When we arrived at my house, Alfred reluctantly let go of my hand. "Today was fun!" He exclaimed, a smile decorating his face. "You probably wanna go... Do whatever Brits do after a long day, right?"
I smiled, playfully whacking him on the arm. "Y'know, you can come in if you'd like."
His eyes lit up. "Really?" When I nodded, he grinned. "Awesome!"
"I have to make dinner though, so your options are either help me out or find your own source of entertainment." I smiled.
"Whoa, you cook?"
"Well, I try to." I laughed slightly.
He grinned again. "Well, I like to eat." With that, we went inside.
I heard my mother coming downstairs. "Arthur, that you?" She came around the corner, her hair wrapped in a towel. With a smile and a slight blush gracing her cheeks, she approached us.
Alfred stiffened slightly, as most people do when first meeting someone else's parents. I grinned. "Mum, this is the boy I've been with all day!"
She grinned back at me, tugging the towel off and running her hands through her damp hair. "Aw, Arthur. You've got yourself a rather cheeky fellow there, don'tcha?" Then she turned to Alfred. "I'm just pleased as punch to meet you!"
Alfred stared at me blankly. "She's likes you." I translated. With a smile, Alfred turned to her.
"Glad to meet you, too." Alfred took her hand, kissing the top of it.
She giggled. "How charming!" Then she looked at me. What's the verdict? She mouthed.
We're friends! My eyes practically screamed, and I blushed. He's straight as a ruler. I mouthed.Well, as far as I could tell. Besides, even if he weren't straight, I don't think he'd date me.
Her eyes apologetic, she introduced herself to him. He seemed to charm her more than any other friend I've brought home.
"Well, I'm going to go start dinner." I wandered into the kitchen, put on my apron, and tied a loose bow in the back. Do I want to date him...? I thought.
I shook my head. How absurd! I didn't want to date him! He's just a neighbor... A really cute neighbor... With nice skin... And a beautiful smile... And such pretty eyes... And big, strong arms... And a laugh that could melt the heart of even the coldest prison inmate... I banged my head against the ice box in an attempt to clear it.
"Bloody gay hormones..." I groaned. As I was finishing dinner, Alfred walked into the kitchen. God, I wish I knew he was there sooner...
As I began to chop celery and carrots for the salad, I clicked on the radio. My favorite song was on, and I sang along. "I'd cut the cannons down...~" I swayed my hips in time with the music, chopping to the drum beat. "My ears are blown to bits~ from all the rifle-hits~ but still I crave that sound~!"
"Your sword's grown old and rusty, burnt beneath the~ rising sun~ it's locked up like a trophy~ forgetting all the~ things it's done~!" I sang the chorus and pushed the vegetables off the chopping board, each clean-cut piece falling into the salad individually.
I continued to sing and semi-dance as I prepared the rest. As the song finished and I was pulling the chicken out of the oven, I heard someone clapping behind me. I turned around to find a certain American leaning against the doorway and smiling.
"Howdy. Nice voice y'got thaar." He spoke in a southern drawl, something I've always been attracted to. I felt my face flare a thousand and one shades of red, and I couldn't help but yell.
"Why in Bloody Hell were you just standing there?" I spat, knowing the answer already. I wanted to crawl into the stove and hope the devil would take me. But my luck is never that good.
"Why d'ya think? I heard a pretty voice a-singin', and I just hadda listen." He still spoke with a slightly texan accent, and I felt my heart speed up. "Your dancin' ain't half bad either."
"I-i-if I'd known you were there, I wouldn't have been singing or dancing!" I exclaimed, hoping I'd die right then and there. This is even more embarassing than that damned talk with mum! I thought to myself.
"Why d'ya think I didn't say anythin'?" Alfred stepped into the kitchen, grinning. "I figured y'all would stop."
I looked away, wondering how I could have possibly not known Alfred was there. "W-well... Thank you for the compliment. But I'd prefer if you didn't spy on me from now on!" I felt myself smiling in spite of my embarassment. Alfred just laughed and offered a hand with setting the table. I watched his back retreat, then continued finishing dinner. I wondered vaguely about how he knew of my southern accent fetish...
