And You Sold Me

Aiden awoke to the sound of her phone ringing on the nightstand next to Eric’s bed. She looked at the clock as she reached for the phone, seeing it was four in the morning.

“Hello?” she answered, not even bothering to look at the caller I.D.

Eric moaned next to her, moving his hand to her face, trying to shut her up. She slapped his wrist and sat up when she heard an unfamiliar voice through the phone, “Aiden? Is that you?”

“Who is this?” she asked, annoyed a wrong number had woken her.

“It’s Nate… Nathan O’Callaghan, John’s little brother,” he said loudly. There was a lot of background noise and his voice was slurring.

“Okay?” she questioned. Nathan O’Callaghan was seventeen years old. But she only knew him as a little boy trying to be just like his big brother.

“Listen, Savannah and I are at this party and well, she’s passed out and I can’t really drive her home so can you come get us? I got your number from her phone.” he asked.

“Why didn’t you call your brother?” Aiden asked.

“He’ll kill me,” he replied simply, which Aiden found strange. John didn’t seem likely to judge his brother because he was drunk; John had done it every weekend at that age.

“Text me the address,” she said quickly before hanging up.

Aiden lay back and caressed Eric’s bare back lightly. She didn’t drink as much as she usually would have; her interaction with her past leaving enough of a bad feeling in her stomach. Eric, however, was plastered.

“Baby, I have to go get Savannah. I’ll just come back in the morning,” she whispered in his ear.

All he did was nod his head and curl up farther into his blankets. She got out of his bed, putting on one of his old hoodies and slipping boots on her feet, tucking her sweats into them.

Aiden drove to the house Nathan had told her, texting him when she was there. A couple of minutes later she caught sight of him. He had a girl draped around him as he struggled to keep her walking. She was giggling and he was smiling lightly.

Nate opened the back door and Savannah spilled in, lying across the back. Nathan sat in the passenger seat, sending Aiden a warm smile, “Thank you so much.”

She looked at him, “What are you doing with my sister, O’Callaghan?”

“Well, I drove her to the party, since we’re neighbors and everything. Just friends, don’t worry,” he said. His eyes were red but he definitely was not as drunk as the mess in the backseat.

“And you let her get wasted?” Aiden asked.

“I’m not her baby sitter,” he shrugged, “But I care about her. She’s my closest friend.”

Aiden felt her chest tighten and tears almost came to her eyes. She started the car and began driving, keeping her eyes on the road, “How does your brother feel about this?”

Nathan looked uncomfortable immediately, “Uh, I-I don’t know. I haven’t really asked.”

“He doesn’t want you to be friends with her, does he?” Aiden asked, unbelieving.

“I don’t really want to talk about it,” Nathan said.

Aiden nodded her head and the car fell silent. She couldn’t help but glance at Nathan from time to time. He looked like John, he talked like him, he even walked like him. But, God, was he a better person.

And that made her happy- happy that her sister had a boy like this in her life.

“So, how are you liking being back?” he asked awkwardly.

“It’s just great,” she said sarcastically.

He chuckled softly, “Did you see John tonight?”

“I did,” she said shortly.

“He misses you,” Nate said.

Aiden didn’t reply, she didn’t have anything to say. She didn’t miss John; she didn’t miss anyone in Arizona except her younger sister, who was almost on her last nerve as she shifted about in the back.

They arrived at the Rutherford home. Nathan picked Savannah up out of the backseat, cradling her in his arms and walking her upstairs, laying her down softly. Aiden walked him out; he bid her another thank you and she nodded her head before watching him walk across the yard and enter the house next door to hers.

Aiden walked back into her house and to Savannah’s old room that had been transformed into the guest room. She passed her mom’s room on the way there; she was snoring lightly and sleeping soundly, completely unaware of her younger daughter’s escapades.

She lay down in the comfortable bed, curling up with the blankets tightly, a certain face of a boy she only wished to forget permanently engrained behind her eyes.

*
Aiden awoke early the next morning, showering and putting on a simple outfit that was probably still too fancy for Arizona.

She checked in on Savannah. She was still passed out on her bed, causing Aiden to shake her head in disappointment. She supposed she should never be the one to judge, but she never did those things in high school, at least not in front of others.

Aiden entered the kitchen, finding her mom drinking coffee and reading the paper, “Hi mom.”

“Hey sweetie. I thought you were staying with Eric last night?” she asked, not really interested.

“I decided to come home,” Aiden shrugged, covering for her little sister.

“I’ve got to get off to the gym,” her mom said, kissing her cheek and exiting the home.

Aiden sat alone in her kitchen, not really hungry to eat breakfast or bored enough to read the paper. She had left all of her magazines that she loved at Eric’s, giving her much more of a desire to pick up her keys off the counter and drive to his house.

But when she got in her car she saw the jacket left on her passenger seat, groaning when she realized it belonged to an O’Callaghan.

Aiden looked at the house next door to hers, his car nowhere in sight, giving her incentive to knock on their large, wooden door.

It swung open, the smell of cinnamon filling up her nostrils and bring back so many memories. But before she could even think back to those times her stomach dropped as she stared into the surprised eyes in front of her.

