APH's not mine.
Hello! This is another break-up fic I've been itching to do since forever. Please forgive me for inaccuracies.
And I would like to thank thenamesiggykirkland and briaranise for being awesome betas!
Well, if it wasn't a wonderful day to be alive and in love, Alfred mused as he sat up on his bed, the alarm clock blaring at him to wake up. But he wasn't annoyed with the clock. He even smiled goofily at it, silencing the device. He stood up and stretched his arms, loving how they popped and generally made him feel all the more better.
Because today was the three hundredth day of his relationship with Arthur Kirkland.
Arthur Kirkland was Alfred's boyfriend for ten months already – and they'd been friends for three years before that, and they'd known each other for a longer period of time. Years before, their common friends had joked that they would surely end up together, judging by how close the two always were, and how, despite the blatant affections of girls from both high school and university, Alfred never seemed to get a girlfriend for his own. People already accepted the fact that Arthur Kirkland would never get a girl himself – he was just as picky, if not more so, than the girls in their place, and was too busy with his schoolwork and academic life to actually settle in a relationship.
So somehow, it both came as a surprise, and not really a surprise, when Alfred announced to their friends that he and Arthur were together, as in, dating 'together', ten months ago. Half of them said that they saw it coming, and half of them were shocked that Arthur actually said yes to Alfred. But then they later understood that no one could really say no to Alfred's persistence – especially if he used his infamous puppy eyes, which they had assumed Arthur was immune to. As it turned out, he wasn't.
Even if their relationship wasn't perfect like they were in the movies, Alfred was still happy with Arthur. Even if the man was busy with his work, and Alfred had projects and paperworks to finish before the graduation, and even if there were times when they would argue over stupid things like Arthur not paying enough attention to Alfred, or Alfred being such an affection-starved puppy, they always made up in the end. With awesome dates and fun 'activities' in bed.
Arthur was two years older than Alfred, so obviously he was, in a way, busy with his old-people world, copy-editing works in the publication company he was working on. Alfred, on the other hand, was still in the last year of his university, majoring in both Physics and Mathematics, probably one of the subjects that Alfred could excel. Because his English and Geography and History were crap.
But it was a much known fact that Alfred was in love with Arthur. He was so in love with him that he was very cheesy and, to an outsider's point of view, it was almost unbearable. At heart, he was a cliché, movie-abiding romantic, so of course, the first thing he did that morning was to call Arthur to greet him a "Happy Tenth Monthiversary, Darling", with his low bedroom voice, only to receive a groan from the other line, indicating that he just woke Arthur up. Which wasn't a very good sign. Arthur without tea was scary, and it was Alfred F. Jones saying it. So he just said, "Sorry darling! I'll just call you later and give you the biggest kiss from your most awesome boyfriend!" and promptly hung up. He didn't want Arthur to be grumpy and annoyed with him on their tenth monthiversary, so he would do his best to be the most loving and accommodating boyfriend, hoping they could be together later that night for some quiet dinner and cuddling in the couch. Or a wild night in bed. Whatever his mood and libido wanted.
But the day passed on and Arthur never called him to greet him back. He checked his phone every now and then, hoping to at least hear from his boyfriend what he was up to. But maybe he was busy with work. For the past few weeks, Arthur had been busy with work – always swamped with late-night paperworks, and last-minute editing, that he often told Alfred that he couldn't come to their dates because his boss would kill him if he couldn't finish his work on time. Man, his boss surely was a slavedriver, Alfred thought sulkily. He couldn't blame Arthur for that though. He was fairly new there, still under probationary, so all the dirty works would be passed to him. But maybe, Alfred perked up optimistically, once he was a regular in that publishing company, he would surely have more time for him! He couldn't wait until then!
With only a message of "Happy monthiversary too, Alfred", the said man exited the grand university gates and bought a bouquet of flowers, making sure there were red roses somewhere in the bundle, and proceeded to the place where Arthur was working. Arthur had pointed it out one day when they were walking along the street, but it was the first time that Alfred would be waiting for Arthur after work. It seemed the most romantic and heroic thing to do, he told himself.
He debated on whether to wait at the lobby of the grand building, or to wait outside the glass doors. In the end, he thought that Arthur's surprised expression was more worth it if he saw him outside of his workplace, instead at the lobby. So like the love-sick puppy that he was, he waited for him.
People filtered in and out of the door, but no Arthur came out. He had been waiting there for an hour already, and the by-passers were looking at him because he was a tall, handsome dude bringing a bouquet of flowers. Ladies sighed but went their way, knowing that it was meant for whoever the lucky girl was. Too bad it was for a lucky guy. He was itching to grab his phone and call the old man, but that would ruin the surprise – Arthur got suspicious a lot, thus thwarting all of Alfred's surprises for the last few months. But the hero wasn't all deterred by such trivial things, because in the end, Arthur would always smile and laugh and kiss him, and every sacrifice he did was worth it.
So when two hours had passed, and his bouquet looked like it was going to wilt, Alfred gave in and dialed Arthur's number, pressing the phone against his ear and cheek. At the first round of ringing, Arthur didn't answer. So Alfred called him again. And this time, his boyfriend answered, although in a bit of an annoyed tone. "What is it, Alfred? I'm in the middle of a business dinner right now."
