Let Go

17: Ash Black

Aiden's P.O.V.:

Scarlet was furious.

I mean, I would've been angry too if I were in her place. She did warn me about her cousins, but in my defense, I didn't know they were her cousins until the very end.

It was dumb on my part not to put two and two together and figure out they were Reds of the same family. However, I never claimed to be smart.

"My cousins are dangerous, really dangerous," Scarlet warned. I remembered Harken's words to me before I left: There's so much about me that you don't know and it could hurt you.

They were all too vague, and I hated it. I wanted to know what could hurt me. I wanted to figure out why Harken thought he'd scare me away.

Well, technically, he did scare me away. But not because of anything he did, but his brother's name was more than enough to drive me to the hills.

"If Blake gets involved in this, you'll never see the end of it,"

"Why are you here, Scarlet?" I interrupted her threats. I knew she wasn't here for a good time and I didn't wanna hear more about the dangers of the Reds. I was convinced that Harken wouldn't cause me pain even if he tried.

"I'm here to warn you. Stay away from them for your own sake," she sighed, "consider it a friendly advice, for better or for worse,"

To be honest, after I learned that Blake and Harken were brothers, I didn't want anything to do with either of them.

It left me wondering how Blake and Harken could be siblings. For all I knew, Harken was so soft and caring and gentle. Blake should've been in prison for what he did to my brother. He was a sadistic, sick son of a bitch.

Then Harken's words reverberated in my head again. "if anyone outside this room finds out about what we just did, you'll be in a lot of pain."

It seemed to me that they did find out. Was Blake after me too, now?

"You don't understand what could happen if Blake gets involved,"

"Then explain, maybe?"

"All I have to say is be careful and watch your back. Blake doesn't know about us, or anyone, for that matter. But he knows that you were with Harken,"

"I think you should go, Scarlet." I said, plopping myself on my bed.

"I think I should, too. Good luck,"

Right after Scarlet left, my phone started ringing. It was a number that I couldn’t identify. I picked up on the third ring.

“Hey, Aiden,” He paused for a second, as if debating whether to continue the call or just hang up without saying anything. I hated that I recognized his voice, and I hated that I didn’t hang up either. “I need to see you,” he spoke with a shaky voice. Like he was scared or anxious. It wasn’t like him at all.

“What do you need to see me for?” I asked cautiously. I didn’t want anything to do with the Reds anymore. Not Harken, not Scarlet, and definitely not Blake. Oh, if only Raiden found out what I’ve been doing he’d disown me as his brother.

Little did I know that Raiden would find out in the most gruesome way.

“I just want to talk, if you don’t mind,” I wondered if what I was doing the right thing by talking to him. He was, after all, Blake’s brother. I’d only find out later that he wasn’t Blake’s sibling, but Scarlet was.

"Where would we meet if I say yes?"

He sighed deeply. "Wherever you want. There's a Betsy's halfway between us," Betsy's sounded like a good idea. I liked their burgers.

"So if I agree we'd meet at Betsy's?"

"Why are you being weird?"

"I'm nervous," I explained. "I don't know what to do either,"

"If you get uncomfortable or stressed we'll leave." He paused, which was something he always did while talking. "I just really need to show you my true self."

Eventually, I agreed. A harmless meeting wouldn’t lead to anything dramatic. I believed he needed closure, just like I did. Closure for what, exactly?  We didn’t have any history, at least not something to build upon. But there was no denying that we had something going between us.

We were a lost cause, but I loved every second of our intertwining life paths.

Then a thought came to me. A flicker of hope. Just a spark.

Raiden was dating a Red. Thomas Red.

Raiden was dating the cousin of the person who abused him. How was it different from me dating Harken?

I was getting too ahead of myself, but the fact that I could have something tangible with Harken excited and scared me at the same time.

I grabbed my keys and necessities and headed out. My car was parked right outside. A few minutes later I was on my way. With every passing moment, my gut feeling grew more anxious.

What was I doing? I was willingly driving myself to see him.

I was so dumb to go after my feelings, I'd realise later. I thought I'd see Harken, talk things out, and maybe gain him as a friend or possibly more. I was too foolish to think things were as simple as I had imagined.

Betsy's was a few kilometers before the Rivertown-Hilltown border.

I reached there, the parking lot was empty save for a few cars. It was early afternoon and lunch rush was over. I parked my car as near to the door as possible. Anxiety didn't help and my legs were starting to feel wobbly.

Had I known I wouldn't reach Betsy's, despite how close to the door I was, I wouldn't have left my car.

But in the flash of a second, I got something draped over my head, body restrained, and I got shoved into a car that drove off with screeching tires and a dreadful feeling that I wasn't going to be the same after that day.

A/N: I think we're halfway through the story. I always say this but end up with like thirty more chapters. There are a few more plot points that I have to go through before I decide doing anything drastic.

I hope you're enjoying it and I hope to deliver quality stories for you to enjoy.

Thank you for reading, more soon x.

P.S. Eep we hit 5k reads.