Chapter Text
Title: Routine
Author: Triste
Fandom: Hetalia
Pairing: Greece/England
Rating: PG
Warnings: AU (Gakuen Hetalia)
Status: Complete
Disclaimer: Not mine
~~
The weather recently had been bad, with lots of rain and grey skies. It was nothing out of the ordinary for England. He actually found it familiar and somewhat reassuring. He was used to rain. It was why he always made sure to carry a small green foldable umbrella around with him wherever he went.
The rain, however, brought an unexpected guest. Greece had taken to frequenting the student council room over the past few days, not to help as England initially anticipated, but to sleep.
“It’s quiet,” he said when England, exasperated, demanded to know what business he had. “And dry.” Greece paused for a moment. “Nobody ever comes here. It’s a good place for a nap.”
“*I* come here,” England told him. “This is where I work.”
Unfortunately, there wasn’t much point complaining about the unwanted company. Greece, laid back and easygoing as always, rarely took offence. The only thing guaranteed to rile him up was Turkey’s presence, or even the mere mention of his name.
Since England had no intention of dealing with a Greece that was foaming at the mouth over his mortal enemy, he decided the best thing to do would be to let him sleep. He wasn’t being noisy or obstructive about it. He didn’t snore or drool, or mumble. If England didn’t glance up from the papers in front of him every once in a while to see Greece slumped over the desk by the window, folded arms serving as a pillow for his head, he would have no idea his fellow student was in the room with him.
Still, it would have been nice if Greece would make himself useful once in a while instead of lounging around like an oversized cat. The more mundane tasks, such as printing and filing, were the ones England tried to fob off to whoever crossed the threshold.
France was a lost cause. The vice president rarely showed his face when there was work to be done. He much preferred to roam around the campus and prey on whichever poor soul had the misfortune of straying into his path. He wasn’t cut out for manual labour, he insisted. Not that there was anything strenuous about sorting out the student council’s ever growing pile of paperwork, but France took great care in avoiding it anyway.
Seychelles was more reliable, if a little more foul mouthed, but the arguments that tended to spark between her and England were too distracting. It was difficult to get things done while they were busy screaming insults back and forth, and England had never been a fan of multitasking. He took pride in his work, and mistakes were seen as a source of embarrassment. As such, attention to detail was essential.
Besides, once England became absorbed in something, it was nearly impossible to disturb him. The hours ticked by without him noticing, and it was only once he’d finished that his stomach started grumbling. It served as a reminder that, yet again, England had skipped lunch. He checked his watch, and was relieved to find that it wasn’t too late to get dinner at the cafeteria.
England wondered if Greece had eaten anything. He seemed to nod off an awful lot. Maybe he wasn’t narcoleptic but anaemic? That would certainly explain why he spent more time asleep than awake.
England shook his head. No, he was overcomplicating things. Greece didn’t look like he was lacking in vitamins and iron. Rather, he was the picture of male health, and England had seen him in his gym uniform enough times to know.
Blushing, England shut off that train of thought right there and then. It would sound as if he was ogling otherwise.
Sighing to himself, he went to fulfil the last of his duties by waking Greece before he could turn off the lights and leave. As expected, Greece continued to slumber.
“Hey,” England said gruffly, shaking Greece by the shoulder. “Wake up.”
Greece didn’t stir, so England shook him harder. Finally, Greece grunted and stirred, taking England completely by surprise when he raised his head, turned it to the right, and nuzzled it against England’s belly. England tensed all over, his face now flaming red as Greece opened his eyes and peered up at him.
“Good morning,” he greeted.
“It’s evening,” England replied, teeth gritted. “Unhand me this instant.”
Greece blinked. He appeared to be confused. He didn’t move away from England immediately but he did glance out the window. “It’s still raining,” he observed. “And it’s dark. When did that happen?”
England was too tired and annoyed to snap out the most obvious answer, that Greece had been asleep and thus had no idea about the occurrences the rest of the world happened to be experiencing.
Instead, he said, “It’s getting late.”
Greece nodded. “Home time?” he asked.
“Home time,” England agreed.
Because Greece hadn’t brought his own umbrella, they were forced to share England’s. It was only big enough for one person, and was a bit of a squeeze to fit the pair of them underneath it as they made their way back to the dormitory.
It made England feel uncomfortable, being so close to someone like this. As it was June, they were both wearing the summer uniform. The short sleeves of his shirt made it all too easy to feel the warmth of Greece’s bare arm brushing against his. He tried to make his mind go blank, to think about anything other than Greece’s proximity, so England concentrated on the pitter-patter sound of the rain against his umbrella, on the ripples that his footsteps left behind as he drew closer to the dorm.
Then, just as England thought he’d managed to tune out his companion enough that he wasn’t quite so conscious of him, Greece spoke.
“Japan once told me that two people who share the same umbrella to walk home with are lovey-dovey,” he said conversationally.
“We are not ‘lovey-dovey’,” England snapped, blushing yet again, unhappy that his attention had been drawn back to the one thing he’d been trying to hard to ignore. “It’s a matter of convenience. And because I’m kind enough not to let you get drenched, of course. That’s why we’re sharing. Don’t go getting the wrong idea.”
“Love is nothing to be ashamed of,” Greece stated.
England’s blush deepened. “I never said it was!”
“You don’t have to shout.”
“I’m not shouting!”
Now on top of being flustered, England was irritated. Greece wasn’t perturbed in the slightest. He merely continued to regard England with a mild sort of interest.
“Watch where you’re going,” England muttered, avoiding Greece’s gaze. “And stop staring at me while you’re at it.”
Greece placidly turned his gaze back to the path ahead. He looked contemplative. England wasn’t sure if that was good or bad. Greece was so spacey England sometimes forgot how much intelligence was hidden behind those half-lidded eyes. Greece was a thinker, a philosopher. He often knew more than he let on.
It was almost a relief when they reached the dorm. England shook the rain from his umbrella before folding it carefully. Greece was watching him again. England wished he wouldn’t.
“So,” Greece said, oblivious to England’s unease. “Same time tomorrow?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Tomorrow,” Greece repeated patiently. “Same time.” He gestured to England’s umbrella. “Walking home together.”
“Don’t make this into a regular routine,” England warned. “And stop using the student council room to sleep in! It’s annoying!”
Greece nodded, apparently satisfied. “Tomorrow it is, then.”
He turned and left. England didn’t even get the chance to argue. Somehow he had the impression he should have been angry, but strangely he wasn’t. England scowled anyway though, because it wasn’t fair for Greece to decide everything on his own like that.
“Hmph. Lovey-dovey, my arse.”
End.