scoring you

Chapter 32

Aiden

2 hours prior to the phone call:

The town I grew up in didn't have much in it.

It had a school.

It had a row of shops.

It had a lot of children and a massive school.

It always felt weird, ill proportioned, to have a giant school in a small town.

My family grew up quite wealthy, we always had money and plenty to spend unlike some of my friends did when I was younger. It never made sense to me why we lived in this town instead of the city or something with more opportunity's, especially since my father doesn't even work here.

But they both grew up here.

Their parents did.

Their parents did.

And my father couldn't move on without her.

It feels odd walking along this familiar pavement, the pebble stones surrounding the direction I walk in with green grass weaving through my shoes.

I knock on the large white door that beams in my presence, a couple of neighbours walk past with confused glances and hushed whispers. I wave in their direction which they sloppily reply to with their own, my Grandma must fill them in on my doings and hadn't told them about this unexpected visit.

Probably because she didn't know.

I booked the first flight here at 10am, I'm surprised they even had a free flight.

The door opens and my Grandma pokes her head through, looking me up and down without utter confusion. "What are you doing here?" She asks.

My stuff my hands in my jean pockets, "lovely to see you as well Nan," I say.

Her eyes brighten and her arms cling around my body, holding on for dear life, "Aiden!" She says happily. "Truly, what are you doing here? Don't you have school?"

 What am I doing here?

I'm just visiting my friend whom I can't seem to understand- though she isn't really my friend- or is she? Oh, and I'm in love with her and apparently she remembers me from when we went to school together, I should probably add that she used to despise me and still did until not long ago.

"Couple days off," I shrug like it's nothing.

"You should of told me! The neighbours are going to wonder what your doing here!" She says welcoming me inside.

"Already have," I reply gruffly, "don't they have a life?" I ask.

She leans into me and whispers, "between you and me, they don't. Especially since Jaqueline got divorced with the other guy, forgot his name, now they think they belong in my life!"

"Huh," I nod fully unaware of anything she just said.

"Your father is going to be thrilled that your home," she says when we reach his office and she knocks onto it, opening before he can answer. "Look who it is!" 

My fathers grey eyebrows cross together in a confused line before a large smile peels onto his face, "Aiden? Is that you?"

"No, it's your other son," I reply with the tug of a grin on my face.

My father wraps his arms around my body before I even notice, "glad to have you back son." He says.

I feel a wave of guilt wash over me as I reach into his embrace, the only reason I came down to visit is because of Alyssa. Fuck, I didn't even come to visit, I came to take her the hell away from here. Because of my fathers unwillingness to ever settle down with anyone else he's practically all alone, apart from his mother-in-law who refuses to leave him or myself.