Page 123 of Killing Me Softly

A dawning smile broke across Kenny’s face. It was all he’d thought about while trapped in the hospital, surrounded by death and memories too thick to breathe through. Gettingout.GettingAaronout. Leaving behind the ghosts, the shadows, the expectations that had long overstayed their welcome. Walking away from all the old wounds that had kept them both tethered here. With his mother gone, there was nothing tying him here. No real reason to stay. He had his job, of course. But he could get a job somewhere else.

Ifhe wanted one.

“Then let’s put that down as a plan,” Kenny said. “I’ll need to look into university jobs. Find a professorship somewhere. Selling this house. Putting Mum’s affairs in order. Maybe there’s enough in her savings for a deposit somewhere. You can finish your degree…”

“You don’t need a deposit.”

Kenny frowned. “We’ll need one to buy somewhere else. Or even to rent until we know where we want to be.”

Aaron turned to him fully, eyes glinting with something Kenny couldn’t place.

“I said,” Aaron repeated, slower this time, “youdon’t need a deposit.”

Kenny furrowed his brow. “Aaron—”

“Did I not tell you?” He winked. “I’m a millionaire.”

Kenny parted his lips, blinking in disbelief. “Excuse me?”

Aaron shot him a dazzling, shit-eating grin, then abruptly pulled away, launching out of his seat and disappearing into the next room. Kenny heard the rustling, the sound of something being yanked from a hiding place. When he returned, he clutched a tatty, ripped, mud-encrusted, and blood-soaked rucksack.

His old school bag.

Kenny stared at it.

“Lucky Jack retrieved this from evidence.” Aaron dropped onto the sofa next to Kenny, unzipping the bag and rummaging inside to pull out an envelope. He handed it over. “Got this a few days back. Fuck, I don’t even know what day we’re on. Jervine stopped by. On my birthday. Told me I have access to the Howell estate.”

Kenny tugged out the papers, scanning the contents with a sharp, clinical eye. The words blurred for a moment, too much to take in all at once.

“Didn’t know what to do with it, to be honest.” Aaron dropped his head back onto Kenny’s shoulder. “Don’t want any of their blood money. Still might give some of it away. Remember I told you about my mate Jayden?”

Kenny, still blinking at the figures in the paperwork, managed a distracted, “From your care home?”

“Yeah. He runs an inclusive drama therapy group. Got charitable status. Helps kids in need through drama workshops. Gives them confidence, a place to heal.” Aaron met Kenny’s gaze. “Thought I could donate to him. Still owe him thirty quid, might as well shove a few more zeroes on it. Call it interest.”

Kenny blinked. “That’s…” He cleared his throat. “A wonderful idea. Yes. Yes, you should.”

Aaron hummed, idly playing with Kenny’s fingers. “Then I could use the rest to buy somewhere for us. I ain’t enamoured with usingtheirmoney, but if it gets us away… if it gives us a little peace… then, let’s use it.”

Kenny exhaled, a slow release of something he hadn’t even realised he’d been holding onto.

A future. A way out.

WithAaron.

Withouta power imbalance.

It had always been about getting Aaron out of here. Away from the ghosts, the past, the things keeping him tangled in the ruins of his parents’ crimes. But now, for the first time, Kenny realisedhewanted out, too. Not just for Aaron. But for himself.

Forthem. So they could be each other’s.

Kenny tilted his head, pressing another lingering kiss to Aaron’s temple, feeling the shift between them.

Not an ending.

Abeginning.

Then, after a moment, Aaron moved.

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