Aiden [Book Two]

36

Aiden chewed his lower lip and stared at the book in his lap, twirling the pencil between his fingers as he wondered how to fill the space.

He was trying to keep busy for a while, but it proved difficult.

There weren't any movies he wanted to watch, playing games didn't interest him right now, and he couldn't focus enough to study.

The redhead had been doing well over the last few weeks, but took a significant step back recently, which he found tough to deal with.

Aiden attended several therapy sessions, discussing his dark past and working through the unpleasant feelings that each memory held. He spoke with Miss Vance over the phone every now and again, discussing his school work and how things were going.

A few times, the teenager hung out with his friends, rebuilding his social skills and learning how to be around people again.

But with every improvement, there were still low points that needed management.

Aiden still struggled with frequent nightmares that woke him through the night. Despite doing everything they could to relax his mind before sleeping, the terrors snuck up on him, forcing the smaller boy to lash out and fight people who weren't there.

Regardless of the time of day, even a brief nap would cause him to wake up in hysterics, trembling and crying because of the crushing fear.

By far, the worst moment was when the smaller boy woke in a fit of horror, and became overwhelmed by the darkness, striking out and smacking Nathan in the face without meaning to.

He sobbed, watching the elder try to stem the nosebleed and ended up in a crippling panic attack, begging for forgiveness as he hurt himself in punishment.

After that, the teen couldn't sleep for days, fearing that he would injure his boyfriend again. He was so rattled that Grace had to book an emergency therapy appointment.

Aiden had to be convinced, but eventually agreed to take some medication that would help him sleep through the night and ease his daily anxiety.

Day by day, improvements were noticeable, particularly once he began sleeping better at night, yet one major concern still weighed heavily on the younger boy.

"Baby, stop..."

The orange-haired boy snapped from his thoughts when a sonorous voice rang out from across the bedroom.

When he glanced towards the desk, Nathan was leaning back over the chair, pointing at the remnants of the wooden pencil his lover held.

Shit. That was the third pencil he'd broken today.

"Sorry, I-I'm just a bit stressed." Aiden replied, dusting the fragments onto the bedside cabinet and dropping the book onto the bed.

Nathan already knew that his lover wasn't coping well, but was trying to let him work it out alone. His lover needed to learn how to deal with the painful emotions, but also know when to ask for help.

The older boy smiled when he held out his hand, encouraging the pretty boy to come closer.

He attempted to focus on the laptop on the desk and finish his school work, but the intense nervous energy emanating from behind him proved too distracting.

Aiden didn't hesitate to shuffle off the bed, teetering towards the desk and sliding his hand into the pearly one waiting.

That warm hand was enough to tease the concern out of the younger.

"I don't want to go back to school tomorrow."

Nathan pulled the smaller boy onto his lap, wrapping an arm around his waist as a chin dropped on his stronger shoulder. The comfort that came with his love was soothing enough to have an instant effect.