A/N: Hey guys! Hope everyone's holiday is going well! This story is just about wrapped up, and we're at our climax. Enjoy, thank you so much for your support, and have an amazing day/ night :)
Best regards,
-Ella
Arthur's POV:
Seated in Lovino's office, this was the one time I was sure he was going to murder us. I couldn't stop fidgeting with my hands, whereas Alfred couldn't have been anymore still. We just kept reversing roles, didn't we?
Lovino stared at us shrewdly, but he didn't say anything for the longest time. Instead, he just kept sipping from his coffee, long fingers impatiently drumming against the side of his mug. I had never felt so violated by someone's eyes alone. And here I thought getting strip-searched was degrading.
Given his family's past involvement in the mafia, silence from him was mortifying. I knew we were in trouble; but, of course, that didn't stop me from running my mouth.
"Sir?" I began. "Usually this is the point where you start screaming at us. Don't you have anything to say?"
Lovino set down his mug, calmly, too calmly. "Nope," he said in an even voice. "I've done enough screaming with you two. You've fucked up one too many times, now get out. You're both fired."
Neither I nor Alfred voiced our protests. We had already accepted this outcome long before we had been called in by the Captain. We stood up, grabbed the cardboard boxes that held our office belongings, and left Lovino's office, heads bowed.
As we descended the staircase and entered the chapel area, several sad eyes waved us goodbye. Liza and Feliciano whispered sad condolences, but the others stayed far away from us, for they feared losing their jobs as well. Lovino's temper had been exceptionally short as of late; I didn't have the heart to tell Alfred that my act of vandalism likely had a part in provoking the Italian's impatience.
Alfred and I walked out of the church side by side, although not as close as we used to back when we were actually friends. We had spent the last two days avoiding each other at the house, only speaking when we absolutely had to.
A miserable lump formed in my throat when I realized that Alfred intended to bus home instead of catching a ride in my car. I had returned the car we had borrowed for the mission yesterday.
I opened my mouth to speak. Suddenly, I could hardly breathe. I had never gotten into a fight with Alfred, a true fight, that is. Sure, we argued and couldn't stand each other most of the time, but this was something much worse than I've ever had to deal with.
I got in the car and swore to myself. Not two minutes later, I drove up to the bus stop and rolled down my window. "Alfred? Are you sure you don't want a lift?"
Kill me. Kill me now.
Alfred, who was sitting grouchily and was hugging the cardboard box tightly to his chest, shook his head dismissively. "No," he replied, coldly. "I'm fine, thank you. See you at home."
I drove off without another word.
…
After the fifth attempt of trying to call Bella, I gave up entirely. It was Sunday night, and it wasn't like I was going to see her at school tomorrow, or ever again for that matter. Still, I felt awful leaving her on such bad terms. Though, it didn't look like I was going to have a chance to make amends if she kept ignoring me, rightful as she may be for doing so.
I sighed and looked outside my bedroom window. Alfred was moving boxes of his belongings into the back of his pick-up truck. There was no point staying here having just lost our jobs. I would also have to prepare for moving back into my own apartment sometime this week.
What perturbed me most was that it was getting late. There was no rush for Alfred to leave, but he's always been a rather stubborn person.
Conflicted, I watched Alfred from afar. I hated seeing him look so upset, it didn't suit him at all.
WHOMP!
I fell forward and nearly smacked my nose against the glass panelling when Alistair whacked the back of my head with a dishtowel.
"Go out there and bloody well apologize to him!" he barked. "Or, at the very least, say goodbye. I didn't raise ye to have no manners."
"Yes, yes, fine," I grumbled.
I stood up and left my room, swallowing heavily at the sight of Alfred's empty bunk. Alistair stood outside my bedroom door with his arms crossed and gave a dissatisfied huff as I slowly trudged downstairs. I passed by the living room, and nearly tripped over the foot Isaac purposefully stuck out.
"Oops, sorry," Isaac grunted. He wasn't in the least bit sorry.
William patted my shoulder as I slipped on my loafers in the front room. "Things will work out," he told me. "I know how much these things upset you. Just say how you truly feel, Art. Your stubbornness and pride never got you anywhere before."
"I didn't ask for a lecture," I sighed. "I know what I'm supposed to do."
William heaved a grand sigh and then left me to my own devices.
I stepped outside and awkwardly clambered down the front steps, hesitantly approaching Alfred as if he were a lion ready to pounce on me at the slightest agitation. The evening air was cool and I shivered as it crept through the fabric of my sweater. The street lights had just flickered on, but Alfred was determined to get out of here as fast as he possibly could.
I stopped at the curb of the sidewalk and crossed my arms. "Oi," I greeted. "So, you're moving back to your apartment?"
"Yep," Alfred replied in a clipped tone. He only had three more boxes to go. I had to step out of his way as he reached to pick up the box nearest to me.
"Need any help?" I began again.
"Nope."
"Oh…" I trailed off. "Look, Alfred, I'm sorry. I don't know what else you want me to say. I was a nerd for four years. You experienced it for seven weeks. The world can be brutal sometimes, and I guess I got caught up in finally not being the odd one out for once."
"But that's just it, Artie," Alfred said, and closed the back hatch of his truck.
"When we were partners, I never thought of you as the odd one out. I realize that I was horrible in high school. Heck, I was a freaking monster, and I couldn't regret it anymore than I already do now. But this mission, it solidified us as brothers, man. These past seven years, I've tried to make up for my mistakes. I've even grown to look up to you. Now, I'm not so sure what to feel."
I stared at Alfred, stunned. It was one of those rare moments where he spoke from his heart, and what came out was so raw and filled with emotion that I was left speechless. He had never been this eloquent before; what changed?
