The Odds | ✓

3

aden and his forehead bump

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It's amazing how in all of the years Aden has known Neo, and all of the weeks he's spent crushing on him, there wasn't one time he got left alone with the guy.

But the day after he accidentally almost suffocates him to death, he ends up in the same room as him.

If there's a higher power running the world from above, it definitely isn't very fond of Aden.

He doesn't have to turn around to tell that Kiara has already left. So pretending like he just forgot to say something to her and has to go back is out of the question. Because his eyes have already met Neo's, he can't pretend like he didn't see him. And he has also missed the chance to flip around, dash through the hallway, and continue running like hell until he hopefully stops breathing.

Like Neo almost had the other day.

Now he's standing at the door like an idiot while Neo looks up at him from one of the beds, eyes a little surprised but thin lips painted with a smile nonetheless. His head is tilted to one side in a very specific way that reminds Aden of a golden retriever. Legs swinging back and forth on the edge, Neo probably has no idea that even though Aden looks calm on the outside, he's dramatically clutching his chest inside his head and it feels like there's an entire orchestra playing in place of his heartbeat because Oh, my God, does he have to be this adorable?

On another note, though, Neo looks fine. Not at all like he had choked on a piece of paper the other day.

Aden mentally shakes himself when he realizes that the slight surprise on Neo's face is slowly getting replaced by concern, his lips forming words that don't make sense to Aden.

"What?" he asks dumbly, blinking.

If Neo thinks he's weird, he doesn't show any signs of it on his face and simply repeats his words. "Are you okay?"

Feeling the flush on his cheeks already, Aden says, "Yeah! Yeah..." That locker definitely hurt me harder than I thought. "I uh, hit my head so I'm... a little out of it, I think." You're always out of it in front of him, though.

Aden curses the voice inside his head.

"Oh." Neo's legs have stopped moving, his frown deepening. "Where? The nurse is going to come back in a bit. Are you going to be okay till then?" Before Aden can reply, Neo is already shifting a little, patting the space beside him. "Come sit down."

Too dumbfounded by his concern to register the fact that there are other perfectly fine and empty beds in the room to sit on, Aden makes his way over and sits down beside Neo, eyes falling on his knee like a camera zooming into focus. On the bandage peeking out of his dark-green shorts.

He gestures at it with his chin. "What happened?"

Neo blinks once, meeting his eyes and then looking down at his leg with a little frown. As if he didn't remember he was hurt. "Oh..." He definitely didn't remember. "I scraped it on the field during practice today." Aden watches a sheepish look cross his face, watching him raise a hand to rub the nape of his neck. "It was kind of my fault, though. It's not that bad, but Coach Tate wasn't having it since we have a really important game coming up soon."

Aden has always been a little envious about how easy it is for Neo to talk. While Aden finds it hard to collect his thoughts and even harder to articulate it into words, talking seems to come as easy as breathing to Neo. Words always leave him in a rush, yet he somehow holds himself back from rambling.