Friend from the wild side ( AePete AU )

Chapter 6

"Next time pick a brighter spot; I couldn't see you." Pete was used to Ae's scolding. In fact, he welcomed it and enjoyed it, as strange as it seemed. "Sorry." Pete muttered as he sat behind Ae and hooked his arms around the man's waist as usual. He squeezed him a little, pushing his own face between Ae's shoulder blades, but something felt off. His suspicions got confirmed when Ae slapped his hands and moved them lower to hold his hips. "Ow, careful." He hissed, but before Pete could ask what's wrong, Ae kicked off the bike stand and drove away, forcing Pete to take a tight grip on his hips.

As soon as they parked Pete ambushed Ae and lifted his shirt, revealing a big purple bruise that covered majority of his abdomen. "What happened?" He gasped in shock. It looked incredibly painful, as if he got stomped on by an elephant. "It's nothing, don't worry about it Pete." Ae rolled his shirt down. "I'll be alright. Come, let's get something to eat." "But-" Ae has grabbed Pete's hand and dragged him towards the messy food stalls where he picked up a loaded tray of food. It smelled almost burnt and there was a layer of oil already seeping through the napkin, but Pete didn't complain one bit. He loved when Ae bought him food, even though it wasn't a five star restaurant quality.

"What am I eating?" Pete asked, chewing a piece of some meat. It was really nicely seasoned and spicy, but the texture was something he hasn't tried. "You don't wanna know. Sloppy." Ae wiped the corner of Pete's mouth. His thumb brushed against those pillowy lips for a brief second, but it was enough for Pete to blush profusely. Ae licked his thumb. "Are your parents still away from home?" Pete nodded. "For another four days." "Do they know you're going out every night? Aren't they worried?" "They wouldn't notice even if I left right infront of them." Pete sighed as he wiped his mouth and took a sip of the drink they shared. "You know, once I got kidnapped as a kid, and they haven't noticed for eight days, until the kidnappers demanded ransom of a couple million. They paid it within a few minutes and when I got home, my mom asked if I'm okay and that's it." He shrugged. "So if you ever need some extra cash, just keep me for a few days and call them."

Ae ruffled Pete's hair. "I guess even rich kid can have it tough, huh?" "My dad is always busy with business, I speak to him face to face maybe once a month, and my mom is just his pretty wife who likes shopping and reality tv shows. She's pretty and kind, but not much going on upstair." "You shouldn't talk about your mother like that." Ae scolded him. With the rough sleeve of his denim jacket he wiped the droplet of oil from Pete's chin and pinched his nose. "I'm sure your parents love you. "They do, but...I just wish sometimes they showed it in other way than just money, you know? Like watching a movie together, or just spending the day home in pyjamas. I'm..."

"Lonely?" Pete nodded. Ae pushed his head against his own shoulder, giving him a one arm hug. "Ae...will you ever tell me about your family?" Pete asked quietly. He didn't know how much of a personal question that would be, but he was curious, he wanted to know more. "There's nothing to tell...I grew up in foster care and got kicked out when I was 16. Stayed on a street for a while..." "Until...now?" "No, dummy. I have my own place." Ae pinched his nose again. Pete pulled away, only far enough to be able to look Ae in the face. "Huh? You have your own place?" "Did you think I was homeless?" The man laughed. "I guess it never came up. Do you live alone?" "Yeah." "Can I come over?"