Be Prepared

Alfred woke to the sweet sound of rain pattering against the window. It was the kind of rain Alfred liked-not a drizzle, but not a downpour either. Waking to the sound of rain was a typical occurrence in Britain, seeing as it seemed to rain almost every day. That was probably an exaggeration on Alfred's part but it certainly tended to rain a lot compared to America. The first thing Alfred noticed was that the warmth that had been next to him was gone. Arthur must already be up. Even thinking about Arthur made Alfred's heart race. He had wanted to share a bed with him and actually sleeping next to the Brit, hearing his gentle breaths, feeling his warm presence there, had given the American a certain comfort that he'd never felt before. He felt something for Arthur that he'd never felt before; was it love? Alfred felt his stomach flutter whenever he thought of Arthur and he just wanted to kiss him, and watch soppy Disney movies with him and he just wanted to know that he was his. Alfred abruptly sat up; he could smell something coming from the kitchen. To Alfred's horror it smelt like the Brit was baking scones. Alfred added teaching Arthur how to cook onto to-do his list; after all he didn't want to die of food poisoning.

Alfred plodded into the kitchen and glanced at the clock on his way over. 8:00AM, way too early to be up. He walked into the kitchen to find the Brit humming to himself; it sounded like Phantom of the Opera, but Alfred wasn't sure. He'd never really liked musicals, with the exception of Disney, of course. The Brit was twirling absentmindedly, a smile across his face; Alfred concluded that Arthur was in an undeniably good mood today.

"Morning, Artie." Alfred stretched and yawned, ruffling his bed-hair. "Jeez, you're up early. Oh, and I think I'll pass on the scones thing you know?" The Brit looked at him questioningly and Alfred nodded. "Yeah I'm not too hungry, so I'm good thanks."

As soon as Alfred had finished speaking, his stomach treacherously rumbled. Alfred was hungry and he had just lied to get out of Arthur's scones. The American gulped, hoping Arthur wouldn't be too offended.

To Alfred's surprise the Brit just smiled and pulled out a McDonald's bag out of the cupboard. "Morning Alfred. Oh, it's not that early, love. I have work today and it's my last day before the winter holidays. I get a couple of weeks that I've booked off, must explain why I'm happier than usual." Arthur grinned and went to hand Alfred the bag. He then went to kiss the American's cheek but then hastily pulled away. "I-I knew you wouldn't want my scones, so I nipped to McDonalds and brought you some pancakes. Here you go."

The American practically yanked the bag out of Arthur's hands, and began to dig in to his pancakes. They were delicious, no surprises there. It was McDonald's food; of course it would be good. Arthur had already finished his scones and after making a contented hum of approval, he began to wash up. Whilst Arthur was busy, Alfred finally processed the fact that Arthur was going to work and that he was going to be left alone. The Brit certainly looked ready for work; his hair was combed neatly, he wore a cute sky-blue buttoned-up shirt that showed off his flat stomach and his slight muscles. He completed the outfit with black trousers that were skinny enough to be jeans, but they were made of the wrong material. Alfred also noted that the trousers showed just how lovely Arthur's cute little butt was. It took all of Alfred's inner strength not to give it a tight squeeze. He was also wearing cute little loafers, and a black blazer/jacket that gave his outfit a formal look. Alfred then realised that he was dressed in a plain black T-shirt and jogging bottoms, his typical sleepwear. He felt incredibly underdressed.

Alfred saw Arthur glance at the clock and frown; he supposed that Arthur would have to leave soon. "Thanks for the pancakes, Artie! They were really good! I'm guessing you have to go soon? Don't worry about leaving me on my own, I won't destroy anything." Arthur looked at Alfred with worry, as though that thought had crossed his mind multiple times. "I mean, I'll be fine." Alfred said, trying to reassure both himself and Arthur.

Arthur smiled but it didn't quite reach his eyes which appeared to be narrowed; he looked concerned. "I know you won't destroy anything. It's just I don't want to leave you alone so soon after the accident."

At the word "accident" he saw the American flinch and his tone softened. "Sorry, love. I know it's hard, but you're getting your memory back. Last night was proof of that. I'm going to have to go; I'll be back around five."

He grabbed his keys from the side and headed towards the gleaming apartment door; he opened the door and turned around, as if he'd had an afterthought. "I know, why don't you call Matthew? I think he's off today and so is that boyfriend of his… I'm sure Matthew would love to pay you a visit. His number's on a post-it next to the phone. Bye Alfred!" Alfred heard the door shut and got up to get dressed. Today was going to be a long day…

Alfred was sprawled across Arthur's sofa, watching yet another episode of Jeremy Kyle. Currently, it featured a pregnant woman and an ex-boyfriend who was accusing her of sleeping with his father. Alfred glanced down at his watch and sighed, he had been alone for five whole hours which was way too long. He didn't want to annoy his brother, but he was so freaking bored. He turned the TV off and walked to the table where the phone was. He dialled his brother's number and began to chew his lip; hoping that he hadn't disturbed his brother.

Alfred released a breath as he heard his twin answer. "Hello? Al? Is that you?"

Alfred boomed down the receiver as usual; not realising how loud he was. "Hey Mattie! Yeah, it's me! Artie's at work, and I'm sooo bored, do you wanna come over? You can bring your boyfriend if you want."

Alfred heard a muffled conversation from the other end. He could hear his brother's hushed whispers and he could hear a loud, obnoxious German voice who he assumed to be Gilbert, his brother's boyfriend. He found it strange that his quiet, shy brother would date someone as loud and outgoing as Gilbert. It reminded him of chalk and cheese, but then again, opposites attract. He just had to look at Arthur to remind him of that.

"Al, Gilbert's coming. He's bringing beer; be prepared." Matthew hung up and Alfred was stood there staring at the phone and grinning. Gilbert was bringing beer; it was a while since he had drunk alcohol. Well this day shouldn't be so bad after all….

A/N: Short chapter is short, they're gonna get drunk in the next chapter.

I regret nothing :')

~BooksAreLikeChocolateButBetter