AN: So this is my new story, it's a sequel to "In the Company of Players." This story will follow the boys during their first (freshman) year of university and the trials and challenges that they come across while navigating college life. I'm going to be introducing some new faces and bringing back some old ones.
As always I only own the story.
Chapter One: Hello, Young Lovers
"Hello young lovers, whoever you are. I hope your troubles are few."
-Anna (The King and I)
A light rain had started when Arthur Kirkland pulled up to the residence hall where he would be spending the next year of his life. It seemed apropos really. Rain on the day he was moving in. All his boxes would get soaked. He had insisted on moving himself and was unaccompanied as he exited his car and glanced up at the brick façade of the dorm. Other students rushed around him, pulling umbrellas out and cursing the rain as they made their way to their destinations.
Arthur simply stood in the light drizzle and allowed the rain to wash over his face, his eyes tilted up toward the sky. Autumn rain was the best feeling in the world to the English teenager. It reminded him of home. Although now this place, this dorm room, would be his home. He took a deep breath, slightly nervous now that he was actually at the university campus. Who knew what the coming year would bring?
At least he had one small spot of comfort; he would be attending the prestigious World University with a few of his friends from high school. Thank god for small comforts. Opening the boot of his compact used car, Arthur grabbed the first box he came into contact with. Of course it was a box full of books. He couldn't bear to be without his favourites for such a long period of time and the English boy was surprised at how many he had actually packed.
Hefting the large package with one arm, he shut the boot and began to make his way through the rain into the freshman dorm, Ralston Hall. In the lobby he was greeted by a few upperclassmen who directed him to the correct floor and he entered the creaky elevator, pressing the number four with his spare hand. The lift ride seemed to take forever, as Arthur was anxious to get to his room.
Arthur stood outside of the door to his new accommodations, hefting the large box full of books under his arm. The box was heavy and the English teenager could feel his grasp slipping as he hefted the bulky package to his other arm. Reaching for the door handle, he was surprised when it slipped out of his grip and flew open revealing a smiling face. A jolt went through his body as his eyes met those of Alfred F. Jones. His new roommate; and his boyfriend.
"Artie!" Alfred cried. "You made it!" Enveloping Arthur in a tight hug, the American boy squeezed snugly as though they hadn't seen each other in years instead of a few days. "I've missed you so much!"
Arthur felt his grip on the box of books beginning to fade and he pried himself loose from Alfred's embrace to gather the box thoroughly into his arms. "Yes, I'm here." The English boy sounded resolved and tired. "Sorry I couldn't come any sooner. Is your family still here?"
"Nah, mom and dad left a few hours ago. I've just been unpacking." Alfred gestured around the small room he was standing in.
Stepping through the door, Arthur took in all of the superhero posters and video games piled on one of the beds with a frustrated glance. "It seems as though you brought your entire room with you love," Arthur chastised as he looked around the small space, filled to the brim with Alfred's belongings.
Alfred let out a loud laugh and pulled Arthur further into the room. "Like you didn't bring six boxes of books with you. You know they have a library here."
Placing the large box on the empty desk on his side of the room, Arthur turned and faced Alfred directly. "I didn't bring six boxes of books," he insisted. "Only three."
"That's three too many," Alfred teased.
"That's quite enough out of you," Arthur crossed his arms over his chest and glared at the taller boy. "Come over here and greet me proper."
Alfred's face split into a grin as he sauntered across the room towards his boyfriend. Uncaring of the open door, he pulled Arthur into his arms, sliding his hands down to rest on the English boy's hips. Pressing his lips gently against the green-eyed Englishman, Alfred hummed at the contact. They pulled apart after only a moment, their foreheads resting against one another.
"I'm glad you're here," Alfred whispered.
"Me too," Arthur replied huskily.
"What's going on in here, hmm?" a loud voice came from the open doorway. The boys turned in their embrace to see their friend Gilbert leaning against the doorframe nonchalantly. The albino German teenager had tousled hair and was sporting a thin sheen of sweat on his brow. "Naughty, naughty," the German scolded playfully.
"We weren't doing anything Gil," Alfred protested at his basketball teammate. "At least not anything as bad as what you and Matt were up to earlier."
"Hey," Gilbert pointed a finger. "If I wanna sex up my new roomie then that's exactly what I'm gonna do."
"Gross," Alfred said, stepping back from Arthur's warm body. "That's my brother."
Gilbert smirked. "Well now that Pretty Pretty Princess has arrived," he said, referencing Arthur in his usual way. "We're all here! Reunion!"
"Not right now I'm afraid," Arthur cut in. "I still have to unload my car."
"I'll help you Artie," Alfred piped up.
"Me too," Gilbert offered graciously.
"Really?" Arthur raised an eyebrow in suspicion. "What's the catch Beilschmidt?"
