Page 38 of Stuck with You

Aiden’s smirk broadened. “His lockdown girlfriend,” he repeated. “You know, a romantic female companion to help him get through these terrible days.”

“I know what a girlfriend is.”

“Well, that’s a relief. I’m just surprised you’d go for someone so much younger than you…”

I shook my head, trying to dislodge this insane conversation from my brain. “I’m not dating your twelve-year-old brother.”

“You can tell me. I mean, it’s odd, but it’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

“I’m not dating your brother!”

My fingers itched to slap the annoying smile from his face. I wasn’t normally a violent person—unless it involved killing zombies in video games, but Aiden certainly knew how to bring out that side of me.

Aiden shrugged, but his smile was devious. “Okay, if you insist.”

He turned to walk away from me, leaving me in a state of total frustration. He stopped when he reached the bottom of the staircase and glanced back at me though. His expression had completely changed, and a flicker of sorrow had entered his eyes. “And Clary? I’m sorry your parents can’t get home. If you ever need to talk, I’m here.”

I slowly nodded, and he shared a genuine smile with me before disappearing up the stairs without another word. I stood there staring after him in shock. The whole interaction had been completely confusing. But the most bizarre part was the way I felt as I watched him go. I didn’t know whether I wanted to hit Aiden or hug him.

12

Aiden

It was nearly midday, and Clary still hadn’t emerged from her room. She’d been in there since she’d finished playing video games with Elliot yesterday afternoon, and I was growing worried. It was times like these I wished my mom were around more often. I felt like she’d know what to do to cheer Clary up.

Unfortunately, Mom was pulling another extended stint at the hospital today, and asking Elliot to play video games with Clary again was also off the cards. He’d been happy enough to spend time with her yesterday, but now he insisted it was eating into his “precious” gaming time. I considered trying to convince him, but since he’d already spent a whole afternoon with Clary, I felt bad pushing him. The smile on Clary’s face when she’d left Elliot’s room yesterday had me tempted though.

When we were kids, she loved playing video games. She used to wear T-shirts with funny gaming slogans or pictures of her favorite characters on the front to school. She was so different from the other girls in our class. It was part of the reason I’d started crushing on her in the first place. Clary wasn’t like everyone else. She never had been.

Since Mom and Elliot weren’t an option today, it was up to me to keep Clary company. I was the last person she’d want to spend time with, but I still felt like she shouldn’t be alone right now. Surely, I was better than nothing? I chuckled under my breath as I imagined how Clary would reply to such a question. Yeah, she’d probably rather stay all by herself, but I wasn’t going to let that happen.

I walked to the guest room and lightly knocked. She didn’t answer, which was hardly surprising. She probably suspected I was the one standing on the other side of the door and was hoping I’d go away if she stayed silent. I couldn’t let her keep drowning in her own misery though, so I ignored her silence and let myself in.

When I opened the door, the room was dark with the curtains closed and the overhead light off. A shapeless form was huddled under the bedcovers. It didn’t look like Clary had made it out of bed at all today. I went over and jumped on the bed beside her. “So, what are we doing?”

She groaned and blinked open an eye to glare at me. It was amazing how she could show such derision with a single look. I smiled in return, knowing it only annoyed her more when her anger bounced right off my skin. I found something about her irritation highly appealing. She was like a cute kitten trying to run her claws across my skin, and instead of inflicting pain, all she did was lightly tickle me.

“Good morning, sunshine,” I added.

All I got was a scowl in return.

“Or should I say good afternoon? It’s almost past twelve now.”

Clary let out a small moan as she sat up in bed. Her hair was a mess, and her eyes were puffy. It looked like she’d been crying, and a pang of guilt twisted my stomach. I knew she was upset about her parents but I didn’t realize it was this bad.

“Why are you in here?” she asked as she gently rubbed her eyes.

“I think the more pressing concern is why are you still in here? You haven’t left your room all day.”

“I’ve been busy,” she replied.

“Yes, I can see that. Don’t you think you should get out of bed though?”

She sighed and glanced down at the bedcovers that were still wrapped around her but didn’t respond. It seemed like she didn’t have the energy to come up with a reasonable answer.

“So, what have you been doing in here?” I pressed.

She let out another sigh. “Moping, I guess.”

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