"Well... I guess we're here!" Alfred grinned as the car rumbled to a stop outside of the 'South End Hotel'. It was coming to the end of summer and Alfred figured that before it was over he ought to spend some time with his boyfriend. So here they we're at the British seaside town of Blackpool, much to Arthurs annoyance, who found this part of his home country to be rather tacky and run down. Alfred on the other hand loved sightseeing in England, and organised the four day extended weekend break for the two of them. Choosing a hotel was hard, as the whole seafront was full of hotels; each declaring different prices and deals. After trawling the internet in search of the perfect one, 'South End' was chosen. And it wasn't cheap either. Not that the American minded of course, he wanted only the best for his lover.
Arthur unbuckled his seat belt and stuffed the map of the Great British Isles back into the glove box. He wasn't fond of technology, so a sat-nav was out of the question, no matter how many times the American tried to teach him how to use them, he wouldn't have any of it.
"I must say… I'm impressed with your driving skills Alfred. Who knew you'd be able to handle driving on the wrong side of the road, let alone the opposite side of the car." He mused while stepping out of the car and looking around.
"Nothing's too difficult for me! I can handle anything. I am the Hero after all." Alfred winked before opening the back of the car and hauling out their suitcases. Arthur took a moment to look up at the front of the building. It was painted white, which greying, slightly chipped and worn revealing the red brickwork underneath, and the window and door frames painted a shabby shade of green.
After slamming the boot of the car shut Alfred walked around the car and stood by Arthurs side, pressed the button on the key fob, locking their car, then nodded toward the hotel entrance with a smile, signalling for Arthur to go in. The smaller blonde held the door open for the other who carried both cases inside with ease and set them down by the door. Once inside, the pair wrinkled their noses at the smell that greeted them, the smile completely wiped from Alfred's face.
It smelt slightly damp and somewhat stale. Arthur frowned and walked down the hall observing the peeling wallpaper around the skirting boards, the damp patch on the ceiling and the broken light bulb in one of the shades. Alfred stared dumbfounded at the Brit standing in front of him with his arms folded and one of his usual scowls plastered on his face. He opened his mouth to say something, but then changed his mind and turned quickly on his heels and headed through a door reading "Lounge" on the frosted glass. Alfred gave it a few moments before following his lover, leaving the cases by the door. Hearing muffled voices from behind the door, he paused to listen. Arthur could unmistakably be heard, along with two other voices.
"... I'm sorry but what do you call this? And what do you mean we can't check in yet? You do realise that my boyf- … Companion paid an awfully large amount of money to book rooms here and this is what he gets? You could at least change the bloody bulb for god's sake! I wasn't expecting to arrive at a five star joint but this is beyond a joke."
Alfred took this as his que to enter and attempt to calm Arthur down. They'd been there barley ten minutes, and already Arthur had found a reason to complain and raise his voice. Once through the door he found himself in a dimly lit room which was barely even furnished. To the left of him a black leather couch sat in front of the window with a small brown table beside it, a worn pool table stood in the middle, and to the right was a large bar, which he found Arthur leaning over waving his arms around at a couple stood behind it.
"Hey, maybe it's just a misunderstanding? It doesn't look too bad in here right?" He said, walking over to Arthur and slipping an arm around his waist. Arthur looked up at him and scoffed. "You're kidding aren't you?" He wriggled free from Alfred's grip. "Take a look in there will you?" he said a little quieter, nodding toward what looked like a bathroom. Alfred sighed and looked at Arthur, who simply raised a large eyebrow, then to the couple who were beginning to look a little anxious. Had Arthur inspected the whole freakin' ground floor already?
Peering into the room all he saw was a simple toilet and a sink, but looking closer he noticed used toilet paper absentmindedly discarded behind the toilet itself, an overflowing waste bin, and he could have sworn he saw a bug crawling out of the sink. He felt his brows knit together as he realised he'd booked a complete dump!
"Er, Yes, I understand that it is a mess in there, but the party last night went on until 3am, and we haven't had chance to clean yet.." The male behind the bar spoke out as Alfred emerged from the bathroom and took hold of Arthurs' hand.
"…Party?" the two questioned in unison.
"I'm certainly not up for parties and loud music until 3am." Arthur mumbled.
"Look, we should at least see our room. Maybe that won't be so bad?" Alfred said quietly and squeezed the hand he was holding before walking back up to the bar receiving a sigh from Arthur who stood with his arms now firmly crossed over his chest.
