TPQ (Aru Shah) One Shots

Great Big War aftermath, I need ice cream (2)

School was boring.

Aru could hardly listen to their math teacher, Mr.O'Hara, for a second longer. "And this is why you need to understand trinomial factors-"

Saved by the bell.

Thank the gods.

Aru packed up, and left the classroom. Usually, if she was walking to her locker from math class, she'd see Aiden fiddling with Shadowfax at his locker, but not now, as he'd gone to New York. Aru walked up to his locker and unlocked it. She was the only person who knew the code to his locker and that made her feel special.

~A few months ago~

"Wifey!"

"What, Shah?" Aiden asked, turning to her.

"Can you please open your locker for me?" asked Aru.

"Why?" Aiden asked.

"I want Swedish fish." Aiden rolled his eyes, "Fine."

As he was opening his locker, Aru tried to look at his code, until he caught her.

"What are you trying to do?" He asked.

"Nothing." Aru fibbed, feigning innocence.

Aiden rolled his eyes again, "If you wanted to know you could've just asked."

"You'd tell me?" Aru asked.

"Why not?" Aiden asked. He pulled Aru in close and whispered, "It's snob."

"What?" 

"I said my code is snob."

"But I call you "snob"."

"That's why it's the code, Shah."

"I don't believe you." said Aru.

Aiden stepped out of Aru's way, revealing the blue locker with the number 1673 where the lock was. Aru slowly turned the letter lock so that it spelled out "SNOB", then she pulled on the lock, unlatching it. She turned around to face Aiden with a smirk on his face.

"I told you."

Aru rolled her eyes, "You know, if you were that obsessed with me you should've just told me."

Aiden smiled. "Why should I tell you if you already know?"

Aru paused, and Aiden smirked. "Because I didn't know?"

Aiden laughed and pressed a small kiss to Aru's lips.

Their 12th kiss.

"Well now you know."

~Present~

Aru smiled at the memory and twisted the letter lock once again to form the word "SNOB". The lock unlatched from the locker and as she opened her locker, the scent of clean laundry and spices engulfed her.

His locker was clean, and it was kind of empty.

There wasn't anything in it besides an extra dark green sweater, deodorant, and a pack of kleenex inside.

Aru's locker was the complete opposite. It was messy, and random things from who-knows-where were inside.

Aru randomly grabbed the pack of kleenex just to realise that there were things under it. She raised an eyebrow, and grabbed the two small papers. They were photos.

One photo was of Malini Acharya.

Her dark hair fell past her shoulders, and her face glowed. She was smiling brightly, and her eyes were warm, with deep flashes of blue.

Just like Aiden's.

The second photo was of Aru, Mini, Brynne and Rudy.

She doesn't know when he took this picture, but by the looks of it, it seemed like it was at Mini's house when they were studying.

What surprised Aru most about it was the fact that it seemed as if she was the focus of the picture.

And she looked beautiful.

The photo emphasised Aru's features beautifully. Her thick, dark hair was in a messy braid after a long day. She was laughing, and Aru thought she looked like her mom.

"Aru?" A voice asked from behind her.

Aru's eyes grew wide, and she threw the kleenex and two small photos back into the locker and shut it as fast as she could.

"Chillll, Aru," It was Rudy.

Aru glared. "What?"

"I need help finding my biology class."

"Why?" Aru asked. "We've been in school for months now."

"Yeah, but I still get confused," Aru rolled her eyes. "Fine."

"SO you know what Aiden's locker code is?" Rudy asked her cautiously, probably afraid that she'd electrocute him.

"Yeah, so?"

"You know, Aru," Rudy said. "I never thought Aiden was romantic, until I saw him with you. He cares a lot about you, you know?"

"You've said that too much," Aru said.

"What?"

"'You'. It was overused in that sentence."

Rudy paused, rethinking his words. "Hey!" Aru cackled and Rudy grumbled.

"You're rude."

"That's my job, snake boy!"