The Things I'd Rather Forget // Countryhumans AU

Ch 22: Watching From Afar \\ The Reunification

"Nice to see you again, Bela," Russia smiled down at his sister, gesturing for her to sit down on one of the private planes many seats, "Come on, let's talk while sitting down so the plane can actually move, yes?"

Bela laughed, sitting down, "Sounds good," After a few minutes of small talk she looked at a screen telling them where they were and frowned, "Wait, why are we going in the wrong direction?"

Russia gave Bela a confused look and looked at the screen himself. No, they were going in the right direction, "I don't know what you're talking about, Bela. We're going in the right direction."

"But this can't be right! Why aren't we heading towards Kyiv to pick Ukraine up?"

Oh.

Oh.

Russia pursed his lips and looked away, unconsciously squeezing his hand in and out of a fist, "About that..." But Russia's mouth with dry, refusing to say the words that needed to be said. How could Russia ever phrase this?

Belarus looked at her brother in confusion for a few more seconds until her eyes widened into realization. She spoke, her voice shaky and sad, "He's not... He's not coming with us this year, is he?"

Russia tersely nodded, feeling horrible. Ukraine had called him the week before and basically said that he didn't want to come with them this year and that he'd be fine on his own. Even though Russia saw it coming and knew that Ukraine wasn't trying to hurt him or the rest of their family, Russia still felt hurt and a little less wanted. He knew that his family loved him, but he couldn't ignore Ukraine's frantic attempts to distance himself from his family. Or, to be more specific, Ukraine's attempts to distance himself from Russia. Russia wasn't an idiot, but sometimes he wished he was. Sometimes he wished he could have the obliviousness he had as a child, or maybe even America's ability to smile through any situation. That dork.

"Why is our family practically falling apart at the seams?" Bela asked, falling back onto her chair with a heart-shattering look on her face.

Russia frowned, looking away once again, "I don't know, Bela, I just don't know." That was a lie. He did, but Bela didn't need that reason right now. Russia had a feeling she already knew why and was denying it. Forcing her to accept the truth wouldn't do anything but distance them.

Bela gave Russia a sorrowful look, "I just- I'm gonna go to the bathroom..." She trailed off, quickly standing up and heading to the front of the plane where the bathrooms were.

Russia watched her walk off, sorrow starting to build up in his heart. All Russia did on the outside, however, was frown grimly. He would not- NOT- let any tears form in his eyes.

Slavs don't cry.

But Russia would be lying if he said he didn't want to as he was left all alone, with only his thoughts and endless worries to accompany him.

Slavs don't get lonely.

So, even though he'd been trying not to, Russia thought about America and his plan, no longer feeling as lonely. He felt his feelings bubble up and allowed them to quietly dwell in his heart. He felt his fear rise up, too, but that was quickly calmed. With his plan, Russia would be fine. With his plan, Russia had no need to be afraid.

With his plan, everything would be okay and no one would be hurt.

--x--

Once the private plane landed in New York, both Bela and Russia acted as though their conversation on the plane didn't happen. They simply headed off the plane, had some small talk, and got their driver, courtesy of the UN, to drive them to the hotel. Russia wasn't really that surprised when he noticed it was a different hotel than last time. America never planned these things consistently. This hotel looked much fancier than the other one. Plus, it was closer to the UN's headquarters. Russia didn't care enough to catch the hotel's name, though. He only had one thought flying through his brain.