The Truth Lies Here

Chapter 12 – A Promise to be Kept

I stared at the bloke. He was dopey, swaying side to side, and had this big grin on his face, as if he heard the funniest thing in the world. Anyone who saw this – anyone – would see that he was drunk too.

"God damn." Scott muttered under his breath.

"Hello Alfred!" he said, waving energetically to Alfred, momentarily forgetting about us.

"Hey Drake…" Alfred said lethargically, and I think I even saw him roll his eyes, I'm not sure though. "Can you please move, I'm trying to esca – I mean go for a walk. Yeah, go for a walk!" Alfred repeated his sentence nervously, most likely unconsciously. He was biting his lip, hoping that this 'Drake' person would buy it.

He didn't hesitate with his reply, which meant he wasn't even thinking. "Yeah, Alfred! Go ahead!" he was about to step sideways to let him through, but then cocked his head to the side. "Wait…they're with you." He pointed to us accusingly.

"Just shut up, will ya?" Scott asked angrily, throwing a punch at him, hitting him square in the jaw. "I've never met anyone this stupid…" He muttered.

Drake groaned before he fell to the floor. "Err, is that normal, Alfred?"

"Yeah, it is. He would always challenge me to fight him, and like this, it was more frequent. The problem is, he would always fall as soon as the first punch was landed. Just leave him alone." He explained in a bored tone, as if he told everyone and was getting tired of it.

"Are you sure he's not going to wake up…?"

"Yes, Artie, I'm positive." He reassured me. "I've been through enough of those to figure it out…" he muttered.

"C'mon, just get moving." Scott suggested grumpily, pushing us ahead of him. "Wasted enough bloody time." He muttered.

Alfred and I took a few more steps so Scott wasn't pushing us anymore. I glared back at him. "To get us to walk, Scott, you don't need to push us." I muttered, as I continued walking alongside Alfred.

"It's fine, Arthur." Alfred said quietly. Smiling widely, he ruffled my already-messy blond hair. I pouted, crossing my arms across my chest. "Honest, Artie, it is fine. Heh, even after all these years, you're still a great friend."

Friend. Is that all I meant to him? Is that all he saw me as? A mere friend? Just that one word pierced through me like a dagger.

"All I asked was for that idiot, Drake to see if anyone was coming here…" A voice hissed. "He can't even do the simplest thing. I swear that son of a…"

I stopped immediately. My hand reached blindly for Alfred's, and I grasping it tightly, as if it would help keep whoever the owner of the voice away.

There was some feet scuffing the floor, "Hmm, you're right about that." An overly-elated voice bellowed. "But really, he isn't stupid enough to fail something like that." There was a brief silence, "Right, Luke?"

There was a deep, low chuckle, "I dunno, you tell me."

"Luke and Avery." Alfred said in such a hateful voice, I felt scared. I've never seen, nor heard Alfred sound so furious. His hand gripped mine tightly, his eyes blinded by rage.

"Alfred, calm down – Ouch, t-too tight." I winced, holding his wrist with my other hand, trying to pry it off. "Pl-please let go, Alfred…" I asked quietly.

He came back with a jolt, and pulled his hand away. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, Arthur." Alfred apologized, his eyes softening as he stared at me. "It's just that… I'm so angry at everyone here. And sometimes it just gets sorta…outta hand…"

"It doesn't take anyone this long; just to look for a few kids." The first voice exclaimed.

"Duh, well maybe you should go and see what happened to him, huh?" the second asked stupidly.

"Of course you idiot! Now get up before I do a kick you around the corner!" He barked.

Nearby, there were steps. I heard something shatter, and then two more people stood where Drake had just been. And evidently, they looked furious.

"Where is Mason?" One said venom dripping in every word, his eyes set in all of us.

"Just stay the fuck away." I replied, glaring at both of them. I balled my fists, and was about to advance on them, but Alfred placed his hand on my shoulder, stopping me.

He leaned down and said, "Don't Arthur, don't try and start a fight. It's the last thing we want." He tried to pull me back, but I jerked away from him.

"No! I am not going to back down, Alfred!" I yelled.

"If ye aren't gonna tell us where they are, we have to be it outta ya." The second said loudly, slurring just about every word he said.