The stab of hurt that pierced his chest didn't show in Alfred's voice, or even in his face. He was still cheerful as he greeted his boyfriend again. "Hi Artie! Sorry, I didn't know you're having dinner today. So it means we can't see each other tonight, right?" He didn't remind Arthur that it was their tenth monthiversary – his cute boyfriend had a tendency to be a scatterbrain, so he obviously had forgotten about it. And besides, Alfred didn't tell him beforehand that he had plans for tonight, so it was kind of his fault anyway.
"I'm really busy with work, and for the next few days also – so it's better, I guess, if you find yourself something to enjoy while I can't be there to entertain you," Arthur said stiffly, and Alfred only muttered an "Okay" before the line was cut off. He stood there numbly for a moment, his mind still processing what the heck just happened, and maybe trying to rationalize the stinging he was still feeling in his chest. Arthur was always a bit cold, even if they were dating together for months already, so Alfred should be used to this, right?
He stared at the bouquet in his arms, finding them a bit useless, now that Arthur was busy tonight. So he just decided to go to Arthur's apartment and place the bouquet at his doorstep, and as cheesy as it sounded, it was the only thing he could do. He just couldn't throw away the bouquet. It would be a waste if he did so.
Alfred didn't sleep well that night. He didn't understand why – he drank his bedtime milk and read his Physics book so he could fall asleep faster, but he still woke up in the middle of the night, feeling bothered and lacking. He tossed and turned and forced himself to fall asleep, which he managed by the time the clock reflected three forty-five AM in its face. He woke up at six in the morning later, feeling utterly crap.
Good thing he was genuinely a morning person, or else he would have ditched university and go back to sleep. Which was the good choice, because when he arrived at his classroom, his Physics professor motioned for him to come to his table, and when Alfred did, the wrinkly professor told him that he had great news for him in the faculty later.
And Alfred wondered why the professor told him that so early in the morning. Now he couldn't keep his thoughts away from the good news, and Arthur. He texted him a good morning, and since it was the norm lately, he didn't get a reply from him. Shrugging, he focused back on the lectures, and when he had free time later that afternoon, he went to the faculty and was ushered to sit in front of his professor's table.
"Alfred, I am very much aware of how excellent you are in your majors, both in Physics and in Mathematics," his professor began, and Alfred found himself nodding along. He knew he got great marks in all his major subjects, but he wasn't aware that his efforts were actually acknowledged by his professor.
"And among the students here in your class, I think you have the brightest future, so I'm going to tell you that you are the one chosen for the Master's Degree scholarship in Harvard University. Isn't that great, Alfred Jones?" the professor looked at him expectantly, and Alfred was both happy for the news and worried what it might mean for his future – in particular, his future with Arthur.
"Thanks for choosing me, Prof! I'm honored to be the one you think is worth it for the scholarship!" Alfred admitted, still in a state of disbelief over such wonderful news. Man, he was acknowledged by his professor! And even got the scholarship! It was a great opportunity, but…
"But I want to consult first my family about it, okay? Can you give me time until I can give my final decision?" Alfred asked.
He was glad when the professor just nodded and said, "I understand, boy, it's alright. Just come to me before the end of the fortnight, or I'll be giving it to the next person who's qualified. Graduation is just next month, and we need to send all your documents to Harvard. I hope you'll make the right choice." He smiled at him and Alfred was dismissed.
Alfred knew his family would support him without fail. They would even be proud of him once they heard the news. But… there was just one thing that was stopping Alfred from saying yes to the scholarship.
Arthur.
He had to see Arthur soon. He had to talk to him about it. He said he was busy, right? Could Arthur spare a moment for Alfred? He pulled out his phone and debated whether to call his boyfriend or not. It was still early, so Arthur would be working. Would he be too busy to pick up the phone?
In the end, Alfred called him, and Arthur answered after the third call. "This better be important," Alfred could almost see Arthur gritting his teeth in annoyance. Arthur sure loved his work a lot. Alfred wanted to feel pity for himself but he pushed the thought aside and cheerfully asked, "Darling! When are you free? I have something important to ask you," he inquired, and he hoped that Arthur would tell him that he was free that night. He actually missed his boyfriend so much. If Alfred was honest with himself, he had been missing Arthur and his presence for weeks already. He was so busy with work.
"Haven't I told you I'm busy for the next few days?" A sigh. "You're really not listening to whatever I say." A shuffling of papers was heard, and Arthur spoke again. "I'm free next Wednesday. You can go and spend your time with me, but not before then! I need to show to my boss that I'm more than capable. I don't want him to think I'm slacking after so recently having been hired." Arthur was touchy whenever his capabilities were questioned. He always wanted to be the best in whatever he did.
Alfred sighed dejectedly. "Okay. So where can I see you next Wednesday? Can I wait for you at your workplace?" he asked in a soft voice. The stinging in his chest was growing more and more noticeable each day.
"Of course not! What would my co-workers think? And what was that bouquet for in my doorstep last night?" Arthur hissed. He was more than annoyed at Alfred.
The blue-eyed man closed his eyes and sighed. "It was just a gift from me. You know, for our tenth monthiversary. At least you saw the bouquet, right?"
Arthur fell silent on the other line. And then Alfred heard a quiet, "Oh. Right. Our monthiversary." Alfred shook his head. Arthur really was a forgetful person, wasn't he?
Alfred chuckled in a depreciating manner, and said, "It's okay Art. I know you're busy. Just… let's see each other once in a while, okay? Next Wednesday, right? No other appointments on that day. Just reserve that day for me." He heard Arthur's soft "okay" and he ended the call.
No need to talk about idle things when his boyfriend was so busy with work.
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