Disclaimer: I do not own My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, Criminal Damage Clothing, Hot Topic, a Metro card, Converse-Vans, or Hetalia: Axis Powers.
Chapter 4:We're Only Good Cause You Can Have Almost Famous Friends. Besides, We've Got Such Good Fashion Sense
"Move it men! We've got to have Arthur back home by 10, which mean we only have until 9 to be in that mall! It's...Ah, damn! It's already 4! Move your butts already!"
The three ran, both men under constant pressure to go faster. Luckily, just as the bus pulled in, they arrived, huffing and puffing. The girl didn't slack off. She all but threw them onto the bus and flashed her Metro card at the driver. The three clambered to the back, taking their seats and collapsing onto one another as the bus moved forward.
"Never again." Arthur groaned.
"F-Foutre." Francis heaved.
"You two need to learn how to run! Even Arthur was faster than you Francis!"
"He's the one that's practicing with Toni. I only watch."
The Frenchman's attempt to defend himself wasn't enough to block the girl's wrath. The Hungarian began a speech on how Francis would get lazy and fat, and lose the great figure he already had. Sure, he had some pretty nice biceps now, but if he continued to simply eat at Antonio's breakfast feasts, then he could kiss them, and all the girls who ogled at them, goodbye. And don't even get her started on the amount of times a week he skipped gym to horse around with Gil.
She continued this rant all the way to the Luxia. Even when they were slinging their backpacks over their shoulders and jumping off the bus, she was speaking to Francis with vigor.
"L-Let's get right to shopping Elizaveta." Arthur interrupted. The girl's voice was starting to get to his head. She sent Francis a warning glare, then faced the huge mall with a smile.
"I love this place." She said. The British boy looked around, curiosity shining in his eyes.
He hadn't been to the Luxia in a long while. He was glad a majority of it didn't change. The luminescent lights were still as bright and the black tiled floors smooth and polished. Of course, the entire establishment was still busy. Families, teenagers, friends and individuals were all over, conversing, laughing or arguing. It was mostly teenagers though, since school hours were finally over. Girls giggled as they rode the escalators. Boys on skateboards slid down stair railings and circled fountains. Three happy cheerleaders ran into all the expensive stores as if they actually had the money to afford whatever was sold.
With mild surprise, Arthur followed Elizaveta into one of these very stores. A shop that went by the name of Criminal Damage.
'At least it's not Hollister or Abercrombie,' Arthur thought as they strolled in. Elizaveta gleefully skipped to the Men's section and the other boys reluctantly follow. Green eyes caught sight of a price tag falling to the floor, making Arthur choke on his spit.
No, the store definitely wasn't Hollister; it was more expensive.
"Do we have the money to afford these?" The boy whispered as he saw Elizaveta throw jeans over her shoulder.
"Normally? No. But they're having a half off sale today so everything is going to be about a fifty dollars each."
"I don't have a fifty dollars!" Arthur exclaimed.
"Neither do I. But I do have my Dad's credit card."
"Aren't your parents going to be mad?"
Elizaveta shrugged.
"My mom's dead. A perfect excuse for my reckless, teenage rampage of misplaced angry actions' or whatever.
The blonde didn't say a word. He wished not to offend the girl with any thoughtless comments, so he just took the load of the jeans off of her shoulders and followed her as she moved throughout the store. Arthur said a quick prayer as the girl picked up a pair of black demin with legs that looked way too constricting for his liking.
"You are buying him skinny jeans at Criminal Damage? Why not a less expensive store like Levi's?" Francis asked as he looked warily at the price tags.
"One, these are amazing jeans. They're durable, but when it comes time for me to rip them, they don't fray too badly. Two, they will be comfortable. Arthur aims for comfort rather than style. If I just toss him skinny jeans that look good, but are tight and itchy, he'll hate them. These jeans are tight, but they won't irritate his legs as much. And they have such pretty colors!"
"I see. Can you buy me a pair?"
"You didn't bring your money?"
"I left my wallet in my other, uncomfortable jeans."
Elizaveta laughed aloud. The three continued throughout the store until Arthur's arms threatened to break.
"Now," The girl said as she ushered him to the dressing room. "Go try them on!"
