Later that evening, Hunter appeared at Aiden's doorstep looking like a mess. Aiden's mother, knowing exactly why he was there, gave him an approving smile before letting him approach Aiden's room.
Hunter found Aiden huddled in his room while curled into a tight ball on his bed looking like a scared puppy. His eyes were red and swollen. Hunter felt his chest tightening and heart clenching in pain at the sight.
Without a word, Hunter sat beside him and pulled Aiden close into a comforting embrace. Aiden flinched at the sudden touch but calmed down when he saw it was Hunter. Hunter didn't need to say much, his presence and his warmth was enough to slowly chase away the agony in Aiden's body. He hugged Hunter back eagerly.
Hunter had been seething with anger that Aiden hadn't told him about Liam sooner, but seeing Aiden so broken right now, he couldn't bring himself to scold him.
"It's okay, I've got you," Hunter ran his fingers through Aiden's soft hair, pressing soft kisses to his temple while whispering reassurances. He felt Aiden's tense shoulders slowly relax, even just a little. He then gently cupped Aiden's face and made sure their eyes met.
"Aiden, no matter what, no matter who the person is, I will always protect you. But you also have to be honest with me. I need to know everything that's going on with you. That's the last time I'm letting this slide. But from now on, you can't hide anything from me. Anything at all."
The thought of what could have happened if Nick hadn't called Hunter sent a fresh wave of terror through Aiden. He couldn't even imagine it. Fresh tears rolled down his already wet cheeks, and he cried harder.
"I...I-I was so s-scared," he choked out, clutching Hunter's shirt. Hunter felt a sharp pang of pain in his own chest. He carefully moved a bit to pull Aiden fully into his lap and held him securely. He rubbed Aiden's back until his frantic sobs gradually calmed, reducing to shuddering breaths. "L-Liam said he would upload our p-pic. He threatened me, Hunter. I didn't want to hide it from you."
Hunter gritted his teeth, holding himself from going and killed that bastard. "Then let him. Do you honestly think we're so weak we can't handle it? Do you think I'm so weak that I'd let some pathetic loser blackmail you? Never, Aiden."
Aiden finally looked up at Hunter and saw the strength and the absolute conviction in his eyes. In that moment, Aiden truly understood how strong his boyfriend was, not just physically, but in spirit too. With Hunter, he felt like he was always safe, always protected, and that nothing could truly hurt him. No matter what, Hunter would always show up to save him.
"I'll never hide anything again, I promise," Aiden whispered and hid his face in Hunter's chest where he felt the most safe.
Hunter's anger towards Aiden completely dissipated then, replaced by an overwhelming wave of affection and relief. He hugged Aiden tightly. Though his anger towards Liam? That was nowhere near calm.
After Aiden's breathing evened out, a sign that he had finally drifted off to sleep, Hunter carefully transferred him from his lap to the softness of his bed. He gently pulled the blanket over him, and leaned down to press a tender kiss to Aiden's forehead.
Sleep well, baby. I will make Liam pay for every single tear you shed tonight. Every. Single. One.
As soon as Hunter walked out of Aiden's room and house, he pulled out his phone and dialed. "Sam? Are you free?"
Sam responded instantly, "What's up? Everything okay?"
"Are you free or not?"
"I'm always free if you need me."
"Alright," Hunter's gaze hardened. "We have something to take care of."
This time, Aiden's mother didn't hold back. Fueled by a mother's wrath and the shocking revelation of Liam's attempted assault, she marched straight to the police station and filed a comprehensive FIR detailing every horrifying aspect of the incident, including Liam's prior stalking behavior. The police investigation began and the news spread like fire.
The school faced a brutal public backlash. Parents were outraged by the lack of supervision and the administration's apparent attempt to cover up the severity of the assault. Within weeks, the school's reputation was in tatters, leading to almost half of the student body being withdrawn by their concerned parents. The silence from the principal's office was deafening.
While the legal battle was just beginning, Liam found himself facing a different kind of justice. Days after his release from the hospital for the injuries sustained at the party, he was attacked again while walking home by two masked men.
They broke his right leg in multiple places. But the true horror came when they deliberately and permanently damaged his eyes forever, leaving him blind. The police investigation yielded no suspects, though whispers quickly spread throughout the student body about who might have been behind the brutal assault.
As the official police investigation into Liam's actions at the school party continued, a darker truth began to untangle. It turned out that Aiden wasn't Liam's only victim. Digging deeper, the authorities uncovered a disturbing pattern. Liam had assaulted many students in his previous school too, some of them were even minors. Each time, his rich and influential parents had pulled strings, using their vast connections and wealth to silence the victims and save him from any consequences.
But not this time. Aiden's mother, who's a woman of formidable resolve and powerful connections, wasn't just any parent. She leveraged her ties to really big political leaders. She ensured that the full force of the law, unhindered by Liam's parents' influence, came down upon him. The evidence, coupled with testimonies from previous victims now emboldened by Aiden's mother's stand. Liam was arrested, charged, and tried. His rich parents couldn't save him this time.
And that's what he got for years of harassing and assaulting others.
Exams ended before anyone knew it. And while Hunter felt a quiet satisfaction in his results. Aiden, on the other hand, was just shocked that he even passed.
