Alfred liked to think he wasn't a bitter person. Around others he actually appeared to be pretty chill about his life.
But I guess that called for the most deep-rooted messes.
Heading back to bitterness, today was a day he felt he could be bitter.
Today he had accepted that his parents would always overshadow him, and possibly even his kids and his kids' kids.
His parents' new production they finished writing, according to the last article he had read, was already expected to be a major success.
A major success that didn't even have a cast yet. Bullshit.
Of course his parents were necessarily present for auditions, having written the play and all, but what was their fully independant son doing there?
Avoiding college.
Alfred had gotten into NYU to study filmmaking, a position wanted by young adults across the world, and though Alfred was honored and sure that going to NYU was something he wanted to do, he convinced the college to postpone his acceptance for a year to evidently "help out his parents with their play".
It was simple to realize he would rather be there than here, but perhaps a poor moment of doubt or the fear of accepting adulthood had caused him to pick up the phone and call the college a few weeks back.
On the bright side, it wasn't hard to convince them to let him take a gap year.
Now here Alfred was, sitting in a corner during auditions and watching people come and go. He recognized a few faces, but none of them he could put a name on. Auditions were actually far more boring than TV shows made them out to be, it was about one out of fifty people that were ever actually talented, and it annoyed Alfred endlessly. He mentally noted a couple that would be good, but knew it wouldn't make a difference to his parents if he liked someone or not.
"Al, you're only nineteen. We'll ask you when we want a younger take on the world," Was something his father liked to say when he offered his input.
If this play was as big of a success as everyone said it would be, Alfred felt he would respect that phrase a lot more.
Arthur Kirkland was the first person of the day Alfred recognized instantly, he knew enough about Broadway to realize who he was.
Actually, even people who didn't know much about Broadway were probably able to know his face, as he had recently starred in a musical's movie adaption.
Was it stereotypical for Alfred to think that the actor was more attractive in person? Arthur was definitely conventionally attractive, but Hollywood made him look less authentic. Standing up there he looked like a well dressed handsome person, definitely leaner, paler, and more freckly. His eyebrows were bigger than Alfred thought. How old was this guy anyways, twenty-one? Alfred felt a pang of jealousy at the success of someone only a couple years older than him.
Alfred shrunk in his seat, listening to his mother practically turn on her charm. "Hello, Mr. Kirkland! We're honored you came today,"
Arthur smiled slightly. "From what I've read in the script, I think this could be great." He was more British in person too, maybe it was the fact he had played an American in most of his roles, as he would in this role assuming he got the part, which was almost definite. Alfred could hear it in his mother's tone.
"Oh, we hope," Mary Jones continued. "Will you be auditioning for our male lead, Andrew?"
"Yes," Arthur's reply was quick, as if he wanted to reveal the least amount of information possible.
While his parents chatted amiably with Arthur Kirkland, Alfred frowned to himself, Arthur Kirkland was just making this show more real. Alfred suddenly thought of the fact he wasn't expected to stay here through the auditions, and promptly left while his parents were occupied.
In retrospect, that was probably an odd move, leaving so abruptly, but Alfred didn't regret it.
Once he was back at his apartment, his roommate scowled at him. "You left while the Arthur Kirkland was auditioning?" Matthew shook his head while he stirred whatever he was cooking, shooting Alfred a pitying look. "Tell me you told Dave and Mary,"
Matthew had been ecstatic when Alfred was accepted into NYU, he had already been in the business school for two years and offered Alfred a place in his apartment with fellow business students Gilbert Beilschmidt and Roderich Edelstein, along with Roderich's girlfriend, Liz. When Alfred broke the news to his cousin that he wouldn't be attending the school until the next year, Matthew still offered a place to live.
"I don't think my parents exactly wanted me interrupting their conversation with their production's future star," Alfred replied dryly, sitting in a bar stool to watch Matthew cook.
"When Liz gets home from her shift she's going to kill you, Al," Matthew glared at him over his glasses.
