Warning: Use of language here is sort of rated T for one word. Not bad in context; you'll see what I mean.
Chapter 4: Work!
When Arthur reached his department's main entrance, he found that Alfred was still there, sitting in his seat, drumming his fingers against his desk. Strangely, he wasn't attempting to chat up with any of the co-workers. Probably got ignored. Or he couldn't speak French. Most everyone here could speak English easily though, but it must have been convenient to pretend otherwise.
Alfred caught sight of Arthur, face brightening. "You're finally back, Arthur!"
The loud sentence was enough to get everyone's attention, though they had been diligently typing away not more than a few seconds before. Everyone except Lars, who of course, was handling his own business without problem. One less person to stare at Arthur in accusation for the disruption then! He gave Alfred a meaningful look, hoping that he wasn't dense enough to say it was alright to keep on talking here. "Could we speak in the hallway please?"
To Arthur's relief, Alfred complied, standing up and walking with him all the way out of the room and into the hallway. Once there, Alfred leaned against the wall, his expression knowing. "So what do you think?"
"I think you could have just told me," Arthur said, crossing his arms. "And regarding this assignment, why did you have to requst for me? Do you just hate me so much that you want to bug me for as long as you can just to see how much I can take?"
"Request for you?" Alfred scrunched his nose endearingly before he slapped his forehead. "Man, Mom told you about that too?" He brought his hand down slowly down his face, catching his bottom lip before letting it descend back down to his side. Arthur's mouth twitched. Why did he have to be smart, idiotic, annoying, and so unfairly goodlooking? Next thing he knew, he'd be calling him "sweet" like Mrs. Williams.
"But it'd be good, working together. And I won't bug you, like you say I do," Alfred smiled compellingly. "Not while we're working at least."
"Do you even know what you're going to be doing?" Arthur asked.
Alfred shrugged and nodded. "Mom already showed me. Besides, if I need help, you're there aren't you?"
It was an undeniable statement, and Arthur could tell it was really just a rhetorical question. The way Alfred had phrased it though, felt like Arthur was needed. Feeling like he was needed though, Arthur had learned didn't mean he was dumped immediately afterwards.
"You two might want to cut the romance and get back to work," a snide voice came from behind them. Arthur swivelled around, startled that they weren't alone in the hall like he'd thought.
It was Gossip Girl, with her cat-framed glasses and sour expression. Rather than a girl, right now she looked more like a nagging next-door neighbor, Arthur noticed with an ill twist in his stomach. "Actually, I don't think you're even supposed to be here," Gossip Girl said to Alfred, wrinkling her nose. "You're not in the right dress code. Customer Service is at the front, downstairs."
"Actually, I'll be working here starting tomorrow." Alfred said.
Gossip Girl gave him a skeptical look. "And which department are you going to be working in?"
Arthur was about to say, "I don't see why we should hand out information like that," when Alfred beat him to the punch.
"I think, vice president trainee. At least that's what our company president told me." Alfred answered.
The expression on Gossips Girl's face changed from one of disdain to surprise. "Wait", she said holding a hand up. She squinted at Alfred. "Company president? You don't happen to be her son, do you? I guess you do have the same blue eyes, same hair but with a weird purple strip..." her expression changed again. "Whaaa- Maybe we should hang out sometime then!"
"Alright, we've wasted enough time," Arthur said, dragging Alfred away, by now thoroughly annoyed with Gossip Girl. Alfred didn't stop his hand from curling around his arm, Arthur noticed. Good, at least he didn't show any interest in this woman with a bad next-door neighbor attitude. "We've got some moving to do."
"No wait, we should at least exchange num-"
Arthur shot her a look. "Shouldn't you get back to work too?"
Gossip Girl pouted, but waved at Alfred. "What's your name?"
Alfred nodded at her. "Alfred F. Jones at your service."
Jones?
Gossip Girl giggled, missing the last part. "My name's Giana, but you can call me GiGi for short. See ya later than, Alfie!"
"Good riddance," Arthur muttered as she walked away.
Alfred chuckled. "What, were you getting jealous?"
"Of her? No thank you. Anyway, we still have to move my belongings to... our office. At least, I presume it's an office. Since you're the one who dragged me into this, you should know where it is, and help me transport my belongings there. With the two of us, we can make it without going back again to pick up anything else from my desk." Arthur then turned his back, not waiting for any words of consent from Alfred. He was the one who got him into this. If they were going to work together, they might as well start now. Without any more unexpected interruptions. These were occuring far too frequently lately for his liking.
"Aren't you gonna ask?"
Ask. Arthur paused in midstep, knowing what he meant, but to be honest, he didn't really want to know. "Ask about what? Why you have a different surname than your mom's?"
Alfred nodded.