Arthur let her push him through the door. With a slight frown, he stepped into an empty stall and dropped his pants. He tried on the black jeans first. They looked alright on him. His legs appeared longer. Of course, jeans weren't his first choice of clothing, but if he had to wear them he would. They were comfortable too. Arthur grinned unconsciously as he walks around in them. Elizaveta wasn't lying about that. They did constrain his thighs, but they didn't brush against them unfavorably. He took them off and folded them, setting them in nice heap on his right.
Then he attempted to pull on a looser pair. Just as he released them, they dropped to his ankles. These jeans got set down on his left.
His third pair of jeans weren't as good as the first, but not as bad as the second. Comfort was ensured. Favorable style was not. They were a patronizing shade of white. Arthur hated to even look at them in the mirror when he tried them on. Then again, Elizaveta was probably going to give him a lot of things he didn't like. With a sigh, he set them in the 'Accepted' pile and pulled on his next pair.
About 20 pairs of jeans later, Arthur had 11 jeans he was willing to toss and 9 he can buy. Elizaveta was quick to set the rejected articles of demin on a nearby bench and rushed the others to the counter. The cashier, a bored dark haired boy, let them purchase without question. Elizaveta gleefully swiped the card and entered the pin number. Mere seconds later, the jeans were in bags in Francis' hands and they were rushing to their next store.
'Spencer's'' is the next store they enter. Elizaveta is a bit more eager to enter this one.
"Let's see! We'll get you some jackets and hoodies here and maybe a shirt or two. Then we'll run over to Hot Topic and buy some band tees."
Arthur freezes at the name of the next store slips Elizaveta's lips. Hot Topic? The store with all that crazy fake hair and piercings and loud, obnoxious music? He has seen the type of people that entered that store. And Gilbert was one of them.
Ugh. He shudders as Elizaveta looks through the racks. He almost wants to shout at he to stop as she pulls a black shirt, covered in graffiti pinks and ink splatters, and holds it. She picks out a jacket adorned with the anarchist 'A' on its breast pocket and skips up to the cash register. Arthur can fell his dread all the way down to his loafers. He scowls as they enter the shop, and practically jumps back in fear as a girl with scarlet liberty spikes passes him.
"Don't tell me you're scared." Elizaveta says as she notices his nervous glances.
"I am not-!"
"Good. Then we're going in now."
He really should have kept his pride quiet.
They're stared at as they enter the shop. There are no whispers or anything like that. Just a simple stare, a head shake of disbelief or even a laugh. Arthur hears the words 'Newb' and 'Prep' tossed around but that's the extent. All of the colorfully dressed teens just acknowledge the fact that he's there and turn away.
"They're...okay with it." Arthur says in shock.
"Of course. They aren't too scorning unless you offend them or something. These guys are a bit cooler when it comes to outsiders. As long as you're not some poser or elitist, the guys in the Hot Topic won't roast ya' or anything like that."
"What about other Hot Topics?"
"Some of them are as cool as this one, some are full of pricks, and Hot Topic junkies who like the call themselves punk when they only listen to Blink 182 and All Time Low. There's nothing wrong with those bands of course," Elizaveta adds hastily when a few leers where sent her way. "But you can't just listen to two pop-punk bands and call yourself the brand new Sid Vicious. There's a hell of a lot more to the lifestyle. It takes a year or two to completely get the style and a hell of a lot of dedication. Just shopping at Hot Topic for band t-shirts will get you nowhere."
"Amen." Someone in the back mutters.
"Then why are you bringing me here? I'm not punk."
"No. But you have the qualities for it. You can get your opinion in and have a pretty high tolerance for everyone's different tastes. Plus, somewhere in you that I-don't-give-a-flying-fuck attitude is lying dormant. We just need Gil to rip it out of your chest."
"I see. But-."
"No buts! Run with it for a while. I think you'll have fun with it. If I can't make you a full punk rocker, then so be it. You already like some of the bands though, so I don't see why I can't push you at the full lifestyle. Green Day, Sex Pistols, The Ramones. Those guys made punk."
A few whistles and claps made Elizaveta blush.
"And you've been listening to them since you were, like, 3 right? You already like the music style then. You just don't dress the part. We'll start slowly with commercial punk, then we'll crack down on what it really is.
A hand was clapped onto Arthur's shoulder and he jumped in surprise. A teen with a bright blue mohawk was grinning at him, snakebites under his lip shining in the light. His cerulean eyes looked at Arthur with a mix of amusement and respect.
