Where Thou Art, That Is Home (Hetalia Fanfic, Part 2)

Chapter 153~!

Inhale... Hold it. Don't let it out... Wait... Let it out.

Smoke swirled all around my face as I sucked in a lungful of the hallucinogen. If this gave me lung cancer (not that countries can really get cancer in the first place) I would not be a happy camper.

When I opened my eyes, a coutnry road stretched before me into a grove of low-hanging trees, like willows. I blinked, inhaled the clean air deeply, and took a gander in all directions. Blue spanned the sky above while green grass fields rolled out behind me and on either side of the road, which was dirt. The road itself was being hovered over by small clouds of dust that had been kicked up by something, perhaps a passing truck.

"Okay. Come at me!" I yelled, grinning as my voice echoed throughout the oppressive silence this pretty scenery held. My hands were thrown out at my sides as I turned in slow circles, looking for what was going to attack me this time.

But still... stillness. Utter and complete silence. I was alone here.

I turned on my heel and started to meander down the road, heading for the trees whose low-hanging limbs dangled over the road. I had to duck and weave around a few leaves to not get hit with them, but basically it was a pleasant stroll.

What was going to happen? The suspense was starting to get to me. Was it going to be something from underneath me? Or above? Was I going to see someone I cared about get hurt again?

Wouldn't surprise me at all.

After beating the "surprise attack" course (graciously delivered by none other than the one no one should trust with firecrackers ever) I was feeling confident. Cocky, even. I knew I could handle almost anything that came my way.

This wasn't real, after all. It was a hallucination, and I just had to make sure I realized that and overcame the instinct in my head that told me it was all real.

But nevertheless, nothing happened. I was still alone here, in this strangely reticent place.

"Hey! Come on, I'm right here!" I yelled, goading anyone to come and find me. "I'm waiting~!"

Nothing came.

Nothing at all.

"Okay..." I whispered, looking around me fearfully. "This is starting to get a little creepy. Hello? I'm waiting for you!"

~

"Alice, just breathe. It's over, aru," Yao assured me when I finally snapped out of the trance I had been in.

I was shaking, shivering violently as I hunched over my bent knees. "No one... no one came."

Yao made me look at him, but my eyes were so wide, and scared. Well, that much should have obvious, given the fact that I couldn't stop my shaking.

"Hey, it's alright. It's over," he repeated, pulling me into his arms for a moment. I accepted the embrace and sighed into his shoulder, feeling the backs of my eyes grow hotter with building tears.

"The instinct... It was telling me I was alone. Forever."

"And you're not alone, which is why you should know the instinct is lying to you," he reminded me, drawing back to look me in the eye. "I think you need to take a break, aru. You're pretty shaken."

I nodded mutely, letting him take my hand and help me stand up. He led me to the kitchen, where I got myself a glass of water and sat down next to him at the counter.

Yao sighed, running his fingers through his ponytail for a few seconds. Then he spoke. "Alice, I want you to know I do feel bad for making you go through all this mental training. I know it's hard for you."