I grasped her hand tightly and kissed the back of it.
“We’re here,” I said happily, trying to lighten the mood a bit.
She looked around in surprise and gazed in front of her. She looked confused as she stared at the giant house. She stayed firmly in her seat.
I smiled at her surprise and walked around the truck to open her door for her. She was still gazing at the house in shock.
“Aiden, what are we doing here? Are we gonna rob them or something?” she asked, furrowing her eyebrows.
I laughed loudly at her question. “What? No! This is Dr. Reed’s house. He’s out of town with his wife for the weekend, so he’s letting me borrow it for today.”
“Okay, but why are we here then?” she asked, still confused.
“Why don’t you get out and find out?” I said, offering her my hand. She took it slowly, and we walked to the house.
I gave her a tour and was not disappointed at all by her bewilderment of the house. It really was a spectacular house. I remembered when we were little, and we would sometimes play and look at the house the same way Aubry was.
“Aiden, this house is beautiful. Obviously, Dr. Reed makes a lot of money, but why are we here?” she asked, confused.
“Well . . . I haven’t showed you the whole house yet,” I said, taking her hand and walking to the door that held the big indoor pool. “Okay, ready?” I asked, smiling at her.
She nodded excitedly. I let her into the room, and she took the room in for a second.
She gasped, “What? This is awesome!” she exclaimed loudly as she walked up to the pool. She stopped suddenly and swallowed.
“B-But I-I don’t know how to swi—” she said, trailing off with red cheeks.
“I know, you mentioned that a while back . . .” I said, holding her hand to get her attention. I stroked her cheek softly and looked her in the eyes. I couldn’t help but give her a big goofy grin. “That’s why I’m going to teach you,” I said simply.
“Y-You’re gonna teach me?!” she said, freaking out. Her mouth was even hanging open in surprise, and she looked adorable.
She surprised me by jumping on me and throwing her arms around, hugging me tightly. I laughed and stumbled a little, but I caught her weight with ease and hugged her back.
“Thank you, thank you, thank you!” she exclaimed excitedly. She squeezed me tightly for a few more seconds, then slowly backed off of me with an embarrassed smile.
“Okay, so . . .” I started unsurely. I just hoped that she didn’t freak out too much. I grabbed the clothes out of my backpack and winced. “So . . . It’s February, and my options were extremely limited,” I stated, handing her the bikini that I had chosen for her. It was pretty much the only thing that even remotely looked like it would fit her. Even then . . . I wasn’t sure. “I hope it fits,” I added for good measure.
She looked at the bikini carefully. The look on her face while she was looking at the garment was one of pure terror. She looked at me and then back to the bikini with her eyebrows raised.
“I also brought this . . .” I gave her the big T-shirt that I brought along for exactly that reaction. I sighed, knowing that she would have felt uncomfortable being in the revealing bikini, especially since her scars and insecurities would be completely bared. I just wished that she could see how beautiful she was to me—scars and imperfection all included.
“It’s just gonna be us here, but I know you’re self-conscious about your scars and body. For the record though, I think they’re part of what makes you absolutely beautiful.”
She blushed at my words, but still took the shirt from me.
“The restroom is right over there,” I pointed it out to her.
I quickly changed in the restroom across the one she was in and stood by the pool, waiting for her.
When I heard the door open a few minutes later, I slowly turned to her with a small smile on my face. When I saw her, I was completely caught off guard. My eyes widened as I looked at her and I was speechless.
She was standing there before me in just the simple black bikini that I had bought for her. The t-shirt that I brought along was nowhere to be found. She was absolutely stunning, there was no other way to put it.
A big smile spread across my face instantly as I stared at her intently. She was the most magnificent thing I had ever seen. My eyes traced her body, trying to memorize every curve, line, and beautiful scar of hers. I realized that I had been staring too long when she shifted uncomfortably and crossed her arms over her chest.
I smiled apologetically at her and held my hand out for her to take. She took it hesitantly. I pulled her to me gently, and carefully traced a long scar on her thigh. My hand then went to a scar on her stomach, then found its way to the prominent one on her neck. I then looked her in the eyes, her beautiful green eyes with the gold flecks splattered across them.
“You’re absolutely breathtaking, Aubry,” I whispered to her. “Magnificent,” I muttered to myself bewildered at her uncanny beauty.
I quickly shook my head, trying to remember what we were doing here. I cleared my throat loudly, reminding myself not to be weird.
“Okay, so I think the only appropriate way to enter a pool for the first time is by jumping in. So . . .” I pulled her close to me and wrapped my arm around her small body.
“Hold on tight,” I said, looking at her face.
She wrapped her small arms around my neck and looked at the water. We took a step up to the side, she took a deep breath, and we both jumped.
We hit the water as she held on to me tightly. She wrapped her legs around my hips as we went towards the bottom. As soon as my feet touched the bottom, I pushed upwards. After several seconds under water, we finally made it to the surface once again.
I heard a joyous giggle next to me. I looked at her, and she was grinning widely.
“That was amazing!” she exclaimed, making me chuckle at her excitement.