"Is there any chance that we could see our room? I know that it's not really ready yet, but we're kinda having… second thoughts about your hotel."
The female of the hotel owners lowered her head and squirmed uncomfortably as she looked past the American at the bar and met Arthur's glare, while the male spoke out again.
"No. Your room will not be ready until 2 o'clock. I'm sorry but you'll have to wait. It's not been cleaned yet."
"Surely it can't be that dirty, just a few unmade beds, so I don't see what the problem is." Alfred said; then, remembering the state of the bathroom, realised why they probably didn't want their room to be seen. Just as he opened his mouth to speak again, a door slammed closed behind him. Turning on his heels he looked upon an empty room. Shooting a glare at the couple behind the bar, Alfred too left the room in search of Arthur. Why did he have to be so damn difficult? Sometimes Alfred was completely lost as to why he was head over heels for the short tempered Brit.
Stepping out of the front door, Alfred raised a hand to shield his eyes against the light drizzle that was now falling as he looked around for his other half. Squinting against the rain he caught sight of a familiar blonde head stood at the door of another hotel next door but one to his current position. Stepping down the front steps and hopping over the two low walls that separated one hotel from the other, Alfred made his was up to the Brit.
"Listen, Arthur I'm sorry. I know it's really crap there, I was just trying to lighten the mood and stuff so I kept calm… y'know… so you wouldn't be too mad." The words fell from his mouth quickly in an attempt to get Arthur to listen to him before he started ranting and raving. The man in question just simply turned to face the American, a light smile on his lips.
"Don't worry yourself, love. I'm not blaming you."
"Wait wha? You're not? I thought that you-" He was cut short by a thin, pale finger being pressed to his lips.
"It wasn't your fault. The hotel looked truly lovely from the website that you showed me. But you know what the times are like these days. All that bloody photo shop in order to make things seem better than they really are. And you wonder why I despise all of this fancy technology?" Arthur said with a light chuckle.
"Now come on inside, your hair's starting to drip from the rain," He said stepping up the front step and into the porch, taking the opportunity of being taller than Alfred for once (thanks to the porch being raised) by planting a kiss on the top of his soggy head. "I'd like you to meet Mrs. Brennan."
"Oh, don't be so daft young man. Call me Carol, please!" a thick accented voice came from behind the pair.
Alfred peered around Arthur to see a small, plump woman who must have been in her late fifties. Her hair was sandy blonde and short, curled into a perm on the top of her head. She wore a navy blue cardigan, a yellow blouse and a black skirt reaching her knees. She pretty much looked like your average Grandmother, who always seemed to have an endless supply of toffee in her purse.
"So what can I do for you boys?" She smiled sweetly and approached the two stood in her hallway.
"Actually, we were kind of hoping that you'd have any open vacancies available for booking." Arthur spoke out.
Carol scratched her chin, as if in deep thought. "For how many days exactly?"
"Four please."
"…I'll see what I can do." She smiled again and turned to open a small cupboard under the stairwell.
"Artie, what are we going to do about our deposit? I already handed my money over to those creeps down there!" Alfred flapped.
"Don't worry. I'll head back later and try and get some money back at least. Remind me to call the tourist board later too to file a complaint. Arthur said, loosening his tie a little. "And here I thought holidays were supposed to be a relaxing get away."
"I don't mean to listen in on your conversation, but I couldn't help but over hear. Are you boys in a spot of bother?" Carol asked, looking up from the book she was scribbling in, and peering over a pair of huge spectacles now balanced on the end of her nose.
Alfred opened his mouth to speak, but Arthur got there first.
"Yes. You could say that. We've come from South End. I'm not sure if you're aware, but that place is a little beyond a joke and I refuse to stay there. They can keep our bloody money. I don't fancy sleeping in a bed which is most probably infested with bugs, rats, you name it."
Carol muttered something and shook her head, returning her attention back to the large leather bound book she had produced from the cupboard.
"I've heard bad things about that place. But not to worry. I have a room for you two, and because I have a heart and you're a little strapped for cash, I'll do you a deal. And I can promise you," She glanced up at Arthur, "No bugs included in the package." She smiled and tapped the side of her nose as she said this, and Arthur beamed a genuine smile, looking up at Alfred who in return leaned down to peck Arthur on the cheek, smiling into the reddening blush that was growing on his face.
