Chapter 4
The Fourth of July did not merely happen in America—it exploded. Arthur had made numerous state-side trips, but none of them had been during Independence Day, a fact for which he was now grateful. Perhaps it was because he was staying at the American capital, but Arthur was a little overwhelmed.
"It's my birthday! Woohoo! Yeah!" Alfred shouted, as he took a massive running leap and cannon-balled into the enormous pool in his stripes and stars swim shorts. These swim trunks matched his American flag T-shirt, his red, white and blue flip-flops, his patriotic baseball cap, and his beach bag, which was essentially an American flag in bag form. All of that matched the Fourth of July themed desserts that weighted down the table (also decorated with a plastic flag-inspired table cloth). The disposable plates were Independence Day themed, and all the guests to the morning pool party (a family-only celebration for Alfred's birthday) were dressed in similar apparel to Alfred and his parents. Then there was the massive birthday cake complete with "fireworks" candles and sparklers, the burgers being grilled in the shape of stars by the President himself, and the constant blaring of obnoxiously aggressive country songs wherein the singer boasted about America kicking other countries' arses.
"It's very...patriotic, eh?" Matthew commented with a small grin. Matthew and Arthur, the only two friends of Alfred's that had been allowed to attend his family birthday party, sought refuge from the decorations near the drink table. That was patriotic-themed, too, but at least they weren't constantly getting splashed from the swimmers or pestered by Alfred's little cousins who crowded around the food table with sticky, chubby fingers.
"It's ridiculous. Is that an ice sculpture of Uncle Sam they're bringing in over there? Why is his arm bent so oddly like that?" Arthur asked in disbelief. Matthew squinted and nodded.
"Yeah, that's Uncle Sam. And look—there's an ice eagle. I guess the ice eagle sits on his arm."
"Of course he does. Blimey. You think if I spill the punch bowl on the sound system to stop this god-awful music anyone will notice?" Arthur asked. One of Alfred's aunts waltzed by with a foam hat that made her look vaguely like the Statue of Liberty.
"Smile boys!" Despite the fact that neither boy had time to muster up an awkward smile, she snapped the photo.
"Oh god, here he comes. If he wants me to sing karaoke with him to the Star Spangled Banner again I'm going to strangle myself in the paper streamers," Arthur warned. Matthew snickered and then Alfred was filling their vision, dripping wet and grinning from ear to ear.
"Isn't this awesome? And it's just starting! It's gonna go all day!" Alfred enthused. Arthur smiled in a fake, pacifying sort of way.
"It's lovely, dear," Arthur said drolly. Alfred winked at Matthew conspiratorially.
"I'm sensing sarcasm, which is not allowed on the most awesome day of the year. I think it's time to defeat the British all over again. I'm throwing you in the pool!"
Arthur, who hadn't planned to swim and was dressed crisply in linen trousers and a tailored dress shirt, narrowed his eyes in warning.
"You wouldn't dare," he growled. Alfred just grinned and then turned around, cupping his hands around his mouth and calling out for his pack of howler monkeys/younger cousins.
"Ricky! Haley! Andrew!"
"Run, Arthur!" Matthew advised, but it was too late. The little hoard of children flocked to their leader and Arthur was trapped under the tackle of their wet bodies. The adults laughed at their antics even while Arthur screamed bloody murder. With the help of his minions (who loved Alfred, of course) Arthur was hoisted into the air and tossed into the pool. Little Ricky made this defeat all the worse by arming himself with a massive water gun and pelting Arthur with it as soon as he surfaced.
"Alright, time for cake!" Helen announced, looking a little tipsy already, despite it only being ten in the morning. It was mostly Richard's family in attendance, as on Helen's side, all she had left was her aging father since her mother had passed away two years before. The President's side alone brought the total number of guests to around fifty. Richard had four brothers and two sisters, who all had children of various ages. Helen's father had come, too. The hotel mogul was there with his twenty-four year old, glamorous Californian girlfriend, talking on his cell phone and scowling at the children that got too close and threatened whatever project was displayed on his expensive laptop. Arthur managed to drag himself out of the pool like a drowned rat. Matthew helpfully offered him an American flag colored towel.
"I'm leaving," he ground out in pure annoyance. Matthew winced and offered a sheepish smile.
"You can't miss cake! Come on, Arthur...just look at him. Sure it's loud and obnoxious and really, really tacky, but I don't think I've ever seen him look so happy."