"You look like such a fricking prep right now but you like Armstrong so I guess you're cool. Let Liz dress you up so they don't beat you up when she drags you to a Green Day concert."
"Z! What's up dude?"
Elizaveta was pulled into a 'bro hug' and fist bumped the guy before they continued their conversation.
"Nothing much. I'm still just skating y'know? How 'bout you and little Roddy?"
"We're fine. Just busy. I'm still singing and he's still playing. Oh, not to mention my new little fashion project right here." She gestured towards Arthur.
"Hullo." The blonde said awkwardly. He looked back to Francis for support but the other boy grinned, waved goodbye, and escaped the shop. Great. Now it was only Arthur, Elizaveta, the Zane kid, and a room full of strangers.
"'Sup?" Zane asked, sticking out a leather-gloved hand. Arthur shook it reluctantly.
"Nothing much." Damn! He was sounding weak.
"I'm Zane Kardnal. You?"
"Arthur Kirkland."
Zane nodded and let his hand drop. He refered to Arthur with a jerk of his head.
"This the kid who just got into My Chem?"
"Yup." Elizaveta nodded with a smug grin. "He was humming along to 'Helena' all of our lunch period."
"Are you guys looking for a Killjoy shirt?" Zane held up previously mentioned article of clothing, shaking it suggestively.
"He just got into them like yesterday. A Black Parade shirt or Three Cheers would do."
"Aww. He hasn't listened to Bullets?"
"No. I only gave him those two. I could never part with Bullets. It's like, their roots dude. I could never just hand it away. I don't even trust Roderich with my Bullets CD."
"Aight. I can understand that. Then, let's have him listen to it now."
"We have to shop Zane. The concert I'm taking him to is next week."
"Then we'll have him listen to the CD now while you grab some clothes. Hey," The blue haired boy caught her by the shoulders with a sly smile. The spikes on his boots scratched the floor as he walked her along to the shirt section.
"Trust me. I'll take care of him when he comes here. Hell, I'll even give you guys some CD deals. Lord knows you Papi would appreciate it."
Elizaveta nodded and began to look through the pile of shirts.
"Just don't break him. If he suddenly start listening to metal or something like The Misfits, then he'll back up. Give him some Alternatives like Paramore or My Chemical Romance. All Time Low's 'Nothing Personal' would be pretty nice too."
"Got it mam!" Zane yelled behind him as he grabbed Arthur's wrist.
"Alright kid. You ready to give up on most of the shit you hear on the radio and listen to some real music?"
Arthur murmured an affirmative as he died on the inside. This couldn't possibly be good.
He's wrong. The music the teen let him listen to suited his tastes completely. Beaming like Antonio, he cradled headphones by his ear as 'Demolition Lovers' was replayed.
"It was weird." Zane said as Elizaveta approached the two with her purchases. "I don't think I've ever met someone who likes Bullets just as much as Black Parade or Revenge. You'd better call me and tell me how he reacts to Danger Days."
"What? What did you say?"
"Not you Arthur, I was talking to Zane. I'll call you broski. No prob." Elizaveta said with a salute.
"We still up for Saturday?"
"Hells yeah! If it gets cancelled, I'll text you.
Zane grinned at her, then pried the headphones away from the blonde.
"Ya' ain't too bad kid. Give me your number. I'll let you know whenever I find something that you may like."
The blonde smirked back, then recited his number. After some fist pumps and "Deuces", the two were strutting out of the store.
"I didn't know you had a cellphone!"
The blonde only shrugged.
"You never asked for my number."
"Well now you're going to give me it."
"Give you what?" Francis asked as he approached.
"My cellphone number."
"You have a cellphone?"
Arthur's palm connected with his face.
"262-." He began, only to have a hand cover his mouth. After the Frenchman pulled out his own phone, he restarted.
"262-XXX-XXXX"
"Alright." Elizaveta drew out the syllables as she tapped on the buttons. "Got it! Now, run it boys! We've got an appointment with Leah and we still need to buy you some sneakers. Wait! Stop running! I just spotted a Converse -Vans store! Turn!"
That they do, fast walking to the store with the Hungarian leading the way. Gliding through the doorway, they looked around.
