Ex's to Lovers

Chapter 50

In Which Alfred Is Sick and Makes the Misunderstandings Worse

When Alfred woke up, there was a lot of shouting and fighting and people and bright lights and all Alfred could think was that he felt positively nauseous. Something in the back of his head told him something was wrong, but Alfred didn't make a habit of listening to the voice in his head, so he tried to burrow back into the blankets. But something was pulling at him, trying to get him up, and Arthur's unmistakable tense voice was nagging at him. Or something. Alfred wasn't listening. 

"Alfred!" 

Wait, now he was. That was Arthur's warning tone, the one he got before Alfred got in really, really, big trouble and was grounded until he died. With effort, Alfred sat up, finding his limbs unusually heavy and uncomfortable and his throat dry as a desert wasteland. It took a bit more effort to find and focus on Arthur, partially from the spinning in his head and his glazed eyes, but partially because he was pretty sure he'd seen a Mathew, Katyusha, was that a cop? And Ivan, all squeezed into a tiny space and -wow- Arthur was making a very strange kind of face.

"Ar..thur?"

Alfred's throat was dryer than he'd expected, and his words cracked as he spoke them, and the world spun when Alfred shifted to see Arthur better.

"Wuz goin' on?"

Alfred's words slurred a little together, as he tried to figure out the situation, slowly looking around the room. That was definitely a cop, standing there looking both relieved and annoyed, and Mathew looked like he'd been crying and Ivan looked... ​​​​​Alfred stared. Why did Ivan look like that?

"Ivan?"

Alfred was getting more confused by the second, and was adding "scared" to his list of emotions. He looked back to Arthur for answers. 

"Where is this?" 

To Arthur, Alfred's voice sounded small and scared and reminded him of when his brother was younger and clung to him after a nightmare. To Mathew, it was a strange and unidentifiable creature he didn't recognize as his loud and over excitable brother. Katyusha just thought he sounded sick and confused, which was closest to the truth. Ivan frowned, but it was Arthur who answered. 

"This is Ivan's room. And I was hoping you could tell me what happened." 

Arthur's voice was firm, but rather that disappointed, or angry, he sounded gentle and testing, which was freaking Alfred out since Arthur wasn't a person like that.  Alfred tried to remember what was happening. He'd been at Gilbert's... No wait, he'd been running away from home, he thought? But no, that wasn't it. Something to do with Ivan... And there was a crime.. What was it? 

"... Kidnapping?"

Alfred wondered to himself aloud, but that didn't sound right either. 

"No, that.. I was in the forest..." 

Then the first part of what Arthur said finally registered, and Alfred looked back to Arthur too quickly, dizzying him and making him feel sick again. 

"Why?"

Alfred asked, bewildered. Why would he be in Ivan's room? That didnt make sense. Alfred's head was pounding and he curled to make the pain and the sickness in his stomach settle. Arthur was talking, but Alfred pressed his hands to his head to chase away the pain, and unconcernedly ignored Arthur as he was well-practiced at. Someone was pushing a pill and a cup of water into his hands, and  Alfred took it unquestioningly, greedily gulping the water then dry swallowing the pill.

"Alfred," Arthur was speaking urgently to him, with a tight voice, "What did you say about kidnapping?" 

Alfred's nasuea hadn't subsided, but Alfred was suddenly feeling extremely sleepy, swaying on the bed, barely hearing and not understanding Arthur's question, which is why he answered with a vague and bewildered tone. 

" I.. I don't know? "

Then, without saying another word, Alfred passed out again.