"Aaron I really think I should take Clyde out for a walk. He hasn't been out for four days." Paddy aired to the younger man as he walked into the lounge.
"No he's fine." Aaron told him.
"He needs exercise. It's not healthy for him." Paddy tried to reason it was the third time in those four days that he was trying to get Aaron to listen. "I can take him if you want."
Aaron looked torn. He didn't want to walk Clyde. He didn't want to walk out of Smithy Cottage but he knew Clyde needed a walk. He was surprised his dog hadn't been climbing the walls already. He couldn't get enough exercise following Aaron from one room to another.
Paddy watched Aaron as he tried to decide in his head. He noticed that Aaron was still running his hands through the Alsatians fur. Whenever he saw him nowadays he only seemed to be doing that. Maybe it was a comfort thing.
"Fine, you can take him." Aaron answered him getting off the sofa. Clyde went to follow Aaron as he headed for the kitchen door. "No Clyde, stay." He said before he disappeared upstairs.
"Come on then." Paddy called out to Clyde, fetching his lead off the side. "Clyde, walk?"
Aaron hated it when Clyde wasn't around, the last few days he'd found comfort in the Alsatian following him around, especially when Jackson was work or Paddy was in the surgery. He'd didn't feel alone. He hated being alone and that's how he was now. He was alone, in Smithy Cottage. Okay, Pearl was downstairs in the surgery with Rhona as well, but nobody was in Smithy with him. Paddy was out walking Clyde and Jackson was at work. He'd locked his bedroom door behind him, a habit he'd fallen into very quickly. It was too quiet. He wasn't used to it and he didn't like it. Another thing he'd grown to hate as well, silence. He walked over to his CD player and turned it on, letting the loud music thump round his room and travel through him. He'd be okay for half an hour wouldn't he?
"Aaron!" Paddy called up the stairs, he was back from walking Clyde. The Alsatian had needed it, he'd nearly ripped Paddy's arm off as he bounded down the road, excited to be out. "Aaron!" He yelled again, hearing the bass of the teens music vibrate through the ceiling.
It was no use, he couldn't hear. Not over that racket anyway. He'd have to go up.
He was lying on his bed, eyes closed as he tried to concentrate on the music. He didn't want to let Darrel or anything that concerned him, enter his head. He'd done so well the past week by blocking it all out. He would be damned if he was going to ruin that now. He wasn't aware of Paddy climbing the stairs, only when he knocked loudly on his bedroom door. He jumped several feet in the air at the sound. He hadn't been expecting that!
Recovering from the shock Aaron scrambled from his bed, hit the off button on his CD player and unlocked his bedroom door. "Bloody hell Paddy!" Aaron growled, now irritated that Paddy had made him jump.
"Sorry, you okay?" Paddy asked realising his must have shocked the already jumpy teen.
"Yeah sound. What is it?" He snapped.
"Nothing, just wanted to let you know I'm back." Paddy told him as Clyde pushed past him and jumped onto Aaron's bed. The rule about no dogs upstairs had been abandoned days ago.
"Was that it?" Aaron barked before Paddy could answer he closed the door in his face and flopped down on the bed next to Clyde, his hand unconsciously seeking out Clyde's black and golden fur.
Like everyday, Jackson arrived home at five. He flung his arms around Aaron as soon as he walked through the door while the younger man made himself a sandwich. "Got one for me?" Jackson asked as he watched Aaron over his shoulder.
"Nope." Aaron teased before scrunching his nose. "Ergh, you stink!"
"It's called Hard work babe." Jackson laughed as he sniffed himself. "I'll grab myself a shower, then we can go to the pub."
"What?"
"Woolpack? Just down the road? Sells beers?" Jackson teased with a smirk as he headed to the stairs.
"Yeah, I know what it is!" Aaron snapped. "But why?"
"Well, seeing as you're only making one of those, I thought we could get Dinner there." Jackson explained slowly. "And like I said they sell beers."
