Borrowed peace
1097 Words
Aaron broke the silence.
He laughed—low, amused.
'Dating?' he repeated.
'Wow. Is that today’s assignment or are you just bored?'
A few people snickered. Kiara stiffened.
He looked around slowly, like he was counting faces.
'Because last time I checked, my life isn’t a group project.'
The room went dead quiet.
'And honestly,' he added, still casual, 'if we were, it still wouldn’t be your business.'
No one said a word after that. Eyes dropped. Chairs scraped. The moment collapsed in on itself, awkward and deserved.
Kiara couldn't produce a word out. She just hissed ant walked out of the cafeteria.
Later, when the noise of the day faded and it was just us walking side by side, he broke the silence gently.
'You okay?' he asked.
I nodded, then hesitated.
'People like to talk.'
He shrugged, 'let them talk... they don't know you'.
I sighed then continue,'but you… stepping in like that. Thanks though, I couldn't handle it'.
'I couldn’t just watch,' he said, tilting his head, that little smile teasing, then he held my hands.
'I don't like people deciding for others, I had to put them in their place. Someone’s got to keep you from looking like a deer caught in headlights', he added.
I laughed, brushing a strand of hair from my face. 'You make it sound like I need saving so badly.'
'Maybe you do,' he murmured, a wink slipping in before I could react.
'Or maybe I just enjoy being the one who notices.'
I froze for a moment, caught off guard. 'Notices what?'
'Everything,' he said softly, leaning just a little closer. 'How you roll your eyes at stupid questions. How you smile when you’re annoyed… how ridiculously easy it is to get your attention.'
My cheeks warmed. I wanted to look away, but I didn’t. 'You’re… bold.'
'I call it honest,' he replied, grinning. 'But don’t worry—I’m selective with who gets my honesty.'
'Uhm, give me a sec. I want to do something at the biology lab'. I said gently as I removed my hand from his.
'Its cool, meet you at the closing hours. I got basketball practice'.
Aaron waited for me to leave his sight before he headed his own way.
The car was quiet. No one said anything. Aaron just faced the steering, and the more we tried to maintain the silence, it got more wierd.
I had to think of something, it was no longer comfortable. The thought of the call in the store ran through my head. I wondered how I forgot about it.
The environment was quiet so this my be the right time.
I looked around thinking on how to start the conversation.
'You good? You've been staring like you are about to ask something' Aaron asked me and he looked towards my direction.
'Yh. The other day that I ran into the store... I heard you on the phone?', I immediately used to open opportunity.
' You sounded... serious', I added.
I raised one of my eyebrows waiting for a convincing answer.
He laughed.
'You don't need to bother yourself about that. It's just family stuff. Trust me', Aaron said sounding so assuring.
He smiled at me but it didn't reach his eyes.
I accepted his answer even if every instinct told me not to -- I did not want to push further.
The house was already loud when I walked in.
Dad’s voice echoed from the living room—low, angry.
Tyler stood in front of him, arms crossed, jaw set like he didn’t care, even though I knew he did. The air felt brittle, like one wrong word would c***k it open.
'You think this is funny?' Dad snapped. 'After last time?'
'It wasn’t even that deep,' Tyler shot back.
'That’s what you said weeks ago.' Dad complained placing his right arm on his forehead.
I had barely dropped my bag when Tyler’s voice rose again.
'It was ONE punch,' he said. 'He kept running his mouth.'
Dad stepped back, eyes hard. 'One punch that sent him into a glass table.'
Everywhere went silent.
'He needed stitches, Tyler,' Dad continued. 'After everything that happened at that party, you promised me, that's why I let you go this time.'
Tyler scoffed. 'So now I’m grounded again? Big deal.'
'This isn’t about grounding,' Dad snapped. 'It’s about you not learning.'
Tyler turned, anger flashing -- and that’s when his eyes landed on me.
'Why are you even here?' he muttered. 'Go enjoy your perfect little life.'
'Enough,' Dad said sharply, stepping between us. 'Don’t bring her into this.'
Tyler laughed, bitter. 'Why not? She gets to mess up quietly. I mess up and the whole world crashes.'
Dad’s voice dropped, firm and final. 'Your punishment is between you and me. Take it to your room. Now!'
Tyler hesitated, then shoved past us, his door slamming hard enough to shake the walls.
Dad exhaled slowly, rubbing his face.
'Go to your room,' he said to me, softer now. 'I’ll handle him.'
I nodded, heart still racing.
Behind me, the house stayed tense—like it was holding its breath.
Tyler had been known for his anger issues, he always want to unleash his wrath on the slightest things that annoys him.
And Dad, always trying to cover up for him to avoid blocking opportunities that'll he will need someday.
Tyler doesn't even understands all this.
Since I was little, my mum is always traveling from one country to another for businesses.
Sometimes, I wish I had a family which was filled with love. Most times, the wealth my family has does more good than harm.
I laid on my bed and let out a great sigh. I wasn't expecting this -- not today.
Tyler’s anger. My dad’s disappointment.
I picked up my phone without thinking.
No new messages.
Still, my mind drifted back to Aaron—how easily he’d stepped in today, how he put less effort in making me believe his answer to my question.
People always misunderstood things.
They filled in blanks that didn’t belong to them.
For the first time, I wondered what it would be like to let them believe something on purpose --
just to have one thing in my life feel simple.
I set my phone down, the thought lingering longer than it should have.
And somewhere between the quiet of my room and the chaos of my family,
the idea settled in.
I need that peace and someone to always cover for me right now but I don't need anything deep.
- Writer
