Stardust and Kisses

Turbulence

Aaron

I woke up to the sound of my phone buzzing non-stop. I squinted against the sunlight streaming through the windows, groaning as I reached for it on the nightstand.

Too early for this s**t.

My eyes were barely open when I saw the notifications flooding in—texts, emails, news alerts, all lighting up my screen like a damn Christmas tree.

I sat up, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes as I scrolled through them. It took a second to register, but then it hit me all at once:

Public apology from Celebrity Spy. Headlines splashed everywhere. Not just the blogs, but the major outlets, too. They were all talking about it. Apparently, the little gossip site had come clean, admitting that the entire story about me was fabricated. They claimed they’d been “misled by false sources” and apologized for “any harm caused to Aaron D’Costa’s reputation.”

I couldn’t help but smirk. Heather f*****g Castro, I thought. She’d done it. Somehow, she’d pulled off the impossible. Everything was getting wiped clean—just like she promised.

The pictures, the fake rumors, all of it—gone. It was like none of this had ever happened. The relief was almost overwhelming, but before I could let myself relax, the memory of that call from last night came rushing back.

Veronica.

Pregnant.

My stomach twisted, and I felt a cold sweat break out across my skin. Even with the apology clearing my name, that phone call was a dark cloud I couldn’t shake.

Before I could spiral too far, my phone buzzed again—this time, it was a call. My dad.

I sighed, answering. “Hey, Dad.”

“Aaron!” His voice boomed through the speaker, full of excitement. “Did you see the news? They cleared everything up! Heather is a goddamn miracle worker! You’re back in the clear, son. Back on top!”

“Yeah, I saw,” I said, forcing some enthusiasm into my voice. “It’s… good. She really came through.”

“Good?!” he practically shouted. “It’s fantastic! You don’t understand, Rony. I was worried this was the end of everything—your career, your future—and now it’s like it never happened! We have to celebrate! I’m throwing a party tonight—inviting everyone. We need to thank Heather properly, let her know just how much we appreciate her.”

I rubbed my forehead, trying to keep it together. The last thing I felt like doing right now was celebrating. “Dad, I don’t know if—”

“Nonsense,” he cut me off, his voice bubbling with excitement. “We’re celebrating tonight. End of discussion. And you’re going to be there with a smile on your face, understood?”

I clenched my jaw, holding back the urge to argue. “Fine. I’ll be there.”

“Good man! And don’t worry, son. This is just a bump in the road. Everything’s going to go back to normal now.” He paused, his tone softening just a bit. “You deserve this, Rony. You deserve to get your life back.”

“Yeah,” I muttered. “Thanks, Dad.”

We hung up, and I tossed my phone onto the bed, leaning back against the headboard. Everyone was overjoyed—my dad, Jasper, even Heather, probably. The storm had passed, and I was supposed to be relieved. Grateful, even.

But all I could think about was Veronica’s voice at the other end of the line last night.

I’m pregnant, Aaron. And it’s yours.

What the hell was I supposed to do with that? If the news got out, it wouldn’t matter that Heather had scrubbed my name clean. The media would latch onto a story like that, and it’d be ten times worse. And if it was mine…

I groaned, running a hand through my hair. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I had fun, sure, but I always kept things casual. No attachments. No strings. Now, all of a sudden, I was looking down the barrel of fatherhood with a girl I hadn’t spoken to in months.

Shit.

Just as I was spiraling deeper into my thoughts, my phone buzzed again. This time, it was a text from Heather.

“All taken care of. See you tonight. We’ll celebrate.”

I stared at the message, a bitter laugh bubbling up in my throat. Of course, she thought everything was fixed. From her point of view, it was. But she had no idea the new shitstorm that was brewing just beneath the surface.

I needed to figure out what to do about Veronica—and fast. But for now, I’d have to plaster on a smile and show up to this damn party.

I got up, and headed for the shower. My reflection in the mirror looked as tired as I felt.

Congratulations, Aaron. Your life’s a f*****g mess, and no one even knows it yet.

The water ran hot, but it didn’t wash away the knot in my chest. No amount of scrubbing could.