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Arthur liked to think he was a simple student. He was very traditional in his tastes and was actually pretty quiet, when not provoked by the wrong people. He always did his homework and it was always done to completion and at the best quality. He participated in all his classes, after school clubs and was a straight A student. The only thing that was left to be desired was his physique and his popularity.
In Arthur’s freshman year, light comments were thrown about on how skinny he was. He could wrap his thumb and forefinger around his wrist and have them overlap and his waist to shoulder ratio was pretty small but he felt healthy and ate three meals a day. The track coach thought that he would be a good runner, but when Arthur tried out, he found he couldn’t make it through conditioning and discovered that his stamina was something to be desired. That was okay, though. He had already joined a book club and a science club and was also taking a whole slew of courses that were fairly challenging.
However, starting his sophomore year, Arthur had, somehow, been voted the student council president. He always thought that student council was, like most “positions of importance”, a popularity contest. Prom court were always filled with beautiful and outgoing people and club presidents were always well liked and amicable. But student council? When Arthur had ran, he had spent a few nights to making his campaign posters but had found that not a week later, most had been vandalized or torn down. Someone had to have been playing a joke on him when the principal had called Arthur’s name in the high school gym to announce the winners. The claps were polite. However, despite the student body’s reaction, Arthur did the work that a student council president was supposed to do, but he noticed that most student requests were asked of his vice president or the other members of his office rather than himself directly.
“Arthur, do you know why no one approaches you?” his stupid French vice president asked him one day. “I’m not saying this out of spite, but you’re really hard to talk to. You give off a... rather pretentious air. Maybe it’s your face?” Of course, Arthur refrained from giving a verbal reply to his VP, but did not hesitate to throw the pen he was holding at the French boy’s face.
The comment was not a first to Arthur though. Arthur’s mother had told her son that she had known from preschool that he would be a bit of a loner. Now that he was older, she told him of the reports from his teachers that, although he was very bright, he was very awkward with other children at no fault of his own. They reported that there was just something... older about him. He acted older than his age and had no interest in “meaningless activities and chit chat” that most kids engaged in.
When it was recess, he didn’t play on the swings and the monkey bars. He sat under the awning and read books. When he would talk to other kids, he talked about fairies and leprechauns and a “flying mint bunny” and said he could see them. Other kids would usually play along the first time, but when they realized that Arthur would continue the game, they would lose interest.
His mother loved him unconditionally, but knew that her son was different in some way. She told him that it wasn’t bad and it was just who he was, but Arthur was starting to think that who he was wasn’t good enough. If his own student body would not come to him with their problems, what kind of president was he?
So here Arthur was. Sitting in the student council’s office being cynical of himself after school hours. Though he was supposed to be organizing some school lunches, he was mentally making a pros and cons t-chart. Pros on the right. Cons on the left. Good grades, check. Proper grammar, check. Involved in school, check. Volunteer work, check. Well read, check. On the other hand; awkward in social situations, no one seemed to like him?, possible mental disorder (he could still see a few flickers of the apparitions from his childhood but often ignored them now), perfectionist (should this go on the other side?), too smart for my own good?. Should I add ‘never been in a relationship’? Arthur thought bitterly.
Yes, it was true. He was already a junior, and not one person in the entire school had shown any interest in him. Not even a wink or a sideways smile or a hug that lasted longer than it should. Granted, being gay in a world where being heterosexual was the norm shrunk the size of the possible fish in the pond, but there were always outlies. Just none that Arthur fancied. Arthur sighed heavily to himself. Maybe ‘picky’ should be added to the ever growing con list.
While a black cloud of negativity continued to grow around Arthur’s head, he failed to notice someone entering the room until the person plopped themselves down in front of Arthur’s modestly sized desk.
“Sup, bro? That’s a funny face you’re making,” the person said loudly, even though Arthur was sitting a few feet away from him. Arthur jerked his head up, surprised by the sudden presence that seemed to appear before him.
“Eh?” was all Arthur to get out as he was caught by surprise by this newcomer’s appearance.
