On Better Terms

Chapter 6

Commentary from the Hetalia Gallery

Arthur: Why do I seem like such a moody brat all of a sudden...?

Alfred: You've finally realized it!

Arthur: Oh shut up, you twat!

Russia: *wielding pipe* Oh hush, you guys...

Arthur sat down on the ground across from Alfred, setting the pot down on the precarious stack of books. He poured some into a chipped cup and handed it to Alfred, then pouring some for himself.

He sipped the tea silently, waiting for Alfred's explanation.

Alfred stared down at the cup. He had never seen something so bashed up in his life. There were cracks running along the edge and a multitude of places where the cup had been chipped by time. The ornate golden art around the outer edge was almost all gone, and inside was the brownish tinge that many objects took on after years and years of usage.

Still, not wanting to seem rude, he drank.

Alfred eventually started into an explanation out of pure need for the awkward silence to go away. Arthur didn't seem to mind it, but Alfred found it very disagreeable.

"I… Yesterday morning… umm… I was aware that the… The raccoons are attacking your house! And umm… There are pixies in it too, somewhere… And… yeah…" What the hell are you talking about?! Alfred was making it worse and worse. He eventually just trailed off and sat in silence, wondering just how to save himself.

And yet, Arthur didn't look at him as if he was crazy. "Pixies, you say?" Arthur's expression seemed distant, as if he was remembering something long ago. "They don't sound all that bad. They're quite friendly actually, if you get on their good side."

Now it was Alfred's turn to be weirded out, and weirded out he was.

"What was that? You talk as if you know them personally."

Arthur nodded. "I knew them once upon a time. Long ago… But they left me when… Ah, never mind!" He didn't want to mention his mother, especially to a stranger who probably didn't care. "But are there raccoons and pixies attacking my house?"

Arthur was slightly confused about that. The pixies and all other things magical had left him when he was nineteen. The exact day that his mother died, his imagination and hopes died too. Any spark of joy he had in him was virtually wiped out.

Alfred tried to fix his stupid statement. "Ah! No… What I meant was that… umm… I want you to be my chauffeur!" Okay. Now you've officially done it. Great job! Alfred didn't like it. Even his own conscience was being sarcastic.

Arthur almost dropped his teacup. Chauffeur? Did he hear that right? And what did that have to do with raccoons and pixies in the first place? Arthur couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that the fairies and unicorns weren't coming back to him. "Pardon?"

Alfred figured that since he had said it, he might as well go with it. "I… I want you to be my chauffeur. You know, drive me around and stuff." He fidgeted with his teacup sheepishly, not sure what to do.

The idea didn't sound all that bad to Alfred, actually. Though he wasn't sure if that had anything to do with why his subconscious and dragged him here. All he knew was that he couldn't help but be drawn to Arthur, and he didn't know why. Perhaps it was because Arthur was living such a destitute lifestyle that he wanted to be the hero and pluck Arthur out of it. Or maybe Alfred just wanted Arthur to earn those fifty-seven dollars. Either way, he wanted to be close to Arthur, and having Arthur be the chauffeur would get that part down. He would get to see Arthur at least twice every day.

But Arthur looked unsure about it. He had just met this person yesterday, after all. "Out of all the people you could have taken… why me?" He had to scope out the whole situation before accepting. One wrong move and things could get even worse for him and Peter.

Alfred struggled with his reply. "Well… Umm… You see… I like your green eyes." Brilliant reason… Alfred felt like his conscience hated him at the moment.

Arthur raised one thick eyebrow questioningly. He was getting even more suspicious. "My eyes? Don't you think that's a bit… unrelated?"

Alfred stuck by his word. Trying to take it back would only serve to make it worse, he thought. "No! It's not! Eyes are vital to a person's employee choice." He crossed his arms defensively.

Arthur sighed. He didn't have time for chitchat about eyes. He had to get some sleep. He finished his tea and stood up. "Look, not everyone has time like you do. I need to get some rest. I have many jobs to get to tomorrow. I frankly don't have time to add another one to my list of work." He turned and muttered to himself, "Though I'd like to…" Alfred heard nonetheless.

Alfred stood up himself when Arthur did, having only drank two sips of his tea, and tried to help Arthur clean up. Arthur took the pot and his cup from him, refusing to let him help.

"As much as I don't need it, you're my guest, so sit back down."

