Love's Not A Competition

Brittney’s parents arrived on the Friday night. We were sitting in the lounge when they walked in with her younger brother, Zack, who was a year younger than us. Zack looked like his father, tall with brown hair, blue eyes and broad shoulders. Brittney’s mother, Harriet, was the older version of Brittney with cascading blonde hair and sparkly blue eyes. Harriet and her father, Thomas, were both powerful people and they owned a lot of real-estate across the country and even some overseas. They both wore expensive clothes and looked pristine, not a hair out of place.

“Brittney,” Thomas said, pulling her into a one armed hug.
“Daddy,” Brittney grinned, wrapping her arms around his waist.

She hugged Harriet and Zack next. They talked about family things while everyone else stood there awkwardly. I had met Harriet and Thomas a couple of times before and had stayed with them for a week during last summer. I knew that they had met Aidan plenty of times but I didn’t think that they liked him very much. Brittney was always complaining how they didn’t approve because Aidan wanted to play professional football rather than being a doctor like Zack wanted to be.

Brittney introduced Katie, Eric and Zeke while Harriet said hello to me and gave me a quick hug. I met Zeke’s eyes as he was talking to Thomas and pulled a funny face at him. He tried to stifle his laughter while Eric glared at him, not wanting to talk to Thomas on his own. I could understand Eric’s discomfort; Thomas was a very intimidating man. I had been just as scared when I had first met him.

They invited her out for dinner and she agreed, telling Aidan she would be back later. I sat back down on the sofa with Zeke on one side while Eric sat on my other side. Aidan flopped into the armchair, letting out a breath that he had been holding in. Katie excused herself since Jesse was coming home tonight and they were meeting up for dinner. I wanted to ask if she was dating him but didn’t get a chance. I reminded myself to ask her tomorrow at the party. I leaned my head on Zeke’s shoulder as he draped an arm across my shoulders.

“Well, that went well,” Eric said finally.
“They were a lot scarier than I thought they would be,” Zeke said truthfully.
“They hate me,” Aidan sighed.
“I’m sure that’s not true,” I said, smiling slightly to try and cheer him up.
“It is. They told me that I’m not good enough for their daughter even though our parents were the ones who introduced us four years ago. I guessed they didn’t realize that I was going to be aiming for a football career. Even my father was disappointed at first but when I got the scholarship he came around.”

I had never heard Aidan talk so much at once. I wouldn’t say he hid behind Brittney, more like let her be the centre of attention while he stayed back and watched her. He didn’t talk about his personal life either. I hadn’t even known he had gotten a football scholarship for college.
“Don’t worry, I’m sure they will come around when you get picked up by the big league and rack in the money,” Eric said, grinning.

Aidan smiled briefly but sighed. We watched him get up and walk out, stating that he was tired and was going to wait for Brittney in her room. I almost felt bad for him. He loved Brittney but her parents didn’t approve. That must be a hard strain on a relationship though I’m sure Brittney was oblivious to it all like she is to every other bad thing in her life. Aidan must have to work extra hard to try to impress her parents and I’m sure it stressed him out.

“Poor guy,” Eric mumbled.
“He shouldn’t care what they say. Him and Brittney are made for each other,” Zeke said.
“So, you wouldn’t listen if your girlfriend’s parents disapproved of you?” I asked, looking at him from the corner of my eye.
“If I loved her enough, no, I wouldn’t. I would do my best to make them see that I was right for their daughter.”

I slapped his chest playfully while Eric pretended to gag on my other side. He made an excuse before leaving us as well. Other kids were around but they weren’t paying any attention to us. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled my legs up so I was sitting across him. He pushed a stray piece of hair behind my ear and his finger lingered on my cheek before slowly tracing my lips.

“I hope your mom approves of me,” he whispered softly.
“It’s not my mom you should be worried about. I’m sure Mason would want his say and Grandma, too,” I grinned.
“Did the dog want a say as well?” he teased.
“Oh, of course,” I teased right back. “It’s too bad we don’t have one though.”
“Such a shame,” he mumbled.

I nodded before his lips brushed mine sweetly. He rested his forehead against mine and our breaths mingled while he stared into my eyes. I closed my eyes and smiled slightly, enjoying the feel of his breath tickling my cheeks. He kissed me sweetly again before I rested my head on his shoulder. We talked quietly for a while, not really settling on any serious topics.

We hadn’t moved an inch when Brittney came in two and a half hours later. She was carrying shopping bags with designer names splashed across them. Brittney walked over, grinning from ear to ear. She looked like she had had a good time.
“Hey, love birds, do you know where Aidan is?” she asked.
“He’s in your room,” I told her.
“Thanks,” she said turning away.
“What’s in the bags?” I asked before she walked off.

“Oh, just some pre-birthday presents from my parents,” she said simply.
“What are pre-birthday presents?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.
“They are presents you get before you birthday which aren’t actually a part of your proper birthday present,” She ignored. “Why? Don’t you get them?”
“No, I just get my birthday present.”
“You don’t get pre-birthday presents?” Zeke and Brittney asked, sounding shocked.
“It’s not that big of a deal,” I said, feeling uncomfortable.

Brittney looked stunned as she walked away, like she really couldn’t believe what I had just said. Zeke looked at me with a small smirk on his face while I just sighed. I grabbed his hand and dragged him back up to our room. He jumped in the shower while I changed into my pajamas. Lights out wasn’t for another hour but I was tired. I slipped into the bottom bunk and squished myself against the wall to make room for Zeke.

“You shouldn't let it bother you,” he said when he crawled into bed beside me.

I just huffed, too tired to say anything. I heard him laugh slightly before his lips touched my forehead. I closed my eyes, the picture of his wet hair stuck to his forehead fresh in my mind. I sighed quietly before snuggling closer to him. I felt his lips touch my forehead again lightly before sleep finally took over.