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Post by Arthur Kirkland on Jul 2, 2015 21:42:23 GMT -5
Truthfully, Arthur couldn’t put together exactly how this all started. He was one of the few students who opted to stay in the dormitories over the summer, though his reasons were more practical than most. He had nowhere else to live, and he needed to continue working if he wanted to make enough living money before the school year started. Arthur had picked up a part time job bussing tables at one of the local restaurants in addition to whatever gigs he could get in the evenings and late nights. The job was strictly for the summer only. Additionally, Arthur wanted to escape campus as often as possible, as it was eerily empty without the usual traffic of students and faculty. As the first month wore on, it became a little livelier with the slow trickle of students coming in for various sports practises. Sometimes, on his days off from work, and if only to avoid being by himself in the dormitories, Arthur would linger around the edges of the fields, either to watch them practise or initiate occasional odd conversations with other stray students.
Alfred was one of these students. Sometimes Arthur would see him at the fields, practising with other students involved in athletics, other times, he would be out on the stands. Eventually, they became familiar enough throughout the month, that Arthur might catch him once or twice while out in town or between the dormitory and apartment buildings near campus. Casual conversations (d)evolved into text conversations, which later turned into becoming well-acquainted with where the other lived, though it was usually Arthur who wanted to escape his cramped, silent dorm into Alfred’s spacious suite off-campus, which just so happened to be closer to where his part-time job happened to be. Sometimes Arthur would stop by after his shift, in his dirty work clothes, to bother Alfred for a bit, sometimes into the late early morning hours.
The simple fact was that Arthur didn’t want to be alone, among the empty buildings of campus. He hoped that Alfred didn’t catch onto him, though he suspected that he didn’t catch onto much in general. In which case, the arrangement had been perfect so far. Alfred provided him with an interesting distraction… Arthur provided him with… actually, he wasn’t quite sure what Alfred was getting from this. Attention? Something to do?
This night, Arthur was free from work after finishing a morning-afternoon shift at the restaurant. Afterwards, he was quick to head back to his dorm to clean up and change, thoughts preoccupied with a plan while pulling on his favourite worn docs. He wanted to go out, but he had no one to go out with. Though, he'd yet to test the waters with Alfred as far as dragging him out for nighttime entertainment, he felt comfortable enough to bother him with the idea. He was already walking out the dormitory building with his mobile at hand, texting a quick 'Coming over’ to Alfred. No inquiry, just inviting himself over like he usually did. At least he was polite enough to give him a warning, right?
It was about evening now, the sun had just finished its descent into the horizon and the street lamps were on, illuminating the still not-quite-dark surroundings. Arthur shoved his hands into his pockets as he made his way into the building, refreshingly away from campus, away from the eerie emptiness. These rooms were much nicer, far more spacious, with far more amenities than the dormitories. If he wasn’t careful, he might find himself feeling rather envious of the tenants. Reaching Alfred’s door, he was about to knock when he noticed that the door was very slightly ajar. He pushed it open and shut it behind him. He didn’t see Alfred straight away, though it was clear by the subtle disruption in his room that he had been here not too long ago. His eyes passed over the nearly filled rubbish bin of what looked to be energy drinks. Arthur’s nose wrinkled slightly, remembering the last time he attempted to taste one of those at the behest of a certain artificially over-hyped friend.
As no one was watching him, he allowed himself to be drawn to Alfred’s shelf next to his sofa. Arthur browsed through it while he waited for its owner's appearance, noticing that it was stuffed with various comic books and manga. Now, if he were to be completely honest, he’d never so much as held a comic book before. He was never drawn to them—or perhaps he just wrote them off without giving them so much as a chance. Even now, Arthur still felt rather dubious as he pulled one of the comics out, glancing briefly to the side for prying eyes. He was just curious... That’s all. Arthur turned around to sit at the far end of Alfred’s sofa, flipping the first couple pages, not even glancing over the title.
...
Tag // Alfred Jones
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Post by Alfred Jones on Aug 9, 2015 20:06:37 GMT -5
While people always told him that college was infinitely different than high school and that he'd have a great time, Alfred is surprised by how right they are. While Alfred spent his year between high school and university "on sabbatical" essentially on his own (since both his siblings were still in school), the minute he moves into his suite two months early for sports practice, Alfred is surrounded by people. It's awesome, to say the least! Alfred forgets how lonely it can get on your own, even when you're exploring new places. It's nice to be surrounded by people who share your mindset, or at least your age.
Alfred, being the outgoing person he is, has an easy time making friends with his teammates as well as several of the other students who stayed on campus during summer break or came early for other club activities. Thankfully, Alfred is smart enough to avoid summer courses, since he needs the time to get used to campus life as well as his practice and weight-lifting schedules. One of the students in particular Alfred becomes close to is Arthur Kirkland, a sophomore his age. The other blonde is working over the summer in the area, which is why he's here instead of coming the week before classes like everyone else.
