My eyes keep darting back to Aiden.

He’s leaning back in the sun-drenched front seat of my car, his eyes tranquil, thoughtful. He has one enormous hand folded around mine, his thumb touching the gold ring on my finger.

Sometimes I’m still hit with that recurring sensation of wonder and disbelief. This is the same Aiden Callahan I knew in high school. It hardly seems possible. I remember his brooding intensity, the way savage anger would burst from him without warning. How afterwards he’d retreat back into himself, into cold, harsh indifference.

Well. Not indifference. The opposite of that, actually. Indifferent has never been an accurate way to describe Aiden. I just didn’t realize it until he showed back up in Ketterbridge with his one backpack.

Present-day Aiden breaks my train of thought by lifting my hand to his mouth. He pushes a soft kiss onto my knuckles, stubble tickling my skin. My toes curl in my Converse, and I take my eyes off the road just long enough to smile at him. He returns it, biting his lip.

“You-” he blurts out, “You’re always - you just - make everything…”

He fades off, squeezing my hand. My fingertips brush against his wrist and feel his pulse racing.

I’m still waiting for him to finish his sentence, and he knows it.

“How are you the easiest person for me to talk to,” he grumbles, suddenly frustrated, “And like, at the same, sometimes it’s so fucking hard for me to say - everything that I’m…”

“Tell me about it, Callahan. You think I don’t have the same problem with you?”

Aiden’s eyebrows lift in surprise. “Do you?”

“Of course I fucking do, why do you think I’m fumfering all the time?”

A playful smile rises on Aiden’s face. “Guess I just assumed that you don’t know that many words.”

“Wow. Okay.” I yank my hand free from his, clicking my tongue. “You’re obnoxious.”

I expect Aiden to laugh, so I glance over when he doesn’t. His smile has dropped away, and now there's a worried pinch between his eyebrows.

“Oh - not really, babe.” I quickly reach for his hand again, gather his long fingers into mine. “I was totally kidding.”

“Oh.” He lets out a relieved breath. “Cool. Sometimes it’s hard for me to tell when I’m being-”

“I get it,” I interrupt gently. “It’s okay. You weren’t.”

Aiden’s smile is hesitant, his eyes searching me for any sign that he hurt my feelings. I remedy the situation by fixing him with such a gigantic, stupid grin that he bursts out laughing.

“Stop it,” he groans, shoving my shoulder.

I flip on the blinker, guiding us towards Raj, Mel, and Noah’s house.

“So, Guardian? How’d it feel, helping out Matt?”

Aiden’s smile shines through his eyes, two rippling blue pools, sunlight on an ocean.

“Pretty good,” he admits. “It - yeah. It felt pretty good.”

My heart lifts on my happiness. This feels like a victory.

“So I guess there are some nice things about being a Guardian, hmm?”

“I already knew that.” Aiden slips his fingers into my hair, traces them down the nape of my neck. “It’s how I found you. I heard your note. That’s the only reason I’ve never hated it all the way through. Not since we met, anyways.”

My heart swells against my ribcage, and I make a pained sound, tempted to drop my face onto the steering wheel.

“Aiden. Don’t say shit like that, I can’t take it. I’m gonna - just stop, please.”

He laughs, taking his hand from my neck.

“Alright, we can talk about something else. Easier for me, anyways.” He clears his throat, his cheeks faintly pink. “So - you think we got away clean? Matt’s not gonna remember us? He didn’t have his glasses when we rescued him.”

“Yeah, I thought about it, and I have a feeling that we’re probably fine. Too bad that I have such bright hair, though, don’t you think? It’s too easy to remember. Maybe I should dye it darker, be more covert.”

“No, you absolutely should not,” Aiden says immediately, with such force that I jump in my seat.

I twist to look at him, startled. “Um...?”

“Oh, I’m sorry.” He presses his fingers over his mouth, his eyes widening. “Fuck, I’m so sorry, that was some control freak type of shit - it’s your hair, you do whatever you want with it, honestly! I just - just-”

“Oh my god,” I laugh, “I was joking, Aiden, I’m not really gonna do it.”

He tries hard to not look relieved, and fails so spectacularly that I nearly burst out laughing again.

“I’m sorry,” he says, a little sheepish. He takes a strand of my hair in his fingers, gives it a tug. “It’s just - I kind of like it the way it is.”

“Kind of, yeah, apparently,” I laugh.

“Okay, you know what? This is a lot of shit coming from the guy who freaked out when I said I might try a new aftershave.”

“Mkay, first of all, that is a gross exaggeration-”

“Is it, though?”

“-and second of all, I just happen to like the vetiver one.”

“Kind of, yeah, apparently,” Aiden says, throwing my words back at me.

I try to scowl at him, and somehow we both end up laughing.

When we're somewhat recovered, Aiden peers through the windshield and sees that we’re almost to the house. He looks over at me, some realization spreading over his face.

