You shook your head. No more flashbacks today! Outside the window your mailbox looked stuffed; some tissue paper flying out of the forcefully closed opening. You clapped your hands together. Deliveries didn't come that often for you.

You ran outside in your slippers and retrieved the mystery package. It was triangular, but very light and not exactly solid. And look, it wasn't even an official item of sorts from your boss! Excitedly, you set it on your kitchen counter and tore off the paper.

Your eyes widened. It was a bouquet of cream colored peach blossoms, imported from the east. A small slip of paper floated out. Amateurish scribbles in your language read:

"From Japan.

Happy-"

The frantic ringing of the doorbell made you jump. You groaned. After this week, you didn't know if you could take any more visits.

You stuck the flowers temporarily in a tall coffee glass and sprinted to the door. Probably just your neighbors, complaining about your vacant, unkept home. You turned the doorknob and gasped. The last person you'd expect was-

"England!"

He held one hand behind his back, nervously scratching his neck with the other.

"Er, um, 'ello, (name)," he said softly.

You recovered from shock and beckoned him inside with your hand. Definitely not prepared for a stopover from him.

Your rubbed your head in disbelief. What was he doing here? And unannounced! England was the type of person who would call, or leave some sort of indicator he was coming! Your eyes trailed around the room. It was a mess. You didn't have time to pick up after your arrival yesterday. Would he take you as a slob, after coming to his tidy house?

England stood by the couch. He subtly set his hidden object down beside it. You craned your neck to see.

"(name)."

You adverted your attention to him. His green eyes focused down on his shifting feet.

"Yes?" you said gently. He seemed to be bothered.

"I, um, oh bullocks, I don't really know…"

He dug his fingernails in his dress shirt. You tilted your head to the side.

"It's okay, you can tell me whatever you want, England."

He exhaled sharply and met your gaze.

"(name), I…I-"

The violent knocking on the door stopped him.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting anyone today…I will be right back," you said apologetically.

He smacked his forehead. You jogged to the door and opened it. A snow haired man stood there, clutching yet another masked object in his arms. He had an impatient expression, but bit his lip earnestly. His red-violet eyes snapped to you.

"(name)," he said, not as smug as usual.

You crossed your arms.

"Prussia, what are you-"

"Thanks for inviting me in."

He shoved past you. You stomped your foot. No one was supposed to be here! You were not dressed to entertain guests! All you wanted was a day to yourself, to relax, before you had to get on the busy meeting schedule again. Your boss only gave you vacation time twice every year!

"The hell?" the Brit exclaimed.

You ran back to your living room, where the two men were now standing defensively.

"Why are you here, Kirkland?" Prussia remarked.

"I could ask the same of you, wanker."

England's gentlemanly demeanor was gone. You stood in the front in a daze, but you did wonder why they were here, interrupting your alone time. They couldn't simply be visiting. It must've been important, to come over right after you had left from their houses.

"Um, let's all calm down," you said.

You didn't want to have to do any more cleaning up than necessary.

"Just...sit down for a moment. I'll go, um, make some tea. Any preferences?"

England waved his hand, massaging his temples.

"Yeah, sugar," said Prussia.

"Don't call her "sugar"," England growled.

"I was talking about the tea, idiot."

"Git."

"No fighting!" you called, running off to brew more tea.

You took out some bags of your leftover citrus lemon and dumped them in your teapot. Pretending to occupy yourself with the preparation, you assessed the situation. Prussia and England somewhat got along; they used to be allies! Why were they squabbling like this? And why did they arrive at your house without consulting you or each other? This couldn't be a mere coincidence, again.

You placed the pot on the stove and walked back out to the living room. The two nations sat bristling away from one another. You took a breath.

"Bzzzt!" your cellphone vibrated on the coffee table.

Yet again, you gave them an atoning look and flipped open your phone.

"Hello?"

"Um, yes, (name)?"

A prick went through your body at recognition of the voice.

"Swissy?"

