A/N: I'm very sorry for the confusion, but just so that we're on the same page, the previous chapter was just an extra that was supposed to take place sometime before the last chapter. I just couldn't find a proper place for it and fit it in with the rest of the story. It wasn't the epilogue - this is.

Warnings: Illegal amounts of failed fluff? And the usual you'd expect from this fic after all this time...

Alfred liked to think that the crowd before him was cheering him on, even though he knew no one among them.

Everyone had their own business to tend to and so simply couldn't afford the time and money to come over to a college commencement. As expected, seeing as though he didn't send anyone invitations in the first place.

The blond continued to look on at the ceremony in front of him and after taking a few pictures with fellow graduates and professors, made his way back to the dorms. Alone, he'll pack his things while everyone else was off partying.

Aside from the huge yard where the commencement took place, the whole campus was pleasantly calm; the warm wind gently running through green leaves and the black tassel of Alfred's cap. He shouldn't be in such a rush, seeing as though this will be the last time he'll be setting foot on the university in a long time. While taking the longest route he knew to the dorms and admiring the architecture of the buildings he passed by, Alfred began to wonder how his life will be like now.

Or rather…what life has in store for him and a certain landlord.

Alfred's smile grew wider at the thought of seeing the Englishman again; promising the man he would jump onto the first plane to California once the graduation ceremony was done.

They have come a long way.

He still remembered what happened after he told Arthur that he really would give their relationship a shot. During the week before his departure, Alfred stayed half of his time in Matthew's apartment and the other at the landlord's. This arrangement was made so that the two had time to themselves as well as with each other. "It's all about moderation," Alfred remembered telling Arthur, who already wanted the blond to move in with him. He believed that by taking it slow and steady that he really will develop feelings for the landlord rather than have the man force himself on him.

He is such a sweet guy!

Alfred chuckled to himself as he remembered a couple of moments he had with the landlord at his apartment. More than once Arthur offered to share his bed with him, but he insisted that he will sleep on the couch instead. The blond didn't want to add to the tension nor create awkward situations for the both of them. The furniture wasn't comfortable at all, and he gave his younger brother props for sleeping on one for so long when their contract was still in effect.

So if the Englishman couldn't get his American to sleep on his bed, it shouldn't surprise Alfred if he joined him instead right?

Alfred nearly threw Arthur off the couch when the first thing he saw upon opening his eyes one morning was the landlord snuggled up on top of him, sleeping very soundly. After two more similar occurrences, Alfred decided that if they were going to sleep together, might as well be on a bed.

The last week of his vacation was also spent on coming out clean with the other.

It was hard to fully explain himself to Arthur…especially his past "love life". As expected, Arthur was initially shocked by what he told him, and then expectantly disgusted. Although the gentleman tried his best to hide it, Alfred easily saw it in his eyes. Then he was green with envy, even though the American said that there wasn't a need to be…seeing as though the relationships were fake to begin with. But what Alfred didn't expect was Arthur's final expression: pity. The landlord felt sorry for Alfred for not having ever actually loved someone before; which made him all the more determined to be the one to help him experience it (particularly toward him). Arthur had no idea that he already succeeded simply by stating his intention.

Of course, Alfred wasn't the only one with secrets.

While spending time with the sandy blond, the other eventually fessed up to some of the things he has been doing without Alfred's knowledge. A lot of it concerned following the American before when they were "dating", a camera, and a spellbook. He also went into detail about his own love life; how Alfred wasn't actually the first one to use him and throw him out the next day. Arthur even admitted that because of this that he can be a bit…clingy. He didn't want to say that last part for fear that Alfred might be scared off. The landlord didn't know it would have the exact opposite effect.

Many times the thought that Arthur was too good for him came up, but when he told the landlord, he'd simply scold him for even thinking such a thing. This made Alfred determined to show the man that he was worthy of this second chance and his love. Of course the guilt still lingered for quite a while, but turned to gratitude and he would suddenly hold onto Arthur sometimes to make sure this all wasn't just a dream.

