Author's Note: I've never seen this particular situation done before out of all the omegaverses I've come across, and someone mentioned it to me once, so I decided to give it a shot. This story will have three parts, though I can't vouch for the consistency of updates since school started and all.
I'll touch on a few religious values - I grew up Catholic and there were always certain things that bothered me about it, no offense to any Catholics, I love you all - sexism, perhaps, for the time period, and certain issues arising within an omegaverse society. I'm sure you can guess where this story is headed.
Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia and I most likely never will.
Alfred Jones' first glimpse of Arthur Kirkland had been during Sunday mass.
Alfred remembers staring blankly down at his hymnal while his mother quietly chastised his father for not paying sufficient attention to the pastor. At nine, he had a vague understanding of God, of Heaven and of Hell, and the certain criteria he had to meet if he ever wanted to meet his creator in the next world. He understood, but religion had meant little to him at such an age.
He'd recited long-memorized prayers without incentive, received communion with all those perfectly polished gestures he had learned as a second-grader, but never had Alfred actually felt anything.
He had always wondered if something was the matter with him. Matthew never seemed to have issues staying alert during mass, though Alfred knew for a fact that his twin brother was always just as bored – if not more so – as Alfred was. Mattie had just always been better at hiding it.
Growing up in a small, religious town had never appealed much to Alfred. As a child, he'd been pretty content with his surroundings, all things considered. He'd never had trouble making friends, did okay in school, and was never bothered by the fact that everyone in his community seemed to know all about his business. But as he grew older and began to realize that there was a much bigger world out there, Alfred became restless.
Living in Allen, Kansas during the early eighties wasn't easy, especially considering Alfred was a male Omega. He wasn't sure how he'd gotten so unlucky as to be born an Omega; especially since his twin brother Matthew was an Alpha. Men of Alfred's nature weren't especially uncommon, though it was in his hometown, and it sure did make his life a lot harder.
Again, while Alfred never had to struggle to fit in at school, there were times when some of the other boys, the Alpha or Beta boys, told Alfred he couldn't play a certain game because he was an Omega. To this day Alfred doesn't think any of his schoolmates meant to be rude by saying those things – in that town, at that time, everyone was taught to think that way, even Alfred himself. But he never gave up, and eventually everyone forgot about his nature. He's always been on the larger, heavier side anyway, so it wasn't too hard to overlook, even when he was a kid.
But at a point in Alfred's childhood, everyone seemed to remember every time they looked at him that he was an Omega, and a male one at that.
That point came when the Kirkland family moved into town.
Thinking back to that hot, summer day when he first saw the Kirklands, Alfred remembers looking up from that familiar, uninteresting hymnal at the sound of a baby starting to whimper. Careful not to let his mother know he'd strayed from the homily, Alfred turned his head to the right, trying to seem inconspicuous, glancing across the isle at a pew not directly across from him, but the one behind it.
The woman Alfred assumed to be the mother looked nice enough, though she appeared really strained with thinning, dark blonde hair falling in front of her worn, green eyes. The woman had tried to shush her warbling baby while two of her four remaining children rolled their eyes in obvious annoyance.
The two eldest boys had hair so red it had startled the young boy somewhat, and eyes almost as blue as Alfred's own, and they had looked as if it was their own mother's fault for the baby's discomfort. The younger girl with curly, red hair had shifted her light blue eyes around nervously, looking for people like Alfred who had been attracted to their family by the sound of the youngest member becoming fussy, quite obviously self conscious as she shrunk down in her seat next to one of her brothers.
Alfred was beginning to turn around for fear that his mother would catch him staring, but movement from the woman's other side caught the boy's attention. A boy that appeared to be no older than Alfred took the infant from his mother's arms gently, giving the obviously distressed woman a reassuring smile before settling back in the pew with the baby held carefully in his arms.
