Parent!England x Fem!Reader: The Park

Chapter 2: Tea and Rain

[s/c = skin color]

Arthur. The name sounded familiar, but you couldn't place where you had heard it last. The thought occupied your mind as you got ready for work. The diner was only a short walk from your house, and the weather was nice. You popped in your earbuds, bopping to some music as you crossed the street. Your shift started at 8:30, and you checked your phone a few times to make sure that you were on time.

Kelly, your manager, greeted you as you retrieved your apron from the hook and got ready for the workday.

"It's pretty quiet today. Can you take this to the guy at Table 2?" You nodded and took the tea from them. A surprising sight greeted you at Table 2.

"Arthur?" The blonde looked up from his laptop, just as surprised. Apparently, he was a regular here. 

"(Y/n)! Well, I did say I'd see you around soon." You handed him his order. "Thanks, love. I knew I made a mistake when I tried to trade tea for coffee." Shaking your head, you laughed.

"Coffee is a cruel thing. It got me this far though," you said.

"How are you today?" he asked, closing his laptop and blowing on his tea to cool it down.

"I'm feeling pretty good today, how about you?" He sighed.

"Drained. My job is killing me and I need a break. Care for a chat?" he gestured to the chair across from him. You looked over to Kelly for their permission. They noticed you talking to the man and nodded, since there were only two other customers in the shop.

"Sure." You sat down and smiled at him. "So, you know where I work now. What do you do?"

He took a thoughtful sip before answering. Apparently, he was a representative for England (that explained his lovely accent) and often had to attend meetings with representatives of other nations. He often had to travel overseas back to England for business. You nodded, since you had a cousin, who was also your roommate, that seemed to be needed in Europe and South America every week.

Judging by how he described it, each meeting was chaos. He chuckled as he recalled the time when he and the French representative got into a full-out brawl after a disagreement on the importance of each nation's trade with Canada. You laughed with him, though you couldn't picture such a reserved man like himself doing anything of that nature. Well, now that you thought about it, Arthur seemed like he could have quite a temper after the glare he gave his kids yesterday. You decided to ask about them.

"How are your kids?"

"Difficult, as usual. They don't seem to listen to you unless you promise them fast food." You thought about the authoritarian role that Alfred took on.

"They always think they run the place, hm?" Arthur sighed, relieved that someone understood.

"In all honesty, they do. I'm only one man, and as a single father it is impossible to gain that authority."

"How old are they?"

"Alfred and Matthew are 7, and Michelle is 5." He smiled, looking at nothing in particular. "I do love them." You could see the love in his tired eyes. You almost asked his age, but decided against it in fear of being rude.

More people began to enter the diner and you excused yourself to go do your job. You grabbed your notepad from your apron pocket and wrote down your number before handing it to him.

"It was lovely talking to you. Give me a call if you ever need anything."

"Thank you, I will." He produced a business card from his suit's pocket, handing it to you. One last smile was sent his way before you got to work.

*

Arthur had left the diner and it was raining by the time your shift ended. It was one of those random thunderstorms that rolled through this time of year, enough to make you wish you had bought an umbrella. Some kids were just getting home from school and were splashing around in the puddles that were being created in the streets. Kelly had already left, so you couldn't ask to borrow their umbrella or carpool with them.

You pulled up your hood before heading out. Naturally, your entire jacket was dampened after a few minutes of being outside. It didn't help that you had to stand and wait at the crosswalk. The air was chilly, and your (s/c) nose was starting to turn red.

"Welp, it's still been a good day," you whispered to yourself, repeatedly pressing the crossing button. In an almost comical irony, thunder rolled over the area. Lighting soon lit up the sky.

"Are you kidding me?" You asked the clouds. Thunder replied.

You were considering taking a chance by maneuvering through traffic when a dark green sedan pulled up beside you.

Someone in the backseat rolled down their window.

"Need a ride, Miss (Y/n)?" Matthew asked, waving and smiling.

"Do you need a lift?" Arthur asked after he had rolled down his own window. You nodded gratefully and quickly ran around the side to get into the passenger's seat.

"Thanks, guys."

"Of course. Anything for a friend," Arthur replied. Turning to the kids in the backseat, you made a silly face.

"How was your day?"

"I got to be the hero at recess," boasted Alfred.

"He got in trouble for pushing me off the slide. I got a scrape!" Matthew showed you his Spongebob band-aid.

"Ouch man. Bet you got through it like a champ though, right?" The boy nodded excitedly. Arthur looked over to you for a minute with a smile before focusing back on the road.

"And what about you, Michelle?"

"I switched ribbons with a girl from school," she said, displaying the orange bows in her long black hair.

"You're not supposed to share those with other people," said Arthur tiredly. You looked back to him, realizing that you had to give him directions.

"Oh sorry, I live on Holly Ave." The man nodded, turning into the residential area. You listened to the kids as they continued to talk about their day.

Alfred, it seemed, really liked to be the hero. And most of the time that involved hurting poor Matthew. The other boy seemed to be used to it, but your heart still broke a little. Michelle, on the other hand, was too innocent. She made bad decisions because she simply didn't know. But the way her hazel-green eyes shone when she got excited was too precious for anyone to properly scold her. All in all, each child had a very big personality, which spelled out trouble for Arthur.

"Alright love, where do you need me to drop you off?" You looked back to the front, recognizing your street.

"Third house on the left." Soon, you pulled up to your little home. You grabbed your bag and waved at the children.

"See you later guys." You then turned to Arthur. "Thanks Arthur. You're a life-saver."

"No problem. Have a nice day."

"You too." With that, you headed up to your front door and unlocked it, stepping into your home.

As you were peeling off your wet clothes, you found Arthur's business card. It was a bit wet and crumbled around the edges, but the name and the number were still clear. Maybe you would give him a call tomorrow.

He seemed like a really nice guy, you thought as you slid into the bathtub. And clearly he considered you a friend, or an acquaintance. An idea popped into your head, and you quickly began planning.