Back to our regular schedule of chapters.
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(Y/n) found herself in town late at night. It was fairly cold, with the frigid wind nipping her exposed skin and the snow still coming down. She was on a late-night grocery run. She had found her fridge was empty after checking on it and decided it would be good to buy some food. It may have been a better idea to simply buy food in the morning but quite frankly, (Y/n) didn't want to wake up early before classes to buy everything.
So, here she was, wearing a thick winter coat, boots and gloves, walking through the streets to reach the supermarket. It wasn't terribly far from the school. It only took a few minutes. (Y/n) was relieved as she stepped into the warm supermarket, a sharp contrast to the cold winter outside.
She pulled her hood down and unzipped her coat while stomping on the mat to rid her boots of excess snow. She walked through the automatic doors and picked up a basket. First, going off to the fruits.
There weren't many people in the supermarket, as expected. (Y/n) had counted maybe 10 people when she walked to the fruits section, maybe more, maybe less. She went around, picking the fruits she liked, the ones she liked a little less and continuing to the vegetables. She hummed quietly, picking up a (vegetable).
Rather quickly, (Y/n) made her way through the aisles, picking the things she wanted. The supermarket itself wasn't too big, nor was it too small. There was another supermarket that was bigger that was near the mall however, that one was further away and (Y/n) was sure she could find whatever she needed in this one.
(No need to suffer more for about the same thing, yes?)
As (Y/n) was distracted by her search for eggs, she bumped into someone.
"Ah! Sorry!"
She blinked and looked up to find Canada standing in front of her with an apologetic look on his face. He was wearing a red jacket with the hood of a sweater barely visible. There was a soft pink flush on his cheeks, presumably from the cold. Hanging off his arm was a plain black basket with several items in it such as juice boxes, milk and maple syrup.
"No, I'm sorry, it was my fault," (Y/n) said.
"No-"
"I'm surprised to see you here this late at night," she interrupted.
(She wasn't going to let him take the blame for something that was her fault.)
"I could say the same to you," Canada replied. "Are you here for groceries?"
"Yeah, I didn't want to get them tomorrow morning." She sighed. "And you?"
"Alfred ate all the food in the fridge." He smiled exasperatedly. "So we might as well buy more now otherwise we wouldn't have any for breakfast, eh?"
(Y/n) chuckled. "I suppose so. Is he here with you?"
"Yup. How about you?"
"I'm here by myself."
Canada blinked and tilted his head to the side. "Is your roommate not with you?"
"I don't have a roommate."
An awkward silence stretched between them as he softly said, "Oh..."
She forced a smile. "It's fine. I don't mind it. Besides, I should probably stop holding you up from your shopping."
"No, it's alright." Then, he added, "I like talking to you."
"... Thank you."
("Why would he actually like talking to you?" they murmured. "What do you have to offer?")
They bid farewell and separated to buy their food. They would probably end up crossing paths within the supermarket again but for now, they said their goodbyes. (Y/n) went around the aisles, picking the final things she needed. Finally, she went through the snacks and drinks aisle.
She hummed quietly as she looked up at the shelves that were taller than her. She picked out her favourite ones along with some chips. She was sure that during the study group, they would end up consuming a ridiculous amount of snacks. She couldn't blame them, sometimes she ended up eating snacks just because she was bored.
She recalled a phrase Japan had once told her, "kuchisabishii". When you're not hungry, but you eat because your mouth is lonely. It was a fun phase. Italy had said he understood it and (Y/n) had a feeling he was telling the truth. As she reached up to grab a package of juice boxes, it slipped out of her grasp and it fell. As she lunged forward to try to catch it, she tripped. (Y/n) swore she could see her life flash before her eyes.
But, she never hit the ground and for that matter, the package of juice boxes never did either. She opened her eyes and looked up. A familiar laugh was heard.
"Woah, careful, dudette!" America grinned.
"Alfred," (Y/n) murmured.
"That would've been a pretty bad fall."
"Not as bad as when you fell off the roof."
"Come on, it wasn't that high. Besides, you caught me."
She stood up and gratefully took the package of juice boxes that he had caught. (Y/n) placed the package in her basket that held all her other groceries.
"Thank you for catching me," she said.
"No problem. I'm the hero!" he laughed. She smiled and nodded.
("Just how incompetent are you? Can't even get groceries without someone saving you.")
The smile faded. (Y/n) and America conversed a bit as they were both going through the snack and drinks aisle. There was a copious amount of snacks in America's basket which (Y/n) didn't ask about. She probably already knew the answer to why.
"We're planning on making a study group," the (h/c)-haired girl had said.
"The exams are in about three weeks, right?" he asked.
"Yes. I believe Ludwig is sending out an email sometime about the study group."
"Cool. I'll probably need some help."
(Y/n) raised an eyebrow. America took off his glasses and cleaned the glass quickly before placing them back on and giving a shrug.
"Math," he explained. "Besides, no harm admitting I need some help."
She chuckled, "I can respect that."
Canada had come around to make sure America didn't get side-tracked. (Y/n) waved them goodbye as she went to the register to pay for her groceries. Apparently, they still weren't done grocery shopping just yet. (Y/n) paid for everything and went back outside to the cold to head back to the school where her dorm was.
The wind felt bitterly cool against her face but she trudged on, fiddling with the student keycard in her pocket. The streetlamps lighted her path as she walked.
What a lovely night yet oh so cold.
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Thanks for reading!