as always, i do not own the selection nor hetalia. these belong to kiera cass and himaruya hidekaz respectively.
Arthur's birthday week had always been a quiet one.
The first event was him being allowed to visit his siblings at home for a day, mostly the weekend, by the holding facility staff. He was allowed to go the night before, bringing a cake that he'd purchased and stored in the small fridge he shared with Kiku, and had been allocated a bus ticket, since his family lived within the Hearts border.
By the time he got home, Dylan would usually be asleep, since from all of his siblings, himself included, had always been strict about his bedtime. But the commotion Erin, Cormac, Christian and Allistor would cause hearing Arthur's provided suitcase trudge up the crude brick path would draw him outside to meet Arthur anyway.
This year, though, of course he wouldn't do something as silly as ask to leave the palace just for a visit, so on Monday he got a handmade card, a photo wrapped in tissue and a small parcel.
"Dear Arthur,
Happy eighteenth birthday! We hope you'll have a wonderful one. Glad to get rid of us for this year?"
No, I'd...much rather be at home with all of you. "Yes, I am." Arthur muttered underneath his breath, placing down his cup of tea. Anna had come up with the breakfast and the post at the same time, asking why he hadn't made his way down to the Drawing Room after the hubbub of last night's date. The moment he saw 'Arthur' written in Allistor's harsh, sloping script, though, he knew he wouldn't be moving from his spot until he'd finished reading it.
"Let's hope this year is better than the last one, and you'll get settled in wherever you are. Whatever happens and wherever you go...just know that we'll always support you, no matter what. If you need any of us, just write a letter, or give us a call on the phone. For your sake, as well as the compensation sent to us, we bought a cake from the shop down the corner. Remember the one with the red roof? When Erin and I would take you home from school, and we'd pass it? We took a photo in the front of the store, and before eating it. Cormac thought you could fill your photo frames with one of them."
Even with brief, two week visits during Christmas and the summer; it still felt surreal to him. In fact, Arthur barely did remember that aspect of his childhood, but not well enough to the point where he could mention it. The insecurity of not really fitting in melted away, though, when he shelled the photos away from the tissue paper they'd been wrapped in.
His five siblings were huddled in front of the shop, crowding around Erin, whose mousy brown hair blended in more than usual compared to Allistor's red, Cormac's blond and Dylan and Christian's dark brown, but she was holding out the white box with a smile. Arthur himself couldn't resist smiling when he saw Dylan's new backpack, Cormac's new boots, and what looked like a new jacket for his older siblings. They'd told him that they'd managed to buy some new clothes due to the bonus payment they'd been receiving, but it was something else to actually see it in person.
The second photo was a picture of them sitting around the table, candles lit on the cake and illuminating the six plates on the table. Dylan, who was sitting in the front seemed to have his hair - which had a knack of curling up at the sides of his face - newly brushed for the occasion, which Arthur knew was a feat because the tyke never seemed to be able to sit down. Though the furniture had changed and everyone had definitely physically grown since the last time Arthur had seen them in December, just by looking at it he could feel the cosiness of his family.
"Enough about us though. How's your life in the palace changed from when you since wrote? Since you said you were determined to not celebrate your birthday in that letter two weeks ago, we wanted to at least do a little something for you. Dy drew the cover of the card, and well – the present's not much, but we hope you'll like it. See you soon!
Lots of love, wee bairn,
Allistor, Erin, Christian, Cormac, Dylan"
Though his youngest brother was only around eight, he was a far better artist than Arthur would ever be. Simply put, it was a drawing of all of them and Happy birthday being written as neatly as possible underneath it, Arthur being put in the middle, comically large crown drawn over his comically large eyebrows. They weren't that thick...right? And what was it with the crown...was Erin being too excited over the Deciding again, or...
Well. Maybe he shouldn't look too much into it, since a royal of old was what he had been named after. Arthur let himself gaze fondly at it for a bit longer before he opened up the card to forty five degrees and put it next to the sole empty frame, where the photo with his siblings standing in front of the shop went.
"So, what were you, like, doing this morning?" Leon was asking at lunch, as soon as they'd all gotten settled. From the corner of his eye, he could see that more than half of the walls in the dining hall, as well as the addition of extra tables at the back of the room had still been left inside – the Meeting was next week, after all. "Everyone was downstairs trying to watch the news, but the segment with their date hasn't aired yet."
"It didn't air on Sunday?" It wasn't like Arthur had been quietly paying attention whilst he was reading his books from the library just to see whether Alfred had enjoyed himself and both his fellow Chosen had done well...or anything like that.
