Title: Kimchi, Potatoes, and Other Symbols of Affection

Rating: PG 14

Characters/Pairings: Belarus/Korea, brief Romano & China & Russia

Warnings: mentions of sex, some fluff

Summary: 44 sentences of the relationship of that odd couple, Belarus (Natalya) and S. Korea (Yong Soo).

Notes: I suppose this takes place in the same universe as Masquerade. The sentences aren't meant to be in chronological order; they just sort of jump around all over the place.

1.) He doesn't mind whenever Belarus uses him as target practice, because the fact that she always misses by scant millimeters means that she cares about him.

2.) Romano had once asked Korea what he saw in that "evil, psychopathic harpy"; the Mediterranean Nation had showed up at the next day's meeting with his arm in a sling (It should be noted that Korea sported bruises as well, though those were courtesy of Spain).

3.) If Yong Soo had to compare her to an animal, he immediately thinks of a fierce tigress: as graceful and beautiful as she is cruel and dangerous.

4.) If Natalya had to compare him to an animal, she immediately thinks of a fluffy puppy: tiny and annoying, yet incredibly clever and steadfast.

5.) As Korea lays in bed, sweaty and satiated, he reflects to himself that he never expected the frigid Eastern European Nation to be a cuddler.

6.) "You still love him, don't you?" - Korea

7.) "But aren't we the same in that aspect?" - Belarus

8.) Sometimes (well, nearly all times), Belarus finds it trying to be the Asian Nation's lover, but every time she calls him with the intention of ending the whole affair, the enthusiasm in his voice when he discovers the caller is her always changes her mind.

9.) The two Nations are never able spend longer than two weeks together at a time, but they email enough that it doesn't really matter.

10.) "You know, knives originated in Korea, da ze!" - Korea

11.) She learns that beneath the exuberant grin is a frightening Nation that can and will take what he wants, where and whenever he wants it.

12.) "If you even fucking think about dragging me onto that karaoke stage . . . " - Belarus

13.) Yong Soo wants to melt into the ground when Natalya catches him singing along to Taylor Swift's latest single, but as she begins to hum along, he smiles and belts the words out louder than before.

14.) The first time Korea undressed Belarus, he flushed at the sight of gleaming blades tightly secured to creamy skin.

15.) Morning afters are always spent in sleepy contentment, usually accompanied by a halfhearted, one-sided conversation on Korea's part.

16.) Even though she vehemently protested against Korea keeping the dog he found in front of his house, she was the one who insisted on letting it sleep in the same room.

17.) "I don't care how cute it sounds, you are not naming him Dumpling." - Belarus

18.) The days when it is just too much effort for Yong Soo to smile, Natalya simply lays next to him and lets her heartbeat lull him to sleep.

19.) Everyone agrees that the lively Asian Nation talks enough for the both of them.

20.) His family and friends often wonder (sometimes aloud) what on earth could make want to Korea stay with her; he always grins and shrugs, never telling them of the rare moments when she grabs his hand and blushes.

21.) "Could you ask your brother to stop glaring at me, da ze?" - Korea

22.) "Tell your brother to stop sending me poisoned dumplings." - Belarus

23.) Yong Soo discovers, much to his delight and her despair, that Natalya is very ticklish.

24.) As strange as some think it is, Korea loves gazing at Belarus, and, though she gives off a cold and distant air, she enjoys the attention.

25.) "So, what is this I hear about you and America back in the day?" - Korea

26.) The notion that opposites attract is the only reason the Nations could ever come up with for Korea and Belarus staying together as long as they have.

27.) Unlike some Nations (-ahem-NorthItalyandAmerica-ahem-) Korea knows how to read the atmosphere, so whenever Belarus is in one of her destructive humors he knows better than to try to comfort her; instead, he grabs the nearest Nation and locks him or her in the same room with Belarus, since mauling always puts her in a better mood.

28.) Both remember the first time they met, and both prefer not to really think back on those days; of course, everyone who had spent any significant amount of time in Russia's house tended to blur those years in their minds.

29.) Glancing over at England across the table, Belarus has half a mind to walk over to him after the meeting and ask him to change Korea into a child; she's secretly always been a sucker for cute things.

