There is no "fluff" category for genres. But this has got to be the fluffiest story I've ever written. Even if this story is rated T. But that's only because there are a couple of teenage boys discussing things they've been doing.
And I'll explain my inspiration for this story afterwards.
Standing in front of the door, Alfred stayed close to his mother as she knocked, a smile on her face. The little boy couldn't understand why she was smiling when he was sure this was the worst thing to ever happen. He clutched at her skirt and, as they waited, Alfred hid the present behind him - he wanted it to be a surprise.
The woman who eventually answered smiled at them both and greeted them. Alfred merely smiled for a moment before looking around her legs for the person he was actually there to see. Seeing him so impatient, the two women giggled and his friend's mother called on him.
There was the distant patter of small feet which grew louder until, eventually, a small boy peered around his mother's legs. He had messy blonde hair which didn't seem to have been combed, though Alfred knew this was untrue. His huge eyebrows were still starkly at odds with his age and tiny frame. But he had inherited them from his father, so it made sense. The most striking feature, however, were his wide, green eyes. Alfred especially loved them when they were lit up and sparkling.
"Hey, Artie!" he said, cheerfully.
"It's Arfur," he corrected, as best he could with his cute toddler's lisp. It was adorable and so Alfred had taken to calling him 'Artie' just to hear it.
Grinning, Alfred said, "Arthur." He sobered suddenly and pouted. "I heard that you're gonna be going back to England."
"Yeah," said Arthur, fiddling with the hem of his pristine, white t-shirt.
"That sucks!" cried Alfred. "Whose knight am I gonna be, now?"
"I dunno," Arthur said, quietly.
Alfred knew from that reaction that Arthur was miserable about the move, too. He was pretty sure that Arthur thought of him as his best friend. And Alfred thought of Arthur as his best friend, too, despite him being younger. He loved spending time with him and winding the little boy up. It was amazingly sweet to watch him suddenly speak in gibberish to him only to have him declare that he had cast a spell on Alfred. A couple of hours later and Alfred would be a knight, saving the day, helped by the good warlock Arthur (because Arthur had cried when Alfred had tried to make him the bad guy).
And, although Arthur had been shy to begin with and was still shy with new people, he would always talk to Alfred. Sometimes, he would babble for hours about fairies and unicorns. Alfred would respond with superheroes and aliens. Some of their games got a bit chaotic but they were always amazing and Alfred loved it.
He would definitely miss them.
"Well, you gotta write to me, okay? Or... Maybe draw pictures instead, huh?"
"Hey!" cried the feisty little boy, suddenly regaining his spunk. "Don't make fun of me!"
The American grinned. Because he was a little older, he had already learned his alphabet and how to make words. Arthur was a little behind. "You're gonna have to learn fast, huh?"
"I will! I'll learn just to read your letters!" claimed Arthur, looking determined.
Alfred laughed and moved forward to ruffle Arthur's hair. "And I'll make sure to read yours. There's just one more thing, 'kay?"
"Huh?"
"I got you a present." And, with that, he brought the present out and held it to Arthur with both hands. It was a teddy bear, taller than Arthur with a ribbon tied around its neck. The ribbon had the stars and stripes on it and, hopefully, would remind the kid of him.
His favourite sight instantly occurred: Arthur's eyes widened and they seemed to sparkle. "Wow!" he said, drawing out the word. He reached out for it, his hands making grabbing motions. Laughing, Alfred relinquished the bear: Arthur immediately hugged it tightly.
"Just don't forget about me, 'kay?"
Alfred wrapped his arms around his boyfriend's shoulders and drew him closer. He was very, very glad that they hadn't lost contact with each other after the other had moved. And now, Arthur sat beside him and supported him through every decision – even going to a college close by so he could still see the high school student. Placing a kiss to his head, he sighed.
"So, how do you like my new place?" he murmured into golden locks.
"Hm. It could do with a thorough cleaning, love," said Arthur, teasingly.
Glancing around at the unpacked boxes, Alfred laughed. "Yeah, well. All I need is you and the bed."
Although he couldn't see Arthur's face, the pause before he spoke meant that he was blushing. And the slight tremble in his voice when he finally spoke seemed to prove it to him. "Are... Are you sure?" he asked.
