Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow (Aiden Gallagher x Reader)

VIII

trigger/ content warning: cyber bullying (essentially) and implications of an eating disorder

The news of your relationship being public caused a short spat between the two lovers. It was short-lived, but you didn't take too kindly to Aidan not having told you he was streaming when you entered the room. You managed to forgive him, of course, but not before he promised to start letting you know every time he started a live stream. Otherwise, god knows what he would catch on camera.

For the most part, fans and the media were supportive, which was extremely relieving. However, there were a few different instances where you weren't received so positively. A few times people had taken photographs of you without consent to post on social media along with negative comments about you. From you appearance to something you said taken out of context, they always had something to shit on. Aidan told you to ignore it, but you couldn't with the disturbingly large amount of dm's you were receiving each day.

You started spacing out more frequently, thinking about the comments people had made and you didn't know why it bothered you so much. Yes, you were a human. That meant you weren't always wearing makeup, or looking as flawless as an anime character. The standards you were held to were so impossibly high that you started distancing yourself from your boyfriend. You were insecure enough to believe that he would be embarrassed to be seen with you.

You started staying home more, being more reserved and losing motivation to do the things you loved. And Aidan wasn't blind, he knew something was up when you avoided being on his live streams and listening to him play piano. He decided he needed to confront you so, in the early days of December, he decided to get the ingredients for your gingerbread recipe and decided to make a batch by himself to cheer you up.

You remembered waking up that same day, tiredly rubbing your eyes and pulling a hoodie over your head to keep cosy. Your eyes were still half lidded when you left your room for something to satisfy the dry ache of your throat. You walked into the kitchen while Aidan was pouring out the flour and you couldn't resist the temptation. You quietly tiptoed behind him before slamming your hands down on his shoulders and screaming as loud as you could, given your croaky throat.

"Holy fucking shit!" Aidan screeched, jumping out of his skin and throwing flour everywhere in the process. "Don't fucking do that!" To which you giggled and apologised hoarsely, managing to stay distracted for a short while as your boyfriend whined that the cookies were supposed to be a surprise for you.

Cookies. But all you heard was calories. The comments about your weight ran through your memory as you stared onward into nothing, face completely blank. Aidan's voice cut through your stream of consciousness.

"Y/n? You alright, love?"

You startled into focus, "Oh, uh yes, Ingrim," You spoke nervously, using the nickname you hadn't actually referenced in a while to play off your unease.

Aidan frowned at this, his eyebrows tightly stitched together and chewing the inside of his cheek. "Look, Y/n, something's up and I just wanna know what it is. Am I making you uncomfortable or something?" He asked while he anxiously fiddled with his fingers.

You stared at your feet, biting down on your bottom lip. He didn't realised your eyes were glossed over with tears until he stepped closer to lift your head up and brush the hair out of your face. As the tears started to fall, he wiped them away with his thumb before pulling you into a warm, floury embrace.

Such large sobs racked your body that Aiden was physically moved each time you inhaled. He traced circles between your shoulder blades and whispered sweet nothings against your neck in an effort to calm you down.

That's when you told him. And at first he was angry. At the people sending you the messages and a little bit at you for not telling him. He calmed down quickly though, knowing anger wasn't going to help the situation.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"I was just," You started but paused when you realised you didn't have anything to say. Swallowing away the dryness of your throat you continued, "I didn't want you to feel bad or angry or anything. I just thought I was fine dealing with it alone."

Aidan took your hands in his and looked into your eyes, "I don't want you to go through anything alone. Especially not that. I'd rather you told me so we could deal with it together, okay? No more secrets?"

You nodded, melting back into his arms momentarily before pulling back to examine the mess he had made in your kitchen.

"I think you should leave the baking to me," You chuckled.

"Hey! I was doing just fine until you came in here and made me tip all the flour out!" Aidan whined playfully, not doing a very good job at hiding his smirk.

As he helped you clean up, he couldn't stop thinking about what you had told him. It broke his heart that you felt as though you had to limit yourself because of a few crazy fans. He knew he was going to have to find a solution somehow, but in that moment he could enjoy you smile and soft giggles that he hadn't realised he'd missed so much.