Before Aaron could even complain even more Jackson ran upstairs to grab the shower he desperately needed. He knew Aaron hadn't been out for a long while. He hadn't been out since he left hospital. So Jackson was going to try and get him out tonight. A little trip to the Woolpack was nothing major. He'd be there and so would the majority of his family most probably. No harm would come to him and as long as Aaron knew that, surely everything would be okay.
Showered and dressed and smelling of lime shower gel, Jackson bounded down the stairs pulling his Jacket on as he did so. He grabbed Aaron's as past the coat pegs and chucked it at him as he walked through the lounge doorway. "Come on, get that on." Jackson told him, checking his pockets for wallet, keys and phone.
"Jackson I-." Aaron began as he held his coat as if it were contagious.
"No buts!" Jackson told him. "We're going to the Woolpack, no pressure. We'll eat dinner have a few pints and go home." Jackson assured him. "If at any point anything's getting to much we can come home." He promised.
"Sure?" Aaron said.
"Sure." Jackson smiled as Aaron tugged his arms through hi coat.
"Can Clyde come?" Aaron asked hopefully.
He should of guessed Clyde would be tagging along. They could eat outside, it was still light and warm out.
"Alright then." Jackson sighed. "But the both of you behave!" He teased.
They managed to get to the Woolpack and Jackson went inside to order after Aaron insisted that he would be okay for five minutes. He'd noticed how on edge Aaron was being out in public, he jumped a few times at a couple of loud sounds and kept looking around the village as if he was expecting Darrel to jump out at any moment. But he expected that. He expected Aaron to feel a little uncomfortable; after all being attacked once was something you found incredibly hard to get over but three times? It was going to take a while before Aaron really felt safe and himself again and Jackson would be there for him every step of the way.
"Right, steak and chips for you!" Jackson said as he placed the pints on the table. "And fish and chips for me. Marlon said it will take half an hour."
"I'm starving." Aaron whined as he took a gulp of the cold beer.
"You ate a sandwich before we left! I'm the hungry one and I've been to work." Jackson argued. He was glad to see Aaron's appetite was coming back. Although, Aaron could eat anyone out of house and home.
"And!" Aaron smirked.
Marlon brought their food out before the promised half and hour was up. Hungrily the two men tucked into their meals happily, while Clyde laid on the floor beside Aaron's feet looking up at him in awe. Unable to take much more of Clyde's pathetic looks Aaron dropped him a few chips. "Don't tell Paddy." Aaron warned, as if Clyde would say anything.
"Only a few chips." Jackson reasoned, what harm could that do.
"Yeah but, he's already getting onto me about Clyde not getting walked enough." Aaron explained.
"Thought you walked him?" Jackson said cocking an eyebrow. He thought Aaron still walked Clyde every morning after he left for work. He knew Aaron hadn't been going to work but surely he'd taken Clyde at least outside to have a run around in the field behind Smithy Cottage.
Aaron shook his head sheepishly as he continued to eat his dinner.
"Aaron!" Jackson sighed. "How come?"
Aaron shrugged. "Just because. . ."
"You need to take him out. The both of you need to get out." Jackson told him sadly.
The teen didn't answer him as he eat his meal he didn't want to listen to Jackson. He was quite happy staying at home in Smithy Cottage, playing Xbox and watching TV with the doors locked. He felt safe. Right now, he was on the edge of panic but he was trying his hardest to keep his emotions in check. It would mean a lot to Jackson that he came out tonight to the Woolpack.
"He's not going to attack you again Aaron." Jackson told him, figuring out the main reason why Aaron hadn't stepped foot out the front door recently.
"You said that before! And look where I ended up!" Aaron snapped at him.
"Aaron, he's locked up now!" Jackson shot back at him.
"Yeah and for how long?" Aaron yelled before he stormed off. Clyde instantly at his heels.