"We are brothers," I said, firmly. There was no arguing with this. "I fucked up, okay? But don't let what happened here ruin us now. Wherever you go, I want to come too. We'll figure something out. Maybe we can open up a private detective business or something…anything really. Alfred, words cannot fathom how very sorry I am. Please, don't let things end between us here."
"I won't if you won't," Alfred sniffed. "I'm glad we're on the same page, buddy. I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have gotten so jealous either. And yeah, that sounds great. As long as we're working together, I'm happy."
I reached out to shake hands with him. That quickly turned into a hug and my lungs were aching terribly afterwards. Alfred agreed to stay the night, much to my relief.
Just as we were about to head back inside, Matthias and Lukas drove up along the curb. The Dane rolled down his window, and for once, he wasn't smiling, nor were there crinkles at the corners of his eyes. He looked furious and had his lips pulled into a taut, menacing grimace.
Alfred tensed, while I tried to remain calm and in-character.
I casually placed my hands in my jeans. "Matthias, what are you–"
"Get in the car, Oliver. Hell, bring your dumbass brother too. Now," Matthias snarled.
"What? I don't understand?" I asked. "Is there something the matter? You seem really uptight."
"Enough questions, now get in," Matthias repeated.
"What if I don't want to?" Alfred snorted. If he didn't want to do something, he could be pretty sarcastic.
"I'm not asking. GET IN THE FUCKING CAR!"
I looked over at Lukas. He opened the front compartment menacingly and made direct eye contact with me. I didn't want to find out what he had stored in there. Instinct took over. Alfred, on the other hand, had a completely different idea.
"Can't make me," Alfred said.
"Allen," I said in a low voice. "We're going."
"What, why?!" Alfred spluttered. I forcefully grabbed his wrist and towed him to the back of the Mercedes. A swift click echoed as Matthias opened the doors for us.
"Just do it," I replied. "I don't like the looks on their faces. Something's wrong."
Without another word, we sat in the back and strapped ourselves in. Matthias sped away like a maniac. He drove us half an hour away from the house. The car was eerily silent, and the fact that we were in an abandoned factory strip didn't look like things were in our favor. I had a very bad feeling about this.
Matthias parked the car, stepped out, and waved us forward. The sun had long set now, and we could just barely see two feet ahead of us. He led us into an abandoned alleyway with decent lighting, and then turned to face us. Lukas fell at the Dane's side.
"So, Oliver, I have to ask you something, and I want you to be honest with me, yeah?" Matthias began.
"Yes, always," I nodded my head. "You know you can trust me."
"Well, you see. Lukas and I did a deal the other day, and you want to know what happened? FUCKING COPS followed our suppliers afterwards. COPS! Not only that, but they were shot at. Now, does that sound suspicious to you?"
Alfred instinctively reached for his pants, but deadpanned when he realized that he didn't have his gun on him. Why would he? We hadn't been expecting to be kidnapped by these two hooligans.
"Oh… oh my. You really weren't kidding when you said that narcs were infiltrating high schools. I'm so sorry to hear about that, truly," I said. It was hard to keep my breathing steady.
Matthias's composure broke. His bit his lip, took two paces forwards, then backwards, and eventually resorted to running his hands through his hair. It was much flatter than usual.
"Look man! I can't go to jail!" he said, voice cracked. "I only did this for fun, for the thrill, but now I'm in too deep. This is just such a clusterfuck, and I'm getting desperate… I have to finish this off before it's too late."
Matthias reached into his jacket and pulled out two guns.
"WOAH THERE!" Alfred cried out, hands protectively raised in front of his chest.
"Matthias!" I spluttered. "Just think about what you're doing for a minute here. We didn't say anything about the drugs. Please, you have to believe me! Lukas, you're his body of reason. Tell him that we're not lying!"
Lukas promptly looked away. He was more interested in picking dirt out of his fingernails.
Matthias swung around the gun in his dominant hand. "Ya know, you Walkers sure are strange. The fact that one of you looks like a fifteen-year-old virgin, and the other a thirty-year-old man child would make anyone suspicious… too suspicious."
"Honestly, mate! This is getting out of hand!" I just about sobbed.
"You guys made me think a lot. I did some questioning and reflecting…" Matthias narrowed his eyes at me. He then prodded the butt of his gun against my chest. I'm not ashamed to admit that I whimpered, squeaked, and pissed my pants all at once.
Alfred looked positively murderous. I could tell that he was waiting for the perfect opportunity to rip the guns out of Matthias's hands. He was prepared to break the Dane's wrist if he had to. Most worrisome of all was that I knew Alfred would push me out of the way and get shot himself if it meant saving his partner.
He always wanted to be the hero.
"But, be-friending you guys made me realize something," Matthias continued. "You guys are just too dumb to be narcs."
Matthias pulled the gun away from my chest. "Here's the scoop. A big deal is about to go down on the night of the Winter Formal. Other hot-shot suppliers are meeting in the hotel. I need people I can trust, because who knows what those guys are capable of. Say one thing wrong, and you'll end up dead. Can I rely on you guys to have my back? Oliver, Allen, will you help us?"
"YES! YES! ANYTHING!" Alfred and I both shouted.
Matthias breathed out in relief. He smiled weakly. "Good. Let's do some targeting practice then."
On cue, Lukas went back into the car and pulled out a box full of empty beer bottles. He lined them up on a curb for us to shoot at.
"Show us what you guys are made of. We're going to need all the protection we can get. The higher-ups are already suspicious of me because of the cop incident," Matthias informed us.
Alfred and I shot at the beer bottles without question. Not a single bottle went un-hit. I had no problem shooting at inanimate objects; it was people or animals that posed the hardest trouble for me.
Our feat was so impressive that even Lukas gave a small gasp of approval.
"WHAT THE ACTUAL HECK?! THAT WAS AWESOME!" Matthias applauded, eyes wide. "Where did you guys learn to shoot like that?"