You heard frustrated shuffling from the other line.

"I'll forgive you for calling me that…today."

Pause.

"Not to sound rude, but is there a reason you called? I'm sort of involved at the moment…"

Your eyes trailed over to the two indifferent countries.

"Actually, there is. I have something to confess,"

The sound of faint arguing from outside disbanded your attention. You squinted to see if anyone was nearby.

"I'm sorry, but I think there's some angry delinquents outside my house."

You threw the phone over to the couch.

"Someone talk to Switzerland!"

Both nations flew away from the phone as if it were on a murderous rampage. You opened your porch door, taking off towards the yelling. Today was a popular day for you, much to your dismay. Would you ever get a chance to relax now?

You stopped to the side of your house to see your two extra friends having a debate. There was plenty of exuberant hand gestures from either of them.

"Turkey? Greece?"

They hushed themselves.

"Oh, um, (name)! Hello!" Turkey said cheerfully.

Greece narrowed his eyes.

"Don't try to cover it up, old man."

"I am not old! I'm just classy."

"That's exactly what an old man would say."

"Hey! You-"

"I hate to interrupt you guys," you said.

"But why are you both here?"

Turkey scoffed.

"I just happened to run into olive licker over here on my way over."

"Okay, then why are you here?"

He laughed nervously.

"Ah, yeah, about that…"

A shrill noise came from within. Greece ducked and covered his head.

"Oh! The tea!" you cried, running back inside.

Turkey and Greece both looked at each other, shrugged, then followed you. When they came across the two other countries, (and it looked like Italy and Romano had shirked their way in somehow) plus one peeved one on the phone, they knew they wouldn't get down to their true purpose for coming here. As long as their equally stubborn counterparts were here, you were going to have a room full of regions to deal with. Their gazes wavered to one another, well, except for Switzerland. Somehow, they had to get you alone, away from everyone else. They couldn't bear the thought of you picking one of the others! Now it was a race. A race to you.

You hurriedly poured the tea into seven cups, managing to spill on your counter. Oh well, you'd have to clean that up along with the rest of your house later, but right now, you priority was to keep them from killing each other in your house. Or else you'd have even more to wipe up.

Carefully, you guided the tray of beverages in your sitting room. Turkey sat in a chair across from the sofa that Prussia and England were lounging on, with Switzerland's voice complaining loudly. Greece leaned against the wall, next to Italy and Romano. The cups clinked as you sat them in front of each man. You viewed the room, your hands on your hips. This was a difficult position to navigate.

"Um, so…" you began.

"Let's-"

Once again, you were interrupted by the doorbell. You grumbled and spun around. Who could it be this time? You swung the door open, having to notch your head up. The generally unmindful Nordic stood in front of you, blushing. As he tried to give you a smile, the corners of his mouth twitched.

"Dav,[1] (name)."

"Um, hello Denmark. Right now, there's…" you faltered.

A hair curl floated above his shoulder. You scrunched your brows.

"Is Norway with you?"

"No. Why?"

"Because there's a thingy."

You pointed. Denmark turned slowly.

"I-ah, god! How long have you been there?"

The brusque nation came into view.

"Long enough."

"Um, why don't you both come inside?" you tiredly offered, not wanting to be impolite.

"There's already some people here."

They both craned their necks past your frame.

"Come join the party! It's a blast," said Prussia.

"Shut up," said Romano.

"What? What's going on? Who's there?" yelled the phone.

Denmark slumped into the only remaining area. Norway stood sullenly behind him.

"Well," you said.

You racked your brain for anyone else you might've visited. Unless the rest of the Nordics, Seborga, or Romania showed up, there was no one else. All of your friends were either glowering or looking nonchalantly to the side. The tea sat untouched.

You figured they all must be here for some reason, but at exactly the same time? Just like the invites. They obviously weren't expecting each other. And…your eyes trailed over to a bundle of flowers…they brought gifts. Panic filled your stomach. Did someone die? Oh France, he was so young…

"(name), is something wrong?" Greece asked.

