Disclaimer: I do not own Hetalia

The morning glow of the sun basks its way through the city, releasing out an invisible aura, rivaling that of a mother's warm, soothing embrace. In a certain part of the neighborhood proudly stood a modern two-story building.

Compared to his best friends' houses, Alfred F. Jones had a house quite different.

Large, glass windows adorned the entirety of the building, replacing the traditional bricked walls. The rooftops were widely flattened and brimmed, enough to withstand even the most treacherous of storms. Aside from that, at the very heart of the house was a decorative carved wooden door that was supported by the large, twin pillars on each corresponding side in which happened to be strikingly similar to the ancient Greek architecture. Beyond the cobblestone pathway was a collection of conifer trees framing the front yard, heightening the appeal of the house.

Spite of its impressive exterior, the house was no more than an ordinary place. It didn't seem as colossal as Kiku's, nor was it as tightly confined, as Gilbert's either.

To put it in simpler terms, it was suitable with just the right amount of hospitability and friendliness, exactly as what a home should be defined as.

A congregation of people gathered around before the house, their lively noises and chattering evidently heard all over the area. Cars of different shapes and sizes lined up near the estate, implying that this unusual gathering was intentional.

Like he promised, Arthur was able to organize a visit to the beach and through Francis's assistance, it was officially established. Though it was a valid fact that the third and final round was about a few days away, Arthur knew that getting his band to practice tirelessly would surely worn them out. If it was one thing Allistor lacked as a Conductor, it was that he didn't have any sympathy for anyone. With this in mind, Arthur did what he can and could to make his band mates satisfied. The trip to the beach was a one-way ticket in fulfilling such satisfaction.

Stepping forth, Arthur took, this time, to speculate his surroundings while at the same time, mentally checking off who was present and who was absent. A small smile emerged on his lips. Each and every single member of his orchestra band, World gig, was present. "Excellent attendance as usual," He muttered to himself.

So far, everything was running smoothly. Something hit him from behind, prompting the gentleman to turn. His expression didn't change whatsoever upon the sight of his childhood friend. "What do you want now, Frog?"

Francis emitted a sheepish smile, "We have a problem,"

Arthur frowned, "Well? Spit it out!"

Gesturing his head over, Francis continued, "A certain someone doesn't want to go."

…And just like that, Arthur's assumption of things fairly going well was immediately thrown out the window.

Creasing his eyebrows, Arthur averted his focus from Francis and to the unusual figure standing beside a large van. He had brown hair and green eyes. On the top of his head was a double hair curl, a characteristic trait that easily be identified in comparison with the rest. Recognizing the figure right away, Arthur heaved a sigh, "Let me guess. It's something to do with cats?"

"Bingo."

Brushing a strand of hair from his forehead, Arthur continued, "Let me see if I can get through to him." After making his way through the crowd, he approached the troubling Greek man. Clearing his throat, he raised his voice a little louder, "Heracles,"

The man named Heracles slowly looked up, "Oh? Conductor?"

"There's really no need for formalities," Arthur began, "Call me Arthur."

Heracles nodded. "Alright." He said, "Is there something you need from me, Arthur?"

"Yeah. A little birdie informed me that you didn't want to go with us." Arthur explained, getting straight to the point. "Care to elaborate for me?"

Heracles silently shook his head. Lowering his gaze down, he softly scratched the back of a baby kitten that was nestled comfortably in his arms. Stroking the rough edges of its silver fur, Heracles continued, "As you can see, I really like cats. I do want to go with you guys but I don't wanna risk having to put them in danger."

"Heracles, it's only for one day," Arthur assured to him in hopes to convince that it'll be okay. "Did you contact Sadik to help you out?"

"That's the thing, I did," Heracles pressed on, confirming that he did contact his close friend. "But today, he can't. It's his turn to be in charge of taking care of the pet store."

Arthur pursed his lips, "I see,"

"Is there a chance that I can go to the beach and bring my cat?"

Arthur scratched the back of his neck, "It's risky."

"Hey, everything alright here?"

Arthur rolled his eyes without bothering to turn around, "What does it look like, Frog?" He proclaimed out of annoyance.

"We don't have much time," Francis notified before whispering, "Are you that determined to bring everyone?"

"Yes, I am," Arthur confirmed his lime green eyes gleaming with unyielding determination. Switching his focus back to the Greek man once more, he continued, "Heracles, you don't have to literally step foot on the beach. If you want, you can hang out inside the van with your cat. How's that?"

Heracles became silent for a moment, pondering over the new idea. "Sure, that'll be nice."

Arthur nodded, "Good."

"Problem solved?" Francis interrupted. When he gained a nod of approval, he grinned cheekily. "All in a day's work for our Conductor."

"Shut up, Frog," Arthur grumbled lowly.

Shortly after dismissing themselves from Heracles, Arthur proceeded to march to the front of the crowd. Taking a quick glance back and forth, he raised his hands high and clapped three times. Seconds after everyone dimmed their constant commotion; Arthur elevated his voice, making sure that the people in the back could also hear as well. "Good morning everyone! I would like to humbly say thank you for coming. I am aware that the third and final round is in a few days. But as of right now, don't worry too much. The purpose of this trip to the beach is to accomplish a stress-free zone."

"Are you saying that we should have fun?" Someone shouted from the crowd.

Arthur straightened up, bringing together his hands behind his back. "Exactly." Looking the other way, Arthur narrowed his eyes, scanning the crowd in search for one of his younger brothers. It wasn't until much later when lime green clashed against sky blue. With a confident nod, Arthur yelled with all his might, "Alfred, start us off!"

Alfred nodded, grinning like an idiot. Unlike last time, he didn't stretch out his hand like he used to. Instead, he resorted to exclaiming aloud, "What team?"

"World gig!"

"What team?" He repeated.

"World gig!"

Pumping his fist into the open air, Alfred cried once again, "What team?"

On cue, the rest of his band mates individually thrust his or her fist, their distinctive voices resonating brilliantly throughout the area. "World gig!"

Shortly after everyone settled down and the noises diminished, Alfred shouted, "Last one there is a rotten egg!" And then scurried off toward a random vehicle with a large bag in tow.

"Come back here, you bloody idiot!" Arthur cried as he chased after his brother.

Unfortunately for Arthur, this triggered the rest of the members to do the same and one after another, they all followed after them.

Witnessing this, Allistor blinked. So this was the famous trumpeter that he's been hearing so much about. When he heard about him through Arthur, Allistor was sure that the ace of World gig was a competitive young man. For someone like him who was certain of his predictions, this one, however, caught him completely off guard.

The famous trumpeter, Alfred F. Jones was…an interesting individual.

Was this kid even serious about his career at all? There were so many questions that Allistor wanted to confront to Arthur but then again, stopped himself from doing so. Why? People tend to easily judge others based on their first impressions on them. With that said, Allistor smirked. And who knows? Alfred may be acting childlike now but think about the possible destruction of what he could do onstage.

Slanting his sports cap a bit further to conceal his face from the others, Allistor quietly made his way inside one of the cars, surprisingly undetected. 'This is turning out to be an interesting day,' He thought to himself, his grin widening from ear to ear.

Upon entering the family truck, he was greeted with Arthur's usual protesting, "What's with the strange getup?"

"Just because I used to be part of this gig, doesn't mean that I choose to play around either." Allistor clarified as he seated—practically sandwiched between Matthew and Michelle. Peter, on the other hand, was protectively tucked on top of Matthew's lap, earning him the role of his caretaker for the day. Looking around, Allistor pointed out the obvious question, "Where's that ace of yours?"

"You mean Alfred?" Francis asked from the driver's seat. "He decided to go along with his best friends." He answered, referring to the large, steel-colored car that was parked next to them.

From a distance, Francis noticed the familiar silhouette of Ludwig, who also happened to be in charge of driving as well. From the look of his stoic face, Francis could already tell that the poor German was having a difficult time monitoring his group, especially when Feliciano had cranked up the volume of the speakers of the radio, causing the entire vehicle to be filled with shouting mixed in together with over the top music.

"Less talking, more driving!" Michelle cried in giddiness.

"Yeah!" Peter chimed in.

Chuckling, Francis nodded before checking to make sure that there were no cars nearby for him to worry. As soon as the coast was clear, he took hold of the instrument in between the two front seats, pulling it upwards. He gripped the wheel with his other hand and slightly rotated it.

"Alright, let's hit the road!"

