Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

BTW THIS WORK WAS INSPIRED BY A C.AI CHAT (DON'T ASK-) SO CREDITS TO @RoseRoseyRosaCookie ON C.AI FOR THE INTRO AND INSPIRATION !! :DD

It was currently 3:30pm, and America and Russia were both in detention. They had fought during lunch, having what had started as a small argument turn into a full-blown fist-fight. America was a bit more beat up than Russia, but both had bruises, scratches, bleeding, etc. At least America didn’t bring a gun this time. 

The detention room was rather small, having 9 desks in total, 3 rows of 3. There was also a small whiteboard at the front, along with the detention teacher’s desk. The teacher, Ms. Saturn, was sitting at it, quietly reading a book and keeping an eye on the 2 country-humans. 

Russia sat all the way in the back left corner, and America sat in the top right, both wanting to be as far away from each other as possible, and because Ms. Saturn didn’t trust them near each other and assigned the seats. 

School had let out at 2:45, so it had been about half an hour in detention so far. Detention always let out at 4:30, so about an hour more to go. 

There was a “no talking” rule, and it wasn’t like one of them could get up and go wander the halls or use their phone with the teacher right there, so everyone was quite frankly, bored. The room would’ve been dead silent if it weren’t for the school’s loud-ass air system. 

America was resting with his arms on his desk and his head in his arms. Suddenly, he heard a mumble. 

“Ugh… Stupid idiot got us in detention…”

He turned and glared at Russia, although it wasn’t nearly as scary as the other’s. He was the idiot?? Russia started getting physical first! 

“ I’m the idiot?? You were the one who hit me first!” He hissed back, careful not to talk too loud and get the teacher’s attention. 

Russia seemed surprised that America actually heard him complaining, he didn’t know that idiot could hear anything other than his own ego. Regardless, he wasn’t about to back down now. 

“Yeah, and you were the one who started talking crap!” Russia glared at America, holding his arms crossed over his chest. His glare was already enough to make America feel weak, but he held strong. 

He turned in his chair even more, keeping his gaze on Russia.

“That’s because you deserved it-”

America was cut off by a loud “SHHH”

He turned back around to see Ms. Saturn glaring at both of them, holding a finger up to her lips. America immediately shut up, sitting upright and looking at the front of the room. He swore he could hear Russia snicker, but chose to ignore it. It wasn’t his fault he didn’t want to get in even more trouble. 

The teacher finally looked back down, and America sighed in relief. He slumped back down on the desk, staring at the clock on the wall. 3:32. It had been 2 minutes. After a few more minutes of trying not to go insane from boredom, he could feel someone looking at him. He glanced up at the front of the room, but the teacher was still focused on her book. 

He was about to see if Russia was staring at him, when he suddenly felt the sensation go away. He turned anyway, and saw that Russia was mindlessly staring at the front of the room. 

Huh… Weird. 

He just ignored it, and turned back. 

----

Russia was bored out of his mind. Normally he was quite patient, but they weren’t allowed to do anything in here. The teacher had just yell-shushed them, and now he was pissed off again, too. At least he got to watch America listen to her embarrassingly quickly, and had to stifle a laugh. 

After a few minutes of doing nothing, his gaze wandered over to America again. He didn’t know why, but blamed it on people being a bit more interesting than walls. America was wearing sunglasses, like always , a t-shirt, and ripped jeans. He didn’t know if America thought that outfit looked cool, because it didn’t. 

Just then, he saw America lift his head, and looked away just in case. Russia kept his eyes locked on the whiteboard, until he knew America was back to resting. Then he went back to watching him. 

Sadly America was just laying there, so it wasn’t that much better than staring at a wall. 

----

America could feel Russia staring a hole into him again, but tried to ignore it. He didn’t know what he did this time to earn a glare from the other, but whatever it was it was probably stupid anyway. He was tired of just sitting there, and decided that if he couldn’t roam the halls, he could do the next best thing. 

America raised his hand, asking to go to the bathroom. Ms. Saturn gave him a skeptical look, before saying, 

“Fine. Just come back quickly, and no wandering off.” 

“Got it.” America gave a thumbs up, and left the room. 

----

Russia glanced at the clock, noticing that America had been gone for about 10 minutes. So much for “quickly”. He had probably brought his phone with him or something. Just then, the door opened and he saw America walk back in. 

A minute after he had left, the teacher got a phone call and also walked out. America seemed to notice that immediately, staring at the teacher’s desk, before looking at Russia like he had personally hidden her. 

Russia shot him a dirty look back, sitting up straighter. 

“What.”

“Where’s the teacher?” 

If Russia didn’t know any better, he would think he was in a murder mystery game. Did this guy really have anything and everything against him? What would he even do to a teacher? 

“She got a phone call and left. Said something about going to the teacher’s lounge.” Russia explained, clearly not amused. 

America hummed, sitting back down. Russia rolled his eyes, and went back to watching the clock on the wall. 

----

America sighed for about the 17th time. 

“Will you quit it?!” Russia suddenly snapped, his voice a bit louder since the teacher still wasn’t back. 

America turned and glared at him, noticing that Russia was already staring. 

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was illegal to breathe.” He shot back. 

“It’s not illegal , you’re just being annoying with it.” Russia corrected. 

“Well I’m bored, it’s been like, an hour, and Ms. Saturn still isn’t back.” America explained, his glare turning into a slight suspicion again. 

“I didn’t kidnap the teacher.” Russia huffed, but before America could respond, he continued. 

