our troubled love ᵒˡᵈ ˢᵗᵒʳʸ

+~five~+

"I can't go!", I cried into the phone. I was standing just outside my house, in front of the car that my dad had sent to get me. I was reluctant to get inside. I dreaded the idea of having to spend a whole month with my dad. It wasn't the first time I went to visit, but it had been a while, and I actually thought—and was relieved—that he wouldn't make me go anymore. But he did, and now I was whining like I child because I didn't want to go.

                "Relax! You don't have to go," Aiden said on the other end of the call. "You're a grown woman and you make your own choices!" I groaned, upset that it wasn't as easy as he said.

                "He pays for everything I need, Aiden! If I refuse to go, he can leave me stranded! I'd be homeless before I could even apply for a job!" It wasn't impossible for my dad to do that to me. He didn't really care, and the only reason he paid for my things at all is so that he can control me. Just like he was now, threatening to take it all away.

                My dad was a very nice man back then. He did have problems with his temper, but my mom helped keep him in line. I still tear up when I remember how he always took me to the movies on Saturdays, read me books at night, and tried surprised me with ice cream after school. But my mom... She was the glue holding our lives together. When she passed, we could barely keep them together ourselves. My dad no longer had anyone to keep him in control, so when he became rich from his company's success, he became selfish and toxic. He often talks badly about my mom, too. It hurts me to imagine how she would react to hearing who she thought was the love of her life say such things.

                "Well, what do you plan to do, then?", Aiden inquired. I sighed, asking myself the same thing. I wasn't only going to hate being there, but I was going to miss Aiden. Especially because I needed his support. Seeing my dad again was going to hurt. A lot. That's when I got an idea, and asked myself whether Aiden would agree.

         "Aiden...", I started, afraid that he wouldn't agree to my suggestion. "Would you mind going with me?"

                                                                                         ●●●

                Aiden and I sat next to each other in the car, tired of being on the road for so long. I was starting to get carsick, and eventually I had to lay down. I was resting my head on Aiden's lap as he stroked my hair gently. It was quite calming, and it helped me fall asleep for a few minutes. But staying asleep was the challenge. The vehicle was moving too fast on the bumpy road, causing it to move a lot.

                "Thanks for coming. I feel really bad for dragging you into this," I said, feeling guilty. Aiden just shrugged and gave a half smile.

                "It's no big deal. You need me, and I don't have anything to do anyway." He really didn't look like he was bothered at all. But the feeling of guilt still weighed me down. I still didn't know how my dad would react to his unexpected guest. I was starting to think that bringing him along was a bad idea, but it was much too late to turn back.

                "But just think about it. My dad doesn't even know you're coming. And we're staying for a whole month. You know how he is! This is not going to go well!" I have no idea why I was trying to convince him that it wasn't a good experience. But regardless of the reason, he wouldn't budge.

                "I never said it was gonna go well, but it doesn't really matter," he argued. "I'm not doing this because I want to. I'm doing it for you, and it's definitely worth it. So stop worrying about me, I'll handle that myself. In the meantime, you need to make sure you can handle this."