FINDING ASPEN
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3
I found him. It took three years and three hundred and sixty three days.
What I never, NEVER imagined would happen, happened.
Aspen had been put in a home. He was twenty, and blind. His room door had it written there for all to see. He'd been abandoned as a small child, and no one had ever come to claim him.
I wanted to talk to him, but my own punishment was my voice.
You see, my voice became a sexual stimulant. Anything I said, any sound I made affected anyone that heard it.
Basically think like this. Anytime I open my mouth to talk, everyone around me has taken an overdose of Viagra and can't help but NEED to have their . . . urges taken care of. It takes so much focus to keep my voice level, I just chose to have it fixed with silence.
I approached him gingerly. His face was facing the sun, his dark glasses on his nose cast strange shadows on his sculpted face.
His hand clenched around the stick in his hands.
"Who are you?" He demanded harshly.
I opened my mouth and squeaked. I snapped my mouth shut as his scowl became far more pronounced.
Focus. "Kenna. My name is Kenna."
"What are you doing here?" He ground out. His face was hard, and his teeth ground together.
Well that was a loaded question. I mused. Now what could I answer that with?
"I came to visit you." I told him. I meant for it to come out as confident, but it wasn't. It sounded scared, and vulnerable.
Aspen had never hesitated to pounce on weakness. He exploited it, and made sure he won in everything. But he never once did that with me. Never.
"Why do you think I want to see you, Kenna?" He demanded.
"Because." I studied him closely.
"I knew you before. We grew up together." I told him honestly. In a way it was the truth, and another a huge lie.
His hand tightened impossibly. He was on his feet and his shade covered face hovered over mine.
"Is that so?" He ground out.
"You don't remember me."I said blankly. "But I'm here to take you away from here."
He scoffed. "I'm visually impaired.so impaired the state recommended this fine institution to care for me, because I have no means to save myself."
"You can walk can't you?" I asked.
"I'm completely deaf in my left ear, Kenna. I can't function properly without full hearing."
I blinked. Oh, why would they do this?
"I don't care." I told him. I reached for his glasses, but his hard hand stopped me from removing them.
"Don't touch me." He choked.
"Aspen . . ." I murmured.
He flinched back and muttered under his breath. "I'm not Aspen. Figure out who you're talking to next time." He snapped.
"My name is Aden."
I blinked. They'd taken away even his name? I wanted to cry at the hurt look on his face.