Alfred had the perfect surprised planned.
He would enter the apartment silently, creeping in without a single sound. In his hand he would have the prettiest bouquet of flowers he could find and with an excited grin on his face he would sneak up on an unsuspecting Arthur and surprise him with such a romantic gesture. Arthur was a secret sucker for romance.
That was Alfred's plan anyway.
Too bad it didn't happen that way.
Just as he had envisioned in his head, he snuck into the apartment without a sound. He could hear soft humming coming from the kitchen as he ever so gently closed the front door behind him. He did his best not to let the flowers rustle in their beautiful gift wrap as he crept down the hall, dodging every floorboard that he knew creaked with even the smallest of weight.
Standing behind the wall, Alfred took in a deep breath and tried to calm his beating heart. He loved surprising Arthur. The look on his face was always enough to brighten Alfred's entire week. So, holding the flowers to his chest and putting on his most charming of smiles, he rounded the corner to lean on the open doorframe. He wanted to be smooth, relaxed and as charming as any prince in the fairy tales that Arthur loved.
However, that all flew out the nearest window the moment he spotted Arthur at the kitchen sink.
His boyfriend was humming a gentle tune as he washed the dishes, plucking each one from the kitchen counter where Alfred had neatly stacked bowls and plates to be washed later. He seemed peaceful and calm, with his hands dipped in a bowl of overflowing bubbles. It would have been the perfect picture had two plates not been hovering 5 feet in the air behind Arthur.
Alfred didn't know what he was witnessing. The plates were just… levitating.
In his shock he dropped the flowers, the sound alone to enough startle Arthur. He turned around in mild fright, eyes widened as he stared at Alfred and not even flinching when the two plates crashed to the ground around him and shattered into thousands of tiny pieces.
"Al! I-I didn't expect you back so soon!" He almost squeaked, dropping his gaze to the shards of ceramic gathered around his feet. He sighed in defeat at them, shoulders deflating as he warily returned his gaze to Alfred who had become rather statuesque.
"I can explain! I-I was meant to tell you but… but I didn't know how or when and I didn't want to freak you out and for goodness sake Alfred stop staring at me!" Arthur babbled, waving his bubble covered hands in Alfred's general direction. Small droplets of water and foam splattered Alfred's face, although most ended up on the kitchen table between them, and he snapped from his gaze.
"Dude!" Alfred gasped with blue eyes wide and lips curved into a joyous smile. Alfred looked like a man who had just won the lottery and not just seen magic he thought make believe until this moment as he threw his hands into his hair, blinking at a very confused looking Arthur. "You have magic? What the shit!"
"Alfred, please, your scaring me."
"You-You actually have magic. How crazy is that? What can you do? Can you fly? If you can fly I definitely deserve a flight over the city. Can you shoot lasers out your eyes? That would be so cool if you could although pretty dangerous and-"
"Darling, I love the enthusiasm but please calm down," Arthur interrupted, bending down to pick up a towel which had once magically been drying one of the floating plates. Shaking it free of any sharp shards, he dried his hands on it before throwing it on the table in front of him. Unable to move from the sea of ceramic, he remained where he stood.
"You're… okay with this?" Arthur asked hesitantly, unsure if Alfred's outburst was simply over enthusiasm or panicked nonsense.
"Okay with it? Babe, I'm more than okay with it I wanna know everything about it!" Alfred grinned, bending down to pick up the flowers he had dropped. Sheepishly, he rubbed the back of his head. "I, uh, wanted to surprise you but it kinda backfired. Now I'm the one surprised."
Arthur chuckled and rolled his eyes, taking the flowers when Alfred leant across the table to give them to him.
"They're beautiful," He admired, softly smelling the roses in his hands before placing them down on the table and accepting the dustpan and brush from Alfred. Together, they swept the floor until it was spotless of any plate shards, Arthur ignoring every single question of Alfred's until they were finished and comfortably sat on the sofa with a warm blanket draped across them both.
"So, like, what can you do?"
"Well… I, uh, move things… with my mind," Arthur answered, fidgeting with the blanket.
"Charles Xavier style or Scarlett Witch style?"
Alfred grinned through the elbow to the ribs his received at such a question but marvelled at Arthur's face when he saw that smile he had been waiting for.
"I have to pick?"
Alfred nodded.
"Scarlett Witch style I suppose. I'm just me though."
"With powers like that? Dude you could be a super hero!" Alfred beamed, turning to see that Arthur's face did not resemble the excitement that Alfred had of the idea.
He could picture it now, being the boyfriend of the city superhero. He would assist Arthur on his missions from their computers at home, sending him information that he needed and talking through their ear pieces. He would be living a movie and he'd be a kickass sidekick!
"Just imagine how awesome that would be. You'd be famous!"
"I don't want to be famous I just want to live a normal life."
"But-"
"I don't want to fight crime, I don't want to save the world and I definitely don't want to be famous," sighed Arthur, leaning to rest his head on Alfred's shoulder. "I have everything I could possibly ask for right here."
"A tiny one bed apartment that's practically falling to bits?"
"It's not falling to bits."
"Art even from here I can see that the shelf on the wall over there is about ready to drop."
Arthur wrinkled his nose at Alfred's complaint, eyeing the shelf that Alfred mentioned. So, it was a little crooked and would most likely deposit a small amount of Arthur's book collection on the floor any day soon but it added character.
"Don't forget that the front door caved in last week either, I still have the bump," Alfred whined, rubbing his head where a small bump still remained. All he had done was open the front door, he hadn't expected for it to fall flat on his head. He couldn't understand why Arthur wouldn't want to give this place up for a life a luxury that his powers could give him.
"Or that the bed frame broke," Arthur chuckled, looking up to Alfred from where he rested on his shoulder. Alfred's snorted at that.
"Yeah, that was probably just us."
The pair laughed at their own antics, Alfred's arm holding Arthur close as he snuggled into his chest.
"You can't guarantee how the world would react to someone like me and I don't want to get through life based on my powers. I want to do just as we are now. I want to fight our way through life and experience both the good at the bad. If there is ever a moment when I change my mind and I want to become a so-called hero then I'll let you know," Arthur explained, allowing his arm to drape across Alfred's stomach so he could soothingly rub at his side.
For a moment the pair sat in silence, contemplating all that Arthur had said. Alfred didn't understand how Arthur didn't dream of patrolling the city, saving the good guys and putting away the bad guys. It would be like every film that Alfred had loved since childhood. However, it was Arthur's choice and Alfred loved Arthur whether he was a superhero or not. Nothing would make a difference to that, not even magic.
"You better, I'll need to give you a badass name."
"Nothing stupid I hope."
"Well, it depends on how I'm feeling."
Arthur slapped Alfred's chest playfully and sat up, moving on the sofa until he was sat comfortably in Alfred's lap. Alfred like it best when they were sat like this, having the gentle weight of Arthur pressing against him comforted Alfred. It made him calm and, well, he loved cuddles.
"Are there any other people who magic like you?" He asked, grabbing Arthur's hand and toying with his fingers. Arthur laughed and pressed a kiss to his forehead.
"Oh Alfred, just wait until you meet my brothers."
XxX
A/N: This was based off a prompt by one of my lovely mutuals on tumblr. I hope you enjoyed!