AARON LOUIS HIRSCH

☁

You’d think someone like Emma would understand the true value of family. In some way, she did. Her parents were still together and deeply in love, her sister was successful and kind, and her grandparents were still kicking and endlessly sweet. It makes you wonder where they might have all went wrong with Emma. Where did her bitterness stem from, why was she not more forgiving when it came to the Hirsch clan? They had welcomed her in with no hints of malice or regret. Yet, here she stood, uneasy within the presence of her once brother in law. 

“You guys still don’t talk much, huh?” The brunette questions, genuinely curious. Adam, her 12 year old son, even joked about how strange the Hirsch family was about being open with one another. He likes to claim that they’re all “emotionally constipated”. “Really? Shit, I hadn’t realized it’s been that long. Maybe we can set something up for the two of them. Maybe we can, uh, take them to Scoops for some ice cream after school.” With subtle reluctance, Emma nods to a bench near the rose bushes, signaling for Aaron to sit with her. Once she’s seated, she speaks again, “Adam’s pretty good. Failing math miserably, though. The usual. How’s Elena?”

*

Emma’s question was extremely valid, of course, considering the family’s past history and so Aaron found he didn’t particularly mind her asking. He doubted that his relationship with his siblings would ever reach a point where they were the best of friends, but at least it was beginning to improve... be it very slowly. “Not as much as we should, no,” came his response, though he pretty much shrugged off her question, not wanting to dwell on that too much. Talking about it never really helped.

When she cursed, he couldn’t help but shake his head, another thing he was quite happy to shrug off. It wasn’t a big problem or really a big issue, although Elena did like to see her cousin as much as she could —- because apparently at school wasn’t enough. “It happens. Time gets away from all of us I think.” When she gestured to the bench near by, he moved without question, taking a seat a couple of moments later. “Sounds familiar,” he said with a light chuckle. “Although a lot of the time I’m convinced that Elena’s doing it on purpose.” It wouldn’t be a surprise, not wanting to stand out in any way. “Other than that she’s really good. Scaring me with how quickly she’s growing up.”

A chuckle fell at Aaron’s remark, although Ava took no offence when he rejected her offer. “Can’t?” Her brow rose for a second, but it was probably none of her business as she quickly added. “Fair enough, more for me.” She quipped, even though she really ought to follow Aaron’s example and cut this habit too. It was a way of coping, to say the least, when all got a little too much for her to handle. But in any consolation, this habit seemed to dwindle down when Rory came back into her life again. She found familiarity in his answer, nodding in understanding as he spoke. “I get that,” She didn’t simply utter those words out of sympathy, but rather it seemed as though they’d all gone through their fair shares of interrogations during their time on this island. “You know, when we think about it, it really isn’t any of their businesses. Honestly, my life isn’t that exciting. I don’t know why they care so much.” That might just be an understatement, considering the prior year. Still, she never considered herself as an interesting person, anyway.

“The free food, maybe?” She suggested, grinning lightly in jest. Although it was a mystery to Ava too as to why she often found herself accompanying her stepmother to the country club. “But hey, your mom isn’t at all a bad company.” In fact, she respected Mrs. Hirsch more than Evelyn, if she was being frank. “I’ll trade, but then I think that would just be mean to force you to hang out with Evelyn.” 

It wasn’t quite the conversation that Aaron expected to find himself in tonight, but at least it made things a little more interesting than they had been before. These kinds of evenings were always a slog and he doubted very much that tonight would have ended up much different. Ava was obviously going to ask, he didn’t expect her not to, though he did laugh at her follow up comment. Oh those were the days. “I’m clean... have been for three years now,” he answered with a shrug. “Can’t go fucking it up now with a quick drag on that.” Because he knew what he was like and how things would only spiral out of control from there —- they always did.

There’s a hopefulness that begins to stir in the center of Georgina’s chest about Jonah. If her mind managed to complete the puzzle piece, the brunette will know in a matter of minutes. Though before letting the confidence overtake her, the woman still wanders around the exhibit for safekeeping. Crouching down every once in a while like in prior moments, calling out Jonah’s name to avoid anything slip through their fingers. Like she had stated to the male earlier, had this been either one of her kids, the mother would’ve hoped the efforts in volunteers wouldn’t give up just yet.

