I awoke in a shudder.

The moment I returned to my conscious self, I felt the sweat sticking to my skin and took notice to a parched feeling that had developed in my throat during sleep. In a complete panic, I threw the blanket from over me and jumped from the bed, racing out of the room and to the kitchen. When I finally poured myself a drink and gulped it down, I remembered how I had promised Germany earlier I'd check up on him. While my mind was still a little sore from my encounter with him before, I had promised to check on him and I was not one to ever break my promises. So, I started back down the hallway and towards Germany's room once again, taking small steps to prolong the walk. I did want to see him, but I was still nervous from the outcome of today's earlier meeting. Would he be angry with me for it?

When I finally came to the room, I noticed how his door was slightly ajar. I then remembered how earlier that when I'd left, I'd most definitely slammed the door shut in my attempt to leave quickly. 'He's been out of his room,' I concluded, bringing a finger to my chin. For a moment, I was proud of myself for this deduction. I wasn't usually so keen on picking up on the small details, and the fact I could remember this was nothing short of a miracle. I pushed the door slightly farther than its previous disposition, hoping to get a decent look at Germany before I interrupted his peace and quiet. Instead, I saw his limp figure face-down on the bed, snoring away soundly. I glanced at the alarm clock next to him. 2:08. Had I really slept all the way through the day and into the middle of the night? To confirm this conclusion, I sulked into Germany's bedroom and stole a glance out his window only to find the starless, black sky staring back at me. Sighing, I turned back to the sleeping Germany and closed my eyes.

"I'm sorry for falling asleep, Germany." Why was I apologizing to him as if he was listening to me? Then again, most of the time Germany shrugged me off anyways. What was any different between now and all those other times? I took a seat on the opposite side of Germany's bed, the familiar material caving in under my weight. I was almost tempted to lay down with him, but I resisted the urge and instead chose to stare at the clock. A few minutes went by, and I suddenly found it becoming easier to think about the situation at hand. I really hadn't been able to think about it too much because I'd been so confused. Yet I found out, as I sat next to Germany, the thoughts became clear and came easier to me.

"Germany..." I whispered, almost wishing he could hear me right now. "I want, no, I need to tell you something."

What did I have to gain from this? Nothing. Germany wouldn't hear a single word I said, or would say anyways. So why was I so compelled to tell him what I wanted to tell him?

"You deserve to know this." I answered myself aloud, leaning back against the headboard and turning my body to face the blonde. "Yes, you definitely do, Germany."

Germany stirred slightly, almost scaring me have to death. He didn't wake, but he had turned in his sleep, leaving me an excellent view of his pale, sleeping face. I noticed how different he appeared when asleep. His face was calm and cool, and his breathe came easily and the exhale was just as peaceful. Maybe I'd never noticed it before, but he sure looked like he was happier in sleep than in real life. I don't think I've ever seen him with a smile on his face, as it was always filled with anger and annoyance. Even though he didn't wear one now, he looked much closer to one here then I think I've ever seen him before. "Are your dreams nice, Germany?" I asked almost unconsciously, the words escaping without my permission. "I bet they are. I wish I knew what you were dreaming of." My eyes traveled down his limp form, scanning over his blank tank top and sleeping shorts. His normal sleepwear, as I had come to recognize it. Nothing new, just the same old Germany I'd left here earlier. Suddenly remembering the pizza, my eyes trailed to the dresser where I'd left it this morning, happily realizing it had been consumed and the crust was left uneaten. That was enough to make me smile.

"Germany, did you know Holy Rome?" I almost brought my hands up to my lips. Did I just say it? The name wasn't foreign to my lips, but it hadn't been said in so long that the taste of it was almost unrecognizable. I didn't quite understand what was coming over me, speaking the name here and now. But I went with it without a second thought. "Of course you didn't, I know that. I wish you could have, maybe then you'd understand why."

If Germany was awake, he'd more than likely be confused with my words. So I elaborated just a little bit more, just because I knew he deserved the complete and total truth from me. Germany and I have always been close, from being allies to even being friends. He'd done so much for me: he'd attempted to train me, taken me into his home, put up with my annoyances for so long. And he'd caught my romantic interest as well. It wasn't fair to him if I didn't tell him the truth. Even if he was asleep, it was still him and he deserved to know it.

"Please, please don't think that I don't like you, Germany." I pleaded. "You just weren't first, that's all. Don't be mad at me, please. I don't like seeing you like this at all." Hopefully I wasn't being too obvious, but at the moment I wasn't sure it what way I felt for Germany anymore. Was it one-sided on his part? No, because there was a spark on my part that wasn't just a friendly feeling. "He was wonderful, Germany." I continued, closing my eyes to picture Holy Rome's face. Despite haven't seeing him for many, many years, the image was still perfect and fresh in my mind. That delicate blonde hair, always perfectly combed back beneath his hat, and that flawless skin. He'd been a masterpiece alright. Scanning over Germany, my eyes widened in realization. "Germany, you're like his twin, you know? Same eyes, same hair, it's a little weird...ha-ha..." I nervously laughed the subject off, awkwardly shuffling my feet off of the bed. My fingers danced around in my palms, trying to recover from what I'd said. True, they did share an uncanny resemblance. Almost identical. It was strange, really. I don't know how I hadn't recognized the strong resemblance between the two before, and why I didn't notice until now shocked me.

As my eyes began to grow heavy, I glanced over at the clock once more. 2:23 it read in bold, red numbers. "Oh Germany, I'm really tired. I hope you won't mind if I sleep here tonight. Truly, I'm sorry for this, but I have no strength to get up." This statement was a little selfish. True, I'd slept through the whole day and still was tired, but I'd been so accustomed to his bed and I'd missed him so much...it just all came over me at once.

Yawning with over exaggerated emphasis, I laid down and sleepily reached for the blanket. My hands returned empty and cold. Confused, I sat up and scanned the bed for traces of the blanket. I hadn't noticed it before, but Germany's body had been absent of the blanket that I'd seen earlier. That's odd, as I found it extremely cold in this room, just as I had ever night before. Looking over the sides of the bed to investigate the possibility of it falling over, I found no trace of the missing object.

I didn't try to dwell on it too much, but as I laid back down and began to drift off, the cold spell seemed to just get worse. I found myself getting closer and closer to Germany, taking in his body heat. Every minute I moved an inch closer, hoping for more satisfaction. Eventually, I found myself pressed against him. His body was very warm, almost like a fire itself. I baked in the heat he emitted, savoring it, and the touch of him in general, every moment until I fell asleep. But a thought about that missing blanket nagged me at the back of my mind, showing no signs of letting up. It haunted me up until the very point of my second slumber. When I'd fallen asleep yesterday after visiting Germany, I remembered how I'd taken my blanket to the laundry room and forgotten it completely. I had no motivation to go and retrieve it, so I fell asleep without it.

So why had I woken up with a blanket on me?

(Thanks everyone for the reviews and all the favorites!~ Glad to hear everyone is liking it! Hopefully this chapter didn't disappoint. And as for a question I read, yes, my inspiration was the Buon San Valentino comics! But nothing more. I'm a relatively new Hetalia fan [and Gerita xD]), and I wanted to take a different approach to the relationship! Please review, your comments and criticism inspire my writing! )