Stalker!England X Reader- Always There

*~*~Ten*~*~

Chapter Ten

"I knew that I'd forgotten something. God, I'm such a bloody idiot," the man's voice was quiet as he admonished himself and (Y/N) had to focus in order to realise who it was.

"Arthur?" (Y/N) felt herself go cold as the man sat on the edge of the bed, the mattress dipping slightly under his weight. This wasn't right, she wasn't supposed to be here... Why was she here? The only answer which sprung to mind was one which she did not wish to even consider, so she pushed it to the back of her head, and tried to approach the new situation with a rational mind. Maybe she'd fallen and hurt herself on the way to the supermarket and Arthur had simply been passing by and took her to his house for some rest? Or maybe they had all had a massive night out, and this was the result of a dreadful hangover starting with temporary amnesia? But that wouldn't explain Francis' worried phone call...

Taking a deep breath, she attempted to sit up, pushing herself on her elbows and coming to rest against the headboard. Her eyes had adjusted to the light in the room and she silently watched Arthur, waiting for him to say something. His head was in his hands and he was taking deep breaths, as though he were on the verge of a breakdown. (Y/N) chewed at her lip. Part of her wanted to comfort him, and convince him that whatever was going on with him he could get help from professionals. The other, saner, part of her wished to grab her phone which was next to him and bolt out of the door.

"I'm sorry, (Y/N)," Arthur brought his head up and looked at her, and she found herself flinching under his intense gaze as he looked at her with a desperate longing she had never seen before. "I know you're probably confused, but this is all for your own good, love, I promise."

"What is, Arthur?" She tried to keep her voice calm and quiet. Arthur seemed on edge- anything could set him off in her mind. "What's for my own good?"

Arthur sighed and crawled across the bed to sit opposite her. (Y/N) clutched Arthur's white duvet and pulled it up to her chest, as though that would protect her from whatever Arthur had to say. Arthur sat with his legs crossed and reached his hands out for (Y/N)'s. Flinching and shying away from him, she kept her hands loose as Arthur held hers in his and she stared down at the bed, determined not to get trapped in his green, green eyes.

Arthur cleared his throat and took a deep breath. "(Y/N)..." He let go of her right hand, allowing his free hand to caress (Y/N)'s cheek, before gently grabbing her by the chin and lifting her face so that her wide, (E/C) eyes met his. "I brought you here because this is where you belong, my love. You need me just as much as I need you. If you're here then I- I," he paused, a blush rising to his pale cheeks as he gazed desperately into her eyes, "I can protect you, (Y/N). I'd give my life to protect you."

Oh God. This was all too much. (Y/N) could feel herself panicking, feel the nervous butterflies in her stomach as her breath began to quicken. Why me? She asked herself, subconsciously tightening her grip on Arthur's hand as she tried to calm herself down. She needed to be rational if she planned to get out of there. "Protect me from what, Arthur? I don't need protecting! I'm an adult, I can do things on my own."

"No, you can't!" Arthur dropped her hands, obviously exasperated, as he clutched at his hair in frustration. "(Y/N), you're completely reckless!" Arthur stared at her expectantly, waiting for a reply, and when she didn't offer one, he continued to talk. "For one thing, you talk to strangers all the time, and then you decide to go back to their homes after a night out when you don't even remember meeting them in the first place!" (Y/N) forced herself to hold back on commenting that the "stranger" involved had been Arthur himself and that if she could go back, she'd undo all of it. "I mean, honestly (Y/N), it's like you're asking for trouble!" Arthur was really getting himself riled up, and (Y/N) considered making a break for it. "And with what happened the other night with that vile man..." (Y/N) felt her body tense. Nobody had directly mentioned the attempt since the night of the incident, and to hear it being brought up so casually made her feel slightly sick. "Imagine what would have happened if I wasn't there, and it could easily happen again the next time you are on your own. You might not be so lucky next time..." He trailed off as (Y/N) took a sharp intake of breath. Lucky? How dare he!? Did he not realise how irrational he sounded, how much of a jerk he was being?