"Nah, she loves me too much," Alfred cracked a grin. "I've got 'connections'."
"Soon enough she'll realize that's not going to count for shit, and then she will most definitely kill you." Matthew countered. "It's not exactly like you can ask your parents to cast her in something,"
Liz was one out of the many aspiring Broadway stars in New York, she had come from a small town and had talent, but was easily lost in the crowds of the city. She worked at a place called the Stardust Diner as a waitress, where she got to sing and showcase her talent and maybe someday get "discovered", but everyone had a silent understanding of the fact she couldn't continue that forever, and that discovery wasn't going to happen any time soon.
Alfred decided not to comment on Matthew's assumption about his parents, as he was right per the usual. "Speaking of Liz, where are the roomies?" Alfred asked, and Matthew eyed him warily.
"They won't be home for a while," Matthew shrugged. "Class or studying or something."
"They didn't even bother to tell you where they went? You're a sad human being," Alfred remarked mockingly, it wasn't uncommon for Gilbert and Roderich to forget to tell Matthew things like this. "Is that why you decided to play housewife? No one here to make fun of you?"
Matthew shot him another glare, pushing his glasses up. "No spaghetti for you, then." He went back to cooking for a moment, suddenly whirling on Alfred and pointing an accusing finger at him. "You're trying to change the subject,"
Alfred rolled his eyes. "Look, Matt. I don't care that much about all this," He paused. "This play and shit."
"You care enough to take a gap year," Matthew's voice was a tad harsh, and Alfred frowned at him.
"Would you just shut up about the fucking gap year!" Alfred snapped, surprised at his own anger. The "gap year" was a recurring subject between the cousins and a tense one at that.
Matthew slammed down the spoon he was holding, a bit of food was splattered on the counter from it. "I'm just trying to understand, Al," He said quietly, Matthew liked to take his anger out on inanimate objects before full-out yelling at someone, his scolding was never very thorough. Matthew grabbed a paper towel and wiped at the bit of spaghetti sauce he had gotten on the counter.
"I'm just in a bad mood." Alfred sighed, taking off his glasses and rubbing a hand over his face.
"You've been in a bad mood since you arrived here. And by here I mean this city," Matthew's voice was soft, sympathetic. Alfred wanted to argue, he usually went out of his way to be a cheerful person, but Matthew knew that, he was smart enough to tell if it was genuine or not. Alfred's cousin was silent for a beat. "Hey, I don't care too much about the Arthur Kirkland thing, you'll probably be seeing a lot of him anyways if he's in your parents' show."
They hadn't exactly been talking about just the 'Arthur Kirkland' thing, but Alfred accepted the half-assed apology anyways.
"Hey, tell me if you want spaghetti!" Matthew's voice called after Alfred, who nodded and sat on the couch.
He watched the television until Gilbert came home, when he turned it down and called "Hey, Gil!" Gilbert hoisted himself over the back of the couch and landed next to Alfred. He ruffled the American's hair.
"Hey, bitch," He greeted, and Alfred shoved Gilbert towards the far end of the couch.
"Refrain from calling my cousin derogatory names!" Matthew shouted from the kitchen. Gilbert flipped him off without looking behind him and grabbed the remote from Alfred, turning up the volume of the television.
When Alfred had moved into the apartment he was expecting everyone to be a very tight-knit and friendly with each other, but it only took a step into the place to see that was not completely the case. Matthew had helped him bring his bags up, and they stopped in the doorway when they saw what was taking place inside the household. At that moment, Liz was yelling at Gilbert for pouring Gatorade on her work uniform and also attempting to ruin one of Roderich's school books. Roderich stood off to the side, frowning but clearly silently egging his girlfriend on.
Matthew had let out a long breath and shook his head. "Welcome home," He proclaimed, which Alfred soon noticed was something Matthew usually said if there was a fight taking place once he got home, it got Liz to shut up.
