The weight of unspoken words

The weight of unspoken words
Aiden’s POV 

He quickly glanced at me and immediately looked away like I was some kind of plague drifting too close to his space, and maybe I was. I didn’t blame him, neither did I have the right to stand there and feel offended. Because I forfeited that right the day I let everything crumble.

So I didn’t move, I didn’t call his name, and I didn’t walk closer. Rather I just stood there, my hands in my pockets, the ocean breeze pushing against my shirt, watching him from a distance like a coward stuck between longing and guilt.

I couldn’t decide what to do. Should I wait for him? Should I approach him mid-lesson? Should I leave and pretend I never saw any of this, never saw him? My mind kept jumping from one thought to another until they got all tangled up. So I did the only thing I could manage to bring myself to do, and that was to watch him. He didn’t know how gentle he looked when he worked, the way he tilted his head slightly when a kid showed him a brushstroke.

The soft, encouraging smile when one of them hesitated, the way he crouched beside Miranda as she explained her painting, nodding like she was unveiling the secrets of the universe. It was honestly grounding and humbling, and it settled low in my chest painfully.

When he spoke again, I assumed the session was coming to an end. The kids gathered in a loose circle, their hands stacked over one over another, lifting them together as they shouted something I couldn’t hear from where I was. They laughed, bumped fists, and slowly began packing up.

I watched them file out one by one, holding unto their canvases which was filled with emotions and color. Just then a familiar voice broke through the silence. 

“Hey Aiden,” I turned, just in time to see Miranda waving at me, gleefully. 

I waved back, and smiled at her, although my mind quickly drifted back to where it was before, Jamie. Who moved among them like someone who belonged right here, with the earth, the sea, the paint, and with the broken kids who finally found a place to breathe.

Eventually, it was empty now and there were only two people left Jamie, and another guy who had an oddly striking resemblance to him. The same eyes, same facial features. Except this one was ridiculously built. Like… “he could probably punch through a tree” kind of built. I immediately assumed it was his brother. It had to be.

A sudden swell of nerves hit me, but before I could second-guess myself into paralysis, my legs moved forward on their own. 

“Hi, Jamie,” I said, my voice softer than I intended. “Uh… nice thing you’ve got going here. It’s really beautiful.”

He just peeked out from the boot after dropping a box in it, stared for one, solid, unreadable second and then walked away without saying anything. 

No nod. No acknowledgment. Nothing.

My stomach dropped, as I instantly wished the ground could just open up and swallow me whole. I felt stupid standing there with my hands still in my pockets like some kind of trespasser.

Just then, the muscular version of him walked towards me, dropping something into the backseat of the car.

“Hi,” he said with an easy smile. “I’m Jason. Jamie’s brother.” He extended a hand. “Are you a friend of Jamie’s or…?”

I shook his hand. “I’m Aiden. And I don’t think ‘a friend’ is the right word.” I laughed weakly. “But yeah, it’s something like that.”

Jason nodded like he understood more than I said. Just then, Jamie walked up to us, his eyes narrowing slightly at his brother.

“What are you doing?”

Jason shrugged. “Nothing. He was standing here on his own, so I thought I’d say hi. Plus he said he was a friend, and I don’t know any of your friends, so it’s not a big deal.”

Jamie didn’t respond. Instead, he just put the last box into the boot, his jaw tight, and his face still unreadable. As if sensing the tension, Jason excused himself and went inside the car—very obviously giving us space.

Jamie turned to me immediately.

“What is this, Aiden?” His voice was sharp. “What are you doing here? How did you even find me? Are you stalking me now?”

I blinked, thrown off by how quickly he shot the questions at me. “Stalking you? No Jamie, I’m not.” I ran a hand through my hair, trying to sound coherent. “I frequent this spot a lot whenever I just want some alone time to myself, so I decided to come down here today. I didn’t expect to see anyone here, most especially you. And seeing what you were doing here—”

I exhaled, shaking my head. “I got really intrigued and impressed. I’m sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable. I didn’t mean for that to happen.”

