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Post by America on Mar 22, 2012 21:28:17 GMT -5
America pulled his hand back to his side after England let it go, feeling slightly disappointed. "Yeah, I'll...I'll be right back," he muttered. He wished he didn't have to leave, but, hey, if England wanted towels, then so be it, he'd get his towels. America wasn't going to deny him such a simple request. Besides, he looked as if he could use some rest. Once he wakes up, I'm sure he'll feel a lot better, the superpower promised himself, though he struggled to actually believe that himself.
He stepped out of the room, thankful no one was around to fuss at him about staying away from this room. He wouldn't have listened, anyway. He quickly found a bowl and filled it with warm water, making certain it wasn't too hot. The bucket was also quite easy to find. It was the towels that hindered his search. "Where the hell do they keep towels?" he muttered, rifling through the random drawers.
He was lucky that, when he moved on to the cabinets, he managed to pick the one that housed the towels. Thank god for that, he thought with relief, grabbing a handful and swinging them over the side of the bucket.
He carried the materials back to the room, setting them down softly so as to not disturb England. Is he asleep or just...resting? He wasn't too sure, but he didn't want to make any loud noises, just in case. "You awake, England?" he whispered, stepping up to the smaller country.
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Post by England on Mar 22, 2012 21:40:20 GMT -5
But England did not manifest being aware of the new presence in any other way than shifting in his sleep to face America. His eyes remained closed, and his consciousness, black.
0330 hours
When England awoke, it was because a sharp pain through his head made him jump right out of bed, quite literally. Giving a short gasp, he shot up, clutching his head and moaning in pain. His thoughts were hazy, as was his vision, but he still blindly, instinctively searched for something -someone- in particular. He didn't remember what -or who- he was looking for at the current moment, but he was sure he'd remember if he found what he was looking for.
All he knew was that he needed this mystery element desperately, and that he needed it now.
[[I'll be moving the countdown hours along with the progress the others make on the mission. Hope that's okay with you @w@]]
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Post by America on Mar 23, 2012 15:10:22 GMT -5
Once America realized that England wasn't going to wake up, he used one of the towels to wipe his face down. It wasn't too much, but at least he felt a little bit better without being so incredibly dirty. He had planned to sit down and wait for a sign of England rising, but he quickly fell into the exhaustion and, in a few short minutes, was fast asleep, his head resting on the table.
Being in such a deep sleep, he wasn't able to hear England rouse. Instead, he simply continued on with his rest, glasses now in an awkward position upon his forehead.
[[Quite alright!]]
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Post by England on Mar 23, 2012 17:27:05 GMT -5
Despite being severely disoriented, England still did manage to spot someone, sleeping next to him, glasses perched on his head. He blinked, somewhat fuzzy-minded, before the sight of the person's dirty, yet flaxen gold hair reminded him.
America.
He didn't know how he'd managed to forget him, but nonetheless, he summoned enough of the common sense still left to pick the glasses off the top of America's head, folding them and gently setting them on the table. Then, in an act of desperate need and want -possessiveness?-, he leaned over and pulled one of America's hands away from him, un-flexing the fingers forcefully and putting his hand in the other's. Then, with the warm connection re-established, he let himself fall back on his pillow, sighing softly in content.
Although it would have been better if he didn't feel so hot.
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Post by America on Mar 23, 2012 18:07:50 GMT -5
America felt his head dip in his sleep as his arm was moved away. He shifted, feeling something warm grasp onto his fingers. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he was screaming just stay asleep! However, the majority of him wanted to see what had caused his sudden movement.
He slowly opened his eyes, the world a bit fuzzier without his glasses. Giving a small yawn, his gaze soon rested on England, who appeared to be awake. "Mm. You're up," America muttered sleepily, blinking his eyes in an attempt to fully wake up.
He then noticed that England was holding his hand. The tips of his ears turned slightly red but, otherwise, he didn't appear to mind. He gently squeezed England's hand, smiling lazily over at him. "You feeling any better?" He didn't move his head off the table as he spoke, much preferring to take his own time in getting up.
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Post by England on Mar 23, 2012 18:29:07 GMT -5
"I don't know." England rasped after the bit of time it took for him to register America's inquiry. True, his head was splitting apart, and the room was getting just a bit too hot for comfort, but his heart did feel a bit more at ease now that America was awake by his side. "I guess someone in my position can't say for sure. Although..." But he didn't finish his sentence. Even to his befuddled mind, admitting that America's presence made him feel less lonely sounded embarrassing.
"In any case, I guess I will be here for a while longer. You could leave any time you like, you know." not that he wanted him to, but America wasn't his. His heart twisted. He knew he had to let the young Nation make his own decisions without biasing him.
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Post by America on Mar 23, 2012 18:44:01 GMT -5
Sitting up and rubbing his eyes with his free hand, America shrugged. "I could, but I won't," he replied. After yawning once more, he felt awake enough to focus all of his attention on England, giving the older nation a smirk. "Besides, I think I've told you plenty of times that I'm staying. I can be very stubborn, ya know. Guess I take after you."
He wasn't quite sure what to think when England kept telling him he could leave. He knew he could. It was an obvious fact- the door was right there and England was in no position to force him to stay. If he hadn't left by this point, though, he wasn't ever going to plan on leaving.
