The Brightest Part of The Night

Chapter 1

Aidan stares into the coffee cup she's holding, spaced out and drinking out of it. Pictures of her late husband, and his siblings all in the kitchen, as this was where they lived for most of his life. 

She snapped back into the reality, looking around. It was dark, she would be okay to go out for a while. Even though she didn't think she needed to. This city was their's, her's and Eli's, they experienced it build, it expand, and didn't want to go anywhere.

Standing up and heading to get dressed, pulling her short hair up into a bun, getting dressed by throwing on a too big shirt, and a pair of jeans, and going outside. 

Except, the road that she lived on was dead quiet. More so than usual, even with her improved hearing. She breathed out to herself, mumbled something and wandered down the road, walking to a 7-eleven, then farther down to sit on the roof of a tall building. 

Something was different when she saw one person walking down the road, twelve, maybe thirteen, head down, hood over their head, hands in pockets, headphones over the hood. They were outlined in red. 

The only thing that came across Aidan's mind was to talk to them. But, she wasn't sure why. Jumping down to the concrete, Aidan walked closer, trying not to startle them. The outline was a little darker than Aidan expected, and she tapped them. 

They jumped around, holding their headphones and hood fallen down. Pointy ears, horns, shaved black hair, not doing a very good job at hiding marks. 

"Hi." Aidan breathes. "Are you okay?" 

The kid freezes, and takes a deep breath. Aidan's mind races the one thought in her mind, 'I've seen this kid before.'

"Yeah, yeah, I'm good," the kid breathes,  and pulls their sleeves down more. Aidan examined them a little more, the bag they're holding more of a bag that looked like it could have all of their belongings in it. 

"Were you kicked out?" Aidan asks, softening her gaze, wanting to reach out to them. 

The kid's eyes drift down to Aidan's feet, and answers, very quietly, "Yes."

"Do you have some place to go?" Aidan asks, crouching down to hopefully see them more. They've got bright blue marks that go around their scalp, and down their neck, and probably on their arms. The kid shakes their head. 

Aidan smiles, and holds her hand out. "Hey, do you want to stay with me for a while?" The kid's outline fades, not so much red anymore, more black than red. 

The kid nods. "Will you take care of me?" 

And Aidan's heart breaks. Her eyes water, and she kisses the kid's hand, "Your parents not take care of you?" 

The kid's eyes are watery, and they say, "They kicked me out for trying to figure out my identity, so, I don't call them my parents. I'm Elliot, by the way." 

"I'm Aidan," Aidan tells them, kissing the back of the kid's hand again. 

"Will you really take care of me?" Elliot's blue eyes, and their marks glow lightly, "You just taking me in because I'm a mix of every species ever?" 

Aidan takes in their appearance again, seeing their horns and sharp ears. "Do you get teased about it?" 

They nod. "They call me knife-ear and glow stick. Because of my marks and my ears. Ma did nothing about it, and Da is in Scotland." 

Aidan stands up, the kid surprisingly tall, and taking her hand, Aidan knows that she's made a life-long decision. That might be a hard one. 

When the two of them arrive at home, Aidan leads Elliot to an extra room. "This is your room. Let me know if you need anything even if it is just to sit with me for a little bit." 

Elliot hugs her. Throws themselves at her, and hugs her tightly. "Thank you, Aidan." 

Aidan's hands to to Elliot's back and head. "Of course. I would've loved someone to take me in when I was kicked out as a kid." 

Aidan doesn't realize that Elliot is crying until she feels her shirt wet against her skin. "Let me know if you need anything. I'm here for you now." 

Stroking Elliot's back and their hair, she makes sure they feel safe. "Do you need anything to eat?" 

Elliot's ears perk up, and they shyly say, "yes." 

So, Aidan, leads them to the kitchen. "What would you like?" 

After a couple of minutes, they find something, which was simple enough that the two of them share. For the rest of the night, Aidan gets to know her kid? person she took in? Whatever they are, she knows her life has changed for the better.