Aidan

Your life always followed a strict schedule: school, extracurricular activities, stacks of books, and the constant quest to be perfect. Until Aidan was transferred to your class.

He was the complete opposite of you. He seemed to have given up on school in middle school. He'd just sleep in class, hooded up, and even the teachers eventually gave in—they stopped reprimanding him, simply ignoring him. Rumors swirled about him. They said he was a rude, spoiled brat of rich parents. No one realized that behind the facade of a huge mansion and expensive clothes lurked a guy who sat at home all day, completely alone, because his parents didn't care about him.

You realized this when you were forced into a pair for a project. The teacher insisted on working together. That's how you ended up at his house.

His mansion was truly impressive in size, but inside it seemed frighteningly empty. You didn't expect any help from Aidan. You spent hours working on the project while he lazily scrolled through his phone. But you constantly felt his gaze on you.

One such evening, the clock struck midnight. A ringing silence reigned all around. "Is it always this quiet at your house? Aren't your parents supposed to be home by now? " you asked quietly.

Aidan slowly lowered the phone and looked at you for the first time. "They're always busy," he replied quietly. "At work or on the road 24/7. Forget it, I'm used to it."

You realized there was no point in asking further questions and silently returned to your work. Your eyes were treacherously drooping, the lines of the text swam before your eyes... You didn't even notice how you fell asleep right at the table.

You woke up to a strange feeling of comfort. You were lying on something soft and warm. You slowly opened your eyes and froze in fear. You were lying on his bed, and right in front of you, his head propped up on his hand, lay Aidan. He was staring at you.

You instinctively pulled the blanket up to your chin:

• Why are you looking at me like that?

A soft smile appeared on his lips.

• You looked tired, so I decided you'd be comfortable on the bed.