He was Almost Absorbed by the System

Chapter Eleven - Ending His Date

At last! Finals are over! Yay!

You should take me out to dinner to celebrate!

Sure, where would you like to go?

Well, there's this place the girls have been telling me about...

Hanna Lewis emptied out her wardrobe, excited to be going out on another date with her boyfriend of six months. While their relationship was not the heart-thumping, all consuming passionate kind, she was very fond of the boy who had accepted her confession and entered a relationship with her. He was kind and considerate and while they hadn't gone beyond hand-holding or tentative kisses, she was okay with that; there was no pressure to take it further than she was ready for.

Finally, she settled on an emerald green and black poodle-style skirt and black satin blouse. She curled her silky, black locks and slipped into a comfortable pair of black pumps before grabbing her phone and letting her parents know that she was on her way out. She had heard fabulous things about the restaurant she had asked Warren to take her to. The food was delicious, yet affordable. The service was excellent and the serving staff were eye-candy (not that she would look... a lot). Warren was naturally waiting for her by the time she arrived. He always arrived at their destination or her house early, so that she was never waiting around for him.

"Shall we?" He offered her the usual shy smile and his arm, which she took without reservation.

They were seated quickly in a seat by the window and offered each a menu. The waiter asked them what they would like to drink, before leaving them to choose their meals. Hanna quickly launched into a descriptive and long discussion about how she and her friends had come together for a last minute cram-session and how each of them had looked when finally escaping the hall after the last paper was handed in. Warren nodded and smiled, but mostly listened, until they were disturbed by the arrival of their drinks.

"One diet cola," a deep, lazy voice said as the drink was placed in front of her. "One grapefruit juice."

"Thank you," Hanna flashed a smile at the attractive, young waiter, different from the young man who had shown them to their seats.

"Aidan!" Warren said, suddenly, causing Hanna to glance over at him. Her boyfriend's eyes were sparkling unusually with a light that she'd not noticed before. "How have you been? I haven't see you in ages!"

"Not bad," Aidan replied, amicably.

"Have you been working here long?" Warren asked.

"A couple of months," Aidan shrugged lightly. "What would you like to order?"

Warren looked sharply over at his girlfriend and smiled, encouraging her to order first. "Oh, can I have the steak quesadillas please, with a side of sweet potato fries."

"Sure, Warren?"

"Oh, chicken fajitas and nachos, please," Warren replied after glancing over the menu for a moment.

"Without sour cream, right?" Aidan mentioned. "We'll get right on that." He walked to the kitchens with their order, unaware that Warren's gaze was following him. Hanna did notice, but quietly kept it to herself.

They had ended up eating with long pauses of silence, only when she couldn't stand it any longer would Hanna try and engage Warren in conversation, but in the end, it wasn't enough and the girl was left to her own thoughts. By the end of their meal, she had come to a decision. She waited to one side as Warren paid for their meal and allowed him to open the door for her as they left. They walked a little down the street before Hanna turned and asked him a question.

"Do you like me?"

He blinked rapidly for a moment before answering. "Of course I like you," he replied.

She sighed; "I think that maybe our 'like' isn't the type of 'like' between boyfriend and girlfriend and I didn't think that was a problem, but..."

"But? I'm not sure I understand?" Warren looked confused, but he didn't have a panicked expression that Hanna thought he should have had.

"I have fun when we go out and you are really kind to me," Hanna admitted, "but it doesn't feel any different than if we went out instead as friends. I'm sorry!" Warren thought over her words and came to the conclusion that it was probably the same for him and nodded in agreement.

"Does that mean you are dumping me?" He asked with a slight, wry smile.

Hanna buried her head in her hands. "I'm sorry!" She repeated.

"It's okay," Warren told her. He was honest enough with himself to note that despite their ending, there was no pain or discomfort to it.

"I know people say that you shouldn't be friends with your ex," she said in a rapid ramble, "but seeing as we've been more like friends than lovers this past six months, would you stay friends with me?" He blushed slightly over the word 'lovers', but nodded happily before taking his now ex-girlfriend home.

****

For four days following, when Warren was not looking for rental rooms near his chosen university, he was staring into space or at his phone. Not that anyone rang or text, with the exception of his mum, asking him to grab some milk and his service provider as they tried to sell him a new phone plan. Of course this left him with a lot of time to wonder how Aidan was doing and why they hadn't met up much since the Winter Holidays and pretty much never in the last three months. Was his phone number the same? Should he call him or text?

In the end, Warren ended up standing outside of the other boy's front door, nervously shuffling from foot to foot and wondering why he felt such emotional turmoil as he pressed the doorbell. After all, Aidan was his friend, right? Aidan's father answered the door with a surprised but delighted smile. "Warren! It's been a while! Come on in!"

"Thanks," Warren said almost shyly. "Is Aidan home?" Mr Levison nodded and called up the stairs for his son.

"Who is it dad?" Aidan appeared from mid-way up the stairwell, wearing just a pair of indigo blue jeans and sporting wet hair. Warren suddenly found it hard to swallow as he gained full view of Aidan's broad chest and toned abs. He'd already noticed that the younger boy had gained a couple inches in height in the past few months now towering over him by more than half a foot. Mr Levison had left the boys alone in the hallway to talk. "What are you doing here?"

"No reason," Warren said, casting his eyes downward. "I just thought it would be good to catch up."

"Not much to catch up on," Aidan said, coldly, crossing his arms about his chest.

"I suppose," Warren replied, slightly crestfallen.

Aidan sighed. "Are we done? I've got to get to work soon."

Warren glanced up at him and then immediately diverted his eyes. "Oh, okay," he said, softly. "Yeah, sorry, I probably should have called first." He went to leave, only to be grabbed by his shoulder and turned around.

Long, warm fingers brushed over his cheeks. "Why are you crying?"

"I am?" Warren touched the tears that he had unknowingly shed. "I... I don't know." He was hurting and couldn't figure out why.

Aidan was lost to his tears. He knew he had intentionally created space between them to shield himself from the pain of being with an unattainable love, but seeing him openly cry was even more painful. "I'm not working this Saturday," he told the smaller boy. "We can catch up then, if you like."

Warren wiped his eyes and smiled. "Oh, is your phone number the same? I wasn't sure, which is why I came over without calling."

"Yeah, it hasn't changed," Aidan returned his smile and risked a quick hug before shooing Warren out of the door. As he closed the door, he leant against it, deeply questioning his decisions.