The older blonde isn't near as bright and cheerful as Alfred, but he enjoys spending time with him outside of practice or work, in Arthur's case. Arthur had seemed eager for company, something Alfred is more than happy to give. He doesn't like being lonely either, so if he can make someone else happy by being around, then he'll definitely be around! Plus Arthur has a biting sense of dry humor that catches Alfred off guard and can actually be amusing, when he understands the joke. But even if they dissolve into banter, Alfred doesn't mind. Arthur, as far as Alfred's observed, never seems to mean his sometimes-harsh words in a mean way, after all. It's refreshing from Gabe and Tyler's more goofy natures. It's hard to explain, but Alfred feels almost at ease with Arthur's more serious nature, where he doesn't always have to be his normally loud self. It's a nice change of pace.
Alfred is always happy to have people over at his suite, especially since his roommate had bailed within the first three weeks of staying with him. Therefore, he's never bothered when Arthur simply swings by without much of a warning and stays for a few days at a time. The company is nice, and Alfred has plenty of things to keep them both entertained. It's a bit strange that they don't really wander off campus or even Alfred's suite (which is just barely off school grounds) when they want to hang out, but the American doesn't really mind. As much as he likes going out, he also likes staying in with a movie or his games (or even just his jazz and big band music filling the silence).
Today, Alfred has spent most of the day to himself, since it's a rest day and he's feeling lazier than usual. Rather than drag himself to the track or even the gym for some simple drills, Alfred simply spends most of the day lazing around the apartment, Frank Sinatra crooning through the speakers between movies. However, Alfred's feeling antsy by the time dinner rolls around, and he wants to at least walk downtown and grab something from a shop instead of making dinner himself. He can spend his days holed in his room once winter hits.
Alfred doesn't even hear his phone buzzing from his room as he settles himself for a shower. It's still too warm, even with the air on, for a hot shower so he settles for lukewarm, enjoying the spray as he quickly cleans up. (He's never one to linger in the shower, even in the cold of winter when blankets may not even be enough)Nor does he hear the door creak open between the falling water or the music still playing throughout the suite.
Therefore, it's a surprise when he wanders out of the bathroom, towel around his waist and face bare of his glasses, to see a familiar (albeit blurry) head of messy blonde hair over the back of his sofa. "Oh, hey dude!" he calls, absently brushing damp bangs from his face as he pads over to see what Arthur's doing. "Whatcha lookin' at?" Blue eyes squint down at the...book? in the other's hands. He's oblivious to his own state of undress, simply leaning over the back of the couch to try seeing what the other was reading.
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Post by Arthur Kirkland on Jan 20, 2016 20:05:18 GMT -5
While waiting, his mind rummages through ideas for where they could go tonight, preferably someplace loud and mind numbingly lively. Music would be preferable. And Arthur had quite the list of ideas, given that he’d worked at quite a few of these places, some of them dodgy and strange, to earn a bit of money. There were also some selfish advantages to having Alfred around if he did decide to slip into the dark side of city nightlife on occasion. He could drink a little more, for one. Alfred didn’t seem the type to drink to the same level as Arthur, so he would be the diligent sober friend. And he might do better with keeping unwanted attention off their backs. The guy was really a bit of a softie beneath all the muscle and somewhat intimidating stature, at least in Arthur’s eyes. But said stature really had its uses in places that Arthur was set on dragging Alfred into.
Arthur continued to flip through the comic book, looking over it to see what Alfred found so appealing about them. Bright colours, lots of pictures, little reading, the impression that every man and woman in the book seemed to be wearing paper thin clothing. That answered it well enough. And he had to pause to wonder, rather amusedly to himself, how often Alfred stared at the muscled men in these. His incisors pressed briefly into the inside of his lip to keep from smiling.
He heard Alfred padding out of the toilet right after the shower stopped running, so he’s expecting the call and Arthur glanced over the side of the sofa. Of course, he paused when he saw an undressed, wet man walking across the room, towels around waists hardly count as any state of dress whatsoever. He can’t help it; his eyes are drawn to men just as equally as they’re drawn to women. And Arthur’s never been shy about making that fact known to all his friends.
His face only gets swamped with heat when Alfred leans over, squinting and substantially closer. Arthur tried not to lean away, his face likely just getting redder. The question, which Arthur had misinterpreted at first, only made it a little worse. ”Nothing! I’m looking at nothing.” Until he realised what Alfred had meant, eyes squinting at the book in his hands. A little embarrassed and only a touch irritated, Arthur rolled up the comic book and smacked Alfred lightly, but certainly not too lightly, on the shoulder with it. ”Put some clothes on,” he ordered, trying his damnedest not to sound too weirdly amused with this whole silly exchange. He didn’t know how successful he was being. Especially with how often he’s invaded Alfred’s space, particularly his sofa during sleepless nights. He may as well lay claim to it.
