[F] Painting ((Alfred))

[Arthur Kirkland]

Frowning a little, Arthur leant into Alfred. He pinched the fabric, checking that it really was that much of a better fit on Alfred than him, and when Alfred asked if he could remove it, shook his head. "Wait a moment." Standing up, and glancing at Alfred first to check he was all right, he then ran his hands carefully over Alfred's side, feeling him, and how the hoodie felt. Then, since he still had his jumper on too, did the same on himself.

Arthur was obviously uneasy with what he felt. "O-okay, take it off." He said, turning back to the table and eyeing his bowl and the melted sorbet. He still didn't understand how there could be such a difference between what he saw and what Alfred did. He wouldn't have said he cared that much about his weight at all. Playing with the spoon, he sipped a little at the melted sorbet, trying not to think about it.

"I don't like eating." He said, quietly. "It makes me feel vile. But... if you say I need to eat more, I'll do my best." He offered. It wasn't a promise, and it wasn't a certainty, but it was a start. For now he set himself the goal of finishing what was in his bowl. If he wasn't going down to the clubs, Alfred was the only one who's opinion he cared about anyway.

[Alfred Jones]

Blinking a bit at what Arthur was doing, he watched a bit curiously, then squirmed slightly at the hands on his sides, a bit uncomfortable with that. Nodding, he tugged the hoodie off before he set it on Arthurs shoulder. Heading over to grab his empty bowl, his hand paused as Arthur spoke, watching him for a moment before his shoulders relaxed.

"....Then you at least kind of see how thin you are..?" He asked, a little uncertain. Setting the bowl back down, he moved over and then rest a hand on Arthurs shoulder, hesitant a little. "If...When you get at a more healthy looking weight, then we can go on jogs and stuff together, and we'll work on builing muscle more, okay?" he offered, giving him a smile. It was a bit of a compromise, he supposed.

[Arthur Kirkland]

"I still can't see it." Arthur admitted. "But it doesn't make sense that the hoodie's so much bigger on me, so I guess you must be right." He took the last spoonful of his melted sorbet, then laid his spoon down and rested his head on Alfred's arm, comfortable with his touch. "I don't know what a healthy weight would be, but I'd like that." He admitted. Not that Alfred needed more muscle, and not that Arthur believed that he would agree with Alfred's idea of a healthy weight, but that still sounded nice.

Sighing, Arthur pulled away and picked up his and Alfred's bowls. "Do you want to watch a film or something, or are you ready for bed?" He asked, as he moved to start on the washing up. It was only fair that he did it, as Alfred had cooked. "I have a book for you too, if you want to read that, I'll do some sewing." He offered, a faint red tinge on his cheeks. He'd only embroidered in front of Alfred once so far, but he wanted it's calming affect right now. He might do that if Alfred wanted to watch something anyway. They could still sit together and be companionable, after all.

[Alfred Jones]

Well, if that was the way that worked, then he'd have to accept it! Cocking his head a bit as the head rest on his arm. Smiling at him, he just gave his shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Well...I know how to find the weight you're supposed to be." He murmured, giving an encouraging look.

"Mmn...I think...I'd like to read." Nodding, he gave a smile, but then hummed a bit in amusement. "Working on something new?" He asked, curious now, wanting to see it. "What's the book about though? Is it one of yours I havent read yet?" For now though he just watched what Arthur was doing, resting his chin on the table.

[Arthur Kirkland]

At least Alfred seemed a little happier, even if Arthur was dreading what he'd have to do. "All right." He agreed, almost certain that the weight that he was supposed to be would be far more than he liked. Maybe it was because they didn't take into account different body shapes, he told himself, but then caught himself. He was going to have to trust Alfred on this, since apparently he couldn't see it himself.

Arthur shook his head. "I haven't written anything since I got that last book published. Aside from the column, of course. I've been focusing on getting the house sorted. Do you remember that series I gave you to read when you were injured? It's the next one from that. I have the draft for the next one for you too, but I think I packed it already when I went through my papers." He finished washing up, and put the left overs of their meal in the fridge for now, before offering him a hesitant smile.