“And it’s only been about 30 minutes, stop exaggerating everything.” 

America huffed in response, annoyed at being cut off and the fact Russia could tell he was suspicious. He glanced at the clock, noticing that it had indeed only been about half an hour, and that there was only half an hour left of detention. Well, if the teacher isn’t here… 

America smirked to himself, standing up and getting his stuff. Why shouldn’t he leave early if no one was here to stop him? 

He could feel Russia staring at him, before he finally spoke again as America went to leave the classroom. 

“Where the hell are you going?” 

He turned and saw Russia staring at him skeptically. America may be a bit respectful and scared of teachers, but Russia was just straight up boring. 

“Home. No one’s here to stop me.” America answered, almost proudly. 

He slowly walked out of the door, watching as Russia just stared at him, before scoffing and rolling his eyes. 

America brushed it off, focusing now on just getting out of here. The hall was empty and dark, all the lights being turned off, and it being almost an hour after school. He went to the nearest exit, pushing on the door. He couldn’t wait to get home, he had recently bought a new video game that he couldn’t wait to keep playing. 

His thoughts got cut off as he felt the door move about an inch, before clicking and stopping. He slowly backed up, staring at it, before trying again. 

Click!

What. 

He tried a third time, because maybe he was just delusional or the door magically unlocked itself now. Nope. Just another click and stiff door. Suddenly, he heard a voice behind him, and almost jumped out of his skin. 

“What, can’t open a door?” Russia teased, before shoving America aside and trying for himself. 

Jeez, America didn’t even hear that guy coming up behind him, nor see since it was dark. But then his sour mood got replaced as he watched Russia’s smirk immediately fade when the door did the same thing again. 

“What the fuck…” Russia mumbled, trying again but harder. Nothing new. 

“It’s locked…” He mumbled again, like that wasn’t obvious before. 

“Well no shit.” America deadpanned. 

Russia shot him a glare, before America turned around to look for another exit. The detention room was near the middle of the school, and there were 2 more exits at the very ends of the hall. One by the gym, and the other in the office. 

----

America walked off without warning, heading for the gym one. Russia immediately noticed and followed, not exactly wanting to be left alone in the middle of a dark hallway. It wasn’t too dark just yet, but he could already see the sun setting through the windows. It also didn’t help that it was almost winter, so the sun set at like 4:30. 

He followed America all the way down to the end of the hall, where another exit door was. He watched as America tried to open it, but the same thing happened.

Moved an inch, click! , then nothing. 

Russia was getting fed up, and honestly a little anxious. He was not about to be stuck here overnight with America . 

“For fucks sake- move .” 

Russia shoved past America again, aggressively pushing the door. 

“ Goddammit… ” He grumbled under his breath when nothing happened. 

“Yeah, dude, I think we’re locked in here…” America muttered, watching the door. 

Russia was about to argue back, but it was pointless. He had bigger things to worry about right now anyway. 

He suddenly turned away from the door, glancing at America.

“We can still try the one in the office.” 

America hesitated, his gaze lingering on Russia before looking down the hall. 

“Yeah, but I think the office is closed. Especially since the lights are off.” 

Russia nodded and sighed. Damn, he had a point. That was probably the most intelligent thing he’s ever said, actually. Suddenly, America spoke again. 

“We could try a window?” 

Wow, another smart sentence. Russia nodded, walking to the nearest window and trying to open it. Of course it was locked, why wouldn’t it be? 

Russia sighed in annoyance, aggressively trying again. 

“Uh- maybe try not to break the window?..” America suggested, cautiously walking over. However, that just gave Russia a new idea. 

“I’m going to try and break the window.” 

Russia grabbed a chair, right before America suddenly snatched it away from him. 

“Are you crazy?!” 

Russia suddenly felt anger run through him. 

“I’m trying to get out of here!” He snapped, grabbing the chair back. 

America was weaker than him, so he stumbled forwards and lost his grip. Russia immediately hurled the chair at the window, but it just bounced off. 

“How strong are these windows?!” He shouted in frustration. 

----

America watched as the chair failed to break the window, and Russia seemed to be ready to punch through it. At least his anger wasn’t directed at America this time?.. 

He sighed, giving up on trying to protect the school’s property, and headed off to check if the office really was locked. 

America got down the hall, still being able to hear Russia shouting at the dumb window. He saw the office door, and went over to it. He turned the handle, but it wouldn’t even turn all the way. 

Great, so that was locked, too. He sighed, already coming to his losses that they were stuck here for the night. For some reason, the school’s front door was on the other side of the office, so he couldn’t even try it. It was probably locked, too, anyway. 

----

Russia was in the middle of trying to punch through the surprisingly strong window, when he noticed that something was off. Where’s America?

He looked next to him, and saw that the hall was empty. 

He stood frozen for a moment, before going to look for him. Why were schools so creepy at night??- Not like he was scared or anything! It was creepy to other people, not him. 

Which was totally why he was looking for America right now, because he was probably crying in a corner right now. Totally. 

Russia tried to ignore the discomfort creeping through his body as he walked down the dark hallway. He could even hear his own footsteps, and swore the hallway kept getting longer. 

Finally , he spotted a figure near the office. He already knew it was probably America, and totally did not speed up slightly. 

“Any luck with the office?” He grumbled, still pissed at the situation, but having calmed down a bit. 

America jumped again, turning to face him. He sighed when he saw that it was just Russia, and replied. 

