A/N – Thank you for all the reviews. I saw Monday's night episode this morning and it broke my heart watching Aaron constantly replaying the last part of Jackson's message where he told him he loved him. I have a feeling the grief is going to take hold of him. Anyways, here's another chapter. I'm a bit uncertain about it, never really approached anything like this before and I hope I don't offend. So here it is. I'll warn you now, mentions of abuse, violence and sexual content.
Please read and review!
It had been two weeks since the garage had seen the radical increase in car's being sent their way to fix in record time. Ryan had put it all down to it being the holiday season were families were going away and they wanted their cars to be in top condition to take them down south to the beach. Cain wasn't complaining now, he was raking the money. But it was Aaron and Ryan that had to pick up most of the slack as he ran around after Charity and cleared dodgy deals. Aaron wasn't happy. He'd barely seen Jackson the past few days, apart from the odd run into when he was working next door or back at Smithy Cottage when he was too exhausted to do anything. What he hated the most was being sent out on call outs. Now that he could drive he was the one who mostly got the call out jobs. Cain reasoned that he wanted Ryan at the garage because he was more experienced, but he knew different. The two of them just liked to wind him up, especially when he came back in an irritated mood and started venting about how the stupid customer had forgot to put petrol in the tank or had left their headlights on and ran their battery had ran down.
He'd been sent on a call out by Cain at lunch time and he was having difficulty finding the car. Even though his uncle had scribbled down the directions onto a piece of paper given by the driver himself he still couldn't find the car. As usual Ryan and Cain had ganged up on him to take the call instead of them; he just hoped it wasn't another customer who couldn't change a tire like yesterday. He'd been on the brink of losing his cool with her when she kept asking unnecessary questions. He was beginning to lose his cool now as he drove down another isolated road that looked exactly the same as the other. The directions he'd been given had instructed him to turn off the main road to Hotton and follow a few other roads till he went past a couple of cottages. The directions were wrong. There was no car near the cottages. So he'd decided to venture down the other roads before calling it a day and going back to the garage.
Forty five minutes since being sent out on the call out and about to give up hope and head back Aaron spotted a silver, Mazda 3 parked on the side of the road, with its bonnet up. Figuring the Mazda was the car that he'd been sent out to, Aaron parked the pick-up truck behind the car and climbed out. The driver stepped out of his vehicle as well and it wasn't until he looked up did he recognize who it was. It was Darrel, Max's (birthday boy) boyfriend. He groaned inwardly when he saw Darrel recognize him as well. He hoped there would be no trouble.
"Aaron! You alright mate?" Darrel exclaimed. Was he for real?
"Yeah, you?" Aaron answered him as he side stepped him and headed towards the engine. He wanted to find the problem, fix it and be gone.
"Yeah, yeah. Great." Darrel told him as he followed him round the front of the car. "Just this thing." He added as he kicked the wheel.
"Do you know what's wrong?" Aaron asked as he began inspecting the engine himself.
"Just stopped after making a weird noise." Darrel explained. "Need to be in town in half an hour. Though I could chance it."
"Don't know if you'll make it in this." Aaron stated. "This is gonna take a while to fix. Need to get it back to the garage."
"Can't you fix it here." Darrel asked quickly.
"I don't-" Aaron began.
"Please, it would be a great help." Darrel told him, rather insistent.
"I'll see what I can do. But I'm not promising anything." Aaron sighed going against his instincts. He'd rather take Darrel's car back to the garage, at least that way he wouldn't have him breathing down his neck like he was now. He was pretty insistent that he fixed the car on the side of the road. Back in the village he could go get himself a drink at the café while he waited for his car to be fixed, any sane person would. They wouldn't stand around in this heat.
"You left pretty quickly the other night." Darrel said as he stood behind Aaron. He'd been stood behind him for a while and it was starting to unnerve him as he kept his head under the bonnet.
"Yeah." Aaron answered shortly. He wasn't going to get into that with him. He knew why he had left suddenly. He'd been the cause.
"Shame that, it was starting to get worthwhile." Darrel said with a smile. "So I can't tempt you then?" Darrel sighed as he took a few steps closer to Aaron.
"No, you can't." Aaron ground out. He was now losing patients with this guy. He thought he'd made it perfectly clear the other night. He was with Jackson and as far as he wanted he always will be.
"Don't be like that. I'm sure I can." Darrel breathed as he placed his hands on Aaron's hips and spoke into his ear.
Aaron didn't like it that Darrel was touching him. He only allowed Jackson to do that. He didn't feel comfortable. "Darrel are you going to give me some space." Aaron warned him calmly, fighting his reflex to react violently.
"Don't be like that." Darrel whined pulling Aaron closer to him who only fought to pull himself out of his hands.
"Darrel I'm not interested." Aaron growled, wrenching himself from his grasp and picked up his tool box.
"Stop trying to kid yourself Aaron." He laughed, it was like it was all some kind of joke to him. Well it wasn't a joke for Aaron. He didn't like to be grabbed by strange men, men who he'd made perfectly clear to he wasn't interested. Instead of leaving Aaron well alone, he started to follow him back to the pick up truck and grabbed his arm as he tugged him round to face him.
Aaron looked at Darrel's grip on his arm and then at Darrel's face, shooting him a warning glare. "Get off." Aaron ordered him.
"Don't be like that, Aaron." Darrel said calmly letting go of his arm.
