A/N: Please note that not only is this a step BACK in time, but it's also from a different point of view.


Valentine's Day. I never had one to share it with, despite the past girlfriends that were in the past. They usually lasted a month, week, day, few hours. I got bored of girls pretty quickly. Chatty little things. So it was really new for me to be with someone past the one month marker. Then again, it was even rarer that I liked someone past a year. But Arthur was different.

Really different.

He wasn't talkative, but he was bitchy. He wasn't clingy and sometimes bordered aloof if it weren't for me checking up on him. My favorite method was running up and scaring him in the hallways. Arthur really was too easy a target to tease for his face always contradicted his nasty little insults he carelessly threw my way. But I never minded. He never called me stupid or told me to go away or said anything of the magnitude my father's words held.

And for that, I could slowly feel my feet lifting off the ground whenever he was near.

"Hey Arthur!" I poked my head in the Student Body office knowing full well he would be in here. Probably doing Student Body things.

Kiku was there as well. They had been talking with Arthur's back to the door. I watched as Arthur stiffened before turning around to face me. Kiku, meanwhile, was smiling at me with a knowing smile.

"Hello Alfred," he said. He headed for the door, but stopped to look up at me. "I expect tomorrow will be interesting."

How did I know Kiku knew I had come to talk to Arthur about that day? Call it a hunch. I had been friends with the Japanese boy ever since elementary school when I came up to him on the playground. He was all by himself and was making a sandcastle wall around himself. I kicked it down and told him I'd play with him. He resisted for awhile, running away from me or ignoring my attempts to talk to him. Overtime, he came to see that I really was as awesome as I said I was and we became inseparable.

I laughed, slapping my hand on Kiku's back. "Thanks dude. It will! I'll tell you all about it."

Shaking his head with a small smile, Kiku left. Arthur turned to me with a red face that was inspecting his shoes. Ah, there was something on his mind that he thought was "too embarrassing". While this was my favorite aspect of the Englishman, it was also the most infuriating. Why couldn't he just come out and say what he wanted?

Ah, but then again, didn't I hide from him for years that I had a huge crush on him?

"Hey Artie," I started, but backed up when Arthur shot that stare. How cute. "Sorry, Arthur. What's up?"

"Um…Well… about tomorrow… Is there…something happening?" he asked. I noticed his hands were playing with the ends of his tie.

"Tomorrow?" I asked. "Oh! Yeah. I guess. I mean, did you plan something?"

"M-me?" Arthur looked up at me. Okay, there are many things about this boy that I adore; his hair, his fussy temperament, and his smaller frame- easy to put my arms around. Even those fuzzy eyebrows grew on me within two months of knowing him. But those eyes; they were hands down my favorite thing I loved about him.

Wait, love?

I laughed nervously to cover my own thoughts. "Yeah, unless you thought I was planning something."

Oops. Arthur moved his eyes away as I had actually picked up on something he had meant, but didn't just come out and say. Now he wouldn't say.

"Well, I mean, you've had girlfriends before…," he started.

I ran a hand through my hair and bit my lip. Me and my bragging mouth. "Ah, yeah, that lasted like…a few days or something. I've never actually had a Valentine."

Arthur returned those emerald eyes to me. He seemed surprised by this news. Something in me told me he wasn't used to being treated so special by one person. I figured it had to do with his older brothers and workaholic parents; either that or I was too awesome for him to handle.

"W-well, if you want me to do something…," he mumbled, rubbing his arm.

God, I wanted to hug him. So I did. He gasped and then I wanted to kiss him. So I did. It was his fault.

"I don't mind doing something," I said into his hair, holding him around his waist and giving tiny kisses to his scalp from time to time. "If only to make you smile."

He inhaled harshly, sucking his lips into his mouth. Then he nuzzled his face into my chest. So cute! "I-I'd like that…"

"Then that's what I'll do!" I smiled widely. I leaned down to kiss him.

Automatically, his arms went around my shoulders and his fingers into my hair. Man, I love that feeling. It made me feel invincible to have those arms around me while I pressed our bodies close. He always arched into my touch. His body had that really convenient way of telling me exactly what he wanted.

Me.

"What's the flower…of your country…?" I whispered when we parted our lips.

He must have still been dazed from our amazing kiss. I know I'm just that good. He looked at me with stunned eyes. "H-huh? The rose, I believe."

"Wait, that's my country's flower," I said indignantly. "You guys stole it from us!"

