Maple Syrup and Unrequited Love. Chapter 1: Beginnings
Maple Syrup and Unrequited Love: Chapter 1, Beginnings
[fanfiction.net link]
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"Hey! What do you think you're doing, eh?" a voice called out, suddenly snapping him out of his thoughts.
Gilbert closed his eyes, trying to ignore the pounding footstep heading in his direction. After a few seconds, it simply became too hard to evade. Scowling furiously, he quickly turned around.
A blond bespeckled man was scrambling towards him…An unpleasantly familiar face. It could only be Alfred Jones, the annoying pest that lived on the apartment floor above his. If the nosey brat had came all the way up here to taunt him, Gilbert would be more than happy to fling him over the edge as well.
"Mind your own damn business!" he growled. "And you're the one to talk. I should be asking you the same question!"
The blond gave a brief pause before speaking again. "T-that's not important right now! Just get down from there! I-it's dangerous!"
"Who the hell do you think you are, telling the awesome me what do?" Gilbert rebutted, but the boy quickly, almost impulsively snagged his arm in a firm, tight grip.
"Oi! Let go of me, you stupid little brat!" he tugged, persistently trying to loosen the iron grasp.
"No! Not until you get away from that ledge!"
Gilbert inspected the boy carefully, their eyes locking together for a moment. Almost instantly, he began noticing new things about the other. He had been mistaken. 'This couldn't possibly be that Jones kid,' he concluded. The boy's voice was slightly softer and had a much sweeter ring to it. But most prominently, was better looking than Jones by a mile's run. Oddly enough though, it wasn't enough to say he resembled Alfred quite a bit.
Gilbert twitched in annoyance. Quite a bit of time had probably passed since that stupid blond made his way on the roof. Yet, nothing much happened besides the fact that the two of them were standing near the ledge like two blubbering idiots. The kid didn't look like he was going to give in anytime soon, graping tighter than ever. One could only have so much patience, and he definitely wasn't planning on spending the rest of his day in a total standstill.
'Damn. Well, that sure ruined the mood' Gilbert cursed, quickly pulling himself back on the other side of the railing. "There. You happy, kid? Now fuck off!" he snarled, flailing his arms in the air.
The blond didn't budge an inch. Instead, he extended his arm for a formal hand shake. "Let's have a better start, with a proper introduction now shall we. I'm Matthew Williams,"
"Williams, huh?" Gilbert inquired, shrugging off the friendly gesture. "I thought for sure you'd be related to Jones. You know, the kid who lives on the seventh floor. You two look almost the same…Almost
Gilbert noticed Matthew's lips curling up into a slight smile. "Alfred's my half brother…"
"What? That kid has a brother?"
"Yeah…he doesn't talk much about me, though. But, I suppose it can't be helped…Alfred always manages to outshine me in every way…"
"Welcome to the club, then." Gilbert sighed, remembering how Ludwig, his younger brother, was living a more successful life than him.
"So, are you going to tell me your name?" the blond asked, curiously.
"Listen kiddo. I've graced you with my awesome presence long enough" Gilbert replied, giving the other male a brief pat on the shoulder "But I'm not here to make friends or anything. Now go find someone else to bug and leave me alone,"
Matthew shook his head. "I don't think so. And I'm not leaving the roof until you do,"
The silver haired man let out a frustrated groan. 'Damn persistent little brat,' As much as he was a moral less man, he at least had the dignity not to scar the kid for life by jumping right in front of him.
"Fine, fine. But will you stop following me?" Gilbert snapped. With his mood ruined, the albino man headed towards the door and down the stairs. Everything would just have to wait another day.
The other boy remained silent, watching him carefully, not once faltering his gaze. Slowly, and only keeping a few paces behind, Matthew began following Gilbert into the apartment complex.
.....
"God damn it! What part of 'fuck off' do you not understand?" Gilbert screeched a few minutes later. "I got off the ledge, I left the roof, now will you leave me the hell alone?" The kid was still behind him, observing each and every move he made. "What are you going to do now, huh? Follow me home? Because that CERTINALLY won't be happening!"
Matthew gave no answer. Rather, he seized Gilbert's arm again, pulling him in the other direction. "No, Come with me,"
Gilbert resisted for a moment, before reluctantly following the other man. Nonetheless, he had an odd, bumbling feeling that he was going to somehow regret this. But either way, It wasn't like he had anything to lose. Matt probably wasn't going to leave until he got what he wanted. And more than anything, Gilbert just wanted that annoying brat off his case.
.....
"Yeesh. I know I'm totally irresistibly awesome and stuff, but you're just going to let a total stranger in your house now?" Gilbert questioned as he followed Matthew into his apartment.
The other boy shrugged. "Well, it's the only way I can keep an eye on you, eh,"
"What are you, some creepy stalker? And why the hell do you care, anyway?" he growled.
Matt hesitated for a moment before continuing "W-Well, it just looked like you were having a miserable day that's all, really. I-I thought I might have something that will cheer you up,"
The silver haired man sighed, taking another careful glance at the boy. Quickly, he decided, that there was probably no eminent danger. As much as he didn't know what was upcoming, at least the kid didn't look like some psychotic murderer, rapist or anything in that category…And even if he was, Gilbert knew he could easily overpower the frail boy.