Arthur, on the other hand, would sometimes lament at the thought of how their relationship even started and how it could have ended horrifically. It must have been complicated, Alfred knew. And when their attempt to start anew took off, Arthur was suspicious of the American for good reason. He understood completely, giving the sandy blond space and time when he needed it.

Or rather, it was the lack of it all that concerned Alfred…

Arthur would badger him with questions about himself everyday, wanting to know everything about the man. As the landlord would find out, his boyfriend wasn't exactly the gentleman he first made him out to be. He knew first hand that his American had a brain…he just didn't like to use it as often as he should (and far too lazy to).

But it wasn't like Arthur's attitude was flawless either.

The man could be so stubborn at times, Alfred swore; especially when it came to keeping the apartment tidy and his culinary skills.

And it was because of this and other eating habits and hobbies that they didn't always agree on something sometimes. But this was what made everything more real: the fact that they didn't have a perfect relationship made them strive to have one; and it was this endeavor that made it all so perfect in Alfred's eyes.

Parting wasn't easy.

Alfred knew that and still recalled how the last couple of days went for them. Despite trying his best to mend everything up, it wasn't enough in his opinion. The night before his departure, he slept with one eye open for some time; a small part of him refusing to disregard the possibility that Arthur will tie him up on his bed, break his legs, and never let him leave. That was quickly debunked however, when he was served breakfast in bed by a landlord who was trying his best to hold back his tears. Alfred mentally kicked himself over and over again for even thinking badly of the man. So to prove to Arthur that he was serious about their relationship, he presented the Englishman with an emerald ring right before getting on his plane.

Trying to find the silver lining along this sullen cloud, Alfred offered that their separation will give Arthur time to really think things through, to really judge Alfred while he was away. And whatever decision he came to, whether it was love or rejection, the American would take either one without complaint. Alfred really liked to think that the distance helped in both mending and maintaining their fragile relationship; since not only did it give Arthur time to reevaluate himself and Alfred, but teach the Englishman to be less obsessive. Strangely to say, not much has changed from the experience. It was funny how life worked sometimes.

The first day when he was away…went badly…

When Alfred finished unpacking and finally went on his webcam Arthur looked like a mess. It was as if he has been just sitting there staring at the screen and hoping something will pop up soon. The scene made Alfred feel so bad that he almost got another plane ticket to head back to the landlord for one more day. But on other days, the sandy blond would appear smashed in front of his webcam and Alfred would just calmly close his laptop and study his textbooks instead, waiting for the man to come to the next day.

And so, it has been like that for a couple of months while Alfred was away at Harvard: after his classes he would go on his laptop and use his webcam to talk to Arthur. It wasn't that much of a conversation however, because Alfred constantly had to have his nose in a textbook or write a thesis paper when he was on. He earnestly did want to talk to the Englishman more than he did, but Arthur understood and enjoyed just staring at the man studying at his laptop. But when the two did have time to converse he would continuously ask him what he ate, when he slept, and what he did. The American swore, Arthur watched over him like a hawk…no, more like a mother hen. It was all for good reason though, a way to show that he really cared for him, and Alfred respected that.

He didn't know when he fell so hard for the landlord, but with each passing day he looked more and more forward to seeing him on his laptop screen.

But now that the months have gone by and with diploma in hand, Alfred will finally be able to see Arthur in person. Rounding a corner and walking down the empty hallway of the building, he reached his room at the very end of the hallway.

"Congratulations Alfred!"

"Oh my god terrorists got into my room!" The graduate was about to slam the door shut when he heard the voices until he took a second glance at the group. These "terrorists" looked a lot like his friends.

"Well sorry if I look armed and dangerous," Matthew snarked, holding out a stuffed polar bear with a graduation cap on it. "Surprise~"

Alfred was still gaping like a fish despite holding the gift in his arms. The people he knew from his hometown were all there!...Except…He shook his head, knowing that the man was probably waiting for him at his apartment.

