Bleh.

The usual mornings of Arthur Kirkland's university life went only with a simple morning greeting and a few smiles. Other than that, those first, good few hours when the sun had just risen were nonetheless peaceful and quiet if you ignore the inevitable rushing footsteps and idle chatters along the way.

On one particular morning however, the university's grounds were shaken by a loud booming cheer from someone who seemed to love mornings more than anyone in the world.

"Good morning!"

The sandy blond let out a sigh as more and more people's head began turning to the right and he really was growing some interest on that certain attention-seeking lad. Arthur did not bother to turn his head and seek the person who had been enthusiastically greeting anyone that crossed his path. Actually, he was hoping he was not in the way of whoever that was in fear of having his morning completely ruined by an overjoyed bloke.

But then something told him he should let him satisfy his curiosity for a bit.

Something at the back of his mind was urging him to turn his head since a little look wouldn't really hurt.

So just like everyone else, he lifted his eyes from staring at nothing and turned his head a little, just enough for him to see what was going on. What he saw however, made him stop on his tracks with wide eyes and partially parted lips.

"Good morning buddy!"

It was that American from a week before. The one whose eyes met his numerous times since they first saw each other at the library. He had to admit that he was star struck at how beautiful the other's eyes were. For him, no words could ever describe them. In that moment, he expected for the stranger to turn away and avoid his gaze since really, he was not that kind of person someone would be eager to pay attention to unless needed. So when the man leaned in to see him better through the gap, he immediately got flustered and ran away.

It surprised him that the stranger made his way to chase him afterwards. Even if he was in the middle of a crowded space, he was immediately found and their eyes connected for the second time. At first he thought maybe he was not the person that the taller blond was looking for. But when he saw how the other's eyes lit up at the sight of him, he could not help but smile even if he tried to hide it. However, when the man began to advance, he just had to turn and use the huge number of people to his advantage to run away.

He thought that was the end of it but fate had different plans.

They met again for the second time, then the third, then the fourth, and it ended the same way. Their eyes locking and in those moments he had a hard time resisting himself from leaving. So from then on, Arthur tried his best to avoid eye contact. Every time he would see the American, he would turn away and pretend he did not see the other before those pretty blue eyes spot him once again.

But why was he avoiding the stranger? Oh the answer was simple— because he knew he just fell in love and it scared him to no end.

Because after seeing him for so many times every day, he knew it was not just a simple case of first love at first sight. Rather it was love at first sight, second sight, third sight, and so on for every second he would see the other blond. And falling in love meant gradually falling towards heart breaks.

Reality blew some sense into his brain once more and so he let his tensed shoulders relax as he sighed. But even so, he did not stop his green eyes from watching the American. Just one more minute, he thought, and then he would be on and about to mind his own business and let the little hope in his heart to fade away.

His special stranger was not going to notice him anyway.

Or so he thought.

It was happening again. As if fate had placed magnets in their eyes, no matter how crowded or how far or how impossible, green would always meet blue and before they knew it, their eyes were glued in each other.

Arthur's whole body tensed up and it went the same for the American. Still, the other's smile did not falter and instead, it grew wider upon seeing him. And then for a brief moment, he had his lips pulling up in the corners and returning it.

That must have fired up the other blond as he waved his arm frantically and began to take hopeful steps towards his direction. Well, as usual, the Brit just had to crush and ruin the American's morning by running away.

The other had not even made his way a quarter near him when Arthur abruptly turned on his heels and walked briskly towards a big group of people.

"Wait!"

It almost broke his heart when he heard the desperate-sounding call far behind him but he just could not muster the courage to indeed stop and turn around to offer the American a welcoming smile. His mind raced, his heart beat raced, and so did his legs as he walked faster than normal which later on turned into a jog until he was sure that he was out of sight.

He had hoped that it would be the last time he'd see the American. The guilt and remorse was eating him but he was so much of a fool. He would be running away and running away over and over again.

The next day, Arthur found out that him fleeing did not do any good. Apparently, the blue-eyed man got tired of waiting for fate to bring them together and so, decided to finally make a move.

And by make a move, it meant—

"Do you know Arthur Kirkland!?"

"Excuse me, do you know Arthur Kirkland?"

"Arthur Kirkland anybody?"