"Oh my god, Hunter! I passed! I actually passed!" Aiden cried and launched himself at Hunter in a celebratory way. "How is this even possible?! I told you I'm a genius!"
Hunter chuckled, wrapping his arms around Aiden's waist and kissing the top of his head. "Are you crying because you passed, or because you thought you failed, you silly thing?"
Aiden wailed louder, burying his face into Hunter's chest. "Both! It's just so much! I can't believe it's over!"
Hunter held him close, a soft, nostalgic smile playing on his lips. Where had all the time gone? It felt like just yesterday, not years ago, when he first met Aiden. Aiden also cried on that day as well.
Hunter was small and scared back then. His parents were gone and his aunt, a woman whose every glance felt like a scolding bullied him at home, making him do chores meant for someone twice his age. At school, kids often teased him because his parents never came to pick him up. He learned to walk home alone. Day by day, he became more quiet and observant.
And then, one day at school. While leaving, he saw a small boy loudly sobbing. His friends sitting beside the cry boy kept telling him. "Don't cry! Your parents are coming soon!"
But the boy just kept crying, his little body shaking with hiccups. Hunter watched him from a distance. He was about to leave the crying boy and walk home. He saw crying kids everyday. It's nothing special.
But today, he couldn't take his eyes off the crying boy. He wondered why he was crying so hard. Didn't kids just go home on their own? As the boy's sobs grew harder, two of his friends, looking distraught, finally gave up and ran off to find a teacher. Unconsciously, almost against his will, Hunter found himself walking towards the little cry baby. Hunter, usually a quiet and disciplined kid, didn't understand why he felt an unfamiliar pull towards the boy.
Feeling someone approaching, the crying boy looked up with his little miserable face. Tears track his glistening red chubby cheeks, a small nose equally red and slightly swollen from crying, and wide innocent eyes, still shining with tears, framed by damp lashes. His lower lip pulled out in a pout. He was adorable, despite the mess.
"Who…who a-are you?" he asked in a wobbly voice.
Hunter stared at him bewilderedly, his own adorable round face showing surprise. Not many kids spoke or played with him, except for his teachers. He felt a tiny spark of happiness that this kid had spoken to him. Feeling a sudden surge of something akin to joy, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a candy and extended it towards the crying boy.
It was a rare treat from his uncle who always managed to hide a few candies for Hunter from his aunt, who constantly yelled at him for eating their food.
Seeing the candy, the crying boy's face lit up instantly. He quickly snatched it and clutched it to his chest. He then gave Hunter a pouty suspicious look, as if expecting Hunter to snatch it back.
Seeing the adorable pout, Hunter smiled. "You can have it. No one's going to steal it from you."
"Okay," Hearing this, the boy's smile widened. What's your name?"
"Hunter," he replied softly.
The boy giggled. "Hunter? That's such a silly name!"
Hunter didn't mind. A faint smile touched his own lips. He noticed how much better the boy looked smiling than crying. "What's yours?"
"I'm Aiden!" the boy announced proudly. Aiden then tried to unwrap the candy and couldn't open it. Since it's been resting in Hunter's pocket for so long, it had become a bit sticky.
"Here, let me help," Hunter offered, reaching for it.
Aiden instantly pulled the candy closer, giving Hunter a suspicious look. "You won't eat it?"
Hunter shook his head. "No, I won't eat it. I don't like candies."
It was a white lie, but he'd do anything for this crying boy to stop sobbing.
Aiden frowned adorably. "Who doesn't like candy?"
Instead of answering, Hunter gently took the candy and unwrapped it, and handed it back. Aiden's eyes gleamed and he popped the candy into his mouth, his little cheeks puffing out in happy contentment.
Just then, the two boys who had gone for the teacher rushed back breathless. "Aiden! Your mother's here! She's waiting outside for you. Come on!"
"Mommy!" Aiden's head snapped up, and he quickly jumped to his feet, abandoning his candy wrapper and running as fast as his little legs could carry him towards the school gates.
Hunter watched from afar as the little cry baby scrambled into a waiting car with his mother. Now there was a bright smile on his little face instead of thick tears.
From that day forward, it was Aiden who would find Hunter. No matter how hard Hunter tried to hide, Aiden always found him, popping up with a bright grin. Until finally, Hunter stopped hiding and let Aiden find him whenever he wanted.
Remembering their first meet, Hunter pulled Aiden closer, pressing a kiss to his hair as Aiden's sobs finally subsided into contented sighs. The scent of Aiden's shampoo mixed with his own was warm and comforting. All those memories, those precious moments, made Hunter glad.
Glad he'd mustered the courage to approach that crying boy, glad he'd stopped hiding and let Aiden pull him into friendship, glad he'd finally kissed Aiden that night and hadn't remained a coward. That kiss had brought its share of ups and downs, arguments and misunderstandings, but it was also because of that kiss that they were here together now.
"Hunter! Aiden! Dinner's ready! Come eat before it gets cold!" Mrs. Harvey's cheerful voice boomed from downstairs, pulling them gently back to reality.
Aiden lifted his head and looked at Hunter, his expression suddenly serious. "Hunter, it's time to ask my mom. You promised, remember? After we finish school, we'll live together."
Hunter smiled confidently. "I remember and I meant it."
"Yay!"