Arthur shook his head as his eyes trailed over my collar bone. He licked his lips. "It's not a real flower. It's a combination of two roses… I think it's made up."

"Oh…" I frowned. "Well, you're getting roses anyways!"

He came out of the spell my skin had cast to snap his eyes up at me. "N-no! You don't have to get me anything!"

"What're you talking about?" I released my hold on Arthur, faintly hearing the school bells ringing. "You can't not get anything on Valentine's Day from your Valentine! That's blasphemy!"

Arthur moved to straighten his tie, his cheeks red. I felt a smirk spreading across my face. "Yes, well not everyone is as excited about holidays as much as you or this country is."

I laughed, turning to walk out of the office with Arthur by my side. I glanced at his hand. How I wanted to hold it, show off that I was dating someone like him, have him still be that much closer to me. But we both knew that was impossible for many reasons.

Sometimes, Arthur wasn't the only one that wasn't honest with his feelings.


So it's Valentine's Day. That means a lot of pink and white, right? Right. So it's not that gay if I wear the red pants my mother accidentally destroyed earlier this year. There was one pink sock in the wash. I looked for some top that was white. Uniform? No, that was tan. T-shirts? None that weren't dirty, wrinkled, or were too cold for the February day. Well, there was this nice dress shirt in the back of the closet. It was white, but had light-brown stripes as well. I frowned, thinking that it'd probably be best if it was all white, but it was the only shirt with white on it that was long sleeved. Ok, fine, then I'll put this brown jacket on so I don't look like a walking fashion explosion. Something Kiku would probably like as it reminded him of home.

My father was out for the day so I had a moment to check in on my mom. She was lounging in the living room watching the T.V. It was a rare chance for the room to be completely hers. My father was almost always on couch, the television set to nothing, and a beer in one hand, another on the floor near his feet.

Mother looked up, smiling as she saw my attire. I never dressed this nicely. "Do you have a date today?"

"Sure do, mom." I came over, planting a chaste kiss on her forehead.

"How sweet," she turned her eyes back to the television. "Be back home before curfew or else your father will be angry."

I clicked my tongue on the roof of my mouth. "He'll get mad anyways. But I'll be out past dinner. Love you."

"Have fun," she mumbled.

I turned away, ignoring the pain in my heart. She never said she loved me.

I had reached the spot where I told Arthur yesterday we would meet. It was a rather popular spot downtown and many students from school were standing by the fountain, the main meeting point for teenagers. With my hands in my pockets, I looked around. Still no sign of Arthur. He hadn't replied to my text from earlier either.

I checked my phone again. Nope, nothing. With a sigh, I watched the other happy couples, already united and coupling it up as if to show me that I was alone. Again, on Valentine's Day.

"Damnit, Arthur, where are you?" I mumbled to no one.

I took a seat on the bench and waited. The water noise added to soothe me, keeping my worry and temper in place. I was angry Arthur was now twenty minutes late, but I worried something happened. Leaning back on the bench, I called Arthur for a fifth time. I tried really hard not to think that he was injured. Had he forgotten? Was his phone off and he didn't remember where to meet? I had once heard a song where this guy was to meet up with a friend, but his phone died and he had ended up running around town to find a battery to replace it. In the end, his friend texted him and said he didn't need to come. Kiku thought it was great when he showed me it, but I thought of what a shitty day that had to have been.

And here I was, having the same shitty-type of day.

When Arthur and I had first gotten together, I wanted to spend Christmas with him or at least show up on his doorstep with a gift and mistletoe in hand. I've always wanted to kiss someone under that thing, so I could die saying I had. That and, well, it was pretty romantic and awesome. The only problem was Arthur informed me the day before school let out that he'd be spending winter break with his family in England. That meant no phone calls either and we had to resort to just e-mails. Those were few and far in between. What sucked the most was I wasn't there to see his reaction to when he opened my present. I wanted to see that adorable smile spread across his face, his eyes all lit up, because of me.

Arthur constantly said I wasn't very romantic, but he couldn't be more wrong. I was pretty big on the romance and wooing in every sense of the word. I may not have been a huge sap like Arthur claimed he wasn't, but I knew when I wanted to be as charming as a Hollywood movie star. That was the key to being good and being a hopeless romantic. I wasn't the latter.