"I didn't know you were such an egg-head dude! It's awesome to know someone who's graduating from Harvard! Just not as awesome as me though!" Someone suddenly had an arm swung across the graduate's shoulders, pulling him into a noogie.

It took a while for the American to snap out of it and realize who was assaulting him. But when he did he just couldn't believe it. "No way! You're that dude I almost ran over a while ago!"

The albino snorted at this. "I have a name ya know! It's Gilbert Weillschmidt."

When he was finally let go, Alfred smiled broadly at him and said "It's nice of you to come to my graduation…but how in the hell did you even know about it?"

"…I met him one day at a site I had to take pictures of," Matthew offered in a small voice. "He kept being a troll and jumping in front of my camera whenever I was going to take a shot of the scenery."

"Pfft. No picture is complete without me in it!"

"I don't call shots of a blur a picture,"

As the two argued, Alfred went up to each and every one in the room to give them a bone-crushing hug. Even to Ivan, who smiled knowingly at him.

"It was very rude of you not to send invitations to any of us, da?"

"It's just like you to foil my plans you know that?" Alfred couldn't help but grin at the Russian gratefully. It must have been his rival who told everyone else about the graduation and snuck them all into his dorm. He then turned to his other friends, who weren't looking straight at him but were smirking nonetheless.

It was very evident that they were at the ceremony: Kiku holding a video camera in one hand and Toris an air horn can.

"Honestly Alfred, you should have told me sooner so that I could have given you a proper graduation gift," Kiku chided, offering him something small and wrapped in bright blue paper.

Alfred didn't need X-ray vision to guess that it was the new video game Kiku's company has been working on…a game the blond has been dying to get his hands on. He glomped the man before the others came up to him to give him their gifts as well.

From Toris gift cards to every place Alfred loved, each of them over one hundred dollars in value. To Alfred's chagrin, Ivan gave him a box of extra small condoms…but he made up for it with a fine bottle of vodka. Francis wasn't with them, remaining in Paris; but he must have heard from Matthew about the graduation and sent the blond a gift card for toys…adult toys…

"We should go somewhere to celebrate," Toris spoke up after the rush.

"How about that bar we passed by to get here?" Gilbert immediately suggested, already getting ready to go.

"Sure, whatever you guys want," Alfred gave them the okay when all eyes turned to him. "I'll meet up with you guys over there, since I still gotta change and organize all this," he addressed the bundle of gifts in his arms.

"Are you sure you don't need a ride, Al? You do know which bar we're talking about right?"

"Psh! I've been around here longer than you Matt, of course I know where it is," the graduate said playfully. "Now y'all get outta my room! Before the dorm monitor catches you,"

Once the group left, Alfred started taking off his graduation outfit. The zipper of the black gown was only pulled half-way down when he felt arms around his torso and the body heat of another person behind him.

"Hey there, you made it just in time! We were about to…" he stopped when the person behind him did nothing but nuzzle into his back. "Dude…are you alright?"

Again the figure just nodded, not saying a word.

Alfred couldn't quite figure out who the person was until he tried to turn around, his eyes catching the sight of sandy blond hair. "Arthur!"

The landlord's hold on him tightened when his name was said, burying his face deeper into the material of Alfred's graduation gown.

"Oh my god Arthur you came too!" The American struggled to turn around to embrace the other man as well, but found that he couldn't escape his death-grip. He had to think of something fast before he was broken in half. "O-Okay Artie, calm down…I'm not going anywhere,"

This only earned the graduate an even stronger squeeze around his mid-section and sniffle, but the Englishman eventually let go and allowed Alfred to turn around.

Right after his release, it was Alfred's turn to hug the landlord to death; picking him up from the waist and spinning him round and round while showering the man with kisses on the lips and cheeks. "You actually came!"

"I wouldn't miss it for the world, love," Arthur replied, returning Alfred's enthusiastic kisses with his own. Even after he was put down, he kept his arms around the other's neck.

