In the following days, Aiden found himself benefiting from his misfortune.
His injured leg couldn't bend properly when walking. To ease his suffering, Keller had no choice but to take care of Aiden on behalf of their entire family—driving him to and from school, serving breakfast right to his seat, and helping him walk. The only thing Keller didn't do was help him in the bathroom.
With his injured leg, Aiden became even bolder. Every evening, he shamelessly showed up at Keller's house for dinner, and after eating, he stayed until it was completely dark. Then he would use his limited mobility as an excuse to stay overnight. It felt like he was intentionally leeching off Keller's hospitality.
And Keller noticed something peculiar about Aiden—he liked to cuddle.
Every night when they went to sleep, Keller would feel an arm reach over and pull him into an embrace while he was half-asleep. Since the bed was narrow and space was limited, Keller didn't make a fuss about it. But even when driving, Aiden couldn't help but drape his arm around Keller out of nowhere.
Keller was pretty annoyed by this. Seriously, what kind of grown man keeps hugging another guy all the time?
So today, before they got in the car, Keller made a point to say:
"Listen up, don't hug me!"
Aiden stared at Keller with an amused expression. "Why not?"
Why not?! Keller felt his temper flare. Aiden was the kind of guy who could make someone lose their mind—nine out of ten things he said were completely out of line!
In the end, Keller spat out two words:
"It's gross!"
If it were before, Aiden would have agreed—seeing one guy hugging another would have felt awkward and annoying. But there's always an exception to every rule, and Keller was that exception. What Aiden was obsessed with wasn't Keller's waist, but the expression Keller made when touched—restrained, awkward, and shy, like he was trying hard not to say something.
The first half of the drive was relatively peaceful. But when they reached a turn, Aiden's hand crept over again. This time, however, he didn't hug Keller. Instead, his hand slipped under Keller's shirt, making direct contact with his smooth back.
Keller froze, every hair on his body standing on end as if he'd just been shocked by an electric current.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Finally, Keller yelled at Aiden in anger.
Aiden's palm rubbed against Keller's back, then turned over to the back of his hand, stroking slowly and deliberately, as if he had all the time in the world to break down Keller's defenses.
"I'm just borrowing your body heat to warm my hand."
Keller's face turned green. Warm his hand? His hand was clearly warmer than Keller's back!
Fine. Keller decided to endure it for now. But once Aiden's leg was fully healed, Keller swore he'd get his revenge. Damn it!
The following day was no better. Keller thought Aiden might finally behave himself, but instead, Aiden seemed to be getting more and more comfortable in his role as the "wounded prince."
In the morning, Keller was greeted with Aiden sitting cross-legged on his couch, eating a sandwich Keller had made. Crumbs were scattered across the couch cushions, and Keller's eye twitched at the mess.
"Seriously, Aiden, can you at least try to act like a normal human being?" Keller asked in exasperation.
Aiden grinned around a mouthful of sandwich, crumbs sticking to the corners of his mouth. "Why? You're already taking such good care of me. Might as well enjoy it."
Keller pinched the bridge of his nose, inhaling deeply. He reminded himself that violence wasn't the answer—especially not against someone who was technically injured.
But things escalated further when Keller returned home that evening. Aiden was sprawled across his bed, arms and legs spread wide like a starfish. His injured leg was propped up on a pillow, and he had somehow managed to claim every inch of the already small mattress.
"Move over," Keller said, standing at the edge of the bed.
Aiden cracked one eye open and smirked. "There's space. You're skinny. Just squeeze in."
Keller clenched his fists and counted silently to ten. Finally, he climbed into bed and turned his back to Aiden, keeping as much distance as the narrow mattress would allow.
But, of course, the night couldn't end peacefully. At some point, Keller woke up feeling Aiden's arm slung across his waist again.
"Aiden," Keller hissed through gritted teeth.
"Mmm?" came Aiden's sleepy mumble.
"Let. Go. Of. Me."
Aiden's arm tightened slightly in response, and Keller was left staring at the ceiling, wide awake and fuming.
The next morning, Keller had dark circles under his eyes as he drove Aiden to school. The car ride was silent for the first ten minutes until Aiden suddenly spoke up.
"You know, Keller, you're not bad at taking care of people. Ever considered being a nurse?"
Keller shot him a glare so sharp it could've cut glass. "Shut up, Aiden."
But Aiden just chuckled, leaning back in his seat, completely unbothered.
Keller gripped the steering wheel tighter. Just a few more days. He could survive this. Right?
But deep down, Keller had a sinking suspicion that Aiden wasn't planning on "recovering" anytime soon.