And as much as Arthur hated to admit it, Matthew was right. Surrounded by his family from all over the country, the center of attention, a massive pile of presents and a huge cake awaiting him and, for once, his parents focused solely on him, Alfred was gloriously happy. There were no other words for it.
"I suppose I'll stay...only because he'll notice if I leave now," Arthur grumbled. He irritably wrapped up in the towel and hummed along tunelessly to the birthday song. He supposed it was a little cute the way that Alfred hoisted up the littlest cousin in his arms and let her blow out his candles, and the way the other children clearly saw Alfred as their hero for the day. He was a constant source of piggy back rides, cannon-ball splashes, and corny jokes. Alfred was served a massive slice of cake by his paternal grandmother, who fussed over how big he was getting and squeezed his cheek adoringly. She and Alfred's grandfather had flown in from Florida for the occasion.
"We're seventeen now. I feel like we're getting old," Matthew joked. Arthur nodded.
"I forgot to ask. How was your flight last night?" Arthur queried. Matthew frowned a little.
"The flight was alright, but I thought Alfred would send somebody for me at the airport. My cab driver got lost and it was hard managing all my bags," Matthew said. It was not in his nature to complain, but in truth, he was still a little annoyed.
"I'm sorry, Matthew. I didn't know you were flying in last night, else I would have come to help. Alfred's family was arriving and it was chaos here. That's why you couldn't just stay at the White House. I think they've actually filled up every room. I'm afraid I got a bit...snippy...with Alfred for not telling me about this family party, and our spat distracted him from your texts until it was too late."
Matthew felt a little better knowing it had not been an intentional snub, and that Alfred and Arthur had been fighting—not having fun without him.
"It's okay. Now that I've met the family, I think I'm much happier at the hotel," Matthew said with a smile. Arthur groaned upon realizing his stay at the White House was going to be a constant barrage of people and parties.
"Can I come crash with you?" he asked.
"Nope! You're his boyfriend—gotta stand by your man and all that, eh? And speaking of, there's the text from Francis. He's just arrived. I'm going to go meet him," Matthew said.
"Alright. I'll let Alfred know why you slipped out. If you don't hear from me in an hour, they've likely tried to revolt again and I'm suffering unspeakable tortures."
"Sounds like good fun. Happy Fourth of July!" Mattie chirruped.
"Oh, shut it!" Arthur growled. Just then, Alfred's grandmother shoved a plateful of cake under Arthur's nose. "No thank you, madam, but I—"
"Eat up! No grandchild of mine will walk around looking so underfed!"
"I beg your pardon, but I'm not underfed...and I'm not one of your grandchildren," Arthur said primly. The old, batty woman retracted the cake and squinted at him from behind her zany colored reading glasses.
"Oh! Well can't blame you for not eating much. That son of mine didn't cook the meat well enough. We're all gonna get salmonella. I gotta take the blame though; I voted for him—twice! That's a little Florida humor for you. Here, eat your cake, pumpkin."
Left with no other choice, sopping wet and captured in an American flag towel, Arthur was forced to have his cake and eat it, too. He was starting to seriously dislike the Fourth of July, and it wasn't even noon yet.
Finally, finally, Yao stepped out of the foreign taxi in front of the quaint little home in the suburbs that Nikolai had secured for his family. It was a short commute from the house to the World Academy campus, and Yao assumed he and Ivan would spend most of their time at the house when they were not in class.
"Don't bother to unload your bags. I'll send the taxi on to a hotel near the school," Ivan said. They'd been having the same argument since they left Russia, with Ivan insisting that they were broken up and that Yao needed to go back to doing whatever it was he did before he fell in love with Ivan.
Of course, it was a ridiculous suggestion, and even Sofia agreed with him.
"Ivan, you can not send him off alone. Papa has entrusted you to take care of us—all of us," Sofia said. While normally the busty girl was friendly and sweet, after the horrid plane ride with the baby, she had become snappy and moody. Ivan realized he'd been railroaded and dismissed the waiting taxi driver with a wave of his hand. He carried Yao and Natalia's bags up the front sidewalk, and fished for the key in his pocket. He unlocked the door for his jet-lagged, emotionally exhausted family and let them inside.
Showing new energy, Natalia raced into the house to claim her bedroom. Ivan kicked her out of the master and then she raced upstairs to claim another. Sofia took a spacious upstairs room next to the furnished nursery and proceeded to feed Raivis and tuck him into bed. He cried a few moments, but finally passed out in a deep, quiet slumber. A collective sigh of relief echoed from everyone and they retreated into their bedrooms to sleep, uncaring that it was the middle of the day.