“I knew you’d love swimming! It’s just like, like you’re . . . like you’re weightless!” I said smiling, unsure how else to explain it.
“And you feel like you can just forget all of your problems!” she said as she wrapped her arms around me, bringing her body even closer to mine. “I really do love this . . . this is by far the best birthday ever,” she said softly.
“Thank you,” she whispered into my ear.
She really needed to stop saying thank you; it really had not been that big of an ordeal. I touched my nose to hers affectionately making her laugh again.
“Okay, let’s teach you how to swim.”
***
She was a natural at swimming. She seemed to be good at pretty much everything she tried. She picked things up very quickly and learned fast. Swimming was no exception.
Her real favorite thing to in the pool though was floating. She loved it. It was definitely what we did the most in those hours. She liked it when we just floated on our backs together while holding hands tightly—not that I’m complaining.
We also spent a lot of time trying to dunk each other. She had fun as we playfully fought and tried to best each other. I loved the way that she’d just wrap herself around me and carelessly giggle while trying to get my head under water. Everything about her in those moments was absolutely perfect.
After a couple of hours, I knew that it was time to get out. Our bodies were all pruned up, and Aubry’s stomach had been growling for twenty minutes.
I glanced at her as she floated on her back in the water. Her eyes were closed softly with a small smile etched on her face.
She looked like a true Goddess in that moment. She was beautiful; the most beautiful thing that I had ever seen. I stared at her for a few moments, memorizing everything about her body. I just sat there and admired the lovely beauty that she was.
Suddenly, her stomach growled very loudly once again, making her open her eyes and look around in embarrassment.
“Come on, I think it’s lunchtime,” I told her with an am
used smile.
“Just . . . one more jump from the side?” she asked, giving me puppy dog eyes.
I laughed at her enthusiasm and nodded quickly. There was no way that I could say no to that.
She got out of the pool and walked over to the deep end. I stayed sitting on the steps while I watched her with a small smile on my face.
She looked at me expectantly and rolled her eyes when I didn’t move.
“Together,” she said with a small smile and held her hand out to me.
I did as she said and got up. I returned her smile and took her outstretched hand in mine. I couldn’t help but to kiss the back of it affectionately.
“Together,” I agreed while looking her in the eyes. I just hoped that she knew that I meant so much more than just the jump.
She counted us down and we both leapt off the ledge on three, still holding each other’s hand tightly. Neither one of us let go until we broke through the surface of the water. We both laughed joyously when we did, looking at each other.
She threw her arms around my neck, hugging me tightly as she continued to laugh. I wrapped my arms around her in response and kept us afloat.
“You’ve been really hug-ey today,” I noted gladly. “Not that I’m complaining or anything. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it,” I said, before she could get self-conscious.
“I just . . . thank you, Aiden!” she said once again, making me want to roll my eyes.
“Aubry, you don’t have to keep saying that. You’re very welcome, okay? I love doing stuff for you. No ‘thank you’ is required,” I said, touching her chin gently, making her look at me.
She smiled at me and nodded. “I’m sorry, I’m just baffled by that.”
I smiled at her and led us both over to the steps to get out. We both dried off, and I handed her the same soap that we both used at the gym.
“How about we shower up really quick then we’ll eat some lunch?” I asked quickly.
I glanced up at her as she nodded mutely. I couldn’t help but stare at her beauty. It wasn’t her chest or her ass that had me so mesmerized like how it was with the other girls that I had been with.
No, it was how absolutely beautiful all of her was to me. Even her shoulders, neck, and hands left me breathless. Every part of her was simply breathtaking.
She noticed me staring at her, then removed the towel from around her body. She then smirked at me with an amused glint in her eye as she took the bottle from me.
“Sounds good to me,” she said sweetly. “Aiden,” she said as she began to back away from me. “Be sure to get one last look.”
I was speechless as she walked away from me. She even deliberately swayed her hips, slightly making me swallow thickly at how amazing she looked.
She gave me one last glance over her shoulder—that one last sultry look that made my jaw unhinge unceremoniously. She giggled to herself at the daze she left me in and then walked through the bathroom door, leaving me behind, still staring.
Once I finally pulled myself out of my daze because of the beautiful girl, I showered in the other bathroom quickly. I then made my way into the kitchen to make the only thing I knew how to make—mac and cheese.
I put the three movies that I couldn’t decide on the counter and started the water to boil. I suddenly found myself rolling my eyes at what I had put together for her day. It all looked like something a ten-year-old would come up with. I quickly found myself filled with doubt.
“What’s all this?” she asked when she walked into the room.
I looked at her and smiled involuntarily. Her long hair was wet and messy, she had her sweats back on, and she had thrown on the big shirt of my own that I had given her to swim in. She looked absolutely flawless in the simple comfy clothes.
“Well, I thought that we’d eat and then have a relaxing movie day in the media room until dinner at the house,” I said, holding my breath for her answer.
She stayed silent while studying the movies.
