Chapter 1 Bubble Gum and Rum

(full summary at bottom)

Dear Journal,

I am finally free. Yesterday, father announced he was giving the throne to either me or my brother. The queen did not like that very much. Seeing that both of the two picked were illegitimate children she most certainly was against it from the moment my father revealed it. He pulled me aside after the queen's tantrum and told me he was aiming for me to be king.

Most people assumed my father had lost his mind but I knew better. He wanted me to be king because of the magic that so easily leapt to my fingers when I commanded it to. It was why my two half-brothers teased my brother instead of me. I should have protected Issac more, but he had his own way of dealing with the harshness and hatred surrounding us. Besides it was directed more at me than him.

When the queen got wind I was the favored king candidate, well….she came to my room last night and put a knife to my throat. BLOODY HELL THE NERVE OF HER. Still I must admit I had never been more afraid in my life. She threatened that if I was there in the morning, I would no longer be alive. Not particularly having a desire to be king, I left last night. I took a lot of money and the royal crest and I am now on my own. I suppose it's not abnormal for an 18 year old to leave the nest so to speak.

Though they will be looking for me no doubt and I feel a pang of guilt for disappointing my father. He will live through it though. He has already lived through a lot. This morning I found an apartment and while my brothers may have squandered the money I took, I mean it's technically mine so it can't be considered stealing. Anyways they would have squandered it, but I fancy I'll start my own business perhaps a tea shop I always did like the one in the palace. I feel I am far enough away to not worry too much, after all the queen will see to it they don't search that much. What a bloody wanker. But I suppose that is life and I will simply make the best of it.

Prince Arthur Kirkland the Third

. . .

The next morning Arthur set to readying his apartment and found he rather enjoyed the quaint little town and the small room he now called his own. It wasn't very hard to buy and move furniture around as he was on the first floor so the process wasn't stressful.

He tucked his royal crest in his sock drawer that was filled with notepads and pencils. Once he was done with the furniture and organizing, he bought himself clothes and was thrilled to find he could wear whatever "dorky" outfits he pleased.

He thought about spending the rest of the day exploring the town but instead he cracked open a book and began to read. Dressed in a dress shirt and slacks with a top hat on his head you would not have guessed he was only 18.

He supposed he was an old soul. It was, in part, the fault of the excellent literature he had read over the many days spent hiding in solitude from his tormentors. Looking back on his childhood with mixed emotions Arthur Kirkland focused on his book. As he read into the night he fell asleep in his chair and woke up the next morning slowly taking his time to get up stiff from the awkward way he slept but relaxed.

. . .

Unlike the man two floor down, Mathew awoke with a start covered in sweat, breathing heavily. He felt his burning forehead and slowly made his way out of bed. He looked in the mirror where he should have seen a beautiful pair of violet eyes and unruly curly blond hair with one particularly curly strand that never flattened.

However, all he could see was the bruise forming on his lower jaw and the small cut above his eyebrow. He should have seen a smiling healthy eight year old boy but he all he saw was a sick looking and frowning boy too scrawny for his baggy clothes with the only color in his face the flush the fever was giving him. He should have been able to call for his mom and expect soup and hugs, but his mom wasn't here at the moment and Mathew was glad about that. As for hugs…well, Mathew didn't like them very much.

He stumbled into the kitchen not bothering to brush his hair or clean his cut, after all tonight would be a dull night, a good night. His stomach didn't growl, instead it clenched up inside of him since the last time he could remember eating was two days ago when his mother was gone again and he finished the last can of soup.

With a heavy heart Mathew opened the cupboards already knowing nothing would be inside. He went to his emergency stash of gum and popped half a piece in his mouth chewing slowly trying to savor the flavor.

Normally Mathew would start cleaning the house but his fever was making him delirious and he found himself stuck with the idea of going to the market down the street and buying food. It didn't matter he had no money and he wasn't supposed to leave the house. Nope, Mathew was going to buy that food and nothing was going to stop him. Except maybe vertigo.

He walked out his back door and made it like a champ down the first flight of stairs when halfway through the second flight his surroundings blurred and he found himself toppling rolling down the step and landing on the first floor outside someone's door with a thump. He scrambled to his feet only to teeter again he reached out for the wall only to grip an arm instead.

"Waaaah!"

"Bloody hell, are you alright?!"

Mathew looked up and saw the thickest eyebrows he'd ever seen and quickly covered his mouth with his free hand to prevent himself from either laughing or throwing up, maybe both. He nodded and as his vision slowly cleared, he saw a young man with indeed large eyebrows and stunningly brilliant green eyes.

Mathew swore there were golden flecks but it might have just been his fever. He watched the man's mouth move and his eyebrows furrow in concern but he couldn't make out what the strange man was saying. Instead he noticed the smooth dull blond hair on the man's head as he tried to stare over it and the cane in his hand as his eyes lowered in fear.

"Srry" Mathew finally slurred as he turned around to walk back upstairs.

. . .

Arthur grabbed the strange boys arm preventing the stupid lad from walking back upstairs which seemed to be his intent.

"Hang on lad!" He shouted completely baffled. There was a flash of fear on the boy's face before he toppled over and Arthur stouped barely catching him before he hit the ground. Arthur looked around hoping to see a concerned parent or something but there was no one but him and the feverish boy

.

He had spit out his tea when he looked out his window to see someone falling down the escape latter and now the boy was out cold and burning up.

Arthur thought about calling the soldiers that the king assigned to towns like this to keep the peace, but to do so this early in the game would announce to the royal family of his destination. So instead Arthur kicked his back door open and laid Mathew down on the couch, then quickly prepared some tea and medicine.

