Popular!America x Nerd!Reader - Remembered Ch.7

Just stepping through the automatic sliding doors made your legs feel like licorice again, and the air conditioning prickled your arms and up your neck. Before you had the chance to fall onto your knees, a hand grasped firmly onto your side. You looked to your left and saw Francis, and you noticed he had an arm around your waist. He looked at you with concern and the corners of his lips sagged downward in a slight frown. You slipped out of his grasp before anyone could form the thought that the two of you were together, a slight pink to your cheeks.

"I saw your knees start to buckle, and I knew you were about to fall, so I zhought I should keep you standing." The frown on his face was replaced with an innocent smile, and you knew from just looking into his eyes that his intentions were pure.

You nodded. "Merci," you said, slightly frowning because you were still upset about Alfred. "We should go find him..." You whispered, and he nodded in return, knowing exactly who you meant. He walked off to a nearby nurse to ask where he might be, and you were left to only wait for him to return.

You walked off to lean against a wall. You stood near a hallway of rooms that never ceased to end. Not bothering with looking down it to see if maybe Arthur or Matthew was standing outside Alfred's room, you just pulled your phone out of your pocket and texted them; talking was the thing you wanted to do the least.

But before you could even finish typing a sentence, your phone started to vibrate, and in large text Arthur's name popped up on the screen. It caught you by surprise, and you hesitated for a moment. Was he calling to ask if you had arrived yet? Or was it something more drastic and dire? You refused to think of the latter, but it couldn't help but cross your mind, and it scared you. In the end, you decided to pick up the phone.

"H-hello?" You asked with a nervous voice.

"_____! I've been trying to get a hold of Francis." When he said that, you eyes flickered to the Frenchman across the lobby, who was flirting with the nurses he'd been trying to get answers from. "Do you know where he is?"

You nodded, though he wouldn't see it. "Yeah, he's here with me."

"Really? Then where are you?"

"I'm here...in the lobby," you breathed, still concerned about Alfred's well being.

"Oh! Well, we're on the third floor. I'll be waiting at the elevator," he spoke, and you noticed that he didn't sound so worried, depressed, or dejected. At least then you could cross the drastic and dire option off your list.

"Okay, thanks, Arthur," you laughed halfheartedly to try and ease the tension. "I think I'll go and get Francis now."

You heard a loud groan. "What's he been doing this whole time?"

"Flirting," you chuckled.

"That bloody frog! Is there not a time where he's not flirting, serious or not?! Doesn't he know that his younger brother is injured in bed?! And yet he has time to--"

Before Arthur could finish, you hung up, at the brink of bursting into laughter. Same old Arthur he was being, even when Alfred was lying in a hospital bed. And he managed to lift your spirits up though his yelling wasn't intended to. You wanted to thank him, but playing that scene out in your mind, you felt it would just end awkwardly.

So, you quickly put your phone away into your pocket again and scanned the lobby for a blob of blonde hair tied into a ponytail on a man wearing slacks and a dress shirt with a coat draped over his arm. And you found him with a different nurse, probably trying the same charms he used with the previous one. You walked over to him quickly and tugged on his rolled up sleeve until he noticed you.

"Hey, is that your daughter?" The brunette nurse asked as she pointed at you.

"Oh," Francis looked over to you and smiled, placing a hand on your shoulder. "Non, she's a student of mine."

The nurse sighed, closing her eyes and placing a hand over her chest as she did. Francis gave a puzzled look, and you tried pulling him away from her so they could get moving to the third floor. "I actually thought she was your daughter!" She laughed. "But I should've known, especially since she's so... What's the word...?"

Francis' eyes narrowed, and you looked down at your feet, knowing exactly what she was going to say. "What is it? Especially since she's so...what?" The Frenchman asked, his eyes narrowing even farther.

"Oh! Nerdy! That's the word!" The nurse exclaimed all innocently, as if saying that to someone didn't hurt them. "She's too nerdy looking to be the daughter of a handsome, flirtatious French guy," she said nonchalantly with a slight smile and a tilt to her head. And just as things started to turn out a little better for you...

But Francis' head was hung low, his eyes hiding behind his bangs. Then he started to shake his head and chuckle. You looked up at him, surprised by his reaction. Why was he laughing? He lifted his head, laughing genuinely. You and the nurse looked at him like he was some sort of looney.

"Let's go, _____," Francis said suddenly after his fits of laughter died down. "We should go find Alfred." With that said, he, a hand still on your shoulder, led you away and left the nurse to be puzzled by herself.

As you headed towards the elevators, your eyes were glued to Francis. What happened to him back there with the nurse? You wondered what could have possibly caused him to do that. You even considered that maybe your French teacher had some sort of mental illness. But that had never happened to him before. At least, not to your knowledge.

Without you noticing, Francis had led the both of you into an empty elevator, and he was looking towards you. But with your eyes now looking at the ground, you hadn't noticed that either. Seeing that you weren't going to respond anytime soon, Francis waved his hand in front of your face. You blinked and looked up at him.

"Yeah?" You asked, still a bit dazed.

"Which floor?" He replied, knowing already that Alfred wouldn't be on the first floor because on the first floor were only lobbies, offices, and a cafeteria.

You hesitated, trying to remember which floor Arthur told you. "Oh... The third one." You smiled softly at him, starting to feel anxious again.

Francis nodded, and with a push of a button (literally), you two were sent up to the designated floor. Your eyes fell to the floor again, and you subconsciously started to play with the hem of your shirt. Francis, on the other hand, stared directly at the elevator doors. Tension filled the air, and anxiety shrouded the both of you. What were the two of you to expect in moments from then?