Disclaimer: I do NOT own Hetalia or the picture! All credits go to Hidekaz Himuruya and the artist!

The fic will be based on the cover photo, which is drawn by 図 (Pixiv ID: 39421102)

Since this will not be a oneshot, I won't be writing that scene yet XD Hope you enjoy reading this fic~! ^^

"Hey Arthur... What do you live for? Me? I live for you... If you're not with me, then there really isn't any point in living, is there?"

xXoOoXx

"Mornin' dudes!" Alfred grinned, his signature smile taking effect almost immediately. The girls swooned and the boys' eyes shone, eager to talk to him about the latest games. He grabbed his chair, plopped into it and started interacting with his classmates before the first lesson began.

No one could resist the natural charm that Alfred had and in one way or another, both genders would feel equally attracted to him without Alfred having to do anything out of his way to make them like him. Being an all-rounder in both academics and sports, who could hate him? Well, maybe except a certain council president. However, truth be told, Alfred didn't care about popularity at all. He just attended school for the sake of getting his grades, going to the top university and perhaps then, he would finally get what he wanted most - freedom.

When asking his acquaintances about their first impression of Alfred, majority will reply that they thought he was bright, optimistic and fun. However, little did they know that beneath his upbeat appearance, Alfred was wearing a mask. His smile, his cheerful attitude, everything about him was a facade. He hated his life, hated what he was going through, hated his classmates with perfect families. He couldn't stand it, but he decided to bear with it. After all, what's the point of complaining when no one actually cared? He managed to convince himself to stay optimistic and smile his way through the life that he despised so much.

"-Fred? Hey, Alfred!"

"H-huh? Were you saying something?" Alfred jumped a little at the sudden call of his name, his train of thoughts brought to a sudden halt.

"Yeah! I was asking you whether you wanted to join us at the arcade after school?"

"Nah, dude. I've got a PTC this afternoon. Maybe some other time?"

"Aw man, that sucks. Those conferences are such a bore. There's totally no point to it. Oh well, let us know when you're free, yeah?"

"Sure!" Alfred nodded, even though he knew it was going to be quite some time before he could have any chance of going to the arcade again.

A series of bell rings echoed throughout the school, disrupting the conversations that Alfred was having with his classmates and signalling the start of the first class. Everyone scrambled back to their seats and waited patiently for the teacher. A few seconds passed in silence as the sound of footsteps belonging to a certain middle-aged bald English teacher were heard. The door was opened with a loud thud and the class reacted in unison, standing up and greeting the teacher, just like robots that were programmed to complete similar tasks. Alfred always laughed quietly to himself when he thought about how ironic it was for his classmates to be so attentive in class but extremely rowdy when there were no lessons. They were nice, but he decided that he wouldn't confide his secrets to any of them. After all, trust between people could be easily broken and Alfred had learnt that from his own experience.

xXoOoXx

The day passed like every other school day. Nothing exceptional happened, but Alfred knew that the peace and quiet would not last long. He looked at the clock and it showed the time to be "3.48 P.M". He decided to make his way to his destination, a room specially reserved for PTCs to ensure a perfect environment – private and quiet, for the best communication. He quickened his pace, not wanting to be tardy because he knew for certain that his father would be turning up. Alfred wondered what punishment his father had planned for him this time, shuddering at the thought of it. His heart began to beat faster and his anxiety rose as the distance between him and his destination started to close.

The reason for these conferences that Alfred dreaded so much, were to let teachers communicate better with their students' parents in hopes of getting their parents' fullest support in their child's education. By having these conferences, parents would be able to know how well their child fares in their education and hopefully, encourage them in their endeavour in achieving the best.

To ordinary students, these conferences might have been beneficial to them. However, that was not the case for Alfred. They were torturous for him, always filled with despair. It was not the complaints from the teachers that Alfred dreaded. In fact, teachers hardly ever complained about Alfred. They showered him with endless of praises, words that Alfred could never care for since it never changed the fact that he was going to get punished by this father after every PTC. Yes, it was his father that he dreaded. His father expected the best of him, and he did not allow any room for mistakes. Every mistake that Alfred made led to a harsh punishment.

'The door of doom', which Alfred had dubbed a few seconds ago, was finally in sight. He proceeded to knock on the door politely and the merry voice of his homeroom teacher, Ms Hedervary, followed, giving him permission to enter the room. He was extremely nervous by the time he had gotten to his chair, and his legs gave way. Thank goodness for the chair, Alfred thought, but he knew that the fact that his butt almost came into contact with the floor should be the least of his worries. Ms Hedervary, a brunette in her twenties, was a newly recruited staff but she was, surprisingly, quick to sense the panic that Alfred was going through. She did not, like what most nosy teachers would do, question the source of his panic and instead, tried to calm him down by starting a small chat with him as they waited for his father to arrive.