Arthur hesitated, still not sure if he wanted to go down that path. "I-if it's not anything I should know, it's fine."
"Nah, it's nothing big. Mom's really proud of her business and ended up not changing her last name, since she created 'Williams Electronics' before she met my dad. Jones is his last name, hence my last name too."
"O-oh." Arthur mumbled. He'd been thinking Alfred would end up revealing something else, not so fortunate.
"Yeah, I just thought we should get that out of the way. Although, I'm kinda surprised you didn't ask."
"Why should I? If you were... a lovechild," Arthur blushed at his own rudeness, stomach clenching at his blatant remark. "You'd probably want to hide that."
"Your imagination runs too wild, dude,"Alfred said. "And yeah, that's why I wanted to get it out of the way, since you didn't ask. Almost everyone asks." Alfred walked in front of Arthur. Arthur could see the slight smile playing at his lips, still cheerful but still different from his usual. "Were you worried about your to-be colleague?"
"Oh, shut it," Arthur said back. "All I'm worried about is your ego."
"So mean!" Alfred complained. He opened his mouth again. "But Matt-he's my brother- doesn't take after my dad's name though. We had to keep it fair and so Mom named him Matthew Williams." Alfred looked at Arthur. "You're not weirded out, are you?"
"Compared to my family?" Arthur said, unable to keep back a smile. "No, of course not. We might not have different surnames, but everyone's unbearably insane. If we're talking about family, you'd be the one weirded out."
"Hmm." Alfred said, putting on a thinking face. "I doubt it. In fact, I don't think I'd dislike them at all. Any-way~, let's get your things and move 'em to our office, shall we? Since you're such a troublesome old person, I'll help you out!"
"And here I thought you weren't going to make a rude comment," Arthur mused. "I suppose that's too much to ask for. I should've seen it coming, considering how long you've been keeping me here."
"I am so not rude! You're just old! And you were the one who dragged me out here in the first place. Come on, let's move already."
Needless to say, moving out of the cubicle when it involved Alfred was more dramatic than need be. Arthur would have preferred making two trips compared to the stares he got, but it was too late to go back on his decision now.
"H-hey be careful while holding that- you're taking everything with you?!"
Alfred twirled with binders and papers and writing utensils in his arms. "Of course! These weigh nothing to me!"
But the next day, working with Alfred wasn't bad. Aside from showing him how to clock in and out, Arthur found that Alfred had a natural knack for figuring things out and putting together pieces of various laptops. That was their first assignment; start overseeing the manufacturing department. After consulting the papers Mrs. Williams had given him, Arthur found that there was another vice president around and that he could ask him if he had any questions. It made sense really, not to leave the company in the hands of a novice and Arthur himself while she was gone.
But Alfred was able to piece together everything from cell phones to televisions through blueprints and short hands-on explanations from nearby employees, who had already been informed of Alfred. worked fast, Arthur saw.
Alfred actually spoke a bit of French, courtesy of his mother. Alfred explained that he was majoring in aerospace mechanics as well as business so "Learning stuff like that isn't tough." In fact, he seemed to prefer that to sitting at his desk and looking over papers, which Arthur mostly handled even after he showed him how to deal with different kinds of messages. It wasn't hard, since it wasn't actually work that the vice president was supposed to do, but more a dabble at the different fields. probably knew that training Alfred to handle work like that would require training from her and herself only.
The next two weeks went by in this fashion, each week spent in a different department. Mrs. Williams's directions were very clear on how she wanted the work to be done. Speaking of Mrs. Williams, Arthur decided to talk to her anyway about what Francis had told him. It took some contemplating since Francis hadn't quite kept his side of the first bargain, but Arthur decided that it would be better on his conscience and possibly his colleagues if he talked to her. Surprisingly, she'd listened and said she would consider it.
With his work schedule, the slightly irritated feeling he felt whenever he saw Alfred faded into ease and then actual friendship. He didn't feel the tingling he'd been faced with at the home party, although sometimes he would get a little... nervous when Alfred looked at him. Inexplicably so. But their friendship was definite. It still didn't mean that Alfred had stopped his ridiculous teasing, or his love for fast food, but he did finally stop wearing that overcoat. The suit was much more preferred, and if Arthur did say so himself, it actually fit him well.
The structure of the company though wasn't the only thing Arthur learned more about. Learning about his only office mate was kind of inevitable. In fact, finding out the reason behind Alfred's different surname was one of many things he had come to know about since they started working with each other.
The child, man, (manchild?) had an obsession with superheroes, particularly Superman, a love for the unhealthy, particularly ice cream, had a fear of snakes, particularly cobras. And that star on his cheek? Disappeared along with the overcoat, since it was a temporary tattoo. When Arthur asked why he would ever put a tattoo however temporary on his face or why dye his hair only partially purple, Alfred answered with a casual, "I wanted to try something new. But Matt would freak out if I actually got purple hair and Mom will probably never talk to me again if I got an actual tattoo."
