Prove Me Wrong (Rusame)

Unseen

Narrator's POV

Russia was avoiding America like the plague.

He skipped the classes he had with him, avoided him in the halls, and left school earlier or later than America normally would. He had known America's schedule, something he learned out of habit, and used it to try and see him more often. Now, he used it to see him as little as possible.

He wants to forget everything that had happened, every moment of it. He wanted things to go back to how they were before, how they should have stayed; him alone.

America on the other hand was trying his best to hunt Russia down before he got to his house. He had tried to stop by there before, but his siblings would tell him that he didn't want to see him. He could tell they all felt bad about turning him away, but he knew it wasn't their fault.

His best chance was to catch him outside his house, but the country was rarely going to school and barely left his house even while they were still on speaking terms. Russia wouldn't answer his calls or texts, leaving him on read after a few hours. They needed to talk, America wanted to make things better. He couldn't just move on as he had hoped. He didn't want to forget this.

After a scolding from Poland from when he accidentally hurt Germany, he got him to sit down and talk. It took some work getting it out of him, but Poland managed to get him to spill a little. He explained that yes he was upset about everything that happened with Russia, said that his dad wouldn't get off his back, and just overall felt like trash. That was him putting it lightly, Poland knew.

Even just scratching the surface was a lot to unpack.

Poland thought it would be best to address his things with his father first, but America refused. So they settled on addressing things with Russia. Poland couldn't risk Russia's willingness to talk to him, so he couldn't directly have him visit and trap him and America in a room together, no matter how tempting that was. No, they needed Russia's trust. So, they agreed that the best thing to do was to find him and talk to him. No traps, no schemes.

Maybe a few schemes just to get a lucky break.

The lucky break America got was a few days after he got back to the European district. He skipped school that day to wait at a rarely used back road that Poland told him Russia was taking. Poland had walked with Russia back home a few times on it, and very few countries knew it was there. It snaked into the woods in his territory and was a long hike into the north where there was snow all year round. Why would anyone use it as a way to get home?

The answer was someone who was trying to avoid something.

Russia kept his hands in his jacket as he walked down the path, his breath visible in front of him. He barely felt the cold but he knew it would get worse after a bit the further up north he went. He normally hated taking this path cause it was so long and he'd rather get home faster after school, but this wasn't a normal day. He wanted to avoid both home and everyone else. The length and seclusion of the path helped him feel as if he got a break from everything.

But the cold. The cold made him worry. It has almost been a year, his skin would still be a little sensitive.

"Nyet," Russia grumbled and shook his head free of those thoughts. He can't think about that, it would hurt him. He can't afford to be hurt, not around this time of the year. He had gone so long, he wasn't going to let something as stupid as liking someone break him. He had stopped wearing bandages, his wrists had healed. He was getting better.

Was. He hated that word. 'What once was,' he thought. Was meant over with, in the past. He didn't like the word 'was' in reference to something that should have been good.