Teenage Troubles (Prequel for Teenage Baby)

Chapter 10 | Aaron

Chapter 10 | Aaron

Aaron's definition of home was his mom. The first time he changed homes was when she left, and the second was when David decided to move over to another small town. The literal sense.

  It'd happened a few days after Joe left, though Aaron doubted he was aware of it. Aaron didn't like change. Not even the slightest bit. Because change so far for him meant to be left alone, to be stuck in a car with luggage he'd unwillingly packed until he'd reach a new place he'd unwillingly call home. Change meant going to a new school with new teachers and new kids. Socializing wasn't his strong point. He'd rather sleep.

  And he would sleep right now, if he could, if it weren't for the fact that it was early morning and he was in the school's playground sitting on a bench with a frown on his face like the entire world had done him injustice. Maybe that was true, only he learnt to devalue his own issues.

"Hey!"

  Aaron looked aside at the hyper eight-year-old who'd just talked and already annoyed him. Her brown hair, interwoven into messy pigtails, plunged down her shoulders. She sat beside him. Aaron just stared back.

"Do you wanna play with us?"

"No."

"We just need one more kid to join—"

"Still no."

She huffed at Aaron. But then she laughed again. "Why do you sound sad?"

"I'm not," Aaron said. "I just don't wanna play."

"Oh... What's your name? I'm Erika."

  "Aaron." He looked at her again. She had brown eyes, the honey shade that glistened against the sunlight. When she opened her mouth to speak, possibly to insist on playing, Aaron smiled tightly. She talked a little too much for his liking. For a moment, they just stared at each other. Then Aaron suddenly said, "You know what? Let's play a game."

His attitude changed far too fast to seem convincing but Erika nodded anyway. "Okay, tell me."

  "You have to sit back, like me." Aaron straightened his spine against the wall behind him, glancing through the corner of his eye at her. She did the same. Their shoulders aligned. "Don't look at me. Face forward."

Now she was frowning. "Doesn't sound like fun."

  "The fun part didn't come yet. Close your eyes." He made sure she closed hers then did so himself. Silence. He'd sigh in relief but that would be too obvious. The polite part of him cared, the insolent childish part didn't. One side outweighed.

"Now what?"

"Now don't talk. That's the game. The one who stays silent longer, wins."

"It's like we're meditating." She giggled, soft and hearty. This sound wasn't annoying. Not as much as her voice midst his need for rest. "Like my mom does-"

Mom. Aaron felt a hollow ache in his chest. He sighed, barely conspicuous, then focused again and frowned. "Too much information. You're losing the game. Your IQ isn't-"

  Someone swatted him on the back of the head. He made a small startled noise through his lips before looking up, where he assumed the attack came from, only to fall eye-to-eye with his English teacher towering above him.

"The way you talk.." the teacher mused. "You sound a little mature for your age. She just wants to play with you, be polite to her, Aaron."

Aaron, be this and that. Don't say this. Be what we want. You'll never be you unless you're not you. He just wanted once in his life someone telling him that it was cool to be as he was. When did he ever disrespect Erika anyway? He played a game just to tell her off in a good way. If that wasn't a way to be polite, Aaron didn't know what was.