Dylan threw away the paperweight in anger. Noah's question, ' Are you in love with him?' was ringing in his head like a broken record. Over the past few days, he has been thinking about this question, and it appears that he can no longer lie to himself. Though he was unsure if it was love, he had to accept that he had some possessive feelings for Aiden. Also, he was utterly convinced that he couldn't see Aiden with anybody else. The thought itself caused an undescribable rage within him.
But could he be in a relationship with Aiden? Obviously not. What would happen to his reputation if people saw him dating a guy? He would be a laughing stock. He thought of the times he had bullied various people for being gay and couldn't imagine others ridiculing him for the same. Why the f**k was this happening to him? Seems like his karma was hitting him hard.
To avoid this situation, Dylan had to act fast. Now that Aiden was staying in his penthouse, he just had to make sure Aiden stayed away from Noah so that Dylan's jealousy was not triggered again. This way, he could hide his emotions and maybe eventually get rid of them. In addition, he should spend more time with his girlfriend Natalie and even try to make their relationship official.
Once back home, Dylan unlocked Aiden's room door and saw that he was sleeping on the bed. Dylan looked at Aiden's petite body and was transfixed. The first two buttons of Aiden's shirt were open, and his chest was visible. Dylan took a deep breath, his legs moved on their own, and he approached Aiden's bed. Aiden's golden locks were falling over his eyes, and Dylan unknowingly moved his hands across his hair to move it away.
Aiden abruptly jolted up on his bed and saw Dylan close to him. He backed away in fear, and Dylan's clenched his fist in anger. " Why do you always do that?"
Aiden was confused as to what Dylan was asking. " D-Do what?"
" Why are you so scared of me? Why can't you look at me like you look..." Dylan suddenly stopped himself when he realized what he was about to say. He wanted Aiden to look at him with love, the same way he was with Noah. What was he thinking? He had to control his feelings.
" ... Forget it," Dylan said, annoyed. " Come for dinner. I will be waiting." Aiden nodded fearfully, and Dylan turned around and left.
Aiden stared at Dylan's back in confusion. Why was he scared of him? Did Dylan even need to ask that question? All his life, he had been instilling fear in Aiden's mind, so what else did he expect? Wasting no more time, he got down from the bed and went to freshen up.
During dinner, Dylan continuously stared at Aiden, making him feel uncomfortable. Aiden was unable to understand Dylan's weird behavior. Lately, he seemed to have changed a lot. His actions were unpredictable, and Aiden felt like walking on eggshells while staying with him.
" I want you to break up with your boyfriend," Dylan said out of the blue.
" W-What?" Aiden wasn't surprised; rather, his worst fears had come true.
" Didn't you hear me?" Dylan said, irritated.
" I-I can't..."
" Did I ask you what you can or cannot do?" Listening to Aiden opposing him yet again angered Dylan even more. He got up from his seat and threw away his plate.
Aiden shuddered at the sound of the plate crashing on the floor. Dylan suddenly appeared and held his jaw tightly. " If I see you hanging with that guy again, you will regret it." He then pushed Aiden away from him and went back to his room.
The next day, Aiden went to the office as usual. He didn't have a phone with him and couldn't talk to Noah, so he decided to buy a new phone secretly. Before Dylan could ask him to leave with him, Aiden left the office. As soon as Aiden was out, he saw Noah waiting for him.
Noah saw Aiden and hugged him in relief. " Where were you? Do you know how worried I was? Are you alright?"
Aiden could hear the concern in Noah's voice. He broke the hug and said, " I am fine, Noah."
" I have been looking for you since yesterday. Even your phone was not reachable."
Aiden looked around, fearing Dylan might see them. He grabbed Noah's hand and dragged him towards the alleyway beside his office building.
" What's going on, Aiden?" Noah asked. " Why do you look so nervous?"
" I don't want Dylan to see us."
" Why? Why do you care?" Noah asked, holding Aiden's arms. " You are an adult. How can he decide for you?"
"I-I..."
" He is not even your own brother, then why does he have so much control over you?"
Aiden was still reluctant to say anything.
" What's going on, Aiden?" Noah asked in dread. " D-Do you l-love him?"
" What?" Aiden was shocked. " How can you even say that?"
" Then what do you want me to say? Can you see yourself? The way you behave when Dylan is around... Why does he affect you so much?"
" Don't you trust me?" Aiden whispered.
" Do you trust me?" Noah asked back. " You never told me about your adoptive family until your so-called brother showed up at our house. What was the need to hide? Was he your f-first l-love?"
" Enough, Noah," Aiden yelled. " It's not as you think."
" Then you tell me what it is. I spoke to Dylan yesterday, and the way he talked about you, it's not brotherly affection. I am sure he loves you."
" Love?" Aiden almost laughed at that. " I don't think he is capable of loving someone."
" Then what the hell is going on? I love you a lot, I really do, but I don't know about you anymore. Tell me the truth, Aiden. D-Do you still love me? Are you having second thoughts?" Noah choked up.
Aiden was exasperated by Noah's question. " Do you think this is one of your romance novels where the good girl falls for a bad boy? No, this is my life. The only emotion I ever had towards Dylan was fear. I have been so scared of him that I couldn't think of anything else but to avoid retaliation from him." Aiden put his hand on Noah's face and looked into his eyes. " Noah, fear, and love cannot co-exist. When there is fear, there is no place for love. How can I love Dylan when I can't get rid of my fear of him?"
Noah kept his head on Aiden's shoulders. He was still scared he would lose Aiden.
Aiden could understand why Noah was getting so insecure. He hugged Noah tightly as if assuring him. " I can never have any second thoughts about you, Noah. You are the first person who has loved me and taught me to love. How can I even think of anybody else?"
" Then do you think Dylan loves you?"
" I already told you Dylan is not capable of love. "
" Then why does he act so possessive towards you?"
" Because Dylan is a control freak," Aiden said. " He wants things to go according to his wishes. He is homophobic, so he doesn't want me to date a guy. He even forced me to go on a blind date with a girl."
" The f**k!!" Noah exclaimed. " That's absurd."
" Yes, he is like that. Even after so many years, I still can't understand him completely," Aiden said.
" Then ignore him. Leave his home and come with me. He can't control you until you allow him to."
" I wish I could, but..." Aiden recalled the previous day's incident when Dylan almost dislocated his jaw in anger.
Noah saw that Aiden was sweating at the thought of opposing Dylan. " Why are you so scared of him? You have me; I will protect you. Just let go of this fear."
" I-It's not so easy as you think," Aiden whispered.
" I know it is not easy, but whatever it is, we will face it together. I just want you to be with me."
" I-I can't go against D-Dylan."
" Why not?" Noah cried out. " Do you not love me enough? Is your fear of him greater than your love of me?"
Aiden was about to respond but stopped when he saw Dylan staring at them with rage-filled eyes.