[England's POV]
As I open my front door, warm summer air fills the entryway of my house. Now that school's over, I can spend my days relaxing without any idiots bothering me. I close the door behind me and sit on my porch with a book in my hand. As I open the cover, ready to dive into a new, different world, a familiar voice interrupts me.
"Hey Iggy!"
Oh, not him. Anybody but Alfred. I thought I don't have to deal with him until next school year, but I guess the fact that he's my next-door neighbor eliminates that hope.
"What do you want Alfred?" I spit out, the annoyance clear in my voice.
"Well you don't seem very cheery today, do you?" He says in a sing-songy voice. He leans over his porch railing with his head resting on his hands, "Why don't you show me a big smile?"
"Just leave me alone. Can't you see I'm trying to read?"
"But it's not that hard! Look, it's easy!" He says and gives me a big, toothy smile.
I guess I'm not getting away from this. I get up and open my front door. Before I'm able to step inside, a hand on my shoulder stops me. How did he get here so fast?
I turn to see not Alfred, but Francis. The most annoying thing I've ever met. Well, next to Alfred. "Hello Arthur," he says to me with a grin on his face. Oh, how I hate that grin of his.
"Hello Francis. How can I have the pleasure of being at your acquaintance today?" I say, the sarcasm practically smacking him in the face.
"Well since you asked," he says, ignoring my sarcasm, "I've come to give you an invitation." He hands me an envelope with my name on the front, written in cursive. "I'm throwing a party on Saturday to celebrate the end of school. I thought you would be interested." He couldn't be anymore wrong at that. "I hope to see you there," he says as he turns to leave, giving me a wink.
After he left, I hear giggling coming from Alfred, who was watching the whole scenario from his front porch. "What now?" I ask facing him.
"Guess I'll see you there," he replies holding up an envelope identical to the one Francis gave me, but his name is written instead of mine. He gives me a big smirk and heads inside his house. Great, I guess I will.
[Timeskip]
I open the door that leads to Francis' porch and quickly close it once I'm outside. I take a deep breath of some some fresh air. I should have known that this party was going to be loud and crazy. There were at least 100 people in there! I don't even know why I came. I hate interacting with people, so why would a big party be even slightly better? I lean against the railing and look up at the night sky, full of stars.
"You had to get away from it all too, huh?"
I jump and turn around to see the source of the startling noise. It is none other than Alfred Jones. I turn back around and lean against the railing again, as if he never said a word to me. He shuts the door and leans on the railing right next to me, smiling at the stars. "You know, as much as it might seem, I'm not a huge fan of parties. Especially not big ones like this. And the music their playing is jut awful."
I chuckle, "Well you're right at one thing. These people's taste in music is horrible."
The song ends and a new one plays. Alfred recognizes it instantly and his face lights up, "Finally a good song!" He taps his hand on the railing to the music being muffled by the closed door. Once the lyrics start, he quietly sings along. "Don't wanna be an American idiot..."
"You already are one," I say with a smile.
"Hey! That's not very nice Iggy!"
"Will you stop calling me that? My name is Arthur. How did you even get 'Iggy' from 'Arthur'?"
"I don't know... it just kinda feels right, ya know?"
We stand and look at the sky, the muffled music filling the silence. When one really annoying song comes on, he starts singing again. "How can you enjoy this crap?" I say to him. He just looks at me and smirks as he continues to sing.
"I'm so fancy! You already know!" I roll my eyes at him. He grabs my hands and yanks me aside, making me dance. It wasn't a slow dance though, or an enjoyable one at least. He started jumping and moving my hands up and down. I finally release my self from his grip and stand crossing my arms. He pokes my arm as he continues to sing, "Who dat? Who dat? I-G-G-Y!" I sigh and try to ignore him, hoping the song will end soon.
[Timeskip]
At three in the morning, the party ends and Alfred and I walk to our cars. When I get to mine, I unlock and open the door.
"Well, maybe we can hang out sometime?" He says to me as I look up at him. He's scratching the back of his head and giving me the same toothy smile he gave me days before.
"Yeah.. Maybe we can," I say smiling. His face lights up as if he is a little kid on Christmas morning. I get in my car and drive home. It's funny how music can bring two people together.