Gilbert laughed. "No catch," he said. "I've been helping Birdie move all day, may as well help a friend in need as well."
"Your help is appreciated," Arthur acquiesced.
They made quick work of the English boy's suitcases and boxes. Within a half an hour, the two basketball players had emptied out Arthur's car and dragged all of the Brit's possessions up to his and Alfred's shared room. Dumping the last load onto the bed, Gilbert turned and grinned at his friends. "I should go see what Mattie is up to," he announced. "Do you guys wanna join us later at the Activity Fair?"
"What's an Activity Fair?" Alfred asked, cocking his head to the side.
"It's a bunch of booths set up for clubs and shit at the school," Gilbert explained.
"The university encourages us to have different pursuits other than our major," Arthur added. "My brothers said that when they attended World U that it was mandatory to be involved in at least one club."
Alfred groaned. "Just like last year," he huffed. "How are we going to have time for clubs when we have basketball practice every night?" He asked Gilbert.
The albino boy simply shrugged his shoulders and said, "I'm not worried about it."
A sharp knock sounded on the doorframe and the three boys all turned to look at the intruder. A large, imposing blonde stood in the hallway, looking in at them. He shuffled anxiously from foot to foot for a moment before he cleared his throat and spoke. "Excuse me, Gilbert," the blonde said in a gruff voice. "It seems as though our suitcases were mixed up and I have no desire to wear your sweaty gym clothes."
"Sorry bro," Gilbert waved a hand at the newcomer. "I'll swing by your room and we can switch bags. Guys," he addressed Alfred and Arthur, "This is my little brother Ludwig."
Ludwig raised a hand in welcome, but his face remained stern and uncompromising. "He skipped ahead and tested out of high school early so he'll be joining us at school this year."
Arthur nodded in recognition. He knew this boy looked familiar. He had seen him around their high school library when he worked there in the past. Ludwig was always a serious, studious boy and it was no surprise to Arthur that he received top marks. "Congratulations," the English boy offered.
"Ha!" Alfred laughed. "Your little brother's smarter than you," he pointed a finger at Gilbert and chuckled.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Gilbert mumbled. "So, Activities Fair? You can come too Ludwig."
"Thank you," the blonde said stiffly.
"Yeah, we'll meet you there in an hour or so," Alfred said, beginning to push Gilbert out of the room. "Artie and I have some catching up to do."
The Activities Fair was held on the main quad of the university campus. Nearly every extracurricular club and group had a booth set up for new students to come and explore. Alfred and Arthur walked hand in hand down the main sidewalk, the sun brightly shining after the earlier rainstorm. They kept sneaking sly glances at one another, each boy remembering their heated reunion in their shared dorm room earlier.
Spotting Gilbert and Matthew waiting under a tree with Ludwig, Alfred called out a greeting and began to drag Arthur over to their friends. Ludwig stood slightly off to the side of his brother and Matthew, as though the public displays of affection from the couple were physically paining him. Each nip and kiss that Gilbert left on Matthew's cheek caused his younger brother to blush and shuffle away from them.
"Hey guys," Alfred greeted, his naturally sunny disposition buoyed by the fact that he had just gotten laid.
"Hi Al, Arthur," Matthew nodded at each boy in turn. "It's been a few days."
"Too many days," Arthur agreed. He hadn't seen the Jones/Williams brothers in almost a week before they arrived at school. He had no idea how difficult it would be to be away from Alfred for such a long period of time. The normally grumpy Englishman had found out rather quickly that in the absence of his boyfriend he was much worse than usual. Even his brothers steered clear of his famous Kirkland temper when he was going through Alfred withdrawls.
"Have you seen Elizabeta or Natalia lately?" Matthew asked.
Arthur nodded. "I've seen Elizabeta. She moved onto campus a few days ago, she seems to really like her new roommate. They're practically inseparable. But I haven't seen Natalia for a while. She is starting her senior year now, so I'm sure she's very busy."
Matthew nodded sagely. "I'm sure you're right. It's funny how so many of us ended up here at World U."
"Not so much when you think about it," Ludwig grumbled from behind them. "This is our academy's sister school. They feed us directly into the programs here. It's almost expected to attend World Univeristy after going to World Academy."
"Really?" Matthew said, surprised that the German boy had spoken so much.
"Enough unawesome talk about high school," Gilbert addressed the group. "What do you want to check out first?" He wiggled his eyebrows at Matthew.
"The culture clubs look interesting," Ludwig spoke up.
"The culture clubs look boring," Gilbert shot back at his brother. "Just like you."
Ludwig muttered something unintelligible under his breath, but remained silent. He simply took another step away from his brother and Matthew and hovered near the ends of their little group.
"What about the cooking club?" Matthew suggested, pointing at a brightly coloured booth nearby. "They make food from all around the world and taste test it during theme nights. It's like the Gastronauts, but more exclusive."
