Ripped and Stitched

21: This or That

"He signed all that?" Hayden asked.

Alison shrugged. "I'm paraphrasing."

Brady smacked his forehead with his hand. It was clear both of them were beginning to annoy him.

"Oh, don't be like that, Brady, I'm sorry," Hayden called after his brother who only flipped the two of them off as he went to his bedroom.

"I'll call you when I get back," Alison said after him.

Brady just waved a hand in the air before slamming his bedroom door shut.

Alison chuckled. "All right, I better get going."

"How are you getting to the airport?" Hayden asked.

"Kate is picking me up from here," Alison explained. "I'm just going to go call her."

Alison went into the kitchen and called Kate. She didn't pick up the first two calls, and on the third a male voice answered.

"Hello?"

"Uh, hi. I'm trying to reach Kate," Alison said, a bit confused as to who the man was who answered the phone.

"She's not available," the man said.

"Well, we were supposed to go to the airport together, I'm Alison," she explained.

The man paused for a second.

"Alison?" Kate asked.

"Are you coming?" Alison asked.

Kate giggled. "Oh! I forget," she said. "I'm actually pretty tied up right now. Like actually tied up to a bed," she added through a laugh.

Alison let out an exasperated groan. "Are you telling me that you're ditching me to have kinky sex?"

"Kinky sex on some crazy drugs, it'll be so fun!"

Alison suddenly had the realization that Kate was with Oliver, the town drug dealer. She hung up the phone and leaned against the counter. Hayden came in and checked on her.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

"Kate's not coming," she sighed.

"Oh," Hayden said softly.

"I know you don't like her, but I really didn't want to see my mom by myself."

Alison looked upset. Hayden came over and touched her arm comfortingly. It was quiet between them for a while.

"I'll go with you," he offered gently.

Alison looked up at him. "Really?" she asked. "You'd miss your parents' annual Fourth of July barbecue just to go with me?"

Hayden leaned a bit closer and smiled at her. He had his little brother's charming features. His blue eyes were staring deep into her green ones.

"One condition," he said.

"What?" she asked, staring up at him.

"Who was the boy you had a crush on?" he asked.

Alison stared at the ground shyly. Hayden managed a small smile as he ran a hair through his messy dirty blonde hair.

"I won't tell anyone," he promised. "Just say it, I think I know anyway."

Alison peered up at him, his face was inches away from hers.

"It was you," she finally admitted through a whisper. "It was just a dumb crush and that's why I didn't want to tell you."

Hayden used his index finger to tilt her chin up a bit so she was looking at him again.