Jackson sighed and shook his head. He needed Aaron to know he was safe. Why couldn't he believe him?
Aaron had acted on impulse. He'd stormed off on his own, driven by the sheer annoyance of a promise Jackson couldn't keep. How could he know he was safe? He'd promised that before and look at what had happened when he believed him. He ended up bleeding to death at the bottom of the stairs. Darrel could only stay locked up for so long. They couldn't lock him up and throw away the key no matter how much he wished it would happen. He wasn't aware of were he was going. By the time he had came to the realization that he was walking off on his own, he was way past Carl's house and walking through the fields behind. Clyde was bounding along the grass in front of him, chasing a lazy butterfly in the evening. He was on his own, but he didn't feel as scared as he fought back the panic. If he panicked now and worked himself into a state how was he going to get himself home? He needed to stay calm and he did.
"Clyde!" Aaron called out, no matter how much he'd fought back the panic he still wanted Clyde beside him. "Clyde! Heel!"
Jackson stayed sitting at the picnic bench, staring after Aaron as he watched his figure storm off down the village. He should have gone after him, he knew that. But Aaron was the type of person you always left to calm down. It wasn't good to rile Aaron further. So he finished his beer off waiting for Aaron to walk back or even walk past back to Smithy Cottage. He'd been sitting there for over an hour having finished his beer ages ago, realizing Aaron wasn't coming back. In his fragile state, Jackson pulled out his mobile and scrolled down for the young mechanics number.
"Aaron, It's Jackson. Call me back when you get this." Jackson spoke down the phone to his boyfriends voicemail. "I'm worried about you, please get back to me."
"Everything alright pet?" Diane asked as she collected glasses outside and couldn't help but over hear.
"Not really, but they will be." Jackson assured her as he grabbed his jacket and headed back to Smithy cottage. There was no point waiting round the Woolpack for Aaron to return, on his own. He'd go back home and wait for him there. At least then he could talk to his mum or Paddy.
Aaron was sitting on a wall when his phone had started to ring his pocket. He didn't bother to check to see who it was; he let it ring out for his answer service to pick up. He was testing himself. He was seeing how long he could go with being on his own before he really did start to freak out. He'd already jumped and felt his heart in his throat when a crow burst out from the trees at the end of the road. His old self would have laughed at him for being so pathetic. But that was how it was now. He would jump at the slightest noise and freeze on the spot at an approaching shadow whereas the old Aaron would start on anyone that dared cross him and quietly happily walk around town in the middle of the night on his own. When he was fifteen he'd slept down a dark alley way after running off from his mum after his dad had kicked him out. Long gone were those days.
"Back already?" Hazel commented as her son walked through to the lounge. She had her feet propped up on the coffee table as she drank her cup of tea and watched a juicy drama on the screen.
"Looks like it." Jackson sighed as he crashed down beside her jostling the liquid in the mug Hazel held.
"What happened?" Hazel asked. "Tell me."
"Opened my mouth." Jackson explained. "That's what happened."
"You can't help that. You never could." Hazel laughed.
"I mentioned Darrel." Jackson admitted as he ran a hand down his face. "I shouldn't have, he's tried so hard to forget about him."
"Why'd you go do that for you silly boy!" Hazel chirped, slapping him on the arm lightly.
"I didn't mean to! I was just simply telling him he was safe." Jackson protested. "Then he got annoyed and stormed off."
"Oh Jackson, whatever's Paddy going to say." Hazel sighed.
"I don't know. I just hope Aaron comes back soon. I've left him a voicemail, he won't answer his phone." Jackson told her.
"He'll turn up. I wouldn't worry." Hazel assured him. "But for now though, you can fetch me a packet of those biscuits."
Jackson rolled his eyes and pulled himself off the sofa with a sigh as he went and done want his mother asked.
A/N – Updated this fic like I promised in C.B. Love to know what you think! Thank you for all the kind reviews so far!