Chapter 3: Haru to Aiden: Chapter 3

Haru

 

The feeling of Aiden’s warm hand around my arm made my heart race and my stupid dick respond in the most inappropriate way. Shit! And I had just jerked off in the shower, too, all while imagining doing it with Aiden.

Youth could be so damned hard to deal with.

I moved my arm away from his touch. My face hot and probably red, I said, “All right. All right. I’ll have breakfast.” Just so he would leave me alone.

Honestly, the only way to make Aiden rest his case was to do what he demanded of me. In this instance, eating breakfast.

Taking a step back, I raised my gaze to his face and said insistently and clearly, “But you don’t have to drop me off. It’s not that far anyway, and biking doesn’t take long.”

With that declaration firmly out of the way, I turned my back on him and took a seat beside Isaac.

As I reached out and got myself a slice of toast, I spied him taking his seat across the table. I could sense that he was watching me intently, like a mother hen, making sure I ate enough to sustain me until lunchtime.

I blamed his overprotective attitude toward me on that incident a year after our parents’ deaths. At the time, I had collapsed at school and had to be taken to the hospital in an ambulance. It was discovered that I was severely malnourished and had depression and anxiety problems. Well, what child didn’t, after his parents had just passed away? Especially at the age of fourteen when life itself was one big, crazy mess?

The incident had scared everyone shitless, particularly Aiden, who had been frantic. After I was discharged from the hospital, those lousy social services people had turned up and made a big fuss investigating our living conditions. This had stressed Aiden out to the max as he had been the sole guardian of us brothers under the age of eighteen—Mason, Isaac, and, of course, me.

Aiden had worked his ass off convincing the case manager that he was a capable guardian and that they didn’t need to remove any of us from his care, despite working various part-time jobs with ridiculous hours to support us while studying for a business degree at the same time.

At the end of the review, they decided to take me away, which made Aiden go berserk and only worsened the already dire situation. To this day, I still remember that fateful morning when the social services woman came to drag me away. I had been crying my eyeballs out and clinging desperately to Aiden. In fact, I had been so scared of losing Aiden and all my brothers that I went into overdrive with fear and anxiety and collapsed right there at the doorstep.

Once again, I was hospitalized, and of course, the social services woman was scolded by the higher-ups for her highhandedness. Eventually, another manager was put on our case, and after another thorough review, she convinced us that taking me away was for the best and it would only be for a short time, until my health stabilized.

Before they came to take me away, Aiden had assured me that everything would be all right.

“Look at me, Haru,” he had said, his warm hands cupping my teary face as we sat there on the hospital bed. “I will come back to get you. We’re family, and I promised to take good care of you, didn’t I? You know I will never abandon you.” He hugged me tight and even kissed my forehead to soothe me, convincing me of his devotion. “You’re precious to me, Haru, and I seriously won’t know what to do if I don’t have you with me.”

His words had managed to calm me down and put my fears at ease. We even did a pinky swear. Yeah, at the age of fourteen, I did a pinky swear.

Three months later, the agency did another review, and because my health was a little better, I was able to return home, which was a relief to everyone, especially Aiden, who had been overjoyed and wouldn’t let me out of his sight henceforth.

I remembered we had spent the whole weekend partying and sleeping in the living room, Japanese style, for my homecoming. It had been the first time any of us had smiled and laughed from the heart since our parents’ deaths. The first time any of us had felt like we were alive again.

Thinking about those days made my heart ache, and I couldn’t help myself and sneaked a peek at Aiden, who still had his gaze fixed on me.

Our eyes met, and my heart skipped. I glanced away, my body tense.

Shit! That gaze was so freakin’ intense. Suddenly, I lost my appetite.

“You don’t need to watch him eat, Aiden,” Reo said. “I’m sure he knows where his mouth is and how to chew his food properly.”

Reo’s comment made me choke on the food I had just eaten, and I started coughing severely.

Beside me, Isaac offered me his glass of water. He said, “Jesus, Haru, slow down. No need to rush with the eating.”

I gladly took the offered drink and downed the lot in one go.

Aiden said, “I’ll pick you up after you’ve finished your shift at the restaurant tonight.”

Feeling much better now that I was no longer choking on my own meal, I put the empty glass down on the table and said, “I told you, I’m fine coming back by myself.”

“At midnight on a Saturday?” Aiden asked. “You looking the way you do doesn’t help the fact that it’s not safe. I have no idea how many times one of us have had to intervene and save you from those types of bastards already.”