The beautiful glowing sun arose brilliantly overhead, its gleaming light showering down on the beautiful beige desert of sand with the calm and peaceful sea stretching out as far as the eye can see. The colors of the water would occasionally change color, ranging from teal green to sapphire blue. Seagulls encircled the wide, open horizon in hopes to find their next prey.

Taking his first step forward, the albino proceeded to cross his arms, his crimson red eyes inspecting the sight before him. Taking a deep breath in, Gilbert exhaled, flashing a smile. "You smell that, boys?" He asked, referring to his group of friends behind him. "That's the smell of something awesome about to happen!"

"You think so?" Mathias wondered, placing a hand on top of his forehead, casting a minor shadow over his eyes as he speculated the area. Similar to Gilbert, he was already wearing his beach trunks (navy blue with black flames on the edges) and so; all that he had to do was take off his sleeveless white shirt.

Alfred laughed, "This is pretty awesome!" He commented, taking in the gorgeous scenery around him.

Squatting down, Alfred opened his bag. Removing his glasses, he carefully folded them neatly as he tucked them inside. As he did so, he then pulled out his arm, unveiling a pair of goggles. Making sure they were of good use, he stretched the rubbery string of the goggles, putting them on top of his head. Once he was finished with that, Alfred began removing his red sweater, exposing his surprisingly toned body. A shimmer of metallic shone on the upper part of his chest, along with a long, ornamental chain encircling on his neck. Like his friends before him, he kept on his shorts with a color that matched his sweater.

Suddenly, a wave of high-pitched shrieking erupted from afar, gaining the group's attention.

Securing his sweater comfortably around his waist, Alfred laughed once more, "Someone's Mister Popular," He said teasingly, referring to the energetic albino.

Spreading his arms out, Gilbert grinned as he began flexing his muscles, his expression filled with confidence. "Damn right! Hah, they're clapping for my awesomeness!"

"Oh really?" A voice interrupted. Gilbert frowned before peering over his shoulder. And he swore to God, he was literally in heaven for a second. Right there before him was Elizabeta who wore a beautiful black polka dot bikini with shorts to cover her midriff. Gilbert swallowed in his saliva, quickly averting his attention elsewhere in fear that if he stared at her body for too long, he would surely get a beating from her.

"What do you want now, woman?" The albino asked, trying to sound as casual as possible.

Elizabeta rolled her eyes while at the same time, placed her hands securely on her hips, her long light brown hair swaying back and forth in the graceful motion. "Dumbass."

Gilbert tilted his head, "What did you say?"

Lifting two fingers up, Elizabeta pointed to the other way, completely ignoring his comment. "I hate to break it to you but they aren't clapping because of you. They're clapping because of him."

Gilbert blinked. Following her finger, he turned around to discover the source of the commotion. His face turned sour as he watched the scene play before him. Without a doubt, it was Alfred who was indeed being surrounded by girls. Regardless of the fact that he only removed his red sweater, he was already attracting a large flock of the female population like flies. The poor guy didn't appear to take notice of this as he was more focused on taking in the view of the beach.

Ironically, he was the view.

Gilbert clicked his tongue. "Pssh, show off." He muttered. Turning back to take a glance at Elizabeta, he continued. "Those girls don't realize the hell they're missing out."

Elizabeta snorted. "You say that but here you are, still unnoticed."

Hearing this, Gilbert's lips formed into a mischievous grin, "True, but you know I did get someone's attention."

Elizabeta raised an eyebrow. "You're not making sense."

Putting his arms behind his head, Gilbert grinned cheekily, "Really?"

Elizabeta closed her mouth and bit her lower lip. As she thought about it, it was then that it suddenly dawned on her. Blushing furiously, she cried, "Don't you dare count me!" Out of nowhere, she smacked the albino across on the face, causing him to slightly fall back. Luckily for Gilbert, Mathias happened to be standing next to him and successfully caught him in the nick of time.

"Ow, the hell was that for?"

"Figure it out!" Elizabeta cried, her nostrils flaring in anger. Before Gilbert could retort, she had already left without another word.

"You okay there, bud?" Mathias asked curiously.

Gilbert nodded. "Yeah." He said, wincing as he nursed his injured left cheek. "Man, why does that woman only hit me? Why can't it be Roderich?"

Mathias stifled a chuckle, "Dude, you know that's a good thing."

Gilbert gave the Nordic a strange look, "I'm not sure what you're getting at, Math."

"Look, hear me out. You said you wanted someone to hit on you and you got it." Mathias explained. When he received another nod, the Nordic proceeded to nudge his elbow against his friend's bare back. "And it just so happens that Elizabeta, your crush, hit on you if you know what I mean."

Processing in his friend's words, Gilbert dramatically gasped, "Dude, you're so right!" He cried, raising his hand to bump fist with him. "By the way, where's your girl?"

"Oh, Natalya? She's not here."

"How come?"

"Don't you know? Natalya is from Star Fest." Mathias explained, heaving a sigh. "We can't be together."

"Man, that sucks," Gilbert commented. Taking this opportunity to cheer him up, he continued, "But you know, think about it! Is your situation like forbidden love right? You're like Romeo and she's Juliet! They're always gonna be together!"

Mathias's eyes glistened, "Yo, that's true!"

Suddenly, a bright light emanated out of nowhere, causing the two friends to get caught off guard.

Rubbing one of his eyes, Gilbert blinked immaculately.

"Kiku? What are you doing?" Alfred asked his best friend.

"Yeah, we're supposed to be having fun!" Mathias added in.

Lowering his camera down, Kiku shrugged. "But I am having fun and I'm fulfilling that by taking pictures." He said simply.

Meanwhile, Alfred, Gilbert, and Mathias looked at each other, exchanging suggestive looks.

Realizing the choice of words that he used, Kiku blushed. "Sick bastards! This isn't what you think!" Kiku cried, reinforcing his statement. "It's been a long since I've been on the beach and I want to take photos to remember it!"

"If you say so," Gilbert said, snickering.

Alfred nodded, "Just don't get in trouble, okay?"

Kiku frowned, gripping onto his camera a bit too tightly before reverting to his own task on taking random pictures. He didn't have enough time to do so as he heard someone call out his name nearby. He paused to look up, his cheeks reddening upon realizing that it's…

"Mei?"

"Kiku! You're here too?" Xiao Mei greeted, approaching the four men. In contrast of Elizabeta who wore a rather daring two-piece (save for wearing shorts), much to Kiku's relief, he was secretly glad that Xiao Mei was the complete opposite as she wore a bubblegum one piece. Her long brown hair was put into a knot, forming a ponytail (though not as long as her sister's). Tilting her head slightly, her smile widened when she caught sight of the other three in her field of vision. "Ah, cool! The whole gang is here as well!" She added in, smiling widely. "So what are you guys doing here?"

"What are we doing here? What are you doing here?" Kiku asked abruptly, letting his curiosity get the best of him. As he carefully gave his Canon camera over to Alfred, Kiku proceeded to remove his thin gray sweater. "Here, cover yourself!" He said, handing the article of clothing toward his childhood friend.

Xiao Mei stuck out her tongue playfully, "Kiku, I'm fine!"

"Mei, I insist," Kiku said, still offering it to her.

Xiao Mei blushed, frantically waved her arms in front of her, "But I don't need it!"

"I'm not taking no for an answer." Kiku pressed on, his onyx eyes igniting with determination. "Please, take it."

Xiao Mei sighed, "Fine." She said, taking the sweater into her grasp.

Kiku smiled, "Good."

Meanwhile, the albino stifled a chuckle. "So corny."

Kiku heard this and glared at the other two, prompting them to freeze in place. He sighed. Why were he friends with these idiots again? "Are you by yourself, Mei?" He wondered, directing his question back to the younger girl.

"Nope!" Xiao Mei answered, shaking her head at the same time. "Sis, Yao, Ivan and the others are also here!"

Mathias stopped for a moment, taking in the new information. Wait a minute. If Xiao Mei was here, that must mean that the other members of Star Fest are here as well. And that could only mean…

"Is Natalya's here?" Mathias cried abruptly, startling the younger girl before him.

Xiao Mei stopped what she was doing, switching her attention from her childhood friend and then over to the Nordic. With a bright smile, she chirped happily with, "Yup!"

Nudging the Nordic on the shoulder, Gilbert whispered, "Now's your chance! Go get her, dude!"

Mathias nodded enthusiastically, "I will! Wish me luck!" Thanking Xiao Mei, he quickly left the group to find the platinum haired woman.

Shortly after Mathias left the group, Kiku asked with a confused expression, "Did I miss something?"

