You, Me, and Her

Verse 35: Wicked

"I need to go..."

As soon as he uttered those words, Aidan quickly turned, looking pathetic, like a whimpering puppy when their master went away. They were in the kitchenette while Owen, Floyd, and Dylan were still in the living room playing video games, and had not shown any signs of leaving soon.

"Is this the part where you tell me to find new friends?" Aidan walked toward him and held his hands.

Halwyn laughed. "No, this is the part where I tell you that I'm exhausted and I need to go home."

Aidan pouted even more, he encircled his arms around Hal and rested his chin on his shoulder. For some reason, Hal found all of these actions adorable. "You can rest here. I promise I take you straight to your office first thing tomorrow." The man mumbled next to his ear.

Hal smiled and put a hand at the back of his neck, lightly caressing it. "Where are my clothes?"

"It's in the laundromat."

"Then, I have nothing to wear to go to the office tomorrow."

"You can borrow everything in my closet."

He chuckled softly. "Why are you being so clingy now?'

"I've always been clingy..." Then, Aidan moved away but only to gaze at him and said, "Wait, are you dumping me after you've taken advantage of my body?"

The accusation made his eyes widen and he threw his head back and laughed. His back would've hit the counter aggressively but Aidan's arms were protecting him, pulling Hal close toward his body. "I've taken advantage of your body. Me? Seriously..."

"Stay. Please? For me?" Aidan turned wistful, cajoling, and was simply too irresistible to resist. "If her presence earlier bothered you---"

"It didn't," Hal was quick to deny this. "But she's right. They're right. You're a celebrity and if anyone sees me in your place..."

"I don't care about them."

"I do," when Hal saw his expression, he hastily added, "I care about you. Your image. Your career."

Aidan's face softened. Coming closer, he brushed his nose against Hal, their lips were near one another, brushing lightly into a feathery kiss. "None of these matters without you. Remember that, Hal."

The earnestness in his words was unexpected and Hal couldn't help paying more attention to the man than ever before. This was a different Aidan, or perhaps, this was the Aidan meant to be known by him from the beginning. All the tolerance, the rejection, and the fear had flown away. Vanished. The moment of connection they had the first time they met came back in an instant, and a surge of fulfillment replenished his heart. It made one deliriously happy but at the same time, there was this nagging feeling that something was about to happen. A storm after the happiness.

Yet, being with Aidan, talking to him, having him in his life again---not as his best friend but as his lover, was making him braver. Willing to risk danger so he could be with him. Someone he cared about. Someone who understood him. Someone he could call home...

"Can you promise me one thing?" he murmured, staring at those lovely kissable lips.

Aidan gently lifted him off, to have him sit on the counter comfortably and Hal felt warm when his body went closer. "Anything..."

Hal's hands slid from his cheek to the back of his neck, his fingers intertwining with his hair. "If...at some point, you found out that I did...I did something unforgivable, that you would...you would listen to me first? I'd like a chance to explain myself. And also...to say that I'm sorry...I didn't mean to---"