((Oh, man, I never thought I'd stay this motivated to write a story, but I've been itching to write this chapter. I've been excited because more characters are going to be introduced soon—Not one, or two, but THREE! I can't wait to see what you guys think!

Anyways, without further adieu, here's the next chapter of CAROUSEL.))

Chapter 4: Crush

It was around seven o'clock the next evening when I found myself straightening my tie. I was wearing a black dress-shirt under it, sleeves rolled up. I had a few bracelets on my wrist—one of them reading in silver letters, 'Anarchy of the U.K.' and another that was just beads colored blue, white, and red. The others were just black beads or silver bangles. Did I mention that my tie was the Union Jack? I wore a simple pair of black jeans with a wallet chain and black leather belt. As for my shoes, I went simple there, too. It was just a pair of black lace-up shoes.

As I attempted to fix my hair, I noticed Allistor in the doorway. "What's got you all done up, granny?" he asked with a smirk.

I shot him a glare. "Oh, shut it. I was invited to go out with Antonio and his friends tonight."

"Antonio…?" He looked confused for a moment, but it was visible in his expression when he realized who it was. "Oh, you mean that guy who lives in apartment four… Okay."

I clipped on my ear cuff before turning to him. "How do I look?" I asked.

I could tell he was holding back laughter. "What are you—a schoolboy on his first date?" He reached over and clapped me on the back. "You look fine. Remember to pick up a lass for me, too."

A chuckle let loose from me. "As if I would meet anyone who would be interested in an ass like you!"

He shrugged. "Still worth a try. Plus, you're not a gentleman in the aristocracy yourself, brother!" I slugged him. "Ow!" He gave me a quick sour look, rubbing his arm. "Hell, I was just being honest. Now go before your ticket to a good lass leaves without you, Romeo."

I rolled my eyes and left the apartment, just as Antonio and his friends were leaving his. I looked at them, and my eyes were immediately drawn to the Spaniard. He was wearing a white v-neck t-shirt with a black vest over it, with black trousers and classy black lace-ups. He had a wrist-band on his right wrist and a crucifix hanging from his neck. Then, atop his head was a fedora, where his chocolate poked out beneath it. I gulped and suddenly felt my hands get a little clammy—which was a completely strange reaction to have toward a guy, mind you.

He looked at me and his face lit up into a brilliant grin. "Arthur! You decided to come along after all?" he asked, and I nodded.

I took the chance to look at the other two, as they turned to acknowledge me. Francis was wearing a black long-sleeve t-shirt that read 'Vive le France' on it with the Eiffel Tower. He must've been wearing a white dress shirt beneath it, because I could see the collar at his neck and the tail beneath the t-shirt at the waist. He was wearing a pair of jeans and some sneakers, and what looked like brand-name sunglasses. His blond hair was tied back into a low pony-tail. Once again, his expression made him look like a jackass.

The albino—who I had yet to learn the name of—was wearing a black v-neck t-shirt and a unzipped dark blue (Prussian blue?) hoodie over it. He was wearing slightly baggy jeans with some lace-ups. He had a watch on one of his wrists and a set of black headphones hung around his neck. The cord led to what seemed like an MP3 player in his jeans pocket.

As I looked over the silver-haired man, though, he fixed me with a smirk. "If you take a picture, it'll last longer."

I was about to reply with something smart, but Antonio cut me off before I could say anything. "Gilbert, be nice. Arthur's a friend."

The albino laughed—more like cackled—and said, "I know. The awesome me was just making conversation, is all." He then looked at me for a while. "Oh yeah, I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Gilbert Beillschmidt, the best thing you've probably ever laid your eyes on. Don't worry, I don't charge for looking, but if you want to touch, you're going to have to take me out first!"

Francis looked at him, almost offended. "That was the worst pick-up line ever!"

"No way—I said it, so it has to be the best one you've ever heard, ja?"

Antonio interrupted. "Um, guys, maybe we shouldn't argue about this now. Lovi wanted us to show up early to help set up."

I blinked a couple times; I haven't heard that name yet. "…Lovi?" I asked.

Antonio grinned at me. "Remember that friend I told you about who is hosting this party? His name is Lovino Vargas. You'll meet him when we get there… Oh, but don't get on his bad side. He might stick his muscle-head boyfriend on you."

Gilbert spoke up. "Hey! Don't talk about my brother like he's some kind of guard animal!"

Antonio looked back at him in apology. "Sorry, Gil," he said before he continued, " Anyways, it's not difficult at all to get on Lovino's bad side, so I would suggest just relatively leaving him alone. I'm a childhood friend, Gilbert is his boyfriend's older brother, and Lovino is afraid of Francis for some reason, so he leaves us alone… But he doesn't know you, so watch yourself."

"I understand, chap. But if we don't want to anger him, shouldn't be get there in time?"

Antonio laughed with a helpless smile. "Oh, right… Now that I think about it, you don't have a moped or anything, do you?"

I frowned and shook my head. "Afraid not."

Antonio walked over to me and hung an arm around my shoulders. "It's okay, you can ride with me on my Vespa."

I suddenly felt my face heat up, and wanted to hit myself for it. But Antonio just smelled really good… "Ahah, okay, let's do that." I said awkwardly, and I thought I heard a chuckle from one of the other two as Antonio removed his arm. We then all walked out to the parking lot after Antonio locked his apartment door.

Gilbert hopped on a black Harley, which I was surprised he would have had. Francis had a blue Vespa that looked like a newer model than Antonio's red one and he sat in the seat on it as Antonio climbed onto his and patted the extra space on the seat behind him. I could only assume that meant 'get on'. "Hey, Gil, can Arthur borrow your extra helmet?" he asked

The albino finished fastening his own helmet before saying, "Sure," He reached on the back of his bike, where there was another helmet, and tossed it to me. "Catch!"

I awkwardly fumbled it before getting a good hold of it and I put it on as I sat on the back of Antonio's Vespa. He already had his headgear on and he started up his engine. I noticed that he had his fedora in the crook of his arm. "Want me to hold that?" I offered.

"Sure!" Antonio said and I grabbed it for him as he started driving out of the parking lot. "Hold on!" he shouted, and he didn't have to tell me twice for me to wrap my arms around him. I realized at that moment how muscular he was. I could feel his warm, toned chest through the shirt he was wearing. I fought with myself not to run my hands over him and feel everything. But the thoughts were yanked from my mind as Antonio sped up down the street, followed by Gilbert and Francis.

Was it wrong that this felt really good, to be holding onto Antonio like this…?

Within about twenty minutes, Antonio pulled in front of some expensive looking apartments and parked in the corresponding parking garage, followed by his two friends. Unwillingly, I unwound my arms from his waist as he turned off the engine. I took my helmet off and ran a hand through my hair to get rid of the helmet hair. However, I looked over just as Antonio took off his helmet and shook his head, running a hand through his hair. As his fingers were tangled in those chocolate locks, his olive green eyes found purchase on me, lit up by that sunshine-like smile. "Enjoy the ride?" he asked. If my eyes served right, I swore his smile turned a little into a smirk.

I definitely wasn't going to keep my cool around him for too much longer.

"Yeah, it was alright," I replied, looking away as to not look like some creeper.

He chuckled softly, getting up. "Good." He latched his helmet to the moped and took mine before doing the same with it.

"Well," I heard Francis say behind us. "Are we going to keep out Italian friend waiting?"

((The new characters are going to be introduced next chapter~! Also, it's safe to assume Arthur has a bit of a crush on Antonio at this point, hmm?))