"I would be interested in a cooking club," Arthur admitted.
"Oh, no you don't," Alfred slung his arm around the Brit's shoulders. "No way are you joining the cooking club. You'll decimate them."
The one and only time that summer that Arthur had attempted to cook for Alfred was a moment that both boys wished they could forget. Arthur had wanted to surprise his boyfriend with a lovingly cooked meal for Alfred's birthday. The poor American had ended up spending his big day in the hospital with a wicked case of food poisoning. Arthur still adamantly insisted that it wasn't his fault, but Alfred wasn't so sure—he usually had an iron stomach. The result was Arthur promising to never set foot in the kitchen again, a promise that he had trouble keeping since he dearly loved to cook. He just wasn't very good at it.
"No cooking club then," Matthew looked a bit dejected.
"Come on," Gilbert tugged on Matthew's hand. "Let's just wander around and see what we see. How's that sound?"
"Fine by me," Alfred concurred.
The rest of the group simply nodded in consent and the odd crowd took off to wander the Activities Fair, with the couples holding hands and Ludwig trailing behind them.
The first stop was at a booth that boasted a huge dragon logo and was for a card game playing group that both Alfred and Matthew seemed to get excited about. Then they wandered down Greek row and looked at all of the fraternities that were vying for attention. Gilbert paid some mind to them, saying that his grandfather would be proud if he went Greek, but ended up walking away after a derisive snort from Ludwig.
The Art Club's booth was filled with posters of famous paintings and was manned by a small brunette who waved cheerfully at them from his perch. "Come look at the pretty paintings," he called in a lilting Italian dialect, causing the boys to all turn and look. Making their way over, Alfred and Arthur greeted the shorter boy who introduced himself as Feliciano.
"I'm actually a freshman," he admitted. "My older brother was supposed to run this booth but he got sick so I took over. Too much wine. I can tell you anything you want to know about the art club though. We paint a lot and sometimes get drunk. It's fun!"
"That sounds fun," Alfred agreed.
"It sounds messy," Arthur pointed out.
Feliciano looked shyly at the ground for a moment before whispering to Alfred, "Who is your friend?"
Both Alfred and Arthur looked around for a moment before they realized that the boy was asking about Ludwig.
"That's my buddy's brother," Alfred jerked a finger over toward Gilbert who was running his hands up and down Matthew's body. "His name is Ludwig. Hey, Lud! Come over here," Alfred called over to the imposing German and waved his hand. "This little guy wants to meet you."
Ludwig rolled his eyes and stomped toward them, glad to have an excuse to walk away from his brother and his inappropriate displays of affection. "Hello," he said with precision.
"Hello," Feliciano closed his eyes for a moment as he smiled. "My name is Feliciano, but you can call me Feli if you want. It's so nice to meet you Luddy. You should join the art club, we have so much fun and I think you'll really like it!"
"I'm not very artistic," the tall blonde ground out. He seemed taken aback at the short Italian boy's non-stop chatter.
"Nonsense," Feliciano shook his head. "Everyone has some art in them. You just have to figure out what yours is."
Ludwig simply nodded and walked away. Alfred leaned in towards Feliciano and apologized. "Sorry, he's a little…weird."
"I like him," Feliciano stated. "He seems so nice."
'Nice' wasn't a word that popped into Alfred's head when it came to Ludwig, but to each their own. Maybe Feliciano saw something beneath the gruff exterior of the younger German teen. "Well, it was nice to meet you," Alfred waved.
"Wait," Feliciano started as though he had just realized something important. "You're Arthur Kirkland aren't you?"
"Why yes," Arthur blushed lightly. "Yes I am."
"I've seen some of your shows, they're wonderful! You're so talented," Feliciano gushed. "You should go check out the Drama Club's booth. They would love to have you."
"There's a Drama Club here?" Arthur quirked an eyebrow.
"Yes," Feliciano said. "It's different from the theatre department but most of the members are theatre majors. They discuss and read plays and sometimes they even take trips to New York City to see Broadway shows."
"That sounds pleasurable," Arthur smiled.
"Ah, Artie," Alfred groaned. "More drama stuff?"
"You'll have to get used to it," Arthur shook his head. "I am a theatre major, after all."
"Me too!" piped up Feliciano.
"Really?" Arthur seemed surprised. He had never seen this boy around at the academy before, but that didn't necessarily mean anything. He could have went to another school. "You're a theatre major? Acting?"
"No silly," Feliciano smiled brightly. "Set design. I'm a painter."
The boys bade farewell to Feliciano who called after them to have a good day and returned to Matthew, Gilbert and Ludwig who were all bouncing on their heels impatiently. "What was that all about?" Gilbert asked.