"No, it's just,"

You shook your head. Just get it out! It wasn't like it was a big personal question. It felt like that, though.

"Why are you all here?"

The room fell flat. Denmark slanted his head.

"You mean you don't know?"

You shook your head violently.

"No! What is so special about today?"

You remembered what Romania had mentioned about February and all of your invites, saying it was questionable. This whole ordeal now made you think he was correct, about whatever he was trying to point out to you.

"What is going on?" you asked breathily.

There was silence.

"Agh, someone just tell her!" Switzerland yelled.

You looked at all of their expressions. Nothing came to mind about this date. At all.

"Does she even celebrate it?" Turkey asked.

"Of course! Everyone does." Italy said.

You whimpered.

"(name)," England said gently.

"It's Valentine's Day."

Your face immediately started to go red. Oh.

…

Now, you had been faced with many unexpected situations in your life. It wasn't that you were completely oblivious, you just sometimes were…forgetful. Hey, who could blame you? You were a busy woman. A busy country. But there wasn't any excuse this time. All of the clues had been plainly laid out before you, and you missed them! Now, you realized, what Valentine's Day was truly about.

Beforehand, you ignored the gushy, sweet-inducing holiday. It was for normal people. People who had the time and money for another person. All of the couples parading around, it got on your nerves. Just as many had advised before you, relationships were a sticky business if you were representing an entire nation. Valentine's Day was purely for lovers. Normal, mortal lovers.

In the excruciating silence of your own living room, full of good looking men, another realization came to you. Your "friends" were all here…on this lovey holiday. Even though they still hadn't expressed their purpose, you were beginning to fit this all together. The presents, the embarrassed faces, the fights. There couldn't be any other reason.

"You guys want money."

Romano slapped his forehead.

"Well, I'm sorry, but I can't give you all loans."

You paced. You understood it now!

"All of you invited me over, offered me a great time, and then came here on Valentine's Day to butter me up."

Prussia flew into the back of the couch, his hands on his face. There was an assortment of sighs from the room. They should be acting like that, after all be caught going after your earnings!

"I cannot believe all of you were that desperate. C'mon, I know for a fact that some of you are way richer than me. I must be really gullible, huh?"

You slumped.

"(name), that's not why-"

"Uh, uh, I don't want to hear it!"

You put a finger on your chin. Although they did try to scam you, they were still your friends, and they did come all of the way here.

"I'm afraid my house can't accommodate all of you, but I will let you stay a little longer. You guys need to get your financial issues straightened out."

You put a finger in the air and proclaimed:

"I will make dinner!"

As you headed to the kitchen, all of the nations in the room were in disbelief. They could all agree on something: you wouldn't figure out why they were here, unless someone just came out and said it. But, who could do that when everyone was watching? You weren't the type of person who would discount everyone else, at least when you were in the limelight. They had to get you alone, before anyone else could.

…

You brought out a plate of food, unique to your country, unaware of the plans unfolding in the men's minds.

"(name), I need to talk to you for a second."

The other nations glared. Of course it had to be him.

"Prussia," you acknowledged, following him down the hallway.

He stopped at the end, back facing you. A long inhaling circled around him. You clasped your hands. It must be serious, for the all-awesome Prussia to act tense.

"Yes?" you questioned.

He smoothed down his black dress shirt and turned around.

"Do you really think we're all here because of…money?"

"Of course! What else could it be?" you scoffed.

He was acting awfully stern. His red eyes narrowed tiredly.

"(name), what is Valentine's Day about?" he asked slowly.

You crossed your arms. He spoke to you like you were a little kid!

"Love."

He held out his hand to motion to the living room.

"Exactly! Now, all of these nations are here because…?"

"Money."

He groaned.

"Okay, I'm just going to get it out. (name), I l-"

"Ehem!"

You turned around at the cough. Romano stood in the hallway, looking more irritated than usual.

