Missing Piece

Chapter 22

Melanie

"Yeah, whatevs." I motion him with my hand to talk. "Start Speak-ing Now."

Aaron shifts under our gazes. "I'm not very comfortable sharing this with some stranger." He looks at Seo while saying 'some stranger'.

"How dare you call your best friend some stranger?" Seo asks offended, placing a hand over his heart.

Yep. It's confirmed. He's Mel's male version.

I pat Seo's back. "Calm down. Of course, you're not a stranger. He was talking about me." I gaze at Aaron with a firm look. "I trust Seo, Aaron. You should too. Now start talking."

Aaron regards us for a few minutes. He slumps in his seat when he realizes we aren't gonna budge.

Sighing he speaks. "Alan was my boyfriend in high school."

I had my doubt about this. There was unbelievable chemistry between them. I just knew they had some kinda history with each other.

"Secret boyfriend." Aaron specifies, continuing as we listen attentively to him. "He was the stereotypical straight guy. He was quite popular back then and I was just a nerd-"

"If the story of you ends with him hurting you, friend or not, I'm gonna end this Alan guy." Seo butts in causing a warm smile to spread on Aaron's face.

"- he was a popular and I was just a geeky kid. Junior year we got paired up for a project and we ended up being best friends. He was the reason I realized I was into guys too. I...I confessed to Alan, and he said he felt the same way. We started dating in secret cause we both weren't ready to come out to the whole school. Everything was going fine until some football guys saw me kissing Alan. Our school wasn't very welcoming for people like us. So... When they found out, I thought might as well come out now. But Alan freaked out. He pushed me away and said that I came onto him. I was devastated. Everyone believed him cause he was popular. And then the bullying, name calling started. That was so scary for me. I was bullied and when I desperately needed someone by my side Alan backed out. He abandoned me and completely forgot that I existed. I was so alone, people started avoiding me like plague. Those were really hard days." Aaron's lips quiver as he finishes, his eyes showing how much those high school years tormented him.

Yet still he manages to put bright smile, proving just how brave he is. But behind that smile, I can see all the pain that he had to endure in those times.

He's brave. Even after going through something like that he hasn't let that experience break him.

I can't stop my heart from crying for the young Aaron who had to go through that suffering all alone.

Alan... You idiot.

What did you do?

Wait till I find you and tear you apart.

My heart goes out to Aaron. He had no one supporting him in those cruel days. He had to face that all alone. I so wish he had someone there for him, telling him that everything was going to be fine. Or just be there for him.

Nobody knows about getting bullied in high school more than me. Some kids are just so ruthless. They don't understand just how much their bullying affects some people. They don't realize that some of us carry the scars that their words and actions left on our souls throughout our whole lives. These kinda scars never fade away. It's like a branding left on one's soul.

"Mel," I look into Seo's black eyes. They fill with so much compassion for a person he just met. Which tells me he's got a kind heart. "I'm sorry but I'm unfriending this Alan guy. He hurt my buddy."