Liz had apologized profusely and voiced that she was not a serial killer or drug addict that first day, and Alfred was nearly immediately talking to her like they were old friends. Alfred still didn't really know Roderich aside from the fact he was into music, Phantom of the Opera (one of his and Alfred's few lasting conversations), Liz, and being stuffy. Everybody hated Gilbert some days, there were usually at least two roommates upset with him, namely being Roderich and Liz. Matthew once had told Alfred that they probably would've kicked him out of the apartment if it weren't for the fact they kind of needed his money. From what Alfred knew of Matthew's position in this dysfunctional family he was a sort of glue and voice of reason that kept the crew together.
Alfred was fond of them and the living space.
Everything about their apartment was very open concept. You could see the kitchen from the couch/television area, the rest of it was just hardwoods and space. There was a long hallway that branched off into four bedrooms and two bathrooms. The rent was kind of crazy (the roommates liked to sing about that due to a certain musical), but it wasn't as big of a monster to pay with five people pitching in, it wasn't like there was a view of Central Park or anything.
Gilbert snapped Alfred out of his thoughts with a "Matt, do you have food?".
"Yeah, I cooked. But get off your sorry ass if you want some." Matthew grumbled, and Alfred turned to find him standing behind the couch, bowl and fork in hand.
"Don't get spaghetti on the couch!" Alfred raised his eyebrows and waved Matthew away.
He swallowed a mouthful of meatball. "I hate you guys, I don't even get a thanks," Matthew muttered to himself as he wandered back over to the kitchen.
That seemed to be Liz's cue, as less than a second later she burst through their door, dragging Roderich behind her, who seemed to have picked her up from her shift at the Lounge.
"I smell spaghetti!" She sing-songed, setting her bag on the bar. "Hit me up, Matt. I've quite the appetite."
Liz spun around, her uniform was a tight black skirt, typically with black tights and combat boots if she didn't want to wear her white Vans (which were "far better for dancing"), and a red T-Shirt that made it look like she was going to go bowling with Liz stitched on the chest. She was undoing her braid as she eyed Gilbert and Alfred spread out on the couch.
"Liz, can you get me some spaghetti?" Gilbert asked hesitantly but still with his typical bluntness, even though he was attempting not to piss her off right as she got home.
"Nuh-uh," Came her reply as she shook her hair out and grinned at Alfred. "How did auditions go?"
Alfred shrugged, and she stuck her hands on her hips, glaring at him suspiciously. "I didn't stay the whole time, there was no one that really stuck out,"
Matthew ate his spaghetti slowly, raising an eyebrow curiously at Alfred.
Liz didn't seem to notice, she turned to Roderich and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks for picking me up, the subway isn't so great at this hour," Roderich smiled at her as she retreated into her bedroom to change out of her work clothes.
Matthew's grin slowly grew more mischievous, and he made sure that she closed the door before saying "Al, you're dead."
Roderich gravitated towards the spaghetti, grabbing a bowl from the cabinet on the way. "Why is Al dead?" He asked, spooning some pasta into his bowl.
"Hey Rod?" Gilbert asked from the couch, watching the spaghetti from his seat.
"No," Came Roderich's weary reply, not wanting to hear Gilbert's plea for food, he turned to Alfred. "Why are you dead?"
"Well, I kind of saw someone at auditions today..." Alfred started, scratching his neck.
Matthew chuckled. "And then left in the middle of them auditioning."
Roderich didn't appear to have heard him. "Who?" He asked as he opened the silverware drawer.
"Arthur Kirkland," Alfred's voice was small, there was a clang of a fork falling onto the ground, Roderich's reaction indicated he had heard him.
"I see," He said after a long pause, frowning at Alfred. "Why?"
Alfred sent Roderich a questioning look, and the business student rolled his eyes. "Why did you leave? That was Arthur Kirkland."
Alfred shrugged helplessly. "I-I just-"
Roderich sniffed disapprovingly. "Wasn't he in an Anniversary production of Phantom in London?" He had picked up his fork and was washing it off in the sink. It was clear that no one was going to answer him, and he shook his head to himself. "Liz will know, I think he was Raoul."