"No, it didn't. But what were you doing this morning? Was it something important?"
Pausing for a moment, Arthur realised that they were still largely one of the first people to reconvene for lunch. He could see four people, a friend group that had come in together around two rows down, but that was it.
Perfect opportunity, then. He figured that he really couldn't get away with not telling anyone at all.
"Well. I haven't told you, but...it's my birthday this week, I suppose. On the twenty third." To his relief, though, Leon acted like he usually did and didn't freak out, simply acknowledging the news with a barely discernable quirk of his eyebrows. "I received a card from my family. That's...that's all."
"Your birthday? Is there a reason why you kept it to yourself? Surely the prince could do something for you, if you, like, wanted."
"I would prefer to avoid a celebration," Arthur mumbled, rubbing his forearm. Making it up on the spot, he continued. "Truthfully, I'd only wished for a tiny gathering, if I needed to. But Sakura was busy with her date on Saturday, and you know Emma. The whole palace would absolutely know before I even left the room."
Snorting once, Leon nodded. "That sounds like her. So...you don't want me to say anything?"
"If you don't mind."
"Oh, okay." With that, the conversation seemed to be over, the two of them returning to their glasses of water. It was only when more people started to file in before Leon exhaled, turned around slightly and spoke in a low voice.
"Arthur, you're, like, kidding me, right? I mean, I won't say anything, but you don't even want a little gathering? In a room or something?"
"I...well, I would prefer not to receive all that attention." Arthur said. Never mind, he was the weird one, after all. "And I'm not sure how it would look, if-"
"The twenty third, right?" Both of them paused to make sure neither Sakura nor Emma were walking into the room before returning to their fierce whispers. "Surely Prince Alfred would be on a date or something that night, or the one after or something. Like, whatever. Look, we'll just ask around-"
"We?!"
"Why not, sure," Leon said coolly, undeterred by his friend's flustered expression. Honestly, Arthur was envious of how easily he hid his emotions. "We'll just ask around to see if anyone has a date before or after dinner, and we'll, like, get something done then. Or during the weekend, when everyone's busy."
Realising he probably couldn't talk him out of this, Arthur conceded with a relaxing of his shoulders. "All right, well. I-I suppose. But please," Emma and Sakura walked in together, surrounded by a few more people than usual, and the two boys watched them as they made their way to their usual seats. "Don't inform them until we have a time that will work."
Leon nodded, and that was that. When the Chosen that had been following them – mostly Sakura now, Arthur had realised – peeled away and the two girls greeted them, he simply told them that his family had written a letter and omitted the early conversation that had taken place.
"More importantly, though," Leon said, possibly to deflect Emma from asking more about it, "How was your date, Sakura?"
"Ah...has the television programme not aired?" she replied, sounding embarrassed. When all three of them shook their heads, she blushed even further. "W-Well, it was..."
Before she could speak, though, the Primary Suit members walked in and commenced lunch, then the food came in so quickly that there was no opportunity for the usual heady conversation to take place. The elegant melody of forks and spoons, the clinking of glasses that sounded like tuning forks and the hum of gossip that was familiar to his ears now flooded the room.
It was only when he'd finished his main course that he realised something, raising his face towards the front of the table. Barely daring to breathe, Arthur watched the movement of Alfred's eyes around the room, slow and easy and without much urgency. At his side, Ace Matthew and Jack Yao were speaking; their heads huddled together like penguins keeping warm for the winter. This movement continued, occasionally his gaze would still on one person, he'd make an expression ranging from relief to conflict, and they'd exchange a few words before moving on. He noticed Alfred pass over Alfonso without much incident, and he chose to interpret it as a good sign for his acquaintance.
His pecan soup now forgotten, his breathing stilled when he saw them move onto Sakura. Ducking his head, determined not to be caught looking, at the corner of his eye he noticed Alfred smile whilst speaking to the others. Arthur's shoulders inadvertedly relaxed; this must have meant that Sakura had done well the previous weekend. No stopping on Emma and Leon either, that must have meant something good. That left...
He came to the realisation at the exact same time it happened. Alfred's neck tilted slightly when he turned over to look at him, inadvertedly exposing his nape and the silver and gold on it to the light of the chandeliers. Green met blue briefly before Arthur forced himself to break the eye contact he was sure was not meant to be happening, staring at his mostly empty bowl, fighting off the warmth scattering uncomfortably across his cheeks.
