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“What can I say… I have learned how to kick annoying guys off me early on. I am not scared of his brothers. I just want to be there for Aden.”

“You will be fine,” she reassures me. “Thank you for doing this for him, Noel.”

I try not to show it, but her words really mean a lot to me. Aden is picky with his friends, and he told me she is his only true friend, his best friend. I want her to like me, but I want her to like me for me, not someone who puts on a show. Fortunately, she seems to approve of the real me.

The only things helping me get through this awful work-filled week were my date with him on Wednesday, which we spent at his place with him cooking for me, because there is nothing this guy can’t do, and my meeting with the lawyer. Anticipating the meeting kept me on the edge of a nervous breakdown for days, until the meeting actually happened, and it was so uneventful, even bordering on boring, that it blew my mind. The man was friendly and polite, and just collected all the data, plus told me what he would do, how he would go about it and what he needed from me. He also looked pretty pleased and confident, telling me it was a relatively easy case for him to handle.

Talk about boosting my confidence and helping me regain some hope for my situation.

Besides, there is also knowing I am seeing Aden for a whole weekend. It doesn’t even matter that it’s with his family.

“Did you bring everything?” Aden asks. “If not, I can lend you something.” He pauses, angling for something in his pocket. “Oh, and I forgot this here.”

I blink when he hands me a key. “What’s that?”

“A key.”

“Yeah, I see that.” I grin. “I mean, what does it unlock?”

Aden looks at me, completely confused, before he gestures at his front door.

“Wait a moment?” I blurt out. “This unlocks your house for me?”

“Yes, obviously. What else would I keep locked up and you’d need a key for?” Aden puts his notebook into his bag, closing it safely, before grabbing two books. “You are often working late, and sometimes your shift ends before I come home. I want you to be able to come here and wait, if you want to.”

While Aden seemingly is about to move on from this conversation, I can barely grasp it. “Aden…”

“Hm, anything wrong?”

“This is big,” I mutter. “This is so big.”

“Listen, Noel.” He puts his books aside and takes my hand. “You don’t need to take it if it’s too much for you.”

“No, I want it! It’s just… isn’t it too soon? Should you trust me that much? I could do God knows what when you are away and I am here.”

“Would you?” he asks.

“Of course not!”

“Then it’s fine,” he says. “Listen, I know we are going fast, but we did that from the first moment on.”

“True,” I admit.

“I want you to have this key, so you are safe. You work two rather dangerous jobs in a dangerous part of town, and live in an equally dangerous area. I’ll just feel better to know you are here, or that you at least know you have the option to come here. I am not asking you to move in with me.“ He pauses. “Yet. I just want you to know that you are welcome anytime.”

I can’t believe any of this. What is even happening? When I started dating Aden, I was so insecure about this potential relationship. I wanted to go slow, yet not even a couple of days later, he introduced me as his boyfriend, and I landed in bed with him.

And now he is handing me the key to his home.

A small voice in the back of my head keeps telling me it can’t be true. That he is mocking me or just doing this out of a mood, that a guy like him would never date someone as worthless as I am.

You are worthless. I should never have had you.

At least make yourself useful.

I shake the thought off, thinking about what Lynn said to me, and how she reacted to Aden and me dating. I think about our talk at the playground where he opened up to me. He obviously has his own demons, and he jumped into this relationship just like I did. It’s the same risk for him.

“Thank you.” I carefully attach the key to my keychain. “I would give you a key to my place in return, but I really don’t want you to hang out there.”