"We're looking for black All Stars Francis. And some checkered slip-ons while you're at it. Ooh! We'll grab these too!"
Elizaveta snatched a pair of Chuck Taylor's with the Union jack decorating the back before another teenage girl. The girl leered with her piercing jade green eyes, scowling, and left with a huff and flip of her sandy blonde hair.
And so the search began. Arthur found a few pairs of sneakers he liked and showed them to Elizaveta for approval. She nodded at all but one pair of pine green high tops and bought them with haste.
"Now we're running late." The girl groaned as the cashier takes his time with bagging. Francis coaxed her while Arthur drummed his fingers on the table.
"Late for what exactly?"
"Your appointment. Ugh, it's already 7! We won't have time to...Wait, alright. Francis,"
"Hmm?"
"Do you know where Dire Combat is?"
"The shoe store?"
"Yeah."
Francis considered the question for a minute.
"Yes. Why do you ask?"
"Great! Run over there and start looking for a pair of combat boots that'll fit Arthur! He's a size 9. I need to rush him over to Leah's."
As Francis ran off, Elizaveta and Arthur also took their leave.
"What kid of appointment did you make?" Arthur asked a they ran.
"A hair appointment."
The British boy froze.
"Nothing too serious. We're not dying your hair purple or anything. You're just getting highlights. Like, there will be a change but only a subtle one. If Alfred doesn't notice it or your new clothes, then we' ll have to resort to more drastic methods."
Arthur almost wished that his best friend would notice everything. They round a corner and continued on to the end of a pathway. The salon didn't seem too busy. Only one or two customers were under the dryer. The girl tapped on the door five times and waited, bouncing on her feet. Soon, a brunette appeared and gave Elizaveta a short hug. Arthur can only assume that this lady is Leah. She's young. Probably fresh out of college. Her long brown hair was pulled up into a ponytail that still reached her shoulder. A comb was behind her ear, its light shade of umber matching her eyes as she embraced Elizaveta.
"Eliza!" She exclaimed.
"Le-Le!" The smaller shouted in return.
"Gurl, I haven't seen you in so long! What the hell have you been doing?"
"Helping this guy catch someone's attention."
Arthur shook hands with Leah as the stylist's attention was redirected.
"Arthur Kirkland."
"Leah Maxwell. Nice to meet you."
"Likewise."
"So why are you two here?" Leah asked as she inspected Arthur's hair.
"He needs highlights. A light brownish color would be nice." Elizaveta watched as Leah led Arthur down into a chair.
"Mmm...How about a few shades of a darker blonde. Not brown yet but a shade or two above that?"
"Alright. You are the professional. You can start now right?"
"Affirmative."
"Ok. Take care of him please. I've got to run and meet Francis." Elizaveta picked up her bags and gave her male friend a look, silently asking him to behave. He only rolled his eyes with a small smile.
"Be back before 8 or else Imma sic Zane on you!" Leah called as Elizaveta made her exit. She then removed a comb from a drawer and rakes=d it through Arthur's hair, separating it into different sections. Small talk was made and Arthur slowly shifted into a more comfortable state.
"So what's the name of the boy you want to impress?"
"How do you know-?"
"Last time Elizaveta brought a stranger here, it was some albino kid head over heels. I had to dye his hair black in an attempt to make him look normal."
Arthur snickered as the image of Gilbert with dark hair passes through his mind. So that was how he managed to get Matthew to quit his fear of the red-eyed boy.
The stylist rubbed a light coat of oil on his scalp before Arthur realized that she was waiting for an answer.
"He's just an old friend. Not a romantic interest."
"If he's just an old friend, why are you looking to impress him?"
"He's been..." Arthur trailed off as Tino appeared in his mind, accompanied with Alfred's laugh. "He's been hanging out with someone else lately so I think I'm being replaced. I most certainly don't want that or at least that's what Elizaveta thinks."
"You don't think so?"
"I mean, I know that he hasn't been hanging around me lately and I am mad about that but I'm not jealous. I don't like him like that."
"Hold this." Arthur held the tub of dye as Leah begins to spread it on different areas of his hair.
"Jealousy doesn't necessarily mean you have to be in love with the person. Maybe it's because you implied it in that way that they think that you like him."
Well, she had a point.
