CHAPTER THREE

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Emmerdale or it's characters, they belong to ITV

A/N: Thanks for all the kind reviews, and as chantelle requested the next chapter in 24 hrs I've tried my best. Please enjoy.

Aaron leaned upon the counter of the kebab shop, Ben had place the order and turned to him with a frown,

"It was a bit arkward in there tonight, with your Ex showing up..."

Aaron nodded "Tell me about it...he's been working away, but I Suppose I would have bumped into him sooner or later"

Ben really didn't care about where he'd been, he just hoped he will stay away, he watched as their order was handed over to them and he paid up, and they exited the shop and stood on the street.

"So..." started Ben searching for the kebab meat through the mountain of salad,"want to stay at mine tonight...?"

Aaron felt strange...before tonight he was all prepared to spend the night with Ben, but now...

"I need to get home," he answered. He could see the disappointment in Ben's face "Look, I'll get a cab if you want..."

Ben was disppointed, seeing that damned Ex had put Aaron off.

He flashed Aaron one of his nice smiles, although it came across rather more thinly.

"No it's okay, I'll drive yah..."

The drive home was silent between them, and as Ben stopped the Capri outside Smithy cottage, Aaron was prepared to just jump out, Ben grabbed him,

"Hey...don't I get a goodnight kiss?"

Aaron rolled his eyes and quickly slobbered some sort of kiss on to Ben's cheek.

"Very romantic" Ben said with a hint of sarcasm.

"I'll call yah!" cried Aaron moving away towards the darkened cottage,

"Yah see that you do..." shot Ben's reply from the car's open window, and after watching Aaron enter the cottage and closing the door behind him, he slammed his hand upon the steering wheel. He was full of disappointment over how the night had ended, like Aaron earlier that day he floored the gas pedal and sped off out the village...

The next morning Aaron got up and showered, when he was all refreshed he hurried down the stairs to smell of burning toast.

"Wow!" Gasped Paddy looking at his watch, " Is this Aaron I see crawling out of his pit at 7.30am...and it's a Saturday!" Aaron snatched a piece of toast out from Paddy's grasp and crunched into it, " So...? Cain wants me to do a few hours at the garage...I could do with the money"

Paddy put more bread under the grill and turned, " So...hmmm...how did your ahmm...date go?"

Aaron sat at the table and smirked at Paddy's flustering, " Who says it was a date..."

Paddy pulled a face " Wasn't it...?, oh...so is ahmm, Ben not your boyfriend then?"

"Nah...we're just mates..." he screwed his eyebrowes up a his own comment , Ben was Boyfriend, but why did he tell Paddy he was just a mate.

"Well, you could do worse, he seems really nice, and polite too..." he then had an after thought " of what i saw of him before you whisked him away..."

Aaron stood "I'll grab a coffee at the cafe, I hate speaking this early in the day!"

Paddy watched him go with an amused smile, and got on with his toast making.

Aaron hurried over to the garage with his coffee from the cafe, Cain was under the bonnet of renault megane, Aaron pulled a face at the Christmas song blasting out from the radio, it was still November, christmas seemed to get earlier and earlier very year.

"Alright Cain!" he called, Cain snapped up from the bonnet and immediatley snatched the coffee from Aaron " Cheers for that, now...I've got a list of jobs I want doing, and don't take all day!"

Aaron nodded and stood there, Cain gave him a shove " Well get started, you know what needs sorting, and I wanna close at 12" Aaron huffed and went to get his overalls, Cain through his spanner aside and followed his Nephew, " And..." he continued " your Mother was going on about you last night, don't ignore her, do you here!"

Aaron didn't care he pulled on his overalls and set to work, his mother was only going to stick her nose in his business, and he hated that, his strain of thought was interrupted by the tingle of his phone, he pulled it out his pocket and flipped the lid, a text:

sorry about last night, meet me friday bar west 8.00 Ben x

Aaron smirked, it has him who should be apologising, for not staying over that led to the silent journey home, because of Jackson, his heart raced thinking about him, he quickly okayed the message and set back to work before Cain accused him of slacking.

That Friday, Aaron saw that Bar West had been festively decorated. There was even a Christmas tree.

Ben came over to him with the beers " There you go...so...done your crimbo shopping - it's less than a month away "

Aaron nodded " Nah, I'll leave that to Christmas eve..wanna a game of pool?"

Ben smiled and they made their way over to the pool table where Tom played a game with Joe, who Aaron remembered was a mate of Jackson's.

"There! beaten you again!" Tom cried in joy, Joe smiled sadly " that's another beer I owe yah..." he then sloped off looking sorry for himself, Aaron had noticed,

"What's his problem, sore loser...?"

Tom turned " Don't blame the game, him and Sol are over" Ben beamed a smile,

Really...!, they were together for ages..."

Tom shrugged " well, it happens to the best of them..." Aaron thought about him and Jackson, Tom glanced at Ben briefly and then anounced " Jackson's seeing someone, they've gone to that new place in Leeds, expensive to get in"

Ben could see the news had rocked Aaron by the expression on his face, he closed the gap between that the pool table " Are you okay about that, Jackson being your Ex and that ?"

Aaron could see the concern on Ben's face " Nah...I'm fine, I'm getting on with my life, so should he, I'm chuffed for him..." Aaron arkwardly dug into his pocket " I'm just gonna get a round in..."

Aaron made his way to the bar taken the info in 'Jackson with someone else...taking his new better bloke to a posh nightclub...had he forgotten all about him?' he needed a ciggy to process the info, and had to make sure Ben didn't notice how gutted he really was.

Ben of course had noticed, and happily potted the balls into their pockets smiling and pleased with himself, he glanced up to Tom who stood staring at him, arms folded "What ?"

"You...!, you can be cruel sometimes, why get me to tell him about Jackson..." asked Tom

"You didn't lie, you saw him the other night all over a new guy, at least now Aaron can't fret over him, he can move on with me"

"Hey, don't hurt Aaron, he seems a nice kid..." Said Tom.

Ben had completed the game in one hit, he looked up " ...And I can be nice...if I want to be..."

TBC

Reviews all welcome as always...