"You'll see in due time!" Gilbert assured to him, feeling a sense of pride. "So, Alfred, what about—" Just as he turned, his body stiffened. Speculating the area back and forth, he scratched his head in confusion. 'That's weird,' He pondered, confused. 'I could've sworn that he was standing right there a second ago.' Focusing his attention back to Kiku and Xiao Mei, he asked, "Hey, where's Alfred?"

As soon as Alfred's name escaped from Gilbert's mouth, Xiao Mei gasped. "Wait, Alfred's gone?"

"I believe so," Kiku affirmed calmly. "Why? What's wrong?"

Sensing that the girl was hesitated to utter a word, Kiku brought out his hand on her shoulder to ease her. "Mei, it's okay. Tell us."

Xiao Mei veered her gaze down, taking a sudden interest in the sandy ground. Looking back up, she shrugged, "You know what? Never mind!"

Kiku narrowed his eyes, pressing his lips in a straight, thin line before finally responding, "If you say so."

Xiao Mei nodded. Tugging onto Kiku's left wrist, she continued, "Come on, Kiku! Let's go and play~"

Kiku blinked. "W-wait, Mei!" His cries were left ignored by his childhood friend as she forcedly dragged him along.

Gilbert furrowed his eyebrows, "Huh? Hey, where'd you guys—hey, are you even listening?"

Once again, he didn't have the time to express his opinions. As the couple ran off, leaving him in the dust, all alone, he hung his head in exasperation, "Ugh, I should've brought Gilbird with me."

Planting the large rainbow umbrella against the sandy ground, Francis sighed. Releasing his hold on the umbrella stick, he began tying his blonde into a small ponytail. Looking around his surroundings, he whistled. "Now this is what I call paradise," He commented, smiling upon catching sight of the random individuals, particularly the women.

Passing by his childhood friend, Arthur took hold of his large duffel bag before recklessly throwing it with the other belongings that were stationed under the umbrella. He didn't bother to say anything about Francis's perverted remark as he was in desperate need of relaxation. Grabbing hold of the hem of his short-sleeved blue shirt, he proceeded to slip his head off the clothing. The cold metallic surface of his dog tag necklace around his neck hit his chest, causing him to sigh in relief when he noticed that it was still there.

"Hmm? You're still wearing it?" Francis asked.

Arthur stared back at him as if he produced two heads. "Of course, I still am, Frog." He argued, rolling his eyes.

From the corner of his eye, he could spot a large crowd of girls from afar, their high-pitched yells practically damaging his eardrums. When he took off his shirt, Arthur could've sworn that their noises escalated.

Witnessing his student's lack of presence, Allistor chuckled. "I spy with my little eye," He began as he too started taking off his shirt as well. "A scrawny twig."

Hearing his mentor's comment, Arthur frowned. "Shut up, you asshole."

"Don't be like that, Arthur," Francis advised him, wagging a finger.

Arthur lifted his chin up, glaring at him. "Easy for you to say, Frog," Arthur began as he crouched next to his duffel bag. Unzipping the bag, he put inside his shirt to swap for his black sunglasses. As he put them on, he continued, "We're supposed to be relaxing though I feel as if we're not getting any of it. It's like this is a museum and we're the display."

"They are Mesdames, Arthur." Francis pointed out as if he was talking to a toddler.

Arthur shrugged, "I don't care."

"Sorry to burst your bubbles, but I happen to also be a girl," Michelle stated confidently as she moved toward them with an inflatable ringed float tucked behind her back.

It took three seconds for Arthur to face her before quickly turning the other way as his face was scrunched up with disgust. "Michelle, what are you wearing?" He asked lowly, avoiding the other way. The noticeable pink hue on the tips of his ears however implied otherwise.

"What does it look like I'm wearing?" Michelle barked, blushing furiously. "Of course, I'm wearing a bikini!"

Matthew comes over, still fully clothed with Peter tailing after him with a water gun. "Don't worry about it, Michelle." He advised her sweetly, "It suits you."

Michelle grinned cheekily, "Awww, shucks!" She then turned to Arthur and shot him a glare, "Why can't you be like your brother?"

When she received nothing but utter silence, Michelle frowned deeply.

"Don't worry about him," Allistor assured Michelle, "I'm surprised he's still this popular. Seriously, who in their right mind would get attracted to someone that acts like a grandpa?"

Francis unconsciously took a quick look at his sister and snickered when he found her suddenly sulking and covering her face.

"You okay there, Mon Cher?"

"Y-yeah…"

Arthur set down a beach towel beside Matthew and Peter to supervise what they're doing. "You alright there, boys?"

Matthew looked up and smiled. Squeezing the sunscreen lotion, he rubbed both his hands before putting it on the younger boy's skin. "We're okay," He said without having to bother to look at his older brother.

"Arthur, can you tell Matthew to stop giving me sunscreen?" Peter cried childishly, sticking out his tongue in disgust. "Ugh, it's icky!"

Arthur chuckled, "If you don't put sunscreen on, you're gonna be sunburned." He explained, "Do you want that?"

"No!" Peter cried almost too quickly.

Arthur shook his head. "Thought so." He said before reverting his attention to Allistor who appeared to be standing next to him. "What about you? Don't you have things to do?"

"Oh, I do," Allistor answered, putting his sports cap back on.

"Probably being a pervert and checking out girls?" Francis guessed.

Allistor made a pouting expression, "Were my intentions that obvious?"

"Not really," Francis answered casually, "Though I do understand what you're getting at. There are indeed a lot of Mesdames here today."

Michelle punched her brother on the side, causing him to bend forward, groaning in pain.

Arthur smiled as he rolled his eyes. Settling himself down on the beach towel, he put his arms behind his head, sighing. 'Finally,' He thought, closing his eyes.

Sad to say, his moment of peace was only for a brief minute when suddenly, a shadow emerged, blocking the sun and preventing Arthur from getting suntanned.

Irritated, Arthur ripped off the black sunglasses off his face and looked up, "For crying out loud, would you move—" He wasn't able to complete the rest of his sentence as he was met with an unusual encounter.

His family, excluding Peter and Allistor, stopped what he or she were doing and turned around, their field of vision automatically fixated upon the sudden arrival of none other than Star Fest's Conductor. Francis attempted to open his mouth to say something, possibly to protest, however, was unfortunately stopped by Arthur.

"What are you doing here, Yao?"

Yao shrugged, "Pleasure to meet you as well, Kirkland." He greeted back, spitting out Arthur's namesake like it was a sort of bacteria. "I would also like to ask you the same thing, aru."

"World gig is here for some stress relief," Arthur said matter-of-factly, sitting up straight from his beach towel. "I'm guessing Star Fest is here with the same objective?"

"Correct you are, Kirkland," Yao confirmed. "But I am here for a different reason."

Arthur cocked an eyebrow, "And that is?"

"As you can see," Yao began, gesturing his head slightly, "We are currently in a public area. I would like to ask if we could carry out some form of negotiation. That is, if you're up for it, aru."

"You're saying you want us to act civilized?" Arthur asked.

Yao nodded again, "Yes." Extending his hand out, he continued. "What do you think?"

Arthur looked down at Yao's awaiting hand and without hesitation, heedlessly interlocked his own and shook firmly. "I accept."

A small smile materialized on Yao's face. Slanting his head slightly to the side, his brown eyes trailed off as he took the time to speculate the silhouettes in the background. Upon catching sight of a certain redhead, Yao stiffened. A sudden wave of antagonism and wrath-filled Yao, his smile instantly replaced with a deep scowl.

Arthur noticed the strange behavior and yet didn't bother to comment. That is until he felt a twitching feeling coming from his hand. But as always, he made sure to retain his gentleman demeanor. "Pardon my interruption, Yao, but I believe you are gripping my hand a bit too hard."

Yao paused for a moment and raised a questionable eyebrow. "I am?" He wondered. Looking down, he quickly released his hand. "Ah, forgive me."

Arthur forced a smile, "No problem." He said, "See you around?"

"See you," Yao recited, bowing his head down respectfully and then left.

Once he disappeared from their line of sight, the tension amongst their area of comfort diminished. Crossing his arms, Francis quietly walked over toward his childhood friend and asked, "What was that all about?"

"Who knows?" Arthur said flatly, massaging his temple. It's been a quarter past noon and the day was already becoming chaotic. Then again, he had an itching feeling that something like this would happen. It was only a matter of time anyway. "But whatever it is, it can't be good."