So, just as she finished off rounding the last portion of the museum in an attentive focal point, the buzzing sensation of her phone causes her to halt once more. A text with Got him causes happiness to swiftly flutters over her previously concerned demeanor, witnessing as all of the pressure floated off her shoulders. Quickly, unlocking her iPhone with the Face ID, she types:

Geo [2.24 PM]: Perfect! I will meet you back at the first exhibit.

And this is precisely what Georgina does — feeling the motion of her feet moving faster than her brain has the time to process this pacing change. There’s no time to waste, literally. There is still a period of ambition that they’ll get to the ferry back to Catalina with a few minutes to spare and to catch their breaths. It doesn’t take long to observe Aaron and Jonah appear in her hazel optics hindsight. “Hey,” Silvery falsetto greets in puffing motion, still managing to welcome both of them with a beam. Her hand finds the young boy’s shoulder to give it a reassuring grip. “One worry is taken care of; the next is getting back on the ferry in time.” Remembering the words Aaron informed her on the way over to the exhibit in their initial search. But before any more could be said, Georgina is on the move back to her son.

They’ll have time to exchange a conversation or pleasantries in assisting during the twenty-five minute ride back to their humble abode.

*

Once Aaron had found Jonah, it made things a lot easier, a quick text to Geo and the pair were making their way towards the first exhibit so they could all get the hell out of there. He’d never really felt quite that much relief in one moment before and it was nice, knowing they’d managed to solve the problem without much trouble. That’s what he’d needed because otherwise he’d have been panicking before long, like he always was.

As soon as they’ve all met up again and Jonah’s back with his friends, a promise not to go running off again, he flashed Geo a bright smile. Problem well and truly solved. It wasn’t long until they were all heading out of the museum and making their way to the ferry dock. They moved in the groups they’d been assigned to, settling in those same groups once they were seated again. He stayed put for five minutes, but very quickly sloped off to talk to Geo briefly. “Everything okay over here?” he questioned with a smile. “Thanks for the help earlier.”

“Do you want some?” The words slipped out of her lips without a second thought, although perhaps, getting high with her boyfriend’s brother probably wasn’t the best idea if she was trying to impress the Hirsches. Still, she felt as though it was polite to offer. At his comment, however, her brows shot up slightly. “I mean, there was a reason why I left the island for a long time.” A faint chuckle surprisingly fell from her mouth, as she continued. “How come, if you don’t mind me asking?” Not that she blamed Aaron for feeling such way, because she knew that sentiment just too well. Apparently their lives just seemingly became an interesting topic of conversation for people, not that she thought her life to be of interest to anyone at all.

“Tell me about it,” Ava nodded in agreement. It was a cycle of reluctance before instant regret hit when the questions became all too much to her. “It is something to do, but surely there’s better things for us to do, right?” The answer came easy at Aaron’s next question, her lips pursed slightly before she spoke. “My stepmother doesn’t exactly take no for an answer, like, ever.” She gave him a smile, shrugging lightly before turning to him. “What about you? I’m guessing you didn’t come here by choice either.” 

“You have absolutely no idea how much I’d love to say yes to that offer,” Aaron said with a shake of his head, the beginnings of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “But I can’t.” He didn’t know if Ava would ask or not the reasons why, but he needed to make it clear that it was something he could do right now, not just a case of trying to behave or whatever. There would always be a little voice in the back of his head screaming to go down that path again and he knew a joint would only kick start it all again. Better to stay 100% clean in every way. As Ava continued on, he let a breath go slowly, shrugging his shoulders. “Too many questions mostly,” he told her. “Not so bad now really, but several years ago it was pretty much a nightmare for me.” There were only so many times you could hear the question ‘so when are you going to make an honest woman of that girl, huh?’ before it drove you to distraction, especially when it was the last thing you wanted.

