Alfred and I were seated in my room, finishing up our homework. He slammed his Spanish textbook shut, crying out in despair, "No comprendo! Yo el give up-o!" Throwing his hands in the air, he fell back on my bed.

Chuckling, I leaned over and pecked his cheek. "Alfred, you have to have more patience than that when learning something new."

He sighed, crossing his arms and pouting. His lower lip jutted out, his eyes downcast. "I dun wanna learn Spanglish..." He muttered childishly. I rolled my eyes and, finishing my last exercise, closed my English text.

I was just turning to hug him when Alfred's words stopped me dead in my tracks.

"What's this?"

To my horror, I turned and faced him. He looked confused, seemingly not knowing what he was looking at. But I knew.

"I-I don't get it..." I muttered to myself, pausing my knife mid-stroke. "Why do I still do this...? I don't need it...! They'll only become painful reminders later, should they not fade..." With that I dropped my blade, the blood-dulled metal clattering on the wood surface. Striding to the bathroom, I cleaned up and bandaged my wrist. returning to my room, I closed my knife and tucked it under my pillow, swearing never to touch it again.

He flipped it open, staring wide-eyed at the surface. It'd dried, becoming more coppery than deep red. His head tilted to the side, and his eyes widened further once he realised what it was.

Looking up at me, Alfred slowly asked, "Artie... Is this... Blood...?" When I didn't answer, instead just looking away, he slowly closed it. "Is it... Your blood...?" I just stared at the floor. I didn't want to answer him, nor could I. From the corner of my peripheral I saw his eyes turn a deeper, more alert blue. He was paying closer attention to me than previously.

He scooted closer, placing his hand on mine. "AHow come your blood... is on a knife...?" I kept my gaze fixed, not moving.

"Did you hurt yourself?" When I didn't move, his hand inched up my arm. "...Are they here...?" When I still didn't move, he gently nudged my sleeve up. I shut my eyes tight, feeling his pained gaze drinking in every inch of my scars. Words carved over words, turned into other words, small phrases, song lyrics, shapes, lines, and more.

"A-Arthur..." He stared for a moment, not speaking. Slowly he brought my wrist upward, pressing his lips to it. As he did, I looked at him. His eyes flickered upward, locking on mine.

"Arthur Kirkland," He began. I winced at his harsh gaze, but I did not look away. "I never wanna see another new scar on this wrist. Jus' lookin' at 'em hurts."

Tears bit my eyes, stinging and burning until they washed over my cheeks. I flung my arms around him, holding tight.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." I apologized hundreds of times, over and over, holding Alfred tight. His arms came around me as well, his lips coming to my ear.

"I don't want any more secrets..." He whispered, his hot breath making me blush slightly. "I'll tell you everything if you tell me everything..." His tongue flicked out, quickly tracing my earlobe. I shuddered slightly.

"A-alright..." I bit my lip.

"Very good..." I could hear the smirk in his voice.

~~!~~

"Hullo, Matthew!" I called, grinning and waving. "What brings you here in the middle of November?"

"U-uh... O-o-o-o-oh, hello A-A-A-Arthur...!" He stuttered, skittering into Alfred's house without another word.

"What the...?" How unlike Matthew... He would usually stop to chat, at the very least. Shrugging it off I turned up my walk, trying to dig out my keys. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Matthew scuttling back to the car. I had a feeling something wasn't right.

I paused at the door, pretending to flip through my keys. I inconspicuously watched as he dashed back up Alfred's front steps, a box in his arms. I blinked, feeling confused. I unlocked my door, dropped my bag on the couch, and pulled out my phone.

Alfred?I texted.

Yes? He returned a moment later.

What's going on...?

I received no reply.

Alfred, answer me.

Still no reply.

Alfred, I'm coming over there if you don't answer me.

About five minutes later I was walking in their front door, which for the record was left open. There were three boxes lined up at the foot of the stairs. Matthew came down, snatched one almost silently, and ran back up. I went unnoticed.

Blinking, I shook my head. This wasn't right. What were they doing? I went upstairs almost silently, creeping down the hall carefully and feeling quite like a stalker.

I found the room at the end of the hall, previously used for storage and the like, had been emptied and was being filled with Matthew's possessions. I stared blankly at the door, which had a sign posted on it which read: "Matthew~" in white ink on a red background. I felt extremely confused.

Now where on earth did they put everything that was in there...? I wondered. Wait, nevermind that! Why is Matthew moving in here? Did something happen to his parents? Are they dead? Wait, think rationally. He may just be here for the...

My thoughts were cut off as Alfred ran into me. Crying out in surprise, I fell to the floor. I rubbed the back of my head, glaring up at him. He looked back at me, flashing his usual goofy grin.

"Heya, Artie! What brings you here?" He greeted me casually, offering a hand. Taking it, he tugged me to my feet. I crossed my arms promptly, giving him my most serious gaze.

