The two were able to move on from that incident without any major problems. Arthur had accepted Alfred's lie, causing the American to feel even guiltier as they continued on with their everyday lives. But at the same time he was thankful, for if he did tell Arthur that he felt about him like that, then he may have not been able to continue visiting Arthur.
Some time passed until Alfred was able to forget the lie, by the time the beginning of May rolled around, the spring festival coming to town. It wasn't anything too big or special, just a day where people would prepare their food and shopping stands for others that were interested in buying. Alfred was excited about the food, but he was mostly excited about the final event, which were the fireworks.
It took a bit of convincing for Alfred but was finally able to pull Arthur out of his apartment, the two of them getting onto a bus as they rode into the town center. As the sky started to darken, they went to multiple stands, mostly food as Alfred bought one after another, sharing it with Arthur who especially liked to drink the soda. Alfred ended up blushing everytime he took a sip.
But because of eating too much, Alfred's stomach gave in, Alfred rushing off to the bathroom as he left Arthur waiting for him at the brick wall. People flocked every, some going onto the field to find a good spot to watch the fireworks as others went into the streets to buy stuff. Arthur looked up at the sky, spotting only a slight number of stars because of the not fully dark sky and the clouds that were passing by before shifting down to look at his feet, kicking at the gravel aimlessly before a voice called out to him.
"Um, excuse me?" Arthur looked up, startled a bit as he saw a man in front of him. The man blinked a bit before he gave Arthur a small smile.
"I'm gotten separated from my group and everything," he began to mumbled as he glanced down at the ground. "So I am now lost and was wondering if you could give me directions to-" he said as he shuffled through his pocket for something, only to pull out nothing. He opened his palm, a bit confused before he looked up at Arthur, a nervous smile on his face as he dryly chuckled.
"It seems that I've lost the one thing that was going to help me find my friends," he said before he sighed. Arthur looked at him a bit pitifully before he pushed himself up from the wall.
"I don't know if I'll be much help but do you remember, maybe what kind of store it may have been?" Arthur questioned.
"Well they said it was near the food stands and everything but," he said as he looked over at the line of stands. "I don't think going to each and individual stands will help me find them any sooner."
"Well, maybe the best option is to wait here. There isn't a lot of people by the wall so it may be easier for you friends to find you." Arthur said, sticking his hands into his pockets briefly before he pulled them out again.
"I guess you are right." The man agreed as he went over and stood next to Arthur.
"Are you waiting for anyone by chance as well?" He questioned, Arthur looking over to the man.
"Yes, he had too much fun eating half of the food at the festival and his stomach couldn't handle it." Arthur chuckled a bit, raising his hand up to his mouth.
"Well that was a very stupid of him, don't you think?" Arthur looked over confused. "What do you mean?"
"that he such an nice looking man like you alone." Arthur gulped a bit, not sure how to react to the sudden compliment as the other watched Arthur. But before one would consider him looking suspiciously too long he smiled, adverting the problem. He now knew that he could approach Arthur in a straight forward way.
By this time Alfred was trotting back from the bathroom, quickly so he could return back to Arthur side, at one point getting pulled into the crowd, wandering aimlessly, hoping that everything would clear up. He looked around for a bit, noticing only people until he saw Arthur through sheer coincidence, pushing himself out of the mob toward the British, his smile broad until people finally stopped blocking his view of Arthur. He stopped, confused and startled as he watch Arthur talking to a man next to him. His heart tensed up a bit, jealous of what he was seeing in front of him until he noticed the movement of the man. He may have been hallucinating or it may have been real, but either way Alfred saw the man's hand move,
toward,
Arthur's,
ass.
It all happened too fast for anyone to have been able to comprehend everything that happened in that small moment. But in the end, what only matters the most is how everything is played out.