I felt the self doubt come back with a vengeance. “It’s stupid, isn’t it? I mean, these movies? Hercules? The Little Mermaid? I don’t know what I was thinking. We really don’t have to do this if you don’t want to. I know that it’s really childish. I mean, swimming and then Disney movies? I’m basically recreating a second grader’s summer pool party. I just wasn’t sure what you’d—” I was saying, shaking my head at myself.
She cut me off quickly.
“Aiden . . . stop!” She grabbed my face with both of her hands and made me look at her. “I think that this is amazing. Seriously, all of this is so amazing. I’m sure you’ve realized what kind of crappy childhood that I had by now, so none of this is childish for me. It’s all amazing. I never had anyone do something like this for me before. I’ve never even had someone celebrate my birthday with me before! So really, all of this stuff is some of the most wonderful things that I’ve ever had done for me before.”
I could see the truth of her words in her eyes as she spoke passionately.
“It’s just hard for me to process that you can care about me so much. Stop second-guessing yourself, Aiden! This so awesome! I’ve never had a chance to just sit around and watch movies with someone before. I’m excited! So, please don’t worry about my reaction. I will be happy with anything as long as you are there with me to do it.”
I smiled at her sweet words and kissed her nose, deliberately being silly. “Well good, because I make a mean mac and cheese!”
We both giggled at my cheesy words and were both completely at ease once again.
We ate quickly and then went to the media room. I popped in The Little Mermaid and sat back down on the couch next to her. Within moments, her head was rested on my chest while my arm was around her waist, cradling her into me carefully. That was exactly what we both needed—each other.
The movie went by seemingly quickly. She was enthralled with it immediately. She laughed along with it, gasped at it, and smiled at the end when Prince Eric and Ariel ended up together with their happily ever after. I swear that I watched her more than I actually watched the movie. It was just much more interesting to watch her watch the movie instead.
Once it was over, I put Aladdin in. I could tell that she was getting sleepy by the slowness of her answer when I asked her what to watch. I knew right then that she really didn’t care what I put in, she was going to sleep.
I sat back down, and she immediately put her head back on my chest. I wrapped my arm around her tightly, and felt her relax against my body easily.
Within thirty seconds, she was out like a light. Coaxed by her even breathing, I wasn’t too far behind her as I fell asleep by the very first song of the film.
***
“Aubry, it’s time to wake up,” I said gently while shaking her softly.
I had just awakened as well. However, it was already three forty-five and dinner was supposed to start at four, so it was time to get going.
I hated waking her up, but it was necessary. My mom was already doing me a favor by moving dinner up a couple hours in order to accommodate the whole day that I had planned. I didn’t want to annoy her by being late to the dinner.
“Come on, Aub. Time to get up. Dinner starts at four.”
“Ugh . . . why so early? She usually doesn’t plan dinner until six!” Aubry complained as she burrowed her face in my neck.
“I asked her to cook earlier because I figured that you’d want at least a couple of hours to train tonight before our fights.”
She sat up abruptly and stared at me. “You are so bloody amazing, you know that?”
I laughed at her words and shook my head. “Come along. Mac and cheese doesn’t ever fill me up. I’m starving.”
I gathered up our stuff and then locked up the mansion with the key that I was given. I stuck it back in its secret place with a frown. I then drove away, leaving the amazing day we had at the beautiful house behind.
It didn’t take long to get back to the house. When we pulled up, Aubry looke
d apprehensive.
“Aub, it’s just going to be the people that care about you celebrating the day that you were born. Don’t let yourself get too worked up. Don’t let your mind turn this into something stressful or scary. It’s just us,” I whispered to her and led her to the door.
“Happy Birthday!!” Everybody exclaimed as soon as we walked through the door.
I couldn’t miss the way Aubry’s eyes glossed over with emotions.
“Thank you!” she said happily as she grinned.
Everyone exchanged hugs, and I couldn’t help but notice how truly happy she looked in that moment. It was where she belonged . . . with my family. With me.
“Perfect timing, dinner is ready,” Mom said as we all sat down.
“This looks so good, Dana!” Aubry said, voicing the opinion of everyone.
Without further ado, we all dug into the amazing dinner that my mom made. It was pretty quiet as we all ate the delicious food. Aubry looked so happy and so loved.
Soon after, my mom brought out the birthday cake, complete with eighteen candles on it and everything. We all sang her “Happy birthday”, and she blew out the candles, laughing as the trick candles relit instantly. I watched as the candles lit up her beautiful face. She looked so radiant and so happy. I wanted to make her feel like that forever.
“So, present time!” Mom said, clapping loudly as she put a small bag in front of Aubry.
Aubry’s eyebrows furrowed. “No, I—” she began to argue, but my mom gave her a stern glare, making Aubry immediately shut up.
“We give presents in this house for birthdays, so just open it,” Mom said, giving her no room to argue.
She nodded and opened it up, smiling at the gift card that was in it.
“It’s from me, Robert, and Briana,” Mom told her.
“You can use it for whatever you want, but we mostly bought it for you so you can get some new clothes since all of yours are way too big,” Bri clarified.
She wasn’t wrong at how big her clothes were, but I didn’t mind. I thought that she just liked her clothes comfy. I never thought about her not having anything else before.
Fighting For Life Page 41
