Page 44 of The Fall Fix Up

“I know, Dad, but it’s been almost two weeks now and I just need to know what the plan is so I can make my own accordingly.”

“You’re making a big deal out of nothing. We’ve got a lot going on here, with your grandmother and the house repairs—”

“Yeah,” Aiden said quietly. He couldn’t keep his sigh quiet this time. “That’s what I figured.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing. Look, I just needed to ask. It’s fine. I’ll handle it.”

His father’s voice turned sharp. “You’re not going to make trouble, are you? We can’t afford that right now.”

Aiden felt the familiar burn of frustration and guilt rise in his chest. Even with everything that had happened between them, he still got hit with the tired ache of wanting to be a good son who was dependable and didn’t cause problems.

“I’m not making trouble,” he said finally. “Don’t worry about it. It’s fine.”

“Good,” his father said, already moving on. “Your grandmother asks about you, you know. You should call her.”

“I will,” Aiden replied. He had called her a couple days ago, but they had only been able to talk for a few minutes before his stepmother’s voice came over the line and his grandmother needed to go.

“Alright, then. Take care.”

After the line went dead, Aiden sat there for a while, phone still in his hand as he stared at nothing. He should have known that the conversation wouldn’t do anything other than aggravate the hell out of him, but he couldn’t stop himself from trying. He wanted to believe that everything would be solved sooner rather than later, but he was slowly starting to wonder if there was more going on. He wanted to call his grandmother right then, just to hear her voice, but he couldn’t. Not without explaining why he sounded so hollow. She didn’t like when he and his father were at odds and Aiden didn’t like putting her in the middle to battle it out between her only son and only grandson.

He thought about calling Rowan too, but he didn’t want to worry her when there wasn’t anything she could do about it. It had been months since they’d last spoken. Or maybe it had been longer. She’d cut off contact with their dad and stepmother first, and he’d been so young that he had needed to stay behind, caught in the middle, telling himself someone had to keep the peace.

He wondered if she’d pick up if he called right now. Maybe. Maybe not. Once he was older and out of the house, their conversations had slowly started to drift below the surface, but they still weren’t at a place where he felt comfortable venting to her about his problems, especially when it came to their family. She had already washed her hands of all of them. It wouldn’t be fair to force her to think about it again.

He sighed and put the phone down, rubbing a hand over his face. “You’re not dragging anyone else into this,” he muttered to himself, nodding sharply as if to seal the thought into existence. He was a grown man. He needed to handle his own problems. He could endure for a bit longer. It’s not like he had anywhere to go. Peach Blossom was home now, and even if he wanted to make a go of it somewhere else, with his credit gone to shit thanks to his dad, and with no resolution in sight, there wasn’t anywhere he could go. He was really and truly stuck until things worked themselves out—and who knew when that would be.

When he finally got out of the car, Aiden felt heavier. But work was work, and even more, it was something he could do. He lost himself in the smell of grease and metal, the rhythmic clanking of his tools, and the simple satisfaction of fixing what was broken. By the time evening came, the sun was low and the light through the bay doors was honey-colored, stretching long shadows across the floor. Vini came back with the parts order, humming under her breath. She paused when she saw Aiden and whistled low.

“You look like a man one stupid comment away from decking somebody and that’s saying a lot for you. Is everything okay?”

Aiden huffed out a breath before tossing his rag a bit more forcefully than was probably necessary. “Yeah.”

“Did something happen while I was gone?” she asked, glancing at him again as she passed and walked toward the back room. “You’ve been in a pretty good mood these days.”

“Just tired,” he said.

Vini raised an eyebrow and looked him up and down again. “You sure? You’ve been on cloud nine the past couple weeks since you moved in with Janae.”

Aiden shook his head and huffed out a laugh. “Yeah, I’m sure. Just dealing with stuff after the fire and insurance and things. I’m fine. Don’t worry about me.”

“Whenever you tell me not to worry about you, I worry even more.” She put the boxes down in the corner before straightening and turning to give him a look. “I think I know what you need.”

“What?”

“Ice cream.”

Aiden gave her a look. “It’s October and I’m not a child.”

She put her hands on her hips and squared a look at him. “You don’t have to be a child to need some ice cream, so stop being an ass and let’s go. They’re doing two-for-one cones until closing, and you know I love a good deal.”

Aiden shook his head but couldn’t stop his smile. He tossed his rag onto the table and tidied up his area before washing his hands. Soon enough, they were back in town, both sitting on the back of the truck as they enjoyed their simple ice-cream cones. The day had been warm, but as the sun set, the temperature cooled. In a couple weeks, ice cream wouldn’t be the best treat to enjoy at night, but for now, he let himself indulge in the softness of the moment as the world slowly drifted on by.

“Does your bad mood this afternoon have something to do with Janae?”

His eyes widened. “What makes you say that? Has she said anything about me?”