Alfred acted like he hadn't seen Phantom four times on Broadway, like he didn't know who Raoul was. It would take a long time before Gilbert would let it go.
"Liz is going to be pissed," Matthew said to Roderich, as if for clarification.
Roderich didn't have time to answer, as Liz stepped out of the bedroom in sweat pants, a sports bra, and an unzipped sweatshirt, her hair tied up in a haphazard ponytail.
"Pissed?" Liz smiled and raised an eyebrow. "You guys aren't going to ask me to pitch in a tad more for the rent again, are you? Restaurant tips only make so much."
"No, if anything it's Gilbert's turn to pitch in more for the rent," Matthew said, Gilbert made a sound of protest on the couch. "You're going to be pissed about auditions."
Liz tilted her head forward. "Auditions? Alfred?" She narrowed her eyes at him from the bar.
"Well, I saw Arthur Kirkland," Alfred said it casually, as if it would lessen the impending blow.
Liz seemed to choke on air for a second, simply staring at him with wide eyes. "The...Arthur Kirkland? The one the was in the Memoirs of Life original cast?"
"...Sure? He was in that movie musical about arson, right?" He already knew, but was feigning ignorance for Liz.
"Ugh, he sings like an angel." Liz whirled around and shoved a finger in Roderich's face for emphasis. "An angel."
Matthew didn't seem pleased at the lack of information from Alfred. "Liz, he left right before he auditioned." He blurted, pointing his fork towards his cousin.
Liz froze in her spot in front of Roderich, turning her head towards Alfred. "What?"
Alfred felt a pang of annoyance as he searched the expressions of his roommates, Matthew looked like he was absorbing every bit of this moment, while Roderich looked rather smug. Gilbert, though, was completely tuned out as he stared at the television. He had no help.
"I didn't stay for Arthur Kirkland's audition," Alfred replied, looking straight at Liz as if in challenge.
Liz sucked in a breath and slowly walked towards the couch. She picked the remote off of the coffee table, which was sitting next to Gilbert's feet. She turned the TV off and dropped the remote on the couch.
She looked at Alfred as she gave Gilbert an audible punch to the stomach, who jumped up with a Oof and a "W-what the fuck? Bitch!". Liz waved him away and sat down. Alfred scooted away from her, from the kitchen he could see Roderich smirking and Matthew laughing, patting a stomach-clutching Gilbert on the back.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" Liz snapped, smacking him on his arm with the back of her hand. "Do you know how many people would've killed to see Arthur Kirkland live...auditioning!?"
Alfred, glad that this was the worst he was going to get from Liz, let out a small chuckle.
"I'm not joking!" Liz announced, but Alfred's laugh was infectious, and she found herself laughing a bit too. "Only you would see a famous person and be like 'Oh! This seems like a good time to leave, nothing to see here!'" Her impression of Alfred was basically the same as Gilbert, with more of a cowboy like drawl.
"Sorry, Liz. I'm not real involved in this stuff," Alfred said once he stopped laughing.
"You'll have to be if you're parents are going to stay consistent about his whole 'gap year' shit," Liz eyed him, disdainful.
"Hear, hear!" Matthew said from the kitchen, holding up his glass of water in agreement.
Liz pursed her lips to hold in laughter. "Matt, I love you!" Liz yelled back, blowing him an overdramatised kiss, Matthew cackled from the kitchen.
"You guys are fucking terrible," Alfred beamed.
"Just go to bed without dinner, you dumbass!" Liz said in a mock-punishment voice. Alfred retreated to his bedroom anyways, he'd go back and get food once the main room was a little less crowded and ready to poke fun at him.
Alfred bedroom wasn't really "his", it had been used as a guest bedroom before he had moved here and still looked like one. It was a room that didn't have a person attached to it, Alfred liked to think. The walls were poster-less and bare aside from a lone painting of what he thought looked like a rainy street. The bed, though not made, had almost hotel-like white sheets. The furniture looked untouched, even though Alfred knew his clothes were in the dresser and he had used his laptop on the desk this morning. In fact, it was still sitting open.
