Best Friends With Benefits

Chapter Twenty Six

"Aiden..." I started but I couldn't finish the sentence, I took my thumb and wiped it across his smooth skin collecting the tear. "I'm sorry" I didn't take my eyes off of him.

"No, I'm sorry, I'm the one that screwed everything up, us and our relationship, I was a jerk and now I have to live with that" He croaked out and another tear fell but I didn't catch this one, I let it fall like my heart, it felt like it was plummeting down a cliff face and breaking. "I want you back as my best friend though" I smiled and he did too. The confident person that strolled in was now a shattered mess in front of me, because of me. I felt awful but it was what he deserved right? Aiden left and I promised I would text him later that night.

My mum returned that evening for the night and we watched a girly movie, not my favourite, but a nice change. The movie could not distract my thoughts though. The person Aiden turned into, was that Aidens fault or his friends? Was I not there for him enough? Was I too clingy? I tried to replay every moment of our relationship but instead of feeling like I missed it, I felt pity for Aiden and how he ruined it all. After deciding to stop thinking about this Gale creeped into my mind and my heart warmed. His kiss lingered on my lips and I had to touch them to bring them back to real life.

After the movie had finished I scampered to my room for thinking time. I thought about the next day, seeing Gale again since the kiss but also seeing Aiden again. This was a new page in my book of life. Aiden and I were on equal ground again and maybe I could start something with Gale, turning the flickering ember into a raging flame. The thought sickened me though, I was determined to not have another 'friends with benefits' situation but I was worried that's what was happening. I unlocked my phone and texted Aiden.

"Hey, how you doing?"

"Good, bored though"

"Same, do you want to come over?"

"Sure, be there in a few"

Just as promised, a few minutes later there was a knock on the door. I could hear my mum squealing in happiness, she hadn't seen Aiden in a while either. He reached my room and it felt like forever ago that he was last here. The last time he was in my room we had argued and ended our friendship. He perched on the edge of the bed looking better than he did earlier and we begun to catch up on recent events. As we relaxed and fell into our usual routine to laughter and giggles we also fell into our old ways. I pushed Aiden's arm playfully and he returned it by pushing me down holding my arms down where he tickled me. I was in fits of laughter until he flipped onto me and I was unable to move. Brilliant. I moved my hands under his shirt to try and find his tickle spots and felt a long bump on his skin. He got off of me and sat up.

"What was that?" I didn't know if the lump had caused him pain but he defiantly seemed embarrassed about it. Despite that, it shocked me when he slipped off his t-shirt and his six pack was once again in my view, I allowed myself a couple of seconds to admire his body then drew my eyes to the lump. My heart dropped when I saw what it was. It was a scar about two inches long and a purple colour. My face must of expressed my confused thoughts because Aiden replied.

"Remember?"

I did remember, it was the start that had formed when we were in LA. When Aiden and I ended up getting into a dispute with a man in order to protect the guest house girl. The sound of Aiden's heart-wrenching yell echoed in my memory and I shuddered. A piece of vase had lodged into his back and I remember crying out my eyes at the hospital. I had seen the scar before but it must have become infected or something whilst we hadn't been speaking because I never saw it this bad.

"Aiden" I whispered as he turned and I traced my fingers over it. He looked away from me and when I released the touch he threw his shirt on back over his head. I laid down and he laid next to me.

"Florida was amazing wasn't it?" Before Aiden came over this was the last subject I wanted to talk about but now it was the only subject I wanted to talk about.

"Yeah,  it was unforgettable" For the rest of the evening, we spent the time discussing and laughing about Florida and LA. The aeroplane accident, the mischievous boys at the hotel, the picnic on the pier. The picnic on the pier!

"Wait!" I squealed in joy as I bounced off of the bed and ran over to my mirror where make-up and jewellery were scattered all over it, I rummaged through the mess and found what I was looking for. I ran back over to the bed and landed back into my place next to Aiden. We were inches apart and I held up the one thing that I had held onto in our relationship. The promise ring that held the promise of our everlasting relationship. I fiddled my fingers around it and slid it onto my finger. Aiden smiled and kissed the ring.

"To never letting each other go"

"To never letting each other go" I repeated.