Alfred tried to argue, but in the end, Arthur's irritated expression convinced him that arguing wasn't the best idea.

Alfred sat down on the worn out rug and leaned back against the arm of the couch, feeling the roughness of a cheap couch scratch his neck. He waited for Arthur to finish.

When Arthur washed all the dishes, he walked over and leaned against the dirty wall opposite of Alfred.

Before he could say anything, Alfred came up with a brilliant idea. "How much do you get paid every week?"

Arthur was alarmed. He thought this a highly personal question and sniffed defensively. He was very embarrassed about his low wages, despite working so much.

"I… Why would you care anyways?"

Alfred smiled his charming smile once again and stated plainly, "I'll beat whatever it is. Then you can drop those jobs and devote your time to driving me around!"

Arthur winced at how bright the grin was. He had lost the ability to smile long ago and didn't see himself gaining it back any time soon.

But he was surprised by what Alfred had said, and was at a loss for words for quite a bit. Finally, he murmured very softly, "I… get paid $690 a week…" He blushed. It had taken a lot for him to reveal that, not that Alfred knew.

Alfred's eyes widened in surprise. He had seen the hours that Arthur worked, and that was all that Arthur got paid? "That's… that's…" Alfred had always done poorly at math, and this situation was no different.

"About six dollars an hour," Arthur answered for him, his voice even quieter. Arthur, on the other hand, had had a good education. He had gone all the way up to freshman year in college, majoring in politics and minoring in mathematics. But since he didn't finish college, he didn't have a good enough resume to get himself a decent job.

Alfred nodded, not at all embarrassed about his mathematical inabilities. He moved on quickly. "Wow! $690, you said? That's lower than I get paid an hour!" He laughed.

Arthur's eyes roared. It had taken a lot of courage from him to reveal his wage to Alfred, and even as he did it, he was doing it with great uncertainty. He had been wary, wary of this exact reaction that he was receiving. "Look, if you're going to ridicule me, then get out!" Arthur pointed emphatically at the door.

Alfred wiped a tear from his eye and smiled. "Sorry, sorry. I just found it a little ridiculous."

Arthur's arm didn't lower, signifying to Alfred that he wasn't making things better.

Alfred frowned. "What? I just found it weird…" Arthur's expression didn't change, save for an angry twitch.

Alfred put his hands up defensively and tried to redeem himself. "I can pay you more than that. Definitely."

Arthur's arm lowered just a little. Alfred smiled, knowing that it was working. Money was very important to the Kirkland family, as he now saw.

Alfred continued, "You won't have to work that many jobs anymore, your brother will have a better education, and you could probably get a new space to live in!" To emphasize his statement, he gave a childish thumbs up to Arthur.

Arthur wasn't sure what to think. He did lower his arm though. "I… I don't know." He still was partly suspicious that this was all a trap. Eyes aren't any reason to hire someone…

Uneasy, he muttered, "I'll think about it."

Alfred jumped up happily, now completely convinced that his impromptu idea had been brilliant! He vigorously shook hands with Arthur and beamed. Arthur shied away from the brightness of the smile.

Alfred was overjoyed. "Great! Give me a call if you decide!" He pressed a business card into Arthur's hand and backed off, still smiling.

He picked up his briefcase and waved a quick goodbye at Arthur before slipping on his shoes and disappearing out the door. He didn't even give a chance for Arthur to reply.

Arthur studied the business card for quite a bit before glancing at his watch. 12:30 a.m. How wonderful. They had been going at it for about two and a half hours. It had cut dearly into his sleeping time.

Arthur set the card aside and prepared his makeshift bed.

Once he was finished and lying down, he studied the card one last time. Setting it down, he reached over and turned off the lamp, deciding to get some rest. He had a job to agree to tomorrow, after all.

Author's Comments:

So this is the second longest chapter. It's one giant block too! One time frame, same characters, etc. I was half conscious when I wrote some of this chapter, and I'm sure that showed when you guys read through it.

I tried to improve it a little bit. I made a conscious effort to describe their surroundings more, and to dwell a bit more on actions. Please tell me if that made at all a difference, or if there's anything I can improve.
That being said... comment! (Pwease? 3) Since I told some of you that this chapter would come out on Friday... change that to the next chapter! (Though I suspect that the next chapter will be posted tomorrow, if not tonight...)

- Galythia