"Of course!"
"What about the fridge, the microwave and the phone for calling fast food places?" Arthur teased, twisting round to grin at him.
"Ah," said Alfred, hesitating himself. "Well, I don't want just them right now," he informed Arthur, winking. This time he could see the blush.
"Alfred F. Jones!" shrieked Arthur, hitting him with a cushion. "I knew you just wanted me for my body, you pervert!"
Laughing, the American caught Arthur's wrists and gave him a peck. Arthur stopped struggling at the kiss but pouted a little once Alfred had pulled away. Grinning widely, Alfred dropped Arthur's wrists and put his hands on the smaller teenager's waist. "You love it, though. And you can't deny it!" he sang.
Scoffing, Arthur rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Don't assume anything, Al," he said.
"I wouldn't dream of it, Arfur," said Alfred, watching for his boyfriend's glare. He didn't disappoint.
"You are so childish," he muttered, shaking his head. "Now, be serious for a second-"
"Anything for my awesome warlock," interrupted Alfred.
"I will stab you with my pen," said Arthur, smoothly, before continuing as if there had been no interruptions. "Do you need help unpacking this week? My parents are going to be away with Peter so I'll be alone – and able to actually stay over. You know how Mum and Dad are. We can work through the day and..." He trailed off and glanced away, the red cheeks giving away his thoughts.
"Ooh, an empty house! Are you sure you don't want to throw a party and go back to being all rebellious?" Alfred grinned down at him.
Arthur sighed and shook his head. "I'd rather help you get settled in."
Nodding, Alfred slid his hands behind Arthur and pulled him towards his chest. He was thinking of something which had been bugging him for a while now. For all the time they had been together, Arthur had not once let him in his room. With his refusal to explain beyond not wanting them to get caught up in making out and being interrupted by his younger brother, Alfred still had no idea why he was kept away from the room with diligence. He had been in the living room and kitchen, of course, but the bedroom was out of bounds. Once, he had been caught trying to sneak a peek – Arthur had yelled at him and the resulting argument had meant they hadn't spoken for three days.
It was three days too much.
So, how best to approach this issue...
"Hey... You know what would be kinky?" The grunt from Arthur allowed Alfred to continue. "If we were able to do it in your bedroom."
Instantly, Arthur stiffened. And, instantly, Alfred knew the answer. "Y-You are utterly hopeless. No, we can have sex here."
"All right," agreed Alfred, not wanting an argument when he felt so comfortable.
"I have to go home tonight, by the way," added Arthur. "There's a package coming tomorrow and I have to be there to sign for it."
"Okay," said Alfred. "But... You have enough time before you leave, right?"
Arthur sighed. "You are insatiable."
Enough is enough – is what Alfred had decided after Arthur had left the night before. And so he had set an alarm, gotten up early and rushed over to Arthur's house. There, he waited in the bushes, watching for the opportune moment.
When a FedEx truck pulled up – finally – he knew it was his moment. Quickly, he emerged and rushed to the door of the house. Once he had knocked on the door, he glanced over his shoulder to make sure the deliveryman was coming up the path. Satisfied, he returned his attention to the door and was happy when Arthur pulled it open.
The English boy blinked at him. "Alfred? What are you doing here?"
"I just wanted to see you," he replied and sidled around him as the man behind him reached the door.
"Al-? Oh, hello. Er, thank you," he heard Arthur say as he hurriedly kicked off his shoes and rushed for the stairs.
Leaving behind his boyfriend, Alfred took the stairs two at a time and went straight for the door he knew was Arthur's room. Without hesitation, he took hold of the doorknob and was about to turn it when he heard a shout from below.
"If you bloody well go in that room, I'll-!"
"Too late!" called Alfred, grinning. He turned the knob and threw the door open as he heard the thundering of Arthur's approach.
In all the time he had known about Arthur's phobia of having Alfred in his room, the American had ran through several scenarios in his mind. Perhaps he had a lot of embarrassing items or pictures. Maybe he had taken candid photos of him before they had gotten together. Had they not redecorated and Arthur was in a girl's room?
He had not expected what he saw.