No sooner had Yao's head hit the pillow when Ivan's phone began to buzz with incoming text messages.
"Ignore them," Yao said. Ivan, however, rolled over and peered at his phone.
"It's Alfred's birthday today. Wants to drink later," Ivan said sleepily.
"Tell him some other time," Yao ordered. Ivan, however, quite liked the idea of going out drinking later and texted Alfred back that he was sleeping now, but would be up in a bit and could sneak out. Oblivious, Yao was down for the count. Ivan couldn't sleep. His mind rolled with thoughts of Yao, his former enemy and now adopted son, and his sisters.
He worried, too, for his father.
Finally giving up, Ivan got out of bed and took his phone with him into the kitchen. They would need groceries. He found his wallet in his suitcase, grabbed the house keys, and started walking to the gas station he'd seen at the entrance to the neighborhood. It was nearly three in the afternoon, and everywhere he looked, American families were out in their yards, grilling burgers and visiting with family. It was safe and wholesome. Each cookie cutter house looked utterly unremarkable. The neighborhood stretched for miles in such a fashion—no character or history, just track housing as far as the eye could see: the American dream.
Ivan thought of home, and the crime, and the smoke shop he liked to visit, and the places of surprising beauty found around unsuspecting street corners. Russia was as unique as she was cold, as splendid as she was soiled. For the first time ever, Ivan felt home sick and utterly out of place. He stopped in the side walk and scowled down at an unassuming lawn gnome. Seeing nobody was around, Ivan gave it a firm kick and sent its plastic head sailing across the perfectly manicured lawn.
He called his father. The phone rang twice and then his father picked up. He sounded as he always did—calm and collected.
"We've landed," Ivan said in Russian.
"Good. Your sisters are safe? The neighborhood is good?" his father asked.
"Yes, Papa, it is good. Quiet. Safe."
"Zakhar is leaving China to come watch over you. He will arrive in a few days and stay with your sisters when you cannot be there."
"You have protected us well, Papa. I...I am sorry," Ivan said, his voice breaking slightly.
"Do not apologize. Never apologize. If you make a choice, you must stand by it like a man."
"I hate hiding while you fight our enemies alone!" Ivan replied hotly.
"There will not be much more fighting. We have mostly lost. It is almost done," Nikolai spoke in a calm, matter-of-fact tone. No doubt, he meant it to be calming, but it was not.
"The fighting is never done. You taught me that," Ivan replied.
"There is a good chance I will not survive this week, Ivan."
Ivan glanced back down the street, to the nice, neat house where his family now lived, as safe as Nikolai could make them, essentially in hiding. Ivan was not stupid. He could put the pieces together. His homosexuality had cost his father respect, and in fighting to regain that respect, his father had gone too far. The Braginski family would no longer be a powerful force in Russia. Due to sending so many of his numbers to China to protect Yao's family, his father was now weakened and alone. His branch in China might still thrive, but those relatives and recruits could never return to Russia.
"Your education is secure at World Academy. It is now incredibly important that you graduate and become a good provider. In getting you all permanently established in America, I have exhausted our family fortune. Your sisters will go to college. Raivis will attend World Academy when it is his time."
"You should have told me it was crumbling. I wouldn't have left you," Ivan said. He hated the sunshine blasting down on him. He hated the neat little rows of houses. He hated that thousands of miles away, his father was living on borrowed time and that it was mostly his fault. He hated that he now had to step up and provide for what was left of his broken little family.
"The Galante family has more power and resources now. You must be on guard, Ivan."
"I will be."
"Goodbye, Ivan."
"Goodbye, Papa," Ivan said hollowly. The line went dead and he knew his father would be dead soon, too. With nothing else to do, he went to buy groceries from the gas station.
USUKUS
Matthew waited dutifully at the airport gate, ready to surprise Francis. In the rush of excitement to see him again, he was willing to forgive all the ignored calls and unanswered texts. If he could just see him again, and kiss him, and have Francis look him in the eyes and tell him how loved he was, then it would be so much easier to forget all about his horrible summer.
Passengers began to stream off the plane and Matthew waited eagerly. He thought he saw Francis, disembarking behind a tall, leggy tan girl with dark hair and beautiful features. The girl turned backwards to say something to his boyfriend, her hand casually landing on his shoulder as they laughed about something. Hastily, Matthew ducked behind a nearby pillar and peeked around. He could just barely hear their conversation.
