, his bright blue eyes sparkling with a hopeful light past his glasses. She lost feeling in her fingers, her heart pumping impossibly faster as her mouth slowly fell open in shock.

"Alfie-" She tried to speak, but the words got caught in her throat. So many thoughts were swimming in her head. The fact that she was a mortal, and that in itself almost kept them from being just friends. The fact that Alfred was the personification of the United States of America, and that she shouldn't be that close with someone so important. The fact that there really was no possible future with Alfred; no hope of marriage or even kids if she happened to change her mind about them. The fact that she had no clue about the consequences that both her and America might face if England were to find out she wasn't actually Michigan.

For something that seemed so pointless, so full of heartbreak, Shelby's heart, for once in her life, seemed to be screaming louder than her brain.

She nodded, wiping away some of the tears that had moisten her cheeks.

"YES! AHAHAHAHA, WE'RE A THING NOW! WE'RE REALLY SHELBMERICA!" He celebrated, picking Shelby up by her underarms and hugging her close, spinning her around as he laughed obnoxiously.

"Why would you call us that? You've been spending too much time on Skype with Dreamz!" Shelby yelled back, her face flushing as Apollo began barking and running around America's legs, his tongue lolling happily.

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... I'm not gonna lie to you guys... I'm so tempted to trash this chapter. I'll try and leave it up.