30.) Unbeknownst to Korea, Belarus keeps the pale blue-violet petals of the flax flower he gave to her on their first date pressed between the pages of her favorite book.

31.) Five months after Belarus' and Korea's trysts began, Korea tells her, very quietly and very sincerely, that he wouldn't mind at all if she called him Yong Soo.

32.) It isn't until three weeks later that Belarus begins calling Korea by his human name and, suddenly unable to look the other Nation in the eyes, tells him that she gives him permission to refer to her as Natalya.

33.) Korea is so in love with Belarus' fingers, but he loves the slight blush on her face whenever he tells that even more.

34.) "You should know by now that I don't fall for that puppy-eyed shit, so stop it." - Belarus

35.) "Oh, fine, I'll try your damned kimchi." - Belarus

36.) They will never understand the other couples, like Spain and Romano, or Prussia and Canada, who seem to feel the constant need to prove their love for each other in public; Natalya's and Yong Soo's love is quiet and lovely and utterly perfect.

37.) The Nations learned the hard way that a drunk Belarus is overly friendly, a drunk Korea is too grabby, and the two together are very bad news; at least, for any young Nations that happen to stumble across the sloshed couple.

38.) "Mmm, I think I'll let you go when you admit that everything did not originate in you." - Belarus

39.) "B- but mp3's did originate- Oww!" - Korea

40.) Belarus never played video games, and Korea found ghosts boring, but Belarus could tell you off the top of her head all the combo codes for Mortal Combat, and Korea could easily lecture you on the difference between the common phantom and a poltergeist.

41.) He didn't care how much she loved her brother; if that Russian creepster smiled at him one more time, Yong Soo would find some iocane powder and figure out a way to slip it into the Nation's vodka flask.

42.) Drawing Belarus is a favorite pastime of his; he adores the high arch of her cheekbones, the soft curve of her lips, the small crinkle of her laugh lines; he worships the the firm set of her jaw, the sharp juncture where neck meets shoulder, the gentle slope of her chest; his beautiful Natalya, lovingly rendered in charcoal.

43.) The day after Natalya told Yong Soo that she never wanted to lay eyes upon him again, he appeared beneath her apartment balcony, holding a boombox that blared "I'm Only Me When I'm With You" and wearing a pitiful expression—later, she would say that the only reason she let him inside is because his off-tune caterwauling was making her neighbors were complain, and she didn't want authorities coming around because of that idiot.

44.) "As you wish." - Korea

Author's Notes:

If the writing style for this seems to vary while you read, it's because I've been writing this over a five month period. Writing Belarus and Korea is hard because there's hardly any fics about them. And if there are fics about them, it turns Belarus into an evil, psychopathic harpy and Korea into an overzealous fool.

#5: This is probably the closest I will ever come to writing smut.

#13: In my headcanon, Korea is a closet Taylor Swift fan; what he doesn't know is that Belarus is, too.

#17: I would name my dog Dumpling. Then again, I've been told that I have terrible taste in names. In my opinion, my fish, Sushi, my rabbit, Bunnicula, and my dog, C'mere (As in, c'mere ya lazy mutt!) were all very lucky to have been named by me, and they knew it.

#29: In a comic, England turned Korea into a kid for China and Japan.

#30: Flax is the national flower of Belarus; it's very pretty.

#34 & #35: Belarus should know by now that the power of puppy dog eyes cannot be resisted. -shakes head- Silly Natalya.

#39: Yong Soo is actually telling the truth this time.

#41 & #44: "iocane powder" is a fictitious poison from The Princess Bride; it is "odorless, tasteless and dissolves immediately in any kind of liquid" (William Goldman The Princess Bride page 161). "As you wish" is Westley's way of telling Buttercup that he loves her. Korea loves this book because it is the ideal soap opera, and he's a sucker for romantic stories.

Also, I switch out their Nation names and their humans names a lot because that's what I do in my mind. And I call S. Korea just "Korea" because I don't plan to write much, if anything, about N. Korea; if HH ever draws a N. Korea, I'll start adding the "S." before "Korea".