At the same time, though, he kept them at the corner of his view – and wished he hadn't. With a sinking stomach, he realised that the three of them were discussing him, and he couldn't see Alfred's face as it was turned away just so. From the tone of their voices, it didn't sound as if they were singing his praises, either. Not like he had anything to praise, anyway. All the old fears came rushing back, supplemented only by Arthur biting the inside of his cheek and forcing himself to focus on his cutlery.
Which, in hindsight, was a foolish move, as the light reflecting off the blue tint of the handle made Arthur think of those eyes that had stared so deeply into his, even if it had only been for a moment. That gaze felt like there was no longer a third of a dining table and a whole television contest between them, instead feeling as if they were the only two people in the room once more. The way that the light had fallen across his neck, exposing his chains, had made him want to place a hand over it, shielding it. But that would require him to get close...
By the Fates. Had the idiot's eyes always been so blue? Arthur blinked twice in rapid succession, trying to throw himself off from his foreign thoughts, but it did no good. That stare had never pulled him in with such intensity before, never filled him with the desperation of wanting to be close, never had made him want to look at his own reflection within their depths.
I wanted to look at you more, he thought, before he could stop himself. Did you feel the same as well? He hadn't wanted to think about what Alfred meant to communicate with that look, but not even his glasses could disguise it – it was a mirror of his own emotions. The same complicated yearning didn't feel as if it were one sided anymore, but then...
Speaking with both the Jack and the Ace felt like a bad omen. After all, a Deciding had so many more factors than being attracted to one person – at least, those which the winners flourished in their position instead of driving a kingdom to the ground. From what he'd remembered from the holding facilities and his own interactions with the prince, both of them rightfully would play a massive role in helping him decide his final choice. Both of them were mostly reasonable men, and were the only family after his parents had passed away. If they did not approve of him, then that would be it, he told himself.
Positioning himself so that he wouldn't be tempted, he didn't allow himself to reciprocate his gaze for the rest of the lunch.
"That's the person you and Al were talking about in your study, right, Yao?" Matthew said under his breath. Kiku's friend, Arthur Kirkland, once again. Even in their pre debut days, they hadn't gotten up to such mischief.
When Matthew was a newly ascended Ace, he'd been invited to many a lavish party in all four kingdoms and their Inner Circles, since that was the point of expertise. A good way for easy diplomacy, but at the same time, an excellent way to meet new people. Many a royal figure who hadn't opted for hosting a Deciding, or needed one in the first place, had forged relationships between the overly lavish halls of parlours and mansions, and Matthew was no exception. Except the romantic part.
He'd made friendships, plenty of which were never touched upon again, but were helpful whilst trying to secure negotiations in another country. One was an enterprising university postgraduate, Carlos, and another one was Kiku of House Honda. Simply put it, he'd helped Matthew with securing their favour in regards to their fishing exports in exchange for his friendship. It had surprised him when he told Gilbert that he would be applying for a Deciding, but it was not a surprise that he was chosen for Hearts, giving his lineage and exemplary academic record.
But perhaps he shouldn't fault Alfred's recklessness when he was keeping such a guarded secret, anyway.
"Yes," Yao said, though he didn't look frustrated nearly as much as Matthew felt. "However, for all we know, his confusion may be an act. Any additional thoughts on him?"
"Well, my friend in the holding facility may behave a little strangely sometimes, but he is a good person," Kiku had said, during the last summer holiday party they attended together. "I will be sure to introduce you if you ever pay a visit to our facility."
"No, I haven't had any reason to doubt him," Matthew said. "His efforts were exemplary in his studies, and he showed great restraint in the incident with the Inner Circle members. Not to mention, being a candidate from a holding facility, it would be fair to assume that he has less social awareness compared to the others. Other than that, I don't have anything against him."
"Other than the incident of his conduct, I don't see any reason that he shouldn't be remaining in this competition for awhile," Yao said, with a pointed look at his distracted brother. "Whether he receives my objections is yet to be seen, depending on his intentions."
There was something in his brother's eyes that seemed strangely defensive. He'd shoved himself into an awkward angle seating wise, the conflict was palpable in his face and somehow, he'd miraculously stopped eating by himself.
"Do you think it's a big deal?" he said. "I mean, the situation could be on the tabloids by tonight."
"No, no one saw us, and it wasn't a big thing. Just the damn cameraman who lost out on a bit of stuff for the TV, that's all," Alfred said. He adjusted his glasses, though that did nothing to help his stormy mood.
"Alfred."
"Fine. I'll fix my behaviour. End of story, okay?"
