Pork Soda

Thirty

[Hey, Russia. It's me America.]

[Anyways, congrats! You're gonna be the first one to know about this!]

[I'm inviting you to my and China's wedding on August 10. That's next Tuesday btw]

[Will you come?]

[Да]

[I mean, u don't have to come.]

[I just thought that this will give you some closure and help you move on from me.]

[America, I'll come.]

[I can't forget the fact that you cheated on me and got engaged behind my back. You should have told me.]

[I know. I'm sorry.]

[Let me finish.]

[If you told me that you were in love with China, I would have understood. It hurts that you didn't have the guts to tell me from the very beginning and chose to string me along. What's even worse is that I had to hear it from Noko and not you. You hurt me, America. I left my family behind for you, I gave everything to you, I hurt someone close to me because of you!]

[But even after all that, I can't stop loving you.]

[I want to see you happy so if being with China makes you happy, then I'll let you go.]

[I genuinely did love you at first, Russia. Believe me.]

[I do.]

[When you find Martial, tell him I'm sorry.]

-----

Several months had passed after America had dumped him for another country last December. He had temporarily moved into his brother Kazakhstan's house until his own had finished construction as his ex-boyfriend had kicked him out. China and America's engagement had been announced to the world the day after America broke up with him, which was another punch to his scarred cheek. Everyone was shocked, not expecting the sudden announcement, but most of them were happy - the rest were the others that knew the dark secret of that arrangement and they were a little disappointed in America. SSA was happy for the older country. Russia wanted to tell him of what America did, but decided against it. He didn't have it in him to ruin his little brother's growing relationship with the boy's father.

For a while, the world had seemed bleak. America was Russia's world. Without him, everything seemed to turn grey. Every second without the striped country was hell to the Slav. He couldn't sleep, couldn't eat; he laid motionless and cried and drank. He was unmotivated to do anything until he remember what he and Kazakhstan had talked on the phone back then. It got him to stop crying and drinking, and to start moving and thinking. Kazakhstan had been a bit surprised by how passionate Russia seemed to be at this.

Martial had been punished by ASEAN. How? There was no clear answer. Some said that Martial had been demoted, others said that ASEAN turned him human - that was a bit absurd, others said that that he had been put in the dungeons under the World Court, but there was one answer Russia dreaded to even think about: he had been Isolated. Russia wanted to conduct an investigation on it and find Martial so he asked for help from SSA who told him to ask ASEAN if he was really that desparate. Well, he did ask ASEAN, but all the Power did was threaten Russia to never ask again and to not even think about going to the Pearl of the Orient.

The Slav didn't do one of those things.

Rain heavily poured down onto Russia's umbrealla as he walked down a very familiar road. It was good that he had though to wear some rainboots when he had decided to come to the Pearl, knowing that August was one those months where the rain seemed to never end despite being a month of summer. He stepped on the porch of a very familiar house, shaking the rain off his boots and closing his unbrella. He rang the doorbell, knowing that there was someone inside from the glow of the TV through the window. He heard the shuffling of feet growing louder as they approached. The door was then opened by someone the Slav didn't expect.