On top of a dresser, pride of place, was a teddy bear he recognised, its distinctive ribbon still tied firmly in place. Beside it, sat other teddy bears, each from a different place. Then, on every other surface, sat teddy bears. Some were tiny. Others seemed to have been presents for birthdays and other occasions. Still others seemed to have been home-made and told a story of increasing proficiency. There were literally hundreds of teddy bears in the forest green room. The bed was covered in them and Alfred wondered how Arthur slept on it.
Gazing around in disbelief, Alfred picked up a small, green thing. It may have been a teddy but it was one of the home-made ones and looked more like a bunny. He was busy examining it when Arthur grabbed it from him. They stared at each other. It took Alfred a while to realise that his boyfriend had teared up and his lower lip was trembling.
"Y-You can mock me if you want," he choked out. "Peter does." And, pouting, he hugged the little green teddy close.
Immediately, Alfred was remembering the last time he had seen Arthur looking so cute. Now, he was no less adorable than he was then. Chuckling, he reached out and pulled the shorter boy towards him so that his arms wrapped around Arthur's shoulders and his chin rested atop the blonde head.
"I'm not going to make fun of you," he sighed. "How can I, when you're looking so breathtakingly gorgeous?"
Arthur stiffened in his arms before relaxing. Alfred could almost see his smile. "Thank you," he heard Arthur whisper into his chest.
"Is this the reason you wouldn't let me in here?"
"Y-Yes... It's stupid I know, but..." Arthur pulled away so he could gaze into Alfred's eyes. "I just... You got me that teddy and I was so attached to it that, well..." He blushed and cleared his throat. "People saw me with it and they began buying me more teddies. And then I started seeing teddies when I travelled and, when I was young, it felt like it was important I got a teddy from every country we visited. And-And there were the ones I saw and thought they were cute. Um. Of course, some of these aren't... Well. I found a book on how to make your own and I began trying and I've got a little better but...
"They just kept increasing! And now I can barely fit in my own bed. I didn't think... it would be wise to... you know," he finished, lamely.
"This has to be the most adorable addiction I have ever seen," said Alfred, grinning.
"Sh-Shut up!" cried Arthur, glancing away.
"Which ones have you made, then?" he asked, glancing around.
A second of hesitation passed on Arthur's part before he walked over to the head of his bed and picked up the teddy he had left atop his pillow. He hugged both teddies to his chest before turning and approaching Alfred again. His cheeks were pink once again.
"This... This one is my most recent one. It's-" He relinquished his death grip and turned it around so that Alfred could see. The fur was a lighter colour, almost a blonde. Its eyes were blue and a pair of soft, felt glasses had been stuck on its face. The mouth was open and grinning. Clothes had been knitted for it: a little hoodie and a pair of blue pants. Lastly, and most importantly, was a little part of the fur at the top of its head stood up – like a cowlick.
"Is that-?" Alfred breathed.
"I-I figured that... you'll be busy and I'll be busy when the school year starts again so... If I ever get lonely..." Embarrassed, he turned the bear around again and buried his face in its fur.
Alfred stared at Arthur. "Holy shit," he said and watched as Arthur flinched. "Holy shit, are you adorable." And, with that, he scooped his own, personal teddy into his arms and kissed him.
Heh. It's so cute, it's sickening.
Anyways, the reason for this story is that it's based on real life. Well... Here:
I have a lot of teddy bears. A lot. I had so many at one point that I hated sleeping with them on my bed (where I kept them in my shared room). So my mum bought me a toy hammock and I put all the smaller ones in that and only a few bigger ones stayed on my bed. Then... there were the birthday presents... and the prizes from hook-a-duck because that was the only semi-decent thing I'd won (I am very bad at that. Or they're cheating me.) And then I started buying cute things from the place I volunteer. And the Hetalia plushies. And then the cute things. And-
... I have a lot and this story came to me the other night when I had to pull out one of the numerous teddies from under me as I tried to sleep.
For some reason, I had an image of Arthur being given a teddy by Al as a kid...
Anyway, as for the story, I decided that Arthur would be younger because... he'd be cuter if he fell in love with the first teddy and was younger than Al. And that's the only reason.
I really think that's all I have to say about this...