The man was up against the wall, trying to pry off an arm that was pushed against his throat, as he choked out incoherent words. Arthur stood besides the two, getting the full shocking view of Alfred threatening to crush the man's windpipe with his arm as he held the man pinned on the wall. He looked at the boy first, shocked before he looked at Alfred, a shiver running down his spine as his head refused to look at the American. Alfred's face was mostly concealed by the shadow of his hair, but Arthur was able to get a glimpse of his eyes, the blue eyes that were darkened to almost coal black mercilessly narrowed down onto the man.
"Alfred," he said in a slightly shaky voice, Alfred not hearing him as he watched the man continue to choke.
"Alfred!" Arthur finally yelled. Alfred eyes shifted over to Arthur, causing Arthur to take a step back from the cold gaze. "W-what are you doing!" he finally said after mustering up the courage, his fist clenched as they shook slightly. Alfred then leaned forward towards the man's face as he sneered, "Don't go fucking near him," pronouncing each word with a strong command. When the man didn't reply quickly he pressed his arm harder against his neck as he saw the man grimace before nodding his head. Alfred then backed away, letting the man stand on his own again, his hands on his neck as he breathed in large amounts of air. "What the fuck man!" He yelled as he supported his weight by leaning against the wall, looking around as he made eye contact with Arthur. "Not even worth the fucking dare and yet I get this. Little queer bitch," he spat, starting to walk away from them.
Alfred turned around, ready to attack him again until something else hit his arm, spinning his head around to see Arthur.
"What the bloody hell was that Alfred!" he yelled, his face red with anger, his patience running thin.
"I said what the bloody fuck was that for!"
"To save you!" Alfred replied in defense, his teeth clenched down tightly.
"You don't have to be that fucking violent about it Alfred! You could have killed that man!"
"He was just trying to get into your pants Arthur!" He growled, his voice now deeper than his usual voice. Arthur unconsciously gulped the saliva that began accumulating in his mouth.
"That still doesn't mean you have to almost kill a man!"
"And you wouldn't have been in danger if you stayed with him?!" Alfred said as he took a step toward Arthur, Arthur taking a step back. "Plus he was flirting for you only as a dare!" He took another step, Arthur taking one back. "He was trying to get into your fucking pants so he could get the approve from his fucking posse Arthur! You think you would have been able to fucking defend yourself with those muscles of yours, huh?!" Arthur was now pressed against the brick, staring right into Alfred's dark eyes as he registered Alfred's last line.
"You think I'm fucking weak?" Arthur questioned quietly, his eyebrows furrowing as his fear was quickly replaced by anger of being insulted. Alfred moved back a bit when Arthur's head moved forward.
"You think I can't fucking defend myself? That all I am is just a weak bloody man that need to be chaperoned wherever he goes?" His voice accelerated as he spoke, getting louder and more offensive as Alfred leaned back a bit away from Arthur.
"Is that what you're saying Alfred?! Are you saying that I'm so fucking weak that I can't even punch a man if I have too?! That I can't fucking protect myself?! I'm not a fucking child Alfred!" Arthur yelled, before he clenched his mouth shut so tight that his teeth began to hurt. The two stared at other, both of their eyes light with determination until Alfred fuse ran out.
"You know what!" He said as he raised his arms up in quick defeat, not knowing another way to end this verbal fight because of his lack of thinking things out. "Yes! Yes! You are! I said it, you happy! That you can't fucking defend yourself and that I'm-"
He never got to finish though, for his sentence was interrupted by a fist that came into contact with his mouth. Alfred shuffled back a bit, blinking in a confused manner as he raised his hand to touch his stinging cheek. He reeled his head back to look at Arthur, his hand still fisted as he started to take steady intakes of breath. Alfred was angry, pissed off a bit as he watched Arthur look up, his anger completely diminishing as he saw the disappointment and hurt look in Arthur's eyes. Alfred stood up straight, finally recollecting and returning back to his right mind as he watched Arthur walk off into the crowd, not being able to move or say anything as his mind screamed at him to do something, something right. But it was too late.