He shrugged, his expression still cold, then he flicked his fingers in a gesture that basically meant, go on, make it quick.

“I know you have every right not to hear me out or talk to me,” I continued. “And I’ll respect that but please, I just need ten minutes of your time, nothing more. If it exceeds ten minutes, you can leave. I won’t stop you.” My voice cracked slightly. “Please, Jamie.”

Without thinking, I reached out and held his hand. His eyes snapped to mine, and the shock on his face made me instantly pull away.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered. “I shouldn’t have done that.”

He bit his lower lip, the way he always did when he was thinking, then finally he said, “Fine. Ten minutes and that’s it.”

Relief washed over me so quickly it was almost dizzying.

He went over to speak to Jason, who nodded and smiled like he’d been waiting for that exact outcome.

Then Jamie walked away toward the bar, took a seat at the far corner. It was private and secluded, the kind of place someone chose when they didn’t want an audience. I followed slowly as I went to the bar and ordered two Sex on the Beach cocktails, then I carried them to the table, placing one down in front of him.

“Thank you,” he murmured, to my surprise me.

He took a sip, and his whole face lit up in a way I wasn’t prepared for.

“Oh damn! This is good. What is it?” he asked, genuinely curious.

I smiled. “It’s called ‘sex on the beach’. It’s made with vodka, peach schnapps, orange, and cranberry…”

He hummed in approval, taking another sip. For a fleeting second, it felt like old times like the easy, private moments we used to share when the world wasn’t watching. But then Jamie cleared his throat sharply, grounding us back into reality.

“I’m all ears, Aiden. Go ahead.”

I nodded, my heart pounding.

“I’m sorry, Jamie,” I began. “For everything. For how I treated you, for dragging you into my mess, for my mom, for my fans, for Hollywood, All of it. Every damn thing.” My voice trembled. “And I know an apology doesn’t fix anything because the damage’s been done. I’m not saying all this because I’m expecting anything from you, or expecting us to get back together since that’s never going to happen. It’s impossible now.”

I laughed weakly at myself.

“But that doesn’t stop me from saying I’ve been a total asshole and a jerk, and you didn’t deserve any of that. You deserve better than the way I treated you, and I think we both deserve some closure so that we might be able to put the past behind us and move forward. I’m not saying this to make you feel better or anything, please don’t get me wrong but from the bottom of my heart I just want you to know that I’m truly sorry for everything. 

“And if it’s going to take time for you to forgive me, that’s fine. I’m ready to wait. I’m ready to wait for you no matter how long it takes.”

When I finished, I exhaled shakily, realizing I’d been holding my breath the entire time.

Jamie didn’t speak right away. He just stared at me, like he was studying every piece of my face to check if I meant every word I’d just said. Then he lifted the glass, downed the rest of the drink in one go, licked his lips, and wiped his mouth slowly with the back of his hand.

“I forgave you a long time ago, Aiden,” he said calmly. “I have nothing against you. You’re just a part of life that happened to me, and life happens to everyone. It’s really not a big deal.”

My chest tightened.

“I also know this may be your way of clearing your conscience,” he continued. “Or get closure like you mentioned, but that’s not for me. I don’t need closure, neither do I need to clear my conscience because I did nothing wrong.”

He stood up, grabbing his keys.

“You’re here for a movie shoot, right? Then I suggest you focus on that, and please, stay out of my way. This town is big enough for the both of us to stay, without having to bump into each other. So let’s not make this weirder than it already is.”

He stepped back.

“Your ten minutes is up, Aiden. And I hope this doesn’t happen again.”

And with that, he walked away.

I sat there for a moment, letting the weight of everything settle. Oddly enough, instead of feeling crushed or dejected, I felt… relieved. Like something inside me had finally loosened.

“This went better than I expected,” I muttered to myself with a wry smile.

Then I stood up, walked back to the bar, and ordered another drink.