"Our, uh, Pops used to take us hunting all the time when we were younger," I replied. Alfred stiffly nodded in agreement.
"Shit man, that's fucking amazing. I feel a lot safer going into that deal now. Well, men. We have two weeks to prepare for this. Let's get shit done!"
High-fives were exchanged. I was still weak-kneed and a bit traumatized by this turn of events. Just two minutes ago I had thought that I was about to die. Thankfully, that wasn't the case anymore.
However, where Matthias looked relieved and happy to have us on his side, Lukas looked perturbed, worried even. He had the face of someone who knew that something was going to go wrong.
Not only that, but tonight was the first time I had seen the two teens look doubtful. If I didn't know any better, I would have assumed that they wanted to get out of this drug dealing business.
…
Just barely a day after we were fired, Alfred and I headed for the church. Everyone stared at us as if we had grown two-heads. Still, that didn't stop us from barging into Lovino's office.
The Captain gave a sharp yelp of surprise. Alfred opened the door so harshly that it had slammed into the wall.
Gasping, I placed a hand on his desk. "Sir! I know you said we're fired and all, but we just got crucial intel that could finally help us wrap up this investigation!"
Lovino glanced between Alfred and I, and when he saw that we weren't lying, he let us explain to him what he had found out. When we were done, he was rather indifferent, which was the exact opposite of what we had been expecting from him. We had hoped to get our jobs back. Not whatever this was.
"What part of being fired did you two not understand? Your investigation is done. If I catch you anywhere near those teens again, you'll be charged with obstruction of justice. Don't interfere or you best fucking believe that I'm going to make you regret it."
"UH! A thank you would have been nice!" Alfred glared. More and more, he was starting to see Lovino less as a role model. Really though. The Captain wasn't as glorious as the rest of the police force made him out to be, famous mafia-buster or not.
"I'll gladly pass your information to the investigators who are actually assigned to the case, but don't expect a thank you. Now, you have two minutes to get out of this church before I forcefully escort your sorry asses out. Do I make myself clear?"
"Crystal," I glared.
I grabbed Alfred's wrist and towed him out of the office. The stubborn looks we exchanged communicated all that we needed to know. We would have to continue our own investigation behind the force's back. If we wanted to put an end to this drug operation, we would have to break protocol. Given how many rules we'd already broken, this hardly fazed us.
Heads high and backs straight, we walked down into the chapel area again. Feliciano chirped a meek greeting, and then went back to praying to Pasta Jesus. No one else said anything to us until we crossed into the front hallway, where all the glass mosaics were held on display.
"PSSSST!" Someone whispered to our right.
I turned and saw Francis gesturing for us to enter the bathroom.
Disgusted, I snapped at him. "If you think that we're so desperate for money that we're going to willingly prostitute ourselves, you are sorely mistaken!"
Francis laughed, which only infuriated me more. "Non! Non! Mon dieu! That's not it. Just come in here before anyone hears us…"
Alfred and I exchanged puzzled looks.
Francis waved his hand impatiently. "We're trying to help you." And with that, he mysteriously disappeared and let the bathroom door swing shut with a soft thud.
"Should we go in?" I asked.
"I don't know, man. What if he's on Lovino's side? Maybe they want evidence to put US behind bars because of how many rules we've broken," Alfred said.
"I don't think so," I replied. "We've helped Francis and Antonio out before, and they've done the same for us. I think we should trust them."
Alfred didn't offer any protest. Hell, just last weekend we had secretly helped Francis and Antonio bring down a Moonshine operation at a local school carnival. I hated the Frog, but at the same time I knew he was reliable. The only thing that was a bit surprising was that Antonio was going behind Lovino's back. The Spaniard practically worshipped the Captain. It was my best bet that they were on our side. And indeed, they were.
We entered the bathroom and found Antonio and Francis leaning against the counter where the hand blow-dryers were.
"Ah! So you did decide to come!" Francis exclaimed.
"That's the code of us officers, ain't it?" Alfred smiled. "We help each other out as long as the intentions are pure."
"We let them take full credit before," I muttered, bitterly.
Francis ignored that last comment. "You guys aren't going to like this, but Antoine and I have just been assigned to Hetalia High. Lovino intends to have us take over from where your investigation left off."
Antonio smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "I admire Lovi and all, but I think he's making the wrong decision here. He can be so stubborn sometimes. Anyways… we're willing to help you guys if you need it. I'm also going to take a wild guess and assume that you're still in contact with those kids, si?"
"You bet we are. Our investigation is hotter now than ever before. We have all the information we need to put those punks in jail," Alfred said proudly. "Since we're expelled, it'd be awesome if we had some eyes and ears in the school…"
"And that's where we'll come in," Francis purred. "You have our word that we'll tell you everything we know. You can help us get into their social circle."
"That sounds perfect!" Alfred grinned. "You can count us in. Artie, why don't you text Matthias? We can all meet up for dinner or something and introduce the gang to them."
"Yes, that would be ideal. But one last thing before we agree to this," I grumbled.
"Oh, and what is that?" Francis asked, and wagged his eyebrows patronizingly. God damn, I've never despised a person so much before.
"We get full credit," I leered.
Antonio shrugged, and Francis sighed. "Oui, whatever."
"Dude, that wasn't cool of you," Alfred told me as we left the church.
"If you haven't forgotten already, we need our jobs back."
"Ah, true…"
…
Two weeks later
…
Two hours before the Winter Formal
I had just finished fixing Alfred's tie. We smugly stood in front of the bathroom mirror, admiring ourselves.
"Looking sharp, Artie," Alfred teased. "Even if you are a literal midget, no leprechaun."
I angrily shoved off the arm he had draped over my shoulder. "Let's just get our jobs back, shall we? We're cops, damn it. We're just as competent as everyone else."
Alfred inhaled deeply. "Amen, dude. I still can't believe it, we're about to take down an entire drug operation."