It’s a golden boy, Arthur thought initially. He’s literally glowing. To Arthur, he truly did seem to glow. The boy, or rather, the young man had a beautiful medium tan face with a developing jawline that was bordering on boyish and yet made him look older than high school age. He had an amazing head of hair the color of golden grain and eyes as clear as a warm, blue ocean. His hair was lustrous and a little curly at the ends with one curl at the front sticking straight up in an adorable cowlick that defied gravity and stood proudly. On his nose were a pair of glasses that gave him a rather mature look, and yet accented his face and eyes nicely. He had broad shoulders that were covered by a chocolate brown bomber jacket with a furry collar that covered his school uniform. He posture was relaxed and yet, Arthur knew this guy had a good overall posture.
“I said, your face looked funny. What were you thinking about?” he asked. His tone was light and highly amused.
“Um... nothing important,” Arthur lied. He straightened up though and cleared his throat, adopting his more professional and acceptable air. “What did you come in here for?”
“Ah, I’m new here. The principal told me to find you to get a tour and other stuff. I’ve only been here a few days though so I had a bit of trouble finding this office. You are the student council president, right?’ the guy asked. He had his hands in his pockets and his face seemed almost too bright.
“Yes. I’m Arthur Kirkland. Welcome to Hetalia High School. What year are you?” Arthur nodded. He considered standing and offering his hand but he thought that may be a little weird since Arthur was already at his desk and Alfred was sitting already.
“I’m a sophomore,” the guy said. “The name’s Alfred Jones.” He smiled and Arthur saw his teeth were whiter than most and were of course, as perfect as perfect could be. Arthur briefly wondered if Alfred had ever had braces but he somehow knew that Alfred was just born with a perfect dental record.
Alfred looked around the student council room. “So this room is all yours?”
Arthur felt taken aback a little. No one really ever commented on the room. “Um... it’s shared by the student council members to hold meetings, have hearings and collaborate but it seems that I’m in here more than the others.” He shrugged. “I guess I like it... the windows overlook the track and field activities.”
“Hm,” Alfred got up and went to the window. “You do have a good view...”
Arthur was suddenly struck by how actually attractive Alfred was. And how much that Arthur would probably never have a chance with him. Swallowing, suddenly discouraged and yet determined to at least try, he stood and walked over to Alfred’s position by the window. He mirrored Alfred’s posture and looked sideways at him. Don’t stare , he mentally coached himself. Don’t freak him out.
“Yeah... Will you be joining any clubs?” Arthur asked casually. “I can show you where each club meets on the tour...”
“Ah, I’ll be joining football and the science club,” Alfred beamed. “I’m super into chemistry and space. I was debating on one of the math clubs but eh, I figured we’d already be doing a lot of math in my classes already. Physics will be a bitch...”
Arthur’s heart soared a little when he heard that the golden boy would be joining the science club. He wanted to throw open the window and yell to the track team “ He’s joining the science club! I’m in the science club! We’ll be there doing activities together! I get to spend more time with him!”
“Oh really? That’s interesting.” Arthur maintained his cool. “Are you interested in majoring in a science field in college?”
“Yeah!” Alfred shot Arthur an award winning smile. “I’d like to visit space sometime. Space is so cool, y’know?”
Even Alfred’s casual slang was no deterrent to the star struck student council president. Normally, Arthur would become a “grammar Nazi” (a phrase he abhorred) and would not hesitate to correct a fellow student’s poor pronunciation, spelling or slang words. It was something that the other council members often complained about, especially when their work was being reviewed by “Hitler himself”.
Arthur nodded and then invited Alfred to the school tour. The pair walked through the school’s halls, stopping occasionally for Arthur to explain about what the room functioned as, and what classes were taught there. He noticed that Alfred was attentive and respectful the entire tour. When he had a question, he waited until Arthur was done to indicate he had a question. He maintained just the right amount of eye contact and listened without wavering his attention. It was the most attention he had gotten in a while and it made Arthur feel a bit flustered, if not a bit giddy.
However, something Arthur noticed right away was the way that when their small tour group passed other students in the hall, the girls would do double takes, some even smiling or giggling, and would twirl their hair around their fingers shyly. The would wave small and timidly, as if Alfred’s appearance in the hallways were some sort of sacred parade. Sometimes, they would catch Alfred’s eyes and he’d smile politely. Arthur could easily hear the excited, but muted, squeals. He wanted to roll his eyes but decided not to, thinking that he probably would do the same flirting if he saw Alfred in the hallways (but maybe less obvious).
