It was only when Arthur had arrived at the greenhouse, still carrying Antonio, that he signalled for him to stop playing the 'injured student'...
"Why'd you bring me to the greenhouse? Won't the nuns catch us here?" Antonio enquired.
"The nuns never come by the greenhouse, unless I specifically ask them to," Arthur answered, "This place belongs to the Etoiles-I mean, Etoile! One of my duties is growing flowers, to be used in events around Astraea Hill, so I have free reign of the greenhouse."
The place seemed a bit big, for just one person to manage all alone...Everywhere Antonio looked, there were flowers, row upon row of flowers, for just about every occasion. Neat red roses sat with ruffled carnations, hydrangeas jostled for attention with ericas and morning glories...And then there was an entire section, dedicated only to red spider lilies...
"So you grew these, all by yourself?" Antonio questioned.
"Yes. We—No, I, the Etoile spend hours here every day just tending to these."
"We? What did you mean, we? Is there more than one Etoile?"
Arthur shook his head. "There's supposed to be two. I was very close with the other Etoile...Until...Until last year..." and his face fell, to assume a mournful expression as he thought of his dead partner.
Poor Arthur, having to do all of the Etoile's duties by himself...
"Anyway," Arthur chirped, perking himself up, "Let's have some tea. Chamomile, or osomanthus?"
"Either's fine," Antonio replied quickly. He didn't really know much about tea, having only ever tasted Russian caravan, so he was open to trying just about any blend...
He watched silently as Arthur flicked the kettle on, and chose a tin of osomanthus from a box behind some white zinnias. Arthur placed strainers in both teacups, and filled them each with a spoonful of the blend, shortly before filling the teacups with hot water.
"Now, while we wait for those, let's take care of your knee," the blonde Etoile said, reaching around in his pockets.
"Huh? My knee's fine," Antonio protested, "It's not really broken, remember?"
"I know, but you've grazed it," Arthur said softly, "See? It's still bleeding."
A neat, red trickle ran down Antonio's trouser leg. That's gonna be a pain to wash...
The Etoile wiped up the blood, and popped a tiny plaster on the graze, before using a length of gauze to wrap up Antonio's entire lower leg.
"We need to make it look like you got really badly hurt, so the others don't catch on to us," Arthur explained, as he fastened the bandage.
"O-ok. I suppose my room-mate would flip if he knew I was here," Antonio chuckled.
"As would mine," Arthur added, "Room-mates. Aren't they the worst?"
Antonio 'mmed' lightly as he gave that statement some thought, "Well, Lovino's ok, I guess," he decided, "When he's not trying to wake me up early, so we can be the first to get breakfast."
Arthur shook his head. "Don't even get me started on Afonso. He may be my best friend, but all he does is nag, nag, nag. With him it's always, 'why didn't you go to the first year's welcome party?' this, or 'why don't you start attending school council meetings?' that!"
"He does have a point, though," the Spaniard offered, "You're the Etoile. You're supposed to be the one that everyone looks up to!"
Arthur took the strainers out of the teacups, and presented Antonio with his tea. "Whatever. It's not like he understands what being the Etoile is like. Do you want sugar with yours?"
Antonio took a sniff of the tea, and decided instantly that it would be better without sugar. It already smelled very sweet...
"Is it me, or does Lovino have a bit of a crush on you, Antonio?" Arthur enquired coyly, "He seemed rather...Possessive of you earlier..."
"Oh, he's always like that," Antonio replied, "He never wants to leave my side, and he doesn't seem to like you very much..."
Arthur's face twisted into a cheeky smirk. "Oh, is he afraid that I'll snatch you away forever and ever, like some fairytale prince?"
"Possibly," Antonio chuckled, taking a sip of the osomanthus tea. It was sweet, and very fragrant...
B-B-B-BBBBBBBBBBBB-B-B—BBBB-BB-BB
"How's your knee?" Lovino asked, touching the site of Antonio's graze.
"Ow! Don't touch there!" Antonio whined, "It really huuuuurts!"
"So, did the Etoile do anything except get you to the nurse?" Lovino enquired suspiciously, "Anything at all?"
Antonio shook his head. "He didn't do anything, except give me this," and he pulled a pink pouch of pukka tea out of his pocket.
Lovino repressed a shudder when he saw the word 'love' printed on the front...
"He said it would help me relax," Antonio beamed.
"Since when is it like Mr Etoile, aka, Arthur fucking Kirkland, to give gifts like these out?!" Lovino cried.
"Apparently, since today," Antonio replied calmly, placing the pouch on his bedside table.
The Italian growled to himself as Arthur's face popped into his head...How dare that perv take an interest in Antonio!
"That fucking Etoile better watch his step...I'll tear him to shreds if he tries anything with you ever again!"
"Woah," Antonio said, his wide eyes illuminating the room, "Since when do my encounters with Arthur bother you so much?"
Lovino's face went beet red as he realised that he'd said that out loud. "Forget it. Let's go the fuck to sleep," and he switched the lights off. If Arthur didn't back off of HIS Antonio soon, he was going to kill him...
Ah, jealousy...Gotta love it! I wrote this in one afternoon, while downing a cup of my favourite tea...What? I'm British, it's what we do! See ya next chapter, for more jealousy, more flirting, and a bit more about Arthur's tragic past!
Kitty x
