~~~~~~~~~Third Person POV~~~~~~~~~

It was seven in the evening by the time Aiden was done cleaning, and he was about to head home right away. If only the rain hadn't stopped him from leaving.

He didn't mind staying a little longer, he got to hang out with Sage and Will, and Noah had stopped glaring at him!

But when ten thirty rolled around, he was anxious to leave. He had never gone home so late, And Dylan was bound to be more than angry about it.

Still, the rain hadn't stopped, it only got heavier. He stood at the front doors under the porch's roof, staring at the rain that fell at his feet. He had to leave now, but it's dangerous to go out in such a storm, at night.

"Still think it's a good idea to go out in the rain?" Sage asked as she walked to stand beside him. "I did warn you."

"I know it's not safe, but I need to get home."

"How do you expect to get home like this though?"

He didn't know how, he simply couldn't. But what would be the results of that..?

Sage's eyes then lit up as an idea came to mind. "How about you stay over? We have a guest room, you can stay there!"

"N-no, I shouldn't.. I can't keep asking you and your family to keep helping me.."

"We're offering this to you, I keep saying you're not bothering anyone."

"... you sure it's okay for me to stay..?"

She nodded, and ser thinking about for a bit, he pulled out his phone, calling his sister and bringing it up to his ear. He briefly explained the situation, and she wasn't surprised since the storm had basically covered the town, so she wished him goodnight and ended the call.

They both then headed back inside, Sage turning to him. "Go to the second door to the right upstairs, I'll go ask Noah if you can borrow some pjs."

"W-wait, huh?!"

"Be back in a bit!" With that, she ran off.

Realizing there was no point in chasing after her to stop her, Aiden let out a sigh and headed to the second floor, following her instructions and reaching the guest room. It wasn't as big as the normal bedrooms, but definitely beautiful and cozy, with a comforting atmosphere.

It was definitely better than the one back home..

Surprisingly enough, Sage was able to get him a clean pair of pjs that he could wear. It was a little big, but he didn't think much of it.  Once good nights were said, they all headed to bed for a night's rest.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But nighttime wasn't that kind to him this time..

Not too far down the hall, Noah had gone downstairs for a glass of water. But as he went back to his room, going past the guest room door, something strange came from the room.

Crying..?

At first he freaked out a little, thinking this was a horror movie being brought to life, but he soon remembered that the room had been occupied for tonight by Aiden.

So why was there sobbing from inside..?

Curiously grew inside him, and as quietly as he could, he opened the bedroom door. Sitting on the bed was Aiden, who's face was buried in his knees, sobbing into them as he tightly gripped his sleeves, trembling in place.

The sight of him this way brought a strange pain to his chest.. He didn't understand why he felt it, but right now wasn't the time to decipher it.

"... Aiden..?"

At the mention of his name, his head tilted up with wide eyes, which were also red and puffy as he stared back at him. "N- Noah! I-I- I'm so sorry, I didn't m-mean to be n-noisy, I was j-just- I just-!"

"Hey, calm down, you didn't wake me up or anything."

Aiden stayed silent for a bit, sniffling as he wiped a few tears away. "S-still, I apologize..."

"... follow me."

"Huh..?"

"I wanna show you something."

He was hesitant about the offer, but he nervously walked over and followed Noah to the kitchen, unsure of what he planned to show.

The green eyed boy then nodded to the counter. "Go sit down."

So he did, and watched him walked around the kitchen getting ingredients. Aiden was familiar with baking, so he recognized he was making some sort of chocolate pastry.

The question was why.

Why had he asked for him to follow him here? And why was he now making this?

He didn't have the courage to ask, not until ten to fifteen minutes had passed, and the mix was already in the even. "W.. what are you doing this for..?"

"It's an apology for how much of a jerk I've been to you."

"But you already apologized.."

"I know, but it was pretty half-assed. Besides, I.." Noah looked away with that last part, cheeks slightly pink. "I thought it could comfort you."

"O-oh.." The dark haired boy grew red at that, staring down at the counter. "Thank you, Noah.."

"... May I ask why you were crying?"

"Just a silly nightmare.."

"Couldn't have been silly if you were crying about it after waking up."

"It's.. difficult to explain.."

"Well, I can stay awake for a while." Noah leaned against the counter. "If you wanna explain, I can listen."

Staring at him for a bit, Aiden didn't know if he should tell him about his situation. Still, keeping it all inside was torture..

"... i-it's about my family.."

Thanks for reading!!! 'Till next time!!!

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