Faded Promises

10

Hanna POV

The moment Aiden's lips left mine, it felt like the world had spun off its axis.

Why did it felt so right?

My heart was still racing from the intensity of the kiss, and my mind was a whirlwind of confusion and emotion.

What just happened? And why did Aiden, of all people, kiss me like that?

He stole my first kiss and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

I manage to leave the bathroom and rejoin the party, but my thoughts are far from the here.

I see Ethan looking around, probably wondering where I disappeared to.

Fuck, I forgot about him.

I take a deep breath, trying to calm my nerves, and approach him with what I hope is a composed expression.

"Hey, where did you go?" Ethan asks, concern evident in his eyes. "I was looking for you."

"I, um, felt a bit sick," I lie, forcing a weak smile. "Had to get some air"

Ethan's eyebrows knit together in worry. "Are you okay now?"

"Yeah, just needed some rest," I assure him, although inside, I'm anything but okay. The memory of Aiden's kiss is still fresh, making it hard to focus on anything else.

My lips are still burning for him.

"Oh ok, Lucy was looking for you actually. She looked kinda worried so I was worried"

I'm such a horrible friend. It's her birthday and I'm here thinking about a dam kiss from a boy who ran away from me.

"I should probably go find her"

"Wait-" Ethan grabs me by the waist and pulls me to him "I wanna ask you if you wanna go somewhere alone, just us two?"

Just then, Max walks by and I guess he notices my expression. He saunters over, his usual carefree grin in place. "Hey. Haven't seen you. Are you good?"

"Yeah, just... talking with Ethan," I reply, grateful for the distraction. I took the opportunity to step away from him

Max nods and turns to Ethan. "Mind if I steal her for a second? I need some Hanna time"

Ethan looks a bit puzzled but nods. "Sure, no problem."

Max gently guides me away from Ethan, and once we're out of earshot, he lowers his voice. "You and Aiden..."

I feel my cheeks heat up, embarrassment flooding through me. "Max, I—"

"What happened? He went away the second you went to the bathroom"

"I don't know" I'm not lying, I'm being honest.

"I don't think he does too. What happened to you too? When I met you, you were glue up together. It was a pack deal, you want Aiden Hanna comes along"

"You said that like it's a bad thing" I give him a killer look

"Don't get me wrong, I won with that deal. You're way better than him" he smirks and hugs me "I just mean you two should be dating by now. You love each other and you're fighting this. It kills me to see you two apart."

"I don't know. He stoped talking to me, and if I'm being honest... I don't want to have anything with him. If he can ghost me after all the memories together, he's no man for me"

"I get that" he says, his tone surprisingly kind. "If you need to talk about it, I'm here."

"Thanks," I murmur

But talking about it right now feels impossible, so I just give him a small, grateful smile.

"I think I'm just gonna go home"

"Alone? No you're not" Max wraps a arm around me "lets just talk to Lucy and I'll take you home"

That's why I love Max, he seems like a playboy and a jerk but he's one of the sweetest persons I know .

We see Lucy on her favorite spot, Jake's lap. She's smiling as he's giving her cake, she's so happy and I'm feeling worse for being a bad friend.

"Lovebirds, stop making me feel single" Max says grabbing the fork and eats the cake that was supposed to be for Luce.

"You are single" she says "hey girl... I was looking for you. You were nowhere to be seen and Aiden was rushing to leave"

"I don't know anything about it" I lie through my teeth but I don't wanna tell her the truth not with the boys here.

Max pinch my waist to help me out of my head, I look at him and he squish's my cheeks "She was having a nice talk with Ethan, that's why you didn't saw her. I stole her from him"

"Ethan..." Jake nods his head "maybe that's why. Are you two together?"

"Don't ask her like it's a bad thing" Lucy narrows her eyes at him " I like Ethan"

"Aiden doesn't"

"And I don't care"

"I'm taking Hanna home, you guys enjoy the rest of the weekend.... Alone" he says patting Jake's shoulder

The next Monday at lunch is lonely. Lucy is out with Jake, leaving me to sit by myself in the cafeteria.

I pick at my food, my mind replaying the events of the party.

Aiden's intense gaze, the way he kissed me... I can't shake the feeling of his lips on mine.

I glance up and see Aiden walking by. For a moment, our eyes meet, but he quickly looks away and keeps walking. The cold shoulder stings more than I'd like to admit.

You were the one who kissed me asshole.

Drama class doesn't help either. My mind is so occupied that I barely remember my lines.

When it's finally over, I head home, happy I can finally sleep a bit.

As I walk into my bedroom, I catch sight of Aiden through the window. He's looking at me, his expression unreadable.

I want to flip him over and demand answers, but instead, I turn away, pretending I didn't see him.

A taste of your own medicine. Let's see if you like it.

I throw myself onto my bed, trying to sort through the chaos in my head. Sleep doesn't come easy, but eventually, exhaustion wins.

The next morning, I wake up to the smell of breakfast. My dad is waiting for me at the table, a rare sight. We sit down to eat, and he tries to make small talk, asking about school and my friends.

I appreciate the effort, but my mind is nowhere here.

"Is everything okay, Hanna?" he asks, noticing my distraction.

"Yeah. Just a lot on my mind," I reply, managing a small smile.

When I leave the house, Aiden is waiting outside. My heart skips a beat, but I steel myself and walk past him, ignoring his attempt to get my attention.

"Hanna, wait," he calls out, but I keep walking, not trusting myself to face him without breaking down.

I need to sort out my feelings, figure out what I want. And right now, that means keeping my distance from Aiden, no matter how much it hurts.