Unlike his older brothers and sister, this boy had blonde hair just like his mother. It was quite unruly, though it seemed to complement his person, or at least Alfred thought so. His eyes were just as green as his mother's, though they were a brighter, deeper shade, completely free of any and all stress that his mother always seemed to have. And those eyebrows! Alfred kinda wanted to touch them, though that would've been weird. They looked like fuzzy worms. Or caterpillars. Either way, they were pretty darn big.
Alfred is quite certain he was the only churchgoer that day who paid any attention to what the Kirkland boy did, watched in awe as the young boy did what his mother hadn't been able, rocking and soothing the baby until it quieted down. The mother had leaned over to kiss her son's temple in gratitude, and it was then, smiling and obviously pleased with himself, that the new boy raised his gaze to Alfred's.
The boy continued to watch Alfred even as his mother pulled away, and though Alfred knew he should've, he didn't feel any embarrassment for having been caught staring. Instead, he'd given the newcomer his most winning smile and a wave, which had finally earned him a whack upside the head from his exasperated mother.
Matthew bugged him about what he'd been staring at long after mass ended that day, though Alfred refused to tell him, just because it was fun to watch his brother squirm. He failed to catch another glimpse of the green-eyed boy or his family, though Alfred hadn't been too worried. He figured he would see the kids in school come August.
But as it turned out, Alfred didn't have to wait that long.
A few days after mass, Alfred had been wrestling outside with Matthew when their mother came to stand in the doorway of their two-story house, wiping one hand on her cooking apron while the other pushed a stray lock of blonde hair behind her ear. "Freddie! Get off your brother and come inside. We're having guests over!"
Alfred was straddling Matthew's hips, keeping a firm grip on his brother's shoulders and taunting him for being pinned down by an Omega, though Matthew managed to push his brother off while Alfred was distracted by their mother's call. "But, Mom!" Alfred cried, still sitting amongst the dirt and dead grass even as Matthew stood up to brush himself off. "You said we could play outside until lunch!"
"Something came up." She explained as Matthew turned to tug Alfred to his feet, and Alfred had to slap his brother's hands away as the Alpha tried to dust him off as well. "Boys, don't hit one another! Oh, you're both a mess. Honestly, do you want Mrs. Kirkland to think I've raised a pair of heathens?"
"Who's Mrs. Kirkland?" Mattie asked.
"She and her children just moved here from England." Their mother explained as the twins trudged across the lawn and up onto the porch, toeing off their boots in preparation to follow the woman inside. Alfred was worried he'd be forced to take a bath as his mother assessed his dirtied hands and knees critically. He'd just had one two days ago! "I've made arrangements to watch her children for the afternoon while she goes to look for work. You boys be on your best behavior, okay?"
"Okay." Matthew said, just as Alfred exclaimed, "Why is she lookin' for work? Doesn't her husband do all that stuff?"
"Hush and get changed." Their mother said, grinning as she flicked Alfred with her apron. "And remember your manners. Don't ask rude questions!"
Alfred wasn't exactly sure what his mother meant by "rude questions," though he did as she asked and followed Matthew up the stairs to their shared bedroom to get changed.
Matthew was wiping a smudge of dirt off Alfred's face when the two heard voices from downstairs, and they held their breath, twin gazes locked, straining to listen. They recognized their own mother's voice, along with another female one that Alfred assumed was this Mrs. Kirkland person. "You think her kids will be nice?" Mattie asked. Matthew had always been just as friendly as Alfred, though not as boisterous. Meeting knew people wasn't exactly scary for either of them, though it was a bit daunting; for Matthew especially.
"I dunno." Alfred replied just as their mother called up to them, and he took his twin's hand, beginning to lead him from the bedroom. "I guess we're gonna find out."
Alfred remembers trying to make a conscious effort to not storm his way down the stairs as he'd been prone to doing back then, instead trailing behind Matthew, ghosting his fingers along the banister of the stairway. His parents always said his enthusiasm was a bit much, and when meeting people for the first time, it was better to tone it down a little.