"Mhmmmm," I smirked.
Alfred lifted my shirt to make sure that my guns were hidden and strapped in well enough. When he was satisfied with the result, I reciprocated and did the same for him. We had several layers of padding underneath our tuxes, all of which were bullet-proof. What we were about to do was extremely dangerous, and we could never be too careful.
Realization set in, and my smile faltered. "This will be my first prom or dance, you know? I never went to ours after failing to ask Shelly."
Alfred smiled, almost sheepishly. "I know, that's why I asked her to come. She's waiting downstairs for you. She agreed to take photos before we go. I didn't go to Prom either if it makes you feel any better; my grades weren't high enough… she's not coming with us, though. She's just here for the pictures. Wouldn't want to bring her on a mission as dangerous as this one…"
"W-what?" I stammered. "You didn't have to, honestly! Alfred, what the hell?! Don't you get all redemptive on me! I need character development too!"
"Go on," Alfred chuckled as he shoved me out of the washroom. "When Alistair told me that you didn't have any Prom photos I had to do something. It was my fault that you messed up when asking her, remember?"
I reached out to place a hand over Alfred's shoulder. "Fine then. But I want all three of us to be in the photo. You deserve Prom pictures too."
Alfred teared up and nodded as we walked downstairs. Shelly, who was now a model and clearly looked like one, was chatting with William in the lounge. William had been smart enough to lock up Alistair and Isaac in the basement. If not, they would have likely scared Shelly off.
Shelly looked up and waved when she saw Alfred and I on the staircase. She was wearing a sequined turquoise dress that hugged her chest and waist and then billowed out near the end. I could hardly breathe, and yet my feet refused to stop.
I walked up to Shelly, took her right hand, and brought it up to my lips. "Shelly," I greeted. "Don't you look lovely tonight?"
Shelly giggled. "You were always such a gentleman… and dork."
William coughed to stifle a snicker. "I'll leave you three to catch up. And Arthur, Alfred, please, be safe and come back home tonight." He left looking worried, but didn't say anything more. He had talked to Alfred before as well, but I was completely unaware of this.
"Yes, Mom," I groaned, and let go of Shelly's hand.
Shelly eagerly hummed in agreement.
I blushed, but held my ground. I had had seven years to build on my confidence. It wasn't perfect, but it was a lot better than it used to be.
"You really didn't have to do this," I told her.
"Non, but I did," Shelly sighed. "I've always felt horrible for how I treated you that day. I truly am sorry, Arthur. But now look at you. You were cute before, but now you're just so handsome! You too Alfred," she added before turning back to me.
Alfred broke out into a smug, shit-eating grin. "Thanks, darling! You're looking amazing yourself."
Shelly thanked Alfred and then turned to me again, beautiful brown eyes wide and imploring. "Honestly, I wanted to say yes when you asked me, but I was also very shallow back then and worried what others thought about me. I had a crush on you too Arthur, I really did. I hope this makes up for what happened," Shelly apologized.
If only I had known that before…
"Of course, it does. What you said did hurt me, but it also made me into the person that I am today. I forgive you."
"Oh good," Shelly sighed. "I'd love to stay in touch when we're done with this."
"I would too," I agreed.
"Well!" Alfred clapped his hands together. He had set up a camera on the front table near the door. "Let's take some photos!"
Shelly stood between us both and wrapped her arms around our shoulders as we waited for the camera's timer to go off.
Just before the camera snapped its first photo, Shelly bent over and whispered in my ear. "The academy has trained you well, non? Are those muscles I feel?" she teased. "My, my. I think I just developed another crush on you."
It goes to say that all the photos we took involved Alfred cracking up uncontrollably, as he had heard Shelly's sly compliment, and me blushing a deep red.
And yet, they were still my favourite photos to date.
…
Before Shelly left, she gave me her number. I took that as a good luck charm, and no matter how much Alfred teased me for it, I wouldn't let him shake my resolve.
Alfred lifted his watch to check the time. "Yep. They should be here by now. We have to get going. Matthias is expecting us soon," he said worriedly.
Not a minute later, a car horn honked outside. I opened the front door and saw a long white limo pull up along the curb.
Flabbergasted, I turned to Alfred. "Did you know about this?"
He looked just as surprised as I was. "Nope. I didn't have a clue. We were supposed to ride in their family's mini-van."
The driver's window rolled down, and Yao Wang from our graduating class gave us a smug salute. "Need a lift?"
Alfred whistled. "Wow! Some handsome fellas we got here!"
Yong Soo, Kiku, and Eduard all piled out of the limo wearing matching tuxes. They did look rather dashing, and the smug grins on their faces indicated that they were well aware of this.
"No worries," Alfred told me. "Yao knows all about the mission. You don't have to tip-toe around that wise-old bat."
"Oh," I said. "You really were working your ass off behind my back."
"I sure was."
While Alfred took pictures with the boys, I went over to Yao. It was honestly unnerving how he'd hardly even aged since I'd last seen him.
"Yao," I greeted, and reached over to shake my hand with him. "It's been a while."
We quickly caught up with each other. I was hardly surprised by how stiff and formal he was. I don't know why, but he's never liked me for whatever reason. Alfred, I could understand, but what did I ever do?
"So," I cleared my throat, awkwardly. "How exactly did you manage to pull this off?" I gestured vaguely at the limo.
Yao's amber eyes flashed wickedly. "I have my contacts."
I let the topic end there. Yao was a mysterious and private person, and I honestly didn't care enough to pry any further.
"Hey," I called out. "We need to head out now if we want to make it there on time." My words fell on deaf ears.
"Alfred!" Yong Soo whined. "You promised us dates! Where are they?"
I turned and furrowed my brows. This was the first time I was hearing of this deal.
Alfred grinned and brought two fingers to his lips. A sharp whistle pierced the air. "Ladies, you can come out now!"
