They Said to Stop [3a/?]
anonymous
November 2 2010, 16:00:27 UTC
Matthew isn’t known for taking decisive action - he prefers the more subtle forms of expression, the type that once led to him gluing all Alfred’s plastic green army men to the floor. It ends in the same amount of trouble, but it draws less attention.
So when it happens, no one is more surprised than Matthew.
“Matt,” Alfred says, sounding remarkably calm considering his brother just tried to suck his face off. “What was that?”
“I, I don’t know,” admits Matthew, both infuriated and frustrated with himself. He does know of course, but would deny until death that he’s dreamt about kissing Alfred.
“I have to go out,” he hears himself saying suddenly, recoiling from where he’d all but shoved Alfred into the wall. “There’s somewhere I need to be.”
“It’s midnight!” Alfred points out, an odd panic rising in his voice. Matthew has never heard it before, and is galled to know he’s the cause of it. “Where are you going?” Alfred repeats when Matthew is unresponsive, pulling on yesterday’s jeans and fumbling to find his hoody in the laundry basket.
“I’ll crash somewhere.”
“You don’t know anyone to crash with.”
“Well sorry!” Matthew finds himself snapping, “We’re not all blessed with an endless supply of friends!” He pretends he doesn’t see the hurt look on Alfred’s face. It’s gone a minute later anyhow; Alfred is never anything less than perfectly happy. Perfectly normal.
The cold air hits Matthew like a reality check. He huddles into his jacket and walks with purpose down the street, pretending he has somewhere to go in case Alfred is watching from the bedroom window.
In the end he spends the night at a twenty-four hour coffee shop. Orders coffee after coffee just to keep himself awake.
Awake so he can punish himself, recalling how excited that kiss made him feel.
-------
That autumn, Matthew agrees to attend the homecoming game for the first time. He sits squished in between Francis and Arthur up at the top of the bleachers, wearing one of Alfred’s school jerseys and ball cap, just another body in the sea of blue and white.
Growing up with Alfred, it’s inevitable Matthew knows the rules. As such he spends the majority of the game explaining them to Arthur - not that he minds much, especially since they’re inevitably losing by a score of 28-0 in the fourth.
But Matthew enjoys himself nonetheless; smiles at those glimpses of Alfred trying to boost team morale. Alfred is the best their school has had in a long time, but it hasn’t been enough to turn the school’s fortunes around. And while Alfred pretends he can take the pressure of carrying the team on his shoulders, Matthew knows better. Even Alfred is struggling these days, though admittedly, Matthew hasn’t helped his focus much by showing up to each practice.
They won’t see each other after the game. There are certain conventions Alfred has to keep, and as the star player the dance committee is relying on his charisma to draw crowds to the gymnasium. But Alfred has promised to sneak out as early as possible. Whispered it against Matthew’s lips that very morning.
And Alfred is never one to break promises.
-------
At some point during the night Matthew must fall asleep, the groves of the table imprinting on his left cheek. He rubs at the indents scattered across his skin as he pushes upward, taking in the bustling coffee shop around him.
Taking in Alfred calmly sitting across from him, picking the raisins out of a donut.
“Oh god,” Matthew groans and slouches back down, pressing his forehead to the edge of the table and hoping that if he shuts his eyes tight enough, Alfred will disappear. Instead Alfred steps on his foot, shoving the donut across the table like a peace offering.
Like Alfred’s the one who should be apologizing.
“Mom and Dad are freaking out, y’know.”
Matthew nudges the pile of raisins away, picking at the remnants of the donut. Alfred’s expression is neutral but his hand darts forward, their fingers brushing, as Alfred grabs a raisin and pops it into his mouth.
“Had them call the school, so we’re free to play hokey today.”
Matthew can’t even give Alfred a reply, just nods weakly.
They Said to Stop [3b/?]
anonymous
November 2 2010, 16:03:17 UTC
-------
Alfred’s a good kid, but he always finds trouble. That’s what the teachers say, shaking their heads with a mixture of amusement and regret. Always has to play the hero, no matter how many times he is punished for it.