"Not quite," Yao said, sighing. "Aiya. Alfred, you do realise it would be prudent to warn Sir Arthur about the implications of his behaviour – or the fact that he may not even be aware that it might be inappropriate, if we are to believe he did not do it on purpose. Or would you rather I have that conversation with him? I'd be sure to keep it as inconspicuous as possible."
"Perhaps it won't be fair if we just warn him," Matthew said. "We may need to raise the alarm with the other members from the holding facilities."
"This isn't even that serious or anything! Besides, do we really wanna pick out a bunch of people again? That won't go well."
"...you do have a point. Perhaps it would be too hasty if we attempted to create a problem out of nothing, and Sir Arthur is not fully to blame, either, so it would not be right for us to act recklessly."
"Maybe the holding facility Chosen wouldn't have a potential problem with it down the line, if it wasn't deliberate. It could be that this is just the sole case."
Almost as soon as he'd said it though, he wished he could take it back. First, even though he tended to be annoyingly soft spoken anyway, he was worried that his conversation could somehow be picked up and be misinterpreted. Second, he'd just pretty much thrown away an easy method of seguing into a private conversation with Arthur Kirkland. And third, Fates knows how his brother would react.
No, actually. Alfred's cheeks reddening behind his glasses was a bonus.
"I...Yao, I don't think that's gonna be needed," he muttered, diverting his eyes to the space between his and Yao's chairs. "I don't think he did it on purpose, and Matt's 's, well..."
He risked a glance at him, and Matthew couldn't help but follow his gaze. Arthur had rotated himself as well, and was speaking to his friends at the table, though it didn't seem as if he was truly focused on that conversation either.
"Arti...uh, Arthur was a special one, and neither of the other holding facility members have asked specifically for any privacy like that. And he might not even be doing it intentionally." Alfred said. He didn't seem to realise that he was staring at Arthur before Matthew cleared his throat meaningfully and he snapped back, his face getting even redder to the point where he felt as if the cameras could pick it up. "S-So I'll just talk to him myself, ask him myself. Is that okay?"
"If you think that conversation will be better delivered by yourself, then by all means." Yao said. "Though, I must ask – what do you mean by special?" The minuscule quirk at the corner of his lip reminded him of his playful streak.
"He's, uh...uh..."
"Yao!" both the brothers exclaimed, Alfred sounding incredibly flustered and Matthew out of fondness. Around them, though, the combined sounds had gotten the attention of both the cameras and the Chosen, Arthur Kirkland included. He couldn't help but observe Arthur's smirk shift abruptly into one of unmistakable shyness, the pink visible from where they sat. No doubt what had caused it was his brother's fault
"Oh, you two," Yao chuckled, taking him from his thoughts. "Apologies, but you know I was just joking around."
"Yao, that's so mean! Y-You can kinda, uh, I dunno if you can tell, but, uh-"
"I'm sure Alfred's going through enough stress already, with having all those people flock around him and having to be on camera all the time," Matthew teased, placing a firm hand on his shoulder, careful to avoid his back. "Maybe it'll be all right to take it easy on him for once. At the same time, though, you sort of deserve that for all the work for the Meeting he'd conveniently been able to shrug off."
"But Matt! You said it was fine-"
Possibly sensing that he didn't want to be seen so flustered in front of all the people currently paying attention to him, which was everyone, Yao relented with a smile. "We know you're trying your best, Alfred," he said, purposely speaking a little louder so it could be picked up by the cameras as well as giving Matthew a space to (reluctantly) chip in. "And I'm sure everyone does as well."
Predictably, this garnered a round of applause from the Chosen, Arthur Kirkland included. After that was over and the plates were being cleared away for dessert, Yao motioned for the brothers to move closer to whisper again, taking advantage of the moment where there wasn't food to get Alfred's attention.
"Are you sure it's all right? If you don't want to have this conversation with him, since I imagine it'll be unpleasant."
"No, it's okay, I promise," he replied. "So, I just have to tell him about the whole not being alone where no one can see us thing?"
"That mostly, unless it's for a very good reason that you've told us about beforehand. Not to mention the whole keeping affection mostly in private – oh, you haven't done anything like that? Not with-"
A small shake of his head, cowlick bobbing. "Well, that's good of you. Any tips to add, Matthew?"
Since all my tips are about hiding a romantic relationship, no, not really, Matthew thought, but didn't let it show on his face. "I guess there's one, and that's not having too much bodily contact before you've really narrowed it down. Might not be the best press."
Alfred looked confused, which was an expression he'd seen many times over to his chagrin. "Bo-dee-ly contact?"