“Nope. Locked.” 

Russia grumbled, running a hand through his hair. 

“So we’re stuck here?..” He confirmed, almost not wanting to know the answer. 

He watched as America slowly nodded, and the air suddenly got a bit more awkward. Just as Russia thought the situation couldn’t get any worse, America suddenly said something that made his entire life become regrettable. 

“Wait… Isn’t tomorrow Saturday?”

Chapter Text

Russia slowly looked over to America. 

“What.”

“Yeah, today is Friday, so tom-”

“I KNOW WHAT YOU SAID, IDIOT!” Russia cut America off, leaning towards him to somehow shout better. 

He then turned away, mumbling curses under his breath and looking around. America watched as Russia tried to punch a window again, and when that failed, he picked up another chair. 

America turned away, not wanting to watch this shit-show again. Instead, he saw that the cafeteria was open. 

Food.

America went inside, and looked around. Most of the tables were folded up against the walls, and the lunch lines were closed. However, he did see one of the snack carts, just sitting out in the open. Normally, you had to pay about $1 for a snack, but it isn’t stealing if it’s for your survival, right?

America shrugged it off, and grabbed one side of the cart. Luckily, it had wheels, AND it was fully stocked. He smiled to himself, and started to push the cart out into the hallway. He decided to bring it to the detention room, since that seemed like the only room with actual lights, and they were probably going to sleep there. 

Russia was still having a hissy fit when he came back, but stopped once he saw the cart. 

“What the hell are you doing?”

Russia eyed the cart like it had drugs on it. 

“Getting food, what does it look like?” America explained, not slowing down, and heading down the hallway. 

Russia followed, seemingly done with his little temper tantrum. 

“You have to pay for those.” He explained, like it wasn’t obvious. 

“Well no shit, but I’m not paying like $50 just to survive the weekend.” 

Russia looked like he was about to say something else, but then just sighed and stopped eyeing the cart. Probably because he realized America was right. Even though it was stealing, those snacks were also probably their only food source.

As they walked, America couldn’t help but notice how dark it was. All the lights in the hallway were off, and because it was winter, or almost winter, the sun had already set. The only light in the building now was the faint moonlight coming through the few windows in the hall. 

The darkness made America feel uneasy. There could be anything, right next to them , and he wouldn’t even know. There could be an intruder, or a ghost, right past each doorway, and he wouldn’t be able to see them. There could be an animal, or a spider, or anything . He wouldn’t be able to tell. It was too dark. 

His heart raced a bit faster as he thought about it. Any second, any moment, anything could jump at him out of nowhere. 

His eyes raced to scan the surroundings, and his hands got a little sweatier. He swore he saw a shadow moving down the hallway. 

No, calm down. It was probably just a cloud moving past the moon, or your imagination. 

He glanced over at Russia, to see if he saw it, too. But, Russia was just walking like normal. Like nothing was wrong. 

America looked away, his heart still beating quickly. He told himself that it was just his imagination. If Russia didn’t see it, then it didn’t exist. 

America kept mindlessly walking, fighting with his thoughts. He kept seeing figures and movement in the corners of his eyes. Past every doorway, every window. Each one making his heart beat a second faster than the last. But, Russia never reacted, so America used that as proof that he was just being paranoid. 

At one point, he swore he felt someone looking at him. As usual by now, he glanced at Russia to see if he felt it, too. He thought he saw Russia’s eyes go from him, to looking down the hall again. 

No… It’s just my imagination again… 

Thankfully, they made it to the detention room a moment later, and nice warm light flooded the dark hallway when Russia opened the door. 

America practically sighed in relief, before quickly going inside. He let the cart rest near the door, and grabbed a bag of chips from it. He sat down against a wall, also taking off his backpack and laying it down next to him. 

Russia watched America already starting to eat the snacks. 

Of course. 

He found a decent spot in a corner, as far away from America as he could get, and also moved his backpack there. He debated getting a snack, too, but figured it would be better to save them. He wasn’t all that hungry right now, and that cart needed to last the whole weekend. 

Russia got out his phone, and decided to scroll on social media for a bit. There wasn’t much else to do, and who knows, maybe he’ll somehow get another idea on how to get out of here. 

The whole time, he kept hearing wrappers crinkling and the crunching of chips being eaten. 

Damn, how many chips are in that bag?

He finally looked up, just to see about 1/3 of the snacks gone, and America actively grabbing another one. 

“America! What the fuck?!” Russia called out before he could help himself. 

America quickly looked over at him, both shocked and confused. 

“What?! We got snacks for a reason, and I’m hungry!” He defended. 

Russia didn’t seem convinced. Even worse, he also saw the pile of chip bags in America’s spot. 

“Those are supposed to last us all weekend, you can’t eat them all right now!” 

Now Russia was getting up, walking over to America and taking the bag from his hands. 

“Hey! We can always go find more!” He tried to reason, half-trying to reach for the bag and take it back. 

Russia kept it out of reach, even going as far as to push the cart a few feet away from America. 

“Well we don’t know if there’s more, and I’d rather not risk it! Wouldn’t you like more food later on, anyway?” 

America glared at him, but stopped reaching. 

“Oh my God, fine.” He said exasperatedly. 

He then raised his hands in mock surrender, rolling his eyes. It was all very dramatic. When he turned to go sit back down, Russia rolled his eyes and muttered, 

“Drama queen.” 

Luckily, America didn’t seem to hear him. 

