Alfred stared up at the ceiling, his blue eyes in a dream-like trance. "I hope Arthur won't hold it against me," he said aloud, to no one in particular. "How else would I have been able to cope?" His hands trembled as he lifted them to his face and scrubbed at his eyes. "But what will he think when he sees what's become of me? What will he say?"

He threw his arms back to his sides and groaned. "This is so stupid! The Arthur I know wouldn't judge my current state! It's got to be the medicine fucking with me!" A glance to his body showed how thin he had become in the past few months. "I still look healthy as shit. Everything is going to be fine."

Toris entered the room, quietly closing the door behind him. "Good morning, Al," he brightly chimed as he set his backpack down on a chair. "It's strange to see you awake. You're always sleeping when I arrive."

"I'm just thinking," Alfred sighed. "Do you think Arthur will treat me the same once he knows….everything?"

The other man bit his lip, not wanting to give his friend false hope. "One can only hope so," he simply replied, yet the sting of resentment for Arthur in his heart still hurt. "If Arthur is really your friend, like you say he is, I believe he will understand." Though he didn't think it was possible, he wanted Alfred to feel hope. "I think it will all work out."

"Here's hoping then," the blond groaned before closing his eyes and drifting back into a dreamless slumber.

.

Heracles entered the room with glasses of iced tea for Kiku and Arthur. Kiku thanked him with a kiss to the cheek before he left the room. Something about small, intimate gestures like those made Arthur feel as if he were intruding, so he quickly distracted himself with a swig of the iced tea, feeling rejuvenated as he swallowed it.

"You know, Alfred had a really sweet side to him when you were alone with him," the Japanese man slowly began. "He made you feel as if you were included at all times, no matter what. With him, you never felt out of place or that you didn't belong. He made you belong, no matter how awkward or shy you were. I suppose you could say that's one of the things I miss about him."

Arthur considered the other man's words. There was fact in them. After all, he had difficulties with fitting in with others, but around Alfred he never had to worry about such trivial things. With Alfred, he always belonged. It was odd that he didn't seem to notice such an important detail until it was pointed out to him by someone else.

"You are correct about that," Arthur mused aloud. "I suppose I never really thought about that until it was mentioned. It's true, though. Alfred just kinda has that effect on others, doesn't he?"

"Yeah," Kiku sadly answered, "he did."

The blond tried to ignore the past tense used by the other man and quickly changed the subject. "So what was it like for you when you were with Al? I mean, considering your age difference and all, I'm sure there isn't much you could've done out in public and all that."

The Japanese man chuckled to himself for a moment. "I suppose you're right about that."

.

Two Years Previous

"Can you believe our first year of high school is nearly over, Alfie Jones?" Charlotte excitedly asked him, sprawling out on his bed and giggling to herself. "It's like we blinked and then we were sophomores!"

"Oh, damn, you're right," he suddenly realized, chuckling to himself. He thought back to everything that had happened in the past year, sending his heart racing. When had he grown into such a man? How had he managed having three different relationships in the span of an entire school year? "A lot has happened in the blink of an eye, huh?"

"You can say that again," she agreed, sighing happily. "Yet I wouldn't change it for the world. We're growing into ourselves, Alfie Jones." Charlotte grabbed his hand and pulled him down onto the bed next to her, laughing. "This is just the way it was meant to be! Next week, we're officially sophomores! We won't be fresh meat anymore!"

Alfred smiled. "You're right! We'll be one step closer to being upperclassmen!" He could feel his excitement building inside of him. "What do you plan to do once we graduate?"

"You're already thinking about that?" she laughed. "Let's see, I plan to go to college…"

"Before that," he insisted. "I'm talking about the summer before college. What do you plan to do during all of that? I'll tell you what I'm gonna do. I'm going to travel to see my best friend Arthur!" Alfred's smile was almost too big for his face. "We'll both have changed so much that I doubt we'll even recognize each other!"

Charlotte smiled lovingly at her excited best friend. "I'm thinking perhaps a roadtrip across America to go to every place I've always wanted to go but have never been."

Alfred's eyes widened with realization. "Oh! That's a great idea! Maybe Arthur will be up for something like that! I should try that!" His body was nearly humming with excited nerves as he thought of possibilities. "Imagine going on a cross-country road trip to solve a mystery or something!"

"The only problem with that is that there is no mystery to be solved," she laughed.

"Then I'll just have to make one!" Alfred puffed his chest out with pride. "I'm sure that I could do it! And it'll be the best mystery that anyone will ever solve! At the end, at the final destination, it'll all come full-circle! It won't be one of those stupid endings that feels forced. When the mystery I make is done, there will be a sense of accomplishment and a bittersweet notion of fulfillment."

Charlotte rolled her eyes. "Yeah," she scoffed. "Just focus on graduating high school first, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," he laughed, flopping down beside her. "But it'll be awesome. I'll make sure of that. And if it comforts you, I'll make it in my free time. If I get bad grades, feel free to destroy all of my plans for it."

"You're so serious sometimes, Alfie Jones."

"No, Charlie, I'm just planning a great future is all," he assured. "After all, I want it to be a future where I'll have all of my friends together at last. None of us will have to miss each other, and every wrongdoing would be forgiven. Doesn't that sound great?"

"It does, but it doesn't sound real."

"Who's the serious one now, Charlie?" he asked with a smirk. "But for real, that's all I want. Maybe we could buy a plot of land and build our own village or something."

"You sure dream big, Alfie Jones, but that's what I like about you."

.

Present Day

Alfred glanced to the door as Charlotte Schmit entered his room. "Hey Charlie! It's been awhile!" His blue eyes inspected her as a smile grew onto his lips. "And you're still as hot as always!"

She rolled her eyes and sat down. "You never change, Alfie Jones," she replied with a small chuckle. Her hands reached out to grab his, gently cradling them. "It looks like you finally get your mystery cross-country roadtrip. It's too bad you're not able to participate."

"That's true," he sighed, looking out the window at the gray, overcast sky. "But it'll end the way I wanted it to." A small smile played on his lips. "It truly will come full-circle."