EnglandxReader: Christmas Parties

 Walking down the halls with your head slightly lowered, you tried to ignore all the groups of girls whispering and pointing towards you. Not so popular with anyone and barely having friends yourself, many wondered why you even showed your face in school.

 Still, the small amount of nerdy, weird friends you had were close to you. Although your friends were much popular than you would ever be. Hell, Arthur could have girls at his feet by silently whispering 'love' into their ear.

 Currently, you were walking to Arthur's classroom during the lunch break to give him a bag of sweets you made him and to finally admit your newfound feeling of affection towards him. With only a few days before Christmas and Alfred's party tonight, you wanted to jump on the chance before someone else did.

 As you went to his room, 2-B, you slid open the door to see him talking with another girl. She was very pretty, long brown hair tied in dual pigtails and tanned skin. Both of them were talking so you just sat in wait. She seemed like a sweet girl.

 Then, he said something and her arms wrapped around his neck. He flinched but after a moment, embraced her as well. A nostalgic burning feeling came about in your eyes, nose and throat and tears began to blur your eyesight. Wiping the impending tears away, you dropped the sweets and quickly dashed out into the halls, holding yourself together until you went into the bathroom and was left alone in privacy.

 For a moment, you stood there, listening as people passed unknowing of the pain you felt stabbing at your heart. Then, your knees buckled and your armsa wrapped around your stomach, tears finally spilling but still and silent.

 After a moment, the cries suddenly began. Crawling over to the corner, you curled up and began to cry out more. The bathroom door opened but you payed no mind until a pair of hands grabbed your wrists and painfully pulled you to your feet.

 Vlad and Lukas were standing there, concerned looks on their faces. Tears silently streamed, a sniffle every now and again. Vlad opened his arms and took you in after a moment, allowing you to cry on his shoulder. Lukas moved beside you, gently rubbing your back as you continued to bawl.

 For awhile, you all stood there in the girl's bathroom as you cried your eyes out with them patiently awaiting you to stop. It took some time but eventually, you calmed down, standing numbly in Vlad's arms. His hang gently brushed your disheveled (h/c) hair in order.

 "He was..." You whispered hoarsely, a burning feeling in your throat. "I-I saw him..."

 Vlad held the back of your head, pressing it carefully into his chest to stop your talking. "I know...we saw and followed you when we saw you run..."

 Lukas pulled you into his arms, a handkerchief in his hand that wasn't there seconds before. You never questioned it, seeing nothing out of the ordinary anyway. He gently wiped your face and held your hand lightly. "How about we just eat lunch together...? Maybe you'll feel a bit better?"

 You nodded, standing in between both boys. Vlad gently massaged your hand in his, smiling sweetly. "Well, if Arthur can't bring you as his plus one tonight at Alfred's party, I'll take you. It might be nice to have some fun."

 "Yeah," you whispered hoarsely, resting your head on his shoulder.

 Arthur came up in front of you suddenly, stepping out of his class to see you a crying mess. His hand cupped your face, his emerald eyes boring into your own (e/c) ones. "What happened to you...?"

 "N-Nothing..." You whispered, your fingers reaching for Vlad's blazer. "I-I just hurt myself...I just want to go home right now..."

 "Here, I'll take you-"

 "We've got it." Vlad said in an almost monotonic voice, but it held a sort of spite behind it. "It's okay, two people is more than enough. She'll see you at the party tonight.

 Arthur began a sentence but you were urged past him. "A-Ah...see you there then..."

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 Only a few minutes into the party and you wanted to curl up in your own bed. Vlad ditched you to hang out with his friends the second he found them and Lukas was spending time with his siblings. Then, the music was loud and annoying, people were getting drunk and you sat all by your lonesome.

 After a long while, you decided you wanted to just go home. You hated people so close to you, continually knocking into you and  spilling drinks on you. They didn't even seem to notice until some of the popular girls came around.

