"Aiden, huh?" I snorted, leaving him to answer to me.
"Yup, it's always been my name."
I looked away from him and just pondered over his name. Aiden. Aiden... Gee, that was a totally hot name, and somehow, he was born with such an obnoxious personality, which put me on the fence about him. He sped up my heart rate, but what exactly did that mean? There were at least two options for that, and I wanted to believe in the one that said it was all because I hated him. Somehow, I didn't believe that for a second.
"Surprised?" He winked at me, turning on his 'swag'.
"No," I bypassed his suave attitude, "I still hate you."
"Ouch," He grabbed his chest in a terrible reenactment of a heart attack, "You sent an arrow through my heart. Right through it."
"Shut up," I spat, a moment too quickly.
"Dawn, we should let him help us," Tera disagreed, working her way into the conversation, "He seems nice enough."
"Nice?"
Ha! She had to of sniffed the fumes coming from the fire or the gas that fueled it, and I knew she wasn't all the right in the head. What kind of person would side with Aiden over his or her best friend since birth, basically? It filled my body like a balloon, tensing up every square inch of it, and my mind went blank because all of the tension forcing all of the thoughts to dissolve in thin air.
"Yeah, he seems nice enough," She responded immediately, eyeing me to just approve of his assistance.
My mouth went dryer than the Sahara Desert, and my blood pumped rigorously from my heart and all through my body, tingling my stunned nerves. The very feeling sent me into a debate of my mind and soul, and I questioned the feeling of-dare I say it-love?
But love didn't work that way. Love eased its way into people, injecting the poison slowly and sweetly into its victims. This wasn't love. It had a simple explanation to it, and I accepted the fact of utter shock in the house burning down and Aiden fueling the fire (metaphorically, of course). He simply wanted me to go completely insane.
"We don't want your help," I sneered, adding his name, "Aiden."
"Well, it's good to hear I've been upgrading to my name," He smirked, being ever so conceited in himself, "Thanks."
"I didn't mean to upgrade you," I snorted, crossing my arms in rebellion, "You're so snitty."
"What the hell kind of word is that?" He scrunched his nose in confusion.
"Uh, it's a very common word, thank you very much," I mumbled, not sure on what exactly I was saying to him, "Now, if you would excuse me, we need to find another place to live."
"I offered to help," Aiden smiled weakly, "Don't you wanna move in with me? I've got the whole place to myself."
"Really?" I mimicked, "Well, I'll be fine staying on the beach, for all I care. I don't want to room with you."
"You wish you could be in the same room as me," He wiggled his eyebrows at me, "I can make those arrangements."
"You, pervert," I stuck out my tongue, realizing it was childish to do something like that.
"Oh, now you want some tongue?"
"Geez! You are such a freak," I busted out, beginning to waltz the opposite way as him, "See ya."
I had to get out of this nightmare, but I sort of wanted to stay and find out more about this mysterious Aiden kid. In contrast, I hated his guts, whether I knew him or not, and I didn't want to get to know him, in fear of my feelings changing in his favor. Not that I was easily convinced or persuaded, but guys could change my mind in a second...
That was, if they were cute enough.
In Aiden's case, he was beyond comparison of any other guy I had dated or known. I knew that meeting him might be a little taste of fate pushing its way into my life, but my mind didn't accept that idea, only my heart did.
And to make the situation absolutely worse, I tripped on my very clever exit from the group, and I landed flat on my face, staring into the beach sand that had scattered onto the road.
Fabulous.
Now how was I going to convince him I was too good to be taking silly offers to move in with a stranger for the summer?
Sorry, but that chance had come and gone, leaving me to either lay in the road and get ran over or get up, only to face Aiden's smirking face.
Either option had its low point, but I sided with getting run over, preferably with a semi-truck if at all possible. I think death would be easier taken that way, opposed to a slow moving cop car or an old lady's Cadillac going at a high speed of twelve miles per hour.
"Need some help?" I hears Aiden's voice come closer to me, kicking my ankle persistently, "Get up."
I rolled over onto my back and narrowed my eyes towards him, "If you want me to get up, pick me up yourself."
The grin creeping onto his face probably wasn't a good sign; neither were his flexing biceps reaching out to me. I knew he was going to pick me up, but I struggled with him, slapping him like a nerd would slap another nerd for the newest pencil or something. Ha, I had no idea, but all I knew was that Aiden had me caressed in his arms.
His arms wrapped around my waist, ripping me up from the ground without a sweat, and he chuckled in success as I could no longer squirm out of his embrace.
"Do you mind?" I coughed, gasping for a little more air than he was allowing me, "I can't breathe."
"Oh, yes," He spun me around to face him, our very noses tickling each other's, "I'll let you go once you promise to let me take you guys in for the summer."
I pondered his offer, unsure on how I should respond, but I knew we had to have a place to live, otherwise Tera might leave me. And that meant I'd have to go back home and do nothing, bored until school started back. That just sounded horrible and tragic to me...
"Fine, Aiden. We'll stay with you this summer... Under one condition."