"Body contact, okay. You know. Hugging. Just, you know." Quickly remembering that he himself was crap at this, he started improvising. "Hand holding. Whatever. Just use your common sense, eh?"
"H-Hand holding...?"
"Yeah." What was so hard to get about that? You're never really embarrassed about these things, anyway. "Hand holding. Things like that."
His brother looked as if he wanted to say something, but he shut his mouth and his brain up as soon as the dessert arrived, which was par for the course. Thankfully, he remembered to at least give a thumbs up to both him and Yao before the matter was resolved, at least for now.
On Wednesday, Arthur's birthday, he received a note from the Jack to meet him at his office at noon.
Naturally, a thousand questions raced through his head, but the prevailing thought was confusion. The prince had been busy these few days with dates and other engagements, and it didn't seem as if anything bad had occurred over the conversation at lunch on Monday. At least, Arthur hadn't been part of the three people that had been sent home on that day, so he figured that it was a false alarm of some sort.
It felt as if his mind had been stuck in that dining room, though, and with those blue eyes. He'd only been able to read one book throughout these two days, and send a long letter back to his family as thanks, but nothing much afterwards. He and Leon had agreed to put it off during the weekend, which was typically when Alfred would be taking out more people and keeping everyone else busy to do any sort of celebration.
Yao's expression was pleasant as soon as Arthur knocked on his door, ten minutes to noon, and with a bow. "Your Highness, I received your note?"
"Yes, Sir Arthur, do sit down, and thank you for being early. There's no need to worry," he said, taking in Arthur's hesitant footsteps, "I have a pleasant surprise from you. Your friend, Kiku Honda, has requested to speak to you today. It is your birthday, correct?"
"Oh – but how did you kn-"
"Your birthday's on your files from the holding facility, if that's what you were enquiring about," Yao said, which made Arthur blanch. "That ties in, coincidentally, with the other thing I was requested to tell you."
Never mind, the feeling of messing up was returning full force. "Y-Yes, Your Highness?"
Jack Yao's face gave nothing away, and he held out a small blue envelope, which had his name written on it. "Prince Alfred has requested your presence in your room tonight. Simply put, he wishes to celebrate your birthday with you. He has also told me that you do not wish to have a public celebration, either."
"Yes, Your Highness," Arthur said dumbly, not quite sure what else to say. "Thank...thank you for notifying me." There was a pause before he awkwardly took the letter from the Jack's elegant hand.
"Not wanting to have a public celebration? Most extraordinary," he said studying Arthur's face, his tone quiet as he did so. Pausing slightly on the eyebrows, he spoke after a few moments. "Can I ask, Sir Arthur – is there a reason why you are so inclined to privacy?"
That was a loaded question if Arthur ever heard one. Happy birthday to him, he supposed. "Your Highness, erm...there isn't a particular reason, no," he said. "Possibly it is just that I am unused to the spotlight, compared to most of the other Chosen here. I don't have much to offer to the palace in terms of rank or birth, either."
"So you'd say that your insecurities are to blame."
Arthur winced. "I suppose, Your Highness," he said, biting his lip. "I apologise if this has caused you inconvenience."
His face was completely unreadable, as he gingerly raised his head to meet his gaze. "Surely you are aware of the nature of this competition. If anything, you may find it more prudent to apologise to Prince Alfred if you find that an apology is warranted. Simply put, I hope that you have not put him in a place of discomfort regarding extra privacy."
"I don't...believe I have done something of that nature, Your Highness," he said. Wracking his brain for any sort of incident, he noted the Jack's unflinching expression. "Has there been a...please, let me know if there is something that I have done wrong."
Strangely, an emotion akin to relief settled on his face. "Well, it is not my place to say," he said, sighing once. "I will not attempt to dissuade you from pursuing a less publicized relationship with Prince Alfred. If both of you are willing, of course, I have no objection."
"S-So...you're not removing me from the competition?"
With a shake of his head, Yao folded over Arthur's hand that was encasing the note, stopping the shivering he didn't want to know was happening. "No. That would be inappropriate. I may have my feelings about each Chosen member, but it is not my Deciding, therefore every final decision must be his. This conversation, as well, is now out of my scope. However, I do expect you to attempt to fit into a life of a Chosen. Within the walls of the castle, you are no longer a holding facility student. Simply put it, you were chosen by Prince Alfred for a reason, and I expect you to honour it."
"Yes, Your Highness," Arthur replied, bowing his head, feeling the uncomfortable prickliness of shame crawl up his back. "I-I will."