Meanwhile, Alfred roamed around the beach, his mind consuming on locating a certain individual. It was no secret that the person he's trying to look for was indeed Lien. Despite his friends and their constant protests, he still decided to pursue her.

Like what Francis had said, love doesn't need to have a reason.

In this case, Alfred did not have a particular reason, as all he wanted to do was to see her again.

Was she doing well? How was she dealing with her mother hospitalized?

For the past two days, he was grateful for Kiku spoon-feeding him the information that he needed, but there are also things that he might want to know for himself. And to get those answers, Alfred knew that he had to confront her personally. Stopping in his tracks, he scratched the back of his head. Regardless of his strong ambition to search for Lien, his sense of directions didn't seem to favor him.

"I'm better!"

"What are you talking about? I am!"

Alarmed, Alfred quickened his pace, curious as to know where the mysterious noises were coming from.

What he found nearby baffled him.

Not too far from where he stood were four individuals.

On the left side was Lukas and on the opposite was a short young man. His choppy blonde hair, close to the resemblance of a bob-cut was easily distinctive. His usual white beret that he wore on his hat was replaced with green goggles. If Alfred could recall, he must be Basch Zwingli, the clarinet player of Star Fest.

From the looks of it, they appear to be involved in a heated argument. Scrutinizing his eyes, Alfred noticed that in between the two older brothers were their younger siblings: Emil and the good-natured Lily. Similar to her brother, her blonde hair was styled in a chin-length bob cut fashion, accompanied by a blue ribbon on the right side of her head.

Spotting the younger siblings' distressed expressions, Alfred couldn't help but feel sympathy for them as it reminded him of his occasional bickering with Arthur from time to time. Fortunately for them, they were blessed Matthew as the reconciler.

"Ah, Alfred! Just in time!"

'Crap,' Alfred thought. He must have been too consumed with his thoughts, they must have noted his presence and decided to call him out. Even so, he kept his cheery mask on and went along. "Hey, hey!"

He greeted as he approached them. "Something the matter?"

Lukas nodded, "There is, actually."

"More on the matter of life and death." Basch included, his voice becoming serious.

Alfred took a step back. "Wait, what? Life and death?" Were his ears deceiving him or did those exact same words popped out of the Swiss?

"That's right," Lukas affirmed. "Alfred, be honest. Who do you think is the better older brother?"

"Bullshit!" Basch cried, stomping his foot. He then pointed toward Alfred. "He's obviously part of your band so of course he'll vote for you!"

"Brother, please!" Lily whimpered, clutching onto her brother's arm, preventing him from becoming too reckless. "You really don't have to do this, you know!"

"She's right," Emil said, exasperated. "This is pointless!"

Hearing this, Lukas whipped his head to face him and said, "I will stop unless you call me—"

"Hell no!" Emil cried unexpectedly. "Anyway, you are missing the point!"

"Hah! That means I won then?" Basch asked with his head held high.

"No, it doesn't," Lukas stated firmly, his listless expression quite difficult to interpret according to the situation at hand.

All Alfred could do was stand there and watch the two men practically butting heads with each other. Now that he thought about it, the whole argument was, like what Emil said, pointless. He personally didn't know much about either of them but from what he could get from their fighting, Alfred could tell that the older brothers were overly doting, if not—very much caring, almost to the level of possessiveness of their younger siblings. Therefore, their rivalry over whose better was somewhat justified.

"Pssh, Alfred," Emil whispered over to the bespectacled young man. Once he got ahold of his attention, he continued, "I think it's best you leave."

"Are you sure? You guys look like you still need help."

"Don't worry about us," Emil assured him, "We got this." Hurling his head over, he asked the younger girl standing next to him. "Right, Lily?"

Lily nodded meekly, "That's right. Please, go on with your day."

Alfred bit his lower lip. Eventually, he shook his head, "Okay." He said, "Let me know if you do need help and I won't hesitate to come back!"

"Thanks," Both Emil and Lily cried in unison.

Waving his hand, Alfred bid farewell to the two younger siblings before walking off once more. By the time he was far away from the group, he finally released the breath he'd been holding for too long.

First, it was Xiao Mei and now, Basch and Lily. One by one, the members of Star Fest kept popping up in the scene.

And yet, the one that he's been yearning to see again, who happens to also be a member of said orchestra band was nowhere to be seen from a mile away. Craning his head up, his sky blue eyes stared up at the cloudless azure sky. An unconscious smile made its way through his lips. 'What a day,' He thought, taking in a measured sigh.

How many more surprises should he be aware of?

"Well, if it isn't Alfred."

The corners of Alfred's lips lengthening from ear to ear.

Great, he had to jinx it. Turning to the source of the rough masculine voice, he spoke out, "Carlos! It's been awhile. How are you?"

The tanned skin man chuckled, his brown dreadlocks that were tied back behind his head moving to some extent prior to his movement.

Carlos shrugged, "Healthy as a horse should be." He responded rather rudely, touching his facial hair as he said so. He then pulled out volleyball from behind him, "Say, wanna play a little game with a friend of mine?"

Alfred smiled sheepishly. "No thanks," He said, politely declining the offer. "There's something urgent that I gotta do."

"Oh? What'll that be?" Carlos asked further, wriggling his eyebrows, "Something even better than volleyball?"

"Definitely something better than volleyball," Alfred affirmed, trying hard to keep his poker face. "Anyway, I don't have much time." Turning his back on him, Alfred continued, "I don't have time to dilly-dally around—"

Whoosh!

Alfred froze in his tracks, his eyes gradually expanding its size. Lowering his gaze, he found that the volleyball was mere inches away from his bare feet. It happened so fast; he didn't even have the chance to blink or react. Prying his mouth open, Alfred wanted to say something. Alas, someone had already beaten him to it.

"Oops! Seems like my hand slipped, da."

Recognizing the familiar voice, Alfred's shoulders stiffened. Squatting his knees, he leisurely took the volleyball into his arms, letting a few strands of his sandy blonde bangs fall down, concealing the proud blue color of his eyes.

Turning around once more, he addressed the Russian, "Didn't see you there, Ivan."

Ivan chuckled, crossing his arms. "Funny because neither have I."

"You know what? I think I'll stay for a little longer," Alfred suggested, gripping onto the volleyball a bit tightly against his bare hands. "You wouldn't mind, do you, Carlos?"

Carlos simply smirked.

Seeing that, Alfred flashed a smile, His sky blue eyes driven with raw willpower. "Game on."

On the far side of the beach stood a young woman on her own, silently observing the ocean waves crashing before her. She lifted one of her ankles, dipping one of her feet into the water. A cold shiver ran down her spine, feeling somewhat refreshed by her recent action. From the sandy shoreline, the blast of cold breeze prickling along her sun-kissed skin and most of all—the ocean—reminded her so much of her beautiful homeland.

As much as she longed to go back, Lien knew she couldn't and wouldn't. Not when there were still many things unsettled here that she needed to confront. She unconsciously gripped her hand, forming a fist as she thought back to what happened the past two days. When she volunteered to take her mother's place for the upcoming wedding, she knew she did the right thing as it spared not only her mother from having to live a miserable life but also her baby sister, Xiao Mei, who happened to be the first option to be the ideal substitute.

'I did an honorable sacrifice,' She reminded herself over and over again.

And yet, why was she slowly feeling doubtful about her decision? Lien heaved a deep breath.

When she was a child, she heard of stories of knights in shining armor, dragons and princesses trapped in locked towers. At that time, she thought that fairy tales were real. This grew even more by experiencing the intense love and loyalty between her parents, in which kept her believing and feeling hopeful of the future. That someday, one day—she'll be swept off of her feet and be rescued by her knight in shining armor.

As she got older, she tried as hard as she could to preserve that fantastical belief.

Now, enter Dae Yeung.

It was because of him that everything that she ever loved was slowly getting taken away from her. Her father, struck with a sudden illness, depended heavily on Yeung's assistance or in this case, smuggling in illegal prescription drugs from another country to get well. Due to the expensive costs of the medicine, Lien's family became bankrupt. To make matters worse, when their neighbors and other relatives found out about it, they didn't bother to help. What they did instead, made Lien even now infuriated her. The small community she considered as family shunned them for good. They banned them from any uses of medical needs and prevented from letting them visit the local doctor. As a result, her father eventually died.

Around that time, Yeung demanded the long overdue charges and when he didn't get a single cent, resorted to courting their mother as a way to make things even. It was then at that point that Lien's idealistic dream of ever living happily ever after shattered in a thousand pieces.

