Deliciously Destroyed | 18+

33. Mats

Chuckling, I kneel next to Aaron, who's lying on the floor.

"Is someone a it tired?" I tease. He grumbles but doesn't even lift his head.

Aiden sighs. "Maybe I should've stopped after he tripped over his own feet." He scratches the back of his head.

"You think?" Micah snaps, picking the boy up and setting him on his hips. Aaron collapses against him, eyes closing immediately. 

Turns out running isn't exactly a specialty of Aaron's. He's returned just now, panting and looking like he could fall asleep any second.

"Come on, hand him over," I tell Micah, who wrinkles his nose but listens to me. I carry the boy to the couch, where I lay him out with his head on my lap.

Seb gives me a cozy blanket, which I drape over the sleeping boy. Aiden stands still at the front door, looking confused. "But— I was gonna teach him how to defend himself."

Micah lets out a huff, clearly growing mad again. Jesus Christ, he's never been this protective.

"Let him rest for a bit, sweetheart," I tell Aiden, gripping the hem of Micah's shirt in my hand. "Don't forget about last night and his nightmare. He's still tired and hasn't had much time to recover yet. If he's okay with that, maybe you can start to teach after lunch. Alright?"

He nods and leaves to shower upstairs. When I hear his door close, I let go of Micah. Micah, who turns around and glares at me. 

"Unbelievable! He just wore the poor boy out! Look at him!" he shouts. I blink. Wow, someone's grumpy.

Seb stands up and grips Micah's arm, pulling him along to another room to not wake up Aaron. I sigh and watch them until the door slams closed.

"Oh sweetheart," I mutter to Aaron. "You have no idea how much power you hold over them, am I right? Look at you."

I pull his small frame closer to me, until he's resting his head on my shoulder and his body pressed against me. The weight of him against me calms me down in an inexplainable way. 

He breathes out, eyes shut closed tightly. I love it when his walls are down completely and he's not afraid of how we see him.

Seb comes back, humming lowly and with his hands in his pockets. I cock an eyebrow. "Where is that brat?"

He smirks. "Oh don't worry, Aiden is taking care of it." I grin. Alright then.

Aaron groans and snuggles closer to me. "Why am I so tired?" he whispers, his head not lifting. 

I play with his hair. "Because this is the first time you've gone through something like last night. The more we do this, the better you'll be able to handle it. The way you were shaking last night? That's something that will lessen, but not go away. If you can accept that, you can understand it."

He nods. "Are you gonna join me?"

I glance at Seb. I should make lunch in ten minutes with him, but if I join Aaron in a little nap I won't be able to. He waves it away. "I can cook fine by myself."

Um. No.

"What about we cook tonight?" I gently propose. He rolls his eyes and walks away, clearly annoyed with me. Still, I'm not letting him alone with a stove. Our food will be black.

I kiss Aaron's head. He clings to me while I lay down on the couch. He's blinking to fight his exhaustion.

"I sleep better with you," he whispers, tightening his hug before falling asleep.

****

"Block my attacks, Aaron."

I sit down on the floor of the gym where Aiden has laid out mats. He also packed Aaron with protecting stuff, a promise he'd made to Micah. 

Seb joins me, though he's still a little mad he could only make soup as lunch. Micah is grumbling, frowning as he stares at Aaron.

"Micah, behave or I'm repeating this morning," Aiden calls from the mats without more than one glance. Said brat slides to the floor next to me and gets rid of his scowl.

I hug him sideways. "Why are you so possessive? You know we're not gonna take him away from him. You know we only mean the best. He's not gonna run away from you, I promise."

He leans into me, closing his eyes for a second against my shoulder. "I guess I just don't believe he's real."

"Um. Help?" Aaron calls out to us, looking completely freaked out. I chuckle at the sight of him. A helmet, protectors everywhere and a horrified face. 

Seb grins. "Just act like he is threatening to murder you. Fight for your life."

Aaron blinks at him. Clueless. I sigh in unison with the two men on both of my sides. 

"Aaron. Focus," the rough voice of Aiden startles him. I watch as Aiden starts confusing the boy with fast moves until Aaron is lying on the mat with Aiden on top.

"Try again."

They do.

"Better this time, Aaron."

He tries.

"You won't hurt me. I'm not some precious vase of yours. Come on."

Aaron ends up on the mat again. Aiden sighs.

"I'm really trying over here!" Aaron complains. Aiden glares at him, "You're not. You're waiting until I give up. But I don't care how long it takes, Aaron. We will both be here until you can block some attacks. If you can do that, we'll continue tomorrow."

The boy groans. I smirk, knowing Aiden was right. The boy is just trying to get out of this.

The next time Aiden attacks, Aaron grabs his wrist and blocks him. Aiden nods in approval. "Good one. Again. I want more force."

Aaron takes that advice and with that, blocks Aiden again with more strength. When he sees Aiden straightening and reaching for the helmet, he sighs. "Jesus. Why is self defense this hard?"

Aiden looks him in the eyes. "You have to work to be able to live in peace. It sucks, but it's the way the world works."

Sadly, that's right.