Work Text:
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The quiet of the libary seemed to swallow hin whole, leaving all of his troubles as clear as day. Now that he was in the company of nothing but books and silence, with the occasional whispers, his stress from the past few days, possibly weeks, was starting to chip away at him.
Alfred was in the library, browsing the shelfs. It was not a hobby of his to visit the library, but at the moment he was sort of desperate. He was fast approaching the deadline and if he didn't come up with something fast, his editor would have his head.
According to his friends, he was suffering a writer's block. He was having trouble coming up with inspiration for his book that he was writing. It was the fourth installment in a series that had been fast gaining popularity. Alfred wasn't expecting for his little project to end up as something so famous in just a few short years, but it had somehow happened.
Alfred could feel a smile curl at his lips as he saw his name on the spines of the books on the shelves in from of him. All four of his books were there, each one having three to five copies of each. It seemed the series had been checked out so much the library had bought several copies. To this day it still made his day to see his own work in sich high regard. Call him a optimist, but it always gave him confidence that he could pull through his stress, that he'll come up with something and everyone would think it was brilliant.
Not in this case though. Not when his deadline was a week away. Oh god, Matthew was going to kill him. Mattie was sweet, but if need be he was like a grizzy bear. Sometimes he was told that it was rather lucky he had ended up with his brother as his editor, Alfred sometimes said it was unlucky.
Alfred stared at the bookshelves, wracking his brain for ideas. Anything. Anything at all! Just something that might pass and make a couple of pages. It was the only reason Alfred would every really go to libraries, for inspiration.
He slowly slid the first book of his series off the shelf, and held it in his hands. The thing was hardback, with a heavy cover. Alfred felt a fond familiarity at seeing the old thing. The one that had started it all. The book he had taken off all his time to write, the book that people said would never sell, the book that chased off most of his friends. he could almost grin at it. Alfred never thought he would be so fond of a book.
"Excuse me, we're closing soon."
Alfred was deterred from his thoughts by a accented voice behind him. He slowly turned to see a small man with a armful of books. He looked up at the American with a rather neutral exspression. Alfred blinked. He stared, and his heart, quite literally, skipped a beat.
This man was sorta cute.
He had unruly blond hair that looked as if it'll never be tamed. He seemed just a few centimeters shorter than Alfred, with a smaller body too. On his face was a cute patch of freckles, only seen if you looked close enough. Above them were a pair of deep green eyes, brillaint green that looked like emeralds. Alfred would've laughed on any other occasion than this, but the man also had massive eyebrows.
Alfred almost panicked a little at realizing he had been staring. Oh god, what was he doing?
"S-sorry....just a little distracted." Alfred said, darting his eyes around. The Brit hadn't seemed to mind him, his gaze had wondered down to the book he had been holding.
"Are you a fan of those books?" The Brit said, sounding interested. Alfred absent mindedly thought he could hear a small hint of excitement in his voice.
Alfred had to keep from grinning from the irony of that question. If only he had any idea that he was talking to the writer of the book in his hands. He somehow managed to keep it cool and swallowed a luagh.
"I guess I'm a pretty big fan." Alfred said causally. "Why?"
"I genuinely enjoy them as well." The Brit answered, smiling a little. "I can't seem to be able to put then down. Have you heard the author's working on a fifth installment?"
Alfred swallowed hard. Yes, he was, and it wasn't going to come out anytime soon if he didn't think of something!! Now he could barely think at all, this Brit was demanding his attention. He wondered what those green eyes looked like while filled with lust, begging for him to......
Shit. He was being ridiculous. "Uh....yeah." Alfred said, hoping he didn't sound as lost as he felt. His mind panicked for a excuse. "Acutally, kinda heard he's in a writer's block right now." Shit, shit, he was screwed.
The other blonde's brows furrowed. "Really? That's unfortunate. Perhaps he's having trouble on where to take the story?" He said.
That was exactly what his problem was. He simply hadn't had a good idea about where he would take his heroic character next.
"Maybe." He said. He glanced down at his book. He bit his lip and decided to take the chance. "So, do you have a favorite character?"
"Yes. My favorite is the main protagonist, of course." Arthur said, his eyes clear with interest. "I find his story quite immersing, it always makes me feel for him when he's faced with a problem."
