Nathaniel

20

Nate pov

Waking up next to Aidan made all my worries fade away into nothingness. I knew, I was exactly where I was meant to be.
We weren't supposed to be sleeping in the same bed but I snuck in his bed part way through last night, lacing my arms round his tiny torso to pull myself closer to him. Unknowingly, he snuggled back into my chest. I snuck a kiss onto his cheek before slowly falling asleep- only to be woken up by Aidan violently fighting the covers in his sleep.
"Aid. Shh. It's only a nightmare. Wake up baby. That's it." His movements stilled and his eyes fluttered open, full of fear.
"Don't hurt me." He scooted away form me, trapping himself in the corner of the wall.
"Baby. It was just a nightmare. He's not going to hurt you again." Tears sprung to his eyes.
"It wasn't him." He snuffled. "It... it was you."
"Aidan. Listen to me. I will never hurt you. You are completely safe. Come here." I opened my arms for him to go snuggle into. "You don't have to be scared again Aid. Everyone here is here to help you."

The park was eerily quiet when I went to visit my friends. It was the middle of the evening but there were very few people milling around.
"Hey Darren, Hunter, Damian. Long time no see. I've missed the chats."
"Pfft. You're such a girl." Hunter laughed. "Since when do we 'chat'?" He chortled. I shoved his shoulder, laughing.
"Shut up."
"Seriously man, where you been? Schools been wicked boring without you."
"Things have happened lately but I should be back tomorrow. And o'course school been boring. I'm the life of the party baby!"
"Ha ha! My mans back!" Darren cheered, slapping me on the back. Love you bro."
"Love you too."

Aidan pov

"Rob?" I gently pushed through the door to his office. He turned to face me on his chair.
"Are you alright Aidan? What do you need? Painkillers? I've got some in the cupboard if you want me to get them for you."
"No. No. I'm fine. Thank you. I've just been thinking. A lot."
"Sit down and we'll chat about it." I crutched my way to the sofa and sat down on the edge of it. "So. What's on your mind?"

Nate pov

That night, watching a movie with Aidan and Jacob, I could tell that he was tense about something.
"Aid, relax baby. There's nothing to worry about."
"Oh. I'm relaxed. Just lost in thought I guess."
"Penny for your thoughts?"
"You, Jacob, Rob. You all helped me whilst dealing with your own problems. Thank you. I know I probably didn't deserve it and I'm sorry I couldn't help you in return." He was lying but I didn't push the issue.
"Hey. It's okay Aidan. You needed the help. You deserve all the help we have given you. And you've helped me way more than you could ever imagine."

Aidan pov

The next few days passed in such a blur. School was as boring as ever but it was made marginally better by Nathan and his friends. I'd settled in well in care, well, as well as one could. My room had been decorated- pale green walls with dark green embellishments and bedding. It made me feel calm and at rest, something I'd not felt in years.
"Aidan. She's here." Rob opened my door, bringing back into the real world, redirecting my attention from the book I was reading.

Every step I took towards Robs office, the more my feelings were ignited. Anger. Pain. Sorrow. Confusion. All swirling round my head in a blizzard of emotion.
"Mum?"

Authors note

Hope everyone's doing okay. Sorry I've not posted in a while. Life had been very busy lately.
💛