Heading into the bedroom, Arthur returned after a moment with a bag full of thread, a half started sampler in it's frame, and the book for Alfred. He indicated the sofa, sitting down there and putting his bag on the coffee table while he waited for the other blonde to join him. "It's the second one, I think the third one that I have the draft of will be published in the summer." He said, with another small smile, holding it out to him.

[Alfred Jones]

A soft 'Ooohhh' was heard, and then Alfred slowly followed Arthur, stopping at the door to the others bedroom a bit curiously. Cocking his head a bit as Arthur brought the bag out, he did eventually follow him and flopped down on the couch with him, accepting the book. "Ooh thats cool! I've been wondering when I'd get to read this..."

Smiling down at the book, he settled down and rest back on the cushions of the familiar furniture. "So what are you sewin' now?" He asked, looking towards Arthur, because he knew when he started reading it'd be hard for Arthur to really get any conversation out of him. It was just how he read, concentrating fully on the text on the pages. "Can you do other stuff than just embroider too?" He had admittedly been wondering that, ever since he had found out that Arthur did such a...Feminine thing.

[Arthur Kirkland]

"I would have been able to get it to you sooner if you hadn't disappeared." He pointed out, though he was mostly teasing. "I read it while I was waiting for you to come back. It's quite good." He added, with a smile. He hoped that Alfred enjoyed it. He'd hunted down the author so he could get that draft for Alfred.

When Alfred took the book, Arthur reached over to the bag, putting the frame on his lap and then looking for his thread. The question made him blink, and he looked at Alfred, before hesitantly showing him what he had. From what was done, it looked like it was going to be a bunch of roses when it was done, and Arthur was pulling yet more red from his bag to put in some detail. "I can't sew properly, if that's what you're asking." He said, as he threaded his needle. "I can repair some things, but rather inexpertly." It was bad enough that he enjoyed embroidery, he was hardly going to encourage his brothers' mocking by sewing properly. He was half expecting Alfred to start teasing him for it as it was.

[Alfred Jones]

The only response he got for pointing that out was a tongue stuck out at him before he curiously looked at the embroidery that was there so far. To be honest, he was curious about how it was done, mostly because the way a lot of things were detailed looked so...Annoying to do. He smiled to hear that though, chuckling. "It seems kinda funny that you can do something like embroider but not sew properly, that's all."

Nodding, Alfred then settled back on his side of the couch, rubbing his eyes before he opened the book to begin. His expressions of course would change with whatever was happening in the story, but he was rather quiet at least. Around an hour into this, the younger man was dozing off until he left the world of consciousness completely. His book rest on his lap, opened, while his head rest on his own shoulder, breathing softly while he slept, falling deeper and deeper into sleep as time passed on.

[Arthur Kirkland]

Arthur gave a little shrug. "I don't much care for sewing. This is just relaxing." He said, a little stiffly. He obviously wasn't giving Alfred any chance to take the piss out of him for it, or giving him more information than he thought he needed. Well, this was something he'd had trouble with his brothers about before, so maybe it wasn't that surprising.

Settling down as well, Arthur concentrated on the picture he was working on. He didn't make a sound, aside from for his soft breathing, and when he had to reach forward to get a new thread. At first he didn't notice when Alfred fell asleep he didn't notice for a while until he realised that the sound of pages turning had stopped. He glanced over at the younger man, and smiled a little to see that. He was so cute.

Leaning over, he gently nudged Alfred into a position that was less likely to leave a crook in his neck and back, and he slipped a marker into the book for him. Then he moved to the bedroom and found the blankets that Alfred usually used, draping them over him. He hesitated, before leaning forward and kissing his forehead. "Sleep well." He murmured, before retreating to his bedroom with his sewing. It didn't take long for Arthur to fall asleep as well, though, even after collapsing earlier, and he slept peacefully curled up in his blankets.