The hand that was nursing the cheek moved away, covering his eyes from the outside world as he leaned against the brick wall, sighing with resentment to himself. He never thought he could be this disgusted about himself until today. He had never thought he could hate himself so much. As punishment his mind kept flashing the expression Arthur gave off before he left, the face causing his chest to continuously twist as he winced a bit from the pain. He hoped that it never stopped, until Arthur forgave him for how much he degraded him there in such a small time. A small spark of jealousy leading to one of the biggest flops he had ever had to face in his life, such a good day wasted to nothing. All he wanted to do now was cry.
Alfred was finally able to suppress his needs as he pushed himself up from the wall, determined to find Arthur. What he would do after he found him, he didn't know. But all he knew was that he needed to find Arthur. He wandered through the streets a bit, the smell of food not distracting Alfred in the slightest as he continued to search. He had no appetite to eat after what happened.
A voice erupted through the town all of a sudden, announcing that the fireworks were to begin in 10 minutes, people beginning to rush over to the field, Alfred being pulled along. By the time he stopped moving he was deep in the field, many people standing around him, making it hard for him too look for Arthur as he tried. After a while he gave up and looked up at the sky, the starless sky. He searched through it a bit, not seeing anything. He sighed with defeat as he clenched his teeth shut, his fists balled into fists as he kept looking up.
All of sudden a droplet fell onto Alfred's glasses, surprising the American a bit before it was joined by many more. The large crowd began to disperse, some screaming as the rain came down in a surprisingly fast pace. Alfred kept his feet planted on the ground as he looked at the horizon, people banging his shoulders as they rushed to go past him. He could feel the water soaking into his clothes, welcoming the cold sensation as his clothes stuck tightly onto him. He raised a hand up, pulling off his glasses before he stuck them into his pockets, finally being able to see a bit more clear as he wiped some water off of his face, only to get poured on by more.
People continued to run by Alfred, the number diminishing greatly as he looked around. He suddenly stopped, to looked to his side where another man was standing, letting the rain soak him to the core as he was looking up at the sky. Even with multiple people running by him, even though the rain was thick, even though his glasses were off, he knew exactly who that was.
And he didn't hesitate for one second to reach out and hold his hand. Arthur turned around, startled as he made eye contact with Alfred. They stayed like that for a while, Alfred relieved that he was able to find him. Arthur continued to stare up at him, his eyebrows slightly furrowed.
"My apartment is by here!" Alfred yelled, barely able to say anything through the thick rain and before Arthur could agree he was being pulled along by Alfred.
They both quickly ran to Alfred's apartment, Alfred dodging people in front of him as Arthur struggled to keep up with him. They eventually made it to the apartment building, thundering beginning to rumble as the rain showed no sign of stopping. Alfred kicked open his apartment room door, quickly pulling in Arthur in before he slammed it shut before they both panted as the ground where they stood became a puddle, the rain water dripping down onto the ground. Lightning struck outside, the room flashing with light, allowing Arthur to see what the apartment looked. It was small, there only being one room not counting the bathroom. There was a small bed pushed up in the corner of the room, next to a dresser, a short table in the middle where a laptop was.
Alfred quickly glanced over at Arthur before he turned and looked at his feet, kicking off his shoes. He then began walking into the room, Arthur's eyes watching his back as he stayed standing near the door.
"The shower is in the door next to you so if you want to jump in and warm yourself up go right ahead." Arthur turned his head to the side as another bolt of lightning came down, illuminating the metal handle. He nodded his head slightly as he pulled the door open.
When Alfred finally heard the shower running, he let a breath he was holding back out. His mind was blank, nothing processing as he tried to think. He felt lost, so very lost. He had no clue what to do.
Arthur was also lost. He just stood in the shower, letting the warm water heat up his body as he kept his face lowered. He knew he wasn't at fault and he knew he was right from the beginning to the end, but something inside of him felt depressed. He didn't understand why. People had talked trash to him, people have insulted him before, none of their words ever getting into Arthur's mind, crushing his self-confidence. But today, it hit him right in the vital spot, piercing right through the middle. And it hurt.