Arthur himself also ended up giving away facts about himself. Alfred learned how Arthur had only gotten Ukitty shortly after starting his job as a salaryman, and that he'd been smitten ever since. Ukitty had only been a kitten then, from a yard sale not far from Arthur's apartment where a boy had to give away his kittens. Seeing the sign, Arthur had decided to go and get a kitten too, but he had been too late, and the orange and white drop-eared kitty was the only one left. Alfred listened with rapt attention, as Arthur declared that it didn't matter anyway, since the cat stole his heart immediately and the tiny creature reminded him of his home country. "Is that where you got the name Ukitty?"
Having talked about his life was why Alfred had attempted to make Arthur tea one morning. It was cold, and way too sweet. When did he ever say he wanted iced tea? So after he went to make it himself, he found that it was a much too money consuming Darjeeling tea. He'd recognized the brand name. Arthur scoffed at it and scolded Alfred for buying it, saying it was overrated and probably wasn't worth it, even if it was made the right way. Alfred had only brushed it off and appeared the next morning with more of the tea boxes on Arthur's joint desk. Arthur accepted it gingerly, bewildered by this behavior.
He'd tried to give Alfred some scones in thanks but that hadn't ended well. The younger man had spat out one and Arthur didn' speak to him the entire day. Alfred had then choked down the rest of the scones (which looked deceivingly normal), trying to appease Arthur. The older softened at this also bewildering behavior, dropping the silent treatment, but told Alfred it was only because he wasn't getting any work done by himself. The second time Arthur came in with baked goods, it was truffles, and that Alfred had absolutely loved. Arthur bloomed with pride the entire time, not even chiding the American for stuffing each piece into his mouth in rapid succession.
When he was making each of those pieces, Ukitty had stuck around the kitchen, watching Arthur, questioning exactly who he was baking for and why he was even touching the kitchen right after the day he'd made a mess of flour. His master wasn't very good at cooking, but things that smelled like this did happen now and then. Except Arthur usually didn't smile and hum when he did made those things.
Arthur just patted him with a sweet-smelling hand and said, "I'm just thanking Alfred for the tea, since he didn't like the scones."
The Scottish Fold had turned to look at the cartons of tea on the counter and meowed at Arthur, rubbing his legs.
"It's not like I think he's a nice person or anything. Or that he's a really good friend. And I'm certainly not interested in seeing him more!"
Ukitty swished his tail and let out a low purr.
"Oh, go away, you," Arthur said not unkindly, splashing Ukitty a bit with water. The cat didn't move away, purring smugly. Water didn't bother him at all; his master would have to try harder to stop him from teasing.
Arthur rolled his eyes. "Okay, maybe just a little. Like as small as a fairy's sneeze. He's too weird not to be intriguing."
He shoved whatever was on the counter into the oven next to it. "Maybe you wouldn't hate meeting him after all.
Ukitty meowed again, and this time Arthur couldn't tell what the usually grumpy cat was trying to convey.
Alfred was like an overgrown child. Like his older brothers. had been right about the considerate part. Alfred was sweet like one, but nicer in other ways due to his age. For the life of him, Arthur couldn't figure out why Alfred had eaten the scones just to please him. It was almost like he was the child in this scenario.
"Maybe when I leave, I'll introduce him to you."
"Mee-oww".
"No, I'm not bringing him home, even for you!"
And so the two weeks passed by without too much annoyance, to Arthur's pleasant surprise. Of course, that only applied to Alfred. Gossip Girl or whatever her name was, tried to meet up with them whenever they were on break. Arthur noticed with a twisted pleasure that Alfred's obliviousness might just be good in some cases, since Gossip Girl's ministrations were always shut down without him noticing. Mrs. Williams came by too sometimes, always greeting them with a smile. The way she smiled fondly at her son, Arthur could understand, but not when the president turned his way like that too. She'd even invited him to dinner sometimes, but Arthur declined them all. He really needed more time with his cat. She was disappointed but gave him her address, telling him that he could come over at anytime. Alfred agreed.
Sometimes, he passed by Francis on his way back to the office. Sometimes the Frenchman asked him out for a drink later, which Arthur denied. Sometimes he was walking with the same woman Arthur had learned was named Jeanne, surprising him that Francis hadn't moved on to another woman. This time, the Frenchman whistled, asking, "Where are you headed off to looking so smug?"
"Away from you," Arthur had replied. "Are you doing well?"
"Now that you're gone, certainly. I heard from Gigi that you and Alfred have been working together. And that you two might be up to something other than work behind that door, hmm?" Francis wiggled his eyebrows at Arthur, siddling up next to him.