"...this is it, then?" the girl said.
"I'm afraid so, la belle," Francis replied. Matthew grit his teeth. The girl replied and Matthew didn't quite catch what she said. Something about meeting up and dinner. He heard World Academy mentioned.
"It's like you said—I feel like fate put us on this plane together," she said. Matthew could hear them clearly now. They stood just a few feet away, still oblivious to his presence.
"It was truly surprising how much we share in common. I look forward to our friendship this next year," Francis replied. Matthew tried to calm down. Friendship. Friendship was good.
"Just friendship?" the beautiful girl asked, and Matthew imagined that she was leaning closer to Francis, likely suggestively.
"I told you I have a boyfriend...one who is very insecure, I might add," Francis said, as if Matthew were a burden.
"Then what your insecure boyfriend doesn't know won't hurt him, no?" Matthew peeked around the pillar to see the girl slant her full lips over those of his boyfriend, who was neither stopping her nor pushing her away. Matthew felt hot tears on his cheeks.
"That should not have happened," Francis said, when they parted.
"But it did...and you liked it. Just think about it. I'll see you around school, Francis," the girl purred, before sauntering off. Matthew began to panic, wanting to escape the airport without Francis realizing what he'd seen, but unable to force his body into action. Francis walked closer, and Matthew held his breath. His gorgeous boyfriend walked past him, heading towards baggage claim, and didn't even see him.
Matthew rubbed away his tears, wondering why that simple fact surprised him so much. All his life he'd been like a ghost. Unseen. Unappreciated.
"No more," Matthew vowed. He was sick of never standing out, of never being special. Somehow, he'd make Francis regret what he'd done. Feeling depressed, Matthew flipped his phone open and called Alex.
"Hey man! What's happening?"
"I'm at the airport. Alex...I have something to tell you."
"You can tell me anything, bro," Alex reassured. He could sense how upset his friend was, and he wondered if this had something to do with Alfred Jones.
"I'm gay, Alex." Matthew exhaled. He waited for the awkwardness. Instead, Alex quickly replied.
"Yeah, I pretty much figured that out, socio."
"Wait...how?" Mattie asked. Did he even sound gay?
"Well, Jones is always going on about gay rights and how all his friends are gay and proud and whatever. Plus, you slipped up once and said boyfriend instead of girlfriend."
"Why didn't you call me on it?" Matthew asked. He could practically hear Alex shrug.
"You weren't ready to tell me yet. I knew I wasn't going anywhere. I could wait—not that it's a big deal or anything. But hey, socio, you don't sound so good. What happened?" Alex demanded. Matthew felt his defenses crumbling. Fresh tears rolled down his cheeks.
"I came to surprise my b-boyfriend at the airport. He got off the plane t-talking to this beautiful girl and she k-kissed him, and they talked about meeting up again. He said he had a boyfriend, but he didn't discourage her. He certainly didn't push her away! The flirting has gone too far this time. I'm done with this!"
"You should be, Matt. Want me to kick his ass?"
"N-no...but thanks," Matthew replied. "I want...I want to make him regret losing me. I want him to be jealous for once!"
"Okay...okay...you know what? I'm coming to that party with you. I'm gonna get my flight changed, but I don't have the money for a hotel till school starts."
Matthew was surprised that he really, really wanted Alex in D.C. with him.
"Don't worry about that. I have a hotel booked till the move-in date at the dorms next week. You can just stay with me. Are you really going to come early?" Matthew asked, finding it hard to believe that Alex would go to so much trouble for his sake.
"Hell yeah I'm coming. It's only a two and a half hour flight. You go get something hot to wear to the party till I can get there, alright?" Alex said.
Matthew felt like his emotions were on a roller coaster, but he found himself smiling broadly as he hung up the phone. Francis called nearly as soon as the phone was away from his ear.
Hesitating only a moment, Matthew forwarded the call to voicemail. He'd show up to the party with Alex without giving Francis any head's up. Even if he wasn't dating Alex, Francis would still see him having a good time and not thinking about him at all. He knew Francis would probably be over him in a second and on to somebody new, but all that mattered to Matthew was that he spend the evening with someone who actually saw him.