Taking a seat at the nearest table, Gilbert took a quick look at the apartment room, noting the unique features. A giant American flag hung proudly against the wall, along with the words 'Hero Power!' scribbled in bold writing. A large flat panel TV stood prominently in the living room. 'Yup… Jones resides here, alright' he thought to himself. Gilbert had passed by the apartment room many times in the past, but never did he have an inside view till today…just like how he was unaware that annoying kid Alfred, had a brother as well…
And still, he pondered for a good minute and wondered why the kid was so keen in following and helping him around, but quickly settled that the boy was simply charmed by his awesomness.
.....
Matthew appeared from the kitchen a good half hour later with a steaming plate of pancakes.
"What is the meaning of this?" Gilbert snapped.
"Well, a good stack of pancakes always makes me feel better after an awful day. I thought I'd make some for you," the blond replied dully.
Gilbert stared blankly at the other boy. 'What a weird kid…'he thought. 'This was crazy.' First, that brat randomly dragged him to his home and now, was treating him to a fresh home cooked meal? What kind of strange shit was he going to do next?'
Matthew paused, noticing the albino man had been watching him for a while. "Go on. They're not poisoned," he ushered before reaching for a bottle of sticky brown liquid, carefully pouring some all over his stack.
"What the fuck is that stuff? Honey or something?" Gilbert asked, eyeing the bottle.
"Not exactly - maple syrup. It's not nearly as strong. But trust me… it'll go well with the pancakes,"
Seeing Matt neatly cutting a piece of pancake before putting it in his mouth, chewing happily, Gilbert decided it was probably safe. Following the kid, the silver haired man grabbed the bottle and drenched his pancakes with that brown stuff. Ripping a chunk off with his fork, he carefully placed the in his mouth…
He was in heaven. The warm, buttery pastry melted on his tongue. The sweet, sugary syrup dripped slowly down his throat, leaving him with a fresh, pleasant feeling.
Matthew smiled, seeing the satisfied look on the older man's face. "See, I told you they were good,"
But Gilbert didn't hear him, too mesmerized with the pancakes to notice his surroundings - happily shoveling down mouthful after mouthful of the warm, tasty pastry and sweet maple syrup. He was in total estacy, enjoying each and every last bite, feeling a rush of euphoria flowing through his veins. Within a couple minutes, the two men had finished off the whole entire stack.
"You know, there's something I've been meaning to ask," Matthew suddenly broke the silence. "Earlier today - on the roof, you were planning to jump, weren't you?"
Gilbert looked up, red eyes narrowing. 'Who did the brat think he was, asking that damn disgruntling question?'
The words had hit hard, like a rock in the bottom pits of his stomach. Quickly, Gilbert felt his joy being replaced with utter annoyance."Why the hell should I tell you?" he snarled, startling the blond.
"W-well, to be totally honest" Matt nervously continued "I-I was…kind of thinking of doing the same…"
"You what?" Gilbert exclaimed, suddenly dropping his fork on the ground in a wave of shock and fury.
"W-well, I was thinking about it…a-and went to the roof to check it out…"
"And then what? You thought you had the right to be all high and mighty and tell me what to do?" the albino man screeched, his voice becoming louder and louder with each word.
Matt let out a small squeak. "N-no. It's not like that at all. I-I probably wasn't going to do it...a-at least not today…t-then I saw you on that ledge,"
"Fucking hell! Then why did you even bother stopping me?" Gilbert screamed at the poor boy.
"I-I don't know. I-it's just that…t-that…I just didn't want you to throw your life away, alright!" the blond trembled.
"And you were perfectly willing to throw away your own life? You wouldn't let me, yet you were planning to leap yourself? "
"You have no idea what I've put up with all my life!" Matthew hissed acidly, feeling his anger starting to boil.
"Bullshit!" Gilbert snapped. "I've been through more than you can ever imagine, you little brat!"
"You don't know me. You don't know anything about the pain and sorrow I've been through," Matt gritted his teeth angrily, taking a few deep breaths in between. "But nothing you say will change the past or how we feel about our lives. If you just stop for a minute and let me speak, we might be able to come to a better understanding and maybe even help each other a bit with our perils,"
"Pfft. Who're you kidding. Like a stinking brat such as you would be able to give me any advice!" Gilbert snorted. "Oh Boo-Ho! Look at me. I'm so pitiful, I'll just go around picking up random strangers and dragging them to my house so we can sit around, bitch, and moan about how miserable we are," he mocked, raising his voice to a high pitched whine. "Look kid. It's you that doesn't know shit. Now go run along and play with your fucking dolls or something. Then we'll both be cool,"
And that was enough to pull the trigger on Matt's rage. "Quit being so stubborn and ignorant! Just shut up and listen for once! You may think you have a grip on everything, but there are plenty of burdens that neither of us can handle! " the blond exploded, exasperating and blasting his voice as loud as it could possibly go, his face nearly turning red from rage and anger.