"Why are you so calm about it? Not a lot of people accept homosexual relations that don't exist."
"I've got two reasons-Hold the tub a bit higher for me-One, Eliza made me watch Junjou Romantica and Loveless with her back in 7th grade. That shit like messed with my mind broski. My gaydar is at its power peak, and I don't really mind. I've been converted to Yaoi fangirlism."
Arthur didn't know what this meant, so he remained silent.
"Two, it would be rather hyprocritcal of me to throw you out for being gay."
She flashed her ears in the mirror. Only one remained pierced. Her right.
"Oh,"
"Mm-hmm."
"I thought that was only effective for men?"
"Nah, some chicks do it too. Hold up that tub dude! I don't want to break my back!"
She finished with her comb in ten minutes and set it in the bucket.
"Just put that on the counter."
Arthur complied with her demands and stood, wet strands of hair threatening to stick to his neck.
"You just have to wait for the dye to set in. Then we'll rinse it out."
Leah pulled off her gloves and les one of the previous customers out from under the dryer as the Brit found a chair to sit in. About 15 minutes later, his hair was getting rinsed out and a shower cap placed on his head.
"This is so girly," He complained as he is led to the dryers.
"You're probably going to be the girl in the relationship so suck it up." The stylist grinned as she set the temperature and timer. A great rush off air sent his shower cap dancing as Arthur sat under the dryer stonily. He was glad Francis wasn't there to see the spectacle. But, karma decided to be a bitch and allowed the Frenchman to walk in while Arthur's hair was in the middle of drying.
"Arthur Kirkland is not amused." The Frenchman laughed. Arthur just flipped him off.
"Can you just blow dry it?" Elizaveta asked "We need to get him home by 10 and we still need to catch the bus."
"Sure Eliza. Come on blondie!"
But Arthur struggled to stay under the dryer helmet, fighting off prying hands. It was only when Elizaveta grabbed his legs and yanked did he release his hold.
Even when they were exiting the salon, Elizaveta and Francis were laughing. Even when they were consuming what they were ordered at the food court, Elizaveta and Francis were chuckling. Even when they boarded the bus, the two were giggling. When Arthur slapped Francis upside the head, however, their giggles were cut short.
"That actually hurt," The blonde said out of shock more than anything else.
"Good. Let the pain teach you a lesson."
The three sat in silence for a minute or two, and then Elizaveta decided to look through the bags.
"Whoa...when did we buy these?"
Elizaveta held up 4 CD cases with a bewildered look. Arthur, the tips of his ears a bright red, was quick to snatch them up.
"Those are mine! Zane bought them for me!"
"He bought you Bullets? I didn't even know that Hot Topic still sold Bullets!"
"He had to rummage through the storage room to get it for me." mumbled a blushing blonde, who's holding his CDs protectively.
"He got you Danger Days too! And Nothing Personal! Damn, he must like you! It took me months to snatch those kind of deals from him! Wait, what is that?"
Arthur tried, and failed, to hide the final CD behind his back. Elizaveta's eyes widened as they passed over the cover.
"T-That's...That's 'From Under The Cork Tree'! That's a Fall Out Boy CD!"
Arthur nodded, cheeks even redder. He tuned out as Elizaveta started talking about how much she loved Fall Out Boy and how he was oh-so lucky among other outrageous subjects. Francis won't help him. He's still snickering even though Arthur smacked him. So the poor little blonde was stuck between a raving, mad fangirl and a mocking frenemy until they reach their stop and divided the bags.
"We're going to your house right Francis?"
"Oui. Right this way. It's not too far from here."
The two followed Francis as he led the way. Arthur was silent, considering his day. It wasn't bad. And they didn't buy anything outrageous. (At least, according to what he had seen.) And his hair didn't look too wild, unlike what he pictured Gilbert looking like. Wait, Gilbert!
"Is it true that Gilbert dyed his hair black?"
Suddenly, Elizaveta started choking on her spit, leaving Francis to answer with a laugh.
"H-He thought that Matthew would find him attractive. Before that, my dear cousine thought he was one of the vampires from that one movie. What was it called?"
"He thought that he was one of the vampires in Twilight!"
"Pfft." He let a single, snarky giggle loose.
"It was so amusing. Of course, I've never liked the idea of Gil dating my fragile Matthew, but that month of a dark haired Gil made it all worth it."