When Arthur finally forced himself out of the shower, he quickly dried himself and changed into a pair of clothes that were layed out for him as he listened to the dryer, the content inside spinning. The clothes that he was wearing were a bit baggy on him, especially the shirt that seemed a few sizes bigger than what Arthur was used to. He wrapped a towel around his neck, rubbing his hair as he walked to the door, stopping right before his hand touched the handle. He was worried, frightened, scared of what would happen the moment he walked out of this room, before took a deep breath and forced his hand to grip around the handle, turning it as slowly as he could. He took a step forward, almost losing his balance as his legs shook a bit.
The room was still dark, none of the lights haven been turned on. Arthur reached up to the towel, pulling it down as he looked around, his body stiffening when caught sight of Alfred standing up from the bed, the room too dark for Arthur to see Alfred's face clearly. And Alfred began walking toward Arthur. Every step Alfred took Arthur took one back until he the wall stopped him. As Alfred continued to get closer Arthur gulped, raising his chin up in defense as he prepared himself for the worst, shutting his eyes tightly.
Something suddenly fell onto his shoulder, the weight causing Arthur to lean on the wall as he closed his eyes even tighter.
"I'm so sorry…." Arthur heard Alfred mumble. Arthur cracked open his eyes, welcomed by the sight of Alfred's golden hair, shining even though there was no light source in the room. Arthur tried to move his head a bit to see Alfred, whose face was planted onto Arthur's left shoulder.
"I'm so sorry I just, just went out of control and did such things and became too violent and yelled at you too and I did all of those things that I would never ever mean to do to anyone and got scared that they would do something bad to you and I know I'm stupid and I know this is pathetic and everything and…" Alfred went on, slowing down at the end as his breath became shaky.
"Just, please don't hate me…"
A flash of lightning came down, illuminating the dark room for an instant as Arthur looked at the golden hair. His shoulder began to feel a bit damp, not taking much notice about it as he payed attention to the aching pain in his chest. It was beating in an erratic pace, mostly because of the adrenaline that surged through his body when Alfred started to walk towards him. But now, every time it thumped it hurt, painfully.
The two stayed that way for some time, neither of them moving a single bit as they both agonized over the pain they felt deep within them. Alfred thought that this was it, as he began to raise his head. He now knew that it was over, that Arthur wouldn't forgive him. So this is how it is going to end huh? Alfred though as he started to move away from Arthur, sighing softly until he felt a pair of arms come around his shoulder, shoving him back toward Arthur. Alfred stood still, surprised as a hand came up to his hair, petting it. Arthur didn't know what to say, he had unconscious pulled Alfred back into a hug when he started to move away.
Arthur did believe that actions spoke louder than words though.
Alfred soon snaked his hands around Arthur's back, pulling him even closer and his face was pressed more and more onto Arthur. He took in a deep breath, smelling his detergent and soap yet, he still smelled Arthur. It really had no definite smell but whenever he smelled it, it filled him with the feeling comfort and ease. It felt, safe.
They continued to hold onto each other until Arthur pushed Alfred, finally getting a look at his face. Alfred looked down a bit confused as Arthur raised a hand up and wiped the trail of tears that streaked the American's face. Alfred stayed silent for a bit, watching Arthur face, even though the room still lacked light.
"Did, did it hurt?" Alfred blinked a bit when he heard Arthur, the Briton's hand now gingerly touching the American's cheek that was beginning to show signs of bruise along with the red swollen skin as Alfred continued to watch Arthur's face.
Arthur then looked up, his eyes making contact with Alfreds for a moment, the green and the blue. Alfred continued to stare, dazing into Arthur's eyes a bit as they were forest green tinted with the a light emerald shade, glistening, almost shining as he continued to stare. But Arthur soon turned his head to the side, breaking the connection, Alfred blinking a bit as he tried to get used to the darkness again.