"Excellent. Now. With that out of the way, it is exceptionally rare, to have two people in different Decidings to know one another, though, however King Ludwig was happy to grant the favour. Don't worry, I have already extended your thanks to him – unless you do not want to speak to your friend?"
"No, of course I'd like to speak to him," Arthur said, a little too quickly. Acting so childishly excited, after being scolded so severely, was not the best thing to do in front of the literal Jack of Spades. "T-That is, if he's even available right now."
"He's been waiting. Please, follow me."
Making sure he had left the room already, Yao paused before checking off the first of two things on his list regarding him specifically. The second was, well...to allow him and Alfred some privacy in his room. Almost immediately when Alfred made the request, he'd pushed him for answers, but he'd simply replied with saying that it was his birthday. That was understandable, but they'd agreed to have an extra pair of guards outside his room just in case. He trusted Alfred above all, but there wasn't such a thing as being too careful.
Placing down his pen, he followed Arthur into the small room where his port was located. A second after walking out, though, he realised he'd forgotten to bring his manual.
"Sir Arthur, do you know how to use the port?" the Jack asked, a few moments after he entered the room. The room was lit mostly naturally, and had two stools, but nothing else, giving off an unusually unwelcoming feel.
"No, Your Highness, there was one in our holding facility but us students were never allowed to use it without someone using it for us."
"Oh, I see," he sounded dismayed. Wondering whether he'd screwed up again, Arthur watched quietly as he walked close to the window and flicked through a small pamphlet. "Not to worry, I'm just not very good with these devices with neither the prince nor Ace to aid me. One moment."
Awkwardly, Arthur found a seat on the stool and remained there whilst the Jack attempted to fiddle with the technology.
After a few minutes, though, and a few screens that were somehow familiar to Arthur as part of his holding facility days, a surprisingly large video of Kiku appeared on the screen. He couldn't help but gape in excitement. Yes, he'd used a port before, but it was always to watch the news or during lessons, never to use it in a call.
"You have an hour, Sir Arthur," Yao said.
"Thank you, Your Highness." Nodding once before closing the door, he left him to talk with Kiku as if nothing had changed.
Tie – had to be blue – check. Clean shirt, check. Shined shoes, check. Combed hair, check. Well, kinda. His cowlick, like always, wouldn't stay still.
Nervously eyeing the stuffed bear in the corner of the room, Alfred took a deep breath. It was around seven forty, twenty minutes before he was due to meet Arthur, but he was still replaying the conversation he had with Yao shortly after dinner had ended.
For once, he'd been avoiding a certain someone during dinner. He wasn't sure if Arthur was doing it on purpose because he'd written him a note, or because he hadn't talked to him in the past few days, but he could feel that gaze on him, which he hadn't dared to return. He knew if he watched those green eyes, he couldn't resist looking back...
"I spoke with him earlier today," Yao had said right as the butlers were removing their plates, "Matthew, you were correct. He does not appear to be acutely aware of the implications of his actions."
Alfred had remembered being worried, so quickly to the point where even he couldn't quite understand why. "Did you say anything that-"
"Right, that's a relief." Matthew had said, effectively cut him off and jabbing him with his foot, ignoring his yelp. "Is there anything else Al needs to know?"
"None. As promised, I do not have any objections to him remaining here, for now. I've also requested Berwald and Emil to come stand with you, Alfred. If need be. As you know, the cameras are forbidden from entering that floor as always, so you should have no trouble with them."
Once again, Yao and Matthew had stuck out their necks for his sake. He just needed to be a hero about it, and hopefully the gift giving would go well.
Not to mention, the thing he'd been doing with his pillow...looking guiltily at it, Alfred realised he didn't want to talk about his practise to anyone ever. Oh, it was such a long shot and really stupid of him, but he needed the practise if for some reason the Fates were kind, and all the signs he'd been seeing were what he thought they were.
It wasn't like he was super eager to spend time with Arthur or anything; too much time had passed since they had been alone with one another. He was longing to be in his company – he wouldn't admit it to anyone else, though. There were so many things he'd wanted to ask, such as what Yao had told him, how the rest of his day had been, what he was doing, whether he felt the same...
Never mind, it was time to go, anyway. Picking up the stuffed bear carefully, Alfred walked to the corner of his room, pressed his palm to one of several secret entrances in the palace where he and the rest of the Primary Suit could travel discreetly, whispered a familiar spell, unlocked it, and entered.