“So, when do we get to see the fields?” Alfred asked eagerly. He glanced out the hallway windows, out at the football field. “I wanna see if I can talk to the coach about a late tryout.”
“Ah, right. We can do that now and can finish in the cafeteria.” Arthur nodded. I’m sure any coach would be more than happy to have you on their team . I see the power in your body . Arthur thought shamefully. He realized that he was staring at Alfred as Alfred looked out onto the field. The golden boy was watch a current (American) football practice and the coach as they ran drills while Arthur stood fantasizing what Alfred may look like covering in a sheen of sweat and a loose jersey, cheeks slightly flushed and hair tousled by practice.
Arthur had it hard.
“Arthur?” Alfred suddenly said, jerking the student council president out of his shameful thoughts.
“Yeah?” he croaked, caught off guard.
There was a pause as Alfred’s sapphire eyes met Arthur’s dull green ones. “Are you attracted to me?”
Arthur’s stomach dropped and he felt the back of his neck grow clammy where his unruly blond hair stopped growing, just above the collar of his shirt. He swallowed nervously and blinked a few times, taking in Alfred’s expression. He looked for disapproval, disgust, repulsion at the mere suggestion of Arthur, just a boy in high school, a boy whom Alfred had just met, having the hots for the new sophomore. But instead, he found curiosity.
Might as well just go for it. Alfred probably wasn’t even gay anyway.
“Yes,” Arthur said, though his response came as a hoarse whisper. Alfred was silent for what seemed to be an eternity.
“Cool,” Alfred said lightly. “Wanna go out sometime then?”
Arthur felt like melting into a puddle, right then and there.
In fact, he nearly did as he knees went out as he forgot how to stand. Alfred rushed forward to catch Arthur before he hit the ground, scooping up his upperclassman and then leaning him against a nearby parapet.
“Arthur?? Are you okay??” Alfred asked, a little freaked out that the shorter blond had nearly passed out at just a simple question. His face was impossibly close to Arthur’s and Arthur felt his body temperature rise a few degrees.
“Y-yeah...” he swallowed, his mouth dry. Alfred asked him out. Alfred asked him out. ALFRED ASKED HIM OUT. “Just... surprised.”
“Ya don’t hafta if ya don’t wanna, Artie...” Alfred said, smiling kindly. What a pansy, Arthur thought about himself. Nearly fainting at such an important question. What will Alfred think now?
“I...” Speak, damn it. Speak! “I want- yes. I do sure. Sometime. Definitely.”
Brilliant .
Arthur’s brain registered that Alfred was laughing at him. It was a hearty laugh that made Arthur’s own mouth twitch upwards. It warmed his chest and made him feel a little bit more calm. The world was not so dizzying anymore.
“Alright, cool. Lemme get your number so we can set up a date sometime,” Alfred said after he had regained his composure. He pulled out a smart phone and started typing away. He asked for Arthur’s info and then typed it in when Arthur recited the string of numbers. Then Arthur felt his left pocket vibrate.
Arthur slid out his old flip phone that had been passed down from his older brother and looked at the screen. One new message from another string of numbers. Hey Artie~ :)
Arthur felt himself smiling at the two words and then looked up to see Alfred staring at Arthur’s phone. “Dude, they make flip phones still? Why don’t you have an iPhone or at least a Blackberry?”
“Didn’t have the money for it,” Arthur said without thinking, then immediately regretted it. This was a private high school, Arthur remembered. Kids here were a bit more privileged than most. Arthur was here because his rich dad sent him here while his mother worked two jobs. His parents wanted their third oldest to get a “good education” but he had a feeling that the two had different motivations to sending him to this high school. Arthur’s father was one of the boosters.
Now Alfred knew that Arthur’s lifestyle was not as glamorous as others. Arthur could picture it now. The golden boy, who was used to being showered with gifts and being surrounded by beautiful people, would eventually get tired of plain, old, ornery, poor Arthur Kirkland who was not going to be the heir to the Kirkland fortune. Alfred would eventually find a reason to dislike Arthur (and wouldn’t have to search hard) and they would break up soon. Alfred would get a girlfriend more suited to his tastes. Probably blonde too, a bubbly laugh and someone who gave a damn about American football ( real football all the way!) , and would buy gifts for Alfred for each little milestone in their relationship. One month, two months, half a year, one year, two years, Valentines, Christmas, his birthday. All the things that Arthur was not and could not give.