Denial and stupidity. Angry at myself. Teddy could only assume this had to do with keeping his sexual orientation private for the longest time. Cognizant of Aaron’s wishes, however, he drops his curiosity. They had dipped their toes in the sea of secrets and regrets for far too long, and he could see the other’s reluctance to prod deeper into the subject. That the other man had begun toying with the silverware in front of him just moments prior his utterance had been cue enough for his his discomfort, and Teddy is not nearly so cruel enough to make Aaron even more embarrassed. 

Teddy suspects the conversation would be redirected to him soon. When Aaron brings up the past, he playfully grins, and kicks the other’s leg under the table in mock-retaliation. “Good times indeed,” he remarks, letting out a laugh.  He is blessedly able to keep his smile together as Aaron brings up the idea that Teddy’s life had been comparatively smooth-sailing. 

“Guess I might be. But I think it helped I wasn’t saddled with too many priorities.” That was the truth, at least — he can’t quite imagine reaping the same success if he had a child. “But you know how ruthless I can get. It just eventually translated to work. And relationships. But then marriage wasn’t probably for me, in the end,” he lets out a shrug, before continuing. “But you know how it is. Life never really pans out the way you want it.” 

These days it was rare for Aaron to clam up and stop talking about things. In fact, most of the time, you’d have trouble even shutting him up. But this was different. Despite the fact he’d opened up to the majority of people he knew now, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of awkwardness whenever the subject came up —- even if he had brought it up himself. It was shame, not of what he’d been keeping hidden, but the fact that he had at all. Life could have been so different if he’d simply chosen different things on the day that Elena had been born. A small part of him would always regret that.

A laugh escaped him when Teddy chose to kick him under the table and he took his head. “I didn’t actually mean that... not exactly,” he responded, playful roll of his eyes accompanying what he had to say. Teddy’s response wasn’t exactly surprising, though, every time he mentioned it, he seemed to receive something similar.

One immediate step after another, Georgina began to repeat the similar motions from the prior exhibit ─ feeling her heartbeat escalate. It causes the walls of her throat to tighten, causing her to start shouting out Jonah’s name from her diaphragm. She understood the constricted schedule did not sit well with the seven-year-old boy, as his temper tantrum show during lunch terminated the erupting of noise from everyone two hours ago. It made everyone finish off their lunch quickly, so they could move on and forget what just happened.

However, the situation began to replay in her conscience the further she wanders into the current exhibit. During lunch, something the young boy stated is working its way to the forefront ─ the Dueling Dinosaurs. She’s not sure if it’s a lightbulb moment; however, Jonah had been persistent on seeing this fossil and learn about it in depth. When the group passed by the enclosed fossil, the young boys’ feet glue to the tiled floor underneath him with palms of his hands pressing against the glass. So as she takes a moment to process the information, the buzzing sensation from her iPhone captures her attention:

Geo [2.17 PM]: Ok! I think I may have an idea of where he’s at? Geo [2.18 PM]: Do you remember him discussing the Dueling Dinosaur Fossil? He was persistent on seeing it… maybe he’s there?  Geo [2.20 PM]: Do you remember what exhibit it is?

Perhaps this detail will put things into perspective for them both with the minimizing time left on their hands.

*

The texts from Geo came through just as Aaron reached the top of the staircase and had rounded the corner to the exhibits. She had a good point. Jonah had been interested in it all, but some reason that particular fossil had caught his attention more than the others, he’d wanted to stay and look a little longer, yet time hadn’t been on their side. Time never was on their side when it came to field trips, something that often frustrated him when they were out with the kids.

Aaron [2.21 PM]: I remember. Aaron [2.22 PM]: The last room I think. I’ll meet you there.

Immediately he did an about turn and raced back to the stairs, jogging down them as quickly as he could safely. It only took another thirty seconds or so before he reached the final room, his gaze scanning over all the exhibits, calling out the young boy’s name as he moved. Then he spotted him, crouched down on the floor, hands pressed to the glass, his orange shirt quite obvious now. Aaron moved towards him, calling out his name again to grab his attention before firing off a quick text to Geo once more.

Aaron [2.24 PM]: Got him.