"H-He wore a polo and dress pants too and tried to compliment Matthew daily and-and." Elizaveta managed to stuttered out between spurts of laughs.
"Just like Beauty and the Beast. Alas, my best friend is an idiot. Oh, watch your step." Arthur hopped over a tree root as Francis dug his keys out of his pocket and sashayed forward, opening his front door with a, "Voila~!"
Francis' house was huge. A grand chandelier hovered a few feet above their heads as they stepped inside. The floors were smooth marble and made Arthur's shoes squeak. The entryway was the size of an average dining room. The stairs at the end of the area came led to both their right and left. Arthur was a bit intimidated by the gold railings but Francis and Elizaveta were right at home.
"Maman!" Francis called. "Je suis chez moi!"
Anna-Marie Bonnefoy, came running down the stairs. Her light blonde curls flew out behind her as she leaped down the stairs. When her sky blue eyes reached her grinning son's. She jumped into Francis' arms.
"J'étais tellement inquiète! Où étiez-vous?" She asked. Her lovely voice was soft, endearing even. Francis brushed her hair back, rubbing a soothing circle on her back.
"Nous étions seulement à la Luxia. Il n'ya pas besoin de s'inquiéter tellement. Il est mauvais de votre santé. "
Anna-Marie nods, then releases her boy. Turning instead to Elizaveta.
"And how are you my dearest?"
"Je vais bien." Arthur wasn't surprised that Elizaveta knew how to reply in the woman's native tongue. It was just as choppy as Mrs. Bonnefoy's English, but it worked.
"And you Arthur?"
"I'm fine mam." Arthur said, letting his gaze drop. He didn't know French too well. All the school taught him was the basics.
"Maman, we will be going to my room."
The woman nodded, curls bouncing, and held the hem of her white nightgown.
"Oui. Do not stay up too late."
Francis gave his mother one last reassuring look in return and led the other two up the stairway, opposite the side his mother was traveling.
"I like your mom. She's nice. And her French is beautiful."
"Just wait until she sees a failed Math test. Then her French doesn't sound too pretty."
Arthur cracked a small grin at this and entered the male's room. It's neat, surprisingly. There were no questionable scents and the floor was pristine. His walls were beige, and his rug a dark blue. Francis removed his shoes, revealing black dress socks, and jumped onto his bed.
"Just throw the bags in the corner and pick out whatever Arthur needs for this week. We'll sort through the rest later and let Arthur take them home in small packages so his brothers don't notice immediately."
"Okay. That's a good game plan. Let's go Artie. Pick out a pair of jeans first."
Arthur chose the first pair of jeans he tried on. They were definitely his favorite, with his red skinny jeans as a close second.
"You'll wear that to see Gil tomorrow. Along with...this shirt. Let's show off to them a bit."
She tossed a black t-shirt at him. He arranged it, and his mouth can only break out into a wide smile,
"This is a My Chemical Romance t-shirt!"
"Yup. The cover art from Revenge is one there. But just wait till you see the jacket I got you." Elizaveta rummaged through the bags and pulled out what she was looking for with a soft "A-ha!"
"A Black Parade jacket! How?"
"Me and Zane go way back to 5th grade. I may not be able to grab rare CDs off of him, but he can hook me up with quite alot of clothes."
All traces of gentlemanly-posture and mannerism was tossed out the window as Arthur caught Elizaveta in an embrace.
"Thank you ever so much Lizzy! Oh my god! This probably cost so much! How can I repay you? Oh thank you! Thank you! Thank you!'
"Members of the MCRmy have to help each other out right?"
"MCRmy?"
"It's a name for My Chemical Romance fans. Like,' there's so many of us that we can form an army'. Or 'the fans are as strong as an army'. Something like that. A lot of definitions have been thrown around. It really just depends on the person. You're only a rookie though. Seeing as how you only discovered My Chem yesterday and all."
"I see."
Blue eyes looked at them from above a copy of 'Interview With The Vampire'.
"Uh, unless you guys are planning on sleeping with me-."
"Eww! Francis! Gross! I have a boyfriend thank you very much!"
"Bloody Wanker!"
"Hey, you guys need to get home or stay here. Take your pick."