When he emerged from the tunnel next to one of his favourite hangouts, the palace observatory, he walked down a flight of stairs and then went left two metres to where the boys' rooms were located. It was as he'd planned – most of them were in the Drawing Room immediately after dinner, but from the faint light seeping from Arthur's door, he'd accepted his invitation after all.
Awkwardly balancing his present on his hip, he waved to Berwald and Emil, who had been situated outside as promised, then knocked twice.
A small pause, then his face peeked outside of the door. Like always, the first thought that registered in his head was pretty eyes. Naturally, his eyes moved to the thick eyebrows, then the barely visible freckles, then to his nose, then his l-
"Alfred?" his voice was gentler than expected. "Are you here to see me?"
"Here ya go!" Before Arthur could even utter another word past that question, Alfred was brandishing a bear at him.
Not a small one that you could cup within your palms, mind you. It was light brown with a huge blue tartan ribbon tied around it with gentle eyes and a sweet mouth, and a pale tummy with fur that was incredibly soft to touch. Arthur could barely even see the other boy behind all the stuffing.
Oh, he didn't want to admit it, but he was absolutely smitten. W-with the stuffed animal, of course, not the prince...
But when he saw Alfred's excited beam as Arthur took the present from him and noticed that the bear's head fit perfectly in the crook of his neck, Arthur realised that once again, he couldn't lie to himself any longer.
"Whaddya think, Artie? I know getting a bear is kinda traditional," Alfred continued to babble, tilting his glasses energetically up the bridge of his nose. "But he looked so sweet in the stall where I saw the bear that I had to get him for you!"
"Wait, you...went to the stalls...but weren't you busy that day? And the cameras..."
Alfred's mouth – there was something so pleasant about it, Arthur thought – was about to speak, though he seemed to peek to the sides. With a jolt, he realised that they were not alone, though he recognised Leon's friend. With a winning smile, he gestured for Arthur to close the door, which he did, leaving them alone once again.
That seemed to pause him in his tracks, and painted an embarrassed smile on the golden blond's face. "So! Aah...yeah, kinda...you see, with the others, I gave them an hour of free time, so we kinda went our separate ways, and the cameras went with them, heh. T-Then I went to one of the stalls and they had a big bunch of these on display, so I – Artie, woah!"
Just standing there would not even begin to convey Arthur's bliss.
Recklessly and without abandon, he threw his arms around Alfred's neck, one hand clutching onto the bear and one squeezing their bodies awkwardly together. It was all elbows and lean chests and muscles, sharp edges and unspoken feelings, but for some odd reason it worked.
His fingers gingerly laid themselves on his back whilst his other hand removed itself from its position on top of his palm and awkwardly went to touch the exposed nape of his neck, tugging them closer to breaking the invisible boundary.
Arthur didn't know how to give hugs. He didn't even give them, at all, to anyone except his family. Maybe Kiku, a few times. Much less to someone he would have only dared to dream he would be standing in such close proximity to.
Just thinking about what the prince had done had completely severed all acquaintance with his common sense.
"I...umm...thank you," Arthur stammered, unable to disguise the deep flush that had made its presence known on his face. "Alfred, I..."
Be honest. Be bloody honest, or you'll regret it. Remember what the Jack said.
"Happy birthday," Alfred replied tenderly, resting his chin on Arthur's shoulder, dusting away all his thoughts in the process. "It's kinda my way of apologising for things, if that makes sense."
"No, well. Though I must ask, why would you be apologising? That part doesn't make sense."
"I, uh..." it was his turn to go pink, "I couldn't get you out of my head, even when I was trying to. And I wasn't brave enough to explain why, other than the fact that I was scared. And," he said, emphasizing the repeated use of the word like he had in Arthur's dream, "It's your birthday today. So I didn't want to ruin it for you. But you deserve to know why I've been avoiding you these two days. I kinda didn't want to do it, but you know this process, and everything."
Pulling backwards slightly, he looked at his face. "Yao – Jack Yao, at least, kinda picked up on the encounter with the library. He told me that he spoke to you a bit before, yeah?"
"Yes, he spoke to me earlier."
"Yeah. Since, you know. It was against protocol and stuff, but the fact that we were alone behind close doors is inappropriate, at least here." Pausing a little at Arthur's bewildered expression, he grinned sheepishly. "Turns out neither of us was pretty good at the undertone thing."
"But we were on an official date – what would be so inappropriate about privacy?" he said, adjusting the bear in his arms once more. Fates. So much fur.
