Barely hanging on

Barely hanging on
Aiden’s POV

If I had a choice, I would have stayed in Jamie’s arms forever. That man… my man… has always been my softest place in a world that keeps demanding too much from me. He holds me like he’s sheltering me from everything fame, fear, expectations, and the constant noise that never seems to quiet down.

So waking up feeling warm and safe, with his hot breath over the back of my neck, it felt like one of those rare moments when life gives you as a gift. One I didn’t want to give back. But joy is a fragile little thing, and mine was barely hanging by a thread I didn’t even see until it snapped.

My ringtone exploded through the room like a siren. I jolted upright, my heart hammering as if someone had kicked me out of my own dream.

“What the—” I groaned, reaching for my phone on the nightstand.

The screen lit up with several missed calls from my mom and from Macy. A knot formed in my chest, and before I could make sense of it, Macy’s name flashed across the screen again.

I answered immediately

“Hey—Mace—”

“Oh my God, Aiden!” she practically yelled. “Why haven’t you been picking up? I thought you were probably dead or lying in some ditch somewhere!”

Her panic forced a tired smile out of me. I rubbed my face, sat up properly, and walked toward the balcony for some air.

“I’m sorry, Macy,” I said, my voice still rough. “I just… didn’t hear anything. It’s been a crazy night.” A grin slipped out before I could stop it. 

“I’m so sorry for making you freak out. But what’s going on? You sound a bit off.”

“Hmmm, I guess someone had way too much fun last night,” she muttered. “Anyways we’ll talk about that later. But right now, you need to get your ass down here like ASAP. Gerald requested to see you and it’s really important. Please hurry.”

She hung up before I could say anything else.

I stood there with my phone in hand, still trying to put the pieces together when I felt a light movement behind me, as warm arms gently wrapped around my waist, and a head settled against my back.

I exhaled, as the tension in my shoulders melted for a moment. I smiled as I held his hands, turned around and he immediately pulled me in, kissing me with the kind of hunger that made my knees weak. Like he needed the taste of me to be able to breathe.

“Good morning, poodle,” he murmured, smiling brightly like sunlight. “Did you sleep well?”

I blushed and nodded. “Of course I did. And that’s because of you. Thank you, baby.”

I pulled him in closer for a hug, and buried my face in his neck, inhaling him like maybe it could drown out the unease twisting inside of me.

When he pulled back, he studied me quietly for a while.
“Aiden…What's wrong? You immediately got all tensed up right after receieving that call. Is everything okay.”

I glanced at my phone and sighed.

“I don’t know Jamie. I just woke up to a call from my assistant Macy, asides from getting several missed calls from her and Victoria too. She said that the director Gerald, requested to see me urgently.”

I shifted, as anxiety scraped against my ribs.

“I just… I don’t have any shoots scheduled for today, and it might probably be nothing but, I can’t shake the feeling off my chest that something might be wrong.”
Jamie took both of my hands in his, as his thumbs brushed slow circles over my skin, this was his way of keeping me grounded.

“I’m sure it’s nothing serious,” he said softly. “Maybe they just needed to run something by you, so don’t think about it too much. And if it’ll make you feel better… how about I go with you instead?”

That actually eased something inside me.

I smiled weakly and pulled him into a hug. “Thank you, Jamie. It’s like you read my mind, because I’m literally freaking out right now. What if something crazy has happened? What if—”

“Shhh, poodle,” he whispered, pressing a finger to my lips. “We are not going to let our thoughts spiral by thinking negatively. Let’s just get there first and see for ourselves. Come on.” He said, gesturing for us to go in and get dressed, then we headed to the shooting location.

The moment I stepped out of the car, Macy rushed towards me.

“Come on Gerald’s waiting,” she said, tugging me inside.

I greeted Gerald as soon as we entered the space, but immediately, something felt off. Everyone in the room had the same expression, like they were standing next to a bomb and waiting for it to explode.

“What’s going on?” I asked. “Macy sounded really serious over the phone.”Gerald didn’t answer instead he ushered us into his office. I followed behind, as I gently pulled Jamie close like I needed him in my line of sight to breathe properly.

Once we all sat down, Gerald cleared his throat and began talking.

“Earlier today, there’s been news circulating about you,” he said slowly. “And it’s something outrageous. Now I know it’s not true,” he continued quickly, “but I need to hear it from you myself.”

He looked between Macy and me.

“Aiden… have you ever been involved in murder?”

I blinked, as I froze. I looked at Jamie, then back to Gerald, before a laugh burst out of me, disbelieving.

“Murder? What? Gerald—no. What the hell are you talking about?”

He sighed and folded his hands. “The news claims that you killed someone years ago, and your mother helped cover it up.”

I felt my pulse in my ears, as his words trailed off. 

“Look son, I don’t believe you can do something like this, but this is not about what I believe,” he said gently. “This is about what people are saying, and we both know what rumors like this can do. They can destroy careers. Yours, ours, and everyone else’s tied to this production.”

My throat tightened.

“I just want you to go home and sort this out before it escalates even more. Luckily for us, the investors haven’t said anything yet, but we can’t risk things getting worse. For now, this is the best thing you can do for yourself and for us too.”

I looked at Jamie, and he gently squeezed my hand under the desk, steadying me, holding me together.

“I’m sorry, Gerald,” I whispered. “This is all a big misunderstanding. I promise I’ll fix it, and I won’t let any of you get dragged into this.” I concluded, then stared at Macy who gave me a small, reassuring smile.

“It’s alright son. Don’t worry about us. Just go do what you need to do, that’s all that matters”

I nodded, with a heavy heart. “Thank you Gerald.”

As we stepped out of the office, Macy touched my arm.
“Don’t think about it too much Aiden. No one actually believes you did something like that,” she said firmly. “Remember what I told you before? Anyone who doesn’t like you is just a bitter person, and this proves it. So don’t bother about anything, just take your time and get this all sorted out. We’ll be right here.” She concluded and hugged me before heading off.

Jamie led me to the car, his fingers intertwined with mine. He didn’t speak until the engine started.

“Poodle… are you okay?”

I managed a small smile and brushed his cheek with my fingers.

“I’m alright, Jamie. Honestly, I expected this to happen. Just… not now. Not when I’m almost done with this shoot. I’m just worried about them being dragged into this. They don’t deserve any of that.”

“I understand baby, but that’s not important right now,” he said softly. “Like Gerald said, clearing this up matters more than anything else. And listen to me…”

He glanced over, with bright eyes.

“I know you may not think it’s important, seeing as you don’t have much fans as you used too, but it’s different now, because back here, everyone loves you and that matters. Do you know how many of my mentees say they want to be actors just because of you?” He asked as his eyes widened, and he smiled at me.