"I can't believe you made it!" The graduate still couldn't quite grasp the fact that the landlord was right in front of him in his dorm. Indeed, nothing was better than the real thing standing in front of you. "Now that you're here, we can go to the bar and I can introduce you to everyone!" He resumed taking off his gown, shrugging it off his shoulders to reveal a white dress shirt and black tie and slacks underneath. He was about to take off his cap as well when a soft voice made him pause.

"W-Wait, Alfred," Arthur moved in closer to the blond again, reaching toward the black cap. "Allow me,"

The taller blond did nothing but smile widely at the landlord, bowing his head to make the job easier.

Once the cap was off, Arthur gave his lover a sweet kiss before pulling back, slightly abashed by what he just did. But what he was about to do next was going to be even more embarrassing. With Alfred watching him bemusedly, he reached into the front pocket of his beige slacks, producing a small box. He then opened it to reveal a sapphire ring. "Congratulations, Alfred." He really hoped he didn't stammer.

The look on Alfred's face was priceless, and it made Arthur very proud that he was the only one to see such an expression.

"…Arthur…Thank you! You didn't have to get me anything," The blond said while extending his right hand, waiting for the other to put the ring on his finger.

"Of course I had to!" Arthur (now red in the face) quickly retorted, sliding the ring onto Alfred's ring finger. "Y-You wanker! You gave me a ring right before you left so…I wasn't able to…" he couldn't finish his rant, finding shelter in Alfred's awaiting arms.

"Yes, yes," Alfred said soothingly, caressing the back of Arthur's head with one hand while the other was firmly around his waist. "Thank you, Arthur." He sighed into the other's ear and kissed it. "I love you,"

When he distanced himself from Arthur, Alfred saw that the landlord looked like he was going to burst into tears all over again. So he pecked him on the cheek and changed the subject. "Let's get going now, the graduation party doesn't start unless the graduate is there ya know!"

X.X.X.X

At the bar, Alfred's friends were already striking conversations with one another, the alcohol helping a bit to ease any awkwardness or tension. Alfred remained vigilant of how much Arthur was consuming and stopped him when he was labeled tipsy.

At first Arthur argued that he was fine, but a reminder of what happened so many times before had him. So instead he decided to get to know Alfred's acquaintances better, greeting them.

"You wanna know something?" Matthew came over to his older brother, who was watching the landlord converse with Kiku.

"Sure, what is it?"

The younger also stared in the same direction as Alfred. "I moved to a bigger apartment."

"Oh yeah? I'm proud of you, bro!" Alfred genuinely sounded happy for his brother.

"Thanks, it's spacious enough for me to set up my own darkroom to develop some of my photos-"

"That's really old school,"

"It's just a hobby," Matthew shrugged at the older's light-hearted comment. "Anyway, when I told Arthur that I was leaving, he looked a bit distraught…I think he feared that he lost his 'bargaining chip',"

Alfred had to chuckle at that. Did Arthur really think he'd go back on his words and was still dating him for Matthew's sake?

"I'm glad it worked out for the both of you so well," the photographer's words were gentle. "You two have been through a lot."

"I guess I have you to thank for all of it," Alfred turned to his brother, raising his glass up to him. "But do everyone a favor and never open up a match-making business!"

"Well that's certainly no way to talk to someone you owe your love life to!" Matthew teased, but put his glass up as well to cheer.

Before more can be said, the duo saw Arthur coming towards them, stumbling a bit. Matthew took his leave to make sure Gilbert hasn't broken anything yet, leaving the American to tend to the landlord.

He knew he shouldn't be doing this, but he supposed spoiling the sandy blond on such an occasion was appropriate. "Here Arthur, wanna finish my glass for me?"

The Englishman looked up at him quizzically for a moment, but quickly took the drink offered to him and downed it; making sure to find the place where Alfred put his lips on the glass and drink from that spot too.

Alfred was expecting him to call for another one, but was pleasantly surprised when all he did was put the mug down and snuggled against him. "You're so cute, you know that?" he affectionately kissed the man's forehead and held him.

