He talked to me today. He formed words and we conversed. I was too wrapped up in my utter fascination with the female behind him to notice he was letting his eyes wander down my form. I do not like him, and I do not want him, but according to Mother Dearest he is the best for me. Growing up in this small town everyone knows everyone, and my mother knows his mother, and we've known each other since our birth on the same day. We spent every waking moment with each other up until six months ago. He is like a brother and once I told him that, he backed away from me and would not utter a single word in my direction. I was not okay with that. I had to adapt without Aiden there for me, I had to learn to get to all my classes and sit back faking my interest. I would occasionally see him wandering the halls and one day there was a gorgeous brunette with him. I immediately asked my friends about her even though I see her from the back of four of my classes. She was Ashley Davies, fresh from California, but no more information about her was divulged. And Aiden was stuck to her side. I would see them laughing in a hall and realize that was us half a year ago. How did I live without him for half the year? He is my best friend.

"Hey." Aiden said walking up to the empty, except for me, lunch table, with Ashley standing in the distance waiting for him. I was doing my homework and looked up at him with a hesitant smile.

"Hey." I repeated hoping that I do not surpass his normalcy. "How are you?" I took a leap and tried to subtly deepen the conversation.

"I could be better with you in my life." He says as he takes my hand. He's trying to get me to love him more than I can, so I take my hand away. A look of disappointment flashes across his face. "I just miss you, and I know you don't love me like I wish you did, but I can deal. I just need you back in my life." I smile my first truly genuine smile in six months.

"I would love to be in your life again. But I have to tell you, now, and I'm sorry for this. But I do not love you like you love me. And I request you not speak of it again, for it only upsets me when your heart breaks and I am the cause." He nods in understanding while he walks around the table to envelope me in an embrace. I return with all my might and look behind his back to find Ashley staring straight into my eyes and I see her nose crinkle, and I know she is smiling. This is the first time since she moved here that she has acknowledged my existence, and we share four classes. I'm sure Aiden told her all about me.

Aiden breaks the embrace. "I concur I will not speak of 'the dark love'" He air quotes with a smile on his face but disappointment in his eyes. "And agree to your terms." He truly smiles now, probably mirroring mine and I embrace him again. "I missed our weird conversations, and your weird ass way of talking."

"Yeah, me too, Aiden, me too." I pull away and he sits across from me. "So anyway, what the fuck have you been up to? Any good parties we can crash this weekend?" I ask trying to get back to where we were.

That's how it went and tomorrow he and Ashley plan to take the seats emptied in that table, and I can't wait. And now we are going back to the Spencer and Aiden we were, but we are doing it with someone new. Someone definitely attractive and intriguing. Ashley Davies. Some people would call her my replacement, but I call her my fascination.