Even from inside he already heard his name and immediately, he hesitated to go out for some reason. He just had been free from listening to a boring lecture about numbers with letters, the last thing he needed was someone to bother him for the rest of the day.

But even so, something told him to just go and stop over thinking. Something at the back of his mind pushed that he might miss something important.

His feet stopped right after he took a step outside the door upon hearing his name. Then and there, the rest of the usual 'after class' noise drowned away in the background as panic struck him frozen on the spot.

There, only three classrooms away was the American he had been running away from. And that was what he intended to do as usual, except, it was not an option anymore the moment the other spotted him looking at his direction with a probably weird face.

It was unbelievable! Arthur never expected for something like that to happen. If he ran away now, with the number of people currently blocking the corridor, he was sure to be caught in less than five minutes.

What to do? What to do? The taller blond already had an arm waving at him, probably making sure that he had seen him among the lot. Oh he could see him alright. He wished he hadn't.

"Arthur!" Oh my god he was being approached and still he was there, rooted without any plans. The moment the bespectacled blond went pass one of the three rooms that separated them, Arthur found his common sense leaving him on his own as he abruptly turned on his heels and went back inside the classroom he wanted to escape from.

At the sight of its emptiness and lack of any hiding spot, he immediately knew that he just got himself cornered. When he turned around, deciding to just run away, it was already too late because the person he tried to outsmart was already standing below the threshold, completely blocking the only way out.

For seconds after their eyes met, nothing went past their lips except for the heavy intake of breath brought by a sudden surge of mixed emotions. Surprise, panic, nervousness, excitement. Arthur pursed his lips, still not believing the situation he mindlessly ran into.

"H-hey." It was the American who first tried to break the tension. His lips curled into an unsure smile to which Arthur responded with a simple nod. "Um, you're Arthur. Arthur Kirkland, right?"

"Yes."

As if it was some kind of magic word, it brought back the usual bright atmosphere that always enveloped the other blond. He noticed how the American's grip on his bag pack's strap tightened and he guessed that it was the other's way of trying to contain the obvious excitement and glee.

"I'm Alfred F. Jones!" He slightly flinched when the introduction came out louder than what said Alfred F. Jones intended to. The lad seemed to realise it as he let out a nervous laugh while rubbing the back of his neck with cold, sweaty palms. "Um, sorry. I didn't mean to shout. I'm really sorry."

"No. It's alright."

"Yeah. Thank you. Sorry."

Then they were standing in total awkwardness again, with Arthur suddenly finding the floor attractive enough to stare at, and Alfred discovering how amusing the zipper of his jacket was.

"Do you need something?" He asked shyly and the American lifted his gaze to meet his.

"I do! I mean, uh yes but it's not really that important and... and I, you see I just want to uh, you know." Arthur's brows furrowed, not really getting what Alfred was trying to tell him. The sunny blond took a deep breath after, trying to calm himself before looking a bit determined and speaking again. "I just wanna say 'hi.'"

"Oh." It was all that he managed to say yet deep inside him, Arthur was freaking out. What was this feeling? Was he supposed to feel happy? For goodness' sake the stranger—no, Alfred just wanted to say 'hi. A simple, two-letter word, not great enough to change the future of the world yet strangely enough to make his own little universe tumble upside down. Oh my god. He was blushing, wasn't he? He hoped he was not madly red for Alfred to notice.

"Arthur?" Alfred's voice snapped him back from his thoughts.

"Yes?"

"Hi."

He could hear his own heart beating fast as if it would jump out from his body any second from now. Alfred was smiling at him fondly and it was just so overwhelming. He bit his lips but then he really cannot help them from curling up and returning it just as endearingly though he would only send the other a few glances. God knows what might happen if he locked gazes in those pair of sky blue eyes.

"I have to go. I'll be late for my next class."

"Now? Like, right now?" He nodded. But it was a lie and he felt a little guilty about it when Alfred's smile faltered. "I can um, I can accompany you there. If you want."

Of course he did.

"No. It's fine."

"Oh. Okay."

"Okay."

He adjusted the strap of his bag on his shoulder, holding on it tightly in an attempt to contain his emotions. With his eyes still casted on the floor, he tried to make his way past Alfred whose own gaze followed him out.

"Wait!"

Arthur stopped. Thank god, he really did not want to leave yet.