The rumours began in the first class after lunch - that in the cafeteria, Alfred defended a girl from the terrifying Ivan Braginsky. But the story morphs and soon the whispers talk about how it was really a gang from the high school a district over and that Alfred is sporting a black eye.
Matthew worries all through history and then all through the detention period, camped out in front of Alfred’s locker. He watches the shuffle of feet curve around him until finally the halls are silent and Alfred trudges up the stairs from the first floor, grinning sheepishly as he waggles a hand hello.
There’s no black eye, just a bandage peaking out from under Alfred’s bangs.
“I’m checking under it when we get home,” threatens Matthew, hoisting himself up and stepping aside as Alfred spins open his lock. The locker door clangs loudly against its neighbour; Alfred grins.
“You worried all afternoon, right?”
“They said you- oh never mind,” huffs Matthew, curling his arms around his torso. “Was it Ivan?”
“You know how we get,” replies Alfred with a shrug, throwing a textbook into the back of the locker and rooting for his jacket. He waves a hand flippantly back at Matthew, quoting: “You are quite an idiot, friend, da?. I couldn’t just let a comment like that slip, him calling me a friend.”
“Right.”
“Right.” Alfred slams the locker shut and smiles brightly at Matthew, “I knew you’d see it my way.” Then quickly, before Matthew can react, Alfred leans over and presses his lips to the corner of Matthew’s mouth. “Buy me a cola?”
“Alfred!” Matthew hisses but Alfred waves him off with a laugh, grabbing Matthew’s bag and dragging him down the hall.
Neither of them sees Francis staring at them from the door of the neighbouring classroom.
-------
A sticky note on the refrigerator says Matthew’s favourite corned beef sandwiches are inside. Matthew fingers it absently, stalling.
“I don’t mind, you know,” Alfred says from his perch at the counter, feet twisting around the legs of the stool. “If this is what you want.”
“Alfred -” Matthew starts as he clenches a fist, worrying his bottom lip and turning to meet his brother’s eyes. “Don’t do this.”
“I’ve thought about this a lot,” continues Alfred, plowing on like he hasn’t heard Matthew at all. “We can make this work.”
Matthew grits his teeth. “This. Can’t. Work.”
There’s a pause, and Alfred stares at Matthew, appraising. And Matthew wills himself to look stern and unyielding, not tired and hopeless like he’s really feeling.
Alfred raises an eyebrow and cracks a smile. “Pass me a sandwich, love.”
It’s hard to decide which desire is greater: wanting to punch Alfred, or wanting to hug him in relief.
-------
op, I'm so sorry! I meant to have this up sooner, but apparently I'm a horrifically slow writer. I can't promise when I'll get the next chapter up but if you're still around, I do have a plan and want to finish this story!
Re: They Said to Stop [3b/?]
anonymous
November 2 2010, 17:07:35 UTC
I'm glad you're finishing this! I read the first 2 chapters when you originally posted them and its good to see a continuation.
I really loved this chapter, especially part b with Francis and the twins stressing over their relationship. Alfred's 'Pass me a sandwhich, love.' is such a beautiful line :)
Not OP but:
anonymous
November 2 2010, 18:27:44 UTC
Oh..my..gosh...You returned!! *Squeals*
*Cough* Anyway, yeah, to see an update to this is so much happiness. I thought for sure that this became another dead fic and I was so sad about that because the first 2 chapters was so awesome. But-but you returned! So yeah, you're awesome.
I really do love this story. One minute it makes me squeal in giddyness for all the fluff and sweetness and the next, it makes my stomach clentch at the hints of angst and the inevtable blow up when people find out about just how close Alfred and Matthew are. This is especially true with the way the passage of time is in this fic. It does get a bit confusing but the effect it creates certainly has a bigger impact.