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Post by England on Mar 23, 2012 19:00:17 GMT -5
"Heh. At least that's the one thing you did right." England couldn't help but chuckle weakly, closing his eyes to enjoy the peace for a bit. "Still..." he started. "You must have more important things to do than be here. I'm not... If you've got more pressing matters, you should tend to them, first." he fluttered his eyelids open, staring at the ceiling and biting his lip pensively. Idly, his fingers started drumming on America's hand. Impatience, nervousness, anxiety, apprehension. He didn't know which one dominated at the current moment.
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Post by America on Mar 23, 2012 19:20:47 GMT -5
America grinned. "Since when do I finish my pressing matters first, Iggy?" he asked, leaning forward. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you wanted me to leave." His blue eyes twinkled in mockery as he stared. "Besides, it must be pretty boring without me around. I feel bad for everyone else. You should consider yourself lucky."
In reality, he liked the feeling of England's hand holding onto his. It made him feel beyond special. It made him feel as if he truly was the only person on the planet that actually mattered. In addition to that, he didn't think he would live with himself if he just left England to suffer all by himself. It would tear him up on the inside.
Not that he'd ever let that fact be known, though.
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Post by England on Mar 23, 2012 19:46:01 GMT -5
"True, you're a lazy git, since when have you put the important things first?" his grip momentarily tightened on America's hand, as if to make sure he was not an illusion created by his sickness. Important or not important, England was still glad that he was America's centre of attention. Not because he liked attention oh him, but just because he found himself liking America's attention on him.
"Don't leave..." he found himself muttering as he closed his eyes to relieve the burning sensation in them. His body was getting hot, way too hot. His throat was scratchy, his cheeks red, and his forehead, burning. He was losing his grip on reality, and he knew he was. He had to cool down lest he burn into ashes. With that thought in mind, he weakly started wriggling out of his covers.
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Post by America on Mar 23, 2012 19:56:12 GMT -5
When England started acting strange, America grew worried. He supposed the older country would probably be into the third stage by this point, but he didn't know it was just going to hit so suddenly. He quickly stood from his seat, grabbing his glasses and stuffing them back on his face. All the while, he still held on to England's hand. "I wasn't going to leave," he replied. He could practically feel the heat radiating off of England's body as he stood over him.
"Do you need anything?" he asked, worry reflecting in his eyes. "What do you want me to do?" As he spoke, he helped England with the covers, only assuming that he wanted to get out from under them. His heart was racing again as he was faced with the prospect of England falling so ill. What if his memory becomes affected? Will he know who I am?
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Post by England on Mar 24, 2012 0:00:01 GMT -5
"Temperature." England whispered, clenching his eyes shut as the pain escalated. "Thermometer. Temperature between 103 and 106." He knew what was happening, but he never could have prepared himself for such an abrupt ascension. He didn't think it would be so quick. He was panicking, and he knew it, because this was one thing he hadn't anticipated.
He could feel his fingers less and less as time passed. As feeling left his fingers, he realized he couldn't feel America anymore. He couldn't let that happen, because if it did, he'd be left with nothing to hold onto.
Without thinking, he grabbed America's hand in a shaky grip and put it against his heart, trembling as the muscle beat faster and faster. His grip was white on America's hand, but he at least knew that this way, he would feel America until the very end.
In a bit over half a day, the heart would be the last organ to stop.
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Post by America on Mar 24, 2012 7:51:08 GMT -5
"A-A thermometer? Got it," America replied. However, he didn't know if there were any thermometers near him. He couldn't let go of England's hand to look, could he? Not when England was in such a state like this.
Just then, he felt England's hand tighten it's grip on his own hand and move it down to England's fast-beating heart. The taller country's eyes widened as he stared at England. He looks so frightened, he thought, biting his lip. Okay, then, I gotta stay calm. Just stay calm for him, America.
He used his free hand to feel England's forehead, just like he remembered having been done to him when he was younger. "Damn," he muttered. He was burning up. "England, I'm right here with ya, okay? Just stay awake." He really wished he could have a medic about right now. He needed a thermometer, but there was no way he could get one at the moment.
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Post by England on Mar 24, 2012 10:50:09 GMT -5
"Don't leave..." England whispered again, gently opening his eyes midway before closing them again. Something cold was prickling the tip of his eyes, and he had to say it did feel incredibly comforting against his warm skin. "N-Not again... Not ever again..." he breathed, blinking once more, and letting roll down his face what he slowly realized was a tear.
He couldn't think straight, not with such a splitting headache, but somehow, he knew that the tears, no matter how freeing they made him feel, were unacceptable, especially in front of America. With that thought in mind, he took one of his trembling hands off of America's, and with a swiping motion that didn't even register on the pad of his thumb, he collected the tear and smothered it against the sheets.
No, there should be no slip ups from him. He was the strong one, and he had to uphold that image until the very end.
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Post by America on Mar 24, 2012 11:53:26 GMT -5
America saw the tear slip out of England's eye. He blinked, a bit shocked. There weren't many situations in which England would cry. At least, not many that America knew of. This was something completely new. He guessed it was because of the fever, but it still threw him off guard.
He sat down on the bed next to England, gripping England's hand just a tad bit tighter. "I won't," he muttered, rubbing his thumb up and down in what he thought would be a comforting manner. "I...I won't ever leave you again."
He knew he could keep this promise. There was no doubt in his mind that he'd always be by England's side.
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