Letting Him In

Chapter-9

"Life gets hard and it gets messed up
When you give so much, but it's not enough
When the high's too high, and the low's too low
When you love someone and they let you go"

-Louis Tomlinson, Don't Let It Break Your Heart
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Dean

Dean was in a considerably cheerful mood. He had been bored out of his mind, and had been contemplating going outside, before Elijah and Kaeden had shown up. He had half expected to be frustrated by the time they left, though; Kaeden was bound to be moody and aggravated since he had lost the game, and consequently their bet too. However, he had encountered a completely different person, who took it into stride, rather than being a sore loser. Dean even felt that he may have found a good friend in Elijah, and the thought of it brought a small smile to his face.

He let his thoughts drift to the blond boy. He might have seemed distant and uninterested at first, but he appeared to have loosened up since the first time they had met. Their first meeting certainly seemed like it was more than a mere four days ago. It felt good to have another friend since he barely had any who cared about him, and not his parents' status.

Choosing to walk down the stone path rather than using the front door, Dean thought about the first time he had seen this place. Him and his brother had accompanied their parents in their search for a new house. Almost as soon as they had entered, Dean snuck away to find any niches and hideaways he could use; he preferred spending any time he had to himself alone, hidden away from anyone and everyone. Any personal time was a rarity, though, given the number of parties and meetings they were expected to attend. But he still cherished what he had. He had never minded his parents involving him in their work, but he would've appreciated them being equally interested in what he wanted.

His brother had found him after about half an hour, leading him down this very path, and to a door partially covered with growing ivy. Although the room behind it had a door from the inside like any ordinary one, he could enter and leave from the back door whenever he wished, without alerting anyone else. His brother knew how much Dean yearned for privacy, so he had suggested Dean claim this room if their parents deemed this house fit for their family.

Dean smiled at the memory. Reaching his bedroom, he unlocked the door, only to find his mother standing by the inside doorway.

Entering his room, he plunked down on his bed. "Yes, mother?" he asked.

"You had friends over," she said without preamble, raising a perfectly shaped eyebrow.

Dean wasn't sure of it was a question or a statement, so he simply remained silent. After a few moments, she continued, "You could have let them use the front door, Dean. I would like to know when you have people over." Her expression was neutral, but her voice was slightly chastising.

He mentally sighed. He loved his mother, but she could be overbearing at times, especially when it came to the company he kept around. He knew that she wanted to make sure his friends were 'appropriate enough', and it bothered him slightly.

"We've talked about this before, mother. I prefer to have my friends come from the back instead; why does that have to be an issue each time?" he asked, failing to keep his exasperation at bay.

"Watch the tone, Dean," she said warningly, and shot him a stern look.

Natasha Arson-Hernandez was not a woman to be messed with. She valued her status and self-respect above almost all else, and she made sure to let people know their limits if they ever tried to cross her. There were few things that meant more to her than her pride, and Dean knew that one of them was her children. However, she often neglected to show that love through her actions, causing both her sons to retreat into themselves, and lock away their thoughts and life from not only her, but both their parents. They were expected to be proper and always follow etiquette; Dean felt that his parents often forgot that him and Christian were still young; too young to have to worry about keeping up appearances in society or a family business.

Looking up, he muttered a half-hearted apology. His mother looked at him for a few moments, before her face softened ever so slightly, and she took a seat next to him. Gently running a hand through his hair, she surprised Dean with the sudden change in her mood.

"I know it might feel like a bit much at times, having to be involved in work at your age, but your father and I try to do the best we can for you. It does not mean that we wouldn't like to meet your friends or know about your life. You can always let us know anything you want, Dean."

"I get it, mum. I guess it's just a bit hard to talk about everything," he sighed, but gave her a small smile, nonetheless.

She shook her head slightly, as if to clear her thoughts. After a few seconds, she went back to her usual self, she said, "Well, next time you could ask your friends to come in the proper way. I don't think I've met those boys who came in today; the guard said it wasn't Nate or any of your football friends."

Dean, realizing that their small moment was over, tried to hide his disappointment and plastered on a smile. "I haven't known either of them that long," he partially lied. "You can meet them next time, I guess."

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Sitting in their usual booth at Aunty Nessa's Café, Dean gazed at Nate and Allen with amusement. It had become tradition to meet up here every Thursday after school. The two of them were sitting right across him and had been bickering relentlessly over Marvel and DC for the past fifteen minutes. Dean had contemplated saying DC was better just to annoy Allen, but he knew it would be of no consequence; all three of them knew that he loved iron man... and spider-man... and black widow; the list went on.

Getting bored, he finally decided to cut in. "Will you two stop already? You have this conversation every week," he rolled his eyes.

Allen glared at him. "Well, maybe if you stuck up for me, this would be over. Aren't you a hardcore Marvel fan?" she sassed, causing Dean to shake his head with a slight laugh.

"And bear with the betrayed -by-my-best-friend comments for the next month from Nate here? I'll pass," he said, looking at the other boy with a teasing grin. Allen let out a small laugh at that.

"I really hate you two sometimes," Nate muttered.

Allen just leaned over and pecked his cheek softly. "No, you don't," she grinned.

Nate's pout turned to a smile at that, and he turned his head to give her a small kiss on the lips instead.

Before things could escalate, Dean interrupted them with a cough. "I don't know about you two, but I really don't think you need to put on a show for the entire café," he said.

"Jealous?" asked Nate with a smirk. "Maybe if you actually noticed all the girls sneaking glances at you, you wouldn't have to complain about this."

Dean gave him a deadpanned look. Nate knew that Dean was not interested in a relationship at the moment. He was tired of the number of times his mother had tried to set him up with a suitable girl, when all he wanted to focus on was football and studies.

Allen, sensing the slight tension, changed the topic. "Cut it off, boys. Now, how about lazer tag tomorrow?"

"We need at least six people for that," said Nate.

"I really don't feel like hanging out with anyone from school after spending eight classes with most of them," Dean said, almost whining.

Allen shrugged. "I could text Kaeden and Elijah," she said. "You could ask Christian to join us, Dean. We haven't seen him really in ages."

"I'll ask him," he said, a little dubious about whether Christian would want to come.

Allen reached for her phone, and sighed. "My phone's dead," she groaned.

"I'll text them. I got Elijah's number on Sunday," shrugged Dean. Taking out his phone, he shot Elijah a quick text, before turning his attention back to Allen and Nate.

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Hey guys! Dean's POV!!!!!!
First off, I really want to thank those of you who gave my book a chance:). It means so much to me.

Also, please let me know what you think of this chapter! Vote and share if you liked it :).

Teaser for Chapter Ten: Dean's brother is introduced. And Elijah might be feeling something more than just platonic friendship toward Dean ;).
See ya'll soon!