Alfred found Ms Hedervary to be a pleasant woman. She was easy to talk to, and in that short moment, he was completely able to push his father out of his thoughts and relax. Sadly, good things never did last long. Whilst debating the best class for games (in which Alfred had argued for 'Gunslinger'), they were suddenly interrupted by a knock on the door. Alfred knew that beyond 'the door of doom', his father stood there. The door opened and Alfred's heart sank.

"Pleased to meet you, Mr Jones!" Alfred's teacher greeted with her ever cheerful voice as she stood up and shook his father's hand.

"... Likewise", his father muttered out a barely audible reply as he took a seat across his teacher. Starting to feel nervous again, Alfred began to fiddle with his tie, only to receive a glare from his father.

"Oh my, Alfred! You never told me you were the son of THE renowned Mr Jones!" Mrs Hedervary said excitedly and Alfred could see her eyes shining.

Alfred let out a small, meek laugh. If it was possible, Alfred would never want anyone to find out that he was the heir of the Jones Corporation, one of the largest business companies in the world. The Jones Corporation owned countless chains of businesses, ranging from top hotels to classy restaurants. Not only that, they owned most of the best stadiums and gyms in the country that provided a large variety of equipment for sportsmen to hone their skills. The pressure that Alfred faced as its heir was voluminous. It was his biggest secret, and he wanted as little people as possible to know his true identity. People liked him for who he was now, but he knew that if his secret was to leak out, girls would be lunging at him and boys would start fake friendships with him, all in attempt to get close to the large pool of money that he possessed.

"Putting that aside, Mr Jones, you do know why you're here, right?" Mrs Hedervary's excited tone was replaced with a serious one. Alfred was slightly startled. When people found out he was the heir to such a well-known company, they would usually chatter about it for ages. Mrs Hedervary was... Different. But he was glad that she was. Alfred decided, at that point of time, she was his new favorite teacher. His father and teacher began a discussion on Alfred's results from the latest mock exams. It was spectacular as always, Mrs Hedervary had commented, but he knew his father was displeased. Alfred's scores were in the 90s and he had missed obtaining full marks. Again.

"Now, Mr Jones, I must admit that Alfred is the most remarkable student I've ever taught! If he keeps going on like this, it's no doubt that it'll be a breeze for him to enter any university that he desires to go!" Mrs Hedervary continued to praise him for his laudable efforts and attitude towards his education. Alfred had a feeling that she was praising him more than she should because she had detected that he was in trouble. Alfred darted a glance at his father and saw that he was keeping a calm composure, showing no sign of annoyance and was clearly unimpressed.

"Well, Mr Jones, do you have any other queries about your son's education?" Ms Hedervary asked after a short discussion about Alfred.

"No..." His father shook his head slowly, "In that case, we'll make a move first." His father stood up and shook Mrs Hedervary's hand again before leaving the room, not glancing back at Alfred even once. Alfred, on instinct, hopped out of his seat and gave a small smile of appreciation to Mrs Hedervary before leaving the room as well.
Alfred felt his energy sap from him little by little. He tried quickening his pace to match with his father's strides. Some part of him knew that his father had informed the chauffeur to pick them up, but Alfred was absent-mindedly following his father out of the school. He was filled with dread and he could feel blood draining from his face with every step that he took. His face was contorted into a mix of fear and panic as he recalled the past 'punishments' that his father had elaborately planned for him.

What exactly is he going to suffer from this time...? Alfred thought as the exit of the school came into sight.

A/N Hey guys! It's been some time since I've written a fic so do forgive me if I make any grammar mistakes etc XD Also, I assure you that Alfred is one of my favorite characters and I am not making him "suffer" intentionally ^^" I'll try to make up the darkness with USUK fluff~! :)

Also, in case you're wondering, PTC stands for Parent-Teacher Conferences. It's what my country calls it XD It's been years since I've been to one (I'm such a good student LOL naahh XD) but hopefully it still sounds like a typical PTC~!

Hope you enjoyed this fic! Reviews would be lovely~ ^^

Special thanks to SiriuslyScarredforLife and the people from the FB USUK page for encouraging me to write this fic! You guys really motivated me to pick up writing again! ^^