"...Something wrong?" Alfred blinked, seemingly unaware of why I was aggitated. I simply pointed to Matthew's new room. "Erm... What about it?" He blinked at me, and I looked at him in disbelief.

"Alfred Jones," I placed my hands on my hips. "Your cousin is moving into your house, and I haven't heard a word of it."

He nodded. "Yeeeeaaaah...?"

"Why didn't you tell me he was moving in?" When Alfred shrugged, I sighed. "Alfred, why are you acting like this isn't a big deal?"

"'Cause it ain't." Another shrug. Alfred glanced around and, when he saw Matthew emerging from his new room he promptly scrambled toward him. "Heya Mattie, let's go this way!" Pushing him back into the room, the door shut behind them.

"What the...?" I was hurt. Why would Alfred be keeping something like this from me? Well, I was about to find out. I walked up to the door, pressing my ear against it. I heard their voices floating in andout of my hearing range.

"...Tell him, Alfred..."

"...Be angry. He doesn't..."

"...Lying! I hate..."

"...Tell him! I'm not risking my life!"

"Alfred, he's your boyfriend! You should tell him!"

"Is it really all that important for him to know? I don't think so!"

"...Did I really just hear you correctly?"

"I dunno, you tell me...!"

"So you're saying it's not important for your own boyfriend to know you have a brother?"

...D-did I hear him correctly...? I thought. What in the world is going on here...?

Right then, someone turned the doorknob. Jumping back so as not to be discovered, I recreated my previous stance, arms crossing and glowering at the door. They emerged, and for the first time I really noticed how much they looked alike.

"Erm, Artie..." Alfred began, and my aggrevation flared. "I uh... Well, don't get mad or anything but... I uh, I kind of lied... Before... A lot..." I just continued to stare him down, and he fidgeted with his necklace.

"I uhm... Well... Mattie isn't my uh... Cousin." Alfred looked at me for a second, then continued fidgeting, looking away. "He uhm... He's uh... My brother. My twin brother."

"..." I stared at him in disbelief. "...He's your what now? Alfred, you're joking, right?" He shook his head. "What the bloody fuck? But.. But.. But...! But Alfred, you didn't...! He wasn't living with you when we were younger...!" I was so confused...

"Uhm, well..." Matthew stepped in.

"Keep out of it!" I snapped, glowering at him. He immediately snapped his mouth shut. Alfred grabbed my arm and tugged me into his room. He sat on his bed, pulling me into his lap.

"Artie, I'm sorry... I wasn't supposed to tell anyone... But now I gotta explain, don't I...?" He stroked my hair gently, and I felt myself blushing slightly.

"Damn skippy you do!" I cried. And so he did.

"Well, when we were born, my mom was so happy to have two kids... But then, as we got a little older, she wasn't able to afford both of us... She let my aunt and uncle adopt Mattie... I guess I cried when he left, but I don't remember 'cause I was so little... When they adopted him, they were living in Canada... Then they moved to the States, and my mom wanted to see them again... so we came to the States, and they were overjoyed to see us. I was so happy to have Mattie around again, so I begged and begged for years for them to take him back. They finally worked it out a month ago... So now, here we are."

I blinked, then sighed. "And you couldn't tell me you had a twin why, exactly?" He shrugged.

"Mom and dad told me not to..."

"Since when do you, Alfred Jones, listen to your parents?"

He shrugged again. We looked at each other, then burst out laughing.

~~!~~

"Hey, Alfred!" I poked my head out the window closest to Alfred's house, seeing he was in his room. "Want to hang out today? I've finally finished my Tomb Raider collection!"

"Oh uh, heya Artie!" Alfred jumped at the sound of my voice. He turned to the window, grinning apologetically. "Sorry, but I have other plans..."

"O-Oh, alright..." I smiled back, sighing inwardly. "Well, the offer's open all week! I haven't any plans until next Tuesday, which is when I have that one appointment... But otherwise!"

He just nodded, exiting his room. I didn't realise that was only the first disappointment of many to come.

~~!~~

"Hey Alfred, it's Arthur." I began my voicemail message. "I uh... I just wanted to call and say hello... I haven't seen you in three days, even though we go to the same school and all... Erm, call me back when you get this. Uh, bye..." With a sigh I hung up.

~~!~~

Hey Al, whaddup? Haven't seen you in awhile...
Heya Artie! Sorry I havent seen ya in a long tiem, n i cant 2day eitha. Not home, sry!

Oh, alright... I miss you...

Mmm.

~~!~~

"Mum, I'm bored..." I was sitting on the couch, trying to find something on the tele.

She glanced over at me with a sigh. "Don't you have friends?"

"All busy with this or that..."

"What about Alfred, where's he been?" She suggested.

I winced at the name. "H-he hasn't been around too often... I believe he's been spending more time with Matthew as of late... But I'm not too sure any more... He might be tired of me..."