There had been a time when he was young that Ethan had mapped out his entire life, to the point where he even had coloured coded goals he wanted to achieve once he reached a certain age milestone. The image had long since faded from his memory but he remembered that marriage and kids were written down for his early thirties in sky blue, his favourite colour for his favourite dream. And that’s how it remained - a dream. Ethan would no way even entertain that idea now, that was a pipedream now. But he smiled when Aaron spoke of Elena, nodding along, “All the luck to to you, I think teenage years are worse than the baby ones, but I’m only assuming here. But then again, my sisters were horrors as both,” he ended with a laugh.

Nodding once at the confirmation, Ethan set about re-making the order.  It would’ve been easier to re-heat it, but having done that once already, Ethan knew doing it again would compromise the taste. Besides, the day was just beginning he could ice it and resell, and no one would be any the wiser. “Well, that’s good because this will take approximately five minutes.”

*

“From what I’ve heard, apparently so,” answered Aaron with a very casual shrug, a smile teetering on his lips. “I know I was pretty bad, as was my sister...” It didn’t matter how many times he spoke to other people about it and how some would reassure him, others panic him even more, he was absolutely convinced that Elena’s teen years would be a complete and utter disaster. It wasn’t great really, the lack of confidence he held over the whole thing. But he didn’t actually go out of his way to let anyone know he was feeling that way. What would be the point?

A nod and a smile, and then, “Sounds good.” He left Ethan alone to make his coffee for a moment or two before finding himself wanting to know more about the other man, how things were for him these days. “How’s the new place treating you? The guy I’ve got living next door now is definitely nowhere near as nice...” It was a double entendre really, considering what had been going on between them at one point, but it was true, his now neighbour refused to even speak a lot of the time. 

Was it wrong, attempting to be civil? In truth, Emma was never secretive about her bitterness. She never quite took the time to understand the Hirsch family. Not even when she was Rory’s bride. From the outside, she’s sure she came off as a passive woman, undeserving of him. And, in some jarring way, perhaps this much was true. It’s not like Emma could take it all back, to wash her hands of the people who she once considered family. These days, the only Hirsch sibling she sees more often than not is Ardin. He was the only one that didn’t make her feel like she could easily crawl out of her skin. Though, even that was a stretch. 

Despite this, she remains as mundane as she could, arms crossed over her chest as she looks upon her once brother in law. A gentle, though slightly forced, smile graces her expression. It’s the kind of smile you offered someone as a makeshift, quick goodbye. “I think you’re right. I’ll go with those, then.” Emma pauses before continues, “Aaron. It’s nice to see you.” Was it? Now Emma just feels like a liar, which doesn’t quite bode well with her already damaged sense of self. “It’s been a while. How is everyone?” Not that she believes Aaron would know. From what she could gather, especially as her days as a pseudo-Hirsch, none of them ever seemed very close. 

*

This really was about as far as things went these days, the pleasantries if they happened to be in the same place at the same time... but then, Aaron couldn’t actually remember a time when he’d ever really known Emma, much like with Ardin’s ex-wife. The Hirsches weren’t known for being close and that seemed to automatically apply to their extended family, too. He wasn’t entirely sure that things would ever change either, although they could live in hope.

“Good choice.” A nod and the smile stayed put on his features. Perhaps not everyone would agree, but from what he’d seen of the flowers, they made more of an impact than roses and that was good enough for him. “Nice to see you, too,” was his instantaneous response. There they went with the niceties again. Automatic when it came to them. At her words, he nodded in agreement, pausing to mull over her question for a moment or two and provide a proper answer. “Oh, they’re good,” he said. “From what I know anyway.” A brief silence, and then he added, “How’re you? How’s Adam? It’s been a couple of weeks since Elena saw him, so she’s missing him...” He had to laugh a little, how close the cousins seemed considering how close their parents weren’t.

It isn’t that the Hirsches are incurious about one another. He’s convinced there is love there, despite the absence of profound conversations over the years. In the same manner as their mother and father not having divorced, even as their world turned upside-down in Robert’s death, their devotion to one another persisted. It is the transparency over their struggles that had seemed the matter of contention. And, of course, Rory cannot help but be curious at his brother’s words — far too vague to reveal anything, but too deliberately placed in the topic of secrecy that he zones in on the matter immediately. 