“Arthur?” Alfred’s voice ventured a little. A warm hand was placed on his cheek and Alfred’s eyes were suddenly in front of Arthur’s face. “Stop thinking about whatever it is you’re thinking.”
“I’m not thinking about anything,” Arthur lied again. Bugger, he’d really have to control his thoughts. Third time spacing off was not spelling good news for the future with Alfred that was slowly slipping away.
“If you’re worried about me caring about what kind of phone you have, just saying, I don’t really care.” Alfred said. “I think it’s cute.”
Arthur smiled nervously. “What gave you that idea?”
“You went quiet and you made the same face you were making when I first walked into your office.” Alfred tried to emulate Arthur’s previous expression. Arthur watched as Alfred’s eyebrows drew together, one corner of his mouth sinking into his cheek, the other descending down towards his chin. The expression was, overall, still attractive on Alfred’s face, but Arthur knew it probably wasn’t on his own.
“Oh,” was all Arthur could say. “Oh. Sorry.”
“No need to apologize. Just... don’t over think things, alright?” Alfred said, releasing his face from the ‘Arthur’s thinking weird things’ expression. “We don’t have to start the whole dating thing right now. I’m still getting a hang of what this school is like and whatnot.”
Get yourself together, Arthur . “Ah... it’s okay. I’ll just... text you tonight? I guess? Um... Let’s just go to the football field and you can talk to the coach then... yeah?” Arthur said, suddenly getting up and brushing imaginary dirt off his uniform. He turned towards the field and forced a friendly (but still quite nervous) smile on his face.
Alfred straightened from where he was crouching too, mirroring Arthur’s movements by brushing off his own imaginary dirt off his knees. “Sure.” He smiled comfortably, if not a little at the junior’s formal tone that was tinged with awkwardness and embarrassment.
On the way out of the school and to the field, Arthur could feel the new student’s eyes on his back. His shoulders felt tense and the fine hair on his arms stood up, as if they were nervous too. Arthur found himself babbling mindlessly about the history of the school and how several of the school’s sports teams would compete at the regional levels.
Once again, Alfred listened intently until the pair were spotted on the football field by the coach. The coach assigned another drill to the sweating players and then sauntered over to the two.
“What do you boys want?” he called. Arthur explained the situation to the coach and he saw the coach looked Alfred up and down, evaluating and estimating. “Ever played football, son?”
Alfred grinned and Arthur saw the same light in the sky blues that he had seen when looking Arthur. “Have I?? Let me tell you...” Then he launched into his entire resume and experiences with the almond shaped ball.
Arthur only half listened and decided to watch Alfred and his expressions as he explained the games he played in his childhood. Arthur realized he liked watching Alfred’s throat, the way his developing adam’s apple bobbed a bit, how his eyebrows went up and down, his expressions, the shine Alfred’s eyes took as he talked about the sport.
Arthur was not ever a sporty or athletic person himself but he didn’t mind watching a game or two of various sports. American football was not a thing he would chose to watch willingly but he never minded when it was the only interesting thing to watch on the tele.
Before Arthur knew it, Alfred and the coach had agreed to set up a small tryout for the new sophomore and put him in as a quarterback in a scrimmage between all the players. Alfred thanked the coach and shook his hand and then tugged Arthur’s uniform sleeve to pull him back to reality again.
“Now the cafeteria? I’m starving! Ya think we can get something to eat there?” Alfred smiled, heading back to the school buildings. The weather was very nice today as the sun was shining but the air was not very hot.
“The cafeteria is closed now that school is out, but we have a few vending machines by the outside if you want to spend a few dollars to get a snack,” Arthur said. He’d have to explain to Alfred how to manage the lunch rush. He then realized that most of the vending machines were inside but realized, fortunately, that he had brought his master key with him and could unlock the cafeteria.
The two soon arrived at the huge canteen area and Arthur pointed out where the lines started, what kinds of things the cafeteria served, generally, how much each meal item cost and how to ensure one got a good seat close to the door but not too close to the windows where the sunlight would often sunburn unfortunate victims who sat too close.
Eventually, Arthur ran out of things to say and the two sat at one of the booths in the cafeteria. They sat across from each other and studied each other in a comfortable silence.