The room was deathly silent.
Gilbert just stood there, wide eyed and in shock for a moment at the other boy's sudden outburst. Slowly, he came back to his senses, remembering the argument they were in . "I don't need your pity, you damn hypocrite! Just fucking leave me alone!" He screeched back.
He was totally shaken to the core. Gilbert had no idea the kid could pack such a hard punch. After that racket, he was beginning to feel queasy, albeit uneasy about the whole situation. More importantly, all he wanted was to get out of here, away from this crap. Anywhere would be fine as long as it was away from all this bull. Briskly, he scrambled towards the front of the house, desperately trying to make his leave. "And don't even thinkabout following me again!" he yelled before storming out, furiously slamming the door behind him.
"W-wait…don't go" Matt called out, still catching his breath, but the older man was already gone.
.....
Gilbert grumbled wretchedly as he walked down the street and into the cold night. Though the crisp air had managed to sooth his nerves a bit, his mind was still endlessly swirling and clouded with discombobulation.
Damn kid. Damn that little brat. His whole entire day was ruined. Why did he have to have the misfortune of bumping into that stupid kid? Why did that boy have to be so fucking relentless, only to save and treat him with such kindness? No body had ever cared for him before, yet alone offered to help. And somehow, that very thought left him with a calm, reassuring feeling inside. What were those odd emotions? He could not quite comprehend, Whatever they were, Gilbert was more confused than ever.
'How could that freaking idiot be so heedless about his own life? - And what the hell was the brat so depressed about anyway?' he continued to wonder. Not that it was any of his concern, of course. It was probably something dumb and laughable, after all. That kid. That stupid damned kid...
Maybe he had been a bit too harsh by yelling. In the end, the brat was only trying to help. 'Was it? Should he at least try to make up for his sudden rage and outburst? Would it be the right thing to go back and apologize?' Gilbert asked himself.
'Nah,' he decided a few minutes later. 'Too cool for apologies, sorries, and all that sissy stuff.
He was miserable enough already. All he could think about was that kid, his mind completely plagued by images of that fucking blond boy. 'This is totally not awesome,' he moaned, haplessly.
And for the first time in his life, Gilbert Beilschmidt was feeling sorry for someone other than himself.
Desperate times called for desperate measures and there was only one thing the albino man wanted to do at the moment - that was to get completely drunk, wasted and forget the whole day even happened...
.....
"Gimmie a glass of your strongest beer," Gilbert uttered to the bartender as he entered the bar.
He snagged the drink the moment it was handed to him, chugging down the strong liquid with one single breath.
'Good old alcohol…always does the trick,'Gilbert thought as the pleasant, warm liquid rushed through his veins, bringing that fantastic 'buzzed' feeling he loved so much to his brain.
Happily, he chuckled to himself, drowning one glass after another. And down with the liquor, out all his sorrows went. As for Gilbert, there couldn't be a better way to spend the day than drinking and wallowing all his pains away.
Two hours and six glasses later, he was utterly and completely hammered.
"Sir, we're closing in five minutes. You should start packing up," the bartender told him.
Gilbert grunted. It was probably time to head back, anyways. Ludwig would sure throw a fit once he saw him coming back this late and drunk as well…
Sleepily, he reached into his coat pocket for his wallet to leave the bartender a tip before heading out. Except there was no wallet, nor was his coat with him either…
The silver haired man blinked - did the awesome Gilbert Beilschmidt just get pick pocketed?
'Wait a minute,'he thought, furrowing his brows together and trying to remember everything that happened today. Walking to the bar, marching out, anger, maple syrup, pancakes, that kid, Matthew Williams was it?
'Fuck!'
He knew exactly where his coat, along with his wallet and cell phone were. They were in that brat's house. He had left it there when he stormed out earlier.
.....
Matthew was stunned.
And just like that, the silver haired man left. He had failed. There was nothing left he could do now. Matthew could only hope the older man didn't go out and do something foolish.
Sighing to himself, the blond walked back to the table and began gathering the plates. They had made a mess, and he would have to clean it sooner or later…
Just then, a flash of blue caught his eye. On one of the chairs was a navy blue jacket. Matthew picked it up, studying it carefully. It definitely wasn't his…and he was sure Alfred didn't own any jackets like that. Then it hit him. It belonged to the Albino man. The older man had left his jacket at his house…
Matt felt something heavy in one of the pockets. Curiosity won over him as he decided to take a quick peek. It was a wallet and a cell phone.
"So, your name is Gilbert Beilschmidt, eh?" the blond smiled as he looked through the wallet.
Matthew wasn't sure where the man had ran off too, or when he would finally realize his stuff was gone. He decided there was only one thing to do…
"Hmm, now where is it?" he wondered as he flipped through Gilbert's cell phone, searching though the contact list. He was hoping to find the man's home phone or something in the likes and give him a call to come pick up his stuff.
Quickly, he fumbled with the little keys going though all the names, until one particular name caught his eye.
"N-no way…It can't be…T-that man…" Matt trembled, nearly dropping the phone in fear…
'Francis Bonnefoy' read the highlighted name.
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