NINETY

NINETY
AIDEN’S POV

The morning came softly.

There were no loud footsteps, no loud voices, no growling warriors in the yard. Everywhere was just calm and I tried smiling but I winced as a sharp pain reminded me that I shouldn’t.
I groaned and laid on the bed, staring at the sunlight slipping through the curtains, the strips of gold warming my bare shoulders. Outside, I could hear the rustle of leaves as a gentle breeze passed through them, accompanied by the faint, rhythmic chirping of birds. For a moment, I let myself breathe it in because peace didn’t come often in this house.

But my body wasn’t letting me enjoy it fully.
Every breath reminded me of last night’s fight. My ribs ached where Drake’s punches had landed, my jaw was tender, and my knuckles were raw. I rolled onto my side with a groan, testing my muscles like someone carefully checking for cracks in glass.

I had been in plenty of fights before. But this…
This one had been different. Drake was stronger, he has always been.

And now, I was paying dearly for the decision I made yesterday to engage in a fist fight with him. Like what was I thinking?

The slight knock on the door startled me, and I quietly told whoever it was to come in while I sat up.

The door creaked open, and Shirley stepped in.

She smiled at me and was about to greet me, but instead her gaze swept over me taking in the bruises, the bandaged knuckles, and the swelling on my cheek.

She didn’t say a word at first. She just stood there, eyes narrowed, mouth pressed into a thin line.

I knew what was going through her head, she wasn’t pleased with the bruises I mean who will be pleased? But I wasn’t ready for drama this morning so I tried lightening up the mood first.

‘My beautiful girl, you look beautiful as always, and you are up early too how nice’ I said with a chuckle even though my voice was still rough from sleep.

Her gaze snapped to mine, and the disappointment there hit me harder than Drake’s fists.
‘What happened to you?’ she asked, though her tone made it clear she already had a guess.

I cleared my throat, and thought of what to tell her. I couldn’t just tell her that her father hit me, I didn’t want to see her reaction. So, I did the only thing I could which was to lie.

‘Oh, ignore these bruises young lady nothing really happened. I just got into a fight with someone in a bar yesterday’

She held her waist in defiance ‘Let me guess, the person’s fist landed on your face over some minor stuff’

I snapped my fingers in agreement ‘Exactly, you get it. You know how drunk people get in the bar; they tend to lose their mind’

‘No, I don’t know how drunk people act in a bar because I have never been to a bar, but that’s not the case here. You are lying to me Uncle Aiden and I have told you that you are a terrible liar’

I blinked ‘Excuse me?’

She scoffed ‘My dad did this to you right? I mean that’s the only reason you are lying, you don’t want me to know’

I rolled my eyes ‘I’m not lying to you Shirley, your dad didn’t…’

She interrupted me angrily ‘Stop it Uncle Aiden, tell me the truth this minute otherwise I will leave this room and ignore you for the rest of my life’

My eyes narrowed ‘Oh, you are threatening me now? I’m so scared’ I said with a laugh.

She folded her arms ‘It’s not an empty threat’

I exhaled slowly, adjusting myself despite the pull in my ribs. ‘It was just a disagreement with your father, it’s not a big deal’

The expression in her face shifted immediately like I just confirmed the exact thing she had been suspecting.
‘My dad did this to you?’ she demanded, her voice sharp.

I didn’t answer fast enough, and that was all she needed.

The fire in her expression burned hotter.
‘I can’t believe him.’ She shook her head, pacing a few steps away from me. ‘Actually, no…I can believe him. This is exactly the kind of thing he would do.’

‘Shirley…..please stop. It’s really not what you think. It’s just grown up stuff nothing serious’ I started, but she cut me off with a sharp gesture.

‘What grown up stuff?’

‘Ermm…we just disagreed on something that’s all’

‘No no no. Don’t you dare defend him,’ she said, her voice trembling not with fear, but with contained rage. ‘He’s been a terrible father my whole life, and now he’s beating you like you are the enemy? You’ve done nothing but….’ She stopped herself, biting back the words.

I wanted to tell her it wasn’t as simple as that. That Drake and I had years of unspoken resentment, rivalry, and complicated history between us. But seeing her like this…her fists clenched, her jaw tight made me think maybe she didn’t need to hear the messy details right now.

‘Hey,’ I said gently as I stood up forcing myself to push the ache aside. ‘It’s fine. I’m fine’

‘No, you are not,’ she snapped. ‘And you know what? I’m done talking to him. I mean it this time. I don’t care how angry that will make him all I know is I’m not saying another word to him.’

Her voice cracked slightly at the end, and I knew it wasn’t just anger talking. There was hurt there, the kind of hurt you only carry when it comes from blood.

I sighed. ‘Shirley, you know that’s not going to make things better.’

‘I don’t care.’ She crossed her arms stubbornly. ‘He doesn’t get to treat people like this. Especially not the people I…’ She stopped herself again, glancing away.

‘People you what?’ I asked, curiosity slipping into my tone.

She shook her head. ‘Forget it.’

I let a small smile tug at the corner of my mouth. ‘You know, you’re even more stubborn than he is.’

That earned me a glare, but it didn’t have the same bite as before. I pulled her to my embrace and allowed her to rest her head on my chest even though it ached so much.