"They couldn't see what we were doing. So, if the cameraman hadn't been nice enough to not talk, then it might have caused a lot of news. Until the process ends, this kinda stuff is ripe for the tabloid papers."
"Oh, I see." Arthur said. "I must apologise for that, then. I'll be careful next time. I...I do see the implications of what may have occurred."
"It's the whole competition thingy, so, yeah. Thanks for understanding. It's not really that big of a deal, anyway, and I kinda let it happen, so don't let it get you down too much, 'kay?"
Arthur fought back a smirk, hoping it would help fix the heat in his cheeks. "All right, Alfred. Though, I must ask...why would you do something like that if you knew it might cause scandal?"
"Huh? Aah...ha ha...ha...I guess it was because there was just one cameraman that day and no one else," Alfred suddenly sounded incredibly nervous, and Arthur couldn't put a pin in why. "A-Anyway! Let's try not to be all alone together in a place where no one can see us again, yeah? I'd like to think we both kinda don't want that."
"No, I don't think we do," Arthur said, laughing a little. To his surprise, out of the corner of his eye, he saw Alfred blushing. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just...it's really weird to see such a grumpy old man be so happy about this stuff."
"You-"
"Just kidding," Alfred grinned, unequivocally stealing Arthur's heart in the process. "I like you even more when you're smiling. It's not so bad to want to see you like that more, right?"
"Well...I suppose it wouldn't be," Arthur said, pushing his chin into the crook of the bear's neck, though he wished it was Alfred's instead. That thought, coupled with what he was about to say, made his cheeks feel much hotter than he'd like them to. "But..."
Alfred leaned closer, so close that he could smell the sandalwood that lingered in his scent and feel his warmth radiating from him, the red lingering on every centimetre of his cheeks. "Yeah?"
"I'd only...I'd only want to do that for you," he breathed. In that moment, he allowed himself to look into Alfred's eyes, looking at his own reflection within them. Hearing the sharp inhale of breath, seeing the way his lips had parted, the sound of his own heart racing in his chest confirmed both his greatest hope and his deepest fear.
"Arthur..." Alfred whispered, barely noticing when his glasses slid further down the bridge of his nose. The bear slackened in Arthur's arm as he moved closer, and his voice was shaking when he spoke. "Does that mean-"
"Yes, Alfred, I..." he said faintly. Expecting Alfred to let out an ear piercing yelp of excitement like he usually did, he braced himself, but no silly heroic shouting or hand gestures appeared. Once more, the room seemed to fall away, his world growing just a little larger to accommodate the prince. "Yes."
"Simply put it, you were chosen by Prince Alfred for a reason, and I expect you to honour it."
His feelings had grown beyond obligation and fondness, Arthur realised as he placed down the bear on his desk, took a deep breath and moved forward so Alfred took up most of his peripheral vision. Slowly, as if touching a lacquered instrument, Arthur watched him slide his gloved hand across his waist then tug him closer, gentle yet not without force.
"Is it fun for you, Your Highness, to understand that you make so many people desperately adore you? You've claimed another victim," he said, clumsily attempting to follow suit with the same confidence. His right hand, followed by the left, enclosed the small of his back, sensing his chains, sealing his fate. "I would appreciate it if you addressed this matter immediately."
"I dunno what you mean," he teased right back, "But Artie, if you have any objections now, tell me."
Is he going to...oh, Fates, Arthur thought, swallowing audibly. The light of his room seemed to soften to a balmy sunset, melting away everything else except the boy he was holding. All of a sudden, he could acutely feel Alfred's calloused hands on his body barely covered by his gloves, the slight press of their shoes so close together, the heat and muscle of his chest, the cold nudge of his glasses, the sensation of their noses brushing together, and everything in between.
He was so close, so tantalisingly close, but Arthur made himself wait, forcing himself to hold onto the stability of his fear. He saw the delicate flutter of his eyelashes against his glasses and how they caught the light, his vulnerability making it impossible for him to think clearly.
Letting his fingers, one by one, brush against where his honey blond hair met the back of his neck, Arthur savoured what he knew for another heartbeat before closing his eyes and falling into him, pressing his own lips to his.
Much like the rest of his body, Alfred's lips were warm to the touch, so much so that Arthur felt as if he were about to be consumed by the temperature of a star if he were to touch him. No amount of words from the romantic novels he'd so recklessly consumed could possibly begin to describe him, the crown prince, the object of his unforeseen affections, his Alfred...
It was by no means perfect, but when he heard his little sigh of relief, none of it mattered, and he allowed himself to melt into him, forever altering who he was.
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