Across the street, Natalia and Elizabeta climbed out of a parked car. They were wearing heels, frilly, colourful dresses, and had a generous application of make-up on their faces. This only meant one thing; Alfred had included them in the mission.
Furious, I whacked Alfred on the head as the girls crossed the street, heels clacking against the pavement. "We already have Antonio and Francis on our side! Are you out of your damn mind?! Lovino's going to get suspicious if he can't reach anyone!"
Alfred rubbed his head, but didn't look sorry at all. "Relax, Artie. We need all the back-up we can get. Besides, this is what I promised the boys for helping us. And it's not like you would have agreed to this before."
"You twat," I growled. "You've given me no choice now. They already took the time to come here, and as a gentleman, I'm afraid I can't turn down a lady, no matter the circumstances."
"Yep. You're pretty easy to manipulate."
"You'll be hearing about this later…" I warned. That is, if there was a later.
"Girls," Alfred winked. "Looking beautiful as always!"
"Boys," Elizabeta said, and cockily pursed her lips. She could tell by how agitated I was that I didn't want their help. "I'm so glad you finally realized that you need people as experienced as we are. And you're not too shabby yourselves."
Natalia grunted. I'm surprised she made the effort.
"Yeah, well. I suppose we could use the numbers," I reluctantly admitted. "Are your weapons well-hidden?"
Elizabeta scoffed. "Of course!"
"I was only making sure. Your safeties are our responsibility now," I sighed. Natalia had tensed up, and I figured it was best not to say another word over the matter.
Kiku and Eduard were too much in awe to approach, whereas Yong Soo's eyes became as wide as beach balls. Figurative tail wagging, he sauntered up to Natalia and Elizabeta and immediately fixed his gaze on their chests. Yao snapped something at him in Mandarin and then Korean, while everyone else felt an immense amount of second-hand embarrassment.
"Hi!" Yong Soo chirped. "Which one of you bodacious ladies want to be my date?"
"Move along, pip-squeak," Natalia snarled. Even though she was at head-level with Yong Soo, she seemed much taller than she actually was. "I could skewer your dick with my fingernails."
Elizabeta laughed nervously. "I'll be your date, hun. Come, let's take a quick photo." Under her breath, she hissed. "Nat! Be nice! He's just nervous!"
"Being a sexist pig is not an excuse in my books," Natalia sniffed, and then reached into her purse to grab a can of bug spray. Yong Soo was too delighted to realize how brutal of an insult that was. If he did, he didn't seem to care.
"Kiku, Eduard, do you want a photo too?" Alfred asked.
"N-no! Just going with them is a big enough honour!" Kiku stammered. I had never seen him look so flustered and uncomposed. Eduard swallowed heavily and pretty much gave the same answer.
"All right, but hurry!" I stated impatiently.
After photos, everyone piled into the back. The limo was spacious, but being seated around so many people was still uncomfortable, especially when Natalia kept pulling out weapons from every possible fold in her dress.
The formal was being held at a hotel downtown, so once Yao dropped us all off, he couldn't park for long unless he wanted to get a ticket. Still, that didn't stop him from holding Alfred and I back. Yao leaned over the window and gave us a burning glare that made it hard to look away from him.
"If any of those boys get hurt, I will personally take my time butchering you both. Not only that, but I'll gladly hang your carcasses on display," he threatened.
Alfred and I gulped and nodded our heads.
Satisfied, Yao continued. "I never liked you two. I'm only doing this for Leon. I want justice for my family. Now go," he dismissively snapped his fingers. "I want that drug gone."
"Yes, sir!" Alfred replied.
As we walked into the hotel, I scowled at Alfred. "You didn't have to stroke his ego. You just gave him an excuse to talk down to us all the time now."
"Karma's a bitch, Artie."
"Well, I didn't do anything to him!"
"…"
"That's what I bloody well thought."
…
We met up with Elizabeta, Natalia, Kiku, Eduard, and Yong Soo in the fourth-floor hotel room we had booked. The teens would only be doing intelligence, as we didn't want to endanger them, and Natalia and Elizabeta would be sticking with them as an extra protection. Just in case, we had also picked a room close to the laundry chute. They were all small enough to fit in.
I slid the key card into the handle and entered the room with Alfred. Natalia and Elizabeta were loading their weapons, while the teens were huddled together over the bed. Several monitors and other audio-listening devices were scattered all across the room.
"Here," Kiku said as he reached over to hand Alfred and I our earpieces. "We'll be able to hear everything you do in the case that you separate. Antonio and Francis are already waiting downstairs. The Formal just started, so you have half an hour before Matthias is supposed to arrive."
"Gotcha," Alfred nodded. "So, this is it, huh?"
Everyone exchanged nervous, eagerly anticipatory glances.
"Well, I'm going to stay up here for a bit longer. Arthur, you go downstairs first. I'll meet up with you soon."
"Why aren't you coming with me now?" I asked.
"I'm going to do a quick scout of the floor. You can never be too sure."
"We're more than capable of protecting them," Natalia said.
"Yes, but I want to protect you two as well," Alfred said in a tone that didn't leave much room for argument.
I hummed in agreement and then reached out to clap Alfred on the shoulder. "I'll see you downstairs. Good luck everyone."
"Thanks!"
"Oomph!" I yelped as Alfred brought me into a tight bear-hug.
"We're really doing this man!"
"Not until you let me go."
"Oh… right!"
"Idiot."
"Hey!"
…
Alfred's POV:
I arrived a bit later than expected, but this turned out in my favour. It was easier for me to hide amongst the crowd. I couldn't let too many people recognize me or else they would realize that I had snuck into the dance.
I needed to find Arthur and Matthias. I blinked harshly at the strobe lights as I made my way through the crowd. I stopped abruptly when Ms. Mei grabbed my wrist. She must have been chaperoning the dance. Uh-oh, busted.