But the more I sat waiting for Arthur, the more I felt like it. It had been an hour now. Now I was growing nervous. I had planned on taking a calming walk down the park's winding pathway. Arthur had once mentioned he enjoyed nature. Later, I wanted to get some food at a French café. While I could see my senior, Francis, and Arthur bicker in the hallways quite often between breaks and Arthur swore up and down that they have never been friends, he had revealed to me that he enjoyed French cuisine. Then, I'd treat him to a movie. I didn't plan on seeing the romantic comedy as I knew it would be packed full of heterosexual couples. A homosexual couple would be quite the eyesore. So I opted to just go to that new Disney movie that was out.

What? There's romance in it.

To top off the perfect day, I would take Arthur to experience a little taste of home. There was a pub nearby that allowed underage teenagers into the restaurant section of it. I had never had anything close to British food before I met Arthur. When I saw him in middle school, I ran home and asked my mom to make something British. She tried scones. They were amazing.

Two days later, Arthur brought in some to school for the International Fair day. They were horrible.

I was a little nervous, but I knew my stomach could take it if I just did it all for love. Again with that word. I couldn't love him. That'd be way too fast. Wouldn't it? Sure, I'd like the boy since we met, I mean, if you saw those green eyes and that frowning lower lip jutting out in such a royally impudent way, well, you'd like the little Britt too.

So that's why I was waiting here, coming up on hour two. I was ready to just march to the bus stop, hop on the next one, and walk to Arthur's house only to remember I hadn't been to it yet. If he was sick or injured, I wanted to care for him. If not, well did I have a few choice words to say. I remained, though, keeping up hope that soon he'd appear over the horizon.

No, this would be a good Valentine's Day, I reminded myself.


Well, no walk in the park or lunch at a café. It was well past lunch. If Arthur didn't hurry, we'd miss the movie too. My hands kept rubbing my legs as I rocked back and forth, waiting for Arthur. I had played all the game Apps on my phone, checked my Facebook for any updates, and stalked my e-mail for any signs from my boyfriend. And yet, I was still alone.

I really wished those girls over at the ice cream shop was stop looking at me. I knew they were whispering at how pathetic I was. Probably laughing at my misery like I was right out of some romantic comedy. That shit's not funny when it's happening to you.

Now, normally, I don't give a shit what people think about me. Honestly, the things I've heard people mutter about me behind my back or say to my face amount to nothing to what my father says. I just laughed off everything everyone else said. They didn't know me. They would never know me, try as they might. I may be an awfully warm guy that seems to open up to people, but the truth is, I'm a paranoid little asshole. I trust only Matthew and Kiku.

And what of Arthur? Arthur went beyond trust. Like I said, he was special. I cared about what he said about me or thought about me. When he looked at me I honestly wondered what he saw. I wanted to hear everything that was on his mind. And when he actually spoke and got rolling with words that were manipulated by his sexy little British accent, I was truly captivated. This little guy was so full of spunk and wisdom that I couldn't help but be in awe of him. How could most people just pass him by or spread nasty rumors of him while hiding in the bathroom? It mystified me.

He honestly was special, but not today. Especially since I was just sitting here with a thumb up my ass, a frown on my face, and wearing pink and white while sitting alone on a bench, girls laughing at me.


And now the movie was out. By now, my mood had completely died. Arthur had better have some good excuse for ditching me on the most romantic day of the year.

At some point, I got it in my head I would bother others on their Valentine's Day. Kiku was the first choice. He was probably on a date and boy did I want to spoil it. Since I was feeling so rotten I thought I'd send some of the crappy mood his way so I wouldn't be alone.

"Kiku?" I asked as soon as he picked up.

"Alfred? Why are you calling?"

"Arthur ditched me, so I'm pissed." I looked at my gnawed off nails that had been so well maintained before today. Sitting on a bench made one nervous.

There was a rustle on the other end, I could hear Kiku apologizing (most likely to his girlfriend, Meiling), and then Kiku's voice. It sounded as if he had covered the mouth piece with his hand. "What do you mean, 'ditched'?"

"I mean he never showed when I told him where we'd be meeting." I sighed as I slid down in my seat. My legs jutted out into the walkway earning a few stares from those walking by. I didn't care that my red pants were in their way of that they were quite the eyesore. "I'm totally bummed."

"Wait, that doesn't make sense. Arthur told me he had made a reservation for dinner tonight with you," Kiku said.

I sat up quickly. "What? But I told him I'd take care of today!"