[Alfred Jones]

Only a small whine slipped out when he was nudged, and his leg moved, stretching out across the couch slowly. When Arthur left to get the blankets somehow he had moved into a laying position at least though, and the blankets he stuck a foot out from. The murmur of course wasn't responded to, but he did cuddle down better into the warmth the blankets provided, and slept the night away.

When morning came round, Alfred was the first to wake, at 6 am. Blinking around blearily, he frowned at his surroundings before recalling where he was, and then stretched out. Glancing around, he made a noise, then slowly slipped off the couch. After a quick trip to the restroom, he then headed into the kitchen, unsurprised at there not being any...Breakfasty things to eat. Well, he'd fix that. The only issue would be the door being locked...Mmnn...frowning, he contemplated what to do.

Eventually he decided that not many people would be up at this time in the morning just to rob someone, so after grabbing his money he headed off down the street, the door unlocked. Luckily the grocery was open, and he bought what was needed before returning, runnign the entire time incase there was some crazed theif/murderer. Once he was back in the apartment, he looked around to make sure no one had come in, then started cooking, just making oatmeal with fresh sliced fruits for when Arthur woke up.

[Arthur Kirkland]

Half waking when Alfred opened the door, Arthur groaned sleepily and curled up more, trying to get back to sleep. He did doze, but started when Alfred opened the door. For a moment he lay tensed in bed, but after a while when all he could hear were sounds in the kitchen, Arthur realised that it must be Alfred and he relaxed again. That had woken him up properly, though, and he huffed into his pillow, hiding his face in it. He wanted to sleep more.

After another couple of minutes, though, he rolled out of bed and headed into the bathroom. He showered in ten minutes, and another five minutes later he headed into the kitchen, towel drying his hair. He eyed the food that Alfred had made, wondering if he'd put sugar in the porridge or not. He was regretting his promise to try and eat, but then remembered how loose the hoodie had been on him and he sighed.

"How did you sleep?" He asked, slinging his towel over the chair back and then sitting down. "I hope you weren't too uncomfortable." Even though Alfred had been in a more comfortable position when he went to sleep, Arthur still worried that that sofa wasn't really big enough for the taller man to stretch out properly. Still, on the other hand it was better than the streets.

[Alfred Jones]

Well he had tried to be quiet...Pouting as he watched Arthur go and take the shower, Alfred made a noise when he headed into the kitchen, smiling at him as he took a seat. "Fine as ever...I like the couch, it's comfortable." Alfred reminded him before he set the bowls of strawberries, blueberries, apples, and bananas on the table first before returning with the bowls of oat meal.

Brown sugar was also brought over, which he sat just on the table. "There we go...Don't worry I didnt add any sugar in yours, but I'd like it if you had the fruit with it too so you get some sugar that's good for you in ya." Smiling, he headed back in the kitchen and returned, setting Arthurs mug--Already full of tea--next to him as well as the milk which could be used for either tea or the oat meal.

Pleased with the arrangement, Alfred then sat down himself with a glass of water, sipping it first. Alfred obviously had a bit bigger serving than Arthur, who he had given a normal serving size plus just a little more, which still was nothing compared to his own bowl. He figured it'd be best to start small to show him that food wasn't out to get him.

[Arthur Kirkland]

"I hope you're not planning on sleeping on the sofa when we get you a proper bed." Arthur chuckled, smiling at him. "You'll actually be able to fit on that. And I'll get a proper duvet rather than the blanket, too. Though you can still keep that too if you want it." He knew that Alfred liked it, but Arthur would feel better if he knew that he at least had the option of a proper duvet, as Arthur wasn't one to put the heating on when he didn't feel it was needed.

Actually, the strawberries did look good. Arthur had always been fond of them, and fruit was one of the few things he had been eating when he really needed too. They looked better than the porridge, and when Alfred joined him at the table, Arthur took one and nibbled on it. "I aught to pay you as a maid." He teased Alfred, trying to keep his thoughts off the food, knowing if he did start to think about it he'd end up feeling sick again.