Arthur did nothing but hid his flushed face in Alfred's shoulder until he was sober.

When everyone finally thought that they all had enough, the group left the bar more or less drunk. Everyone left to their respective hotel rooms, packing their things and ready to return home to resume their daily lives. Only Arthur stuck with Alfred and returned to his dorm to help the graduate put everything into boxes. After a while the two decided to take a break – Alfred on his one-seat couch with Arthur in his lap, working on his embroidery that he brought with him.

He watched as those deft fingers set to work on a new design and noticed the piece of jewelry around Arthur's ring finger. Upon retrospect, he'd seen that emerald ring several times before: when the landlord was having a cup of tea, when he was reading the newspaper, when he was doing his embroidery like he was now, and when he was resting his chin in his hand as he stared longingly into the webcam.

The man had never taken the ring off since it was given to him.

The American smiled warmly and was just about to rest his eyes when an accented voice got his attention.

"So Alfred…where are you going to go after this? What do you intend to do?"

That's such a silly thing to ask! Alfred thought to himself. There was no need for Arthur to get nervous and worried over what he'll do. He has already told him that he got a job offering from NASA as an aerospace engineer and luckily, he will work in the same town as Arthur.

Before replying, Alfred gently kissed his cheek and placed a hand over the other's - sapphire and emerald shining brightly side-by-side. "Your heart is my home, Artie; I'll go wherever you go. And I intend to stay by your side…if you don't mind that is,"

Arthur immediately stopped in his work at the words and buried his head in the American's chest, no longer able to suppress the tears of joy. His Alfred was coming home with him! "Don't say such corny things, git!"

Alfred chuckled and nuzzled into his hair, kissing the scalp adoringly. "I'll take that as a 'yes'," Giving the landlord a bit more time, he then asked "Should we continue packing?"

Not wanting to get off the other's lap, Arthur picked up his embroidery and insisted "Just let me finish this first, I'm almost done,"

Although the project was only half done at best, Alfred smiled softly and agreed to remain where he was, once again wrapping his arms around the Englishman and resting his head on his shoulder.

Arthur on the other hand, leaned back as close to Alfred's body as possible.

The two remained like this until the landlord felt more of the blond's weight on him and when he turned around, the American's sleeping face greeted him. Arthur smiled at the sight. He could sympathize on how long of a day it has been for his graduate. Reluctant to stand up, he grabbed the blanket that hasn't been put away yet off the bed and returned to Alfred's lap, turning his body to the side so that he could rest his head comfortably on his chest.

On their own accord, Alfred's arms encircled the Englishman once more, the blond smiling in his sleep.

Wrapping the sheet around himself and his precious, he too fell asleep to the lullaby of Alfred's beating heart.

Neither the embroidery nor packing was done, but they always had tomorrow to work on it.

And, each other.

Endnotes: ...TAADAAAAAA -shot-

See? Told ya I'm not good with happy endings...OTL But I tried, right?...Right?

Happy and sappy was what I was going for, and so realism/everything else got chucked out the window :D And for that I'm sorry...Kinda...

Yes...I basically glossed over all that complicated relationship stuff and jumped right into the happy couple phase TROLOLO Because honestly, I'm not good at writing fics in which they actually mend it so yeah...and because this is still under the humor category, I might as well make Al fall for Arthur in a comedic way. ^^;

Anyway, this is the end of it all. I really hope I didn't disappoint you beloved readers, but if I did I am so sorry OTZ

But still, thank you so much for sticking around so long! Words really can't express my gratitude at the moment.

It has been so much fun to write this despite the more angsty parts and your comments have made it even so much better! I really would have never dreamed that so many of you would even be interested in this monstrosity of a plot that snowballed from a real life situation. le sigh, I really am sad to say that this is it. There were a lot of ways this story could have went, but I'm glad how it turned out in the end. ^_^

Once again thank you so, so much for reviewing, reading, faving, alerting and even noticing (Matthew knows the pain XP) this fic and I really hope you enjoyed it! Stay awesome and taleeho~