As much as Alfred loved hearing compliments and people talking about his books or characters, this gorgeous small man was making do nothing short of blush. He nodded quickly, hoping the other won't question his expression.
"Yeah he's pretty great." Alfred said, giving him a grin. He always regarding all of his fictional characters with a certain fondness, even the background ones that have little to do with the overall story.
"Is that all why you liked him?"
Alfred's heart soared at seeing a small smile perk on those lips. It wasn't much, it didn't seem like this guy really smiled that much, but Alfred could tell it was genuine.
"No. I also like his ability to think on the spot, his smartness is impressive. I do like characters who are clever. " Arthur stated.
"Really? I don't usually get too many people saying that." Alfred said causally. Most of the time people said the main protagonist was aloof and charismatic, even a bit obnoxious and blunt, but not really clever. He felt a little surprised at hearing it.
"Yes, well I'm sure some people see it." Arthur said. "He reminds me a bit of Sherlock Holmes sometimes."
"Okay, now your pulling my leg." Alfred said, luaghing a little. "He's nothing like Sherlock!"
Arthur gave him a questioning look. "You seem to claim you know a lot about him. " he said, his eyes boring into Alfred's like he was reading him like a open book. Oh god.
"I do? Haha, i didn't really think i was that much of a expert." Alfred joked, getting more nervous now. He glanced back down at the book in his hands, trying to find a way out of the current situation.
"Guess I'll check this out then." Alfred said suddenly, cursing his own stupidty. He had multiple copies of this book at home, not to mention the orginal drafts and notes he had written for it ages ago. This was pointless!!
Well maybe not entirely.
"Right then, I'll be at the front desk in a minute." The Brit said, disappearing with the books in his hands. Alfred felt his eyes following him as he went. He just stood there for a moment, not registering what happened.
He found himself suddnely having a idea for what to write about.
~~~~~~~~~
Alfred was back again the next day, this time right after lunch. this time he had his laptop and notes with him. He wasn't just here to browse, he was acutally going to work.
And he may or may not be getting slightly distracted by the hot librarian.
He kept telling himself it wasn't the only reason for being back at a place he rarely visited. He probably needed a quiet atmosphere to get work down at anyway. His roommate wouldn't of disturbed him anyway, the guy was always way quieter than him, but maybe at a more collective atmosphere?
Or maybe for the fact that he could see the Brit in the corner of his eye as he typed. He inwardly groaned and fixed his eyes on the screen again. Heaven forbid now that he finally had a idea, he was wasting time getting distracted.
He was writing about one of his main character's back stories now. He had made a point that this particular character wasn't going to have a full backstory still this point in the story in order to make a good plot and for character development. It annoyed him it had taken him this long to come up with it, but now that he had, he was fully determined to make it as great as possible.
As elusive as he could, he peeked over the top of his screen, eyes searching for the Brit. He wasn't where he was anymore. Wasn't he behind that shelf over there a second ago?
"Back again, i see." Came a accented voice behind him.
Alfred flinched and slammed his laptop close. Too many times had he been caught writing to know to not keep it open. Being such a well-known author taught him to avoid questions. His eyes met the smaller man's green ones. He looked genuinely amused.
"Oh..........hi." Alfred said stupidly.
"Good afternoon." The Brit said, smirking. He wasn't restocking books right now, just simply doing his job. "Perhaps you just enjoy books?"
Fuck.
"Yeah." Alfred said, giving him a grin. Truth be told as much as he hadn't liked reading as a kid, it seemed to be his life now. He darted his eyes around the room, not wanting to catch the other's gaze. "I was just doing some work."
"Hm." The Brit said, not taking his eyes off Alfred.
Alfred inwardly grimaced. He did not want this guy asking what his job was. He knew he was a terrible liar. This guy was a fan of his books, there was no way he was not going to be curious if Alfred told him he was the author. He quickly looked for a excuse to change the subject.
"I never got your name." Alfred said. God damm it.
"Arthur. Arthur Kirkland." Said the Brit, holding out his hand for Alfred to shake. "And yours?"
Despite years of education and a degree in literature, Alfred was still a dumbass sometimes.