He did eat for now, though, taking another strawberry, then a couple of small spoonfuls of porridge. "We should work out what we're bringing with us to the flat." He said, slowly, thinking about it. "Though, if we're eating this for breakfast we don't really need a proper meal for lunch." He played with his food a bit, and took another strawberry instead, and then a piece of apple. "I don't really want to start carrying things over until I finish sorting everything out, so if we're not taking crockery over we can leave it."

[Alfred Jones]

Chuckling, Alfred arched a brow, eyeing the older man playfully. "I dunno, it iiiis pretty comfortable." He pointed out, just shrugging in responce to the mention of a duvet, not really thinking he'd need it.

Well at least Alfred looked a bit pleased that Arthur seemed to look happy at what he was eating. Dropping the fruit, as well as the brownsugar and some milk, into the bowl, he lazily mixed it around before he began eating as well. It'd been awhile since he'd been able to have oatmeal like this, so he looked like he was enjoying his own food quite a bit."Pfft, friends dont mind cleaning and cooking and stuff when they're in need."

Slowly nodding, Alfred paused in his eating for a moment to think. "Well...Let's see, you probably have an extra kettle right? So if we brought that, and just a few plates, dishes, cups, and silverware it won't be too much to take on over...One pan and one pot would be fine as well, and that's enough to just fit in one box. Sound good?"

Smiling, Alfred looked up at Arthur. "But I thought sandwiches would be fine, since they have premade ones at that store that I visited yesterday. But you're right, we should just leave it for t'day if we're gonna eat something out." Hopefully Alfred could convince Arthur into eating at least half of the sandwich, if they got that.

[Arthur Kirkland]

Smiling at Alfred's reply, Arthur chuckled at him. Alfred cooked for him even when he wasn't in need. In fact, most of the time he wouldn't have said that he was in need. He couldn't say that he didn't enjoy Alfred's company, though, and he did do his best to ensure Alfred did as little cleaning as possible. He was usually happy to pass the cooking on though.

That did sound all right, and Arthur gave a little nod. He had a little kettle that he'd had in his bedroom once when he'd been ill. It was packed, but he knew where it was so he could easily pull it out. He just about had enough crockery that they could take some over with them, fortunately. They'd have to wash up everything as they used it, but Arthur normally did that anyway.

In the end, Arthur barely ate a spoonful of the porridge, but he did eat a good handful of strawberries, and hoped that that would be all right. Standing up, he ran his fingers through his hair, watching Alfred. "I'll start putting everything together." He said, emptying his bowl into the bin before Alfred could complain, and then starting to clean up a bit. He did as much as he could until Alfred was finished, then got a new box and set it up. It didn't take him long to put everything that Alfred had mentioned into it, and he put it by the door so they'd remember to take it out with them.

"Do you want to shower today?" Arthur asked, returning to the kitchen and looking at Alfred. He knew the other man liked to keep clean, and he didn't mind waiting to head down to the new house if Alfred wanted to shower first.

[Alfred Jones]

And of course in Alfreds mind, Arthur obviously needed someone to take care of him now. He basically wanted him doing little to nothing because of how thing he was...However, he started faintly when Arthur stood and then emptied his bowl. Pouting heavily, he eyed Arthur, a threat in his eyes to make him eat more later in them while he finished up his own food.

Once Arthur was mostly done, he washed his bowl out before he blinked at the question. "Uh...Yeah, if you don't mind waiting." he said with a small smile. He wouldn't take to long, just eager to get back and work for a bit to keep his mind off of how to get Arthur to eat.

Heading over to his bag, he just selected the clean clothes quickly before heading into the bathroom, closing and locking the door as he usually would. Overall, the process took only around ten minutes, and then Alfred headed out, rubbing steam from the glasses that Arthur had given him. Obviously he was taking care of them at least.