Russia put the snack back in the cart, and scooted it a bit closer to his side of the room, before also walking back to his spot. 

After a few more hours of mindlessly using their phones, America heard the classroom door open. They had also agreed to turn the light off about half an hour ago, since it was getting closer to actual nighttime, and (at least Russia) figured they would go to sleep soon. America looked up to see Russia walking out of the room. 

“Where are you going?” 

Russia glanced over at him, already looking annoyed at his question. 

“To the bathroom.” He replied, before looking away and leaving. 

When the door shut behind him, America suddenly felt a sense of unease wash over him. The classroom didn’t have any windows, probably because even just looking outside was “too much entertainment” for detention students, or some shit. 

But that also meant it was pitch black in the room. Both of their phone screens had lit up the room slightly, but now it was just America’s. Plus, the light from his screen made it even harder to see the room, unless he pointed the screen away from his face. 

At least with Russia also on his phone, he could see the other side of the room, and it somewhat balanced out his light. 

America started to feel that same worry and paranoia that he did while going back to the room earlier. Except this time, he was alone. 

His heart started to beat faster, and everything suddenly looked about 10 times more realistic. 

He set his phone down, screen pointed up towards the ceiling, trying to lighten the room as much as possible. He could technically go turn on the actual light, but it was on the wall next to his, and the shitty light from his phone screen didn’t reach far enough to see it from here. 

As he tried to see the light switch, he suddenly noticed a movement out of the corner of his eye. He immediately looked over, and just saw darkness. 

His heart sped up. He kept staring into the darkness, looking for anything. Then he saw another one. His eyes followed each little movement he swore he saw. 

His heart kept getting faster, and his body felt shaky. Everything still looked hyperrealistic, and each figure he saw looked more real than the last. He didn’t even have any way to tell if they were real or not this time. 

His shaky hands eventually reached for his phone, his eyes not looking away from the shadows consuming him. 

He grabbed his phone, almost fumbling at first. Once he got used to the weight of it, he pointed the screen towards the spot he had been staring at. Nothing. Just a faint blob of the room he had been used to by now, and darkness creeping along the edges of the light. 

He saw a movement next to him. Right on the edge of the light. Right where he couldn’t quite see it properly. 

His eyes caught the movement before his brain did, almost automatically looking next to him before his hands could move the phone. Right as the light hit the new area, he heard a noise. He couldn’t tell what it was, but it sounded like a click. 

He froze for a second, mind consumed with paranoia. His heart was beating so hard he felt his ribs vibrating with it. The beam of light stretching across the room was shaking slightly with his hands. 

The figures had gradually increased by every passing second, and he kept seeing more and more each time he pointed the dim light at a new direction. Plus there were noises now, too. He kept hearing clicks and buzzes and taps and thumps. 

He was pointing his light at the ceiling, not sure what direction to even try and see anymore. The figures were everywhere. Every inch of darkness was moving. Speaking, getting closer, twisting and shaping into anything and nothing at the same time. His body felt frozen, his mind didn’t know what to do or focus on. He swore he heard footsteps behind him. Above him, next to him, everywhere. 

Just then, the door suddenly swung open. America jumped, immediately shining the light at… Russia. 

Russia winced, scowling at the screen. 

“Holy shit, turn your damn brightness down.” He scolded, shutting the door behind him and walking over to his corner. 

America quickly moved the phone away, but the air felt lighter. Suddenly, all of the shadows and movements and noises just… stopped. 

The darkness was now just, that. Darkness. It would’ve almost even been comforting if America wasn’t scared of it. 

Russia went back to his phone like normal, oblivious of the near panic attack America just had. And America, he also slowly went back to his phone, not wanting to make a big deal of anything. 

However, the more he thought about just now, the more he realized something. 

Russia made the darkness feel better. He made America feel better. 

What- No- 

It wasn’t Russia , it was just simply not being alone. Anyone could be here right now and make America not so scared. It wasn’t just Russia. 

His thoughts suddenly got interrupted by another noise, except this time Russia seemed to hear it, too. 

It was another click, but this time mixed in with a fading buzz. 

“The hell-” Russia muttered, the room going oddly silent. 

It wasn’t until now that America realized there had been a faint whirring throughout the whole school. Except now, that whirring had just turned off. 

What the hell could’ve possibly been whir- 

“Was that the heater turning off?” 

Russia beat America to it, and America’s eyes widened at the realization. 

“No, no way they would turn off the heater during a winter night .” America defended, more so trying to convince himself than anyone else. 

“ There’s no one here to turn it off , genius!” Russia empathized, and America realized he was right. It had to have turned off by itself, but how? No way the school would just run automatic heaters, right? Wait- 

“Should we go check, or like try to fix it or something?” America asked. The last thing he wanted to be stuck in a school, and cold . 

Russia eyed him, almost looking offended. 

“It’s almost midnight, I want to go to sleep, not fuck around with the school’s heater.” Russia stated, turning off his phone and grabbing a charger out of nowhere (his backpack). 

America silently cursed when the room got slightly darker, but he told himself he wasn’t alone in here, and that the heater was probably a bigger problem than the dark. 

Right as America was about to argue again, Russia cut him off. 

“Either way, we should be fine for tonight. I doubt the temperature would drastically drop within a few hours. If you’re really that concerned, then we can look at it tomorrow.” 

America sighed, but didn’t argue back. Dammit, why was Russia having so many good points tonight? 

