Lie About Us
Disclaimer - Emmerdale does not belong to me. If it did I'd do all sorts of things with it, like kill useless characters.
He's been sat in the cold hard plastic chair inside Jackson's hospital room for going on four and a bit hours. Nurses, Doctors kept coming in, checking things and then leaving again, never once saying anything to him. The female Doctor had explained to him that they had put Jackson into a coma just to allow his body to heal and that they were pretty positive that he was a very lucky man because nothing appeared to be broken and he didn't appear to have sustained any serious injuries but they wouldn't know that until the builder opened his eyes but that wouldn't be for a few more days, they were going to keep him in a coma for a few more days, giving him rest and his body a chance to recover from whatever injuries it may have sustained. Aaron had an agonising wait until they started bringing him around from his coma because he had no idea if Jackson would want him there or not. He also had to deal with the fact that he would be meeting Jackson's parents, he'd never met either of them but he had heard bits about them, mostly Hazel Rhodes, Jackson's Mother.
He'd had a lot of time to sit and think about the events of the day, mostly about the fact that he had come out, in front of Victoria and then just walked away from her. He felt bad, really he did but he'd had no choice. He had to see Jackson and in order to do that he'd had to admit to their relationship. It felt good but it also felt somewhat scary, he was out. Everyone was going to know that he was gay and that he had been sleeping with Jackson. How was he going to face the people in the village? Luckily he could put it off for a little while because he was here, sitting with Jackson but eventually he would have to leave but luckily it was the weekend and he didn't have to work.
He'd sent Adam a text message not long after he had arrived in Jackson's room, asking him what was going on but so far he hadn't had a reply. It must have been bad. He really wasn't looking forward to going home. Getting up off of his chair Aaron perches himself on the edge of the best, careful not to nudge Jackson's sleeping form. He looks so pale and lifeless, Aaron hates it. He just wants him to open his eyes so he can see them looking at him the way only Jackson can. He wants to know he's not screwed up by taking so long to do the right thing.
Reaching out his hand he ran his fingers down Jackson's arm. It felt good to touch him, it felt as if he hadn't touched him in years. He was lost in his own thoughts in and touching Jackson that he failed to hear the hospital room door open until a voice says "Who the hell are you?" Aaron jumps off of the bed and spins around. He comes face to face with a man in his early fifties.
"I could ask you the same thing" Aaron retorts however he's pretty sure that this is Jackson's Father he's talking to.
"I'm his Dad, now who are you and why are you in here?"
Aaron looks the older man up and down, not liking the way he is looking at him "Incase you haven't noticed Jackson's been in an accident… I'm here to make sure he's alright"
"Well, I'm here now… You can go"
Aaron pulls a face "I'm going nowhere mate" he tells the older man "I was here first" he adds just to be annoying.
"And what right do you have to be here?"
Aaron thinks about how to answer that question for a quick minute before saying "I'm his… friend?"
"Friend?" the older man repeats "I bet you are" he says looking Aaron up and down once more and Aaron wants to call him on it but he won't, not right now anyway. He still had no idea what the man's name was, he had to at least find that out before he started an argument with the guy. Plus if he was to argue with him he's pretty sure he would end up getting kicked out of the hospital and he didn't want that.
"I'm going to find out what's going on" the man says but Aaron is pretty sure he's not talking to him and he couldn't really care less because it means he's once again left alone with Jackson. He turns to him and says "I don't like your Dad" he laughs to himself because he can't think of anything else to do and he sits back down on the cold hard plastic chair, opting not sit on the bed beside Jackson again at least not until he was actually getting along a little better with Jackson's Father.
Five minutes later the older man returns and Aaron looks in his direction before quickly focusing his attention back on Jackson. He didn't really want to give the older man much, if any of his attention.
"Idiots, the lot of them" Aaron ignores him "And where's his Mother eh? God knows"
"She's on her way" Aaron says… "the police called her"
"Yeah" the man barks "I know because she had to call me and tell me about his accident, I'm not his next of kin"
Aaron wanted to say 'Clearly there's a reason for that' but he manages to keep his mouth shut and just nods his head.
Jackson's Father sits on the chair at the other side of Jackson's bed and looks at him too but every now and then Aaron can feel him looking at him, as if he's trying to work him out. It's annoying him a little but he doesn't say anything, remind himself that if he kicks off he could end up being banned from the hospital and he didn't want that.
Inside his pocket Aaron feels his phone vibrating, it was a text message from Adam.
She's told everyone in the pub about you and Jackson. The whole village knows he couldn't help but gulp once he had read the text, she'd told the whole village, his Mother, all the dingles, they all knew. Just as he had finished with that thought is phone starting ringing and his Mother's number appeared on screen. He sent her to voicemail, not ready to talk to her and it wasn't exactly the best time to do that either. He replied to Adam's text asking just how mad Victoria was and he had replied saying that she just seemed let down and upset and that she hadn't gone round to his and ripped up all his clothing. Aaron had expected her to do something like that but so far… she hadn't. She was taking it better than he thought she would, or maybe it just hadn't hit her yet.