"Figured it would be my turn sooner or later. I'm surprised it took this long," Arthur said.
"What, that you've finally become a little romantic?" Francis asked, putting a hand on his hip. "At long last."
"No, frog, I mean GiGi or Gossip Girl or whatever her name is, would come around to talk about anyone and everyone in this company." Arthur glared at him but not really, glad to see not a single pink ribbon. "And no, there is nothing but a purely business relationship between Alfred and I... and friendship perhaps."
The on-hiatus Magical Strike laughed. "Call it what you want, love by any other name would be just as sweet, d'accord? And GiGi, or Gossip Girl as you've so graciously called her, seems bitter about it..."
"Don't rip off of Shakepeare! And I told you-"
"Yes, yes" Francis said, waving a hand and walking away. He turned to look at Arthur as if adding an afterthought. "Big brother's just glad you've finally found another friend." His expression turned mischievous. "But who knows what that certain friendship might just turn into? Bon chance, Arthur!"
"For the last time, we are and will just be on a strictly platonic relationship, Francis! And you are not my big brother'!" Arthur huffed and went back to where he was heading to. Compared to his actual brothers, Arthur wasn't sure who infuriated him the most. And then there was Alfred.
Francis smiled. "Can you really say that when you've already seduced him?" He shook his head patronizingly at nothing in particular. "We should go drinking sometime! It's been awhile!" He called out, but Arthur had already disappeared.
Alfred glanced up from his desk, pen in hand. "That bathroom break took awhile. Were you constipated? I wouldn't be surprised since it's you."
"No, unfortunately for you, I was actually stopped by the lovely Magical Strike on my way back." Arthur shut the door gently, trudging back to his chair.
"What, and that's why you took so long?" Alfred stamped a paper, pushing it aside. "You should think about me more; it's so boring without you here."
Arthur snorted. "I was gone for ten minutes and you say you're bored? There should be plenty of things for you to get done."
"I have no one to talk to though!" Alfred whined. "While you take so long to enjoy yourself."
"I wasn't enjoying myself! And," Arthur took a closer look at the piece of paper in Alfred's hands. "That's in French, why are you answering that? Why is this in here in the first place?"
"I've learned French," Alfred said. "Although, I'm not really good at it. Some words like the department names I still don't understand, but I thought you already knew I could speak it!"
Arthur smirked. "Vraiment?"
"Ouais. Est-ce que tu me-crois maintenant?
"Impressive. I know you know some French from the basic conversations you've had with our co-workers, but I didn't expect this from you," Arthur said. Alfred never failed to show him something he didn't expect.
"Heh, yeah. When I ordered a coke at a restaurant here, the waiter just stared at me before he started laughing. Turns out that what I ordered was cocaine. Language, man."
"Language indeed. Nice going there, Alfred." Arthur snorted, sorting through his collection of pens.
"Hey it's not like you haven't made a mistake before."
"Fair enough."
An amiable silence took over the office for a few minutes before Alfred broke it. "Are you free this Saturday?"
"This Saturday? Yes, I was planning on spending the day with Ukitty. Why?"
"Perfect timing then! I was just going to say that you still haven't introduced me to Ukitty and maybe it would be a good time this Saturday."
Arthur blinked, finger hitting the screenshot button by accident. He looked at his partner, still blinking slowly. "You mean you-"
"Yup! I want to hang out with you and your cat on Saturday. That's fine with you right? All objections will be overruled!" Alfred flashed him a wink, with a one sided grin. "Come on Arthur. I've never met your cat and I never get to see you."
"You see me everyday for eight hours, dummy." Arthur chided him. "And we go to that fast food restaurant you love so much everyday after work."
"Yeah, but I never got to see you on the weekend. You kinda disappear after we leave."
"I have to go home sometime!"
"So you should let me come with this Saturday. Come on Arthur, please?" Alfred didn't flash him puppy eyes. Nor did he pout. But still his earnest expression was undeniable as Arthur tried to think of a reason why not. Sadly, he couldn't couldn't think of any. He didn't mind seeing Alfred and Ukitty seemed to want to meet Alfred too. Not that he was ever going to tell Alfred. Otherwise he'd have to explain why he was talking about him. Plus, who knew how much his ego could inflate.
"You'll get tired of me."
"Too late for that."
"You!" Arthur sputtered, pressing the screenshot button again.
Alfred gave him a cheeky smile and brushed his hair back, fingers lingering on the purple streak. "I'm saying there's no way that'll happen. Like I told you before, I really do think you're interesting. And you have a cat! Come on, pleeeeease? Pleeeeeeeeeease. I'll even bring a movie!"