"Allen!" she shouted over the music. Her eyes were unusually wide. "You can't be here, you're expelled! I'm glad you are, though! No! Get out! Come here! Oh lala, you're such a dreamy bad boy, aren't you?"
"Lady, you're giving me a lot of mixed signals right now," I yelped, and shrugged out of her grip.
"Fuck me, fuck me right now!" Ms. Mei said. "Agh! I can't! He's a student!" Now she was having an internal debate with herself.
"WOAH THERE!" I bucked forward when Ms. Mei slapped my butt.
"You are so hot!" Ms. Mei ground her teeth, and without another word, she clacked away in her heels.
I was left completely dumbfounded. Turns out, she did have a crush on me… what the actual heck?!
"Allen!" Matthias called out. I fell forward again when the Dane draped a casual arm over my shoulders. I felt a gun hidden under the waistband of his dress pants. "There you are, you big lug! I've been looking all over for you. Where's your brother?"
"I don't know, he went out looking for you!"
"What are you waiting for then? Let's go find him!"
…
Arthur's POV:
So far, so good. No one had recognized me yet. I attributed this to the fact that I was wearing a white tux, as opposed to the dark grungy clothing I had worn during my time spent at the school. I didn't see Matthias anywhere, nor did I see Alfred.
A flash of a red ribbon and blonde hair crossed my peripherals. I attempted to duck out of sight, but Bella had already spotted me. She firmly grabbed my shoulders and spun me around. Confused, I looked her up and down, and realized that she was either drunk or on drugs. She'd have to be; last time I had seen her she had absolutely despised me.
"Ah! Bella! What are you–"
Bella giggled and clumsily staggered forward to catch her balance. Her short blonde curls bounced, and the smell of cinnamon shampoo reached my nose. The trails of her fluffy red dress hugged the ground. I had to back up a few steps to avoid her stepping on my foot with her heels.
"Oliver, you attractive bastard," Bella slurred. "Dance with me."
My morale sunk, heavy like an anchor. She had no business speaking to me after everything I'd done to her. More than that, I couldn't let her be seen with me. I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if she got hurt because of my own carelessness.
"I don't understand? Don't you hate me? I ruined a perfectly good chance for you to get into university," I reminded. "Are you… are you on drugs?"
"Nope, just drunk!" Bella admitted. "Ah, forget about it. Turns out, a scout came up to me right after the game. They were impressed with the skills I showed before you came, aha! I still hate you, but I need someone to dance with. It's been a long two weeks without your handsome face to look at."
My God, this woman was all over the place.
"So, did you come here for the big deal Matthias is doing later tonight?"
My eyes widened. She knew. I removed Bella's hands from my shoulders, grabbed her wrist, and towed her towards a discreet corner. The music was loud enough for me to pretend to ignore her protests.
"Ollie, if you wanted it rough, all you had to do was ask~!" Bella mused. She tilted up her chin to kiss me, but I turned my face.
"Bella, I need you listen to me!" I shouted. "I'm being dead serious here."
"Okay…okay. Geez," she said, pouting.
I took a deep breath and took out my badge to show her. Here goes nothing. "Look, I'm an undercover cop. I'm here to bust down the FMA drug operation. If you leave now, you won't have to be questioned afterwards. I don't want you to be involved in something like this, so please, please, just leave before you get wrapped up in this mess."
Bella sighed. "That's fake, isn't it?"
"It's not, I swear!"
"Oui, sure." Bella took out her phone from her purse. "We'll see about that. Let me search up the records." She clearly thought this was all a joke.
Before I could strengthen my case and get her to believe me, Matthias and Alfred called out for me. "Art, the other suppliers are here!"
I fumbled to hide my badge. Thankfully, Matthias hadn't seen it, and Alfred didn't know that I had just revealed myself to another student. Now that I think of it, that was really foolish of me. I suppose that's what I get for forming personal attachments on the job.
"Bella, I've got to go. Remember what I said!" I told her as Matthias dragged me away by the arm. His hair had been slicked down for the occasion.
"Come on lover boy, you can bang her afterwards."
"Please, believe me. Leave now," I mouthed to Bella. She scoffed and continued to search up recruit records on her phone.
"Come on man," Alfred scolded. "Get your head in the game." In other words, get in character.
"Yes, yes, you're right."
All three of us walked out of the ballroom and headed for the elevators in the front lobby. Once inside, I noticed that we were short four people.
"Where are the others?" I asked Matthias.
"I decided to switch things up and told them to stay back at our hotel room. They're standing by if things go wrong. You guys are the best shooters anyways. I feel a lot safer having you two with me," Matthias replied.
Alfred and I began to panic. This wasn't the plan. We were supposed to be Matthias's back up. That way, it would be easy to barge in once the deal was in motion and start arresting people.
Another horrifying set of realizations struck me: 1) Knife and Scar were going to be at this deal. 2) There was a very high chance that they would recognize us, as we had arrested them before.
Elizabeta and Natalia began to shout in our earpieces. "We're coming up, guys! Francis, Antonio! Change of plan! The take-down is happening sooner than expected! I repeat, leave the dance and prepare for take-down."
"Someone needs to stay here with the kids!" Natalia said.
"We'll be fine, just go before it's too late!"
"It's not smart to barge in all of a sudden. We should be more discreet and wait close by. If we barge in now, we might miss catching all suspects," Francis said. "Not to mention that it could escalate the situation and put us all in danger."
"You're right, Fran. Meet us on the stairwell! Arthur, Alfred, we've got your backs, don't worry!"
I hardly heard anything. The anxiety became too much to bear, and I started to see spots in my vision. Things were becoming too dangerous; I no longer felt comfortable with my chances of getting out of this alive.