"Don't let us keep you from anything"
Aaron looks up and scowls at the older man "You what?"
"You, you've been playing with that thing for ages"
Aaron continues to scowl at him "Cheers for noticing"
The older man rolls his eyes "Like I said, don't let us keep you"
Aaron sighs and checks the time, it's almost six o'clock and he was well aware of the fact that Jackson wasn't about to wake up plus he had to face the music back in the village. "I need to go anyway" he says getting to his feet.
"Convenient"
Aaron ignores the older man "I'll be back though, so you won't get a chance to miss me too much, promise" with that Aaron smirks and exits the hotel room, with one last look at Jackson. He stops, thinks it through and then crosses the distance between himself and Jackson before leaning down to kiss the builder on the forehead "I'll be back soon" he whispers to him, ignoring the look on his Dad's face and then finally he leaves the hospital room and heads back to his car intent on facing the music in the village.
Xxx
He arrived back in the village at half past six due to the traffic and he parked up behind the pub. He sat in the car for a few minutes deciding what he was going to do. He could make a run for home and hide in his room until morning where he would make his way back to the hospital or he could go into the pub and face the music.
Eventually he got out of the car and made for the back door of the pub, he had just opened the door and he found his Mother standing on the other side "I saw you pull in" she explains to him and he nods his head silently, aware that she's staring at him in a way she never has before.
"Is it true?"
"What do you think?" he barks at her
"I think… Why the hell wouldn't you have told me earlier?"
"Why would I have told you?" he asks "I didn't tell anyone"
"Apart from Jackson and Adam"
"I didn't tell Adam… He guessed, maybe if you paid more attention you would have guessed to"
"How's Jackson?" Chas finally asks, aware that this conversation was going to get them nowhere and she liked the builder.
"He's in a coma, they're not sure" he tells her "Where's Victoria?"
"In her room"
Aaron nods and makes his way towards the stairs "She told everyone" Chas says stepping on front of him.
"Adam text me"
"You should have told us"
Aaron ignores her in favour of asking his own question "How did people react?"
"They were shocked, can you blame them?"
"Guess not"
"I mean… You don't exactly look gay"
Aaron nods "I need to go see Victoria"
"I'll be listening for things being thrown" Chas says with a laugh and Aaron says "I wouldn't put it past her"
"After you're done with her… Maybe you could come talk to me? Seen as how I had to find out you were gay from Victoria along with the whole pub?
"Alright" Aaron says before turning his back and climbing the stairs.
Xxx
He didn't bother to knock on the door so instead he just opened it and walked in. Victoria was sitting on her chair by the window "I saw you park"
Aaron nods and keeps quiet
"Was it your intention to humiliate me?"
"No!" Aaron says quickly, approaching her "I never wanted to come out"
"Then why did you?"
"They wouldn't let me see him" he tells her "I had to see him"
Victoria scoffs "I've never seen you so upset or agitated about something and I thought it was because he was your mate"
"He is"
"That's not all he is though… is it?" Victoria says, finally standing up and facing him and Aaron nods, unable to meet her eyes.
"How long?"
Aaron shrugs
"Tell me how long you've been seeing him"
"About a year"
"A YEAR?"
"Give or take"
"A year?"
"I'm so sorry"
"Why did you just tell people you were gay? Why did you have to use me to be your cover?"
Aaron was about to answer but before he can Victoria says "No wonder we barely ever had sex! Clearly I don't do it for you"
"I'm sorry"
"Did you have to think about him?"
"You what?"
"When we had sex? Did you have to think about him?"
Aaron couldn't answer that because he was entirely sure.
"Of course you did"
"Victoria I never meant for it to come out like that"
"How were you going to tell me? Take me out for a candle lit dinner?"
"I don't know… Just not like that"
Victoria is pacing now and Aaron can only stand and watch her, he keeps expecting her to pick something up and throw it at him but she hasn't… yet.
"I thought you were homophobic… I thought that's why you didn't like Frank and I couldn't understand because you had no problem with Jackson but now I know why… You were jealous!"
Aaron looks away, he can't deny it. That had been his one and only problem with Frank. "Why did you ask me to marry you?"
"I just did"
"Why?"
"I didn't want to admit I was gay alright? It was the easy option"
"Not because you thought Jackson was still with Frank?"
He couldn't lie to her now, well he could but he decided against it "Alright, that was part of it. He told me on Wednesday that it was over, that he was with Frank"
"But he'd finished with him, why'd he say that?"
"He wanted me to come out-"
"He's got his wish" Victoria bites out and Aaron pulls face "Pretty sure he'd rather he hadn't gotten it like this"
"Sticking up for him eh?"