Arthur deflated, sighing. "Fine. But if Ukitty hates you or ignores you, don't expect me to help."
"You say that, but in the end you'll help me anyway."
"What makes you so sure about that?! Argh, we've wasted enough time, get back to work already!
Alfred saluted him. "Aye aye captain, I'll see you at one tomorrow. And don't worry, Ukitty won't do either of those things. I'm too loveable."
"I'm sure."
Arthur missed the smile on Alfred's face.
When Arthur got home that evening, Alfred had tried to come with, after chauferring Arthur to his home, since he wouldn't let him go on the metro.
Arthur declined and warned his cat about Alfred's coming. He'd bristled up, getting to grooming right away. "Tss." Arthur tsked at him, getting the wet cat food. It was true they didn't get much company unless his family decided to visit him, but to go this far for a stranger... Ukitty didn't like going near strangers whenever he was brought to the veterinary office.
"No need to get so worked up, 'Kitty," he assured his cat. "Alfred's really not one to care about appearances. It explains a lot too."
His cat paused in his incessant grooming for just a moment, staring at Arthur. Then he went right back to licking his paws.
Arthur shrugged. "Suit yourself. I'm just saying that you needn't get yourself so worked up." He went to straighten his already impeccable living room, wiping away dust that Ukitty could't see. Or sense for that matter. And his master said he was getting worked up.
Saturday came by rather quickly and found Arthur nervous. Was it for a good reason? No. Did he wake up too late? No. Did he forget to give his cat the weekly obstacle course set up with the cardboard boxes? Of course not!
"He's a co-worker," Arthur reassured himself. "And I hid the tea so it's okay."
He glanced at the clock soundlessly changing its digits. There was still some time left.
He set his laptop on his lap, checking his emails.
It was halfway through one of his brothers' messages that Ukitty's ears perked up and a pounding sounded at the door. Arthur set his laptop aside, sliding to his feet quickly. "That might be him. He's early." He peeked through the peep hole before opening the door. "Hey." Alfred said, standing on his doorsteps. He was wearing a T-shirt, Arthur noticed. His tattoo had completely worn off by now, and the purple was starting to fade too. The look wasn't bad though.
"Hey yourself. Come in."
Alfred walked in and Arthur closed the door quietly behind him.
"Uh, make youself at home and-"
"This place is so much neater than my room," Alfred remarked before his eyes landed on Ukitty. "Wait, is that- is that who I think he is?"
"I'm not surprised. And yes, this is Ukitty."
The feline watched him cautiously, sitting in a corner. Arthur raised an eyebrow. Just yesterday, he was busily grooming himself for this meeting. He cleared his throat. "Er, this is Alfred, Ukitty. It's alright to come closer."
Alfred put his DVD on the sofa and then kneeled down, one hand outstretched. "Come on, little guy. Arthur trusts me, yunno. And you're even cuter than the photo of you!"
Ukitty began walking to him, touching his nose to his hand when he got close enough. Alfred waited a few more moments before moving his hand up to rub his head. Arthur watched the two. It was strange to see Ukitty and Alfred getting to know each other in this way. Alfred was much more nice than when he and Arthur had met. His mouth twitched in annoyance at the memory. His eyebrows were perfectly fine, albeit a little thicker than how everyone else's were.
His laptop suddenly beeped with a message. Alfred was too busy petting Ukitty to look up, and Arthur reached over to get the laptop carefully to shut it off. Before he could do so though, he saw that he had an incoming chat was coming up. And that Seamus was the one sending it. Arthur hesitated with his mouse on the decline button before he took it off. Seamus was more bearable than the other clowns, and it had been awhile since they had talked. Besides, if he didn't answer, Seamus was likely to worry and tell his other brothers, and then THEY would come and bother him. He might as well tell him he would chat later instead of just ignoring it. Arthur carefully walked around Alfred, taking his device with him to the kitchen that was connected to the living room, unseparated by any door or wall.
The message said it was from Seamus. It wasn't wrong, but it wasn't entirely right either. When he had accepted the video chat, he found that it wasn't just the strawberry blond, mild-tempered older sibling with him but three elder brothers staring through the screen. Oh no.
"Hiya, Arthur!" The vivid red-head of the three said to him. "We thought it might be nice to talk to you together like this."
"'We as in you and Seamus," the brunette of the group complained. "But I suppose it's not bad talking like this." He glared at the screen. "How come you haven't videochatted any of us?"
"We were all worried," Seamus added. "Owain was worried too."
"If you were lonely, you could've talked to us, dear brother."
Arthur groaned. How was he going to tell them he was only expecting Seamus and then tell them he needed to go? Seamus might let him go, but the other two would question why.
