A new student was even more obviously so when they were from another country; while Alfred wasn't from some exotic land with a different language, it was clear that he had no idea how to behave like a human being. Though they never spoke, Arthur despised the freshman. He was loud, rude, fat, and dorky to the point where he got second hand embarrassment.
As usual, Arthur sat alone at his lunch table in the far corner, his eyes glued to some kind of book the entire time he munched on his sandwich. This routine was suddenly interrupted by a certain American's hand on his shoulder. "Hey, can I sit with you? All the other tables are full."
Despite his hatred for the kid, he said "sure" by instinct. Alfred sat uncomfortably close to the Brit and peeked at the book in front of him. "What'cha reading?"
Arthur bit back a harsh response and shut the book, shoving it into his bag. "Nothing, now." he grumbled. /'It's not that I really care what the kid thinks about me, but I'm not sure I'd be comfortable letting him see the romance novels I'm into...'/
"So what's your name? I'm Alfred!"
"Arthur."
"Awesome! So what's your favorite show?"
Ignoring the question, Arthur returned to his lunch. "I don't like to talk while I'm eating. Try later."
"Then I'll do the talking! I'll tell you about some of /my/ favorite shows!"
As Alfred rambled about his favorite shows for what seemed like hours, the anger began to build up in Arthur's chest. /'God damn it, just make him shut up! Why can't he see that I honestly don't give a fuck?'/
"Hey, you're done with your sandwich! Want to do some talking now?" Alfred asked as a smile spread across his face.
Furious, Arthur turned to face Alfred again and snapped, "Or how about you /shut up/? Can't you take a hint? I seriously don't want your annoying, fat ass around here!"
The smile faded in an instant, and the once cheerful American burst into tears. "You could have just told me you didn't want me to sit here... I would have just sat somewhere else or something!"
"Maybe you needed this. Maybe you needed someone to break the news to you; you're annoying as hell!" Arthur regretted the words before he even spoke them, but he blurted them out anyway. The bell rang and Alfred was running off before he could apologize.
He refused to admit the guilt tore at him for the rest of the day. /'I'm an asshole. He wasn't even hurting me; it's not his fault I have a stick in my ass all the time. I should be thankful that someone wanted to interact with me for once in my life...'/
The school day came to an end, and Arthur began his long, lonely walk home. /'I guess the least I could do is apologize to him. But he'll probably run away at the sight of me after the way I just snapped at him.'/
He was then proven wrong when he glanced back and spotted the mentioned American heading in his direction. /'I guess that means I should apologize now.'/
"Hello!" Arthur called to him. Alfred glanced up (his eyes had been focused on the ground for some reason) and nearly fell backward in shock. "H-hi?"
"Would you like to walk with me?"
Alfred hesitated, but then ran to catch up with him. "Thanks.. And uh, I'm sorry for-"
"No, stop. Don't be sorry. I was just being an asshole like I always am. To be honest, I don't have any friends, and.. I guess I just showed you why, heheh. So um, I'm sorry." Arthur began to notice that Alfred was sucking his stomach in. "You don't have to do that."
Alfred sighed with relief as he let himself return to his 'normal shape'. "Sorry. So, do you want to be friends, then?! Or... are you just wanting to apologize?"
Arthur forced a smile. "Sure, I guess. Just... talk a little less loud when we're in public, alright? And I'll stop being such a bitchy little jerk all the time."
"Awesome! To be honest, I've never had a friend before. So I'm glad I decided to annoy you at lunch today!"
Arthur said nothing after that, but occasionally threw a glance at the American as they walked. /'What a handsome face...'/ was his silent remark before he arrived at his house and said a goodbye to Alfred.