Finally, one of them spoke. “Why me?” Arthur asked. “You don’t know me. If not, you will hear about me from the other students. I’m sure you’re not one to have trouble finding friends.”
“I dunno.” Alfred shrugged. “Something told me you were right. There is obviously more to you than just ‘student council president’.
“You’ve been here for a few days though. Surely you’ve heard some of the things they whisper about me?” Arthur asked, a bit nervously. What if Alfred was just saying all these things to trick him? What if messing with the student council president was now part of a game? ‘ I bet you’re too chicken to approach the bushy browed president! ’ he could hear them say. ‘ Extra points if you can trick him into a date! ’’
“Nah, I don’t like gossip. Usually they’re just false rumors anyway, “ Alfred half smiled. Both of them knew that this topic was a little ginger just by the atmosphere around them. “Besides, I’m not one to back down from a bit of a challenge.” He grinned, something close to mischief in his eyes.
Was the mischief there because of a bet Alfred took or because Alfred knew that Arthur was not as easy as Arthur thought himself to be?
Take the chance , Arthur’s heart told him, yet his mind was setting off alarm bells.
“Alright,” Arthur swallowed nervously. “Alright. I’ll take the chance.”
Alfred raised an eyebrow but leaned closer so that their faces were inches apart. “I like your eyes...”
Arthur sat stock still. “Yours too,” he said weakly. He could see the edge of Alfred’s mouth twitch upwards. Then Alfred leaned forwards and kissed Arthur.
The two were locked in that position for a mere couple of seconds but to Arthur (who, admittedly had rarely kissed anyone) it felt like a full five minutes. When Alfred retreated and his eyelids slid open to look at Arthur, he saw Arthur, flushed and almost bewildered. His cheeks were rosy, his eyes wide and alert, and his hair seemed a bit wilder than usual, despite the absence of any passionate touch.
“Woah...” Alfred said, blinking a bit. His heart beat wildly in his chest, unlike when he kissed cheerleaders and eager recipients.
“Yeah...” Arthur said. It was like the afternoon light had warmed the entire room and everything was sparkling. Was this the chemistry and the electric sparks that books and TV shows spoke about when one was in love? Was Arthur in love with a boy he had just met?
“We should do that again on our date,” Alfred smiled at the student council president. His hair nearly glowed in the lazy afternoon sun.
Arthur blushed, trying desperately not to imagine Alfred’s mouth on his again. “A-Agreed...” he said, his heart beating faster at the prospect. “I’ll just... text you right?”
“Yep!” Alfred got up and looked at his phone. “Do ya live close to the school?”
“Oh, uh, just a few blocks North. I ride my bike,” Arthur said.
“Yeah? Want me to walk you home?” Alfred smiled again. “I could run alongside you. It’ll be good exercise... We can talk more.”
Arthur smiled regretfully. “I actually have a bit more work to do for school. You can go home. I don’t want to keep you.” If there was anytime when Arthur did not want to have extra work, it would be today.
“You sure?” Alfred asked. He looked at Arthur and Arthur saw concern and genuine disappointment. “How long will you be? I could just wait.”
“I don’t know how long... Probably about an hour or two...?” Arthur responded. He was unused to having someone wait for him, unused to having another schedule to coordinate with,
“I’ll wait.” Alfred smiled. “Just text me when you finish, kay?”
Arthur nodded and the pair stood from their place at the lunchroom booth. They exited the canteen, talking together as they made their way back to Arthur’s presidential office. When they approached the door, Alfred turned to Arthur.
“Can I wait in the room with you or would you rather be alone?” Arthur thought about it briefly but decided that having Alfred in the room may be too tempting (as Arthur would surely just stare at the boy’s hair and features instead of doing actual work).
“I'm sorry, but do you mind just keeping yourself busy? I really do appreciate you wanting to wait, but the sooner I get my work done, the sooner we can go home.” We. A collective noun. What a new concept to Arthur.
“Sure. I got my phone,” Alfred said, not to be deterred so easily. “I’ll just sit out here,” he said, nodding to the bench outside the office as he casually shook his phone to indicate that he, indeed, still had his phone since he last took it out of his pocket.
