The Safe Haven

Conversations

I was still a blushing mess as my brother continued to smirk at me and make an overly dramatic cheesy wink every now and then. My mate chucked at the childish behavior.
"Well well well, the stone-cold alpha has emotions after all, who would've thought?" the maple-faced man teased.
Russia's deep blue eyes looked near me, but not directly at me as the faintest smile was plastered on his face.

My mother chuckled and patted my back. "I'm glad you are both doing well," her soft voice rang out. I nodded.
I've healed a lot faster with Russia around and we've been growing closer together.

Silence hung over the room as some of the earlier tension grew back.
My mother stood up and clasped her hands together. "Who wants some wine?" She asked, then without waiting for an answer, walked out of the room in search of a bottle of the alcohol.
"So, Meri, how many badass scars do you have?" Canda asked out of curiosity.

I lifted my arms above the table. I looked at the neat scars that littered my skin. Some new and shiny, some old and dull. I turned my arms over so that my palms were facing up. There was a lengthy incision from my elbow to the crease where my hand met my wrist. It stood out more than the rest, disrupting the red and white stripes that clung around my body. I could feel the eyes of everyone burn into my skin as they all surveyed my body.

"Too many," I answered solemnly. I couldn't get myself to lift my gaze. I wrapped my arms around myself and looked blankly at my empty plate. Every scar had a memory attached to it. Some I could laugh at, because of a stupid mistake I made to deserve the scar, but some I could barely look at without bawling.
A rough, red hand reached out for an invitation. I placed my hand in my mate's. His rough hand soothed my nerves.

"I have red, and I found some vodka in the back," my mother announced, walking back into the room. She poured the red alcohol into her glass before setting it in the middle of the table. Russia grabbed the vodka with his free hand and poured it into his glass before drinking it like it was water. I have no idea how he could do that. I took a tiny sip and I almost died.
"Isn't it a little early to be drinking?" My father rhetorically asked.
"No," China answered, grabbing the wine.
I forgot about our previous conversation and looked over at my brother, who just shrugged at me and sat still, opting not to drink at this hour.
China looked at me and swirled his wine. "Your eyes are beautiful. They remind me of fire and ice. Both are very different and elegant, yet could be deadly. Perfect for you," he commented. My face heated up slightly as I thanked him. I could practically hear my father roll his eyes.

Fuck him.

This is the one time that I'll agree with ya.

I internally groaned. Russia tightened the hold on my hand while he downed the rest of his vodka instantly without making a face then got to work on pouring another one.
China cocked his head. "Weren't your eyes both blue when we first met?"
I tensed. This got my father's attention.
"What happened to your eyes?" He questioned while examining my face. I nervously laughed,
"Funny story."

I explained what had happened to me and why they did it. I told them it had failed, but not about the side effects, AKA the past lives that talk to me inside my head.
They all looked at me with pitty-filled eyes.
"Don't look at me like that. I'm fine, I'm safe, I'm not totally blind in one eye," I barked at them.
"I'm so very sorry that happened to you," the tall red country apologized.
"There was nothing anyone could've done. No one here could have pulled strings to leave me be. It's not like their experiments conducted on me were broadcasted to the others. Don't blame yourself," I mumbled. The muscular man beside me put a hand on my shoulder in an attempt to comfort me.
I looked at my mate's unprotected glass of hard liquor and snatched it, quickly consuming the rest of the strong, clear vodka.
"Stars!" Russia swiped the, now empty, glass away from me and stood up.
"I think it's time to go, come on Stars," Russia stated and grabbed hold of my arm. He quickly thanked my mother and brother again, before heading out.

_____________

Happy Independence day!

I will be posting the next chapter next Sunday, because I will be BUSY the following week.