"Yes?"

"See ya!"

He stared at Alfred, a little bit surprised. His face was surely flaming red right now.

The moment just blew one strong hit on him that all he could manage was one final smile. He started to walk away and with each step he took farther from that certain room, that smile got wider and wider until it reached his ears and a laugh escaped his mouth. Was it his imagination? Well, based on the faint cheers from the American that were loud enough for him to hear even at a good distance, it meant that everything that had happened was real.

At that moment, Arthur had never been so excited to meet Alfred again. Surprisingly, he wished it would be soon. But still it did not erase that small fear within him.

Fate seemed to have been listening to his silent prayers. The following afternoon, they found themselves looking into each other's eyes.

"Arthur!"

He turned around, completely forgetting the weight on his arms brought by the hardbound books he planned on borrowing.

"Al—erm, Jones?"

"Yes! Yes it's me! You remembered!"

From across the room, a loud hushing sound caught their attention. Their heads turned towards the source who was the old librarian behind a huge table filled with papers and stamps. When their eyes met, Arthur mouthed a sincere apology but she only rolled her eyes at him. Alfred was waving his arm beside him, catching the old lady's attention and at this, she shook her head though the Brit could have sworn he saw her smiling before turning back to her stamps.

"Anyway, you could just call me Alfred. You know?"

"Noted. So, what are you doing here?"

"Me? Oh! I was just um," Alfred began pointing at a random direction. "just looking around for some dictionaries and stuff."

"I see."

"This is purely coincidental. I mean, meeting you here. What a coincidence huh? Totally."

"Okay."

He could not help but hold the smile in his face before turning around to check the next section of books.

"It's true! I really didn't know you're here and it's a coincidence. It wasn't like I was following you or anything."

Arthur stopped and turned around. Their eyes meeting once again and that was when it occurred to him that they were standing much closer than the previous day. Turning around abruptly seemed to have taken Alfred a little by surprise.

"I know." He said before placing the books down temporarily on the floor. His hand pulling another one from the countless of thick leaves on the wooden shelf. Even as he leafed through the pages, he was watching his new found friend from the corner of his eyes.

Alfred was leaning on his side with the heaviness of the books supporting his weight. He was watching him closely and Arthur could feel those eyes looking at him intently, as if analyzing his every move, the rhythm of his breath, the seconds it took before he turned the page.

"Actually I... I was following you." He looked at Alfred and raised a brow. It wasn't that he did not know about it. Not that he was aware he was being followed. It was just that the way the American tried to push this as a coincidence was proof enough that he was guilty. "Sorry."

"It's fine."

Alfred was smiling sheepishly at him, taking a heavy breath in and then out. He stayed silent, waiting for what the other was going to say though the taller blond seemed to have difficulty in finding the right words. He couldn't blame him though as he was feeling exactly the same.

"So, why were you following me?" Based on the American's reaction, he immediately regretted asking. Was it even the right thing to ask? Though of course he deserved to know.

"I was," Alfred was rubbing the back of his neck. "I just wanna talk to you."

"About what?"

"Honestly, I haven't thought about that yet."

"Oh."

"Are you mad?"

At first the question kind of surprised him. But he could not blame the blond because truthfully, if it was not Alfred, maybe he would have acted differently.

Arthur put a small smile on his face reassuringly as he shook his head.

"No, I'm not."

He walked past the American with ease as he finally saw the other to return back to his normal, smiling self. Just as he expected, Alfred followed him eagerly as he went from one shelf to another while striking a pointless yet interesting conversation.

Arthur flipped through the pages of a fictional book he randomly got among the sea of fictions before him. Yet his attention remained in the real world as he grew conscious of the way Alfred stood very close to him, peeking above his shoulders without knowing how his breath slightly touched the Brit's ear. It was out of sheer curiosity, purely innocent. Even so, it was making Arthur's heart leap inside him.

Oh god, he cannot bring himself to move a muscle.

"That's like, the fifth book now." Alfred commented with worry as he eyed the previous four that rested below them. "What are they for?"

Finally, Alfred took a step back to pick up the top most book from among its family on the floor, and Arthur watched as the other turned the pages slowly, eyeing some words that caught his interest. His shoulders finally relaxed and an unnoticeable sigh escaped his lips.