"Nah." Alfred suddenly said. Arthur turned his head back to look at Alfred, his brows furrowed his confusion. "Your punches aren't that hard anyway so it didn't hurt that much." Arthur scowled at him, letting a small hiss out as Alfred laughed, his voice echoing through the room. Arthur then lightly punched Alfred in the shoulder, the American shifting back a bit, still laughing as Arthur stayed angry. He yelled at Alfred a bit more, Alfred not caring in the slightest as he walked over to the fridge, pulling it open as he questioned if Arthur wanted anything to drink. Arthur made sure to only smile while Alfred's back was turned on him.
Alfred knew that he made the perfect choice, happy that he fell in love with Arthur of all people. After all, he was able to accept that side of Alfred, the side even he was too terrified to face.
They ended up talking for the rest of the night, both of them sitting on the bed, leaning against the wall as the rain, thunder, and lightning continued on. But this time, there was something completely different.
Alfred told Arthur his life story. It wasn't like he was hiding it from Arthur to begin with but it felt good to be able to finally tell Arthur. Throughout the whole time Arthur listened diligently, barely interrupting as Alfred talked.
His elementary school years consisted mostly of bullying. In the beginning, it was fine, most kids were just learning each others names and how to associate with people so they were too occupied with finding friends. When second grade came, he was teased about his chubbiness a bit by the girls, the guys not caring too much about it. It wasn't until the third year when everything turned around, people beginning to pick on others to to make themselves feel more confident about themselves as the cliques forming. Alfred's chubby weight was an easy topic for others to tease him about, causing him to be constantly told off by others as they continued to bully him with rude names along with spreading false rumors. Alfred was a sweet kid that didn't want to cause any problems or harm onto people, thus him not being able to tell any parents or teachers what he had to face. He was a social outcast, the one that never had a partner.
"Fifth grade was a year full of surprises," Alfred said as he continued on with the story, Arthur wrapped up in a blanket as the thunder outside rumbled.
He was still the outcast in the class, the one no one wanted to partner up with. He had grown used to the solitude, spending his free time reading his favorite superhero stories as other continued to tease him. At this point whenever someone made fun of his weight he would just nervously laughed, agreeing with them. They soon found him boring, searching for their next victim. Around a quarter into the year there was a transfer student that joined his class. His name was Toris, and had a thick accent after all of the years he had spent living in Lithuania. Kids flocked the poor shy boy, asking him about his home country, the boys in the class becoming a bet envious of Toris because of the attention he was receiving from the girls, which led to the boys refusing to allow Toris to join their friend group. Because of that he ended up being partnered up with the one no one wanted to pair up with, and because of that he became aquainted with Alfred, enjoying the boy's bright and comforting presence. It didn't take long for the two to click, their lunches, class time, and recess spent together.
Alfred loved playing and being with Toris. He was kind, intelligent, and respectful; everything Alfred wanted as a friend rather than those phonies that acted nice in front of each other while they talked trash behind their backs. All that mattered to Alfred now was having Toris by his side. Kids still sadly continued to make fun of Alfred but he ignored it, knowing that there was someone by his side, that he wasn't alone.
It was near the end of the year when Alfred began to notice change. Toris was becoming shy once again, obviously hiding something from Alfred whenever Alfred questioned if he was okay. At one point Alfred yelled at him with frustration, frightening Toris as he finally spilled to Alfred what he had been hiding.
A week passed since that day, and Alfred was eating alone at a lunch table, spending his time reading comic books once again. His dear friend Toris, was back in Lithuania. The last month of the school year continued on like that fashion, but with only one major difference. Instead of just insulting Alfred about his weight, they began to insult Toris, just for being different.