As I began to bring the food to the dining room, I couldn't help but smile. He'd set the table perfectly for he, my mother, and I . I placed the dishes on the table, still smiling. I hummed to myself as I ran back into the kitchen, popped open the oven, and slid in two pans of brownies. Setting the timer carefully, I removed my apron and joined them at the table.
As we ate our dinner, Alfred seemed to really enjoy himself. "Vif fuh if dewifuh!" He exclaimed, his mouth full of potatoes. My mother stared at him blankly, and so I translated for her.
"He complimented the food. And for the Queen's Sake, please swallow before you speak!" I smirked at him.
"Ehehe." He swallowed, then grinned back sheepishly. "Sorry. It's an American thing."
With a sarcastic smile, I playfully smacked his arm. "While you're here, do the British thing. Don't talk with your mouth full." We laughed, my hand smarting once more, and he flashed me that gorgeous smile again. I tried not to blush.
My mother stood then, excusing herself. She walked out of the room with a slight giggle, and knowing we were now alone, my mind began to wander. I felt my face starting to flush, even though I didn't want it to.
Alfred leaned closer to me. "Like I said earlier, that's extremely cute..." His voice was low, his eyes sparkling.
I could feel my face turning a bit darker, and my heart began to race; his face was right there, after all. And y'know, Alfred seemed to be extremely confident in himself, considering we'd just met... Or have we? Once again I shook the thought from my head.
"Ah..." A breathy sigh was all that I could give in return to his words. What had happened to my manliness? I was almost sure the last time I took that quiz it told me I was a Seme...
My mother decided to walk in right then, of course. Alfred resumed stuffing his face casually as if nothing had happened. My mother didn't seem to notice the abrupt change in atmosphere.
She continued her conversation from before, Alfred and I nodding. We didn't look at one another throughout the rest of our meal.
After we finished up, my mother volunteered to clear the table. Alfred and I exited to the kitchen, and I pulled the brownies out of the oven. They looked okay, and they smelled good. I cut them into squares, stacking them neatly on a plate.
"Feel free to grab as many as you'd like." I grabbed a brownie, sinking my teeth into its chocolatey surface. I thanked Betty Crocker silently for her mix. Alfred shoved two in his mouth, and for a second I feared he'd choke.
"Good lord, don't choke!" I fretted, my eyes wide with concern.
After he'd swallowed, he merely grinned at me. "Me? Choke? Never." We laughed. I watched his eyes sparkle, and they in that moment reminded me of... I pushed the thought away. There was no way possible. Not in the slightest.
With that, I brought him upstairs. "Don't mind the boxes, but this is my room..." I walked in, kicking a box labelled "clothing" aside. Alfred looked around, and grinned at the calendar hanging on my bulletin board.
"That's so cool! It has flags of countries on it!" He pointed at it, spouting off some random dribble about countries and how much he loved them.
"Mhmm..." I just nodded. Looking around, I suddenly remembered the crimson drops that had seeped into the floor. Would he notice the blood? Not likely.
"Ohhhhh my gaaawd!" Alfred yelled. I looked to where he was pointing, and smiled. "You have a totally cool flag thing on your wall!" Then he frowned, obviously confused. "How come it's got the colors of the American flag?"
"...Do you know any sort of history at all?" Signs point to a big fat no! "That's the British flag, you git!" When he continued to look at me blankly, I sighed. "There were people who lived over there." I pointed on the map above my bed to England. "But they didn't like it there. So they had a huge ass war over it and left. They came here" I pointed to America on the map. "and claimed this land as their own. They then created their flag to represent the original thirteen colonies, liberty, and all fifty states."
"Whooooaaaaaa!" Alfred was staring at me, his mouth hanging open. "You're so smart, Artie!" He laughed.
"I hate that nickname, and thank you." I smiled at him, attempting to ignore the god-aweful nickname.
"B-but whyyyyy?" Alfred's eyes grew wide and sparkly again. "I think it's really cuuuute..." Damn it. I sighed and gave in to those glittering blue orbs.