Arthur nodded, a bit awkward at the fact that he was making his new boyfriend (oh what a wonderful new title) sit outside his office. “I won’t be long...” he said and walked inside, shutting the door quietly, glancing one last time at Alfred before taking his hand off the door knob. Now that Arthur was alone, he felt... fuzzy. His heart was in his throat and he felt like he could jump around his office with a giant grin.
Instead though, Arthur got to work. He finished paper work that he had been belaboring in a mere ten minutes and organized a few proposals from the few requests that were forwarded to him through his vice president. When Arthur glanced up at the clock after he finished his work, only half an hour had passed. Happily, he stood, collected his belongings in his messenger bag and opened the door.
What he saw made the flutters stop.
Alfred, the golden boy, was talking to a small group of girls. He chatted freely and wore the smile that Arthur adored. The girls were more than happy to see Alfred’s friendliness and responded with the usual giggles, batting eyelashes and wide smiles.
Of course he’d be more interested in girls. He was playing all along. Arthur thought bitterly to himself. Silently, he shut his office door and began walking away from the scene. He walked down the hall, his limbs stiff and his heart falling with each step.
“Hey!” someone called from behind. Arthur didn’t need to turn to know it was Alfred. Instead of facing the new student, he kept his head down and plowed on.
“Hey wait up!” Alfred called again. Arthur heard footsteps following behind him. “Go away!” he whispered to himself. He didn’t want to be followed, and yet… a part of him deep down wanted the steps to continue.
“Hey! I’m talking to you!” Alfred shouted. The footsteps got faster and then Arthur felt himself go flying as he was tackled from behind.
“What the-??” Arthur shouted back as his limbs and body flailed in the air. Although Arthur was sure he had been launched into the air, he returned back to Earth wrapped in a protective embrace of his attacker.
Alfred had (for some reason) brought Arthur to the ground but had shielded him from the impact with the floor. “Where were you going?” Alfred asked finally, once Arthur’s pulse had stopped racing.
“Why the bloody hell did you tackle me?” Arthur scowled, pulling himself away from Alfred’s grasp and standing. “What gave you the idea that following me was a good idea?”
“You didn’t stop,” Alfred said simply, sitting up and looking at Arthur with eyes slightly hardened. “You were upset and who am I to let you go and be upset?” So he had seen me… Arthur’s defenses went up.
“I wasn’t upset. I just had stuff to do at home.” Arthur mumbled and made a move to go but Alfred caught Arthur’s wrist in a strong grasp that was firm but not bruising.
“Don’t go, Arthur.”
And like that, Arthur’s will evaporated. The student council president swallowed nervously, meeting the azure eyes of his new boyfriend. Arthur’s nervous and stressed face relaxed a fraction of a bit. “You… You’re going to be popular, Alfred. You’re going to be popular, and you won’t want a council member who is unapproachable and unpopular. It’ll hurt your status. Your friends will want us to break up… You’ll probably want to get with the head cheerleader, because I can see you worthy of being the quarterback, and the quarterback is always most popular. You’ll come to hate being with m-”
“Just shut up, Artie.” Alfred cut him off. “Just shut up and give me a chance.”
Arthur’s mouth remained open in surprise but no sound came out. After a moment, he started, confused and bewildered. “What are you-?”
“I said, shut up, Artie.” Alfred stood up and took both of Arthur’s hands in his. His hands were big and warm; slightly calloused from work, but gentle and comforting. “You’re going on and on about what I will do and what I want but you don’t know what I want and you don’t know what I will do.
“I’m not like what you expect and I don’t want to be like what you’re expecting, judging by what you just suggested would happen. I won’t trade you for someone more popular because I already have you.”
“But… you barely know me, Alf-” Arthur began to protest.
“And you barely know me!” Alfred cut Arthur off again. His eyes shone with earnest concern and conviction. “Give me a chance to get to know you and prove myself.”
There was a very heavy moment of silence before Arthur lifted his face to look at Alfred again. “Okay,” he said very small, at first.
“Okay,” he repeated, a little louder, with more confidence.
Alfred broke into his award winning smile and released one of Arthur’s hands but kept one firmly entwined. “Alright, cool. Let’s go home then,” he began walking out of the school and Arthur followed him with only a moment of hesitation.
Arthur resolved to himself that this new relationship would be good for him. It would be different and perhaps… Arthur could learn a thing or two from Alfred about confidence.