Matthew left the airport and hailed a taxi. He asked to go to the nearest mall. Once there, he shopped until he found an outfit that really made all his best features stand out. Throwing his old clothes into the shopping bags, he headed back to the airport with enough time to get a late lunch before Alex's flight landed at five.
Francis, Arthur, and even Alfred were texting him now, but Matthew pointedly ignored all their calls. After all, they'd ignored him all summer. Now, all Matthew wanted to do was wait for the one boy who hadn't forgotten about him.
Matthew realized that he was waiting for two guys at the airport on the same day. Obviously, he hoped Alex's arrival would go more smoothly than Francis's had. This time, Matthew stood proudly out in the open. Despite only seeing one picture of Alex, Matthew spotted him instantly. What was even better, Alex spotted him, too, with no photos to guide him. Matthew took a few steps forward, an excited smile on his face, and laughed when Alex barreled up to him and actually lifted him off the ground his hug was so huge.
"You're suffocating me!" Matthew complained with a big smile. Alex released him and just grinned at him for a long time.
"You're a sight for sore eyes, socio! I can't wait! This is gonna be the best year ever—just you and me," Alex declared. Matthew grinned when Alex casually dropped his arm over his shoulders as they walked towards baggage claim. "Come on, Matt. I'm having ice-cream withdrawals. We'll get some of the good stuff, head to the hotel, and you can tell me all about this asshole."
"Okay...that actually sounds really, really good. Alex?" Mattie said.
"Yeah?"
"Thanks for coming."
"Don't thank me, Matt. It's what a friend should do. We're gonna eat till we bust and do whatever you wanna do tonight. You wanna go to the party? We'll go. You want me to take you out? We can do that, too," Alex offered. He gave Matthew's shoulder a squeeze and then removed his arm. He was just as Matthew had thought he'd be. His skin was dark and perfectly tanned. He had fairly long, black dreads, swept up into a pony tail behind his head. He was a little husky, but not fat by any means, and to put it simply, he made Matthew feel very safe. He looked like he'd done a lot of hard labor as a young man, and though the downtime in Miami had softened him somewhat, he still looked like a teen who knew how to take care of business. Being so pale and slender, Matthew was practically the other boy's exact opposite in just about everything physical.
Just then, Matthew's phone rang again and Matthew nervously stared at the caller. Grinning, Alex snatched the phone and answered it.
"Hola pipucho," Alex greeted. Matthew's eyes were wide.
"I think I have the wrong number," Francis replied confusedly.
"No, you trying to reach Matt?"
"Um...yes?" Francis replied, starting to sound annoyed. "Who are you?"
"He's busy right now sucking—"
"Oh my gosh!" Matthew squealed, grabbing the phone and shutting it quickly.
"What? You're sucking on a mint," Alex said with a shit-eating grin. Matthew crunched the breath mint in his mouth (he didn't want bad breath when he met Alex) and swallowed it with a gulp.
The phone rang again. This time it was Alfred.
"Oh please let me answer that," Alex begged. Matthew held on to his phone tightly.
"No. Look, when I tell him what happened, he'll be a good friend about it, too. Alfred's not as terrible as you think."
"Then answer. Let's see what he does," Alex said.
"But it is his birthday, so—"
"Just answer."
Matthew sighed and flipped the phone open.
"Hey Alfred," he said glumly.
"Mattie! Bro! Where are you? Francis is here but didn't you go to pick him up? He says he called you and some creepy Mexican answered!"
"He's Cuban, actually," Matthew said with a sigh. Alex grinned and went about getting his luggage.
"Have you been kidnapped? Are you hurt? I've been watching all the news about the drug towns on the border, and if he's dragging you to Mexico, I'm going to save you. Don't worry! Just hang tight and don't drink the water, and if he says he needs a mule, he's not talking about the cute furry ones you ride, he's talking about shoving drugs up your ass."
"Alfred, that's disgusting. Just listen to me Alfred—"
"And it's totally not cool that he's kidnapping you and making you be a drug mule on my birthday!"
"ALFRED. Francis cheated on me!"
"...what?" Alfred said, finally calming down.
"So Alex, a friend of mine from Cuba, which is not the same place as Mexico, flew in early to cheer me up," Matthew said.
"Oh. How'd you meet him?" Alfred asked, sounding paranoid.
"I met him through the World Academy penpal program."
"That's cool, I guess. So...are you guys coming to my party?" Alfred asked. Matthew couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that the party was all Alfred cared about.