"Always" Aaron says without hesitation "but I'd stick up for you too"
Victoria is pacing and Aaron is watching "Do you know what really annoys me?" she asks him and he shakes his head, no, he doesn't know.
"I told him I thought you were cheating on me and you know what he said?"
Aaron shook his head, he didn't know. Jackson had never told him that Victoria had said that
"Of course you do, he probably told you everything we spoke about"
"He didn't, he wouldn't"
"He told me you weren't seeing any other girl" she laughs bitterly "guess he was right, he just neglected to say that you were in fact gay and sleeping with him!"
"What do you want me to do?" Aaron asks "how can I make it better?"
"Not be gay? Not start seeing me? Not ask me to marry you? Not be a coward?"
Those were all valid points and if he could go back and not do any of those things he would but he can't.
"Just go Aaron" she finally says "I really can't look at you"
He feels they have more to say, he feels he should explain himself more but he does as she asks and he leaves her alone in her room. At the foot of the stairs his Mother is stood waiting "How'd it go?"
"Not well" he says bypassing her "going back to the hospital?" she asks following him to the back door, he stops once he's opened it and faces her "No, home. Need to wash and maybe grab some of Jackson's stuff"
"Is he alone?"
"He's in a coma" Aaron explains "but his Dad is there"
"Jackson's dad?"
Aaron nods
"What's he like?"
"Don't know really" the mechanic says with a shrug "don't think he likes me that much but I don't care"
Chas smiles "I'm sure he's just worried about Jackson"
"Yeah" Aaron says before saying goodnight and leaving her alone to watch him disappear around the side of the pub on his way home.
Xxx
It was ten the next morning before Aaron made it to the hospital. He had some of Jackson's things, like his IPod, clothes etc. He'd had a hard time getting inside the apartment to get them though, Amy saying she wasn't allowing him in for what he had done to her friend. In the end he'd had to remind her that it was in fact Jackson's flat and if he wanted in, which he did, she wouldn't be stopping him and he'd pushed past her. She'd made him late, he wanted to get to the hospital much earlier, what with it being Sunday and all, he'd have to attend work for some of Monday, although he wasn't sure if he was welcome or not what with him now being out.
Jackson's Dad wasn't in the room however a woman with short brown hair was, he assumed it was Jackson's Mother. He'd seen a picture once and was sure it was her. When he opened the door to the hospital room she turned towards him, looking him and up and down before saying
"You must be Aaron"
Aaron nods then after a second says "How'd you know that?"
"He's my son" she points out "he tells me everything"
Aaron pulls a face, everything? Really? He very much doubted it but anyway… "and you're exactly how he described you"
Aaron nods
"And Jerry was having a fit about some chav looking lad who'd been here last night… again you fit the criteria"
Aaron laughs and walks further into the room, dropping the bag of stuff on the cabinet by the bed. Unable to take his eyes off of Jackson though, he just looked so lost "He'll be alright" she says "You just wait and see"
"I know" Aaron says as he tries to convince himself "he has to be"
"What's in the bag?"
"Some of his stuff" Aaron explains "got it from his flat"
"Good thinking, I'll need to go there later, need somewhere to stay"
Aaron nods and says "I'll take you, he has a roommate but she won't care… as long as I don't go in"
"Why not?" Hazel question and Aaron looks at her "How much about me… us, did he tell you?"
"You mean the fact you're not out? Yeah, he told me that"
"I'm out" Aaron corrects her and her eyes widen "When did this happen? I only spoke to him on Friday"
"Yesterday… after his accident. They wouldn't let me see him unless I was his family or his partner"
"You came out?" Hazel asks and Aaron nods "Well done, he'll be pleased" she says nodding at her sleeping son and Aaron takes a deep breath "I hope so" he says "I really hope so"
He lowers himself into the chair by the bed and grasps Jackson's hand. Jerry, he had a name now for Jackson's dad although it didn't make much difference to him, he didn't like the guy. He could feel Hazel staring at him and it unnerved him because she seemed to sizing him up. He didn't know how much she knew about him but he could guess that she probably thought he was messing Jackson around, he had but that was in the past. He was out now and if Jackson wanted him, which he hoped he would, then he was all his.
"I'm not going to mess him around you know" he says to the older woman "When he wakes up… If he wants me, I'm not going to mess around cause I want him too"
Hazel merely nods because there's not much she can say. She has to get to know the boy before she can judge him. She has to see him with Jackson "Just ignore Jerry" she retorts "If he says anything to you let me know and I'll deal with him"
He'd deal with him himself but he wasn't about to say that to her so instead he merely nods and says "Ok" before silence descends once more as they both sit and take turns talking to Jackson, Aaron mostly talking to him when Hazel left the room, he couldn't speak to a lifeless Jackson whilst she was sat on his bed. It was too weird.
Xxx
A/N - Review! Let me know what you think!