Anyway, he figured he should also set up to go to sleep. He turned off his phone, too, mentally cursing again at the lack of light, and put it in his backpack. Obviously, he didn’t bring a blanket to school or anything, so he figured he would just have to sleep on the hard floor with nothing else. At least his backpack could be used as a shitty pillow. 

He rearranged some things, and got about as comfortable as he would be tonight. 

He laid his head on his bag, staring at the dark ceiling. After a minute, he closed his eyes, or maybe not, it looked the exact same to him, and tried to get some sleep. 

Shit. He was already kind of cold…

Chapter Text

America woke up way too early the next morning. 

What Russia said about “the temperature won't drastically drop over a few hours” was proving to be false. The cold definitely wasn't deadly (yet), but America was also definitely not dressed for anything other than warm temperatures. 

He sat up, checking the time on his phone. 

“7:30”

God, how early did I wake up?..

Usually he'd be the type to sleep in until like 2pm, but there was no way he could comfortably fall back asleep like this. 

He was only wearing a T-shirt and ripped jeans, and it was about 65°(F) in the room. (I'm bad at temperatures so bare with me- 🙏 basically right now, the temperature is cold enough to start feeling cold, America is just dramatic.) 

He grumbled to himself, looking over to see how Russia was doing in these temperatures. 

Since the sun had risen already, its light cast through the hallway and door windows, so the room was fairly lit up with an orange glow. 

America saw Russia still asleep, his jacket thrown over him like a blanket. He was also wearing his ushanka, black sweatpants, and a black turtleneck. Even his jacket had fur on the inside! He also had his furry -obviously- boots sitting next to him. 

America had always silently judged him for dressing like he was constantly stranded in the middle of a blizzard in Antarctica, but now, he honestly felt a little jealous. 

Russia just looked so warm and cozy with all this fluff and casual winter gear, and America didn't have anything else except for his sunglasses, which were kind of the opposite of winter gear. 

Maybe I can ask him if he has a spare jacket or something later… 

Russia seemed like the type of person to keep about 24 spare jackets on him at all times, so he undoubtedly had to have something America could borrow, right? 

America sighed again, glaring at Russia and pulling his legs up to his chest to try and conserve his body heat. He had also slowly sat up while being jealous of Russia’s clothes. 

“Finally, let’s go fix the heater, it’s freezing in here!” 

Was the first thing Russia heard when he woke up. 

“...What?” He grumbled, sitting up, letting his jacket fall off of his chest as he did so. 

“I said it’s freezing in here! You promised to try and fix the heater today, so let’s go.” America repeated, glaring at Russia. 

He was still sitting with his legs up to his chest, and now he was crossing his arms, more in a “I’m cold” way than angry, though. 

“Well give me a damn minute to wake up first.” Russia said back, giving America a glare back, and somehow looking 10 times more intimidating. 

America scoffed, and grabbed his phone, probably to scroll social media until Russia was ready. 

Russia stretched a bit, rearranged some things, and put on his boots again. 

He also didn’t get what America was on about. “Freezing”? It barely felt cold enough to call it ‘cold’! But, he guessed, looking back at America, he was only wearing a t-shirt and pants with holes in them. Plus, America seemed to be dramatic about basically everything. 

Idiot needs to learn how to bring a jacket with him. 

Once Russia got his shoes on, he stood up, sliding his jacket over his arms. 

“Ok drama queen, let’s go.” 

America looked up at him, seemingly shocked and confused by the nickname, before realizing Russia was talking about fixing the heater, finally. 

America immediately stood up after that, starting to leave the room without even putting his shoes on, which he had taken off before sleeping the night before. 

“You’re not going to put your shoes on?” Russia asked, slowly following behind him. 

“We’re here by ourselves, who cares? Also my feet hurt.” America dismissed, practically speed-walking down the hallway, which honestly wasn’t all that fast. 

Russia easily matched his pace, walking next to him. First, America was complaining about being cold, but now he refuses to wear shoes? 

He really is an idiot. 

After a minute, they made it to the office. The controls to the heater would presumably be in there. 

One problem, though. The door was locked, and the only windows were a thin one above the door, or a bigger one on the door, but it was probably also bullet-proof. 

Both of them stared at the area for a moment. 

“I can try to break the win-” 

“I swear to God, if you throw another chair at a window.” America cut Russia off, giving him an annoyed look, and eyeing a chair that was left in the middle of the hallway the last time he tried that. 

“Ok, ok, fine, whatever, what’s your plan, then?” Russia shot back, crossing his arms and staring at America. 

America thought for a second, looking at the door. 

Then, he seemed to notice something. Russia tried to follow his line of sight, looking at the window above the door. 

“I think the smaller window can open.” America pointed out, taking a step closer and watching the window. 

Sure enough, Russia saw that it was open a crack, and looked like it had the frame to open up more. But, there was still one problem. 

“How the hell are we supposed to get up there, though?” 

America looked defeated for a second, before trying to think again. 

Russia figured he was strong enough to pull himself up there, but he didn’t think he would be able to fit through that window. America seemed small enough to fit, but Russia doubted he could even pick up a chair. 

Actually, speaking of chairs ( again- ), America could probably just stand on one and be able to reach it. 

“Hey, why don’t you go use a chair as a stool, and climb through the window?” 

America glanced at Russia, looking offended, because of course he was , he seemed to get offended by almost everything. 

“Why do I have to climb through it?” 