For a nine-year-old, it must have been traumatizing to find out that something that you dearly held onto turned out to be nothing more than false. There were no such things as fairy tales and overtime; Lien began to slowly accept that concept.

…It wasn't until a certain bespectacled young man made his way into her life that everything began to change.

"Am I dead?"

Alfred's first words to her rang in her head, prompting her to lightly giggle. The first time they met, it was an accidental encounter. At the time, she wore her mother's wedding gown as a way to rebel against the arranged marriage. Shrugging their meeting like it was nothing, she went on her merry way.

In the back of her mind, however, a voice assured to her that they might meet again.

Lien didn't believe it.

"Hello again."

As fate would have it, she did meet him again.

When he confirmed that he was the famous trumpeter, Alfred F. Jones, Lien wanted to roll her eyes. Based on the descriptions that Yao informed her about him, Lien imagined Alfred to be a rather intimidating and competitive young man. And yet, here he was in the flesh and a blubbering idiot, no less.

Was he really the ace of World gig?

Lien sighed, shaking her head in dismay. Oh, how dead wrong she was again. Alfred took her by surprise. He acted so immature, almost childlike that it was hard to believe that someone like him could be her rival. It wasn't until she witnessed firsthand of his performance that everything began to make sense.

Ever since that day, she was determined to know more about him as a person.

What she didn't realize however was that the latter wanted to get to know her too.

And slowly but surely,

"Well, would you look at that? You're smiling, Lien!"

Day after day,

"Lien, relax! It's me!"

Almost to the equivalent of a week…

"Are you challenging me, Miss Nguyen?"

They began to grow closer.

"Lien, are you complimenting me?"

And before she knew it…

"Lien, I love you."

Lien bit her bottom lip. Never had she dreamt in her entire life that someone could ever say those three magical words to her. But it did happen and that someone was Alfred. Knowing that, a surge of guilt began to wash over her. She didn't get to answer his confession. He must have been looking forward to knowing her answer. Unfortunately for them both, he confessed at a wrong time and just like that, everything began to go downhill.

Distracted by her thoughts, Lien didn't seem to take account of a pair of arms slyly snaking around her waist. When she did, Lien said the first thing she could think of. "Alfred!"

A loud outburst erupted from behind her. "Hahaha, you said Alfred!"

Lien frowned. Looking over her shoulder, she gawked. "B-Bel?"

"I knew it!" Bel cried with glee, ignoring Lien's surprised reaction as she continued to tease her friend. "You were thinking about him!"

"I-I was not!"

Bel raised an eyebrow, her cat-like grin lengthening from ear to ear. "Oh? Then why did you say his name?"

Lien glanced the other way, her cheeks burning red. Clearing her throat, she spoke, "Why are you here for, Bel? I thought you would be hanging out with Antonio and Lovino."

Noticing the change of topic, Bel snickered. Even so, she responded back, "Is it bad for me to hang out with my girl friends?"

Lien tried to say something, however, another voice interrupted their conversation, causing her and Bel to fixate their attention to the approaching females.

"Whoa! Katyusha, Natalya!" Bel exclaimed, much to Lien's discomfort. Frowning, she proceeded to throw out an obvious question. "Wait a minute. Why are you all wearing your sweaters?" She asked, referring to the three females surrounding her. "It's hot out!"

"Oh, we know," Katyusha, said, smiling sweetly. "I'm doing it for personal reasons," She explained, implying to her big chest in which was concealed perfectly.

Bel nodded in understanding. "Natalya?"

"I won't let anyone but big brother see me in this," Natalya reasoned, crossing her arms with a composed look. Aside from the upper part of her body, Bel could tell that the swimsuit the platinum haired woman was wearing was rather seductive. A transparent sash consisted of floral patterning strapped nicely around her lower waist to go along with it.

"I see," Scrunching her nose, Bel looked back at Lien and asked, "How about you, Lien?"

"I'd rather not," Lien said, shrugging.

Bel let out a dramatic sigh, tilting her head. At times like these, she couldn't help but ask herself if she's the clueless one. "Oh well, whatever floats your boat," She said, giving up. Her ears perked up upon hearing loud cheering and applauses from nearby. Peering over her right shoulder, she noticed a growing crowd in the distance. "Wonder what's going on over there." She spoke out, "Wanna take a quick look?"

"Sure," Katyusha agreed, clasping her hands together. "Why not?"

"I don't have anything else better to do," Natalya grumbled while nodding.

Bel nodded before turning to glance at Lien once more, "And you?"

Lien bit the inside of her cheek. "I don't know."

"My god, girl! You gotta live!" Bel cried, making a pouty face. When Lien still didn't budge, Bel thought for a moment before snapping her fingers. Wasting no time, she quickly rushed behind Lien and unzipped her green sweater, causing the latter to try her best to cover herself. "Katyusha, help!" Bel called over.

Approaching their frightened ace, Katyusha mumbled an apology for the next thing she was about to commit. Bringing her hands underneath Lien's arms, she proceeded to take off the sweater. Once she got a hold of the sweater, she tucked it securely within her arms. "There we go!"

Lien had never felt this humiliated her whole life. Sure, there were several occasions when it was her sister who did much of the mischief. But this was getting ridiculous! Folding her arms against her chest, she cried over, "My sweater, please!"

"Sorry sweetie, but this is for your own good." Katyusha assured to Lien in a gentle manner. "Bel is right. You need to live!"

Lien shook her head. From the corner of her eye, she could see some bystanders pausing and taking an interest in their interactions. Lien quickly turned the other way as she felt herself shrinking from all the attention she was unintentionally receiving.

"Why are you even covering yourself?" Bel asked further, noting about how Lien reacted about getting back her sweater earlier. Undoing her friend's arms, Bel beamed. Why was Lien making such a big fuss about all this?

If anything, her black one-piece bikini looked stunning on her, especially when her curves seemed to fit just right on the occasion. Although the plain black color of her swimsuit was simple, in Bel's perspective, it would also count as being quite suggestive as well. With this in mind, Lien was automatically placed with Natalya under the category of spicy. Not only that but the humorous image of a certain young man, nose bleeding upon the sight of Lien made Bel chuckle to herself.

Taking one of Lien's hands into her grasp, Bel proceeded to move forward. "Let's get this show on the road!"

Again, there was no response coming from Lien.

Bel couldn't take it anymore. It was time to bring in the big guns. "Natalya!"

In less than a minute, the platinum-haired woman came over and secured Lien's other free hand with hers as well.

"Bel, please! I really don't want to do this!" Lien pleaded, blushing furiously.

Bel shook her head, "Nonsense! Now, off we go!" She marches forward alongside Natalya as they practically dragged poor Lien toward the commotion. Katyusha casually walked behind them, softly apologizing to Lien every now and then the more they became closer to the large crowd.

Upon reaching their destination, both Natalya and Bel finally let go of their hold on Lien. "See? That wasn't so hard, right?" Bel chimed, winking.

Lien glared at her. Crossing her arms, she looked up to face what was in front of her. Scanning around the area, she realized the noticeable high net in which was supported by two poles on each end as it separates the two opposing teams. Lien instantly recognized the game as volleyball. What made it even more entertaining are the individuals currently playing.

"Big brother!" Natalya shouted, her eyes shimmering with admiration. "That's my big brother!"

"Go, Ivan, go!" Katyusha joined in, raising one arm up high as she cheered on for her younger brother.

Lien couldn't help but smile as she fondly watched the two sisters cheer for their sibling, their sudden changes of attitudes made Lien wonder if they were always like this when it came to the tuba player. Glancing back to observe the game, her amber eyes trailed over to the next person standing across from Ivan. It wasn't a surprise for her that Carlos would be playing as well as he had quite the reputation of playing extreme sports. Combine his skills together with Ivan's and you have what most people consider to be a power team. Just the thought of that made Lien secretly feel bad for their opponent. Speaking of which, Lien slowly peered over to take a look at whom they were up against. Her mouth partly opened. "Alfred?"

On cue, Bel nudged Lien on the shoulder with a mischievous smile, "Look, look! It's your Golden Boy!"

Lien slowly bobbed her head in response as she became too absorbed on the volleyball match.

Why in the world was Alfred here? Wait, and why isn't he wearing glasses?

As if Bel had read Lien's mind, she answered, "World gig also decided to take a day off for some R&R, in case you were wondering."