Elizaveta was quick to hand out the rest of Arthur's clothing. "These are your clothes for the rest of the week. If you come into school without them, I will strip you down and drag your butt back to Francis' house so he can dress you."
"I-I'll wear them."
"Aw, but mon ami~!"
Arthur bid Elizaveta goodbye and gave Francis a short wave. He stuffs his clothes in his backpack and leaves, Mrs. Bonnefoy nowhere in sight. As he was about to jump out the front door, however, something catches his eye. It was Francis' agenda, laying on a nearby table.
'Friday
-Help Arthur out when catching Alfred's attention
-Assist in bailing missing member out of detention
- Help Elizaveta and Arthur shop
-Interrogate Arthur about Alfred for stunning realization
-See whether or not Arthur is uncomfortable with new group. If so, help him cope.'
Arthur sighed and lay his things down by the door. Elizaveta gave him a look as she walked out, but he could only give her a tired smile as he walked back up to a certain blonde's room.
"Thanks." He said to the blonde teen on the bed. Francis gave him a questioning glance as Arthur looked way, a tint of red spreading across his face.
"For helping me out with Alfred I mean. I-It's appreciated."
"Excuse me?"
"I am not about to repeat myself you git! I-I'm leaving! I'll see you on Monday!"
Arthur left the room and ran down the stairs, grabbing his backpack and jumping out the door. There. He had expressed his gratitude. Now he had no reason to feel any guilt.
He didn't stop running until he reached his own house and was stumbling across his lawn. Even then, he's still late. Around the fireplace were his brothers and Peter. The last paying rapt attention to his ant farm while the others stared into the fire's depths. Except for Draco.
"Evening," Arthur said slowly, testing the atmosphere.
"You were out pretty late." Mac remarked. "It's nearing 11."
"Sorry. I got caught up."
"Just inform Draco as to where you're going next time." Jon suggested in his melodious voice, eyes never flickering away from the dancing fire.
"If you don't get back when you're expected to, Draco's going to get hell from Mum."
"He was really worried about you." Peter added, tapping the glass.
"Is she back yet?"
"No. She's staying at work for a few more hours. She'll be back in the morning she says."
"I see. Well, sorry for making the lot of you worry. It won't happen again."
Mac waved his apology off.
"Don't go telling us that. Tell Draco. He was ready to yank out his hair when he noticed that you weren't back at 9. You weren't answering your phone either. 'Scared the wits out of him, it did."
Arthur hung his head shamefully and carried his bag up the stairs. As he neared the apex, he was surprised to hear soft guitar strums coming from his room. He quietly opened his door to find Draco cradling his guitar, his expression unreadable. The elder let out a few chords and then allowed his fingers to drop, a finally note vibrating in the air.
"Where were you?"
"With friends."
"The same kids from yesterday?"
"Yeah. Why?" His tone was defiant, prideful even.
Draco yawned, setting the guitar aside and standing.
"Don't go out this late with them. They're hooligans."
"They are not!" The blonde exclaimed, insulted. Draco strongly objected.
"Yes they are. Watch them get kicked out of school for misconduct or some pregnancy problem."
Arthur swore when he realized that Draco's referring to Elizaveta. Fire in his eyes, he tried to push his older brother out, but Draco wouldn't budge.
"Arthur's hanging out with retards and whore-."
"Shut up Draco! Get out you drunk ass bastard!"
Draco only continued his songs, pissing Arthur off even more. The younger began to yell at the red head, swearing, insulting and verbally abusing Draco in every way he knew how.
"You bloody idiot! Feck off! Jealous 'cause you don't have friends ginger?" He exclaimed as he finally managed to push Draco beyond the threshold.
"What the hell happened to Alfred? He was a good lad and you suddenly abandoned him!"
"What do you know?" Arthur's voice held nothing but venom. "You always tried to scare him off too. You knew full well that he was frightened of Mum's snakes but you brought them out whenever he came over!"
"At least he ain't some friggin' who-!"
"Shut. The. Hell. UP!"
"Arthur!"
His fist was held in place, hovering mere centimeters before Draco's face. Gently, Jonlowered the fist back down to Arthur's side.
"Keep yer head. Calm yourself. Take a moment's reprieve okay? If you want dinner, I'll make it for you."
Arthur shook his head.
"It's fine. We ate at the Food Court." He loosened Jon's hold and walked into his room, slamming his door closed behind him.
