Basic Instinct [stranger things]

18. Ruined Sweaters

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
RUINED SWEATERS

Aaron got off the phone the next morning after talking to Kimmy for no longer than two minutes, just the same as when Lucas had called him.

It wasn't that he didn't want to talk to his two friends, he did, he just had bigger issues at hand at that very moment.

Lucas had called, much to Aaron's dismay - which was very unlikely. Lucas was Aaron's best friend, but it seemed as if that morning everything was going wrong for the blond.

At least Lucas had been brief himself, simply calling for Aaron on his walkie urging him to come over to his house and to leave in the next ten minutes, the two planning to look for Will themselves.

Lucas had also then told Aaron to call Kimmy and ask her along too, seeing as he didn't have her number.

Aaron had done so, telling the girl to meet him at the ice cream parlour in town in twenty minutes time, seeing as he would need time to actually get there.

He'd hung up the phone with a tired huff, rushing down to the kitchen in hopes to talk to his older brother before he left.

Sure enough, he found Steve sat on the couch in the living room watching the tv as he ate his bowl of cereal, much to Aaron's utter distaste, though the young boy pushed down the rising anger at the amount the older boy was spilling, knowing he'd have to clean it himself later anyway.

"Steve?" Aaron questioned softly from where he stood at the living room entrance, causing the older boy to turn his head to face him lazily. "Did you talk to mom this morning?"

Aaron knew the answer, yet he still wanted to hear the answer from him himself.

"Yeah," the boy shrugged, evidently bored as he turned back to face the television again.

Aaron had to bite his cheek to refrain from snapping back at him. Steve had spoken to the twos parents and he hadn't even thought to give Aaron the phone, or even tell him for that matter.

That was the first time their parents had called the two in weeks and they hadn't even asked to speak to him.

Aaron reasoned that the two were most likely still angry with Aaron for his detention and the fact they would have to bear a meeting with the principle the next Friday, but it didn't stop the boy from being hurt over the fact.

Actually, no. He wasn't hurt, he was angry.

Even if he hadn't gotten a detention, Aaron doubted his parents would have wanted to speak to him anyway. Usually when they called, it was to speak with Steve. Aaron just had to get lucky and get to the phone first when it rang.

It was fairly obvious that his mother and father favoured Steve, and it really did bother the younger boy. No matter what he did, it was never enough.

Sure, his parents had never actually hit him and Aaron was definitely grateful for that, but that didn't mean Aaron resented them any less.

They ignored him. Any chance they could get - all the time.

Even when the two were home, it was mostly Steve they fussed over. Steve and his basketball and his friends and his grades, anything they could think of.