Scott chuckled, earning him a few weird glances from the four of us. "Heh beat it out of us." He laughed, "You guys amuse me. Thinking you can get me to talk by a mere brawl." He cracked his knuckles, his eyes holding malicious intent. "So, who wants to go first?" Scott cocked his head to the side.

One of them dashed past us, screaming, arms flailing around in the air. Well, to be honest, I didn't think that would work. I suppose it at least had to work on one person.

"Do you want to run along? Run to your so-called boss, Mason?" Scott asked. He didn't move. "Okay, it's all your choice." He said, before he punched him. He fell to the ground, with a yelp, and scrambled to get up again.

"You bastard! You're going to pay!" He bellowed.

"Gonna pay, me? Pfft, as if!" Scott sneered, "It's going to be you that's gonna to pay."

His face flushed red with anger. He paused for a moment, before he tried to clout Scott. He easily dodged them, smiling.

"Arthur, let's go." Alfred said quietly, as he pulled me away from Scott. "He's purposely stalling him so we can leave." I looked up at him, and he continued to pull me away.

"But we can't just leave him here by himself, Alfred." I pointed out.

He grabbed my hand and pulled me behind him. "Artie, you should know him well enough to know that he can handle Avery." He paused, looking down at me. "Besides, I don't want you to get hurt. I wouldn't want that, ever."

My face turned a light pink; I looked down at the ground. Americat mewed quietly, as he walked by my feet. "You're right." I mumbled in reply. "It just doesn't feel right leaving him there by himself."

"'s going to be fine, I promise." America said, as he sat me down where I had been before. He sat across from me, smiling. "Hey, are you alright, Artie?" he asked quietly, his smile disappearing being replaced with a frown.

"Wh-what are you talking about?" I choked out, "Of course I'm not alright." I felt tears roll down my cheek.

Alfred leaned forward and wrapped his arms around me, resting his head at the nape of my neck. "Shh, Arthur," he said softly, stroking his fingers through my hair, he waited a few more minutes before saying, "If you're not alright, then I'll have to help you." Alfred stated, pulling away and staring at me. "I don't want you like this, ever."

"But I just – I don't –" I stuttered, trying to figure out what to say, as well as processing that Alfred was hugging me. "Oh, Alfred, I don't know–" I cut myself off, and the tears were rolling down my cheeks.

Alfred stroked my hair, sighing quietly, "Arthur, I said it's going to be alright." He touched our foreheads together, "Don't think otherwise," he nearly pleaded, "I wouldn't want you thinking like that, Arthur."

I smiled, and looked into his blue eyes, "Alfred, quit being so protective, I'm not that little kid that you used to know."

Alfred chuckled, "Yeah, well neither am I, Arthur." He closed his eyes and sighed again. "I've missed you so much." Alfred pulled his arms away, and smiled before moving so he sat right next to me.

We sat quietly, our even breaths filling the silence. "Alfred, can I…can I tell you something?" I asked quietly, holding my hands together. Americat jumped onto my lap, I smiled, and scratched behind his ears.

"Sure you can, Arthur. What is it?"

"Alfred – I –" I could feel Alfred's eyes fixed on me, waiting patiently to hear what I was going to say, "I just wanted to tell you, I –" I stopped, and sighed. I wasn't sure if I even wanted to tell him how I felt. "Never mind, it's nothing." I said dejectedly, putting my face in my hands.

"No, I'll be the judge of that. Tell me, Arthur."

With a shake of my head, I turned to the side, "No, I said never mind." I refused to tell him. I didn't want to risk breaking my heart.

"Come on, what is it, Arthur?" Alfred pressed on.

"Oi quit your talking and let's go. I don't want to waste any more time here."

I looked over, and saw Scott standing outside the doorway. "Are ya deaf, Artie? Get up and get moving or I'll leave ya here." Scott said crossly.

Rather hastily, I got up from my spot, while picking up Americat. "Y-yeah, I'm sorry." I said quietly.

"Here, I'll take him," Alfred said, stretching his arms out, "You don't need to carry him, Arthur." I looked at his hands, and back at him. He sighed, and grabbed Americat from my hands. "Quit spacing off, Arthur. It's not like you, and to be honest, it's scaring me."

I blinked, and stared at him. I forgot how captivating his eyes were… "Yes, yes, I know, and I'm sorry." I looked down, closing my eyes, "I'm sincerely sorry, it's just… I'm tired. I didn't sleep well."

