Joker

FOURTEEN - Aiden

"Are you kidding me?" I yelled.
"I'm sorry, it just slipped out..."
"Oh, please. I bet it's all you've ever wanted, isn't it?"
"What?"
"You've always wanted to embarrass me in front of my sister, and now my ex-girlfriend?"
"No... NO!"
"You're disgusting."
"So, let me get this straight: you can't accept me, but you'll accept the girls?"
"Do you think I'm okay with my sister dating my ex?"
"The fact they're both girls doesn't bother you?"
"Of course it does; it's not natural."
"Excuse me?" I'd never seen Axel more shocked.
"I said it's not natural! You can't argue with me, because it's meant to be a man and a woman in a relationship together. Plus, it's just a phase anyway. Trust me, you'll feel silly in the end. I don't understand why you'd choose to be like this!"
"You know what, Aiden? I don't understand why you choose to be such a jerk! I'm not going to change my mind and don't you dare ask me if I want to lead a normal life, because I am. Look, I don't call you being ignorant a phase, clearly it's just a part of who you are. So, please, let me be. Leave us all alone, okay?" Axel's tone was angry.
"We're going to have to suck it up and deal with it until this mystery is solved. It's only fair for the girls."
"Well, if I'm being entirely honest, I think it's best for the girls and I if you just leave us alone as soon as all of this is sorted."
"Sounds good to me." But the truth is, it didn't sound good to me at all. These 3 people all play a huge role in my life, and I don't want to have to leave them. Although, I suppose it's only a matter of time before we all go our separate ways anyway. That's really scary, now that I think about it. For the past year, we've been like pieces of a puzzle, although I suppose that's the problem with jigsaws: there's always more than one piece that fits just perfectly.

When I got back inside, Axel and Avery were sitting together on Amaya's sofa. "Where's Amaya?" I asked, to which they pointed upstairs. Hurriedly, I walked out of the living room and stormed up the stairs. I stopped outside her bedroom door, gently knocking on the wood. "Not now." she sobbed. After a brief moment to think my next action through, I opened the door quietly. "I said not-" she began. "oh, it's you."
"Yeah, it's me."
"What do you want?"
"I'm really sorry, Amaya. I know he was a good kid and you should know he loved you with every piece of that huge heart he had. You were the best sister ever to him." I smiled. Amaya forced a smile back before turning away to stare blankly at the wall again. "I just wish... I just wish they took me instead of him."
"Don't say that."
"No, it's true."
"Amaya..." my voice cracked. Slowly, I pulled her into a warm hug as we watched the rest of the world crumble around us.