“Well, hello there,” he smiled.

“I-I uh came to give your brother his jacket,” she said, holding it out in front of her.

“Why do you have his jacket?”

Aiden froze. She wasn’t supposed to tell John that Nathan was friends with Savannah. But then she realized that she really didn’t care, “I picked he and my sister up from a party last night.”

“He’s been hanging out with Savannah?” John asked, unbelieving. There was so much genuine disappointment in his eyes that Aiden had to bite her lip from cussing him out.

“Give this to Nate,” she said flatly, throwing the jacket at John and turning on her heel to walk away.

She walked quickly away from his home but he caught her wrist before she crossed over into her side of the yard.

“Why are you running away so quick?” he asked.

She shook his grip off and narrowed her eyes, “I don’t have anything to say to you.”

“Well good, you can listen because I have a lot to talk to you about,” he said, sounding much angrier.

She rolled her eyes, putting her hands on her hips, “I’m waiting.”

He shook his head and laughed, not at anything funny, just at the irony of where they were standing. Aiden suddenly became aware of the light rustle of the leaves of the Chestnut they were standing beneath.

“Look at who you’ve become,” he said, looking her body up and down, “So skinny and obsessed with your looks.”

“Shut the hell up, John,” she said angrily.

“I didn’t say I don’t like it,” he said, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, “Four years did a lot for you.”

She took in a deep breath to keep from punching him in the jaw, “Well look at you John. I bet you can get all the girls you want based simply on your status. You’re probably a really big ass about it too. Looks like four years did nothing for you.”

“Don’t pretend like you know me, A,” he said, “You left, remember?”

“Yes, I remember John. But thanks for reminding me why I did by just opening your mouth. I really appreciate it,” she said.

“There you go, blaming your miserable life on me. How was your being a loser in high school my fault at all?” he questioned.

“It wasn’t, John,” she said, just wanting to end the discussion, “Nothing is ever your fault.”

“Cut the crap, Aiden,” he said, annoyed, “Why’d you leave without saying goodbye?”

“Because you weren’t around, John. I waited for you, much more then you know. I was done waiting,” Aiden replied.

“You were a coward, Aiden, just admit it. You can’t even admit that your life during high school sucked because of your own doing. Now you won’t even tell me why you actually left, even though I’m sure I know,” John said.

“Fine, John, I didn’t say goodbye to you because you weren’t my friend. By definition, you couldn’t even do the simplest things to qualify us as friends. You kept me hidden away like I was your best kept secret and I don’t care how awesome you think you are, no girl deserves to be a secret,” she shouted.

“You mean no girl deserves to be a secret to the guy that means the most to her? Because that’s not my fault,” he said defensively.

“See, John, that’s your problem. You’re so full of yourself that you can’t see what’s right in front of you. I’m different, John, and you’re a coward.”

“How?”

“You always have been! You left me to wallow in my own self-pity because you were some kind of ashamed of your oldest friend. You, John O’Callaghan are the definition of a coward,” Aiden told him.

“So your self-pity was my fault? You’re a walking contradiction, Aiden. Sorry for not wanting to spend all my time with my neighbor. Go eat a sandwich or something,” he said.

She rolled her eyes, “Typical John, resorting to insults when he knows he’s wrong.”

“What did you think would happen when you came back, Aiden? Did you think you wouldn’t see me? Don’t even try to tell me that I’m not at least a fraction of the reason you came back,” he said, wagging his finger in her face.

“No, John, you’re all of the reason I did not want to come back. I’m dating your best friend. I have been for three years and I love him and he forced me here,” she said defiantly, “You don’t have any influence on me anymore.”

John stared into her eyes, his emotions changing from indifferent to sad. He didn’t want to fight anymore. He looked up at the tree, placing his steady hand on the bark. “They tried to cut it down you know. I wouldn’t let them.”

“Maybe you should have,” she said quietly.

“So what do we do now?” he asked, “Pretend we don’t know each other?”

“It’s not going to be that hard to pretend,” Aiden replied.

“I always thought you were beautiful, Aiden,” he told her.

“Shut up, John,” she seethed.

“This could be a new chance for us, A. Things just couldn’t work in high school,” he said reaching for her hand.

“Things will never work for us,” she replied, pulling her hand away.

“I missed you,” he said, not meeting her eyes. Aiden could barely see John’s walls coming down because her own walls were still blocking her vision.

“I wish I could say the same,” she said, “John, Eric made me into this person I am right now. I refuse to jeopardize what he and I made to reignite some non-existent flame in the worst time of my life.”

“So what you marry my best friend in a few years and we still go on having secret conversations about the past but be civil in public?” John asked, practically begging for her to say no.

She moved her eyes to the Chestnut, placing her hand on it, not caring that John saw it was shaking, “It shouldn’t be so hard.”

Aiden stared at the boy she used to know. Things could never be easy with them, no matter how much he tried to feign that they were. And she honestly wasn’t sure that she wanted things to be better. John O’Callaghan didn’t know how to be better, and Aiden didn’t have any energy or will to teach him how.