"Uhhhhhhh, just call me Al." Alfred said, hoping he sounded causal. He saw something register in Arthur eyes, but decided not to question it.
"Not going to give me your full name?" Arthur said, raising his enormous eyebrows.
"It's not important." Alfred said quickly. He glanced down at his laptop. He was hoping the fact that he had slamed it shut the second he heard Arthur's voice wasn't giving anything away. Or that he might of damaged the screen. Damm him.
Then again, talking to the Brit again was making his heart flutter. Maybe it was his voice or his eyes or something but the damm librarian was making his mind soar. Alfred wanted every excuse to get lost into those deep green eyes. He just wanted to.....
"Your staring." Arthur said, cutting Alfred off. He blinked. He slowly began to notice he had been staring at Arthur for nearly a minute. He also didn't fail to notice that Arthur's face was slightly pink.
"Do you wanna go out sometime?" Alfred said suddenly. Wait, what did he just say?!
Arthur raised a eyebrow. "What?"
Oh shit. Alfred was so dead. His mind burst into painc for a way to excuse the sudden question. He swallowed hard and looked away.
"We don't have to, just wanted to know if you wanted to hang or something." Alfred said quickly. Great, now Arthur probably thought he was werid. He had no idea whether Arthur liked other guys. He could be making the wrong impression.
"You want to hang out....with me?" Arthur repeated, turning pink. It only made Alfred more nervous that he was blushing.
"Um, yeah?" Alfred confirmed nervously. "You're kind of a neat guy."
Arthur blinked. He looked away. "I suppose.....I'm free on Saturday..."
Alfred grinned. "Deal."
~~~~~~~~
When was the last time Alfred had asked someone out on these terms? It wasn't a date, Alfred just wanted a reason to talk to him. Although, the only friends he had when he started writing was Matthew, Tolys, and his roommate, Kiku. He hasn't been on a date since high school
It's not a date. Alfred groaned inwardly as he entered the small cafe they had agreed on. it was the only place he felt confident in going in with Arthur, anywhere else would make it more obvious that it might of been a date.
Not that he didn't want to go on a date with that gorgeous-
Stop. Alfred cleared his head as he looked around the small cafe. It was a cozy little place downtown, that sold coffee and other hot drinks. Sometimes pastries. Alfred scanned the room and saw the smaller man's hair peeking out from a table in the corner of his eye. He plastered a big grin on his face and walked over.
"Hey Artie!" Alfred greeted loudly, pretending his heart hadn't just started beating a little faster. He sat down and quickly put down his bag, hoping Arthur wasn't wondering what job he had that suggested he had needed it.
Arthur furrowed his brow. "It's Arthur.....git."
"Yeah yeah." Alfred said, ignoring his frown. He gave the other a big smile. He didn't like others questioning him about his problems. There was no need to make a fuss over him. "So, do you go to cafes often?"
"Not really, unless I'm with a friend. My roommate likes to drag me everywhere, bloody frog." Arthur said, a hint of hatred at who he was taking about in his voice. Alfred nodded, glad for any subject that steered away from his career. He noticed Arthur wasn't wearing his usual formal attire, but instead had a simple red shirt covered by a black jacket. It was a bit weird seeing him like this, but Alfred found it slightly....fitting.....
As a hour or so pasted, Alfred was enjoying himself, and despite his rumoured incapablity to read the mood, it looked like so did Arthur. As much positive emotions that passed his face anyway. Alfred found out Arthur had four brothers, all of which he claimed were annoyances. Alfred told him about his twin, Mattie (and left out any certain details.) Alfred found he quite liked talking to Arthur. He had this dusty librarian sort of voice whenever he described something, and to Alfred it only made him more attractive. He was no longer regretting asking him to hang out.
"So.....do you wanna do this again?" Alfred asked hopefully, sipping the remains of his coffee.
Arthur, turning a little pink, simply just nodded and turned away, his chin hidden behind his tea. He looked kinda cute like that. Alfred inwardly smiled at that.
Maybe this wasn't such a bad idea after all.
~~~~~~~~~
Three hours later, he was back at home, crusing under his breath as he searched his bag frantically for credit card. He hadn't really remebered putting it back in his wallet or bag, but at this point he was desperately searching anywhere with or without reason.