"(name), I'm going to have to take you away from this potato bastard."

"Too bad. (name) and the awesome me were having a conversation first," Prussia said sharply.

"Breathe, Gilbert. I won't be long, right Romano?

Romano smiled, his eyebrows arched evilly.

"No, it won't take long at all."

Prussia growled. You followed Romano into the bathroom. He shut the door.

"Um, why are we-"

The look in his eyes made you stop. He took a step closer to you.

"(name),"

His tone was low. Your eyes widened. This was an interesting way of asking for some cash.

"I know there are many other bas-uh, countries who want you, but-"

His voice faltered. He started to reach up to your face. You stood there, frozen. A blush was creeping up on both of your cheeks. You could see him start to incline his head sideways.

"I-I," he stuttered.

The sudden slamming of the door made you both jump. Greece stepped in the bathroom, looking tired, but with a hint of annoyance. He gently grabbed your shirt collar.

"Chigi! Where are you taking her?"

You gave the appalled Romano a sheepish gaze and you were tugged away by the Mediterranean country. He stopped in your bedroom, closing and locking the door. You bit your lip. Greece was known for his…experience in the bedroom. But he wouldn't-no! This was your house.

He turned to you silently, his green eyes full of something you recognized only after years of knowing him. You glanced away to your closet. There was nothing but uncanny silence. It was unusual for you to feel nervous enough to not be able to utter a word. You took in a breath.

"Um, was there something you wanted?"

He nodded. You waited a few seconds for him to respond. He just stood there, blinking.

"What do you want?" you asked again.

A light smile played across his lips. He pointed in your direction. You looked behind you.

"You want my, um, flyswatter? I do use that sometimes…"

He shook his head and poked your forehead. Your senses tingled at his touch.

Slowly, your mind processed his action.

"You want…me?"

He opened his mouth to speak.

"Ha!"

A figure stumbled out of the closet, your clothes toppling onto him. He stood up and shook himself off. Greece clenched his jaw. Your mouth fell open.

"Turkey, what were you doing in my closet?"

He waved his hand.

"Oh, nothing, nothing. But I have to speak to you. Right. Now."

You pinched the bridge of your nose.

"Can it wait? I'm in the middle of-"

He yanked your arm and forcefully unlocked the door.

"No!"

Before Greece could react, Turkey pulled you outside to the porch. You got free of his grasp and planted your feet on the wood.

"Okay, I'm not leaving this spot until you tell me what you want."

It appeared there was a pattern of interruptions. There were lots of other nations in the house, it could happen again. Turkey did a sort of salute and smiled.

"Since I'm not as cowardly as those other hipsters, I'm just going to say it this instant! I've done this plenty of times before."

You nodded, coaxing him to continue.

"Pssht, yeah, I'm fine. Well, actually, now that I think about it, I haven't done this a lot before. There is a shortage of female nations who aren't insane."

He looked to an angle, pondering.

"There is a ton of male nations, isn't there? That doesn't seem fair, unless you're like Sweden. In his case, it's a homosexual wonderland!"

You stared blankly.

"Oh bloke, I'm getting off track!"

He cleared his throat. Was Turkey…embarrassed?

"Okay, um, (name) I think that I'm in-"

An invisible force knocked you backwards. With a whoosh of your breath, you fell straight on the ground. Turkey immediately started to bend over, but was knocked over as well. You would've laughed if your abdomen wasn't aching.

"Uni, I didn't want you to hit (name)!"

Still sprawled on the ground, you moved your head up further. A certain messy haired nation came into view. He was talking to empty space.

"What do you mean you couldn't tell who was who? I told you to hit the hairy bloke!" he rambled on in his distinguished accent.

"Um, England?"

He focused his attention on you.

"(name)! Agh, dumb unicorns can't understand a simple request."

He glared at the (still) empty space.

"I'll just disregard this," you huffed, struggling to get up.

"Er, anyways,"

England wiped his brow.