"Alfred, Matthew," their mother was saying even before Alfred reached the last step, "this is Mrs. Kirkland."
"Hello, ma'am." Matthew greeted, already at the bottom, and Alfred had to refrain from rolling his eyes. His twin was so sickeningly perfect in the face of others, though Alfred couldn't count on both hands how many times he'd been locked out of the house while their parents weren't home.
"Hello, there, young man." That had to have been Mrs. Kirkland, and Alfred blinked, shocked at the sound of her voice. How far away was England, exactly?
Alfred still hadn't seen the new family yet, though he could see Matthew and a couple pairs of feet shuffling in the doorway, and really, Alfred couldn't help himself from saying, "Your accent is funny."
Alfred's mother looked aghast when Alfred finally reached the bottom step, and when the young boy finally caught a glimpse of their visitors, he felt slightly embarrassed himself. The tired-looking mother he had seen in church earlier in the week was standing beside his own mother, surrounded by her children and holding the crying baby – which was now asleep. The English woman looked amused as she caught sight of Alfred, looking as if she were trying to hold in a laugh.
Matthew had looked frightened on Alfred's behalf, probably imagining the lashing Alfred was going to get once their father came home from work, though just as Alfred was about to apologize, another strange-sounding voice piped up. "Well, so is yours."
It was the same boy from before, holding on to his older sister's hand as he glared over at Alfred, considerable eyebrows furrowed together. Alfred felt nervous then, though he probably would have gotten defensive as well if someone commented on the way his own mother spoke, so he understood the boy's anger. Though in that moment, all Alfred could really think about was that he didn't want his stranger to be mad at him.
"Hi!" He exclaimed, a large smile splitting his face that seemed to catch the other boy off-guard.
Emerald eyes blinked in confusion over at Alfred, though that quickly passed. Apparently, he remembered Alfred's curious azure stare. The boy didn't say anything for a moment, though his sister nudged him gently, prompting him to at least try and return Alfred's enthusiastic greeting with only her eyes. "Hello." The boy muttered after a moment.
"Boys," Alfred and Matthew's mother said soon after, still looking quite peeved at Alfred but all too happy to move the conversation along, "this is Alasdair, Scott, Annie, Arthur, and Peter. Kids, these are my sons Matthew and Alfred. Mattie is the one a bit shorter than Al, and he's an Alpha. Al is an Omega."
All irritation present in Arthur's eyes vanished at her comment about Alfred being an Omega, and Alfred felt vaguely uncomfortable now under the boy's intense stare, uncertain of what had caused Arthur's sudden shift in mood. "A male Omega?" Mrs. Kirkland repeated, glancing down at her second-youngest son. "My son Arthur is one as well. Alasdair and Scott are Alphas, and Annie, Peter, and I are Betas, so Arthur feels a tad put out among us."
"Oh, I'm sure he and Alfred will become good friends." Alfred's mother assured, having noticed the way the two Omegas were now watching one another.
Even though he had only been nine at the time, Alfred understood that being a boy and an Omega wasn't easy. As far as he knew, he was the only boy at school that carried such a burden, and despite all the friends he had, he'd always felt set apart from them. But if Arthur Kirkland was an Omega too, that meant Alfred wasn't alone anymore! They would understand each other in ways their families couldn't, and while his parents and Matthew had tried throughout their childhood, they just didn't understand the stress Alfred's nature put him under.
Alfred never once blamed his family for not understanding, not even as the years wore on and things became more difficult. After all, he'd always had Arthur, and for a while, that was enough. He hadn't wanted anything more than the other Omega's friendship. But then Alfred began to see things in a different perspective than everyone else in his small, religious community.
Everyone else except Arthur, that is.
But Alfred hadn't known that when they first met, though even if he had foreseen the trouble his relationship with Arthur would cause, Alfred doubted he would've done anything different that first day when he invited Arthur upstairs to look at his comic book collection.
Regardless of how everything ended, it had all been worth it.