“Because I won’t fit.” Russia explained, giving him a deadpan stare. He thought America was “freezing”, so why was he trying to argue about who’s going to fix the heater? 

“Oh, yea, because you’re too fat.” America agreed, looking away and going to grab a chair. 

Russia took offense, though. He glared at America, watching him. 

“Excuse me? You’re the one who ate half of our food last night!” 

“Well, I’m sorry for being hungry!” 

America huffed, setting the chair down in front of the door. Russia was surprised he could even carry it all the way here from a few feet away. 

Russia scoffed at the excuse, watching as America stood on the chair and reached for the window. It became quickly obvious that it still wouldn’t be tall enough, but he managed to at least grab the window, which thankfully rotated open more. 

Russia also watched as America pathetically tried to climb in, which was really just him jumping with his hands on the windowsill, and then grunting and almost falling off the chair as he came back down. 

Russia stifled a laugh, which caused America to quickly turn around and shoot him a glare. 

Then, he sighed, looking at the window again. 

“How else can we get in?..” He thought out loud. 

Russia also looked, thinking. Then, he got an idea. It would probably be one that America would hate, but it was an idea. 

“I could pick you up.” 

America turned around again, obviously looking offended. 

“What.” 

“I said I could pick you up. It’s either that or you deal with the ‘freezing’ cold.” Russia repeated, looking exasperated. 

America hesitated, before probably realizing that Russia had a point, and got off the chair. He moved it aside, and Russia took a step towards him. 

America turned around and sensed Russia getting closer, before feeling hands grab either side of his waist. 

He wasn’t exactly sure what he expected, but the gesture somehow caught him off guard. His breath hitched, and before he could process anything else, he was suddenly lifted off the ground. 

America froze for a second, his body suddenly feeling hot. He blamed it on the fact that he’s never really been picked up before, and was just embarrassed. But his mind ( and heart ) wouldn’t stop racing, and he almost even forgot what they were doing, until Russia grumbled from below him. 

“Hurry up, will ya?” 

America suddenly snapped out of …whatever that was-, and held onto the frame of the window. 

He climbed in, Russia lifting him higher -and practically shoving him through the window- as he went. 

Luckily, America managed to safely drop onto a desk on the other side, and stood up straight once he got on the ground. He also took a second to brush off his shirt, straightening it out, and trying to brush off whatever the hell moment he just had. 

Damn, his face still felt warm- 

He blinked, trying to physically move on from that thought, and refocused on his mission. He felt Russia watching him through the door, which totally helped him focus- 

America grumbled to himself, looking for any control panel or something. After a few minutes, he found a slider that had the label “Air Conditioning/Heater” above it. Bingo. 

He smiled, pushing up on the slider, towards the “90°”. 

Except it didn’t move. 

…WHAT THE FUCK?!- 

He tried again, but nothing. The knob didn’t even move a centimeter. 

Then he noticed a keypad next to the controls, and on the screen it read “Please Enter Password To Use Control Panel”. 

You’ve got to be shitting me.

America looked around again, hoping that someone left the code somewhere. 

Russia had been standing in front of the door, watching America through the window. He turned the corner, almost out of view, before stopping. Then, a moment later, he started looking around again. Russia sighed in annoyance. Was he stupid or did something happen? 

“What the hell are you doing?” Russia asked loudly, hoping that the windows weren’t also sound-proof. 

Luckily, America seemed to hear him, and peek around the corner for a second. 

“You need a password to use the controls!” He called back, now starting to dig through random papers. 

Russia winced, not sure what papers the office had, but they probably weren’t meant to be tossed around or looked at by random students. 

“Well then I guess we aren’t turning the heater on!” He called again, hoping America would stop practically trashing the front desk. 

He heard America groan, before thankfully giving up, and pressing some buttons on the keypad. He then heard a loud beeping, and saw America frantically trying to turn it off. 

“Good going, genius, are you done yet?” Russia scolded, glaring at him. Did America not understand privacy? Or respect? Or not guessing passwords for control panels ? 

The beeping stopped, and America scoffed, but started to walk back to the door. He fidgeted with something, before a small click sounded. 

“What password did you even try?” Russia asked, eyeing the office. 

Of course America didn’t even bother to clean up- 

Then the door suddenly opened, and America walked out. At least the office was unlocked now. 

“1111” America answered, closing the door behind him, and opening it again, presumably testing if it really was unlocked now. 

Wait- “1111”? Really ? 

Russia stared at America like he was a complete idiot. Well, he was . 

“1111?” Russia repeated, almost not believing that someone could be that stupid. 

“What? It was a good guess! The office people probably have to use that every day, they wouldn’t make it complex!” America tried to reason. 

Russia sighed, righting the urge to rub his temples like a stressed-out old man. 

“You could’ve at least tried ‘1234’, or anything else that wasn’t just a repeated number.” He stressed. 

“Well, do you want to go try that then?” America snapped back, gesturing towards the door. 

Russia glanced at it, before sighing again and starting to walk back to the classroom. He didn’t feel like entertaining America right now. Plus, Russia wasn’t the one who was complaining about the cold, he could care less if the heater didn’t work. 

He heard America running after him a few seconds later, and they both went back to the detention room. 

Once they got back, America turned on the light and got a snack -along with a slight glare from Russia-, before going on his phone. He really needed a social media break after this morning. 

He opened his bag of chips, and turned on his phone. 

Dead battery symbol. 

Of course. How could this day get any worse?!

