And The Pain Was Heaven

part four

a/n  LAST PART YA'LLLL HERE WE GO (and please don't yell at me for the ending it was for the plot i swear-) buttt im so glad i get to share this bc ITS BEEN KILLING ME and yeah im gonna stop yapping now :)

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"I swear to God, Shah, anything other than Lord of the Rings." Brynne exclaimed, throwing her arms up in the air. Aiden frowned slightly—Shah was his nickname for her—but didn't say anything and looked to Aru—his girlfriend—for her response.

"But it's amazing!" She shot back indignantly, just as he'd expected.

"Brynne's right," Mini said apologetically. "At this point, I'd watch anything but Lord of the Rings."

Aru pouted, but seeing the determined expressions on everyone's faces she heaved a resigned sigh. "Fine. Harry Potter?"

"What's Harry Potter?" Rudy butted in.

The room went silent.

"Hold up. You've never watched Harry Potter?"

"No."

"Like, never?"

Rudy shrugged, slightly uncomfortable. "Whoever Harry Potter is, he's not very famous if I haven't heard of him."

Mini thwacked him on the head. "That's because you've been living under a rock your entire life, idiot."

"But you love me 'cause I'm your idiot."

"Enough already," Brynne muttered (probably thinking of Hira, Aiden supposed), snatching the remote. Within seconds, Hedwig's theme was echoing throughout Aru's living room. Aiden felt Aru lean on his shoulder, Brynne and Mini's watchful eyes on them. Rudy's eyes were glued to the TV, wide in amazement as an owl flew across the screen. Aiden heard him mutter, "Woah."

He couldn't help but notice the way he and Aru fit together perfectly, their bodies pressed against one another in the right ways; his chin on her head, her back on his chest, their feet a tangled mess. Almost like they were meant to be. Aiden grinned at the fleeting thought. Meant to be. Aru settled into his warmth, and she released a small, contented sigh that had him falling for her all over again.

She morphed back into her goofy self soon enough, uttering every quote in a ridiculous British accent that had him bursting into laughter. This was the best kind of love, he mused. A love where you were growing up together but staying young together too. Where you could be yourself and the other would never judge you. Aiden was only seventeen, but he had come to the conclusion that his future was and would always be tied with hers, two strings intertwined.

Rudy groaned when the movie ended.

"That was so good!" He exclaimed, his eyes alight like a kid's. "Are there more? Can we watch the next one?"

"You still need to study for that biology test," Mini reminded him. "I can— I can help you with that. If you want." Her face turned red, but he held his gaze as he replied,

"Sure. That would be great."

Bashfully, Mini waved goodbye to her friends (who shared giggles and whispers behind their hands) and walked out the door hand in hand with Aiden's cousin.

"I need to get going, too," Brynne said, yawning. "I told Hira I'd be at her house in an hour. You two have fun." She threw him a not-so-secretive wink and followed Mini and Rudy out of the house.

Well. It was just the two of them now.

"I... I probably should go," he said quietly. "Your mom—"

"—isn't going to be home for a while." Aru patted the space on the couch next to her. "Stay with me." When he hesitated, she added, "Please?"