Lil Scenarios <3

jealousy

I close my eyes and smile Luc's arms snake around my waist from behind and he inhales deeply as he kisses my neck. I turn around and give him a peck on his lips.
"How's your day been, princess?"
"Just got better," I grin. "Oh and by the way, Aiden is coming!"
Luc frowns. "Aiden? As in, Aiden-who-had-feelings-for-you-Aiden? Him??"
I sigh. "Yes, but I told you we're just friends. I rejected him, and we still stayed solid, even when I moved away. Anyway, he's staying at his aunt's house which is nearby for the weekend, and he wants to say hi."
He narrows his eyes. "Well, I'll have to be there when he comes. I'm not exactly liking this."
I give him a look. "Nuh-uh, you be on your best behavior. Aiden is a good guy, but when a dumbass like you sizes him up, he gets a little-"
"ELARAAA" a voice booms.
I almost snap my neck whipping my gaze to my right so quickly, where I see bouncing locks of brown hair and glittering brown eyes speeding towards me.
"Aiden!!" I pull my childhood best friend into a tight hug. I feel Luc's eyes burning holes into my back. I ignore it. "It's so good to see you!! It's been what, three years?? You look good!! Healthy," I laugh, punching his arm.
"You're looking at the star of the track team, darling."
"Darling?" Luc mutters.
    Aiden's gaze slowly slides to look behind me.
"Aiden, this is Luc, my boyfriend," I say carefully.
"Oh," Aiden looks at Luc up and down, silently observing. He sticks out a hand with a half-smile. "Hey."
Luc raises a brow at the greeting, and keeps his hands in his pockets. The only gesture he returns is the quiet judgement and a weak "Hey."
I elbow him and look at Aiden who slowly puts his hand down.
    "Uh, so you're her boyfriend, huh? Lucky guy!!" his bright grin returns. "This gal is worth everything. You won the jackpot here!"
If Luc is trying to hide his scowl, he's doing a horrible job at it. He clamps a hand on my shoulder as a desperate show of dominance. Tsk. Testosterone. "I know. You done here yet?"
My mouth drops. He really has the audacity to-
"Not quite." Aiden stands up taller. Oh boy, I think to myself. "I'd like to take Ellie here for a drive. Don't really know my way around here, so I'll need a little tour." he takes my hand and pulls me so that Luc has no choice but to let go of my shoulder. They're almost equal in height, with Luc leading by a mere inch.
"I'll come, then. I've lived here longer than her, and to put it bluntly, I don't exactly trust you to be in a car with her."
Aiden chuckles dryly and takes a step forward. "What are you implying here?"
Luc's lips tip up. "Just saying, I'm her boyfriend. Not you. But... you'd like to change that, wouldn't you?"
I widen my eyes. I look at Aiden, waiting for him to protest, but he stays silent.
"Aiden?" I tug on his hand.
He finally breaks eye contact with Luc and looks at me instead, with a soft expression on his freckled face. "Of course I would, but being friends with you is still the best thing that's ever happened to me, and I wouldn't jeapordize what we have now for my own desires." He looks back at Luc and sighs. "I know she's yours. I also know that she's happy with you. I wouldn't ever do anything that might hurt her. I'm not that kind of guy."
After a moment, Luc takes a breath and steps back, yielding.
Aiden looks back at him and nods reassuringly. "Let us go. I'll take care of her."
Luc nods back. "I know." He gives me a kiss on the forehead and allows us to walk away.

    Aiden opens the car door for me.
    "Wow, gentleman much?" I tease.
    "Mama raised me well," he grins as he walks over to his side. After plopping into the seat, he starts to put the key into ignition, but I put my hand on top of his. His soft chocolate eyes slide over to me, eyebrow raised in question.
    I keep my eyes on our hands. "Did you mean that? Back there?"
    He frowns and lets go of the key, replacing it with my warm fingers. "Of course. You know I'd never hurt you."
    "Not that. About what you felt," I meet his gaze. "for me."
    His eyes widen slightly, then he sighs, looking down at our now intertwined fingers. "Yes," he says softly. "Yes, I did. You're more than just a best friend to me, Elara. You have been for years, now." He looks back up at me. "But I know you don't feel the same."
    I open my mouth, but he smiles sadly and shakes his head. "No. I'm okay with it. Well, maybe not, but I've accepted it." He waves our hands around. "When you told me that you liked Luc,  just little bit of me broke. It meant you truly didn't have feelings for me, but I kept my head high because I was still in the playing field. Nothing was set in stone. But then later on you told me that you two had gotten together, meaning I was out." His eyes are unfocused, faraway, reliving one of the most heartbreaking moments of his life that I didn't even know I had a part in.
    My voice refuses to go anything above a whisper. "Why didn't you tell me?"
   He chuckles sadly. "I know. I guess it's my fault. I've never been good at taking leaps. You know that. I wanted to tell you so many times, but I was terrified of losing you. Luc did what I couldn't, fair and square.
    "I was going to tell you when you announced the relationship, you know. I really was. I had the whole paragraph typed up, and my thumb was hovering over the blue button, but..." he smiles then, but it's wrong. It's broken. "You were so happy, El. So happy. I hadn't seen you like that in a long time, and I was not about to rip it away." He looks down. "I deleted the paragraph."
    "Aiden... God, but... I talk about him all the time. If you really do feel that way, how do you endure it?"
    "It hurt at first." He laughs weakly. "Actually, that's a lie. It still does. It pains me to watch him make you happier than I ever could, to watch him make the memories with you that I always dreamed of making myself." He closes his eyes. "But what matters is that you're happy, and that you are making those memories." He looks at me. "Don't cry, Ellie."
    Tears sting my eyes and I aggressively wipe them away. "I'm not."
    He smiles the same fractured smile. "I'll be okay. I wanted a lifetime at your side, and maybe I'll still get that, just not in the way I'd imagined." Hope fills his expression. "Right?"
    I nod and bring my forehead to his. "Yes. Of course. I can't live without you, Aiden."
    He inhales a breath of relief and settles back into his seat, finally letting go of my hand. "Good. Now, where's the nearest Baskin Robbins?"