He groaned loudly, practically throwing his phone on the ground. Russia glared at him, looking even more annoyed than usual. 

“What could’ve possibly annoyed you now?” He asked bitterly, as if he didn’t even want to know the answer. 

“My stupid phone’s dead.” America complained, rolling his eyes. He ate a chip from the bag, and watched as Russia scoffed and looked back at his own device. 

Wait, Russia’s phone isn’t dead… 

Russia was “peacefully” watching a video, trying to think of something more productive to do, and also still silently cursing at America for being so damn annoying. 

Just then, he suddenly felt something brush his arm. He glanced next to him, and saw America leaning over his shoulder and staring at his phone like a toddler. 

Russia almost immediately backed up, eyeing America and turning his phone off. 

“What the fuck-”

America whined when Russia turned his phone off, and tried to lean over him again. Russia responded by shoving him back by his face. 

“Awh, come on! My phone’s dead!” 

“Well, who’s fault is that?” Russia asked sarcastically, still eyeing America. 

America didn’t seem to register his question, instead begging for Russia’s phone again. 

“Please, just let me watch with you for a bit?” 

“No.” Russia answered sternly, scooting a few feet over, and turning his phone back on. 

I swear, if America does one more fucking thing- 

He felt America lean over him again. 

“That’s it, I’m leaving this room.” Russia suddenly decided, standing up, almost hitting America in the chin along the way. 

It was his fault for being so close, though. 

“Wait, what?” America asked, blankly staring at Russia. 

Russia scoffed at him, before turning away and walking towards the door, his phone still in his hand. 

“You won’t get out of my damn face, so I’m going somewhere else until nighttime.” He explained, opening the door and leaving, not even looking back as America called out to him again. 

He sighed heavily, deciding he would stay in the office. 

He could clean up America’s mess, too, anyway. 

It had been a while since Russia left. America had also luckily found a charger that fit his phone in the teacher’s desk, and had spent half the time on social media. He also found some paper, and decided to make origami. Hey, he was bored, and his phone needed some time to charge anyway. 

Plus, America would never admit this out loud, but it was kind of boring without Russia. Sure, social media was fun, but he swore he spent at least 5 hours straight on it, and he was used to Russia constantly being near him this past day and half. 

Even at home, he was always on call with someone, or texting friends, or hanging with family even. He never really was just alone. He didn’t like being alone. He swore he always felt someone watching him, or waiting for him. 

Eventually, he had to pee, and got up. He left his phone in the room, seeing no reason to bring it. 

He opened the classroom door, and was met with a dark hallway. 

Damn, was it really sunset already? 

He realized he hadn't checked the time in a while. Whatever, he would go check it when he got back. 

He started walking towards the bathroom, letting the door shut behind him. He felt the familiar sense of unease at the moonlight-filled hallway, but told himself that he was just going to the bathroom, and it would take like 5 seconds to walk there. 

America made it to the restrooms without too much worry, and thankfully there was also a working light in there. 

After using the bathroom, he came back out, and remembered that Russia was still hiding out in whatever place he decided to go to earlier. 

He said he would be back at nighttime, but the sun had set already, and obviously, America didn’t see Russia come back yet. 

He started to walk back to the classroom, but then swore he heard footsteps behind him. He turned, expecting to see Russia, but there was no one there. 

Of course, this shit’s going to happen again. 

He tried to swallow down the fear forming in his mind, and slowly turned around again. 

Something moved next to him. 

America felt his heart get faster, and his legs wouldn’t move for a second. 

He wanted to go back to the room, but as he stared at the door a few feet away, he swore saw a shadow move across the glow of light from under the door. 

Nope. 

Wait- Russia. He should go find Russia. 

America turned around and started walking down the hallway, trying to ignore every noise and shadow he saw. 

He quickly looked around, spending significantly less time in the darker rooms. Each minute that passed he felt his heartbeat get faster. His breathing more shaky, his senses more aware. 

Where the hell is Russia?!

He felt like he looked everywhere, even in the office, which seemed to have been cleaned up. Russia was definitely there. 

America sped off to the cafeteria next, even though he swore he already looked there. Or maybe he didn’t, his mind was twisting and repeating everything. He couldn’t focus on much else but the feeling of someone watching him. The feeling of invisible figures hiding all around him. The feeling of hearing noises and voices, even though he couldn’t tell if they were actually there or not when they stopped. 

Right as America turned the corner, he bumped into someone, and admittedly screamed. 

“FUCK- WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!” Russia yelled back, wincing, and even jumping slightly, himself. 

America stared at him for a moment, before registering that it was just Russia, and not an invisible figure come to life. 

“OH- Oh, sorry, you just scared me.” America explained, trying to brush it off as if he hadn’t just literally felt his heart stop for a good 2 seconds. 

“Yeah, clearly.” Russia shot back, reajusting his grip on his snacks. 

Wait- snacks!

“You found more food?” America asked, following Russia as he started to walk down the hallway. 

“Yeah. I searched the cafeteria and found some more snacks.” 

America was suddenly distracted by another noise. He swore it was a whisper. He turned his head, and obviously saw and heard nothing else. 

Russia was walking back to the classroom, a lot more calmed down from earlier when America just seemed to not stop annoying him. He did walk slightly slower than he usually would’ve, because America would have to either run after him or get left behind otherwise. 

Just then, he saw America suddenly look over to the side. Russia glanced at him, and then at the wall he was staring at. There was nothing there. 

Ok then… 

Russia looked back ahead of them, noting that they were about halfway to the room. 