"Neither of them sees Francis staring at them from the door of the neighbouring classroom." <--So this line, just made my heart stop for a second. It'll be interesting to see how Francis plays a role in all of this (if he does). I also assume that this occurs before the football practice in chapter 1 when Francis made that comment about Matthew's staring?
"You are quite an idiot, friend, da?. I couldn’t just let a comment like that slip, him calling me a friend.” Oh, Alfred, funny how you don't even bother denying the "idoit" part. Haha, I'm a huge Ivan and Alfred paring fan, be it in the romantic, friendship or frenmy sense. Thus, I admit I'm hoping Ivan shows up more in this story and somehow in the supporting/comforting role for Alfred in the end.
Oh yeah, yay for the Kiku and Alfred friendship. haha, can't get enought of those two buddies. :]
haha, Arthur's so has a crush. I feel bad for him and as much as I ship Alfred/Arthur, this story is about Matthew and Alfred. So, sorry Arthur!
Alfred in the end is so adorkable. It really makes me see what exactly his thought process was when Matthew left the house like that.
Oh and I love how Matthew is characterized in this. I wished I had more to say about him. Guess my character bias is quite clear in this >.< Maybe in the next chapter I'll review/aimlessy rant more about him then (and there will be a next chapter right? You can't just leave the readers in suspense again, not after saying you're going to finish this story! Well you can...but please don't!)
Even though you say you won't know when you're going to update again, I hope it's soon. :]
OP loves you to pieces!
anonymous
November 4 2010, 10:10:30 UTC
WAH! You came back!! Oh, anon, you don't know how much I adore you and this fill. It is utterly beautiful and hot and heart-wrenching and yet warm fuzzy scattering at the same time. I shivered at the bit about Francis seeing them, I really did. And oh, Alfred, how can we blame Matt for wanting to shove you against a wall and kiss you senseless when you do such incredibly sweet things?
Thank [i]you[/i] author anon. I too, have struggled with writing and have had things languish as I struggle to bring them to the next point. I honestly, truly do love this story though, and I shall look forward to the next installment. ~~~<3
Re: They Said to Stop [3b/?]
anonymous
November 14 2010, 07:45:53 UTC
This is, like, the freaking second coming. O.O!!!! KAAAAAAAA! I love the backstory on how Alfred and Matthew's romantic relationship formed! I wondered--I mean, the circumstances had to be just right, and just KAAAAAAA! OMG, they're found out by Francis? *dies happy* Dig me up when the next section is posted! <3 Love this, anon!
captcha: respect allegiance. I pledge allegiance to this fic... >8D
So when it happens, no one is more surprised than Matthew.
“Matt,” Alfred says, sounding remarkably calm considering his brother just tried to suck his face off. “What was that?”
“I, I don’t know,” admits Matthew, both infuriated and frustrated with himself. He does know of course, but would deny until death that he’s dreamt about kissing Alfred.
“I have to go out,” he hears himself saying suddenly, recoiling from where he’d all but shoved Alfred into the wall. “There’s somewhere I need to be.”
“It’s midnight!” Alfred points out, an odd panic rising in his voice. Matthew has never heard it before, and is galled to know he’s the cause of it. “Where are you going?” Alfred repeats when Matthew is unresponsive, pulling on yesterday’s jeans and fumbling to find his hoody in the laundry basket.
“I’ll crash somewhere.”
“You don’t know anyone to crash with.”
“Well sorry!” Matthew finds himself snapping, “We’re not all blessed with an endless supply of friends!” He pretends he doesn’t see the hurt look on Alfred’s face. It’s gone a minute later anyhow; Alfred is never anything less than perfectly happy. Perfectly normal.
The cold air hits Matthew like a reality check. He huddles into his jacket and walks with purpose down the street, pretending he has somewhere to go in case Alfred is watching from the bedroom window.
In the end he spends the night at a twenty-four hour coffee shop. Orders coffee after coffee just to keep himself awake.
Awake so he can punish himself, recalling how excited that kiss made him feel.