He tore open his backpack and threw all of his clothing out. When his fingers slipped along a smooth, case, he pulled that item out, but didn't toss it.
"If Patrick Stump or Andy Hurley can't help me now, then they're all in for a bitch-fest tomorrow morning." He muttered, standing up.
His CD player was right where he left it, on his bedside table. With a faltering smile, he removed Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge and let From Under The Cork Tree take over.
Brothers and sisters put this record down
Take my advice ('cause we are bad news)
We will leave you high and dry
It's not worth the hearing you'll lose
He thought the riffs for Helena were good, but Joe Trohman really impressed him. His fingers itched and his eyes flickered over to his guitar lying against the white carpet.
The neck of his guitar was as comforting as he last remembered it. The body against his lap wasn't heavy at all. The correct notes didn't fly out of the strings easily, but he came close, singing softly as his fingers pressed and stroke. His anger towards Draco was successfully defused, but a new problem quickly arose with the ring of his cell phone.
'Do u hve an idea fr ur tattoo yt?~I iz awzome!'
'Gil?' He tapped out frantically, after he paused the song.
'Who els culd it b?
'How, may I ask, did you get my number?'
'Francis."
That frog….
'I see.'
'Wll, did u?"
'Did I what?'
'Gt n idea yt?'
Arthur's fingers hovered over the textpad of his sidekick.
'Still thinking. I've got one idea though.'
'No Brit flag.'
'Then I'll keep thinking.'
'Wait, we may b able 2 use tht idea. Sleep it off. I'l c u tom. L8ter.'
'Night.'
Arthur set his phone away and strummed his guitar a bit more, before deciding it was time for him to take a shower. He received quite a fright, almost jumping out of his black boxers and towel, when he found Mac outside his door, listening intently with Valor in his arms.
"I just wanted to hear you play and all! You does it so rarely that I thought you gave up!" The elder explained, red all over his face.
"If you want, I'll play anything you like whenever you make your Colcannon dish. I'll play right after dinner if you make that for me. It's delicious. One of the few things you can actually cook right."
Mac grinned. "Yes sir! I'll make it when it's my turn to cook up dinner then! Oh, could you play that song you were strumming just now? I rather liked the tune of it."
"Sure. I'll have to do that tomorrow though."
His brother nodded and continued on his way while Arthur sprinted into the bathroom before Peter could walk in.
"Go and use Mum's."
"But I need to pee!"
"Start wearing diapers then!"
Peter stuck out his tongue peevishly and Arthur mimiced him, his eyes a bit more demonic. Frightened, Peter was quick to speed away.
When Arthur caught his appearance in the mirror, he's a bit impressed. His hair definitely looked different. In a good way of course. The dye made its eternal state of messiness attractive. His stomach looked leaner too. Antonio really did know what to do with him. His abs were a bit more toned. He didn't have a six pack of course, but he was getting there. He wasn't just flesh and bones anymore. His arms were more meaty and his shoulders broader. He really needed to thank the Spaniard and Italian for their dishes and workout sessions. Maybe he could finally hold his own against Draco?
'Or not,' He thought as a certain red head broke the door handle and barged in, towel wrapped around his waist.
"The hell are you-? ARGH!" He screamed as Draco threw him over his bare shoulder and carried him out.
"Don't even try Pete," The ginger tossed back as the young boy attempted to sneak his way into the unoccupied bathroom.
Arthur was thrown onto his bed and Draco was quick to take up the bathroom. The British boy groaned when his lower back began to throb.
Some things never change.
-S.S.C.O.T.Y-Sorry, I was supposed to get this out yesterday. But I had a performance. I can't guarantee that it won't happen again, but I apologize in advance for when it does.
Arthur. Arthur. Arthur. I'm really uneasy about his character development. I don't want him to rush into being a punk, but I don't want to take it too slow either. What do you guys think? Is the pacing okay?
I think I'll simply refer to Romano as Romano from now on. Originally, his name was supposed to be Romano Lovino Vargas for this fic, with his best friends being able to call him Lovino, but there was a bit of confusion about that. I sincerely apologize for any misunderstandings!
Thanks for all the faves, alerts, and reviews! I got a lot more when I changed my summary. I guess short and sweet really does work huh? Until next Friday my dear readers!