Returning to the couch he found himself troubled by the boy's appearance. He had clearly gotten the crap beat out of him and Arthur wondered if he was being bullied like Arthur had been as a child.

"AHHHHHHH!" Bolting upright the boy viewed the room with unconcealed panic. Arthur jumped up and found himself kneeling in front of the boy.

"Lad, calm down….it's alright…." He tried weakly but to no avail, the boy disregarded him with fear and sadness in his eyes as he breathed heavily gasping for air.

"Sorry," the lad muttered as he started to remove his shirt.

"Bloody hell!" Arthur shouted and the boy stopped looking up confused.

"I mean you need to probably cool down but there are better ways boy! …I'm sure the fever has made you delirious but don't be so trusting in a complete stranger's house!" He snapped in irritation then softened as the boy just stared at the ground his lip quivering pitifully.

Poor thing really was out of it. Arthur presented the tea and medicine which the boy took wordlessly simply expressing his gratitude with a quick glance. Sensing the starvation of this pitiful child Arthur quickly whipped together a sandwich which the boy devoured quickly not even waiting for permission. When he looked up he seemed nervous as if expecting retribution but Arthur just hummed to himself as he tidied the house.

"You must have been hungry,'' he said blatantly pointing at the licked clean plate and watching as the boy's face turned red. "What's your name lad?"

Still no reply.

"I am sorry for troubling you but I must go now!" the boy suddenly blurted and stood up clearly trying not to wobble. Not really sure if he should prevent the boy from leaving or not Arthur replied quickly before he could think it through.

"No problem, come back anytime lad," There was a slight change in the boy's expression but Arthur had not the slightest idea what it meant. He was still taken aback by what he had just said. Come back? He couldn't be helping this kid, he couldn't draw attention to himself.

So why then when he looked up from his thinking to see the boy gone, his dishes neatly stacked, that Arthur felt sad. There was no way he could be lonely, yet he quickly ran to the window and stuck his head out of his back door relieved as he saw the door two floors above him close.

He knew where the lad lived now which comforted him somehow. Throughout that afternoon, the morning's meeting stayed in Arthur's mind and he was too distracted to read so he practiced on his sword movements pretending the Queen was on the other side of his blade.

It just so happened that he went in his closet when he did. He had snagged the blade on his pants leaving a tear and had gone to grab the sewing kit, Arthur was right below a grate that happened to be a very good place to listen in to conversations two stories above him. As Arthur scrimmaged for his sewing kit he heard…..

"FUCK YOU I ASK ONE THING OF YOU AND YOU FUCKING SCREW THAT UP! I AM SO SICK OF YOUR SHIT! I AM GOING TO TAKE A BATH AND WHEN I GET BACK THIS BETTER BE CLEAN!"

Arthur's eyebrows raised at hearing the hysterical woman yell but he brushed it off as some married couple bickering on the floor right above him. He sure felt sorry for the bloke married to that lady though. It wasn't till a lot later on that Arthur fully recognized the importance of that small grate in his closet and how it would change the course of his quiet life for good.

. . .

Mathew bent over the smashed bottle with a rag obediently cleaning up the spilled beer all over the floor glad it hadn't hit him this time. He was feeling amazing with the medicine in his system and he was able to move quickly and efficiently cleaning the counters and dishes and setting the table for good measure. He didn't even care that the only thing his mother had brought back from the market was jars of whisky and that he probably wouldn't get dinner.

"What are you doing?" he whipped around a spoon in his hand.

"S…setting the table…," he ventured tensely waiting to see if his mother had a bad or good day today.

"DID I FUCKING TELL YOU TO DO THAT!?" She bellowed in response. Apparently today was a bad day. In a second she was breathing in his face, her breath rancid and her eyes bloodshot. She slapped him hard in the face dazing him. Looking at her appearance, Mathew remembered sadly when she was pretty once with long curly blond hair, but now her hair was short and a dyed red that didn't look right with her stretched gaunt face.

She was a mess and she knew it which was why she drowned herself in the beer and wine. Mathew didn't bother blocking the blows as she hit him, pinned him to the ground, and pounded on his chest. Then her tears started but Mathew was numb to them by now…..all they meant to him was that she was unpredictable.

"You're hungry huh…..you fucking want food…..well all I have is…rum…fucking rum," Mathew felt her get off of him and he breathed a sigh of relief before icy cold hit his face. Suddenly it was in his nose and his mouth burning his throat and he coughed and cried as she emptied the bottle on his face.

"Clean yourself up and go to bed. There are people worse off then you…..don't be a selfish bitch," she snapped before slamming the bottle with a clank on the table and leaving the kitchen.

Mathew curled to his side and cried which he hadn't done in a long time before he got up, wetted paper towels and washed his face then his hair in the sink. He then curled up into his bed still sticky and after a long time fell asleep.

Author's Note:

Full Summary: Arthur is prince and is in line to become the next king but he runs away. He runs away from it all and runs into Mathew. The two of them start an unlikely friendship both unaware of each other's problems.

Can Arthur save Mathew without even knowing the boys problems? Can Mathew open up to Arthur and find happiness despite his tragic past?

I DO NOT OWN HETALIA CHARACTERS THOUGH I WISH I DID. Please be patient with me as this is my first fan fiction. I have all of the first part done but I will try to spread when I post the chapters out a bit. Constructive criticism is always welcome as well as reviews. It will encourage me to post more as I already have a majority of the story written^^. This is just part one and is centered on Mathew and Arthur's relationship. It's necessary for the later part of the story where the action really kicks in.