By those types of bastards, he meant questionable men who were apparently obsessed with boys like me and made it their hobby to stalk and jump me along the dark streets of New York City at night.

My face heated up at Aiden’s statement. Firstly, because I was embarrassed at the reminder. Secondly, because Aiden’s words hit me right where it hurt—me being treated like some damsel in distress. And thirdly, because I hated those bastards who always seemed to pick me to stalk. I was an eighteen-year-old boy, for God’s sake, not some pretty girl oozing with sex appeal.

Reo said, “It can’t be helped you looking like that, Haru. Mom said you have the gene from our ancestor back in Japan.”

I raised my eyes to Reo, wondering what that heartthrob was spouting about now.

Isaac asked, “What type of gene is that?”

“The Shrine Maiden gene,” Reo replied.

Isaac raised his brows. “Shrine Maiden gene? Is that even a thing?”

Reo shrugged his broad shoulders. “I think it just means a certain type of appearance. The ancestor from our mom’s side of the family used to have one every generation. It’s always a female though, and she said that person is apparently supposed to be very beautiful.”

He turned his gaze to me as he continued. “Mom said you look just like the Shrine Maiden on her side of the family—her grandmother, to be precise. Another was our great-grandmother.”

He smiled cheekily at me, probably to tease me, as was his habit. “She also said our great-grandmother was petite and so pretty in her younger days that the family had a hard time keeping her safe. One guy even attempted to kidnap her. When they caught him, he said it was Great-Grandmother’s fault because she put a spell on him, being a Shrine Maiden and all.”

Isaac couldn’t help himself at hearing the ridiculous tale and burst out laughing.

I frowned at Isaac and said coldly, “It’s not funny.”

Isaac managed to calm down and wipe his tears. He said, as he wrapped his arm around my neck and tousled my hair, “So, you have your great-grandmother’s gene, the Shrine Maiden gene. That’s awesome. That just means we will have to work harder to protect you from creepy old men who want to fuck you.”

That guy! Being extremely blunt as per usual. Like I’d want to be fucked by some creepy old man.

If I wanted some under-the-sheet action, it would be with Aiden, and with me taking the lead.

Mason, who was half asleep throughout the whole narration, chuckled. “You have my sympathy, Haru.” He rested his chin on his hand as he leaned on the tabletop, his eyes on me. “You need to become a man as soon as possible. It will solve that problem.”

Isaac eagerly nodded in agreement. “And that means getting yourself a girlfriend and losing your virginity.”

I had had enough of this silly talk. Suddenly, we were talking about my virginity now, were we? Like that was a public topic open for discussion.

Reo looked as though he couldn’t contain himself and joined in the band of harassment, too. “That’s right, you’re still a virgin. Most of us lost ours when we were sixteen or seventeen.”

God! He made it sound like it was a crime to still be a virgin at eighteen.

Noah joined in. “Aiden lost his when he was sixteen. I think it was on his sixteenth birthday, too. Wasn’t it with that popular cheerleader from high school? I remember she was hot.”

That was news to me. Aiden had lost his virginity to a hot cheerleader from his high school at sixteen?

Sixteen? When I had first met Aiden, he had already been sixteen, nearly turning seventeen. That meant he had already kissed and had sex with some hot chick way before he had met me.

I didn’t know why, but suddenly, I felt a little pissed at the thought of that.

Aiden said, his voice firm, “Please stop talking about my sorry past, and it’s normal for boys to do that sort of thing at that age.”

Noah nodded. “It’s a teenager thing. Most go through it.”

Reo said cheekily, “Most. So, we can confirm Haru is in the minority here? And will not likely lose his virginity?”

Isaac shook his head. “Nah, Haru is just late. Maybe it’s because of the malnutrition that ruined his growth.”

He leaned toward me and whispered, “Is your little brother down there doing all right? I mean, you know, getting hard and stuff? Do you need some porn magazine or DVD to get you going? I can lend you some of mine. I know you don’t read or watch porn, but that’s because you’re late, but if you’re interested, I’m here to help, bro.”

I wouldn’t be so pissed with embarrassment if Isaac didn’t act so suspicious in front of everyone as if we were conspiring on taking down the world, like a duo of infamous villains. The fact that his voice was so loud for a whisper meant that everyone in the room could hear him, crystal clear.