"Oh," That was all Lien could say as she began to take in her surroundings. From what she noticed, the crowd was predominately women, causing her to have a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Looking back at the volleyball match, Lien was reminded of the day when she went grocery shopping with Alfred and how Bel once mentioned to her about Alfred being ranked as the third hottest guy in World gig. At first, she didn't believe it.

Now, witnessing it with her very own eyes, Lien was so sure that that the majority of the females watching were probably only here for the famous trumpeter. Dipping her chin down, she sighed. She wouldn't blame them, though. His eccentric smiling and laughing were contagious.

"Lien, I love you."

Lien clenched her teeth. There it was again, those four simple words that kept throbbing within her head.

Why can't they just go away?

Of all the girls that he could've been with, why did he have to choose someone as plain and dull as her? Turning around, she asked Katyusha for her sweater again.

This time, Katyusha didn't bother to try to say no and willingly handed the article of clothing back to her. "Here you go,"

Lien forced a smile. "Thank you."

Detecting a strange sense of sadness in her voice, Katyusha pressed on, "Everything alright?"

Lien quickly shook her head, waving it off like it was nothing. "Nothing to worry about." She assured her, "I'll be going now."

Taking a few steps forward, Lien inaudibly walked out of the crowd. Just then, a ring of voices yelled her name.

"Lien, watch out!"

"LIEN!"

She didn't have time to process what was going on as she felt a sudden mass of weight hit the back of her head.

The next thing she knew, Lien found herself tipping a little over, as everything turned black.

"Shit, you killed her!" Bel cried hysterically. Looking up, she then pointed a finger toward the suspected culprit. "This is all your fault!"

Alfred backpedaled a step, raising both his hands up high in defense. "I didn't, I swear!"

Bel took a deep breath and sighed, calming herself down. It was rather uncharacteristic for someone like her to get angry. Then again, her recent outburst had a good enough reason. Lien was one of her friends. It was true that the female ace was strong, but to see her suddenly knocked out and unconscious gave Bel all the more reason to step in and fight back. She didn't care if there were people watching her as she began to raise voice a little louder, "Shame on you, Jones!"

"I didn't mean it, honest! I—" Alfred started but paused midway as he noticed the unconscious woman slightly squirming. "Wait, look! She's waking up!"

Lien slowly opened her eyes before quickly closing them again. Tracing her fingers along her forehead, she let out a moan when she felt a small bump.

"Rise and shine, sleepyhead~" Bel chirped as she fixated her needed attention toward her friend who laid down on the beach towel that they prepared for her. Her expression, however, was a mix of worry and delight.

Lien nodded meekly. Narrowing her eyes, she began to take notice of the change of her surroundings. Here she was, laid down in a horizontal position, her sweater half unzipped on the upper part of her body in providing her more air to breathe. A large umbrella hovered above her head, producing a small, round-like shadow around her and the others to block off the sun. Wait, now that she thought about it…

"Where are Katyusha and Natalya?"

"Katyusha went to go and get more ice packs for you," Bel explained of said band mates and their whereabouts. "As for Natalya, she decided to be the one to break the news to Yao."

Lien shook her head. She turned the other way to glance over to Alfred, "Shouldn't you be playing volleyball?" She notices the tenseness in his shoulders but he relaxes and looks at her with a handsome smile on his face. "I am but I asked Ivan and Carlos for a time out. In the meantime, I'll be here."

"But your volleyball game," Lien persisted, "Isn't it—"

"Not the slightest bit important." Alfred interrupted her. "Lien, don't say that. You are more important."

Bel cleared her throat, loud enough for the two to stop and turn to glance at her. Scratching the side of her neck, she pretends to look down on her left wrist and emitted a goofy grin, "Huh, what's taking Katyusha so long with those ice packs?" She said, chuckling. "I'd better go and check to see if she's okay."

"Bel—"

Bel ignored her friend and glanced over at the young man. "Alfred, take care of her for me, will ya?" She asked sweetly.

Alfred firmly nodded. "You got it." He replied back, holding thumbs up.

Bel beamed, clapping her hands rapidly. "Thanks!" As she arose from the sandy ground, she quickly took a sly look at her friend and winked, mouthing, "Good luck!" And ran off.

Silence ensued between the two individuals almost like a gaping void, needing to be filled with sounds, words, anything.

"Where's Texas?" Lien asked out of the blue.

Alfred blinked. When he realized the words that came out of her mouth, he said, "Inside my bag." He began to make a pouting face, "Why? You miss it more than me?"

"N-no!" Lien stammered, lowering her head back down, "I was wondering. You look different, that's all."

"Is different bad for you?"

Lien lifted her chin, shaking her head as she did so, "No. Different is good."

A bright smile emerged on Alfred's face, followed by a hearty laugh. "Oh, okay!"

After that, more silence.

Meanwhile, Lien began to unconsciously glance her way to her male companion, her eyes traveling to meet the miniature, metallic surface of his necklace that he sports around his neck.

Alfred caught her by the act and wriggled his eyebrows, "Like what you see?"

Lien blinked, scoffing, "Dummy, I wasn't checking you out." She confessed, her cheeks burning red. "I never took you as the type of guy to be wearing an accessory."

"Oh, you mean this?" Alfred asked, fingering his necklace. Upon receiving a nod of confirmation from her, he continued, "This was a gift from my late parents."

"Your late parents?"

"I didn't tell you?" Alfred wondered, furrowing his eyebrows. "They both died from a plane crash after visiting the country Ukraine. This dog tag just so happened to be one of the few possessions that investigators retrieved about two weeks after the tragedy." He paused for a moment before continuing on, "My brothers and I wear the same pendants with our names each individually engraved on its surface."

"Your parents were in the military?"

"Pretty much," Alfred confirmed, "Dad was part of the air force while Mom was a volunteer nurse. They met and from there, conceived Arthur during the time they wed. Four years later and Matthew and I came into the world."

"I see," Lien muttered softly before realization hit her. "Forgive me for bringing up about your parents. It must be sensitive for you."

Alfred shrugged, "What's the harm in that?" A smile resurfaced on his lips again, "You were curious, anyway. It's understandable."

Lien frowned, "And yet you keep smiling." She pointed out, "Why?"

"Well, I know that it's not good to dwell too much in the past," Alfred explained casually. Recalling the words that Arthur once said, he recited the words: "What's done is done. Cut the crap and move on."

Another moment of silence passed by and when he didn't get a reaction from Lien, Alfred decided to change the topic, "By the way, how's your mom?"

"She's doing fine." Lien immediately replied, almost as if she was in a hurry, "The doctor said that it would take several days for her wounds to get healed so mother would need to stay overnight."

Alfred turned his body over to get his full attention toward his female companion. "If you ever need anything, always remember that I'm—" He paused upon realizing what he was going to say before quickly reinforcing it with, "—and the others, we're all here for you."

Piercing amber eyes stared back at the endless ocean of sky blue. "Anything?"

Alfred nodded firmly. "Anything that your heart desires."

"Win your volleyball match," Lien said straightforwardly.

Alfred brought a hand on the right side of his chest, pretending to be in pain, "Ouch, you hate me that much?"

Lien rolled her eyes. What an idiot. "Stop being a baby and get back out there."

"Fine, mom," Alfred said teasingly, only to earn himself a hit directly on the head. Regardless, he still laughed anyway. Then a thought popped in. "Hey, how about we make it interesting?"

Lien bit her lower lip. Judging from his expression, she had a hidden feeling it wasn't going to turn out good on her part. "What do you suppose we do?"

Her question was music to Alfred's ears. "If I win, I get to kiss you." Alfred proclaimed, liking the sound of his idea.

Lien blushed, rotating her head a little to the side to avoid eye contact with him. "What happens if you lose?"

Alfred frowned, placing a finger under his chin as he thought about it. "Good question," He muttered, crinkling his eyebrows. He then snapped his fingers when he reached a conclusion, "How about this? If I lose, I'll wear a dress in the final round."

Hearing this, Lien quickly put her hands to cover her mouth to try to not laugh. "…Are you serious?"

Alfred shook his head. "Lien, do I look like I'm fooling around?" He asked while staring at her intensely. "So, is that a deal then?"

Lien pursed her lips, thinking it over. Besides the embarrassing kissing part, the image of a bespectacled young man wearing a dress surfaced in her mind, prompting her to lightly giggle. If she could play her cards correctly, maybe that image could likely come true. Lien looked back at Alfred who gazed back at her with excitement in his eyes.

Wasting no time, she nodded. "Deal."

"Sweet!" Alfred exclaimed and in less than a second, rose up from the ground. Stretching his arms, he looked back down to face Lien and said, "You know, it'll be great if you watched the game."