The elevator dinged, and we shuffled out onto the tenth floor. Matthias strutted, I was weak-kneed, and Alfred was numbly quiet. Nothing felt real as we approached the tall, intimidating wooden doors belonging to the penthouse suite.
"You boys have your guns ready?" Matthias asked.
"Yes."
"Yep."
"Good let's deal. We need to make a good first impression."
Matthias opened the door, as the other suppliers had been expecting us. We walked into the two-story suite, and found two figures sitting in the lounge in front of the flat-screen tv. One had blond hair and broad shoulders, and the other, although smaller, was quite muscular too and had blond hair so pale it could have passed off as white.
"Coach Lud? Principal Fritz?!" Matthias voiced my suspicions. Oh, oh my. This was bad. Really bad.
Principal Fritz turned to look over his shoulder. "Took you fuckers long enough. You're ten minutes late. Surprised, Kohler? You really shouldn't be. I've overlooked your smoking joints more times than I can count."
Matthias faltered. "Sure, I guess. I mean, you did smoke with me that one time. But, Coach?!"
Coach Lud stood up to turn off the TV. His face was so neutral that it came off as cold. "He's my brother. Of course, I'm going to stand by with him."
"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON HERE?" Matthias spluttered. "You two, brothers?! You don't even look alike!"
Principal Fritz popped open a beer and took a chug from it. "Ja, you heard him right. We fooled you punks good, didn't we? No one suspected anything. And you two," Principal Fritz gestured at Alfred and I. "Thanks for causing all those distractions lately. It helped make the students forget about the fatal effects of the drug. Business is booming now because of you cock-suckers."
"Gee," Matthias rubbed the back of his neck. "This is genius, truly. I would have never guessed."
"Stop kissing our asses, Kohler. It's not going to get you anywhere," Principal Fritz warned. "You're an adult now, so I'll treat you like one. Fuck up, and Lud will put a bullet straight through your head."
"That was uncalled for," Alfred whispered under his breath.
"What was that hot-shot?" Principal Fritz glared.
"Nuthin."
"Hmmm. That's right. Well, help yourselves to whatever's around. The other two should be here soon."
Matthias eagerly accepted a beer. "Teacher's salary not enough for you guys?"
"Got that right," Coach Lud barked. "You can't pay me enough to deal with self-absorbed brats like you."
"Hey man, what's with the insults? We're all friends here…"
"Do you want me to put your beer in a sippy cup?"
"No?"
"Then stop acting like an infant."
"Uh, excuse us. We'll just help ourselves to some water, thanks. We're uh, taking turns driving home tonight." I grabbed Alfred and walked into the kitchen. Alfred reached into the fridge to grab two bottles of water.
"So what now?" he asked me. "Are we just going to chill here while the deal goes down? We can't let those two other suppliers see us or it's game over."
"That's the plan. The others should be here soon. We just need to observe something incriminating before we act," I replied, calmly to not alert any suspicion.
"Okay, cool."
"Things are looking good guys," Elizabeta spoke. "Keep it up. We're all on the stairwell, roger."
I coughed to mask my words. "Roger! Oh my, pardon me!" The three drug dealers didn't even bother to spare me a glance.
"So, like, do you guys make the drug and distribute it too?" Matthias chirped. He was nervous, and making conversation was his go-to coping mechanism.
"Gott, you like to talk a lot," Principal Fritz deadpanned. "And no, we don't make it. It's manufactured in Europe. We shot the old Turkish guy who ran this branch and took over from there."
"Oh…rad man," Matthias paled. Some of the colour returned to his face when Knife (Vash) and Scar (Lars) entered through the front door.
"Knife, Scar! Thank God! I mean, hey!" Matthias greeted.
Lars ignored Matthias and went straight to the two German brothers. "Long time no see. You have the drugs?"
"Ja. Don't we always?"
"Just making sure."
"Wait, you guys know each other, and you didn't even bother to tell me?" Matthias squeaked.
"Shut up, and know your place!" Vash snarled to silence the Dane. It worked.
While Lars and the others conversed with Matthias watching silently in fear, Vash tensed as if sensing something was wrong. He turned and spotted us standing awkwardly in the kitchen. "Who are those two?" he asked as he pointed to us with a sharp index finger. It was accusatory.
"They're just other students," Principal Fritz answered immediately. "They're not worth our time."
"Really?" Vash leered. "Because they look very familiar, don't they Knife?"
Lars looked us over and curled his lip. "Yes, actually. They do." He snapped his fingers. "You two, over here! Now. I don't trust you and want a closer look."
"Shit! Arthur, what do we do?" Alfred whispered.
"Just listen to them," I said through gritted teeth. "We don't want them to suspect us anymore."
Elizabeta and the others erupted in panic again. The thuds echoing from their earpieces signalled that they were on the move.
Stiffly, we approached Lars and Vash. I didn't yield and looked them straight in the eye. "Oliver Walker, and this is my brother, Allen."
"These two are my best dealers," Matthias cut in. "You don't need to be suspicious of them."
"We'll make that decision for ourselves, thank you," Lars growled and sent Matthias a deathly glare. The air suddenly became colder; goosebumps pricked all over my body.
"Sir?" I said uncertainly. "Is there something the matter?"
Lars didn't get a chance to answer as Bella slammed open the front door of the suite. Drunker than she was before, she stumbled and swayed into the living room. How she knew where to find us was just my luck.
"Oliver, you mother fucker!" she cried out. "You really are a cop! Or should I call you Arthur Kirkland?!"
FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!
"Did she just call him a cob?" Alfred laughed nervously. "I mean, I know his hair is pretty messy, but that's kinda rude, dudette."
"You piece of shit narc!" Bella screamed and pointed directly at my face. Well, there was no fixing that one.
"I knew it, your boys are cops!" Vash screamed. Within the span of ten seconds, four guns were pulled on us. In return, Alfred and I also pulled out our guns. There was no going back now.