He attempts to bury his curiosity, instead going back to the topic of children. Elena’s playful scream that had accompanied his son’s own elicits a small jolt of surprise out of him. Who knew children could be so loud, but a fitful of chuckles escapes his lips anyway, knowing their children’s laughter is far better than the opposite. He’s not quite sure he could handle his son crying. “Oh, God, I can’t even think about that just yet,” he chuckles, “I do hope Adam has better luck than me during high school, though. Dating in high school is the worst.” 

Still, the nagging feeling comes back. For a moment, he thinks to attempt burying his curiosity again, but then remembers it’s that stubborn streak of theirs to hide their struggles that had made them so distant from one another. And so, Rory dares to ask. “Hey, about secrets… is there, uh, anything you want to say?” He says, trying his best to inject some lightness into their situation with a small smile. “I’m sure it’s nothing too bad, you don’t have to apologize for it,” he reassures, though his concern remains elevated. “Is everything okay?”

*

Sometimes Aaron forgot that he hadn’t really had the conversation with Rory. Ellie had always known, he’d gone to see Ardin especially to tell him, the same with their mother, but then the anniversary of their father had occupied so much, as had the holidays, so things had gone a little to the wayside. It had been easy to get distracted by other things and just let time move on without going out of his way to say anything to his older brother. Maybe that could be considered cruel or neglectful, but he’d found himself almost consumed with wanting to get on with life, that he’d easily let things slip.

At the mention of dating in high school, he couldn’t help but wrinkle his nose very slightly, but a laugh still escaped him. To everyone else it probably seemed like he’d had it together, but deep down that couldn’t have been further from the truth —- he’d been on the edge and deeply unhappy with what he was presenting to the world. “That is never easy, you’re not wrong,” he responded, although kept his smile easy as he spoke, not wanting to give away those insecurities.

As the conversation continued, he found himself chewing very idly at the inside of his cheek, his brother’s words (his question) having a deeper meaning. “What? You mean like the fact I’ve always been gay and mom was delusional for most of Elena’s childhood that I was living the dream. That secret, you mean?” Easier to simply rip off the band aid and just blurt it all out without thinking. He shrugged a second later, not entirely sure if Rory would accept what he’d said or think he was kidding around. “So apologies are necessary, because I should have told you before.”

STATER FOR: Anyone … Open / @catalinastarter​  LOCATION: Carmichael Roses Co. DATE AND TIME: February 1st, 2021. 2:00PM.

A touch of lipstick will do you good, or so Emma’s been told. Today, she searches far and wide inside her home, looking for at least one tube of lipstick. She didn’t wear makeup, too much of a hassle, too much stimulation. But today feels different. After seeing a client about their new home, she thinks to apply just a little at the center of her mouth. By some miracle, she finds a lipstick in an old handbag of hers. It’s a subtle shade of pink, a close match to her lips already. She looks quietly at her reflection for much too long after it’s applied, a sinking feeling emerging within the pit of her belly. Alas, she persists, heading out for the day.

Granted, it was only the early afternoon, but Emma feels as though she was muddled with doubt. Or perhaps she was being stared at, her appearance now jarring. She nervously picks at the sleeves of her sweater, padding around the open gardens. “Which…would you prefer?” Emma says on impulse to a stranger, staring at an open display of flowers. “To, um, decorate your home hypothetically. Hydrangeas or roses?”

In recent weeks, Aaron kept finding himself at places he hadn’t frequented all that much for a long time, but he was trying to get back into a lifestyle that he’d left behind. Today that meant picking up flowers for Elena’s mom, just as a gesture, to try and get things back to feeling a little more normal. They did get on, of course, but there would always be a slight edge of awkwardness. He wanted to try and ease that any way that he could. One of the plus points of coming here, of course, meant he could also take a walk around the gardens while he did his flower shopping.

What he didn’t expect, however, was to bump into someone familiar as he rounded a corner. She was already speaking to someone else as he approached and so he hovered a moment, waiting for a natural break in the conversation. “ Hydrangeas...” he supplied eventually, “That’s what I’d go for. Not that I’m an expert in flowers or anything.” He waited until she turned to continue, this time pushing a small smile onto his features. “Hello, Emma.” 