"Perhaps you misplaced it?" Said his Japanese roommate from the table, looking a little concerned for his sake.
"Maybe." Alfred said, eyes darting around his now empty bag. He had checked in all the pockets and even in the pages of his books and inside his laptop. It definitely wasn't in there. He groaned. "Maybe i left it back at the cafe?"
"That would be a possibility." Kiku said politely. "Perhaps your friend picked it up for you?"
Alfred froze. Shit. His fucking name was on that thing. If Arthur had seen it, then his secret was out. Why had he slipped up so quickly?!
"Are you afraid of him figuring out your identity?" Kiku questioned. Unfortunately, this wasn't the first time Alfred had ended up exsposing himself to people. It was part of the reason he had been so keen on keeping it a secret in the first place.
"Yeah." Alfred said defealty, ploping down on the chair across the table. "He's a fan of my books, he'd go nuts if he figured out he had made friends with the author."
"Does he seem like the type to be a fangirl?" Kiku said, observing Alfred. Alfred ran a hand through his blonde hair as Kiku spoke. He was glad for his roommate. He was a bit weird, but they always got along and he was a lifesaver at times like these.
"No....." Alfred said, drifitng off. The Brit acutally seemed the last person you would expect to willingly go fangirl on him. He acutally seemed to blush whenever he ended up anywhere near that.
"Then i am sure everything will be alright." Kiku said with a small smile.
Alfred leaned back in his chair and sighed.
"Maybe your right."
~~~~~~~~~
Alfred sucked in a breath as the glass doors closed behind him. He really had no choice but to come back and hope to retreive his credit card. For one thing he had no cash on him at the moment, and another thing, he needed that thing. Getting a new one was too much of a hassle, and he didn't want anyone touching his money, whether it was Arthur or not.
His eyes swept the library as he thought, his mind racing as looked around. he slowly walked over and stared around the shelves, eyes keen for the Brit with bright green eyes. Quite possibly in his formal looking attire he always wore during work. Or the black jacket he was wearing yesterday.
He fumbled nervously with his hands in his jacket pocket at as he walked. He was usually the confident one, why was he being so fidgety? It wasn't like Arthur was a jerk or anything, excusing all of his snarky comments. He had only known him for about a week, but the guy was already making him go weak in the knees.
He felt a hand on his shoulder, and for the third time, he turned to meet the glittering emerald orbs that this smaller man possessed.
"Hullo. Al." Arthur said flatly, saying his chosen nickname with a somewhat importance. Alfred groaned.
"Hi." Alfred greeted, hoping he didn't sound like the train wreck he was. Oh god why was he being so childish? He was twenty-eight and here he was sweating bullets like he was back at university, waiting for one of his professers to hand him a failed grade.
"Your not very creative when it comes to greetings, are you Mr. Jones?" Arthur said. Alfred's heart skipped a bit at finally hearing his real name come out of his mouth.
He smiled weakly. "Guess I'm not that good at keeping secrets." He said, a air of defeat in his voice.
"Indeed." Arthur said, holding up his credit card, Alfred's name in bold print. "Stupid git, why did you leave something so important behind in the first place?"
Alfred only let out a nervous luagh as he took the card from Arthur, careful not to look at him.
"So....i imagine you have a lot of questions....." Alfred said, smashing his hand and card into his jacket pockets, and trying his best to give the other a grin.
Arthur furrowed his brow. "Of course i do. Didn't I not mention several times how much i enjoyed your work, Mr Jones?"
"Just call me Alfred." Alfred said, a little revived. "I guess......sorry for not telling you?"
"Bollocks. Did you think i was some silly fangirl?" Arthur said, glaring at Alfred. "Please don't insult my intelligence."
"I wasn't!" Alfred said, giving a sort of childish pout. "I just know what to expect from fans at this point. It's nice to know you like my work though." He replaced his pout with a huge grin.
"Quite." Arthur said, blushing furiously red. He looked away pointedly as he gave Alfred a slip of folded paper. "I'm always free on weekends. Now, I must get back to work before my boss gets mad at me again. Good day."
Alfred was left slightly confused as Arthur walked on, turning down to stare at the paper he had been given. He felt a smile grow on his face at seeing a phone number written down in smooth, neat handwriting.