Alfred was perfectly fine with being trash talked to. He was perfectly fine with being insulted with rude names as well as the crude and obviously false rumors the kids in his class would say. He didn't enjoy it in any way and it did erode any of the self-confidence he may have had left, but he was able to tolerate that. Except for people making fun of his friend. His anger continued to pile and pile and pile, until the day before graduation came. It was during recess when it happened. Alfred was as usual sitting at the picnic table reading as a group of boys walked by the table, yelling out their insult. Alfred didn't remember what they said specifically, but he remembered something snapping from within him and before he knew it he was wrestling down a boy as one ran out calling for a teacher and the other one tried to pry Alfred off. Alfred came home with a bloody nose, black eye and a few bruises on his stomach as one of the three boys went home with a fractured hand.
Middle school began and just like before, Alfred was left out of everything. Middle school also brought along puberty, his face becoming oily as it was littered with pimples, being forced to wear his glasses after hours of sitting in front of a screen and his teeth were constantly in pain because of his braces. But now people avoided him because they were scared of what Alfred might do to them, than because of the rumors.
High school quickly came, Alfred not caring a single bit. It wasn't until during one of his study halls did everything change for him. Study halls were all located in the cafeteria, people being able to sit with their friends or alone if they wanted to. Most of the times he did sit alone until someone else began to work at his table. The two ignored each other at first, but the other began seeking comfort during these hour long periods, slowly getting Alfred to converse with him. It was small in the beginning but their conversation became bigger and deeper, the two becoming very good friends at the end of the day. The man was a grade above him and introduced Alfred to multiple stuff, including the sport he was playing in; football. Alfred quickly became interested in the sport even though he had never played it, something about the game making Alfred blood burst with adrenaline. From there on the man helped him train, spending hours on end in the weights room, finally beginning to burn off the fat as it was replaced by muscle. By the next year Alfred was able to get on the team.
Everything started to change around him after that. More people started talking to Alfred, more people started to get familiar with him. Even some of the people he remembered from elementary school were acting all nice to him, as if none of the events of the past happened. At first Alfred was happy, excited about all this attention he was finally receiving, happily bathing in it. He was always smiling now, school not as dreadful as the past.
But when gaining, one must sacrifice.
Alfred had to repress many of his hobbies to stay in the group now, not doing anything that they would consider pathetic or something a loser would do. He had to act a certain way in the group, meaning that he had to act superior than others, just because they were higher up the social ladder. He was dragged along to parties, forced by peer pressure to do things he knew was wrong. His obliviousness was constantly manipulated, others taking advantage of it as they acted innocent for Alfred to support them in deeds that were obviously their fault. He was the mask that concealed the darkness, becoming the symbol of what everyone outside of the popular group began to detest. To Alfred, he thought he was finally at the pinnacle of success when really, he was the low of the low. He was too blinded by the fame to know what was going on behind the false smiles of others.
It wasn't until Alfred tried to confront the man he shared multiple study halls talking too did he know what was truly going on. Whenever Alfred tried to talk to him he would refuse, pushing himself away from Alfred until one day Alfred cornered him, begging him to tell him why he won't talk to him anymore. And he said it. He said everything that no one had the guts to tell him.
The words that the man told Alfred never escaped his mind. After that incident Alfred tried to notice what was going on in his surroundings then what was going on with him. And he saw everything. He saw how screwed up the system was and how screwed up everyone in it were. He thought that things were different now that everyone had matured since elementary school, only to be proven false. Nothing had changed since elementary school. Everyone was just the same child deep inside, the darkness eating and gnawing away at people, feasting on what mischief they were to do next. In the world he thought he was finally shining he looked around, not being able to find a single friend that he could talk to, relate to, and rely on.
Alfred F. Jones had never ever felt so lonely in his life.