"POLICE, PUT YOUR WEAPONS DOWN AND KEEP YOUR HANDS WHERE WE CAN SEE THEM!"
Mortified, Matthias glanced between Alfred and I. "You guys are cops?" he said, disbelievingly.
"Yep, you bet we are!" Alfred shouted.
"But, Ollie. We went to net neutrality protests together…"
"IT WAS ALL FAKE HE NEVER LIKED YOU!"
"That's not true! I kinda did!"
"ARTHUR FOR FUCK'S SAKES FOCUS!"
"RIGHT! ALL OF YOU, DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"
"Ha!" Principal Fritz barked. "As if. We outnumber you four to two. Kohler, you pussy. I know you have a gun. Get it out."
Matthias scrambled to Vash's side and did as told. "I… I trusted you guys." I ignored him.
"Bella, get behind us!" I called out. "It's not safe!"
"Damn right, it's not safe!" Lars said, and swept up Bella. He held her at gunpoint.
"O-Ollie!" she said. Tears began streaming down her face. "Ollie help me, please!"
"Hand over your weapons, or the girl gets it," Lars threatened.
Matthias started forward. "Lars, what are you–"
"I thought I told you to shut-up!" Vash fumed. In a swift motion, he used the butt of his gun to hit Matthias on the back of his head, knocking the Dane out cold. "Useless bitch."
"I won't repeat myself again," Lars said. "Drop your weapons."
"Ollie, please!"
"We're coming!" Elizabeta shrieked. "Just hold on!"
Alfred and I had no other choice but to put down our guns. We raised our hands in surrender.
"Kick them out of reach," Lars ordered.
Alfred and I did as instructed.
Lars let go of Bella.
"Run!" I told her. "Get to safety, just anywhere but here. Go! Go!"
Bella did run, but not where I expected her to. She went to Matthias, reached into his pants, and took out his gun for herself. That gun was then pointed at me as she joined Lars at his side.
"B-Bella? What are you doing? You're not…you're not involved in this, are you?"
"Oh, but I am, Oliver," Bella laughed. It was a cruel sound that didn't suit her face. "Who do you think got Matthias and his idiot friends into dealing? A business always needs a sweet face to do the manipulating. It just so happens to be me."
She then turned to look up at Lars with admiration. "How'd I do?"
Principal Fritz and Coach Lud ogled at this sight. They must not have known about Bella's involvement. Matthias, Vash, and Lars seemed to be the only ones aware of this.
Lars smiled faintly. "Very well, sis. I raised you well."
The pieces started to fall into place. "You knew we were cops all along!" I screamed. "How else would you know where the cameras' blind spots were? You never left me alone when we were out too. It all makes sense now. You… you manipulated me for information by flirting with me!"
"Like you're any better," Bella retorted. "But yes. I suspected it all along, but downstairs you confirmed it to me. I told Lars, and well, the rest is history. We knew that I could be used as bait, and you fell right for it. Ha! Some cops you are."
"You're not going to get away with this," I growled. "Justice will be served, my dear. You just ruined your whole life. Not going to university will be the least of your worries, you best believe me when I say that."
My whole body shook and trembled in refusal to accept this betrayal as real. And yet here Bella was, glaring at me with a gun pointed straight at my head. I used to be proud of her, now I couldn't be anymore disappointed. That's what hurt me the most. Of all people, she was the drug dealer's little sister. I had been completely blind-sided; outsmarted; it was infuriating.
"What. Just. Happened?" Alfred whispered.
"It doesn't matter. Just keep stalling until the others get here."
"What are you guys saying to each other?!" Vash snarled.
"Nuthin."
"Spit it out!"
"Just shoot them and get it over with."
"Bella, turn away. I don't want you to see this."
"M'kay."
"Arthur, they should be here by now."
Click!
I flinched as the gun was cocked. Dread seeped in, and I closed my eyes. The others were too late. We weren't going to make it.
"DAMN IT!" Coach Lud grunted. He and Principal Fritz stepped over to stand in front of Alfred and I. They then pointed their guns at Vash, Bella, and Lars.
"SEARGENT LUDWIG BEILSCHMIDT, DROP YOUR WEAPONS!"
"DETECTIVE GILBERT BEILSCHMIDT, UH, WHAT HE SAID!"
Principal Fritz, or Gilbert, looked over his shoulder to glare at us. "I hope you two idiots are happy. You just ruined a year-and-a-half-long investigation."
"You guys are part of Hump Street?" Alfred ogled.
"Of course we are!"
"Why in the bloody hell did Lovino not tell us about this?" I hissed.
"He was supposed to, but then you two kept fucking things up!" Coach Lud snapped, raising one hand to his ear. He was speaking into an earpiece. "Lovino, Feliciano. It appears that the others have gone behind your back without permission. We need back up immediately. We're engaged in a stand down involving four other suspects, all of them are armed. There's another weaponless suspect who's been knocked out."
"YOU TWO ARE COPS?" Lars bellowed.
Heavy footsteps echoed in the outside hallway.
"POLICE GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" Elizabeta kicked open the door as Francis, Natalia, and Antonio burst into the room, all armed and prepared to shoot. They joined us at our sides, forming a protective ring around Alfred and I. Natalia silently handed us each a gun.
"Dumbasses," she growled. If I didn't know any better, I'd say she appeared somewhat relieved.
"What the hell is going on here?" Vash roared. Jittery, he pointed his gun all around the room.
Lovino and Feliciano, also armed and wearing protective gear, burst through the front door.
"I could ask you all the same question," Lovino stated venomously, and aimed a sharp glare at the other jump streeters who had gone on this mission without his permission.
There wasn't much time to explain ourselves. Why? Because we were busy avoiding the torrents of gunfire that had begun to rain down from all directions.
…
To be continued…