What We Keep Hidden (Jai Brooks- Ariana Grande)

Jaidon Domenic Matthew Brooks - May he rest in peace

Jai sat in his car the following morning, staring ahead at the street sign in front of Ariana's house.

He was extremely nervous, as he had the right to be considering what he was planning and he also knew that Brandon had probably mentioned the fact that he told him about the genetic bond they shared. With a deep slow breath he got out of the car and trudged his way up to the front door, ringing the doorbell.

Inside, Ariana was just getting Brandon out of his morning bath when she heard the doorbell. She wrapped the toddler in his robe and carried him downstairs to open for their unexpected guest. She smiled when she saw the nervous Jai on the other side of the door. After their kiss the night before she couldn't drop her smile. "Jai.."

Jai couldn't help but smile back at her, fighting the intense nerves that settled in his stomach. "Hey Ari. Can we um... talk?"

Before Ariana could reply, Brandon screamed excitedly and bodily threw himself into his fathers arms. "DADDY!"

Quickly catching the toddler, Jai blinked in worry, holding his son as Ariana's face went from shock to anger in a matter of seconds.

"...Daddy?" The tone of her voice was extremely light and calm but Jai knew Ariana very well and this was only the calm before the storm.

"Yeah!" Brandon quipped, the hood of his Mickey Mouse bathrobe sliding down and slightly covering his eyes. If Ariana wasn't so angry and if Jai wasn't so terrified, they would have died from the cuteness their son was emitting. "He's my daddy! He told me so at nite-nite time yesserday!"

Yet again, Ariana would have usually laughed at how he pronounced yesterday. But she was completely angry now.

Ariana took her son from her ex and turned to her brother, who had slowly entered the room after hearing the word daddy come from Brandon's mouth. She handed him over and pointed to the stairs. "Frankie, will you please go get Brandon dressed while I have a word with Jai?"

Frankie quickly nodded and escaped upstairs with his nephew, mumbling to himself. "I'm actually gonna miss that guy."

While Ariana had her back to Jai, he very quietly tried to make an escape himself but he had forgotten she had eyes in the back of her head because she immediately turned around and grabbed onto his collar with a low hiss.

"Don't. You. Fucking. Dare." Pulling him back in, she shut the front door and pushed him against it, using both her hands to grasp his sweatshirt. Despite her small size, Ariana could be extremely terrifying when she wanted to be and Jai could vouch for that seeing as how he was about to empty his bladder right then and there.

Her eyes held a fury that he hadn't seen since Luke had put bright blue hair-dye in her shampoo during the end of seventh grade pool party she threw. She had made him jump off her bedroom balcony and into the pool as punishment - what would she do to him for telling Brandon he was his father?

"You told him?"

Her angry tone sent chills down Jai's spine and he stared at her with fear in his eyes as he cleared his throat. "Uh.. well.. Yeah. Y'see, he asked me why--"

"I cannot believe you!" Ariana screeched, pushing him again into the door causing him to wince in pain. "How could you do that!"

"I--" Jai's voice went up about two octaves and he cleared his throat again to make it go back to normal. "I didn't mean--"

"Listen." Ari lowered her voice to a whisper, so her son wouldn't hear, staring deep into his eyes, instilling more fear into him. "I swear to God Jai. If you were to hurt that little boy by abandoning him once again, I will come to your house while you're asleep and take the rustiest pair of scissors I can find and I will personally cut your balls off just to make sure you cannot have anymore kids to hurt in the future. Do I make myself clear?"

Never in his 16 years had Jai ever been so terrified of anything. Not when he and Luke got lost in the woods when they were seven on a school camping trip. Not when he almost drowned in the ocean when he was twelve and had Ariana save him. Not even when he actually almost cut his testicles off when he was five and had to go to the emergency room to get stitches - which was ironically caused by Ariana when she dared him to, to see "what was in there".

He quickly nodded as he tried to get his heart rate back to normal and she smiled, as if she hadn't just scared the shit out of him.

Straightening his shirt with a happy smile on her face, she looked up at him with innocence. "So. What'd you wanna talk about?"

Blinking, Jai took a deep breath and smiled at her. "Uh, right. Do you wanna maybe.. go out with me tomorrow?"

"As friends?"

"Uhm. Not exactly. As.. more then friends."

"Oh." she paused, glancing down at herself as she thought it through. She wanted to. She really wanted to. But could she? After everything? Staying silent for a moment, she looked at him.

He stared at her with such a nervous puppy dog look on his face. His hair was an unruly mess and his brown eyes were so big and full of hope. Plus she thought it was adorable how he was chewing on his bottom lip and shifting from one foot to the other as he waited for her answer.

She smiled slowly as she nodded. "I'd love to.." his eyes lit up and she giggled. "But I can't." his face fell and she was quick to continue. "At least not tomorrow. But I can tonight. My dad is coming tomorrow to see Brandon, and me of course. I've missed him so.." She shrugged and smiled.

"Oh, yeah. Of course." Jai grinned in relief. "So tonight then? Dinner? Just me and you?"

Ariana nodded as she tried not to blush. "Yeah. Sounds great." She smiled.

Jai grinned and moved closer to her, not being able to help himself as he leaned down and kissed her lightly on the lips. "I can't wait. I'm gonna come pick you up at 7.. See you then." With another quick kiss, he tore out of the house, leaving Ariana smiling like a school girl in love in her foyer and touching her lips.

xxxxxxx

:)