Laying on my bed contemplating life, a knock on the door had me rolling off it in the same moment, and I landed with a thud on the carpet.

Ouch.

"Um, coming!" I scrambled up, racing to the mirror to smooth down my hair and look presentable, before remembering I was supposed to look sick. I tousled my hair and ran back to my bed to grab a throw blanket, wrapping it around me before heading toward the door.

If my charade isn't obvious yet, let me lay it out for you.

I copped out.

Last night, after my showdown with Liam, I texted Aaron and let him know I wasn't feeling well and had to leave. I took an uber home and have been laying on my bed in self-pity since. I felt horrible leaving Aaron and lying at the same time, but truthfully, I wasn't feeling good.

I was a big, fat, emotional mess.

I opened the door to see Aaron standing there with a small smile, his eyes dancing across my body as if searching for signs of illness.

"Can I come in?" He asked, after a moment of us standing there.

I opened the door all the way and stepped aside, allowing him access to my spacious dorm. He walked towards my bed, before turning back to face me.

"How are you feeling?"

I shrugged, forcing a cough. "I've seen better days, but you know, I'm okay."

He nodded, taking a step toward me. "That's good to hear. You know, for a moment there, I thought maybe you made up the whole being sick thing because of what all went down at dinner."

He studied my expression which I'm sure gave everything away. I could never play poker.

"Listen Maddie, I know what went down was intense. I'm sorry. That uh, wasn't exactly how I imagined you meeting my parents would go. But I told you, Liam can be a handful."

I was nodding, until the end of his comment which caused me to freeze and peer up at him with narrowed eyes.

"Wait, I'm sorry, what part of the night was he a handful? Was it the part where he remained silent when he was being publicly attacked by his own family, or the part where he had finally had enough of it and chose to stick up for himself?"

Aaron's eyebrow shot up, as his head jerked back in surprise. He grabbed the back of his neck, blowing out a deep breath before taking another step forward.

"I get it, okay? They can be pretty hard on him. But they only do it out of love. He has a lot of potential. They hate to see him waste it."

"Waste it on what, exactly? Aaron, you're supposed to be his friend, you're his stepbrother. But you heard how his dad was speaking about him, and about you, and you practically soaked it up."

"So, what, I'm the bad guy now?"

"No, of course not. But you can't expect me to stand here and believe Liam had it coming."

He peered down at me, his gaze unwavering. "You care for him."

It wasn't a question, because we both seemed to know the answer already.

"Look, about Liam--there's something I've been meaning to tell you, but I wasn't sure how."

"You've known him. I mean, before me, that is. You guys grew up together, didn't you?"

I tilted my head to the side and peered up at him in disbelief, completely thrown off by his comment.

"You knew? You knew Liam and I had a past this whole time, and didn't say anything?" I asked, incredulously. Not that I could be mad, because I had been the one keeping it from him too.

He sighed, stepping to the side and sitting at the end of my bed. "Not at first, no. But the way he looked at you, hell, the way you looked at him, it just started to become obvious there was history there. Last night only confirmed it. Liam had talked about you back when I first met him in high school, but only very vaguely. So, I knew he had known a Maddie, but I never expected it to be you."

I nodded, sitting down next to him. He took my hand and held it between his own. "Why didn't you say anything?"

"I started to, but Liam didn't seem to recognize me. He acted as if he didn't know me, and honestly, it just became kind of awkward afterwards to mention anything. I'm sorry, I know I should have said something."

He nodded. "Yeah, you should have. But, then again, he should have too."

He sighed, squeezing my hand that was now set in his lap. "Look, I know I came off like a bit of a dick last night. I'm really hoping you'll forgive me. Because there's been something I have been meaning to ask you."

His gaze traveled up from my hand he was holding to my curious eyes. Unlike the confidence he usually held, he looked nervous.

"I really like you Maddie, and I think we are great together. I would really love it if you would be my girlfriend, you know, officially. I want us to be exclusive."

My eyes darted across his face, suddenly feeling nervous myself. I pulled my hand from his grip and wrung my own hands together, noticing the slight frown forming on his lips.

I liked him. I really did. But honestly, my feelings with Liam were so raw and fresh, I didn't feel right saying yes to be his girlfriend when I couldn't stop thinking about his stepbrother. Not to mention, I didn't like what I saw last night. Seeing that side of Aaron, the side that held money at a high standard and gloated in another's pain, had me feeling withdrawn from him. It was a large reason I ran out last night. I didn't know how to face him.

"Aaron, I--"

"Look, before you say anything, let me just say, I know how shitty it was to allow Liam to be compared to me. I know I soaked it up, as you pointed out. But Evan's been more presence in my life than my own dad. He actually cares about my successes, and perhaps I let myself get carried away because of that."

I nodded, frowning slightly, upset at his own lack of parental support. I understood the need to be wanted, to be acknowledged and have someone proud of you.

"I know that you and Liam have a past, one I don't really know anything about, but I would love it if you and I had a future."

I smiled softly, grabbing his hand again and squeezing. "I appreciate your honesty and apology. Can I think about it?"

"Of course." He grinned, bringing the back of my hand to his mouth to plant a soft kiss. "I should get going. But I'll see you for your birthday. That is, if you still want me to celebrate with you."

"Of course, I want you there. I can't wait."

"Great. I wouldn't miss it then." He smiled, standing up. I followed him to the door where he leaned in for a long hug before disappearing down the hall. I closed the door, leaning against it, and released a deep breath.

I am so screwed.

So... how are we feeling about Aaron so far? Are we liking him...suspicious of him...? 👀 

Stay tuned for next week's double update! It's about to be PARTY TIME 🎉🍾

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