"Ah, you know Arthur." That jerk of an Asian was smiling. I could tell by his smile. "We were talking about it yesterday, shortly before you arrived. He assumed you would do something, but I told him not to think that way. It wouldn't be fair to you. After that he probably didn't want to put it all on you. Maybe he forgot to tell you?"

"Shit, then why won't he answer his cell?" I looked at my watch. It was almost five.

"He told me he finds it rude to have his cell phone with him when he's on a date. He must have left it at home."

"Son of a bitch!" I exclaimed. "Today is not the time to be a little gentleman, Arthur!"

Kiku was chuckling on the other end and I had half a mind to yell at him. But then he said, "I know where he's at. He told me he'd be at The Jagged Rock restaurant."

"The Jagged Rock?" I repeated. "That's a… Okay, thanks Kiku! You're the best! Tell Meiling I said hi! Don't do anything I wouldn't do, you two!"

I hung up as I heard Kiku sputtering on the other end. Arthur would have had the same reaction. Funny how alike those two could be sometimes.

But now was not the time to marvel at such a thing. I was running as fast as I could down the street. The Jagged Rock was only five blocks away. I had no idea how long Arthur had been waiting and if he was even still there. The entire day I had waited for him, but did he for me?

I stumbled up to the entrance of The Jagged Rock. It wasn't particularly crowded, but people were starting to head from their cars to the restaurant. From outside I could hear the smooth jazz. Jazz. Of course he'd pick a place that played jazz. He used to listen to quite a lot of Classical, some Rock every now and then, but ever since we started dating, that genre had become his passion. Once, he let it slip that it was because it was us.

It was our tie. Every song was ours.

"Excuse me," I said as I pushed my way up to the busboy. "Excuse me, sir? Is there a rather grumpy blonde British teenager here and has he been here for long?"

The busboy nodded in surprise. "Yes, he's been here for a half an hour. He's right over there."

I looked to where he pointed. Arthur's back was to me as he faced the stage. A pianist, saxophonist, and drummer were up on stage playing Take 5, one of Arthur's and my favorites. His head was low and I could feel the aurora of pure anger radiating from him as I approached him.

"Arthur?"

The boy looked up, tears in his eyes. My heart clenched knowing it was my fault he was so upset. He stood up quickly and slapped me across the face.

Well… shit.

"How dare you?" he seethed.

I held up my hands. "Now, wait, Arthur, there's a good explanation for all of this."

"You better have damn well come up with a bloody good reason you stupid git!" Oh yeah, he was pissed. His English was showing through.

"Ok, first of all, sit. There are people that wanna see the stage too." I moved to next to him at our tiny two-person table. The menus hadn't even been touched, but there was a drink on Arthur's side of the table. "Second of all, take your cell with you next time, stupid."

Arthur huffed, crossing his arms and looking away. It's then that I noticed something.

"Hey…" My lips quivered up in a smile. "Our outfits. We match."

"Huh?" Arthur turned to look me over. His eyes widened as he realized I was right.

His brown boots matched my jacket, his own jacket the same red color of my pants. My shirt matched his striped pants. Somehow, he made those pants look great. Like, really great. I never knew a man's thigh could look that good.

"You still haven't explained yourself," Arthur snapped. He returned to grouchy grandpa-like boyfriend mode. My least favorite mode. It was next to impossible to get him out of it.

I had first encountered said mode when I came to school with my arm in a cast. He pestered me to tell him what happened, but I every time I explained that I had fallen, he puffed up his cheeks and treated me like a child unable to take care of himself. I really had fallen, though. It just so happened my dad shoved me into the side of the car first and then I fell on the arm, thus breaking it.

But Arthur didn't need to know that. He lived in a happy little bubble. The worst of his worries being if he got an A on his next English test or if some prick spray painted the side of the school building again. I'd rather not tell him of all the pointless fights my dad and I got into. I'd see his smile even less if I did.

"I told you I'd handle it and that we were to meet at the fountain," I started. "I waited for hours."

Arthur looked down at his lap, but kept his arms crossed. A tinge of blush was on the bridge of his nose. "I was there, but I didn't see you."

"No way, I was there all day. The only time I left was to take a piss." I thought back to how quickly I peed too. I had rushed to make sure I hadn't missed him. "There's no way I had missed you then. Are you sure you went to the right one?"

"Yes I'm sure!" Arthur snapped.