"I've been meaning to talk to you…"

"(name)!" a cheerful voice rang out.

Italy and his cursing brother bounded out from the house, followed by Prussia and Greece. You felt a sudden poke in your arm.

"Y-ah!" you yelped.

Norway stood beside you, plastered in place. Denmark was shuffling toward the scene. Somehow, your cell phone with a strained Switzerland on the end, managed to make it in the middle of the ruckus. The nations were all gathered around you, looking equally thwarted. You'd just about had enough of this inane game!

"(name)," the phone crackled.

Everyone gazed down at it.

"I've come to the conclusion that no one has confessed to you yet. Obviously, you are clueless to this situation."

You tilted your head. What could possibly be going on now?"

"Here's the big picture: everyone is in love with-"

Denmark stamped the phone, crumbling it to pieces. You squeaked and knelt next to the remnants. No~ Your cell phone, your one true companion throughout this entire mess.

"Great, you've broken (name)'s phone, idiot."

"Well, would you've just had Switzerland blab in front of everyone?"

"Shut up! She's right there!" a separate voice hissed.

"Yeah, we know that, dimwit."

"Don't fight!"

"You're just afraid."

"Am not!"

"Guys, maybe we should just tell her together. It'd-"

"NO!" they all yelled simultaneously.

More arguing ensued around you. You clenched your fists. Sure, you could take a bunch of countries showing up, unannounced, on a day where you were tired and spent. Keeping them all from fighting while maintaining a pleasant atmosphere? No problem. But all of these interruptions, this confusion, your phone! Your precious phone! It had gone on long enough.

"Stop!" you shrieked.

Their mouths all clamped shut in shock. Your breathing was shaky.

"All of you, go home."

They looked at one another doubtfully. You would never…

"(name), maybe,"

"I said, go home." You growled.

Later, you would feel guilty, but right now you were furious. You didn't want this whole, stupid holiday, your rare vacation, to be filled with petty disagreements. Why should you force a masquerade in your own home?

You pointed to the exit.

"Go. Now."

…

A brown haired woman was cheerfully approaching your street. She shielded her eyes from the afternoon sun and peered around. Ah, there was your house! The lights were on, so you must've been home from your week across the world. She was a bit worried, barging in on your first day back, but no one should be alone on Valentine's Day!

At least, she assumed you were alone. You weren't in a knowing relationship, and went on to express your feelings against such dealings. Her footsteps rang out as she strided up the driveway. You were going to be so surprised! She bit her lip to hold in a giggle, bringing her hand back to knock.

She heard a garden gate being swung open, followed by the crunching of feet on the ground. Drat! You were already outside! Not wanting to ruin her plan, she quickly sprang and ducked behind a bush.

Curious as to what you were doing, she parted the leaves. At the sight of the sleepy, tanned country, her eyebrows shot up. Oh, you weren't alone after all. She smiled. Well, good for you! And he looked distressed by leaving your presence. Why was she even concerned about you being lonely?

A masked, similarly tanned man followed behind Greece, shoulders slumped. She let out a nervous laugh. Well, you got around, didn't you? She wasn't fully befuddled though; you were pretty, to say the least, but Greece and Turkey? In the same area? Without murdering each other? You must've been like a goddess to accomplish that.

Contemplating this scenario, even more men trailed behind the duo. England, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Romano…something was seriously up. Nonchalantly clambering out of the shrubbery, she ran over to Prussia.

"What the hell is going on?" she hissed, searching frantically around for you.

The disappointment numbed the silver haired nation's questions.

"Denmark was stupid and crushed (name)'s cell phone."

"Be quiet."

Prussia sneered the Nordic's way. She stood there, still not having any clue to what was going on.

"Okay…but why are all of you here? You weren't having one of your weird parties again, were you?"

He snickered.

"No, (name) wouldn't allow one of my awesome German sparkle parties here. Besides, nobody brought their rubber boots!"

The female country sighed. She wasn't going to get anything out of Prussia now that she got him started on his "parties". She turned and saw the island nation muttering curses under his breath.

