Starting Over JapanxReader

Tea was your one cure-all. No matter what was wrong with you, be it a headache, a stomachache, or even just a plain bad mood, tea always put you right back on your feet.
And god could you use some right now.

You groaned and buried your head in your hands as Alfred started shouting again in his “hero voice” about some global warming plan he’d come up with. You loved your friend, you really did, but today was just not your day; and having to listen to him shout wasn’t what you needed. Your head already felt like it was about to split in two, and listening to Alfred’s voice was never something that someone with a migraine should have to be put through.

A gentle pat on your head made you glance to your right to see your best friend, Kiku, glancing at you sympathetically. The frustrated way in which you rolled your eyes drew a chuckle out of him. He knew how you felt and he also knew that he would be inviting you to his house after the meeting for tea. You apparently loved his way of brewing tea better than anyone else’s. A fact, he couldn’t help admitting with a bit of amusement, which annoyed Yao to no end.

Kiku glanced over at you again to see your head buried in your arms now as they rested on the table in front of you. He hoped for your sake that Alfred would be done soon; your migraines had started occurring more frequently as the elections for your Congress drew near. Any sort of change in the higher ups was stressful for every nation, but since you were significantly younger than most of the others you were still working out a successful way of dealing with the political changes. You always teased him about worrying too much but he couldn’t help himself. You were too important to him for him to not worry about you.

You honestly had to hold back a huge sigh of relief when Arthur stood and made Alfred sit down before telling everyone that the meeting was finished for today. Luckily for your aching head, no major fights had broken out so you wouldn’t have to worry about bashing anyone’s head in. You dashed out of the meeting room and into the nearest restroom to avoid any of the more obnoxious countries trying for a conversation with you. You knew Kiku would wait for you. The two of you almost always met up after meetings.

You were pressing a wet paper towel to your forehead when you heard a polite cough from right outside of the bathroom signaling to you that Kiku was waiting for you. The impatient huff you heard as you started to leave also alerted you to the presence of Yao, which meant that Leon would be with them.

“Thanks for waiting for me, Kiku,” you said after stepping out of the bathroom. Kiku smiled lightly and waited for you to be next to him before heading down the hall, Yao and Leon following behind.

“It was no problem, (Name). It would be rude to leave you here by yourself.”

“Why were you in there so long anyway?” Leon asked, sounding bored enough to let you know he was only asking for politeness’ sake.

“I have a migraine,” you said, shielding your eyes from the evening sun as the four of you stepped outside. “If I’d stayed in the meeting room I would have strangled somebody.”

“It’s a good thing for you I brought my best tea with me, aru,” Yao said, sporting a smug little grin. You held back a giggle, knowing that what you would say next would annoy him.

“I can’t wait to have some, Yao. But only if Kiku prepares it.” And as you predicted, Yao started huffing and whining in Chinese in his frustration. Kiku chuckled as he shook his head while you just grinned.

By the time the four of you reached Kiku’s home, you’d gotten Yao to stop complaining by telling him no one could outdo him when it came to making dumplings.

“Now that everyone is happy,” you said, plopping down on Kiku’s sofa, “I am going to retire from my temporary position as peace keeper and actually relax now.” Kiku smiled and started heading to his kitchen.

“I’ll go make the tea.”

“I’ll make my dumplings, aru!” You waved a hand flippantly before dropping that arm over your eyes. Since Leon was the only one left in the room, you knew you wouldn’t have to worry about being bothered since he was usually pretty quiet. So with a happy sigh you prepared to take a short nap.

“I have come to claim your breasts, Japan!”

And there went that plan.

“Im Yong Soo, if you do not silence yourself I cannot guarantee that you will leave here in one piece.”

“What’s wrong with you, (Name)?” Yong Soo asked, plopping himself down on your legs. You clenched your hand in a fist and turned your head to send a pleading look at Leon who simply nodded before standing. Within a few seconds Leon was dragging Yong Soo into the kitchen to give you some peace and quiet. And even though you could still hear the Korean nation shouting occasionally, it wasn’t nearly as bad as it had been.

Before you could even stop yourself you began drifting to sleep. Next thing you knew you were being gently shaken and a soft voice was calling your name.

Rubbing your eyes with one hand, you leaned up on your elbow to see Kiku crouching in front of you.

“Good morning, Sleeping Beauty,” he said quietly, a small smile on his face. You returned his smile tiredly, voice just as soft.

“Good morning. Where are the others?”

“They left earlier when they saw you were asleep,” he said, helping you sit up before offering a cup of tea. You hummed contentedly as you took a sip of the tea, sighing at the warmth trickling down your throat.

“You could have woken me up then.”

“You looked like you could use the rest, (Name).”

“Thank you, Kiku,” you said, smiling up at him. He returned the smile before taking a seat next to you. The two of you sat there for several moments in comfortable silence, sipping your tea. You had zoned out when a sigh from Kiku brought you back to the world. Curiously, you looked over to see him looking at you with a strange expression. You opened your mouth to ask if something was wrong but he was quicker.

“(Name) there’s something I want to tell you.”

You raised an eyebrow at his shy tone as he fiddled with his fingers. “Yeah, Kiku?”

“I think I want to end our relationship as best friends.”

“W-what?” You felt like your heart was breaking. Kiku had always been there for you, no matter what. And for him to just pull something like this out of nowhere? You had no idea what to do with yourself.

“And start over as a couple.”

“…What?” You couldn’t believe what you just heard. Kiku wanted a relationship with you?? With you???

…But the more you thought about it, the nicer the idea seemed. The two of you had always been close and knew each other better than anyone. And for you to say that there weren’t at least a few romantic feelings for him would be a lie.

Your responses didn’t seem to be what he was hoping to hear because you could see him withdrawing into himself as he stuttered out an excuse and stood to leave. You latched onto his arm to prevent him from leaving, making him look at you in surprise.

“I’d like that,” you said, offering a shy smile.

Kiku’s eyes widened slightly before a grin spread on his face as he leaned down to cup your cheek.

“I’m so glad.”

A small giggle escaped you as he sealed his lips over yours, both of you unable to wipe the smiles off of your faces.

Starting over definitely sounded like a good idea.


--Extra—


A bored voice echoed through the small broom cupboard.

“Why did Japan shove us into the closet again?”

“He’s just trying to hide his shame that I’ve invented everything his people love!”

“…Why must I put up with this nonsense. I’m too old for this.”