Arthur coughed, trying to hide the blush that had crept onto his cheeks and approached Carol, who handed him a pen to sign his name in the guestbook.
As Arthur dealt with the paperwork, Alfred took the time to observe the hotel they would now be staying in. First things first, the corridor they stood in was considerably cleaner than the one they stood in not too long ago he noted. A deep red carpet covered the floor beneath his feet, and the walls were wallpapered in a light floral pattern. A large gold framed mirror hung on the wall to his left, and various mounted certificates hung proudly on the opposing wall, most of which reading things like 'Blackpool hotel of the year 2007', or 'Awarded 5 stars for hospitality by the British Tourist Board.'
Hearing Carol's voice brought him out of his little observational daze.
"I'm assuming you'll be wanting a room with a double bed instead of two singles, am I correct?" Carol laughed lightly, looking over at Alfred for an answer, as Arthur was too busy hiding his face in the leather guestbook.
"If that's not too much trouble ma'am." Alfred grinned and sent her a wink.
"Not at all young man." She said, yet again with a soft smile and a giggle, taking the book and pen from Arthur and peering at the names he'd written.
"Well then Arthur Kirkland and Alfred Jones-"
"Alfred F. Jones" said American interrupted.
"My apologies Mr F. Jones," Carol smirked, "Breakfast is from 08:30 until 09:45, and Dinner will be prepared for 5:00pm each night. There's a menu in your room to choose your meals, so once you've chosen, just come and give me the word down here at the front desk. We'll settle a payment at the end of your stay when you've sorted your money issue out. So not to worry." She turned around and took a set of keys from the hook behind her and handed them to Arthur. "Here are you room keys. If you need anything, you know where to find me. Just call down here at the front desk. Have fun boys!" She winked as she disappeared through a door behind the desk.
"Artie, you're amazing." Alfred took hold of Arthur's waist and pulled him close, planting a kiss firmly on his lips, who in return rolled his eyes and kissed back, but pulling apart too quickly for Alfred's liking.
"I know I know. Where would you be without me?"
"I'd be a sad and lonely man sat at home with no ambition." Alfred pulled a playful pout and pinched Arthur's cheeks.
Swatting him away Arthur walked past him and opened the front door, only to see that the rain was now coming down twice as hard. "The bloody umbrellas would be with our bags now wouldn't they?" He said shaking his head.
"Hey, I'll go get the bags and deal with those bastards. You go up to our room and start taking a look at the menu. I'll be fine." Alfred said, resting a hand on Arthur's shoulder.
"Alright then. Don't be too long~" He said with a smirk and started to head up the stairs. Alfred stole a quick glance at his behind as it wiggled up the stairs, and stepped out into rain, smiling to himself.
Around ten minutes later, the door opened to reveal a very wet Alfred, hauling two cases.
Arthur jumped up from his place on the bed and took one of the cases from the dripping boy.
"Look at you. There's an umbrella in my case! Trust you not to think and at least use it. You're soaked." Arthur sighed and placed his case down on the bed and began to un-zip it. He was unable to even take a towel out of the case for Alfred to dry his hair at least before he felt a strong pair of arms snake around his waist and swing him around onto the bed.
"At least take your shirt off. You're dripping water all over me." He said from underneath the American, who had his arms either side of him, pinning him down and began to unbutton his shirt for him. Alfred in return simply laughed at how eagerly Arthur was to rip the shirt from his body.
After having his shirt peeled off, Alfred flopped down on the bed next to Arthur and propped himself up on the pillows on one elbow.
"So what're we eating?"
Arthur snatched up the discarded menu from the bed and snuggled closer to Alfred, so the pair could look over the menu.
"I was thinking perhaps this?" He said pointing to a dish.
Alfred adjusted his glasses on his nose and followed to where Arthur's finger was pointing.
"Fish and Chips?" He said with a smirk.
Arthur sat up. "What are you smirking for? We ARE in Britain after all. What did you expect?!"
"It's just so typical of you."
"Oh, well I'm sorry about that." Green eyes glared at Blue as Arthur broke out into his usual sarcasm.
"Who said you had to be sorry? I wouldn't have you any other way. My typical little Brit." Alfred said with a soft smile before leaning down and crashing his lips against Arthurs, who chuckled into the kiss.
"Don't be so bloody soppy. Git."
I hope that wasn't too bad.
I had fun writing this, and I have more planned out which will be on the way soon!
Reviews would be appreciated. :)
Thank you again for reading!