Notebook

One

Evan dragged Aiden down the street by the sleeve of his hoodie, mindlessly chirping about the small restaurant they were heading towards.

After weeks of talking about his older cousin's arrival, he was excited to introduce him to his five closest friends. Evan bleated for hours throughout the week until one of the boys hit him with a book to shut him up. The group was just as eager to meet Aiden, but the youngest member's overexcited babbling was exhausting.

Aiden pulled at his arm, breaking the sleeve away from Evan's grip and stopping him mid-sentence on the footpath.

The taller, younger boy's bright grin dipped as he noted the other, nervously eyeing the entrance to the restaurant.

Aiden patted himself down, smoothing his dark jacket and cursing the sudden wrinkles that appeared. He then ran his fingers through his freshly dyed hair, wondering if the bold colour choice was right.

Cotton candy pink seemed the right choice then, but now the soft shade made him uneasy. He was obvious.

Looking up at the boy towering over him, he couldn't help but squint in the blinding sunshine.

Evan was always the taller of the pair. At just under sixteen years old, he now stood nearly six feet tall, so he loomed over just about everybody, including his mother. His height was the only thing he gained from a useless, non-existent father.

Luckily for him, every part of the younger boy resembled his mother.

He had her deep black hair, which contrasted and emphasised his sparkling blue eyes, soft boyish features and an almost permanent shy smile.

"Are you sure this is okay?" Aiden asked, shifting his weight from foot to foot. "I don't want to intrude."

The older boy buried his hands in his pockets, balling them into fists as he fought against the urge to pinch at the crawling sensation under his skin.

Evan blinked for a second, meeting the unsettled caramel-coloured eyes staring at him and digesting the words before speaking.

"Maybe you shouldn't come..." He started in a serious tone with a deadpan expression that lasted only a few seconds before he was grinning like a child, the corners of his eyes squinting as he tried to suppress his amusement. "... You smell bad."

The older boy whined in protest at the teasing, reaching out his tiny hand and shoving the taller boy away. He barely moved as the little hand struck his chest.

Evan grinned and stepped into line with his cousin, throwing a long arm over Aiden's shoulder and pulling him close. Aiden automatically wrapped an arm around the taller boy's back, squeezing him for reassurance.

Evan knew about his cousin's nervous disposition and why his family left his home in a hurry. He knew why he was worried about his looks and meeting new people. But the younger boy didn't know the true extent; nobody did.

Not even Aiden's parents.

The pair met almost daily since the elder arrived, and despite his best efforts, Aiden refused to discuss what happened in London. All Evan knew was that somebody had hurt his cousin.

The two boys walked towards the restaurant, the younger boy focussing on keeping the older one's mind busy with conversation and away from the anxiety he'd already expressed.

They were so preoccupied that neither saw the sandy-haired blonde sprinting down the street until he was right on top of them.

He threw himself into the air, diving into Evan's arms with an ear-to-ear grin seconds before pressing their lips together. That earned a wide-eyed look from the younger boy, who quickly realised what was happening and spun the blonde around in his arms before dropping him to his feet.