"I would like to but I'm afraid I cannot," Lien simply declined.

"Huh? How come?"

"Bel might come back with Katyusha." Lien reasoned further as she wrapped her arms around her legs before enclosing them, almost in an embrace. "Natalya could also show up with Yao at any minute."

Alfred frowned. "You know, you should try breaking the rules sometimes."

"You act as if you're expert on breaking them," Lien noted, stifling her chuckle.

The bespectacled young man boldly held his head up and laughed, "Expert? Lien, you are talking to the master here! In fact, I practically invented it!" Squatting down on his knees, he extended one of his hands out for her to take. "Come on, Lien! It'll be fun, I guarantee it!"

Lien hesitated for a moment, pressing her lips into a thin, straight line. "I don't know. It's risky."

Alfred frowned, rethinking about it for a moment. An idea popped into his head, causing him to smile. Untying his sweater in which was strapped around his waist, he dropped the clothing on top of her head, prompting the young woman to look up once more. "Wear this and you won't get seen," He suggested her.

Lien took hold of the ends of each sleeve and wrapped it securely around her head, with her ponytail tucked and hidden underneath. Her face, on the other hand, remained seen to the public eye. As she hoisted her head to look at him with her big amber eyes, Alfred tried his best to suppress the urge of throwing himself at her and cuddle her senseless.

Although it was only his red sweater that he lends to her, Lien was utterly adorable wearing it.

"Alright, take two!" Alfred exclaimed aloud, jumping up from the ground again. Twirling his body, he eagerly anticipated for her response as he asked, "Ready to rock and roll?"

A sigh escaped Lien's mouth. "I don't have much choice, don't I?"

Four hours have passed since they arrived at the beach.

While everyone else had his or her own things to do, Allistor on the other hand, couldn't find anything to amuse himself with. If there was one thing that he would like to complain about the beach, it was the lack of females in the area. Through his range of vision, Allistor counted almost the majority of the entire population of the opposite sex. Minus the little girls, pregnant women, and grandmas, he was stuck with about twelve women. Knowing that, he couldn't help but sigh. He shouldn't have raised his expectations too high in the first place.

As he continued to stroll along the beach, Allistor then took an interest of a herd of pedestrians nearby. Squinting his eyes, he smirked when he realized that a volleyball match was occurring. With nothing else to do, Allistor decided to take this opportunity to play as the detective and inspect. Upon reaching the crowd, he slipped inside in hopes to watch the game in the frontlines.

After a series of constant pushing and shouting, Allistor heaved a sigh of relief when he discovered that he was finally out. Crossing his arms, a smirk appeared on his lips when he took in the sight of him.

Two members of Star Fest—notably Carlos and Ivan were vigorously battling against their rivaling band, World gig with Alfred as the representative. Though this time, Alfred wasn't quite alone and was assisted by one of the Nordic relatives, Berwald. "Now this is what I call a competition," He commented to himself. From the corner of his eye, his smirk widened. Standing next to him was no doubt, a female.

"Hey," Allistor began charmingly, "Have we met before?"

Lien stopped and turned around, gripping onto the ice pack that she wielded on both hands, "I don't think so."

"You sure?" Allistor pressed on, "You seem familiar to me."

"Sorry but I think you've mistaken me for someone else," Lien explained, bowing her head respectfully, causing the sweater that was placed on the top of her head to sway a little.

Allistor frowned. He wasn't much updated with what's been going on lately although he was sure that he did, in fact, have seen this person before. The main question now is, where? "By any chance, is your name Yao?"

Lien looked back at him with a listless expression, "That would be my mentor."

"Mentor?" Allistor wondered, taking in the new information. Putting the pieces together, he asked again, "Hang on, are you Miss Nguyen? AKA the newcomer of Star Fest everybody's been talking about?"

"I believe so," Lien confirmed.

Allistor's face brightened. "I heard great things about you. Your talents are a sight to behold."

Lien produced a small smile, "Thank you, sir."

"Please, call me Allistor." Allistor introduced himself, bowing down in a gentleman-like matter. "Sir makes it sound like I am or feel old."

"Okay. Well, it is very nice to meet you, Allistor." Lien replied back before turning to fix her attention toward the volleyball match again.

Leaning a bit closer to her, Allistor softly asked, "Pardon me for intruding your personal space again," He said, "But I'm curious. Why would someone of your league be watching something like this?"

"It's not like I enjoy it or anything," Lien began without bothering to face him. "I made a bet with someone."

Allistor didn't bother to say anything else as the cheers and applauses erupted from behind them, resulting in their conversation to drown from the heavy noises. Allistor looked back to turn to the volleyball match in play. He didn't catch on what had recently happened. He speculated each sides of the volleyball net before his eyes eventually landed on where the volleyball was.

Lifting his chin back up, Allistor saw the Cuban falling down on his knees with a mixture of defeat and anger grazed on his face. The Russian, however, remained standing though if one could squint their eyes a little bit, a fracture of a pleasant smile appeared on his lips. On the other side of the volleyball was another story.

Alfred turned to face the crowd and stretching an arm out, held one finger up and winked. This simple gesture caused the majority of the crowd to emit an arrangement of cheering and shouting.

Lien proceeded to roll her eyes and yet, a soft smile appeared on her lips.

Allistor spotted this and smiled mischievously, looking back just in time to witness Alfred performing a victory dance and forcing Berwald to dance together with him.

Now this was such a rare sight. Was it him or was something going on between the aces that shouldn't be there? 'Well, what do you know?' He thought, his grin growing wider.

This day turned out to be interesting as he thought it would be.

"Great game," Alfred commented cheerfully, waiting for his hand to be shaken by either of his opponents.

Taking the volleyball from the sandy ground and into his grasp, Carlos shot a glare at the bespectacled young man's awaiting hand.

"You got lucky," He complained, his rough voice consumed with rage. "Next time, I won't go easy on you." He didn't make an effort to shake the other's hand as he wordlessly left the scene. Alfred stared blankly at the latter's retreating form. It was expected anyway as Carlos was known to harbor anger issues, especially when it comes to him losing in a sports game. What Alfred didn't know was that Carlo's anger was inwardly rooted toward his own presence.

Taking a few steps forward, Ivan humbly reached out and shook Alfred's hand. "You may have won now but it's not over quite yet." He informed with a humble smile, "There is still the final round, da."

"Hey, hey, let's not throw threats here." Alfred advised him with a sheepish look, "Today's supposed to be fun, remember?"

"Ah, yes," Ivan replied, "Until next time, yeah?"

Alfred nodded. "Totally!" As soon as they released their hands the same time, they turned their backs from one another before going on their separate ways. Putting his hands on his hips, Alfred sighed. That was one hell of a game. If it weren't for Berwald's assistance, he wouldn't be able to seize the competition.

Speaking of the certain Nordic, Alfred headed off to find him only to discover that a few of his band mates had Berwald surrounded and showered by their unconditional support, specifically his family relatives, Ludwig, Li, and Feliciano. 'That guy deserves some love,' He thought happily before pausing for a moment. Now that he thinks about it, where was his morale support?

Looking around, his eyes softened and smiled when he found Lien interacting with a redhead man. He watches her wave her arm goodbye to the guy in which implied that their conversation must have been already finished. Ever so stealthily, Alfred sneakily walked up to her. When he was close enough to be standing next to her, he leaned a little bit closer to her ear and whispered, "Lien, who was that?"

Unfortunately, Lien didn't get startled and turned around, "No one of importance." She said flatly before raising an eyebrow. Folding her arms, she asked, "And I'm guessing you were trying to surprise me?"

"Thanks for ruining the moment, Lien," Alfred pouted, closing his eyes in disappointment.

Lien giggled. "Congratulations on your game,"

Alfred opened his eyes and laughed, "Thanks! Hearing that from you means a lot." He then slowly bent his knees down until he reached her appropriate height. "Anyway, are you forgetting something?"

Lien took a step back, having trouble maintaining direct eye contact. "I don't think so…"

"Come on, Lien!" Alfred whined, puffing his cheeks immaturely. "We made a bet, remember?"

"Dummy, of course, I remember!" Lien admitted as the color of scarlet leaked into her cheeks. Motioning her head back and forth, she softly muttered, "I'm just worried that people might be watching."

"Let them watch for all I care," Alfred responded with a shrug before producing a charming smile. Collecting her hands together with his, he continued, "I'll let you be the one to start us off."

Hearing this, Lien blushed harder. "Alfred, I-I don't even know how." She stammered, feeling even more out of place.