Senior year rolled around, the last year that Alfred was going to have to deal with all of the bullshit he was sick and tired of listening too. He was walking back with a bunch of his "friends" after their final football game, the score being a definite win for Alfred's team. He was trailing in the front, just walking as he barely participated in any of the conversation the guys behind him were having. They talked, first about how happy they were to win this year along with who was going to have parties because of today. Then the conversation quickly went sour, the boys beginning to joke around about others, about who was hot, about who was ugly, about which boys were pussies, about which girls were the grade slut, about rape, about anything they could talk about, degrading everyone they could get their hands on. Alfred stopped, the boys conversation coming to a halt as they questioned Alfred what he was doing. He told them to stop talking about people that way. A boy snickered, saying watch me. Alfred demanded them to stop again, saying that this was a warning. They laughed again, ignoring Alfred as they continued on with their conversation, this time, the name Toris briefly coming up, the boys knowing that it was a tender topic.
The next noise they made were panicking yells.
Alfred came home that day with a busted lip, a black eye, bruises all along his body as well as a bleeding knuckle. The boys that day went back home, one with a broken nose, another with a broken leg, and two with broken ribs.
Then he graduated out of high school, leading into the worst the trial he had to face with his mother, leading him to getting kicked out of the house. With the minimal amount of money he had saved up he rented an apartment, working hard day in and day out for him to have both enough money for food and the rent, as well as saving money up for college that he wanted to at least attend.
"And after working hard and harder and super harder, I was able to get into college!" Arthur looked up at Alfred who was smiling, his head bobbing a bit back and forth. "And after all that I devoted myself to be friendly and help everyone, this time spending my time with real friends then the fakos like back then."
And because of all of these events, he fell in love with Arthur. If he hadn't seen how much Arthur couldn't give a shit about others, how strong he was to be able to stand by his own, how he could walk away after getting insulted, not looking fazed in the slightest - this was everything that Alfred had always wished he had the strength to do. Resolving problems he has with others calmly by using clever remarks, instead of having to resort to violence. Not caring what others had to say about himself, and worrying more about his own happiness. And after seeing Arthur on that rainy day, hold the boy in a tight hug, Alfred was able to see that you didn't need to have to have everything go your way, that as long as you had the important someone by your side, you would never regret the choices you made to get where you are now.
"What was the guy's name again?" Arthur questioned.
"Davie, his name was Davie."
It stayed silent for a bit, the rain creating slight tapping noises as it hit the glass window, the only sound that was heard until Arthur started to chuckle. Alfred looked over to his side, bewildered in what caused the Britain to suddenly start laughing like this. "What?" Alfred questioned, his voiced tinted with a bit of annoyance.
"I just, thought that your like a dog, a puppy." Arthur said as he played with the hem of the blanket. "You're kind and cuddly and are nice to everyone yet, you don't know how strong your jaws and claws really are." Arthur looked up at the window, another strike of lightning lighting up the room. "Like a puppy in the rain." Alfred kept looking at Arthur in a questioning way.
"Why in the rain?" Alfred asked.
"I don't know, really. Maybe it's because you didn't deserve to go through everything you had to, just like how a puppy doesn't deserve being left out in the rain by their owner." He said calmly. Alfred jumped up from his bed onto the floor, trotting over to the cabinet as he pulled out a small bag of chips, hurrying back to the bed as he opened the bag.
"You want some?" Alfred asked, the bag in front of Arthur so he could take some if he wanted to. Arthur reached over and took a chip.
The two sat in silence for a while, the booming of the thunder echoing through the apartment as they continued to eat the chips. As Alfred tried to finish it, Arthur's head lolled onto Alfred's shoulder, surprising the American as he looked down. He wasn't expecting to see Arthur awake though as Arthur stared at something across from them. He felt his heart hum a bit, his body warming up steadily as his body felt at ease, almost as if he took a drug. But then again, isn't love a drug?
"I have a brother named Peter," Arthur said all of a sudden, startling Alfred. "He was the only person I could rely on and I was the only person he could rely on." Alfred looked down at Arthur, who was still staring at the something in front of him.
"Do you miss him?" Alfred questioned as he crumbled up the bag, throwing it so it landed on the counter.
"Yeah," Arthur whispered as he glanced up at Alfred before looking at the blanket, pulling it higher. "I miss him a lot."