"Listen, I really do not want to talk with you guys right now," Arthur muttered to the laptop screen portraying his brothers. He glanced over his shoulders, making sure to turn the laptop slightly to a side whilst he did so. Alfred was still playing with Ukitty, who had opened up considerably, rubbing hi cheeks on Alfred's arm. Good, they were still distracted.
"Aw, why not?" The bright red head said, crossing his arms. "Wait," he craned to see over Arthur's shoulder. "Who is that? Is that a hand I see? Last time I checked, your cat didn't have a hand. Is there someone ther-"
The brunette on his left butted in sharply. "There shouldn't be anyone at your house. Who's there? Show yourself!"
"Now now, Owain," the orange haired, mellow-faced male on the right said. "Calm down. Maybe Arthur has a friend over."
"Arthur doesn't have friends." Owain said matter-of-factly.
"True," the red -head said thoughtfully. "I'll vouch for it too. Are you going to argue with that, Seamus?"
Seamus cast down his eyes. "Jack, let's not bring this up right now."
"Nice talking to you all," Arthur said, glaring back at the screen. "Now, if you don't mind, I really must go. As you can see, I have company over. You bunch can torture me later."
Owain narrowed his eyes, then pushed Seamus out of the way, peeking closer, trying to catch a glimpse of the unaware man behind Arthur. "It's not that Francis person is it?! Arthur I'll kill you if you brought him home. You better stay away from that guy!"
"Keep your voice down, Owain." Arthur hissed. "And it's not Francis, even I have enough sense-"
"Stay away from who?" Alfred said , coming to Arthur's corner, carrying Ukitty on his shoulder. Arthur choked at the sight of his cat on such a place. He set the laptop down on the counter, before gripping Alfred's wrists. "You didn't manhandled Ukitty up there, did you?"
"Dude, your cat was the one who jumped on me after I said he could ride on my shoulders. Of course I didn't manhandle him!"
"Really... Is that so, 'Kitty?" Ukitty purred lowly, eyes narrowing in sleepy slits, kneading his claws in Alfred's T-shirt.
"So who were you talking to? Francis?"
"Why do both of you think I'm talking to Francis? Honestly!"
Before Arthur could fully comprehend the situation and prevent his colleague and his brothers from meeting, he remembered where he'd set the laptop. And why his brothers had become strangely silent.
"Well, that's definitely not Francis," Jack remarked, hand on chin.
Alfred looked back at the screen, and gave it a big smile.
"Hey there. You know, you all kinda look like Arthur, with those eyebrows. My name's Alfred by the way. I'm a friend of Arthur's." Alfred gave the screen a friendly smile.
Arthur looked in horror at the laptop to where his brothers were all looking at Alfred in awe, very much ignoring the eyebrow comment.
"Arthur-"
"has-"
"A friend?"
Jack cleared his throat. "Well, hello there, Alfred. We called to talk to Arthur over there. We didn't know he'd have... someone over."
"You better not have any ulterior motives." Owain muttered. "Like someone I know."
"Owain's just worried about Arthur. But you seem like a nice guy so he's assured." Seamus piped up.
"I wasn't worried! Arthur's such a baby that he can't take care of himself properly."
"Okay, you've met Alfred, now could you all please go away?" Arthur said exasperatedly.
Jack raised an eyebrow. "What, did you want some alone time with Prince Charming over here?" He cocked his head at Alfred in question. "You don't happen to be Arthur's boyfriend do you? No wonder he's so embarrased. Aw, Arthur, no need to hide this from us!"
"We won't make fun of you Arthur. It's only good!" Seamus added
"Where did you- Alfred's a friend! A co-worker!" Arthur protested to deaf ears.
"A boyfriend?" Owain shoved a side of his face at the screen, one eye appearing bigger than the other. This face didn't scare Alfred away however as he watched the exchange with a very amused expression. He looked like he was having fun, Arthur thought miserably. And here he was trying to stave off his brothers' overly wild fabrications. "What did you do to Arthur and what are you planning to do? He never has any friends, let alone boyfriends. Well?"
"Uh... I drive him home everyday? And we're going to watch a movie today?" Alfred said, giving an easy smile.
Owain blinked, then backed his face away from the screen. "Well... I guess that's okay."
"And I hate to break it you guys, but I'm really just a friend of you guys' brother- you guys are brothers right?"
"He's the youngest." Seamus said to him. "And Owain's right, Arthur is the baby."
"Alright, you guys have met Alfred, nice talking to you, seriously, I'll see you guys later, OKAY?" Arthur said, still trying to separate Alfred from his brothers. Before they revealed anything.
"All right we'll get ourselves out of ya hair, 'kay?" Jack said. "It really was nice meeting you Alfred."
"Take care of him, got it?"
"We look forward to seeing you again!"