Puting them on then, he smiled at Arthur, running his fingers through his wet hair. "Ready?" He asked, heading over to get the box. Like hell he'd let Arthur carry it, he didn't want the other to pass out from using too much of his strength.

[Arthur Kirkland]

Ignoring that threat, though he did notice it, Arthur let Alfred wash his own bowl up, and nodded. "It's fine, go ahead." He finished the cleaning up, then went to sit on his windowsill while he waited for Alfred. It was a little easier to concentrate than the day before at least, and Arthur found himself making quite good progress through his papers until the door opened.

Looking up, he smiled to see him wiping off the glasses, and put the paper he had in his hand back onto the sorting pile, before getting up, brushing himself off, and padding over. "All but." He said, with a nod, as he slid his shoes on and grabbed his jacket keys and wallet. "Feel better now you're clean?" He asked as he did, and then when he was finished move to hold the door for Alfred, since his hands were full.

When the younger man was out, he locked the door behind him, then started to lead Alfred down the steps. He'd guessed while Alfred was carrying the box, and it kind of annoyed him that Alfred didn't think that he could carry it himself, but at the same time he supposed it was sensible. "If we get all the painting - or at least most of it - finished today we could go furniture shopping tomorrow." He offered, smiling at him.

[Alfred Jones]

"Yeah, a lot better." Alfred responded with a smile, ignoring how he now smelled of Arthurs soap and shampoo as he adjusted the box in his arms to hold it more comfortably.Following Arthur out, he only waited for him to lead before following, peering at him over the box with a smile.

Nodding happily at the offer, Alfred gave him another smile. "Well, technically we just need to get yours finished. We can hold off on anything for the room that has the more detailed stuff in it, cause I can sleep on the couch or floor or whatever." Well, it made sense, because the painting of that room...Well, it'd probably take a good long while if it was to be as detailed as he'd seen Arthurs sketches.

Not that he minded at all, really he was more than happy to just have a roof over his head. A lot of the time he heard storms were predicted, which usually turned out to be correct.Smiling, he then gently nudged Arthur. "So, Arthur. What kind of personality are you lookin' for, for the cat?"

[Arthur Kirkland]

Arthur noticed that Alfred smelt like that as he moved past him to take the box. It made him smile a little for some reason, but really he just felt that he looked a lot better cleaned up. No doubt he'd be covered in paint by the end of the day, though.

"It seems silly to have one room done and not the others." Arthur said with a frown. "But I guess you're right. It'd be good to at least get some of it done today, though." He didn't like the idea of Alfred sleeping on the sofa if it wasn't necessary, but as long as he was off the streets, it didn't matter. "If we have your bed brought and we don't have the room done we can set up the mattress in the sitting room, if you're all right with that."

Surprised by the sudden question, Arthur frowned. He hadn't really thought about it yet. "I think I want someone who isn't too needy but is cuddly." He said, with a nod. What he didn't want to say was what he really wanted was someone to keep him company when Alfred wasn't around. "I was sort of thinking that I'd be able to tell when I got there." He said with a smile. "What about you? What do you think would be good?"

[Alfred Jones]

"Mm. Well, if you work on the painting for that room, then I'll work on your room and then come...try and help with that. I'm not very good at painting stuff other than walls though." he pointed out, looking a bit sheepish at that fact.

The answer made him smile though, because that was a bit of a longshot in a cat. They usually tended to be one or the other. "Hmmmnn...Just one that's healthy. Maybe a year or two old rather than an older cat, so we won't have to worry about it dying anytime soon, that'd be pretty sad." He didn't really have an opinion on personalities though, he liked them being unique because they usually warmed up to him anyway.

"Though, like you, I think a cuddly cat is always cuter than those that are complete loners." Chuckling, Alfred glanced at Arthur with a smile. He wasn't sure how Arthur'd get along with a cat that wasn't like that, such as a cat with Arthurs personality...Basically, he'd imagine it'd be lonely.