“Dude! You never even told me how it went with those three.”

“Oh, my fucking god. I completely forgot!” My hands tighten on the wheel, delight unfolding in my chest as I remember. “They’re together now. All three of them.”

“Seriously?” Aiden breaks into a huge smile. “Holy shit. That’s fucking incredible! I half expected Noosh to hotwire a car and get the hell out of town.”

“Yeah, there was some concern about that.”

“No, like, honestly,” Aiden says, very seriously. “I’ve seen him hotwire a car. He knows how to do it.”

“Of fucking course.” I take the turn onto Raj, Mel, and Noah’s street, shaking my head. “Well, he didn’t run, this time. And now he seems so much happier, so… I don’t even know how to describe it. Just wait till you see him. Trust me, you’ll be able to tell.”

~~~~

Noah isn’t smiling when he answers the door, but it doesn’t matter. His eyes give it all away. They’re a shimmering pearl grey color, bright with his happiness, almost opalescent.

“Oh,” Aiden says, blinking at him. “Yeah, okay. I can tell.”

Noah’s eyebrows furrow. “Tell what?”

“Told you, Aiden,” I say, and Noah frowns.

“What did you tell him?”

“Jesus,” Aiden says, taking a longer look at Noah. “I could see it from a mile away.”

“I know, right? Didn't I tell you?”

Noah crosses his arms and leans his shoulder against the doorframe, his frown deepening.

“Just want you guys to know that whatever this is, I hate it,” he informs us.

“Yeah, I can tell that it’s really tearing you up inside,” Aiden chuckles.

Noah’s mouth twitches, his scowl fracturing into a slight smile before he gets control of it again.

“Bro, tell me what you're talking about or I’m gonna start snapping necks.”

“We’re talking about how you got yourself a girlfriend and a boyfriend, all in one day,” Aiden says, grinning widely. “Is it my turn to text you a whole row of high-five emojis?”

Noah tries to shut the door on us. Aiden rests a hand on it before he can, easily bringing it to a dead stop. Noah throws his full weight into the door, struggling to close it. Aiden watches with obvious amusement, his muscles not even fully flexed.

Noah makes an agonized noise of protest, and gives up.

“You really thought that was going to work?” Aiden asks, following him inside. “Complete buffoonery, that’s what that was.”

“Fuck you, dude!” Noah calls over his shoulder, heading for the kitchen. “And where were you two yesterday?”

Aiden and I stop in the process of taking off our shoes, exchanging a glance.

“Yeah, sorry about that,” I begin, and Aiden quickly takes over.

“A friend needed some help. We can’t really talk about it, but - we had a good reason.”

Noah pauses halfway to the kitchen, turning back to look at us.

“Everything okay?” he asks, more seriously.

“Yeah, it is,” Aiden says. “Or it will be, at least.”

Noah nods slowly, then shrugs.

“Well, even that vague as fuck explanation makes more sense than the text you sent, Jamie.”

I stare at Noah, not sure what he means. “The text that I-?”

It comes back to me like a bolt from the blue: I texted Melanie before I passed out yesterday. Or I’d started a text to her, anyways, but I didn’t realize that I sent it.

I quickly slip my phone out of my pocket, open my texts, and read what I sent to Melanie.

I thought I’d written:

Hey, Mel, so sorry but something important came up, Aiden and I won’t be able to make it to the exhibition space.

What my exhausted ass actually wrote was:

hey mel so sorry but sojmnething come up Aiden and I weon’t be able to sorry nott today love u hgoodnight

Oh, my god. An embarrassed blush rises in my cheeks, and I cringe so hard that my eyes close.

Aiden reads the text over my shoulder. He lets out a burst of laughter, then clasps a hand over his mouth when I whip around to glare at him.

“Yep, nice one, Jamie,” Noah snickers. He stops in the kitchen, leaning his elbows on the counter. “Should I be bothered about you drunk-texting my girlfriend that you love her?”

“Okay, no one was drunk-texting,” I say heatedly, and then - “Oh - your girlfriend.” I turn to Aiden, whose grin is just as wide as mine. “He said it.”

“Shut up,” Noah groans. “We’re not talking about this.”

“The fuck we aren’t.” Aiden joins Noah in the kitchen, nudges him with his elbow. “Come on, man, you know you have to tell me everything.”

Noah arches a pierced eyebrow. “You’re saying that Jamie didn’t tell you everything already?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. He just told me that things worked out.”

“Oh." Noah’s grey eyes flit to me, surprised. He turns back to Aiden, running a hand through his black hair. “Ah… I don’t even know where to start, bro.”

“I’ll leave you guys to it,” I tell Noah. “I want to go explain myself to Mel. That text was an abomination.”

Noah lets out a snort of laughter, then gestures with an incline of his chin towards the back door. I leave him with Aiden and let myself into the yard.

Melanie is standing beneath the snowy trees, her phone pressed to her ear.