 "Well looks like we've got ourself an outcast." One of them said contently. You suddenly noticed to drinks in her hand and in that instant, water was thrown into your face, ice and all.

 The cup fell to the ground, sounding like a crash as it hit the ground but only to you. They all laughed contently, leaving you alone with painful pricks on your face. Tears finally began to spill and you stood up, opt to leave.

 As you went towards the exit, someone grabbed your hand. You pulled viciously away only to have your shoulders grabbed and get spun to see Arthur there, completely confused.

 Seeing the tears and your soaked clothes, he covered his mouth with one nor his hands and took your hand. He led you outside, weaving through an endless crowd of people but managing to get outside.

 Once alone with him, a cry escaped your lips. His arms were immediately around you, holding you close and keeping you from the reality around you. "I'm going to take you home...you shouldn't be here...Vlad shouldn't have brought you..."

 "W...Why...?"

 "Love, you have personal space issues." He said considerately, rubbing your shoulders. "I can't even begin to imagine why you wanted to come here in the first place..."

 Looking towards you, he noticed tears coming again and laughed nervously. "N-Not saying that I'm not glad you're here...! I just don't want you to be miserable is all! Come here..."

 He pulled you close, your face in his shirt to the point where you could smell him upon breathing in. "I'm sorry, I'm making myself sound like a jerk, aren't I? I just...I don't want you to be pushing your boundaries, okay? If you don't like being around too many people, you should just tell me. I would've gladly stayed with you..."

 "W-What about your date...?" You breathed, your arms numbly wrapped around him. "What about that girl you brought...?"

 "She's a friend." He whispered, his fingers flowing through your hair with a delicacy that made you cringe. "She didn't have an invite but wanted to come to tell Alfred her true feelings...

 "It worked out rather well too. They've been together the entire night..." He whispered, kissing your hairline. "Come now...you're getting cold and I'll burn in hell before I'd allow a young lady to freeze..."

 You moved away but clung tightly onto his arm as he led you to his car. He opened the door for you, waiting for you to get in before shutting it without a noisy slam and then going to his side to climb in himself.

 Arthur started the car, pulling away from the house with his hand on the stick shift. Your cold hand rested on his, he payed no mind and continued driving as usual. By the time he was back in your lonesome driveway with a darkened house to follow, he noticed you had fallen asleep.

 Smiling to himself, he got out and carried you into the house bridal-style. He laid your limp body on the couch, going around the house to find a blanket and then returning to cover you.

 For awhile, he sat in silence and darkness until he finally decided to turn the lights on and turn the television to some movie. He sat on the couch, your head resting on his lap. His fingers moved carefully across your hair, making small ripples within it.

 Eventually like you, he fell asleep with the television on with his hand resting on your head.

______________________

 When you awoke, there was a smell of burning wafting through the air followed by aggravated mumbles. Getting up, you draped the warm blanket around your shoulders and went into the kitchen.

 Hiding by the entrance, you watched as Arthur stared at his food (if you could even call it that now) with his brows furrowed. "Come on Arthur...! You have to get this right...!"

 He pulled out his wand and was about to start a spell when you stepped in and coughed awkwardly into your hand. Quickly spinning to face you, he tried to cover his...creation behind his back. "G-Good morning! H-How about you go lay down for awhile!"

 Smiling, you shook your head and wrapped your arms around his neck. "I wanna spend time with you Artie...t-thanks for getting me out of there last night..."

 He smiled softly, kissing your forehead and relaxing. "It's okay..." You nudged his shoulder, feeling his arms around you.  "Listen...how about you go relax on the couch and I'll bring you something..."

 "It's okay Arthur..." You said with a smile. "I know you tried but magic isn't going to help you...it usually just ruins you..."

 Both of you shared a soft laugh before Arthur cupped your face and pressed your lips together. It was short and sweet but you didn't move at all during the kiss. You were afraid to. To lose him.

 When he pulled away, you shut your eyes and leaned onto him. "You know I love you Arthur..."

 "I know..." He whispered, kissing your forehead again.