A/N: This was originally a Secret Santa Christmas gift for a friend, but it's been months since I delivered it and I think it's safe to publish it now!

It was an interesting dynamic, to say the least: the boy no one noticed and that girl everyone noticed.

Matthew had always been a person easily forgotten, and while it did bring down his spirits quite often, he had found a light of hope.

And that hope's name was Katyusha Braginskaya.

It started in 1991, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union.

She was a kindly, cheery girl, if a bit sensitive, and unfortunately, she seemed to receive all the wrong kinds of attention. She had only wanted some friends, someone to support her newly declared independence, but it seemed that the fleeting bits of attention she got were of other nations who wanted to take control of her for her agricultural products (take that in whatever manner you wish).

And after a lot of searching and pleading around the U.N. she heard a meek voice speak up.

"Um, I'll recognize you, Miss Ukraine," it said. "You deserve to be independent after all that, I don't mind helping out."

Katyusha had turned around in delight, smiling wide, and found a boy standing a bit away, looking a bit shy, but offering a friendly smile to her nonetheless. She almost missed him at first- he seemed to fade into the background. But she rushed over and took his hands in joy, eyes shining up at him.

"Oh thank you so much, um, mister…?" she trailed off, trying to remember his name.

That was the instant Matthew's cheeks turned scarlet.

She didn't mistake him for Alfred… she didn't mix him up with Alfred…! And she noticed him!

"I-I'm Canada," he replied, after a bit of excited and happy gazing from Katyusha. The woman before him teared up in joy and began to cry, startling the Canadian.

"T-Thank you so much, Canada!" she said, her voice in a bit of a wail. Not only was this kind person going to support her, but he was also the first man in a long time to ignore her, ah, ample chest. It was simply a very liberating feeling to know that someone was paying attention to her for her, and not her agricultural assets.

"A-Ah! P-Please don't cry, Miss Ukraine, it's really no problem…!"

And thus, the first few minutes of their meeting left them slight wrecks: Katyusha being in tears from joy and Matthew being absolutely flummoxed about how to calm the woman before him down.

The years went by. It didn't take very long for them to start bonding.

Even in the first few days, they'd realized how much in common they had- they were overshadowed by siblings, sometimes taken advantage of, and they loved sweets (although Matthew was reluctant to admit this to anyone other than Katyusha), and animals, and the scent of the air just after a snowfall. Oh, and they definitely enjoyed ice skating together.

It was a few years later, that now solid friends, they skated around one of the frozen ponds on Matthew's property, the two of them smiling and catching up as they do whenever they see each other. They were both graceful on the ice, easily matching each other's pace and glides, moving in sync as their skates dashed over the smooth surface.

"Ah, Matvey?" Katyusha said, slowing down slightly and leaning off to the edge of the pond, dragging a foot behind her to help keep her stop smooth.

"What is it, Kat?" Matthew asked, trailing after her.

"I am just becoming tired," she said with a shy little smile. "Could we go have some of the hot cocoa you make here? I really do like it very much," she said hopefully. Matthew smiled and nodded.

"Of course. Come on, let's get you inside before your feet freeze," he teased.

"Aha, Matvey, but you know this cold is not much compared to how it is back home at times," Katyusha laughed. She trotted into his house anyway, quickly slipping off her skates so as not to leave any marks on Matthew's floors. Matthew followed suit, and headed into the kitchen, making some hot cocoa for them.

Matthew added a bit of maple syrup to his own, though, as the slight hint of extra sweetness always made it taste better to him. Katyusha curiously held out her mug of hot cocoa, and asked, "May I try syrup in mine, please?" Matthew smiled and indulged her, giving her a small spoonful of the syrup as well and stirring it into her mug.

"There, try it now," he said, waiting for her reaction. Katyusha sipped at the new mixture, her eyes lighting up when it reached her tongue.

"It's wonderful!" she exclaimed, happily consuming the beverage before moving forward to give Matthew a hug. Matthew nearly dropped his own mug in surprise, but gave her a one-armed hug in return, smiling down at her. He carefully set the mug down on a nearby countertop, so he could fully return the hug, and laughed.

"I'm glad you like it," he replied softly, feeling his heart swell.

Katyusha was wonderful to him- she remembered him, noticed him, spent time with him and appreciated him and he always felt his stomach doing strange flips whenever she smiled or looked at him with such happy bright eyes. She'd even managed to reduce her crying around him nowadays, as she'd become so much more comfortable around him and less panicked, and Matthew felt privileged to be someone Katyusha trusted.

As she smiled back up at him, he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to steal a kiss from her, wondering if the taste of cocoa and maple syrup would still be on her lips.

Not today, he thought, cheeks coloring in that manner that indicates the innocent bashfulness of someone love-struck and shy.

Maybe one day.

If he'd only noticed Katyusha's gaze on his lips, with her eyes full of the same curiosity.