I noted Mason trying to hide his smile while Reo and Noah grinned with obvious enjoyment at seeing my deep dark secret being revealed for all to hear. As for Aiden? He was still staring at me, his eyes so dark and intense it made my heart race and my stomach flip in dread.

God! I didn’t want to face him.

Was it so abnormal for a boy not to read porn? Was it so abnormal for a boy to stare at his handsome brother and get hard while fantasizing about fucking him?

Of course, it was abnormal. God! I knew I was a sicko. A creepy weirdo.

Reo was still chuckling away with hilarity, and I glared at him, wanting so much to strangle his neck.

Being my biological brother, he should be on my side and understand my case. It wasn’t like I wasn’t struggling with my problem swinging the other way. Not to mention the fact that I also had unrequited love with Aiden and wanted so badly to kiss and fuck him that it made my head spin sometimes.

The hormones! It was the hormones.

Aiden’s deep timbre came firmly, which drew my attention to him.

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“Isaac, stop leading Haru astray. Haru is fine the way he is,” he said, which instantly made me blush.

Yeah, I blushed a lot in front of him and knew it wasn’t normal. Girls blush when a hot guy talks to them. An eighteen-year-old boy shouldn’t blush when his older stepbrother was talking to him.

He continued saying, “I’d worry if he goes and does things like that too soon. His body is too fragile.”

Fuck me! I could only sit there and stare at him in astonishment. What the hell? Did he think I had a chronic sickness or something?

Reo looked as though he couldn’t contain himself and laughed loudly. There were even tears in his eyes. When he managed to stop, he said, “Daddy Aiden is worried his daughter Haru will grow up too soon.”

I went bright red and snapped, “Oy! Can we stop talking about me now?” I turned to Aiden and said clearly, “For your information, I am not fragile and am perfectly healthy.”

Yep. I wanted to clarify to him that my dick functioned just as fine as any boy my age. I was also certain that I could go all out and through the night without stopping, too, if I wanted to, especially with him as my bed partner.

Mason, always the peacemaker, changed the topic immediately. He said to me, “That reminds me, Haru, my boss saw you with me the other day, and he’s wondering if you’re still interested in working at his bar?”

My annoyance over the subject matter of me being a fragile little thing subsided immediately. I asked, “Seriously?”

Honestly, I didn’t think Mason’s boss, Robert Jones, would be interested in taking on a scrawny kid like me to work in his massively popular bar where all the rich and famous went. The only reason why I wanted to work there was because the pay was ridiculously good, which would undoubtedly fatten up my savings account.

Aiden’s chilled voice drew my attention and fizzled out my enthusiasm when he said, “I didn’t know you were interested in working at that bar, Haru.”

 I knew he was a little more than upset that I didn’t consult him on the matter, like I had usually done with every other issue under the sun.

Mason, who must have understood that Aiden was not happy about the proposed arrangement, said, “Don’t worry, Aiden. He’s under twenty-one so there will be supervision. My boss did promise me that he’d only roster Haru on to work with me, and it will only be until midnight.”

He smiled pleasantly and added, “Haru is our brother, and I know he’s precious to you, so I promise I won’t let anything shady happen to him.”

This seemed to ease Aiden’s worry a little. A very little. But not much. He still had that stern expression that clearly stated he wouldn’t let me work there if it was entirely up to him, which it wasn’t, because I damned well wanted to work there and make some good extra cash.

Noah said, “It seems we have a lot of brothers working in bars, don’t we?”

Reo nodded. “Aiden used to work in bars while studying for his business degree, so I don’t see why Haru can’t.”

Noah said, “Didn’t the manager put you onto serving drinks for the girls? They must make a lot of money off of you, considering your looks.”

Isaac chuckled. “They’d probably do the same to Haru. He does have the Shrine Maiden look, after all.”

Reo nodded. “That will definitely attract a lot of female customers who like pretty boys.” He turned to look at me with an amused grin. “Like our Haru.”

Isaac nodded. “Haru, working in a bar is your perfect opportunity to meet girls.” He turned to Mason. “Isn’t that right, Mason?”

Mason nodded his head. “Hmm... That bar does attract a lot of female customers. I don’t know why though.” He looked rather perplexed about that, which I found amusing. “But it is a good opportunity for Haru to start asking girls out.”

Reo said to me in encouragement, “Then go for the job, Haru,” which made me suspicious.