Alfred turned on his computer and waited a moment for the screen to light up. He went to Google and typed in "Arthur Kirkland".
Multiple results showed up instantly, Alfred clicked the first one, unsurprisingly a Wikipedia page.
The Arthur in the picture didn't look like the same person Alfred saw earlier that day, he was obviously at a red carpet event, dressed in a classy but plain tuxedo. It seemed as if his makeup artists tried to contain the man's freckles, though a small bit on his face peeked through. His smile was slight, but looked genuine. Alfred could only wonder if it really was.
He looked away from the picture, reading the blurb of text that talked about general things.
Arthur James Kirkland (born April 23rd, 1992) is a British actor and Broadway star. He is known for his roles of originating the Eddie character in the Memoirs of Life original cast and as Gabe in the movie adaption of the Backfire musical. He's been acting since the early 2000s, and started off playing roles like Gavroche in Les Miserables on the London stage. He's been dating the French actor Francis Bonnefoy for over a year since they met on the set of the Backfire movie.
Francis Bonnefoy. Alfred ran the name over in his head a couple of times, he had definitely heard it before, but since he couldn't picture a face figured he was on screen more than on stage. Alfred felt like a hypocrite when he was unable to know movie-stars, as he was going to study filmmaking, but he had grown up practically having to memorize the names of any Broadway stars with potential. Running a hand through his hair, he continued the paragraph,
His career is still prevalent on the Broadway scene, and is predicted to have many more roles in New York.
Alfred nearly rolled his eyes at that sentence. He eyed the blurb again, Arthur was only three to four years older than himself, yet most were lucky if they got a small role on Broadway once in their life, that much he knew.
Speaking of roles, Alfred scrolled down to find an impressing list of different roles Arthur Kirkland had played. He looked at the main ones.
Gavroche~London's Les Miserables Anniversary Production
Lost Boy~Original Cast Of Finding Neverland
Eddie~Memoirs of Life
Mark~London's Final Rent Cast (January-May)
Roger~London's Final Rent Cast (May-December)
Raoul~London's Phantom of The Opera Anniversary Production
Gabe~Backfire Movie Adaption
Alfred recognized most of the plays, he had seen most of them on Broadway. He was surprised to find Arthur hadn't ever been in any of his parents' works.
There's a first time for everything, he supposed.
From the kitchen, he heard Liz, clearly letting go most of his previous offense, call out "Al, you want food or not? Some of us are sitting at the table like decent human beings!" Alfred could tell that last bit was directed towards Gilbert, but he jumped up from his desk anyways, turning around to exit out of the Wikipedia page and close his laptop.
Though he expected to see Arthur again, he didn't expect things to turn out as they did.
A/N~ I'm calling this: the thing I wrote while I was procrastinating on JYAMC! I'm interested in this story and will at some point pick it up...but I don't think it'll be any time soon. Speaking of JYAMC, that needs to be my first priority at the moment. Sorry. I like secretly-cynical Alfred, as y'all can see. Being inside cynical Al's head is different than anything I've written with him before, and I kind of love it?
I kind of wanted the apartment to be one big family. As you can see, they're all really close as some roommates are. It's really fun to write the dynamics of that relationship.
This is just fun for now, but I have some early ideas and we'll see if it amounts to anything? I love Broadway and musicals (and poorly reenacting them when I'm home alone), and it's probably easy to tell but Rent is my favorite. The movie is on Netflix and the entire play (personally I think it's better) is on YouTube! I strongly suggest giving it a try. I'm happy I just get to include Broadway in one of my fics! (also btw a few plays in this don't actually exist. they're mine. hah.)
Also, I don't own Hetalia or any of the mentioned Broadway musicals.
Review/Follow/Favorite (I love you guys :D)