-------
That autumn, Matthew agrees to attend the homecoming game for the first time. He sits squished in between Francis and Arthur up at the top of the bleachers, wearing one of Alfred’s school jerseys and ball cap, just another body in the sea of blue and white.
Growing up with Alfred, it’s inevitable Matthew knows the rules. As such he spends the majority of the game explaining them to Arthur - not that he minds much, especially since they’re inevitably losing by a score of 28-0 in the fourth.
But Matthew enjoys himself nonetheless; smiles at those glimpses of Alfred trying to boost team morale. Alfred is the best their school has had in a long time, but it hasn’t been enough to turn the school’s fortunes around. And while Alfred pretends he can take the pressure of carrying the team on his shoulders, Matthew knows better. Even Alfred is struggling these days, though admittedly, Matthew hasn’t helped his focus much by showing up to each practice.
They won’t see each other after the game. There are certain conventions Alfred has to keep, and as the star player the dance committee is relying on his charisma to draw crowds to the gymnasium. But Alfred has promised to sneak out as early as possible. Whispered it against Matthew’s lips that very morning.
And Alfred is never one to break promises.
-------
At some point during the night Matthew must fall asleep, the groves of the table imprinting on his left cheek. He rubs at the indents scattered across his skin as he pushes upward, taking in the bustling coffee shop around him.
Taking in Alfred calmly sitting across from him, picking the raisins out of a donut.
“Oh god,” Matthew groans and slouches back down, pressing his forehead to the edge of the table and hoping that if he shuts his eyes tight enough, Alfred will disappear. Instead Alfred steps on his foot, shoving the donut across the table like a peace offering.
Like Alfred’s the one who should be apologizing.
“Mom and Dad are freaking out, y’know.”
Matthew nudges the pile of raisins away, picking at the remnants of the donut. Alfred’s expression is neutral but his hand darts forward, their fingers brushing, as Alfred grabs a raisin and pops it into his mouth.
“Had them call the school, so we’re free to play hokey today.”
Matthew can’t even give Alfred a reply, just nods weakly.
Reply
Alfred’s a good kid, but he always finds trouble. That’s what the teachers say, shaking their heads with a mixture of amusement and regret. Always has to play the hero, no matter how many times he is punished for it.
The rumours began in the first class after lunch - that in the cafeteria, Alfred defended a girl from the terrifying Ivan Braginsky. But the story morphs and soon the whispers talk about how it was really a gang from the high school a district over and that Alfred is sporting a black eye.
Matthew worries all through history and then all through the detention period, camped out in front of Alfred’s locker. He watches the shuffle of feet curve around him until finally the halls are silent and Alfred trudges up the stairs from the first floor, grinning sheepishly as he waggles a hand hello.
There’s no black eye, just a bandage peaking out from under Alfred’s bangs.
“I’m checking under it when we get home,” threatens Matthew, hoisting himself up and stepping aside as Alfred spins open his lock. The locker door clangs loudly against its neighbour; Alfred grins.
“You worried all afternoon, right?”
“They said you- oh never mind,” huffs Matthew, curling his arms around his torso. “Was it Ivan?”
“You know how we get,” replies Alfred with a shrug, throwing a textbook into the back of the locker and rooting for his jacket. He waves a hand flippantly back at Matthew, quoting: “You are quite an idiot, friend, da?. I couldn’t just let a comment like that slip, him calling me a friend.”
“Right.”
“Right.” Alfred slams the locker shut and smiles brightly at Matthew, “I knew you’d see it my way.” Then quickly, before Matthew can react, Alfred leans over and presses his lips to the corner of Matthew’s mouth. “Buy me a cola?”
“Alfred!” Matthew hisses but Alfred waves him off with a laugh, grabbing Matthew’s bag and dragging him down the hall.
Neither of them sees Francis staring at them from the door of the neighbouring classroom.
-------
A sticky note on the refrigerator says Matthew’s favourite corned beef sandwiches are inside. Matthew fingers it absently, stalling.
“I don’t mind, you know,” Alfred says from his perch at the counter, feet twisting around the legs of the stool. “If this is what you want.”
