The next day was awful, but sleeping next to Alfred and wondering if he was the killer and knowing that suspecting your boyfriend of being the killer was probably the worst thing Arthur could ever do, was just too much. He needed to get some distance to think properly.
“You know, I was thinking… it seems like everything’s settled down lately,” Arthur said to Alfred during breakfast. He knew that on Tuesdays, Alfred had afternoon classes but Arthur had work as usual in the mornings so Alfred usually just went to campus a few hours too early. “I can probably start going to work alone now,” he said.
Alfred paused in the middle of jabbing his cereal. “You don’t want me to take you to school?”
“It’s not that – I just think, you have late classes today and everything – wouldn’t it be easier if you didn’t have to drive me everywhere?” Arthur said and smiled.
Alfred didn’t say anything for a moment but finally he exhaled and leaned back. “All right, if that’s what you want,” he said. “But only to school. I’ll drive you anywhere else you need to go,” he said. “And call me if you have to work late. You shouldn’t be out on the streets then.”
“I could probably get someone else to take me home. You don’t have to stay waiting for me—”
“I’ll pick you up,” Alfred said in a tone that said there was going to be no argument.
Arthur gave in. Alfred was already being better about this than he’d expected.
“Then I’ll get going or I won’t get there in time,” Arthur said as he put his dishes in the sink. “I’ll see you tonight,” he said and left the apartment alone in what felt like a long time.
It was like a breath of fresh air when he got on the bus again. Even though it was supposedly where he’d gotten attacked and kidnapped, that day had been so confused that Arthur didn’t feel afraid when he got on the bus. It only felt like he was stepping back into his old life before the assault had happened and Alfred had come back into his life.
“It’ll be fine,” Arthur told himself even though he could tell Alfred hadn’t been happy about Arthur’s decision. It was unhealthy being with Alfred all of the time – waking together, going to work together, coming home together, and spending all that time together. He couldn’t stand for Alfred to move out, but at least this way, it felt a little more like he was less needy and dependent – more like himself.
Work that day was better than usual as Arthur looked over a few grant proposals, had a good business lunch with some of the professors, and was offered the opportunity to go on a business trip over to Cambridge for a seminar on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Arthur was never going to reject an opportunity to study more Shakespeare so of course he agreed. Although he did have instructions not to go traveling anywhere far without company, Francis was also going to go and while he was hardly Arthur’s choice of companion, it did mean that he could go without fear of being targeted again.
As the icing on the cake, Arthur was fairly sure he won the argument he and Francis got in about whether Sartre or Kierkegaard was the better writer and philosopher. It was all enough to take Arthur’s mind off the Leatherface Killer and by the time he got back to the flat that afternoon, feeling better about his life and the world in general, he was sure it couldn’t be Alfred.
“Alfred,” Arthur said as soon as he walked into the apartment, bursting to tell Alfred everything that had gone right that day. He’d made a good decision for once and Arthur was sorry for doubting Alfred who was just trying to be a good boyfriend. “Alfred?” he called again when there was no answer, and looked around the apartment.
Alfred only had a few classes that afternoon and he should have gotten back before Arthur, but he wasn’t there. His school bag was gone too though, so maybe he had stayed later on campus, Arthur thought, a little disappointed.
Forever Mine 6b/?
“You know, I was thinking… it seems like everything’s settled down lately,” Arthur said to Alfred during breakfast. He knew that on Tuesdays, Alfred had afternoon classes but Arthur had work as usual in the mornings so Alfred usually just went to campus a few hours too early. “I can probably start going to work alone now,” he said.
Alfred paused in the middle of jabbing his cereal. “You don’t want me to take you to school?”
“It’s not that – I just think, you have late classes today and everything – wouldn’t it be easier if you didn’t have to drive me everywhere?” Arthur said and smiled.
Alfred didn’t say anything for a moment but finally he exhaled and leaned back. “All right, if that’s what you want,” he said. “But only to school. I’ll drive you anywhere else you need to go,” he said. “And call me if you have to work late. You shouldn’t be out on the streets then.”
“I could probably get someone else to take me home. You don’t have to stay waiting for me—”
“I’ll pick you up,” Alfred said in a tone that said there was going to be no argument.
Arthur gave in. Alfred was already being better about this than he’d expected.
“Then I’ll get going or I won’t get there in time,” Arthur said as he put his dishes in the sink. “I’ll see you tonight,” he said and left the apartment alone in what felt like a long time.
It was like a breath of fresh air when he got on the bus again. Even though it was supposedly where he’d gotten attacked and kidnapped, that day had been so confused that Arthur didn’t feel afraid when he got on the bus. It only felt like he was stepping back into his old life before the assault had happened and Alfred had come back into his life.
“It’ll be fine,” Arthur told himself even though he could tell Alfred hadn’t been happy about Arthur’s decision. It was unhealthy being with Alfred all of the time – waking together, going to work together, coming home together, and spending all that time together. He couldn’t stand for Alfred to move out, but at least this way, it felt a little more like he was less needy and dependent – more like himself.
Work that day was better than usual as Arthur looked over a few grant proposals, had a good business lunch with some of the professors, and was offered the opportunity to go on a business trip over to Cambridge for a seminar on Shakespeare’s Hamlet. Arthur was never going to reject an opportunity to study more Shakespeare so of course he agreed. Although he did have instructions not to go traveling anywhere far without company, Francis was also going to go and while he was hardly Arthur’s choice of companion, it did mean that he could go without fear of being targeted again.
As the icing on the cake, Arthur was fairly sure he won the argument he and Francis got in about whether Sartre or Kierkegaard was the better writer and philosopher. It was all enough to take Arthur’s mind off the Leatherface Killer and by the time he got back to the flat that afternoon, feeling better about his life and the world in general, he was sure it couldn’t be Alfred.
“Alfred,” Arthur said as soon as he walked into the apartment, bursting to tell Alfred everything that had gone right that day. He’d made a good decision for once and Arthur was sorry for doubting Alfred who was just trying to be a good boyfriend. “Alfred?” he called again when there was no answer, and looked around the apartment.
Alfred only had a few classes that afternoon and he should have gotten back before Arthur, but he wasn’t there. His school bag was gone too though, so maybe he had stayed later on campus, Arthur thought, a little disappointed.