"Oi, I'm sorry and all for interrupting you. But I don't want to be here. Anyone of them could wake any second, and I don't want to take any risks." Scott grumbled.

I straightened myself, and exhaled. "S-sorry," I apologized quickly, "Yes, let's get going…" I looked back at Alfred and smiled.

He smiled back at me, "As soon as we get there, we can put you to sleep. Is that alright, Arthur?" he asked softly, while we started to walk. "You seem really tired, so we should hurry."

"R-right, I am a-a-a li-little drowsy." I said, not able to keep back my yawn.

And after that, I don't really know. It all seems like it happened in a blur. I've never experienced anything like it to be honest. Maybe it was because I was so elated. Or was it the fact that I was so tired? Even my thoughts were a mess, but I knew I was absolutely happy that Alfred was here, walking next to me.

Should I tell him about my feelings?

No, that would be horrible…Not to mention that I would probably look like a complete fool… One part of my conscious scolded.

Yes, but the thing is; if he doesn't take risks, then he might never know what Alfred would think! For all he knows he could feel the same way.

With a shake of my head, I interrupted all of my thoughts, and walked next to Alfred with an open-mind, smiling.

I rolled tiredly in my bed, bumping into something…hard? No, what could that be…? My eyes fluttered open and saw Alfred sleeping peacefully next to me.

Wait a minute; Alfred was sleeping next to me? Was I possibly drunk last night? I don't remember what happened earlier.

"Oh, I remember…" I muttered, and stared at his sleeping face.

As I normally did after I woke up, I got up from the bed, careful not to wake Alfred up. Just as I had hours ago, I walked to the kitchen, and started to make tea. How British I am, yes.

A little while later, I sat on the couch, and took a sip of tea. "Hmm, I'm still tired…" I muttered, wondering exactly why I had woken up so early. The minutes slowly ticked by, and ever since we had arrived home, all that was on my mind was whether I should tell Alfred or not.

"Hey, Arthur, 's that you…?" Alfred asked me tiredly. I looked back at and saw him leaning against the doorframe, rubbing his eyes. "What are you doin' up so early?"

"Oh, good morning, Alfred. I just couldn't really – I just couldn't sleep that well. But I could be asking the same thing about you…" I said, placing my tea cup down.

Alfred started to walk towards me, "I have no idea why I'm up… I just sorta…woke up…" he chuckled quietly, sitting next to me.

I nodded to show that I had heard him. I wasn't exactly sure what I was going to say to him, I was nervous – really nervous, in fact. My legs were shaking, almost immediately, did I stop them, quickly trying to calm my frantic nerves.

"Are you alright, Arthur?" asked Alfred, placing one of his hands on my knee.

I was extremely jumpy, so when his fingers made contact with my knee, I physically tensed, but I couldn't refuse it so I just sat. "Y-yes, I'm fine. Err, thank you for asking…and caring…"

He gave a small nod, "Yeah, don't mention it."

I placed my hand on his, running my thumb across his skin. I sat quietly, holding his hand in mine, before I got up from my spot. "What do you mean by, 'don't mention it?'" I asked quietly, yet it was at least loud enough for him to hear me.

He chuckled, "Never mind, Arthur. But earlier, you said to you wanted to tell me something…What was it…?"

I now regret – well, I can't really regret trying to bring that up. At least I had tried to tell him. I didn't reply with anything, just staring out the window and playing with my ring, (I can't believe that I forgot to take it off before I had fallen asleep.) before saying, "It's sort of complicated, and I kinda don't know if I want to say…"

"Just tell me, Artie." Alfred grinned down at me, "it'll be alright." He whispered reassuringly. "I promise."

"Uh, yeah…"

"So, what was that you were going to tell me?" He asked after a while.

I wasn't ready to tell him. "Oh, yeah…about that…" I felt him staring at me, and then I knew that I couldn't push this away any longer. "Alfred Jones, I love you." For some reason, just telling him that made really happy, "I love you."

Alfred blinked, staring at me, his mouth opening and closing several times in an attempt to say something, "Arthur, I –"

"Just never mind I even said that, I bet it probably means nothing to you anyhow." I turned around starting to walk away, but he grabbed my hand and pulled me back. "Oi, what are you doing?"

