They were sitting on the docks.
The ships floated at their posts, tethered safely to the shore where they would be found in the morning by early bird sailors. The final hustle and bustle of the day was petering out into near silence as two boys sat together in an amiably silence on the wet, yet sturdy wood of the dock. Art supplies were spread out around them; honey jars filled with paint and overused brushes were sprawled about, while their bags lie forgotten behind them.
Alfred fiddled with the camera he held in his hands, bare feet kicking back and forth over the water. He clicked through picture after picture, mentally critiquing his own work with a rare, neutral expression on his face. If his companion had any issues with the silence, he did not voice them, and continued quietly with his homework.
Arthur painted the sunset with the faintest of smiles on his face, one hand holding the canvas on his lap as the other reached out for the paint. By this point, he had quit using his brushes, and had happily begun finger painting the piece; a habit that Alfred had poked fun at many times before.
As soon as Al finished rummaging through his pictures, he looked over to the older teen beside him and just watched for a while. Arthur's eyes were glued to the horizon; the tang of orange, mixing with the subtlest hints of blues and pinks had the Brit captivated. Alfred was captivated as well, but with a different sort of natural beauty. Blue eyes followed Arthur's fingers as they were dipped into the paint with practiced ease; a brilliant sort of grace about them as they danced about the canvas, adding details wherever Arthur saw fit. The older blonde's hands and clothes were a mess with paint; blues and pinks and purples, the orange, red and yellow of the sun having found their place on his rolled up jeans. Arthur didn't notice the stains yet, didn't notice Al's gaze until the younger teen made his presence perfectly clear.
"Hey, Arthur..."Al began, caught somewhere between being jealous of the sun's hold on Arthur, or being just plain mesmerized, as if they hadn't known each other for years and he'd only just discovered him. Arthur broke eye contact with the setting sun, finally looking at Alfred for the first time in several minutes.
Green met blue.
Alfred's breath caught in his lungs.
"Yes, Alfred?"Arthur asked with a smile. His answer was a sudden kiss; soft but long, with Alfred leaning close enough to almost knock over a jar of paint. After Al pulled away, the American rested his head on Arthur's shoulder and just smiled.
Arthur was left in a dazed silence, his face just as red as the sunset.