Arthur unrolled the comic, stood, and started shoving it back into Alfred’s bookshelf, trying very, very hard not to glance over at his undressed friend again. ”I plan on stealing you away tonight, so you’d better be prepared and not take your sweet, slow time getting dressed and ready,” stressing the dressed part at the moment. And yes, Arthur may have stolen one last glance while he resumed his place at the sofa, pulling out his mobile. "Did you get my text? At least I'm being semi-polite by notifying you this time, hm?" he had to tease a little bit, the dryness of his comment evident and the corner of his mouth rising just a tad.
...
Tag // Alfred Jones
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Post by Alfred Jones on Mar 30, 2016 17:22:05 GMT -5
The question is an innocent one, Alfred knows that. Therefore, he's caught off guard as Alfred responds almost defensively, half-shouting, "Nothing! I'm looking at nothing." It's an even bigger surprise when Arthur rolls up the now-identified comic in his hands and whacks Alfred with it. The strike doesn't hurt but Alfred squawks and recoils all the same. He pouts at his friend's blurry figure, letting the sulk grow as Arthur reprimands him. "Put some clothes on.""You put some clothes on," Alfred retorts childishly, sticking his tongue out at Arthur. This is his apartment, he can wander around as naked as he wants to! Besides, he has a towel on; Arthur can't see anything. ...Right? Alfred carefully readjusts his towel a little higher on his hips, just in case. Then again, the air conditioning is kicking in and the breeze is a bit chilly. There are goosebumps rising along his skin. Changing is...probably a good idea. But not because Arthur told him to. Alfred pauses a few steps from his bedroom door when Arthur speaks up again. Even squinting fails to put the other in much focus, just a figure of colors against his blocky bookshelf. "I plan on stealing you away tonight, so you'd better be prepared and not take your sweet, slow time getting dressed and ready." Arthur turns to him (Alfred thinks he does, anyway) as he speaks, probably giving him a stink-eye or something. That seems like a normal Arthur response. Honestly, Alfred has never pegged Arthur as the prudish type. Once again, Alfred sticks his tongue out at Arthur. "Says the guy who takes ages styling his hair all the time!" He can't help but say, poking fun mostly for the pleasure of getting the last word in. Only then does the blonde pad into his room, absently picking up his glasses from his desk so he can actually see what clothes he's grabbing. Mix-matched clothes only look good when you do it on purpose. Unless you're lucky, but Alfred doesn't want Arthur giving him shit again about his 'abysmal fashion choices'. Not everybody likes dressing like a punk, y'know, dude. "Did you get my text?" Alfred has to strain his ears a bit to make out Arthur's question over the opening strains of Frank Sinatra's 'Where Are You?'. He grabs a pair of clean boxer-briefs in one hand while turning down the volume of his stereo with the other. Just in time to catch the rest of the older student's words, even. "At least I'm being semi-polite by notifying you this time, hm?" Arthur's using his weird humor again; Alfred can practically see the smirk on Arthur's face and the guy wasn't even in the room with him. Curious now, since he knows the other rarely warns him of his visits, Alfred quickly swaps his damp towel for his underwear before digging his phone out of his discarded jeans. The message draws a snort out of Alfred. "Oi, I'm pretty sure this ain't a warnin' that we're goin' somewhere, dude!" Shaking his head, Alfred pulls a pair of dark jeans from his dresser--a bit nicer than the usual fare, at least. They're tailored to fit perfectly, with thick white stitches as accents. "Where are ya draggin' me, anyway?" Alfred calls through the open door, tugging his chosen jeans on with little flourish. "I ain't gonna get beat up for wearin' normal jeans, am I?" Now it's his turn to poke a bit of fun at Arthur, instead of the other way around. He's grinning as he searches his closet for a decent shirt. Should he go with a polo, or maybe a button-up? A t-shirt might be enough, depending on where they're going, but...
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Post by Arthur Kirkland on Jul 30, 2017 17:56:52 GMT -5
”I am wearing clothes, you dolt,” Arthur responded back, snorting softly when Alfred stuck his tongue out at him. Twice! As young as Alfred behaved at times, Arthur couldn’t say that he exactly minded it. It was a breath of fresh air compared to most of the other college students who preferred to shove their tiring drama down everyone else’s throats. Being in Alfred’s dorm and sometimes even just lying around in his room like an old fixture of the place, he felt like he didn’t really have to be anybody in particular, he had no rules or expectations to follow through on, he could just act like a stupid college student if he felt like making stupid decisions for a change. Although, Arthur still made plenty of poor decisions, and many of them had been during his university years so far.