"Don't worry, it's easy." He assured her as he shut his eyes closed.

Unfortunately, Alfred's 'so-called' encouragement didn't quite help Lien the slightest bit.

Just standing almost merely inches away from him caused her breathing to be rapid and shallow. She could feel her pulse pounding thunderously against her chest and her temples. 'Can Alfred hear it?' Lien questioned to herself, placing a hand on where her heart was located in an effort to calm down.

Opening her eyes halfway, she couldn't help but take in Alfred's facial features. He was, by her definition, a handsome—if not, the most beautiful man that she's ever seen. Just thinking about it made her wonder why he was even a musician when he should've pursued a career in modeling.

"Lien, I'm waiting~"

Alfred's reminder prompted Lien to hinder her train of thought and focus back on the task at hand. Lien lightly caressed his left cheek with her hand in which Alfred was more than eager to lean on.

It was just one, simple kiss. What could happen?

Tip-toeing her feet, she slowly tipped her chin up. 'Just a little more…' Lien thought as the gap between them began closing in.

"CAN YOU FEEL THE LOVE TONIGHT?"

Both Alfred and Lien opened their eyes at the same time, startled by the sudden interruption. Upon realizing that their noses were less than an inch away, their faces shared the same color of scarlet.

"Gilbert, you idiot! They were about to kiss!" A feminine one chimed in, criticizing the previous voice.

Just then, Lien's ears perked up upon listening to one of the voices. Turning her head to where several palm trees were planted, she narrowed her eyes and cried, "Mei? Is that you?"

There was no response.

"Mei!"

The bushes beneath the palm trees slightly shook and in the blink of an eye, a silhouette emerged out from their hiding.

"Kiku!" Alfred greeted with a huge smile, though on the inside, he was a bit annoyed that the moment that he's been waiting for was interrupted.

"Hello, Alfred," Kiku replied back with an exasperated expression. Crossing his arms, he let out a measured sigh. "Guys, it's over. You can come out now."

Two minutes after he said those words, Xiao Mei popped out from the same bushes that Kiku had previously come out from. Shortly after Xiao Mei surrendered, the other two—Gilbert and Mathias materialized from one of the palm trees.

"How long have you guys been watching us?" Lien asked, getting straight to the point.

Xiao Mei rubbed her arm as she confessed, "It wasn't really that long. After Mathias came back from catching up to Natalya, we happened to see you and Alfred." She explained with giddiness. "We were hoping to surprise you but instead, you surprised us when we caught you guys about to kiss!"

"Forgive me, I tried to stop them but they kept persisting," Kiku said, feeling guilty that he was involved.

Mathias ruffled his blonde hair, chuckling, "Hahaha! Guilty as charged."

Gilbert, on the other hand, snorted, "Hey, don't look at me! I don't have anything to apologize!" He claimed, throwing his arms on the back of his head.

All Lien could do was shake her head, uttering curse words under her breath.

Sensing Lien's brooding aura, Alfred took this opportunity to change the subject, "Hey, Mathias, did you heard about Berwald and I winning the volleyball match this afternoon?"

The Nordic's eyes lit up. "Yeah, I know! I heard?" He confirmed before proceeding to bump his fist with his bespectacled friend. "Nice one, dude!"

"Oh yeah, congratulations!" Gilbert interrupted, joining in on the conversation. "That was wicked insane!"

Alfred licked his lips in anticipation, "Dude, you were there?"

"Actually, the four of us were," Kiku added in with a ghost of a smile. "You should have seen Gilbert. He was practically screaming his head off."

"Well, of course! The three musketeers are always there for each other," Gilbert advised to Kiku before turning his attention to his other best friend. "Ain't that right, bro?"

Alfred nodded in enthusiasm. "Always!" Suddenly, something tapped him on the arm, causing Alfred to glance over his shoulder to confront Lien with Xiao Mei clinging onto her. "What's up, Lien?"

"I'm afraid it's time for us to go now." Lien informed him, "Yao could be searching for us as we speak."

Alfred's shoulders slumped as he frowned deeply. "Ah, I see."

Removing his red sweater from her possession, Lien formally bestowed it to him. In response, Alfred took his sweater into his grasp; his sky blue eyes somewhat lingering on the clothing. Today could have been the one and only chance for him to be alone with Lien. And yet much like what happened concerning his confession, the moment was ruined. The first time was by an emergency phone call. The second time, however, was based on his friends and their idiocy.

"See you in less than a week, boys!" Xiao Mei cried over, referring to the group of guys standing behind Alfred. Focusing her attention on the Nordic, she exclaimed, "Oh, Mathias? Don't let that rejection get to you, all right? There are plenty of more fishes out in the sea!"

Hearing this, Mathias nodded. "Thanks, Xiao Mei!"

"Yeah, let's play shark attack or water gun fight next time!" Gilbert chirped, laughing away.

"I will see you two later at home," Kiku explained to the sisters, "I still have some unfinished businesses to do."

Both Lien and Xiao Mei shook their heads in unison.

From the corner of Lien's eye, she could see Alfred slowly lift his head up and forced out a smile. "I'll see you later, Lien."

Lien bit her bottom lip. 'You say that but why does your eyes say, 'don't go?'' She thought. In all honesty, she hated seeing him not like his usual self—where was that eccentric smiling and laughter that she dearly loved?

Clenching her fists, Lien walked forward and for the first time in her life, didn't cared about what others might react off what she's about to do next.

"Huh? Lien, what are you—"

With nothing to lose, Lien pulled Alfred's arm and did the unthinkable. She kissed him.

"Oh…" Gilbert trailed off, almost at a loss for words.

Mathias gasped, "My…"

"F**KING GOD!" Xiao Mei cried, clapping her hands while springing up and down from where she stood, her actions mimicking that of a jack in the box.

The kiss was brief and simple. When Alfred attempted to lean in to kiss her back, she immediately pulled away.

"Hopefully, that'll satisfy you in the next few days." Lien muttered as she was out of breath. Tugging Xiao Mei by the shoulder, she began to quicken her pace, her bangs covering half of her blushing face.

Alfred blinked once, then twice.

"Dude, that was intense!" Mathias commented, slapping his hand against Alfred's back, resulting in the poor man to lung forward.

"Mathias, don't do that," Kiku advised the Nordic as he crossed his arms. Glancing over to his best friend, he chuckled, "You okay, Alfred?"

Alfred rotated his body halfway. His attention fixated on a certain young woman, his sky blue eyes staring at her running figure lovingly, his lips curving upwards. "I've never felt better."

Author's Note:

Hello, it's been awhile hasn't it? Tada~ The fourteenth chapter of the fanfiction is here at last! And I gotta say, wow...I really over did it, didn't I? (hahaha!)

The new characters this time around are: Greece (Heracles), Switzerland (Basch), Liechtenstein (Lily) and Cuba (Carlos).

Wow, I just...wow.

I still can't believe that I exceeded that amount of words! And I couldn't have done it if it weren't for the readers, reviewers and fans that have always been there for me and supported me!

Oh, oh! I would like to make a big shoutout to my dear fan, fhazel27! HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEETIE! As a present, I give you this very, very, lengthy chapter! (hopefully I wasn't able to disappoint you!)

Alright, there is so many things to cover up!

Allistor witnessing first-hand of Arthur's control over World gig, Yao and Arthur agreement, the epic volleyball match, the ameviet moment, more background with both Alfred and Lien, Lien's feelings toward Alfred is finally exposed, Allistor's indirect conversation with Lien and lastly, wrapped it all together with Lien's surprising kiss!

...Whew, imagine saying all that in just one breath!

Beforehand, I actually went to research the beach episodes in anime and got a bit embarrassed to insert fanservice. Well, I mean, I did but oh well! Some of you had actually asked me about other pairings and I did the best I could to implement them here in this chapter. I will, however make a chapter concerning about what the other pairings are doing. But as far as where it goes, the story needs to keep going! (I purposefully left out hints throughout the chapter if it helps!)

Anyway, I would like to inform you that I would be taking a break for a bit (class field trip!) and will try to post the next date on my profile for the next update!

Once again, I'm open for more character requests!

And as usual, your opinions are greatly appreciated!

P.S. If you can, I am curious if this chapter exceeded the Birthday Crash. If any of you are planning to review, I would like to know your thoughts about it! Who knows? There might be more like this in the future!

P.S.S. If anyone is curious about the song that Feliciano cranked on the radio, it's Cake by the Ocean by DNCE