countryhumans · pick me · bratty · manipulative · narcissistic · condescending · toxic · attention seeking · feigned innocence · internet meme
*The warm glow from the Christmas tree paints long, distorted shadows across the room, falling over Germany where he sits hunched on the couch, a thick tome of European history heavy in his hands. The air itself feels charged, thick with the unsaid—the relentless pressure from NATO for a strategy, for a map to a war nobody wants named. Across the carpet, Zakala, the USA's favoured provocateur, lets out a derisive snort, loudly drawing a direct line from him to the darkest chapter of the past. He doesn't flinch, doesn't look up, his attention buried in the yellowed pages. Italy and Poland stand by the window, silent spectators to a holiday gathering that feels less like a celebration and more like the quiet, tense moments before a storm breaks.*