"I have a paper due next week." His brows furrowed at the thought of it. "We were asked to compare them."

"All five?"

"Unfortunately, yes."

A small frown formed on Alfred's face and Arthur thought that the taller man probably felt sorry for him. Then for the first time, his fingers actually started working on turning the pages of the book he held, looking for a particular part of it.

"You're working really hard aren't ya?" The question did not exactly sound as if it demanded an answer. "Do you plan on being a writer someday?"

Well that question needed one.

He lifted his gaze from his book but he did not turn to face the American beside him. The answer was 'yes.' But he felt unnecessarily shy about it for unknown reasons. It wasn't like being a writer was a ridiculous dream. Just a seemingly impossible one but he was pretty determined about it.

Burying his nose in the book, he mumbled a 'yes' and hoped that Alfred heard him so he would not have to repeat it if ever.

"Really? That's cool. You know, I want to be a pilot someday!" Alfred's enthusiasm slowly died down with a chuckle and the sudden change in his atmosphere made Arthur look up from the pages. "But I don't think I'll ever be one."

"Why not?"

"Well—"

"What's stopping you?"

The questions slipped past Arthur's lips smoothly out of sheer curiosity and maybe a bit of concern. Alfred looked defeated, and for the past days when he had seen him pull such a face, he knew that he did not like it. It did not suit him even in the slightest.

It seemed that he had said something beyond the line. He may have hurt Alfred's feelings as he got too comfortable despite the constant ring of tension ad awkwardness that lingered in the air. He opened his mouth to apologize, but then the words immediately died down in his throat when the American's face suddenly displayed a wide smile and his eyes sparkled in a way that would put the stars to shame.

"You're right!"

The boy suddenly beamed, unconsciously leaning and taking a step forward closer to Arthur's face as he held the surprised Brit's hands unconsciously in his own. Confused with the outburst that once more threatened to destroy the peacefulness of the library, Arthur blinked fast twice in question and his neck craned back instinctively, trying to put some distance between his and the other's face.

Before he could even ask what he the other meant (and why he was holding his hands, not the he was complaining), Alfred let him go and his eyes wandered excitedly on the floor as if a fountain of great ideas was entering his mind.

When he opened his lips to speak, Alfred looked at him again with wide, excited eyes and it drowned whatever he was going to say away.

"Thank you." When the bespectacled man held his hands for the second time, the way his eyes softened as he looked at Arthur showed that it was purely intentional unlike the one before. It cut his breath short and was left to stare back, speechless and unable to move. "I need to go now. But I will be seeing you again. I promise. Cross my heart."

Arthur could only nod even if he was truthfully confused with the way Alfred was suddenly acting. Then as if the taller blond was not satisfied with his promise, he took the Brit's pinkie finger and hooked it with his.

"I promise." Alfred repeated and with one longing, hesitating look at Arthur's bewildered eyes, he took a deep breath then dashed away.

The Englishman was left alone to silently gather his thoughts as what just happened began to slowly sink in. The other relentlessly surprised him quite a number of times ever since they first met. Like how Alfred unexpectedly chased after him that day fated day. Then there was the fool jumping out from a window on his classroom which was two floors high and fortunately not getting any injuries. For the sunny blond to resort to extreme measures just to talk to him, there was not even an ounce of doubt or uncertainty that plagued his mind when the other rushed to leave. What got him thinking, however, was what could Alfred be up to this time?

He knew the extent of Alfred's efforts. He had seen them for himself and no matter how many times he would admit it, he might just not get over the guilt that was eating him. After all, his uncooperativeness was what pushed the poor bloke to do such things.

Staring at the books on the ground, his brows furrowed in irritation when they reminded him that there were so many other important things he should be thinking about. His 'prince charming' had just fled and he did not have any excuse to divert his attention from his blasted paper. Whatever Alfred was planning, he had to keep it away in a deep corner of his mind for the time being. He shouldn't be too carried away with the sudden sweet, gentle words and gestures that flowed from the man's lips and into his ears. Distraction: The best word to describe Alfred Jones. Just thinking about him for a second was more than enough for the Brit's imagination to drift somewhere far and fictional.

As much as his curiosity was killing him, he had to get moving. At that point, all he could do was hope for tomorrow to come fast and be kind to him for the sake of his sanity. Though at the back of his mind, something told him to give up his hopes of having a normal day, and something inside him whispered endless flattering possibilities that could take place.