"England!" she called, jogging up to him.

He'd ought to explain to her what was going on.

"Why is everyone at (name)'s place?"

He just shook his head, following the exiting group. Only one way to find out now.

She creeped over to the backyard, where she spotted your kneeling form, sniffling. Now it was serious. Dropping the chocolate box, she ran beside you, teeth clenched. You barely ever let your weak side show. Whoever did this was going to pay.

"(name), what happened?" she said gently, placing a hand on your shoulder.

You turned up, your eyes dotted with tears.

"H-Hungary, it's all r-ruined!"

"Shh,"

She sat down on her knees.

"Just tell me who did this. They'll be beaten up so hard that-"

"N-no!"

You shook your head violently.

"It wasn't them! Don't hurt them!"

Hungary furrowed her brows.

"Then who was it?"

Your lip trembled.

"M-me!"

"What?"

"Me! It was all me! I was just so stupid. I should've never had scheduled all those trips, I should've understood it was too much! Did you know I didn't even realize it was Valentine's Day?"

"Back up. How is it your fault? And what is your fault?"

Your let out a breathy huff. Hungary was assuming the worst. Some of the nations didn't have the cleanliest reputation…To see you distraught in a crowd of men would be unnerving to anyone.

"They all called me to visit, s-so I planned them back to back in o-one week, so I would b-be able to see everyone. B-but I messed up everything! Japan has a black eye b-because of me and I pulled Italy and Romano's hair curls. I still don't know what those do!" you raved hysterically.

Hungary kept an unreadable expression. She knew what their hair curls did, but that probably wouldn't make you feel any better.

"I-I was just ignorant and impulsive. When they came over I was just flat out rude. I didn't mean to snap at them, I-I,"

Hungary instantly calculated what you'd never get about that particular Valentine's Day. She began laughing. You pouted.

"What's s-so funny?"

She smiled and patted your head. It felt out of place, you being the one reassured.

"(name), they all like you!"

"I would've hoped they liked me."

"No, like-like you."

"Huh?"

She groaned.

"They. Have. A. Crush. On. You!"

She saw a stunned expression on you, followed by realization. You could almost see the gears click together. Color appeared on your cheeks.

"No, n-no, it can't…"

She couldn't help it anymore. Hungary pulled you into a big hug.

"Oh, (name)! We have to start planning a date for you! Or should I say dates?"

…

Much to your advantage, Hungary's second present was a new cellphone. Ol' reliable was getting…old. Still, you felt a twinge in your stomach when you swept up the remnants. Or was that the giddy, lovely feeling you had recently learned to despise? No, you weren't going to think about it. It'd just confuse you more.

But, it had been Valentine's Day and they were embarrassed and they were trying to get you alone…

"Ugh, curse you Hungary!"

She giggled.

It was difficult letting your mind wander to other subjects when she was babbling on about Austria and her wedding. You shuddered. You did not want to become that type of person.

Oh, but you were devising a plan of your own. You would do the most vile, unattractive actions to sway their interests away from you. Starting by hanging out with Belarus. Learn from the best, right?

You sighed. You didn't want to do that. If they liked you…fine. They were still your friends. Friends that were incredibly cute…

You gritted your teeth. What had corrupted you so?

"(name)," the female nation sang.

"Hmm?" you responded tiredly.

"We need to work on your hair."

Your hands flew up to your head, patting it roughly.

"What's wrong with my hair?"

She grinned triumphantly.

"I knew you cared!"

…

[1] "Hello" in Danish.

And that's it! Thank you all so much for reading! I'll have some stories that kind of collaborate off of this one out soon, maybe it'll turn into a series…?

I'm curious to know…who's chapter was your favorite? Not taking into account that they were your favorite character.

Not for the next story series, but for a separate one, I'll be happy to hear any characters you want to see in it. They can have already appeared in this one, or not.

Well, Happy (really late) Valentine's Day!