"I don't know. I'm kinda upset, Al," Matthew said. Alex looked at him knowingly so Matthew turned around and hid his distress from Alex. "I know you're busy today, Al, but—"
"I warned you about him from the start, Mattie. I told you Francis was a manwhore. He flirts around all the time. Does the fact that he took it past that really surprise you?"
Matthew felt tears well up in his eyes and he brushed at them absently.
"It did surprise me. I thought...I thought he loved me more than that," Matthew half-whispered.
"Mattie...just don't get too down about this. It's not worth it, okay? He's not worth it. Just come to the party and have a good time, okay?" Alfred suggested. Matthew scowled. If it was Arthur who had cheated on Alfred, the other boy would be devastated, but because Francis was flirtatious, it made sense that he'd cheated? Matthew closed his phone without saying goodbye.
Matthew turned slowly, phone clutched in his hand.
"Aw, come here, socio," Alex said as he extended an arm. Matthew buried gratefully into the other boy's side, crying heavily on his shoulder.
"Forget them. Let's go to the hotel."
"Okay," Matthew sniffled.
Back at the hotel, Matthew hastily took off the sexy (but uncomfortable) clothes. He traded them in for a T-shirt with a maple leaf and a pair of pajama pants that Francis always sneered at when he wore them.
"Oh good, so you do own normal clothes," Alex joked with a friendly smile. "I was starting to feel like a bum." In his cargo shorts and bright, tropical shirt Matthew thought Alex looked just fine. The laid-back non-fussy clothing suited him. They had bought ice cream in the hotel lobby, and now Matthew fetched the maple syrup.
"Canadian ice cream, remember?" he said with a smile. Alex grinned.
"Hit me up, socio! Let's see if we can't find a good game. Yeah...here we go...you know these teams?" Alex asked. Matthew glanced at the screen, where a rather intense looking hockey game was playing out. He understood the basics, but he'd never really followed a team before.
"Not really, but let's watch anyway." They ate their ice cream and found the conversation flowed just as well in person as it did on the phone. Matthew told Alex what he'd seen at the airport and Alex commiserated with him about a girl that had cheated on him in the past.
It was nearly ten before there was a knock on the door.
"I'll get it," Alex offered. He opened the door to see royalty.
"Arthur?" Matthew asked, peering around Alex, surprised to see the British boy there.
"Hello, Matthew. I'm sorry about what happened. I would have come sooner, but it was rather difficult to find your hotel room."
"Oh...sorry...come in," Matthew said.
"Hello. I'm Arthur," the blond said, extending his hand politely to Alex. Looking a little uncomfortable, Alex shook his hand.
"Hola. I'm Alex."
"A pleasure," Arthur said. The neatly dressed blond stood in the now messy hotel room looking very out of place. The fun, relaxed environment of just seconds before vanished. For a long second, they three of them just stood their uncomfortably before Matthew recovered from his surprise.
"Uh, have a seat! We're just...um...pigging out and watching hockey."
"I can see that. Looks fun. You made the better choice to stay in. The party at Alfred's has been something of a nightmare." Arthur sat gracefully, his legs crossing. Alex flopped onto the mattress, not speaking much in the other boy's presence.
"Did Francis...I mean...I know you two are close..." Matthew said unsurely.
"I've heard his side of the story, yes. I had to accompany him to the emergency room."
"What?" Matthew said, startled.
"Alfred broke his nose after he spoke with you on the phone. I've convinced Francis not to press charges...just barely. I must apologize for Alfred's behavior. After the party this morning, his family started drinking beers and wine coolers and Alfred has been buzzed all afternoon. He's been a bit hard to manage. Just as all his celebrity friends started arriving, he caused the scene with Francis and then he got a call from Ivan—no idea what it was about—but he said it was crucial he go see him. I was a bit wary to let him go, but I had to go with Francis to get his nose looked at so I sent him off with a driver. I suppose Helen is handling the party."
"...wow," Mattie said. "I bet you're really pissed, huh?" Matthew confirmed. Arthur gave a restrained, though very fake smile.
"You could say that. He hasn't answered my calls so I don't have the foggiest idea where he and Ivan went. It likely involves more alcohol, which is really the last thing my idiot boyfriend needs."
"So...he punched Francis...for me?" Matthew said. Arthur sighed.
"I suppose. The two of them got into a rather heated argument that started with you, but at some point turned into Alfred's lingering bitterness over the fact that Francis and I dated, which is ridiculous, but he was drunk so..."