"Oh, luv..." Taking a seat beside me, she wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I gladly leaned into the embrace.

"It's like I don't exist in his world any more..." I sighed. "The bloke even ignored my text messages today..."

"I'm sure he's just going through a phase..." She stroked my hair, quietly humming a tune. "Soon he'll remember he's arse over tit for you and come trotting back like a smitten puppy." I felt a blush starting in my ears.

"I-I wouldn't go so far..." I couldn't help my slight stutter. "Though I do hope he comes back around some time soon. I miss him dearly..."

~~!~~

Walking through the hall, what must've been a few weeks later, I wondered why on earth Alfred had once again blown me off at lunch. Turning the corner on my way to biology I saw why, and I couldn't believe what I saw.

Alfred had his arm around some girl's shoulders. I stood shocked for a moment, watching him lean closer to her. Their faces centimeters apart, he said something to make her scowl and smack him in the chest lightly, but then a smile ticked across her face as he giggled his signature giggle. My giggle.

I stood gaping, unable to move. I couldn't comprehend what was going on for the first minute or so. I watched as her face came close to his. She said something, making him smile at her. I watched as she blushed for a second, then pecked his cheek. He blinked at her then grinned. Once it finally clicked in my brain what he was up to, I regained my senses and became overwhelmed by emotion.

Snapping my mouth shut I promptly walked over and, standing behind them with my arms crossed, cleared my throat. "Ahem."

Alfred glanced over his shoulder, and when he saw me he immediately jumped away from her.

"H-hey, Artie!" Alfred's giggle rang through the air, a pale pink dusting the bridge of his nose. Instead of making me smile like it usually did, it sent a piercing stab through my stomach. I simply glowered, hurt and angry. "Uh... I uh, I swear it's not what it looks like...! She uhm... Isn't my..."

"Not what it looks like my bloody British ass!" I cried. "I know exactly what's happening here!" I bit the inside of my cheek, attempting to hold in my tears. I turned on my heel, storming away. Alfred followed behind a few steps.

"A-Artie, I...!" He attempted, but I continued to ignore him, not breaking my stride. He called my name once more.

"Who was that...?" I heard the girl ask.

"Arthur...?" I heard his voice, now quieter and... Tear-choked? Nah, that was just my imagination.

~~!~~

Now after school, Alfred was trying to give me his excuses. He caught me at my locker and kept me there with everything he could, waited until the hallway was empty, then started trying to feed me his lies and excuses again.

"Artie look, it wasn't-!" He started, but I cut him off.

"No, Alfred!" I snapped. "I don't care what you have to say! I know what I saw!" Tears pricked my eyes, but I did my best to hold them in. His mouth opened in an attempt to form some other excuse, but I wouldn't listen. "You're such a hypocrite!" I cried. "You said, 'Aw, no more secrets!' blah blah, And less than a week later, I find you with your arms around some girl? And to top it off I bet my top dollar she was the reason you were avoiding me these past weeks!"

"That's not true!" Alfred spat, " And, well-! Look at you! I thought I knew everything about you, and yet I find out the hard way you're hurting yourself and your dad used to hurt you and you don't even tell me when you're upset or in pain!"

"I never tell you any of that bloody bullcrap because yoou don't need to know about that! I don't need you worrying about me so much either! I don't want you to sit there and listen to things I can handle myself!" I slammed my locker shut, hearing the magnets within fall from the door with a clatter. Stalking away, Alfred followed a few steps as he had earlier.

"She honestly isn't what you think!"

I didn't dignify him with an answer; I instead continued right down the stairs and out the doors of the school.

"Hey, Arthur! Wanna hang to- Arthur?" I heard somewhere to my left. I couldn't concentrate on anything but my pace as I practically ran from the school. It took until I reached the end of the street to calm down a bit and slow my feet.

As I began to walk home, alone long enough to cool down, tears jumped to my eyes. "How could he...?" I muttered. "How could he be so-?" Then I shook my head. "No, how could I be so stupid?" That sounded right. I was stupid. Just because we'd been together when we were younger, sort of, didn't mean he still held any romantic feelings for me. I was stupid for thinking he really cared. I was stupid for thinking it'd work out between us, two males... I was stupid to believe he ever loved me. I was stupid to actually believe he was my friend... I was so stupid...

I was so stupid I didn't even see that fucking truck coming at me.

FINALLY! The long-awaited conclusion to chapter thirteen is UP.

What will happen to Arthur?

How will Alfred find out?

Is Alfred really dating someone else?

Why is Arthur's mother so awesome?

All these things you might be wondering shall be revealed!

(Well, except for the most obvious one which you already know: She's a caring, loving, accepting mother unlike most of our parents!)

To be continued in chapter fourteen!

PS: Reviews motivate me to write faster. :P