Out of nowhere, he felt a tug on his coat. He glanced down, and saw America holding the bottom of it, walking slightly closer to him. It almost even looked like an accident. 

Russia’s first instinct was to shove him off, or tell him to let go, but he hesitated. America holding onto him wasn’t particularly…annoying. 

Whatever, he didn’t care. 

Russia looked away, turning his gaze towards the windows this time. The soft blue moonlight filtered in through the windows, causing the darkness of the hallway to look more blue or purple. 

It felt peaceful. The darkness of the hall being softened into a mixed grey, the bright full moon outside. It was also silent, besides for their soft footsteps -well, mostly Russia’s footsteps, America still didn’t have his shoes on- and breathing. 

Russia focused on the quiet noises, liking how they peered through the deafening silence. It was a nice mixture of both. Balanced out, even. 

Until he realized something else. America’s breathing sounded …shaky? 

Russia glanced over at him again, noticing that America was glancing at the doorways and walls every few seconds. 

Wait- 

Is America scared of the dark ??

No way, right? It was almost kind of funny, actually. 

That was until Russia felt America hold his coat a bit tighter, and a strange sense of protectiveness hit him for half a second. 

Russia stared for a moment longer, before he looked down the hall and subconsciously cleared his throat. The peacefulness was just getting to his head. 

Yeah, that’s it. 

Just then, they had made it back to the detention room. 

Russia opened the door, and felt America let go of his coat. 

He noticed that the light was still on, and that America seemed to have found a charger. However, he also noticed a bunch of origami on a desk in the middle of the room. 

“Pfft- Is that origami?” Russia asked, stifling a laugh. The thought of America just sitting down, making origami was cute in a pathetic way. 

America practically dove at the desk, wiping the crafts off of it. 

“NO!- Shut up, I was bored ok?!” He defended, glaring at Russia, but it looked a lot less intimidating than usual since his face was red with embarrassment. 

Russia smirked, eyeing the papers on the floor, before turning away and putting the snacks in the cart. 

“Ok, then…” He hummed, his amusement obvious in his voice. 

He heard America grumble behind him. But, if Russia was honest, the crafts actually weren’t half bad. He could definitely do better, himself, but for America, they were honestly pretty well made. 

A few hours later, the light was off and they both decided to go to sleep. Well, mostly Russia did, and America seemed to also turn off his phone a few minutes later. 

It had gotten significantly colder throughout the day, and Russia was only really noticing it now. Maybe because it probably got a lot colder at night than during the day. It still wasn’t cold enough to bother him, anyway, but he knew America would be whining about it soon. 

Russia had gotten comfortable, leaving his shoes next to his makeshift bed, and resting his coat on top of him like a blanket. 

He closed his eyes, and was about to try and go to sleep, when he heard America’s voice. 

“Do you have like, an extra jacket or anything?” 

He could practically hear the shiver in America’s voice, and almost felt bad -just for a second-. 

Damn, so he really is cold?. 

Russia sighed quietly, opening his eyes and -trying- to look at America. It was really too dark to see anything, though. 

“No, I don’t. You really should learn how to carry things like that with you, yourself.” Russia scolded. 

He heard America huff, probably not in the mood for lectures right now. And, actually, as Russia’s eyes adjusted to the darkness, he saw that America was laying down, curled up, and possibly shivering. He felt a faint sense of protectiveness and worry again. 

“Well then can I at least borrow like your hat or something? It’s fucking freezing in here.” America complained again. 

Russia thought for a moment. He guess… he’d be fine without his hat for a few days… 

Ugh, whatever, as long as it made America shut up so he could go to sleep. 

America was trying ‘his best’ to conserve body heat or something. And by that, he was just laying, curled up in a ball. It felt like negative degrees in here! How was Russia not at least a little cold yet?? 

America had just asked for Russia’s hat, giving in to his jealousy of Russia having warm clothes while he didn’t. He didn’t expect him so say yes, but it wouldn’t hurt to ask anyway, right?

“Fine.” 

Wait- he agreed?-

Suddenly, a fluffy hat hit America in the face. He jumped slightly, sitting up and grabbing it. 

He was surprised, to say the least, but definitely wasn’t going to complain. 

America quickly put the hat on, and even though it only covered his head -obviously-, it was still better than nothing. Plus, the fur made it even warmer. 

“Thanks.” America said out loud, both not wanting to give Russia the satisfaction of getting a thanks, and also actually grateful that he got some warm clothes. 

He heard Russia grumble in response, and assumed the other was probably sleeping -or at least trying to. 

America also laid down again, still curling up, but he admittedly wasn’t as cold anymore. 

He closed his eyes, and took a deep breath before sighing. 

Wait-

He breathed in again. 

Something smelt… new? 

He took another deep breath, hoping that Russia didn’t hear him randomly breathing heavily now. 

He could faintly smell some sort of pine needles mixed with cologne. 

It was oddly comforting, until he had another realization that made him immediately stop trying to smell it. 

Was that… Russia’s scent?... 

He hesitated, before testing it. He pulled the side of the hat closer to his face, before breathing in again. 

Yep. 

He immediately let go of it, making an annoyed expression. Great, now he’d smell like Russia soon. 

He closed his eyes, still silently complaining to himself, and automatically faintly scowling. 

But, despite his annoyed expression and thoughts, America felt his face get a little warmer. 

Which was definitely just because the hat made his head warm, yep. 

Totally.