"So then Alfred punched him?"
"Actually, Francis said he had a small penis and then Alfred punched him."
"Oh. That sounds...really stupid," Matthew said. Alex snorted in a dry, sarcastic sort of way.
"Tell me about it. If I were you, I wouldn't speak to either of them for quite some time. They've both been utter prats. Again, I apologize for not helping you at the airport and I'm sorry I can't stay very long now. I'm not entirely sure what happened between you and Francis, but I'm fairly certain, whatever it was, that it was Francis's fault. I'm glad you've got a friend in town, though. I'm going to attempt to track down Alfred...before he and Ivan end up in prison."
"Sorry I caused so much trouble," Matthew said weakly. Alex scowled.
"None of this is your fault, Matt! Your boyfriend cheated on you and your best friend is acting a drunk fool instead of having your back!"
"Alex! Arthur is Alfred's—"
"Matthew, there's no need. Trust me, your friend can make no disparaging remark about Alfred that I have not already thought about him at least twelve times tonight. We are in perfect agreement about his complete idiocy. I will say this, though. He's gone through a lot of changes this summer, Matthew. He's struggling to adjust, but I promise the Alfred we all know and love is still there. He's just...confused right now. He needs some time and a sensible routine. You know how poorly he does when he's not given structure."
"Heh, yeah," Matthew agreed. He stood up to see Arthur out. At the last minute, he leaned in and gave the British boy a slightly awkward hug.
"Thanks for tracking me down, Arthur," he said. Arthur blushed slightly and cleared his throat.
"Oh, well, think nothing of it. You two have a nice night, and again, my most sincere apologies," Arthur said as he left. He waved at Alex. "It was a pleasure meeting you." Alex just nodded his head and smiled a bit. Once the door closed behind him, Alex chuckled in disbelief.
"Is he always like that?" Alex asked. Matthew snickered a bit.
"I've seen him loosen up a little bit before...but for the most part, yeah. That's just...Arthur."
"I think his polo stick got caught up his ass. 'Good sir, I assure you that you can make no disparaging remarks...' Seriously, man? Who talks like that?"
Matthew laughed and flopped down on the messy bed, rummaging around for another bag of chips.
"He was trying to be nice," Matthew vouched. Alex shrugged with a smile.
"Yeah, he's not so bad. A little too stuffy for my tastes, but at least better than your loser boyfriend and your idiot best friend."
"Yeah, you are kinda an idiot," Matthew teased, sticking out his tongue. Alex pretended to be highly offended. He clutched at his heart, even though he was grinning ear to ear.
"You hurt me, Matt. You hurt me real bad. I'm gonna make 'disparaging remarks at least twelve times' about you now."
"Oh, shut it. Leave poor Arthur alone," Matthew said with a reluctant grin.
"Seriously, though, I'm glad at least one of your old friends is decent."
"They all used to be great. I guess people change, though," Matthew said sadly.
"Hey, if a friendship is good, it will stand the test of time. Now let's get back to the game—we missed a huge fight when Prince Tea and Crumpets was here."
Matthew rolled his eyes and smiled, realizing with a little bit of pride in himself that he didn't give a damn that Francis was alone with a broken nose at the moment. He had hockey game re-runs and Canadian ice cream and Alex. He didn't need Francis, and he didn't care if Francis needed him.
A/N: So it got worse. My grandma died about a week ago now. I ruined a second relationship (less sad about that one ending, but still...) and I keep having these weird moments when I realize my grandma's not in the house anymore. It's pretty terrible.
Sooo...I read a bunch of your reviews, which seriously cheered me up, and then I felt inspired to write again, and the family party scene came out of my brain and made me goofball happy because all of Alfred's extended family are the states! I named his little cousins after state governors, and his grandparents are from Florida, and I didn't really go super in depth but that's kinda what I was going for. Did you catch that line about there being "about 50" people in total? Yeah. And his grandma is kinda based off mine. She didn't live in Florida, but she was whacky and sweet and funny. I'm really going to miss her. All of that was probably too personal for an author's note, but I just wanted you guys to know why I've been slow and a little off my A game. :(
OH BUT WAIT! I almost forgot! Sen-chan made a trailer for Invitational Year. And it's awesome. Like, a super good fan video with some gorgeous art. The song is super catchy, too. So you guys should check it out. Go to you tube, and then search for "What Happened to Me?" Invitational Year. Thank you, Sen-chan!