"We found out that there is a drama club," Arthur smiled. "I think I'm going to join."
"I thought you said our clubs had to be outside of our major," Alfred pointed out.
Arthur shook his head. "They should be, but you can join more than one club. I'm sure I'll find something else that I like as well. Have you noticed anything that caught your fancy yet love?"
"There's a weight lifting club," Alfred nodded his head in the direction of the sports booths. "I could get behind that."
"Me too," Gilbert supported. The two jocks high-fived each other and snickered as Matthew and Arthur lovingly rolled their eyes.
"Onwards my friends," Gilbert shouted, flinging his fist into the air.
The two couples and Ludwig trailed around the Activities Fair for a few hours before they finally came across the booth for the drama club. It was tucked away in a corner by a large tree as though the members really didn't want to be found. Which was true, in a way. There were several upperclassmen manning the booth and they didn't wave or acknowledge the group as they approached.
"Hello," Arthur said, sticking out his hand toward the nearest student. "I'm Arthur Kirkland and I am interested in joining your club."
"We only accept theatre majors," the older student drawled.
"Well, that's a good thing," Alfred stepped up, "Because Arthur is a theatre major."
The theatre students looked a bit interested as they began to file closer to the Brit, circling him. "Arthur Kirkland, huh?" one of the girls said in a sneer. "I thought you'd be taller."
"Lots of good actors are on the short side," Arthur huffed.
"True," the girl said, although her eyes remained hard. "Let's see what the president thinks of letting you join."
"Who's the president?" Arthur asked, his voice sounding small in his own head.
Pointing a finger behind her, the girl gestured toward a tall boy with dark skin, black hair and chocolatey brown eyes. "He's only a sophomore but he's really brought this group to a new level." She praised.
Arthur's breath caught as he took in the tall boy before him. The young man seemed to notice the scrutiny and looked up, his eyes meeting directly with Arthur. A huge grin split the other boy's face as he pulled away from the book he was perusing and made his way over to Arthur's side.
"Rodrigo," Arthur said in surprise. His breath betraying him as his voice hitched up. It was embarrassing to say the least.
"Arthur," the smooth voice answered back in a lilting Portuguese accent. "It's good to see you again darling."
"What are you doing here?" the English teen asked breathlessly.
Rodrigo smiled, his brown eyes sparkling. "I attend World U," he spoke easily. "I got a scholarship offer last year and have been in the states ever since."
"You're a student here?" Arthur said, noticing Alfred looking at him quizzically.
"Si," Rodrigo took Arthur's palm in his and pressed a light kiss to the back of the English boy's hand. "President of the drama club and one of the best theatre majors that this school has ever seen darling."
"Hey," Alfred pushed himself over and snatched Arthur's hand away from the smarmy Portuguese student. "Hands off."
"I'm sorry," Rodrigo looked coldly at Alfred. "Who are you?"
"I'm Arthur's boyfriend," Alfred emphasized the word as he growled out his response.
Shaking his head, Rodrigo turned his attention back to Arthur. "My, my, you actually have a boyfriend? I thought you never wanted to be tied down?"
"I'm not tied down with Alfred," Arthur said, lifting his chin defiantly. "We love each other."
"Love," the Portuguese boy sneered. "That's not an emotion suited to you darling."
Arthur didn't respond, he simply stared back at the ghost from his past and tried not to blink too much. This was a terrible situation! How in the world was Rodrigo here? At World University? He had made such a point of saying he would never study in the states again and yet here he was, running the drama club and entwining his way into Arthur's life once again. He had to get out of here. Turning on his heels, Arthur grabbed Alfred's hand and stalked away, ignoring the mummers of the other theatre students as he left.
"It's always a pleasure to see you darling," Rodrigo called toward Arthur's retreating back. "See you soon."
Once they were safely away from the spectacle, Arthur stopped walking and dropped Alfred's hand as though it burned him. He could feel his face heating up with a blush that was more rage than embarrassment.
"Who the hell was that guy?" Alfred asked, rubbing his hand where Arthur had gripped it.
"That was Rodrigo," Arthur managed after a few moments.
"Yeah," Alfred nodded. "I gathered that. Why was he so familiar with you?"
"Because," Arthur dropped his eyes to his feet, ashamed. "Because he's the boy I lost my virginity to."
AN: It will be easy to guess what musicals these Chapter Titles come from because the quotes will be from the song.
Rodrigo is Portugal and yes, he will be causing trouble in the future for our boys. Watch out Arthur! If you've read "In the Company of Players," Arthur mentions that he lost his virginity to an exchange student from Portugal and Alfred responds with "That smarmy guy who called everyone darling?"
Fun Fact: Ralston Hall was my freshman dorm.
And yes, this story will have some Gerita in it as well. Feliciano and Ludwig are two of the new faces to our little band of players.