"Okay, calm down." I looked around nervously. "B-but why did you think we were going here? I told you I had something planned."

Arthur rubbed his arms nervously. I counted in my head to three before he started chewing on his lip. Now he'd talk. "I-I know… But I didn't want only you to go to work… We're in this relationship together so I wanted to give…you something too…"

The waiter came just then, asking for our orders. We ordered, handed over our menus, and sat in silence. Well, not really silence as there was a band playing, but neither of us spoke. I don't think he was mad at me, but we were both horribly embarrassed. And bummed.

"Did…you really wait for me for hours…?" Arthur asked at length.

I nodded. "Yeah. All day."

Arthur blushed, looking down. Finally, his arms uncrossed. "I did…for…for you too."

I sighed, my expression softening. I reached under the table cloth and took Arthur's hand in mine. He stiffened, his eyes scanning to see if anyone else saw, but no one cared. This was a day for couples. If they could have this day, then so could we.

"Who cares about the other plans," I said, smiling at my boyfriend. "We're here together now, right? Let's make the best of it."

There it came. That tiny smile. "I'd like that…"


Dinner went without a hitch. Amazing dinner, amazing music, and an amazing boyfriend. All in all, waiting for Arthur wasn't so bad because I knew he had waited for me. And in the end, I took him on that walk. Going at night was much more romantic, especially since the moon was full and no one could see we were two males holding hands. If someone saw us, I think they thought Arthur was a girl. His frame seemed even smaller compared to mine. Once someone had mistaken him as a girl from behind when we stood side by side.

I never let that down, much to Arthur's despair.

"I thought you said you'd get me flowers," Arthur said dreamily. His eyes were closed, his head resting on my shoulder as he had his entire arm wrapped around mine. We had taken up a nice spot on a bench secluded from the main path and were just watching the moon.

Yeah, I was in heaven, to say the least.

"Hm? Oh yeah. I didn't want to give them to you during the day." I moved my head off of his to look down at him. "I knew people would look at us funny that way. Something you hate. But, fear not! I still have every intention of getting you roses. Be right back."

I slipped my arm free of his hold and dashed off to find a flower vendor still open. It wasn't too late in the evening and I knew there had to be someone on the corner of some street still selling at least one small bouquet.

Of course, they were fifteen bucks. My eye twitched at how expensive the tiny flowers were, but I said nothing. Arthur was priceless.

Clutching them close to me, I hurried back to where I knew Arthur was waiting for me. He was standing by now, looking at nothing in particular. I think he was even talking to himself, but when he heard me, he stopped instantly. I was just going to pretend my boyfriend wasn't a little bit crazy.

He gasped at seeing the flowers, even though they weren't a surprise. I plucked one free from the dozen and strode up to Arthur. Without saying a word, I carefully put it in the chest pocket of Arthur's jacket. Arthur was red like a tomato; good enough to eat.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Arthur," I whispered. I put my hands on his shoulders as I came down for a kiss.

But Arthur stood on his tiptoes and caught my lips halfway. One hand gripped at my jacket as he made a content noise. My face was red at the knowledge we were finally kissing in public. It wasn't heated or sexual. We didn't need to be that way, even if I could feel my body starting to head towards that way when I caught my eyes roaming over Arthur's body. No, it was something else. Something I was starting to understand in my chest.

It was just love.


Hoshiko2's cents: Would you believe me if I told you this chapter was incredibly hard to write? I'm not joking. :\

Arthur's way of thinking is very different compared to Al's. When I type, I tend to already have a British accent going on in my head and when I lose it, I just put on some Dr Who to get it back. So for Al's point of view, that meant no Dr Who. No, I watched some American TV instead. *Shudder.*Painful.

Anyways, I realized I had skipped two holidays (not to mention Arthur's birthday) since the original plot line for this series wasn't even supposed to have this many chapters. I thought I'd throw in a sweet chapter of the love holiday (that I flat out hate). Think of it as a gift to you guys since you're all amazing at reviewing my stuff. Seriously, I love checking my e-mail and finding all those reviews. They mean the world to me.

Props to anyone who knows what the song Alfred is talking about (the one with the really bad day). As for last chapter, the Cockney rhyme Arthur said was, "Me ol' jam tart" meaning, "My old heart". Get it? :3

This entire chapter was based off of this sole picture: http:/ /img. photobucket .com /albums /v735/hoshiko2 /For%20LJ /Kiss. jpg (no spaces).