"No, you can't just have an assumption like that, Arthur." He shook his head and sighed.

I stared at him alerted not expecting to hear that. "What are you saying –?"

"Arthur Kirkland, I never would have thought that you would be so dense." He let out a quiet chuckle, "I love you too." He tilted his head to the side, "Can I…can I kiss you…?" not even waiting for my answer he leaned in closer to me, his lips ghosting over mine. Our lips met for a few seconds before he pulled away.

I hugged him, smiling and giggling like a little girl. "I love you so much, Alfred."

Alfred wrapped his arms around me, "I love you too, Arthur." He waited a few moments before asking, "Are you crying, Arthur?"

I nuzzled closer to him and my lips were graced by yet another smile. "Yes, I am, you git. It's just because I'm happy."

"You must be really happy then. I've never really seen you cry over things." I punched him lightly on the chest, giggling. "Hey, I was just kidding." He pulled his arms away from me, "Let's go to sleep, we'll need rest for in the morning. Don't you think so, love?" asked Alfred, grinning as he used the endearment term.

"You better be joking." I muttered, "But, yeah, I think we should sleep. Been a long night, hasn't it?"

"Yup, I agree, it has been." Alfred slipped his hand out of mine, and picked me up, making me squeak from surprise. "Right then, let's go!"

"O-oi, you can't just go around and do things like that." I blushed, wrapping my arms around his neck so I wouldn't fall off, "And quiet down, will you? I don't want to wake anyone…"

"Yeah, I got that."

I pouted, not wanting to be carried around like a little kid, but I made an exception, because it was Alfred. Even if I told him to put me down, he wouldn't.

"There ya go." said Alfred, placing me down gently on the bed. "Sleep well, love." He kissed my forehead and started to step away from the bed.

"H-hey, Alfred, can you come over here and sleep next to me? I don't really want to be by myself…" I mumbled, quickly hiding under the covers. "Plus I just figured you wouldn't mind, after all…"

The bed creaked as Alfred sat down, then the blanket was pulled down, revealing my red face. "'Course I wouldn't mind, Arthur." He got under the blanket with me, "And I can't resist when you're acting so cutely."

"Oh you shut it." I said, and kissed him quickly on the lips. "Al, this might sound weird, but…can you promise to stay with me until morning?"

Alfred chuckled, "Haha, you know I'm not going anywhere?" he asked, grinning.

"You better not…" I mumbled, playing with my ring again.

Alfred blushed lightly, "Oooh! You're just so cute!" he exclaimed, pulling me into a tight hug.

"Hey Alfred, I-I would very much like to breath, wouldn't I?" I struggled to ask, glad when Alfred pulled away.

He grinned again, kissing me again. "I promise to stay with you, Arthur. And I'm not going to break that promise. I suppose I promise not to break a promise." Alfred laughed, "That sounds weird. Besides, there is no possible way I can stay away from that adorableness!"

"Hmph, I'm not 'cute', Alfred. And there is no way I will ever be."

"Ahahaha! With you like that of course you are!"

We hadn't gotten any sleep for a while. We had both been talking to each other in hushed voices, both of us giggling at jokes and other things that I don't really remember. Of course, sometime later in the night I had started to get drowsy.

"And after that, I –"

I put my finger on his lips, "Shush, love. I'm getting tired now, we should sleep soon." I suggested, my eyelids getting heavier by the second.

Alfred stared at me, surprise etched on his face. "Okay." He grabbed my hand again, "'Night Arthur, have good dreams." I vaguely remember him kissing me again, and the three words, "I love you," resounding in my sleepy mind.

A/N So, here is the last chapter of The Truth Lies Here! What did ya think of it? I personally didn't like the first half of this story, but the second half was fantastic to write!

I give a huge thank you to Yanelle and the anon reviewer Sebby-senpai for leaving a review and just about everyone else who reviewed in previous chapters!

**Extra information** A while ago, I was contemplating whether I wanted to make a sequel or not… Well, guess what? I am! So, if you want to see what their relationship turns into, look out for the sequel that will be published sometime. I'm not exactly sure when I am doing so, but it will be soon. It will clearly state that it is the follow-up story from this one. I hope you will look for the next story and read it~

Whoa, this is a long chapter XD