"Is that Arthur?" A new voice, sounding much younger appeared behind the screen. "Even if he's a total jerk, I want to talk to him!"
"You have another brother?" Alfred asked Arthur, beam not going anywhere. "That's awesome."
"Well..." Arthur winced. Awesome wasn't the right word.
"Not now Peter, Arthur wants some alone time with his newfound lover. Have fun over there." Jack winked at the screen, and all three of the men in front of the screen disappeared but not before the top half of a new, boyish face with sandy blond hair appeared in view.
Arthur reached to the laptop, and shut it with a satisfying thud. Fun was the last thing he described his situation. He peeked at Alfred, as if quietly daring him to make any comments. Alfred only smiled, but not the teasing kind Arthur was looking for.
"I wasn't kidding when I said they were terrible." Arthur grumbled. He moved over to pet his cat, who was still sitting atop of Alfred.
Alfred shook his head. "No, I think they're awesome. They also seem really fond of you too." He moved to sit down next to Arthur, Putting Ukitty in between them.
"If you mean they will do anything to get in my way, then yes, yes are."
Alfred relaxed into the cushions, slinging an arm across the sofa. "No, they really look like they love you. But I wonder where they got the idea that I was your... lover."
Arthur stiffened around the final word, realizing how close Alfred's outstretched arm was. He inched forward, away from it, trying to look inconspicuous about it.
"They're just them. Idiots."
"They're really different from Matt."
"Your brother? Well, you're a lucky bloke then!"
Alfred's eyes became a little far away, as he described his brother. "Not in a bad way though. You remember I told you he's younger and more quiet right? He always thinks about other people's feelings before taking action. Everyone loves him."
"Yes," Arthur agreed. "I like him already just from your description. "He's not a chatterbox like you."
"Yeah... Hey!" Alfred pouted. "What, you don't like me?"
"I never said that!"
Both Ukitty and Alfred stared him accusingly. Arthur gulped. It wasn't fair that Alfred had brought even his cat to his side. His brothers all liked Alfred, and for them all to agree on something was pretty rare. Ukitty had taken an almost immediate liking to him, also pretty much nonexistent. Matthew sounded like a good person, but so was Alfred, from the three weeks he's been spending with him. Alfred was likeable, even if he was too bold and reckless around most people.
Heck, Arthur liked him. Liked... him. Arthur slapped himself internally, not liking where his train of thought was going.
"So is it a yes or a no?"
Arthur's consciousness snapped up, to find Alfred had leaned in still glaring at him accusingly, teasingly, with Ukitty between them. The cat meowed twice, lying against Arthur's sleeve.
"That's not..." Arthut made the mistake of looking dead on into Alfred's eyes, like he'd done at the party. The tingling came back again, the same as the one that had first appeared at Francis's home party.
"Well?" Alfred breathed out.
Ukitty looked up at the two humans perplexfully, then jumped down from the sofa to avoid being squashed between them. His furry head looked elegantly up at them, questioning why they were both staring at each other so intensely. They weren't frozen, were they?
"I don't hate you." Arthur murmured, head drawn inexplicably inwards. "I don't think anyone's capable of that."
"Then, you do like me?"
Ukitty realized with a sudden epiphany that this must be one of the scenes from the movies Arthur sometimes watched. It looked very similar to the ones where the humans would bring their heads together and look connected.
"You're not a bad... friend," Arthur said, staring at his lips. Alfred wasn't a bad friend. Of course not. What was he doing, leaning so close towards a friend? He reached out a hand, reaching for the face that was still staring at his.
"Gah!" Arthur let out, propelling his arms forward and backpedalling into his end of the sofa. What exactly was he about to do?! Alfred was a friend, he shouldn't be trying to do whatever his mind was telling him to do!
"Arthur?" Alfred looked at him quizzically. His eyes widened. " Oh sorry, that... uh... well that was weird."
Arthur shook his head, feeling a dreadful heat beginning to spread over his cheeks and an unpleasant pounding in his chest, making it slightly difficult to breathe comfortably. "You shouldn't be the one apologizing, I don't, I'm sorry-" he stood up rapidly, eager to put some space between him and Alfred, and almost stepping on ukitty. The feline quickly jumped out of his way, tail arched in the air.
They stared at each other in awkward silence. Arthur could still feel that horrid blush on his face and to his surprise, there was some color coming to Alfred's own. It went nicely with his "ehh..." look which was also taking hold of his face. The sight of this usually unfazed man looking so lost and flustered was too much for Arthur to handle and he couldn't hold back a smile wobbling at his mouth, despite his racing heart.
Alfred snorted shaking his head, breaking the silence. "You have no idea how weird you look right now. What's with that weird attempt at a smile?"
"I'm laughing at you," Arthur's grin widened. "I didn't know you could make a face like that. I think it suits you."