“Alfred -” Matthew starts as he clenches a fist, worrying his bottom lip and turning to meet his brother’s eyes. “Don’t do this.”
“I’ve thought about this a lot,” continues Alfred, plowing on like he hasn’t heard Matthew at all. “We can make this work.”
Matthew grits his teeth. “This. Can’t. Work.”
There’s a pause, and Alfred stares at Matthew, appraising. And Matthew wills himself to look stern and unyielding, not tired and hopeless like he’s really feeling.
Alfred raises an eyebrow and cracks a smile. “Pass me a sandwich, love.”
It’s hard to decide which desire is greater: wanting to punch Alfred, or wanting to hug him in relief.
-------
op, I'm so sorry! I meant to have this up sooner, but apparently I'm a horrifically slow writer. I can't promise when I'll get the next chapter up but if you're still around, I do have a plan and want to finish this story!
Thanks to anyone still reading ♥
Reply
Reply
I really loved this chapter, especially part b with Francis and the twins stressing over their relationship. Alfred's 'Pass me a sandwhich, love.' is such a beautiful line :)
Reply
*Cough* Anyway, yeah, to see an update to this is so much happiness. I thought for sure that this became another dead fic and I was so sad about that because the first 2 chapters was so awesome. But-but you returned! So yeah, you're awesome.
I really do love this story. One minute it makes me squeal in giddyness for all the fluff and sweetness and the next, it makes my stomach clentch at the hints of angst and the inevtable blow up when people find out about just how close Alfred and Matthew are.
This is especially true with the way the passage of time is in this fic. It does get a bit confusing but the effect it creates certainly has a bigger impact.
"Neither of them sees Francis staring at them from the door of the neighbouring classroom." <--So this line, just made my heart stop for a second. It'll be interesting to see how Francis plays a role in all of this (if he does). I also assume that this occurs before the football practice in chapter 1 when Francis made that comment about Matthew's staring?
"You are quite an idiot, friend, da?. I couldn’t just let a comment like that slip, him calling me a friend.” Oh, Alfred, funny how you don't even bother denying the "idoit" part. Haha, I'm a huge Ivan and Alfred paring fan, be it in the romantic, friendship or frenmy sense. Thus, I admit I'm hoping Ivan shows up more in this story and somehow in the supporting/comforting role for Alfred in the end.
Oh yeah, yay for the Kiku and Alfred friendship. haha, can't get enought of those two buddies. :]
haha, Arthur's so has a crush. I feel bad for him and as much as I ship Alfred/Arthur, this story is about Matthew and Alfred. So, sorry Arthur!
Alfred in the end is so adorkable. It really makes me see what exactly his thought process was when Matthew left the house like that.
Oh and I love how Matthew is characterized in this. I wished I had more to say about him. Guess my character bias is quite clear in this >.< Maybe in the next chapter I'll review/aimlessy rant more about him then (and there will be a next chapter right? You can't just leave the readers in suspense again, not after saying you're going to finish this story! Well you can...but please don't!)
Even though you say you won't know when you're going to update again, I hope it's soon. :]
Sorry for the long rant! Thanks author-anon.
Reply
You updated! :D :D :D Oh god, I am so glad you decided to continue, because this is just amazing!
Reply
I just discovered this fill and it's so fun!
Matt and Alfred just go together so well and so cutely :)
Haha, this makes me feel like I'm in grade school again, wow.
Reply
Reply
*HUGS FOREVER*
And oh, Mattie, with your "I wanna but, no, bad!" ;A; GOOD THING YOUR BROTHER IS STUBBORN. :|
♥ ♥ ♥
Reply
Thank [i]you[/i] author anon. I too, have struggled with writing and have had things languish as I struggle to bring them to the next point. I honestly, truly do love this story though, and I shall look forward to the next installment. ~~~<3
Reply
captcha: respect allegiance. I pledge allegiance to this fic... >8D
Reply
Leave a comment