Lockdown {COMPLETED}

Chapter 9: Heights and Family

The next few days were pretty uneventful, except for that impromptu grocery run Aria and Rae had to do when they'd realised that their rations were dwindling. It'd been a serious break from being holed up in the house. Both of them were frustrated and tired about the situation though good things had come out of it.

Aria had had to pull some strings and Rae had already known that the manager was fighting a lost cause the instant he had picked up the phone. It was probably common knowledge that she could win any argument. When he'd mentioned as much to her during their time in the store she'd chuckled and told him that he'd never met her mother, so he shouldn't be too quick to think so.

His regular talks Ava Kensington were enlightening, literally. He was sleeping better than he had in years, and his friendship with Aria was better than ever. He could still see that she hadn't entirely forgiven him for cheating on her best friend, and didn't think she'd ever fully forgive him. But he would take what he could get. She was still tremendously supportive and patient with his mental healing process and she never really pushed him for anything, letting him take his own time to tell her. All the Katmanns were supportive, even though they had just met him. He was yet to meet Aria's mother, but if she was anything like her daughter described then she'd probably be an absolute blast.

Yet something lingered at the back of his mind. He still woke up in the dead of the night in cold sweat, gasping for breath. It was in those times that he felt pathetic, not knowing how the people he loved the most in his life would react when they found out what he was. Who he was.

What terrified him most was what his brother would think of him. Most nightmares involved him turning his back on Rae, spewing hateful words the whole while, not knowing how his words hurt his brother.

But there were some other things that were weighing him down and he knew Aria had the right to know after helping him so much.

He was in his room working on a project, but he wasn't really focusing on it. He could hear the TV running outside, knowing Aria must've taken a break from working.

He shut the laptop and walked out his room. Aria was in the process of choosing a film as he sat down beside her.

"What do you wanna watch?" Aria asked, handing him the remote. He took it and shut the TV off.

"Hey-"

"I have to tell you something."

He could see how Aria's posture changed ever so slightly, "What is it?"

"Well, I may not have told you everything about the situation at home."

"Seriously?" Aria asked in disbelief. "There's more messed up stuff?"

"I have to-kind of-sort of- marry someone?"

He said it like a question, wincing. He knew Aria wouldn't take it the right way.

"You're telling me you cheated on two people?" Aria asked, her voice eerily calm.

His eyes widened. He hadn't thought that she'd take it that way.

"What?! No! I would-well I can't really say that but-ugh," he said, his hands going through his hair in frustration. "What I meant was my parents have promised me to someone else at the age of twenty five, assuming that I didn't find someone before then."

Aria sucked in a breath and Rae saw how her body loosened ever so slightly at her exhale. "I have no idea what to say."

"Yeah, my past has that effect on people."

Aria snorted. "Does Jill know? I mean you guys tell each other everything. I always assumed she did, but nowadays I'm starting to get the feeling that you haven't actually told anyone before."