"Being embarrassed? How the heck does that even- you know, you make that face too! Like the time you accepted the tea I got you!"
Arthur's smile disappeared, remembering that the same brand of tea was hidden somewhere in his cupboards. the fourth one on the bottom, under the sink.
"Speaking of it, where did it go?" Alfred peered to the kitchen. "I remember getting you a few boxes of it.
"Yes you did, you dolt. That's too reckless, to buy something so expensive!" Arthur said. "Hey-where are you going?"
Alfred had begun to move to the direction of the kitchen. He paused in midmotioin, arms swinging at his sides. "To see if you still have them of course."
Arthur blushed.
"Ah there's that face again!"Alfred laughed, poking Arthur's cheek. Arthur gripped Alfred's hand and pushed his arm away from the kitchen and to the sofa. "O-of course I have them, you idiot. It's a waste to throw away such expensive things. Now go sit down. Play your movie or something."
"Now, I'll go make some tea." Arthur pushed Alfred towards Ukitty.
"No coffee or coke?"
"No."
"Then at least use the tea I got you, will you Arthur?" Alfred called.
Arthur rolled his eyes. Spoiled brat. "Fine," He said back.
"And I want some of the chocolate you made before too!"
Arthur hummed a tune of his favorite English tune as he bustled about in the kitchen, making the tea and chocolates Alfred had wanted. Later on he found out that Alfred had brought a horror movie. At the end of it, he couldn't pull Alfred off of him. His cat didn't help either, having fallen asleep.
"It's not even dark out, Alfred." Arthur tried to reason with him. "Nothing's going to come out and throw blood at you." His arm was snuggled pleasantly in Alfred's own arms. Arthur slapped himself mentally for the umpteenth time that day. His arm was starting to go numb, that was all.
Alfred looked at the digital clock on the table. "It's five though. It'll be dark in a few hours."
"Enough time for you to go home, and have a sleepover in your brother's room. He should come over too sometime..."
Alfred shook his head. "He's in Canada for the summer at some ice hockey camp. I g-guess I could maybe ask Mom to? No, that's no good."
Arthur sighed through his nose. "Look," he said patting Alfred's back. "You're eighteen. You should be more of a hero than a child, Alfred."
"N-nineteen."
"What?"
"I'll be n-nineteen soon."
"Oh." Arthur said, surprised. "When?"
"July 4th. You should come at 6. It lasts all the way until 10 and you know where I live, so no excuses." Alfred clinged on Arthur's arm tighter and Arthur felt a pang in his shook it off- the pang, not Alfred's arm- and kept on rubbing Alfred's back soothingly. "Nineteen then. All the more reason to stop being so scared of the monsters behind the screen. Okay Alfred?"
"If you c-come to my birthday party then, maybe I'll believe you. And I'm not scared!"
Arthur paused in his movements and just looked at Alfred. "What are you majoring in again?"
"Aerospace engineering and business."
"I honestly don't know how you can do those and still manage to make such horrible logic. How is my going to your birthday party going to make you 'believe' that no monsters are going to come out?"
"It will."
"Fine," Arthur agreed helplessly. "Are you less scared now?"
"I told you I'm not! And... I think it worked."
Alfred gave him a shaky grin, and Arthur smiled back reassuringly. Alfred still didn't let go of his arm.
Author's notes: What Alfred said about the coke, was inspired by my French teacher. When visiting his French family, he made the same mistake. (`_`); He's still a super cool teacher though!
Bon chance-Good luck
Vraiment-Really
Est-ce que tu me crois maintenant- Do you believe me now
Owain is Wales, Seamus is Northen Ireland, and Jack is Scotland, in case my interpretations of them don't match up to yours. This is kind of my headcanon of them based on their expressions Himaruya drew, although Scotland is probably a little meaner than how I portrayed him here.
As for Ukitty not being bothered by the water Arthur tossed his way, it's not unnatural. Scottish Folds actually like water.
The tea Arthur's talking about is the Silver Tips Imperial Tea; the tea leaves are picked under a full moon and has a slightly silver appearance to it. Although ranked 9th in most expensive teas in the world, it is the most Darjeeling tea (from Darjeeling, India).
I don't know how this chapter ended up so long. Honestly, I thought I'd keep each chapter after the first at around 3.5 K, but here we are with more than double the planned amount. it felt wrong to split it in half though, since I'm glad to see Arthur transitioning from being simply annoyed at Alfred to becoming friends and having a little playdate in the same chapter. In a review, devixenrox85 caught quite a few mistakes on here so I had to revise this chapter again. What's strange is that everywhere I'd written "Mrs. Williams" disappeared and left a gapping space that made no sense. I realize now that there should be a space between the period and "Williams". Sighs.
