A Name for Ourselves

Famous by Association (Part Two)

Author's Note:

Well, daaang! Wattpad decided to keep my AN's in bold? So much for not caring... well, part two, my dudes! Hit it, Crisper!

Crisper: (hits it)

Aiden wasn't quite sure how he found the living room, but he didn't care. He looked around, anxious to find his long-lost friend. He walked up to the couch, peering over it from behind. A smile crossed his face and immense joy filled his heart.

Lukas lay there, sleeping quietly except for a low snore. But that was going to change very soon.

"Hey, Lukas!" Aiden shouted, unable to hold himself from jumping over the couch. Aiden came down hard on Lukas, making the blonde yell in pain and surprise as they fell to the carpeted floor.

"Aiden?! What are you doing?!" Lukas shouted as Aiden squeezed him like a grape. Soon, Aiden's soft crying reached his ears and he stilled. "Aiden, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm f-fine." He stammered.

They both lay there, Lukas wondering what Aiden's deal was. 'I'm fine' didn't' give him much insight to the question. But the more he thought about it, the more obvious the dilemma was. The random crying, the 'I'm fine's, the hugging. It had all been there when Gill, and eventually Maya, came around.

He waited silently as Aiden's crying died down. They both sat in front of the couch, though Aiden kept hugging.

"Aiden... do you still have amnesia?" Lukas asked cautiously. He knew he was stepping on quite sensitive ground.

Aiden hesitated, swallowing back his nervousness. "No," he smiled again, "but I'm fine." Lukas eyed him, clearly unconvinced. Aiden's smile clearly juxtaposed the worry and tears in his eyes. "Seriously, I'm okay." Aiden said in response to his lingering gaze.

Lukas looked at the floor. "Okay, then. Good to have you back, I guess." He said, giving him a friendly slap on the back. Aiden laughed a little.

"So, what're you doing today?" Aiden asked. Lukas's eyes widened in shock. He stood from the couch, turning to face the clock in the kitchen.

"Crap! I must've slept in!"

"Slept in for what?"

"I told the guys I'd meet them at nine to get back to rebuilding." He said, rushing to the door. Aiden followed closely behind, completely clueless.

"What guys?" He asked, following Lukas to the door. Lukas swung it open and stepped outside.

"Just some guys at work, Aiden." He said, reaching for the knob and pulling it shut. Aiden stood, too stunned to move or speak. In a word, that was fast. A strange sadness, a longing, set in, making him feel empty inside. But before it could get the better of him—and his tears—the door opened again. Lukas poked his head inside.

"You wanna come?" He asked. Aiden nodded, giving a relieved grin.

They walked outside together to the build site. But along the way, they were met by a gaggle of girls who seemed a bit too fond of Lukas for Aiden to handle. As they left the scene, Aiden sent Lukas a confused look.

"What was that about?" He asked.

"Oh. Just some fangirls."

"Fangirls?"

"Yeah, I'm kind of famous now. Well, by association, anyways." He said sheepishly.

"With who?" Aiden asked, making Lukas slow his pace. The blonde sent him a worried look.

"So... remember that night at Endercon when we were all separated?" Lukas regretted his question when Aiden stopped full on in his tracks. The brunette stared at the gravel road, fists clenched and eyes wet. He shut his eyes and sighed, trying to think of something else.

"Yeah, whatever." He growled, walking right past Lukas. Lukas speedwalked to keep up. Aiden glared at him. "Well, you were saying?"

"Are you sure, Aiden? We could talk about something else, if you want."

"No, no, tell me about... this," He gestured with his hands, sending Lukas a grin, "your... famous-ness, or whatever. I wanna hear."

Lukas felt a swell of anxiety in his stomach. "So... I got stuck with Jesse and his friends." he said, not noticing Aiden's sudden glare. "Anyways, Jesse defeated the Witherstorm. Now he won't stop giving all his friends most of the credit, which he says includes me. So, famous by association."

Whether Lukas realized it or not, his words were doing way more damage than he or a whole team of builders could fix. Now, Aiden wished he'd stayed home.

"Aiden, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Let's just... go to wherever you're supposed to be." He growled. Lukas gently grabbed Aiden's arm.

"Aiden, you're angry. Why? What's wrong?" Lukas asked quietly, trying to retain their privacy.

"Nothing!" Aiden hissed back, wrenching his arm away. "Just forget it, okay?" But there'd be no forgetting this pain. Not in a while, and definitely not now. Arms crossed and heart hammering, Aiden marched alongside Lukas.

By the time they got to the site, Aiden was in no mood for work. Or anything. But the overseer had other thoughts. The "volunteer" work was actually quite involuntary for whoever was able. Aiden may have been angry enough to cause a wildfire with his glare alone, but he was able. So, work it was.

As he slapped down bricks in the midday sun, he let his thoughts wander, and to dangerous places, too. There was just no shaking the fact that Lukas went on a joyride with Jesse and his band of losers while Aiden and his two friends died nearly twice looking for him. It caused an anger in him that cracked the bricks as he slammed them down on the cement.

"Hey, calm down, buddy! Those don't grow on trees!" Another worker shouted at Aiden. He ignored him, only making a mental note to be gentle on the bricks. He sighed, trying to get rid of some of his anger.

"Back to work, you." A voice grumbled. Aiden turned to face him. The person looked to be younger than him, and in no place of real authority. Aiden glared at the worker.

"Well? Get back to work!" Another chimed in. Aiden turned to face her, and then his heart dropped into his stomach with fear. She wasn't the only one on his tail that day. Aiden found himself in the "council" of not two, but at least seven other workers. Each of them glared at him. But none of them had authority, or frankly years of age, more than he did.

"I was working." He growled quietly. "Why don't you take your own advice?" He added spitefully.

"Whatever!" They sneered. He listened as they, one by one, left him to be. For that moment, anyways. Throughout the day, he'd glance up to see a few glares from random passerby. Sometimes it'd be just a look, other times the disdainful shake of the head. But for what?

The work, the stress and the heat made his head pound. He reached up, surprised to feel a sizable knot on his head. A flicker of a smile crossed his face. A valid excuse out! He began his walk to the front desk to give his notice for the day.

Author's Note:

Wow! That writing style's doing wonders! In my older style, we wouldn't have gotten past the living-room scene without hitting 2K words. This means better updates in the future, with more stuff packed so we can get to the action! Well, see you in the next update! Cellulose it, Crisper!

Crisper: Um... what?

Me: I mean 'close it'.

Crisper: Okay, then! (closes it)