The next morning, Arthur stood by the windowsill, dumbfounded at the sudden confession.

"Please go out with me!"

The American he had been avoiding suddenly began blaring a confession on a megaphone just outside his classroom, two stories below, and he had no idea how he was going to react.

Cold sweat trickled down the base of his neck as the whole world seemed to have turned its head to witness the attention-grabbing situation he was in. Alfred's blue eyes were ablaze with determination. Was this the reason why the blond bolted away the previous day? Arthur mentally rolled his eyes at the obvious answer that screamed inside his brain. The pounding of his heart had warned him yesterday to expect the unexpected, but his level of anticipation was apparently naive.

When nothing came out from him, Alfred lifted the phone on his mouth again.

"Arthur Kirkland, please go out with me."

He could hear the squeals his female classmates were making and the teasing from the males were as clear as day. But he paid zero attention to them as he was obviously, utterly shocked that it rendered him frozen like ice.

"I like you! Really, really, really, really, like you!"

The cheers grew louder that it was almost deafening. Almost everyone that was currently witnessing this very sweet moment was urging him to say yes. To be honest, he almost caught words of approval escaping his mouth. He just managed to stop them on time before they were successful. Did he really deserve all this attention? All the effort?

"I'm not taking no for an answer!" The American said with a determined face. "You don't have to say 'yes' now. I'm going to win you over!"

"I doubt that."

"But I'm already half way there, am I not?" He casted a knowing smile at the Englishman who knew that the answer to Alfred's question was a clear as crystal 'yes'. Arthur did not answer in fear of digging deeper into the conversation to the point where he could not recover. "I'm telling you, I'll sweep you off your feet Arthur Kirkland!"

Alfred continued to look at him expectantly, probably waiting for his go signal. Not that the American needed it. Some sort of formality wouldn't hurt anyway. As the seconds passed, he could see the eagerness in the other's smile rising. The longer he tried to hold his tongue, the stronger Alfred's resolve became. Wasn't that just admirable?

Something told him that rejecting the American would be the worst thing he would ever do.

Something inside him screamed that it was about damn time he stopped running away.

He closed his eyes for a second, and then opened them to look at the sea of facial expressions that the crowd displayed. As expected, from within the positive cheers he could hear unappreciative boos. But he cannot bring himself to care about what the people around him was thinking anymore. Besides, knowing full well of the judgemental minds of some people, Alfred stood his ground and gathered every fiber of courage in his body just to openly, proudly declare his truthful feelings. Damn it all— the shame, the criticisms, the haters, they did not matter and they should not matter.

"Will you go out on a date with me?"

Arthur met Alfred's gaze and their eyes locked. The whole world melted around them and at that very second when the Englishman parted his lips to answer, even the sound of the earth moving and the air whistling ceased as he said,

"Yes."

Then everything was lively— the sounds of applauses, encouraging whistles and cheers, the honking of cars, the chirping of birds, and more importantly, the triumphant voice of Alfred Jones as he faced the crowd that gathered around him with both his arms raised up in victory. Afterwards, the American ran and was out of his sight in a flash. Everybody's necks stretched to follow the retreating figure. When Alfred turned in a corner and was gone from his sight, Arthur immediately knew where the blond was heading.

"Hey."

The people inside his room parted into two upon the arrival of the 'star of the show.' Arthur slowly turned around. Alfred was there in the middle of them all, panting, chasing his breathes by the door before slowly walking towards him. With each step, he could feel his cheeks getting warmer and warmer, and he was sure that his face had just beaten the world's reddest tomato.

"Hi."

"Hi."

He answered back in a hushed tone, not really seeing the point of saying it out loud when his conversation partner was merely a foot away from him.

He stood there, waiting for what was going to happen next and he actually had a very good guess about what lay in their minute-away future. With a smile that was brighter than any star, Alfred hugged him and he hugged him back with all eagerness, burying his face on the taller man's chest and finally, finally getting to appreciate the sweet and tender embrace he had secretly longed for. His heart won't stop from beating faster and faster.

Arthur Kirkland just had his own share of a clichéd love story.

I'm done with this story. Wohoo. Forgive my errors. I needed a distraction from my stressful college life.