Now that he was free from Darrel's grip he continued towards the pick up truck, chucking the tool box in the back.
"What are you doing?" Darrel asked as he watched Aaron go back over to the car and close the bonnet before going back to the pick up truck.
"I'm taking your car back to the garage." Aaron told.
"No, you can't do that." Darrel said loudly, snatching hold of Aaron again to stop him. What was Darrel doing? He had some nerve.
"Sorry mate." Aaron scoffed, pulling his arm away. "But I am."
"No. I'm not letting you." Darrel snapped spinning Aaron round towards him so he stumbled slightly.
Aaron was seeing red now. Darrel had forcefully tried to control him way to many times. He shoved Darrel away hard. "I told you not to touch me." He snapped.
"Don't lie to yourself Aaron." Darrel hissed, beginning to turn nasty as he advanced on him. "You were coming on to me all night at Bar west."
No he wasn't. What was this guy on? He'd only spoken to him a few times. In no way had he made any signs that he was into him. If anything he'd made it perfectly clear when he'd tried to kiss him and he'd shoved him away. This guy had a screw lose.
"You want this as much as I do." Darrel sneered.
When Aaron had started to back away from him, trying to keep some distance between them, he'd found himself pressed up against the side of the car. Now Darrel was only inches away from him and there was no way he could get past him. He was twice the size of him! What was he trying to do? Intimidate him? He'd gotten into fights with guys a lot bigger than him before now. What did Darrel mean that he wanted it as much as he did? Want what?
His questions where answered. Darrel grabbed him by the shoulders roughly before he assaulted his mouth with his. He tried to turn his head from side to side, anything to escape the violent kiss that Darrel was serving him. He tried even harder to get him off of him when he felt his tongue break into his mouth unwanted.
"Darrel!" Aaron tried to push the bigger man off of him. But it was no use; he only gripped his shoulders harder, leaving what he knew to be bruises later. "Darrel!"
"Jackson won't find out." Darrel whispered as he pulled away with a horrible grin plastered on his face. "Our secret."
He didn't care if Jackson found it. He had nothing to hide. He didn't want Darrel all over him. All he cared about now was getting in the pick-up truck and getting the hell away from him. He was beginning to scare him now. The way he was looking at him, how he still had a vice grip on his shoulders. It unnerved him even more.
Aaron ducked his head and wiped the back of his hand over his mouth roughly, trying to rid himself of the feel of Darrel's lips against his. He worked up a ball of saliva and spat it out onto the gritty road.
Seeing Aaron react so negatively had triggered something to snap inside Darrel. He raised his hand. Aaron didn't expect the back hander that spun his head to the side, splitting his lip. From then on things spun wildly out of his control. He couldn't stop Darrel.
He forced himself upon Aaron again, this time biting his bottom lip as one of his hands slide down to his hip and gripped him there. He was still trying shove him off, his heart now beating furiously under his ribcage. Aaron tried to release the grip Darrel had on his hip, digging his fingers into his hand and trying to twist it uncomfortably so Darrel would have to give in before his wrist snapped. But it didn't work. It had the opposite affect.
With his other arm Darrel slid it up to Aaron's neck and pressed it on his throat making it difficult for him to breath. "Play nicely Aaron." Darrel warned before raising his knee and aiming it towards Aaron's stomach causing him to double over coughing.
Taking it as his chance to fight back, Aaron flung himself into Darrel sending him to painfully make contact with a field gate. He swung his clenched fist towards him. He heard his nose break and felt the blood smear onto his hand.
Darrel laughed. He just laughed as he wiped the blood from his nose while looking at the younger man. He made Aaron's skin crawl. He didn't look back as he headed towards the pick up truck. Darrel wasn't going to give up. He followed him and stopped Aaron from closing the door, anger in his eyes more evident now as he glared up at him, blood still dripping from his nose.
Aaron just glared back, his hand still on the handle of the door waiting for the older man to step back and allow him to close it.
"Aaron, we were just starting to have fun." Darrel told him menacingly. "Don't leave like this again."
Aaron scoffed. "Back off."
Anger flashed across Darrel's face again as he lashed out. Aaron thought he felt his cheekbone crack and was left with an intense throbbing pain in its wake. Darrel was onto him again pushing him on to his back, knocking the radio on. He could feel the gear stick digging painfully into the middle of his back. He couldn't stop the older man, no matter how hard he shoved and pushed him away. He was like a brick wall. He swung his fist out again making contact with Darrel's face again. Darrel grabbed a money tin from off the dashboard and automatically hit back.
He could only lay there dazed. He was aware of the hard edge of the gear stick digging into his back and the aggressive noise of the radio playing out of the speakers. His head ached, red hot pain seared through his skull. When he felt hands beginning to tug at his clothes, tearing and ripping at them he knew he had to open his eyes. He was glad that he did. He could see Darrel manically trying to undress him before turning onto his own clothes, trying to undo his jeans. This wasn't happening was it? Aaron had heard about it on the news, seen it in soaps on TV. But it never really happened to guys like him did it? He thought wrong; it was going to happen to him if he didn't do something about it and soon.
With all the strength he could gather he aimed his legs at Darrel's chest and kicked out hard. The older man landed on his back in the middle of the quiet road, surprised. Before Darrel could get back up, Aaron swung the door closed and started the engine, leaving a cloud of dry dirt in his wake as he reversed backwards.