While Arthur waited, he slid down into one of Alfred’s chairs, lounging rather impolitely with his legs hooked over the arm of the sofa. Him being indecorous usually meant that he was comfortable enough to behave like a normal nineteen year old. He could hear Alfred clamoring for his clothes in the other room, and he wondered if he was just grabbing at whatever he could reach for or if he was finding clothes that actually matched. Although Arthur didn’t like to show that it actually bothered him if someone dressed like a clumsy wanker, because honestly there were more pertinent things to be irritated with, he would make a comment if Alfred put an odd combination together.
Arthur laid his head back in his odd position on the sofa, glancing at the room where Alfred was currently getting dressed. ”Well… no… I suppose not,” he agreed. ”We’re going into town tonight. Clubbing, drinking, anywhere that has a pulse…” He laughed a little when Alfred inadvertently poked fun at Arthur with his questions about his jeans. ”No, we will not go to some posh place that gets offended at the sight of jeans. I’m not feeling that at all tonight… I might be the one going after someone for no actual reason if I’m sloshed enough.”
And remembering that Alfred didn’t have his glasses on when he came into the room, he decided to clarify slightly just in case Alfred was having a difficult time dressing. ”I’m not dressed up or anything… just jeans and a t-shirt at the moment.” He was wearing his docs as well, but that didn’t really qualify to him as dressing up. ”To be honest, I wanted to bring you with me because I feel like I might do something stupid tonight… you know, the usual drinking too much and ending up someplace that I have no recollection of going to. So… if I’m going to be stupid, then it might as well be with someone that I trust not to be entirely stupid right alongside me.” The corner of his mouth rose a little at that, amusement coloring his slight smile.
Tag// Alfred Jones
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Post by Alfred Jones on Nov 12, 2017 17:31:16 GMT -5
Alfred decides he's going to ignore Arthur's earlier quip about "not taking forever" to pick out what to wear by actually...taking time to look over his shirts and decide which to wear while listening to Arthur speak. "We’re going into town tonight. Clubbing, drinking, anywhere that has a pulse…" Arthur is saying, and Alfred nods along at the idea, grinning a bit. That honestly sounds like a bit of fun, considering how antsy Alfred's been feeling after a day spent at home watching films. But Alfred has to laugh himself at his friends next words and subsequent misunderstanding, "No, we will not go to some posh place that gets offended at the sight of jeans. I’m not feeling that at all tonight… I might be the one going after someone for no actual reason if I’m sloshed enough.""I meant if I went out with normal jeans, Artie!" Alfred calls back with another laugh, tugging open one of his drawers to look through his t-shirts. "Normal: not ripped, not skinny black jeans with a billion patches and all that artsy punk stuff I've seen you wear 'round campus. I'm way too pleb for something like that, bro, you know that!"Sure, Alfred owns an amazing leather jacket that he loves to pieces and is actually planning to wear every dang day once it gets colder, but, Alfred knows he can't pull off the punk looks he's seen Artie wear around campus. Alfred knows that, after his father remarried, he comes from a completely different background from most of the people at this school, being upper middle class. Plus, Alfred has a hidden weakness for pastel everything that he's not sure he's even allowed to wear around here. Alfred's parents certainly have plenty of criticism to seeing him wearing pastel purple tank tops with pale baby blue athletic shorts when he went to the gym. And as much as Alfred jokes that Arthur is the one who has silly tastes, Alfred doesn't want to go out and wear something that'll just embarrass Arthur wherever they go. Alfred's the new kid on the scene, and he doesn't know the types of bars and clubs that are around the city. Despite everything, Alfred knows he's pretty self-conscious and there's nothing he can really do about that. With a blink, Alfred realizes he's gotten a bit distracted and zoned out entirely. At least he's in the other room and Arthur wouldn't notice, but Alfred still feels a little bad. He eventually just grabs a pale green muscle shirt and wanders out of his room and back to the living room. It's just in time for Alfred to catch the end of Arthur's statement. "--So… if I’m going to be stupid, then it might as well be with someone that I trust not to be entirely stupid right alongside me.""Wait, you're bringin' me along to be the sober buddy?" Alfred asks, voice a bit muffled by his shirt as he tugs it on over his head. When his head pops out of the neck-hole, Alfred's pouting a bit. "First time out clubbing and I don't get to get completely smashed and make a complete idiot outta myself? Then what's college even good for?"But his tone is joking, and his pout breaks into a grin as he wanders over to mess up Arthur's hair with both his hands. "Don't worry, Artie! I'll be the best designated driver you've ever had! I won't have a single drink, even!" It's probably better if Alfred doesn't drink--he has a fake ID, because he can't remember the age of legality here compared to back home. However, Alfred's also never really gone out drinking before. He knows the tingling feeling of being buzzed, but that's really it. "Make sure you don't get alcohol poisoning or suffocate in a pile of vomit or even go home with a random stranger! Hell, you can even camp out here if you want! I'm just not payin' for your drinks, dude."
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