“No, he hasn’t,” she’s saying, winding her braid through her fingers. “But I did, actually. Just a quick one, on his cheek. Yeah, Raj was perfectly fine with it. He’s way better than fine, I can tell how happy he-” She glances up, spots me, and breaks off. I start to back away, mouthing apologies, but she smiles and holds up a hang on one minute finger at me. “Look, I’ve got to run, but are we still on for lunch? I have a thousand things to tell you... okay, have a good class! Love you, bye!”

Melanie ends the call and slips her phone into her jacket pocket. I join her out in the yard, grinning widely.

“Work call?” I ask, and she laughs.

“Just catching Dahlia up on everything. Good to see you alive, by the way, Jamie. I assumed that you must have blacked out yesterday, based on the text you sent me.”

“Oh, god, I’m so sorry.” I let out a humiliated groan, pressing my fingers to my cheeks. “It’s a long story.”

“It’s fine.” Melanie pokes my chest. “I know you, so I doubt you’d have stood us up without a good reason.”

Relieved, I fix her with a grateful smile.

She’s a riot of bright color in the snowy yard, wearing a flowing scarlet dress, her cheeks pink from the cold. Her hair is in a particularly elaborate French braid today, and her eyes are warm and happy. Glowing, just like Noah’s.

It’s only been one full day of this new relationship, but it’s already having an effect on everyone involved.

“You look really great today, Mel,” I tell her.

“I’m feeling really great. Everything is…” Her smile falters, very slightly. “Perfect.”

My own smile drops away, and I tip my head to the side, studying her expression. “Is something wrong?”

“No,” she says hastily. “It’s just...”

She glances at the house, then steps closer to me, dropping her volume.

“Noah hasn’t kissed me yet,” she says softly. “It’s been a day and a half since we had our talk, but, um. Nothing. Raj is okay with me and Noah being together like that, and we said as much to Noah, of course, but - I’m starting to think that maybe he doesn’t believe us, or something? He keeps looking at me like he wants to, then he just… doesn’t.”

I’m kind of surprised that Melanie would tell me all this, but I try not to let it show.

“You realize that you could just kiss him?” I point out.

“Obviously, but I won't kiss him if he doesn’t want me to, for whatever reason. And he hasn’t kissed me, so I’m thinking… maybe that’s the case?”

Mel is looking at me like I might have answers, and I guess - I do know Noah pretty well by now.

My mind goes back to the night when Aiden and I talked to him at my apartment. Noah told us that he realized he loves Melanie when she kissed him by accident.

“Um, yeah, that’s definitely not the case,” I tell her.

Melanie starts to smile, but stops.

“Then - why won’t he…? Raj and I flat out told him it was alright.”

“Yeah, well… sometimes when you tell Noah something he wants to hear, it doesn’t quite sink in the first time. Aiden is the same way. You’re probably right, I bet that Noah just doesn’t really believe you guys.”

Melanie’s eyes narrow thoughtfully. “Really?”

“Mhm, really.”

She taps a finger on her lip, considering that. Then she swivels around and strides for the door, her dress billowing in her wake.

I have to jog to catch up to her. “Um - what are you doing?”

“Something I’ve been wanting to do for a minute,” she says, pushing the door open.

We go inside to find Noah standing alone by the kitchen counter, his phone in his hand.

“Where's Aiden?” I ask.

“Saying hi to Nik and Raj real quick,” Noah yawns, without glancing up from his phone. “They’re upstairs.”

Melanie pauses by the door, looking at Noah, her eyes soft and adoring. Then she crosses the kitchen, heading directly for him.

He’s still looking at his phone, but he must know her by the sound of her footsteps, because he says:

“Mel, I’m so annoyed. I was gonna surprise you with a coffee from that place you like in Greenrock, but I can’t figure out what time they open. Why isn’t the shit on the webs-?”

Melanie stops before Noah, takes his tattooed face in her hands. He finally looks up, and I catch the briefest flash of his startled expression before Melanie stands on her toes, and kisses him.

Their last kiss was a peck. This one is not. Melanie wraps her arms around Noah’s neck and tangles her fingers in his long hair, leaning all the way into him.

Noah instantly drops his phone. It crashes to the floor with a loud thunk, but neither of them notice.

For a split second, I think that Noah is going to push her away.

Then he locks his arms around Melanie, draws her closer, and kisses her back.

Melanie smiles happily against his mouth.

She slowly brings the kiss to a close, then drops back onto her feet, gazing up at him.

Noah's eyes flutter open. He looks dazed, his grey eyes wide, his cheeks burning.

Melanie taps his nose with her fingertip, and Noah blinks down at her, speechless.

“That’s better,” she says, and leaves us in the kitchen.