Chapter 3

Aaron sat outside in the warm July air. His fingers hovering over the screen on his phone. He sighed and rubbed his head. He had to do this. She nbeeded to know. He tooka deep breath and pressed the call button. His mum answered eventually, cheering down the phone. He rubbed his head again, she was clearly getting tipsy with the girls

"Mum, Shut up a minute! You need to listen to me ok, I've got some bad news."

"What is it son?" Chas asked

"I really didn't want to do it this way, Dad and Sandra are dead. They were killed in a car crash, caused by a drunk driver jumping a red light."

"Gordon's dead?"

"I'm sorry Mum."

"How do YOU feel?"

Aaron sighed "I don't know, Right now I don't feel anything. After the way he treated me, Am I supposed to be greiving?"

"Will you be alright Aaron? I mean, You don't want me to come and see you?"

"I'm at the hospital Mum. My brother was in the car, he's ok but he's got no other relatives now, apart from me. I'm the closest he's got. If I don't take him in, he goes into care. I don't even know anything about him! All I know is he's called Daniel and wants to be a dinosaur...What do I do?"

"Oh Aaron love I honestly don't know. It's not going to be easy looking after him though.."

"But I don't know if I could live with putting him into care. He's already accepted that I'm his brother, and has already asked if he can stay with me."

"Well, It's your decison kid, But whatever you decide, you've got Me, Paddy and Jackson for support."

"I can't let him down. I'm gonna bring him home. It'll be tough, but I can't let him be taken away. Call it Brotherly Instinct. I couldn't do that to him."

"You do know this is going to change your life completley? No more trawling to Bar West every night, You'll probably have to be only part-time at the garage now. What about Jackson?..."

"Jackson doesn't know yet. Mum he's family, he's practically a Dingle. I can't turn my back on him."

"Well, just think about it Aaron. I know you can be impulsive and you just rush into things and to hell with the consequences."

"What would you do?"

"Me? I don't know. Aaron honestly, you're only a kid, you're 18. Do you want to be tied down like that?"

"Says the one who got pregnant at 14! Mum, I know what I'm doing. I couldn't live with what I'd done if I turned my back on him. I promised him he could stay with me. What the hell would Dad think?"

"Since when have you cared about what your Dad thinks?"

"He's called me a spineless coward, a pathetic little child that runs away whenever the going gets tough. It's high time i proved that I'm not like that anymore! Daniel's coming home with me!"

"Well, Good Luck kid. You know if you need me, I'm there."