While the dinosaur exhibit’s grounds happen to be vast, three spacious exhibits with a monstrous dinosaur in the center of each room upon your greeting, they have a general idea of how to execute this recovery plan with a time crunching. It adds an unexpected wave of anxiety to consume Geo now, but there’s no time for letting those emotions overtake her when this entire situation is a pastime in due time. So, before they officially part ways, the mother gives Aaron a nod of a head and a weak smile, “I’ll keep you updated,” her silvery falsetto reassures. hoping Jonah didn’t wander else because that would put a dampen into their plan. So, in a rapid motion, her iPhone 12 Pro Max sitting in the pit of her hand waves at him as a reminder to keep his phone nearby.

After the phone motion, she pivots on her flats heel to proceed to the right because there’s no time to waste. Every couple of steps, intuitive hazel hues scan the surroundings as she calls out for Jonah’s name ─ taking it upon herself to crouch down and make sure the seven-year-old didn’t want to play hide and seek from the adults looking for him. So as she repeats this routine religiously, eventually, Geo finds herself near the point where they started. It came with a sigh of defeat, feeling this task will be more challenging than her conscience expected. So she opened her phone to send Aaron a text as she wanders to the next adjacent dinosaur museum:

Geo [2.15 PM]: Nothing on the right side. I’m heading into the next exhibit right now.

But Geo doesn’t remain fixed on her iPhone since her eyes need to scan the following surroundings to make sure she didn’t pass by Jonah and miss him due to her being pre-occupied. It’s why before she enters into the next exhibit, a rapid glance over her shoulder observes the surroundings before entering the following presentation with a steadfast Jonah parting from her lips every couple of steps only for quietude to greet her in return.

*

As the pair parted ways, Aaron made sure to pull his phone from his back pocket, keeping a tight grip on it as he wandered the exhibit in search of Jonah. He only hoped this wouldn’t take too long and the young boy had stayed pretty much put in his favourite area. As much as it was a probability, he didn’t want to go exploring the whole museum tonight.

He weaved back and forth through the left-hand side of the dinosaur exhibit, ducking down occasionally to make sure he hadn’t crawled anywhere he shouldn’t have. Every now and again, the sound of his voice called across the room, almost echoed by Geo’s. So far he wasn’t having any luck and was quick in informing the older woman of this fact as he moved into the next room. It was then the stairs to the mezzanine of the same exhibit caught his attention and he paused a moment to chew idly on his lower lip.

Aaron [2.16 PM]: Running upstairs to check.

With that he was racing on up the stairs, taking two at a time as he called out Jonah’s name once again. He didn’t even remember coming up here earlier, so maybe there was a good chance the boy had taken matters into his own hands and come exploring. Not ideal, of course, but it made sense. He passed a family on the stairs and proceeded to question if they’d seen him, but he only received no’s in response, how they hadn’t noticed anything. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t up there, of course, so Aaron continued on.

As much as he wanted to agree with that statement, his mind already elaborating one of those feedback reports of self-improvement to the young man, that could have easily handled the situation gracefully and with a more sense of people skills, after all, he only needed to call on one of the senior employees or the manager. Or let Thomas enter the club to be salute with a little slap in the back and calls of ‘Tommy boy’ by the elders that never seem to leave that place and even when he was younger were already growing old there. but then again, he was once a young man and bored out of his mind in this island and he could (try) and put some perspective into the boy’s situation. “First time I’ve seen him here to be fair, it’s always this other girl and she is nice or was.” He says, raising a brow at the new raising of information.

Thomas raises from the chair he was waiting for, it was a bit too much now to wait for the receptionist to come back, so, again, maybe his old friend was right. “Maybe we should just go inside.” He suggest. “How much trouble that, can cost? I can take a quick shower and I have a change of clothes in my locker.” Which was exactly what he told the front desk.

