Growing Up and Other Tall Tales

Chapter 84

"What was that, baby brother?" I look at Duke who is staring at us from across the room; I raise my eyes at his extensive hearing capabilities. Aiden isn't deterred. And then suddenly, roars.

"I SAID—"

"Okay," I raise my hands helplessly and waddled around people to escape Duke's selective, bionic hearing and Aiden's unbelievable immaturity.

I don't really have to pee but I do need a few seconds to freak out so I wouldn't subject people I barely know to it. I stare at the mirror and then slapped my cheeks for some kind of God sent placebo effect to settle in.

Grunting miserably at my miserable face making it exacerbate its miserableness, I walk across the hall into the Room On The Right.

Aiden's already inside.

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He's on his phone. He is seated on the bed with his legs apart and his arms settled comfortably on his knees and looking awfully homely that it settles very unsettling in my stomach. Maybe I left the bathroom too soon.

He looks up at the sound of me closing the door behind him. Tossing his phone to the side, he pats the bed. I sit next to him and my hand knocked into the small present I had gotten Aiden which I had thrown carelessly into the room Sandy had shown me. Aiden lay spread starfish on the bed when I chuck the box at him before I lose my scrambling grip on courage. He frowns down at his stomach.

"What's this?" he asks dumbly

"A present."

"A present?"

"Stop making me look like an idiot."

"You do that well on your own." I narrow my eyes at him and then made a snatch at the present. He slaps my hands away. "No, it's mine. Let me guess: socks?"

"No, but close."

"Socks with snowflakes on it."

"Uh, no."

"Socks with—"

"Not socks."

"An alarm clock. Mine broke last week."

"No." and then thought about it. "Who the fuck uses alarm clocks anymore?"

"Is it—"

"Dude, are you shitting me right now?" I actually get up just to push Aiden over, absolutely fuming at the way laughter bubbles out of his mouth. "Shut your dumb mouth and open the box, you boob." He raises his eyebrows at me and the rolls his eyes at how unflinchingly unashamed I am after calling him boob.

When the wrapping paper is off, and he looks inside the box, Aiden finally shuts his, as I think I aptly put it, dumb mouth.

He pulls out the receipt for the Netflix subscription. And blinks at it.

"I know it's not socks, or an alarm clock, or a watch or perfume or—"

"I know." He says and his head falls so that his chin is tucked into his chest. I bite my lip.

"I think you can cancel the subscription, if you don't—"

"Thank you." he looks up and I see that he is smiling. He looks at me, and I think I visibly slump when I see his eyes. I shrug. And then looked down at the box. He follows my gaze and then stuck his hand inside again.

He turns the instant coffee pack over and over his hands.

"It's the one you use." He says softly