Aiden suddenly stood up, which drew my attention to him. God, I could feel the unhappy vibe emanating from him and wondered what was bothering him.

His eyes on me, he said, “Enough about this bar job. Are you done, Haru? Let’s go. And I’m picking you up tonight after work. No argument.”

I could only stare at him, flabbergasted.

Reo chuckled. “Give it up already, Haru. Just let him drive you, otherwise Daddy Aiden will be worried sick.”

I sighed in resignation and then got up from my seat. I said, “Itte kimasu,” as Aiden and I headed out the door, indicating that we were leaving the house—our Japanese habit stuck with me from childhood, and I found it hard to change.

“Itte rashai,” Noah, Reo, Mason, and Isaac replied in unison.

After closing the front door, I followed Aiden toward the driveway, and a moment later, hopped into the car in the front passenger seat. After putting on my seat belt and making myself comfortable, I watched Aiden as he turned on the ignition. He must have felt me watching him because he suddenly turned his attention to me, his gaze intense on my face.

Feeling flustered at the intimate eye contact, I asked in a defensive attitude, “What?”

He rested his hand on the side of my cheek and then petted me, his fingers digging deep into my hair while his thumb was stroking my face.

Shit! He was doing that again, and every time when it happened, I simply wanted to close my eyes, lean against him, and let everything around us slide by. When he did that, I wanted to savor the moment between us because it was precious, like I was the only one in the world for him.

His thumb rubbed near my eyes, and I groaned inwardly as my heart melted with this fluffy sensation.

Goddamnit! If I didn’t stop this soon, I’d do what my primal urge wanted most, and that was to kiss Aiden.

I resisted the temptation and instead brushed his hand away. My voice a little shaky and uncertain, I said, “Aren’t we going? You don’t want me to be late for work, do you?”

I heard him say, “Yeah.”

A moment later, the car maneuvered out of the driveway and onto the road.

It didn’t take long until we arrived at my part-time job, which was a convenience store. I’d be working here until three this afternoon before rushing off to my other part-time job at Tokyo Club Restaurant & Bar as a waiter.

I undid the seat belt as I said, “Thanks for the ride.”

I was about to open the door when Aiden caught my arm. Shit! I knew he wanted to say something, but I didn’t want to hear it, whatever it was.

I refused to look at him and instead opened the door. I was about to get out when Aiden said, “Haru!” I stopped in my tracks.

I reluctantly turned and asked, “What?”

Fuck! I could feel that vibe—hot and intense—emitting from him. Jesus! What was it? I just wanted to get away because the longer I stayed close to him, the harder it was for me to control myself.

“Look at me,” he said.

I raised my eyes to him, my cheeks feeling hot and probably red.

The moment I saw him, I knew he was conflicted. He said, “Do you need money that much?”

That was what he was worried about? Me needing money? Me wanting to work at the bar with Mason?

I licked my lips—my habit around Aiden—and said, “Yeah.”

“You can always ask me. I’ll give you pocket money.”

I shook my head. “That’s not the point, Aiden.” I sighed. “I hate that I have to rely on you for money. You worked so hard to raise us after Mom and Stepdad passed away. I’m eighteen now, Aiden. I want to be independent. I want to make my own money and then move...” I trailed off.

“Move?” Aiden asked sharply.

Fuck! I could hear the surprise in his voice. Why did I unthinkingly blurt that out? Shit!

I shook my head. “It’s nothing, okay?” I motioned to leave.

Aiden tightened his grip on my arm, which hurt. Damn! I didn’t know Aiden would inflict pain on me. This was the first time. Did he even know he was doing it?

“Aiden, you’re hurting me,” I said.

He swiftly removed his hand from my arm like it was on fire. “Sorry,” he said. “But you said move. Are you thinking of moving out?”

I licked my lips again, my eyes straying away from his in avoidance. “Like I said, it’s nothing. And I have work now, Aiden, so I have to go.”

With that, I rushed out of the car like the devil was chasing after me.

With my heart still racing from the intense exchange between me and Aiden, I headed into the convenience store where my boss, Dan Smith, greeted me.

“Morning, Haru,” he said. “Did you run here? Your face is completely red.”

I touched my cheek as I avoided answering his question and greeted him instead. “Morning, Dan. I’ll go and get ready for work now.”

The elderly man nodded.

In the staff room, I put my backpack into my locker and then proceeded to put on my green apron. Afterward, I headed back to the front and began my work—stocking shelves and serving customers.

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