*

“Or we could do that,” answered Aaron with a laugh. “And here was me thinking you needed help.” He shrugged his shoulders very casually, it was obviously no skin off his nose if Thomas just slipped on inside without the say so from the higher ups in this place. Hell, he’d have been trying to do the same if someone was refusing to let him in. The last thing he had time for was something as petty as that. He hovered for the briefest of moments, and then with a slight spring in his step headed for the door that led to the main part of the country club. “Let’s go, then.”

Admittedly, he had been thinking of going home again, but at least this gave him something to do for five minutes. All he needed lately was a distraction of some sort, something to keep him busy between looking after Elena and his time at work. 

Her intention tonight wasn’t exactly to get high, per se — Ava thought she could withstand a few hours of grilling from Evelyn’s friends, but it turned out her wounds from the past year hadn’t healed quite properly as she hoped, but merely they were bandaged over clumsily as other events in her life took precedent instead. Why people ought to feel the need to wedge themselves into other’s businesses, it would forever be a mystery to her. Although the last thing she’d expected, was her boyfriend’s brother to catch her red-handed. Not that Aaron wasn’t a welcoming company, even if they didn’t know each other well enough, but rather, she hoped to make a good impression with all of the Hirsches, especially with her relationship with Rory coming to light in the past month.

For a moment, Ava wondered if she ought to extinguish the blunt or let it burn away until she was left to her own device again. But ultimately, her heart was still thumping against her ribcage, and she couldn’t help but bring it towards her lips again, before turning to Aaron. “I would say it’s not what it’s looks like, but I think that’ll just be a shitty thing to say,” She gave him a sheepish smile, before continuing. “I promise I’m not like this all the time, it’s just—” She turned toward the double French doors, a sigh slipped from her lips. “It’s a little too much inside, isn’t it?” 

Aaron’s brow lifted when Ava said what she did, the idea of ‘it’s not what it looks like’ as pointless as she’d said. It was quite obvious what it was. As she continued, though, he found himself smiling, folding his arms casually across his chest as he leant against the wall not far from where she was. “It’s been a little too much for me for over a decade,” he answered, his shoulders lifting and falling in a nonchalant shrug. There was a reason he’d spent so long avoiding the place and all the questions that came with a visit. Truth was he’d often spend his time there drinking until he could barely function anymore. It was the best way.

At his brother’s own inquiry towards his private life, Rory pauses briefly, almost instinctively. It takes him a second to remember that there’s no need to keep it a secret anymore. They had kept it secret for so long from both their families that it had felt almost strange to be so free of the usual constraints. “I am, yes. Do you know Ava? The Halliwells?” He says, his smile bright though a tinge somber. Remembering the fallout that had come when he’d refused to disclose it to Ardin, he clears his throat and, with a conciliatory tone, offers: “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you before. It was a bit… complicated, to say the least, for a while there.” In the most technical of terms, Rory had even been the third party. “But I’ll spare you the details.” He says, with a slight wave of his hand and a light laugh. 

Then comes the vague notions of a promise. Only then does Rory realize that promises are something they hadn’t really done before, certainly not between each other. And so consequently, he smiles, bright and genuine, though it falls slightly and is accompanied with a slight wince when Aaron reminds them of the next chapter in their children’s lives. “Oh, God, thirteen,” he says, letting out a chuckle, “I’m not looking forward to that at all. I’m pretty sure our children have inherited our wild streaks somewhere. It’s just waiting to explode or something.” As if on cue, he hears a scream from the bedroom in which their children have retreated — WAIT, YOU WERE THE IMPOSTOR? — and Rory, in turn, erupts into a fitful of chuckles. “See? It’s already starting!” 

Aaron wasn’t at all surprised by the silence that followed his question, it was pretty new territory for them, discussing their private lives in any kind of detail. Not that he had anything of interest to share. Apparently luck wasn’t much on his side at the moment. Maybe one day soon, though, you never did know what life would throw at you. “I know Ava, yeah,” he responded with a nod, a small smile pulling at his lips. He’d met her a couple of times at events and things both their families were at, but not enough to know her properly —- not really. “You don’t need to apologise. Not like we’ve been in the habit of telling each other much at all over the years.” He shrugged lightly. “If you’re apologising for that, I should definitely be apologising for keeping things from you for so long...” Maybe it was a little different, but it was the same sentiment.