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thirty-one

*NOEL*

M ateo and Lynn carry my cupboard inside, both of them laughing because Mateo is so tall, he constantly hits his head somewhere. He has always been insecure about his height, but Lynn is pretty tall too, and it seems that together with her, he sees everything much lighter.

“This one goes in the corridor upstairs?” Lynn asks me.

“Yes. Are you two okay?”

“We are coping,” Mateo grins. They put the cupboard down for a moment to catch their breath.

“This is nice,” Lynn muses, brushing over the wooden surface with her hand. “Good quality.”

“The only quality piece I own,” I admit. “It was my dad’s. He sold everything else, but somehow forgot he had that one in the garage. I always liked it. As a kid, it gave me fairytale vibes.”

I don’t own much, so moving isn’t exactly a big deal for me. Aden wanted to hire someone to do it for us, but after I showed him what we needed to move, he saw reason and just rented a bigger car to be able to transport my stuff in one go.

Plus, all of our friends offered to help out. I am happy that Lynn and Mateo are here, in particular. After the drama I caused a week ago when I ran to the lake house, I am glad I can show Lynn that I am not that unstable.

I am lucky to have such amazing friends. No one called me out on what happened, not even Lynn, and she certainly had the most reason to do so. For one, she is Aden’s friend and probably worried about him; and second, she was there and saw everything first-hand.

I talked to her briefly about what happened to make sure she knows I would never betray Aden, but she assured me that she knew what happened and why, and that I don’t need to apologize to her.

As for Mateo and Sterling, they were just relieved to hear that Aden and I talked it out and found a constructive way around our issue.

“Did you and Aden truly buy that old house from Sterling?” Lynn asks, successfully pulling me out of my thoughts.

“Yes, we did. Aden had the contract set up yesterday,” I say.

“He was over the moon,” Mateo says. “I mean Sterling. I think that despite how much he despised his grandfather, he is glad that his old family property fell into your hands now, and he knows you are going to renovate it and not bulldoze the whole area. Plus, he can pay Roxanna’s student loan now.”

“So, that’s how he will use the money,” I muse. “I figured.”

“He is going to pay for her education fully now,” Mateo says. “And guess what, he paid some of my student debt too, plus put down the deposit for a new apartment. He wants to own a bigger place, so he can do his art there peacefully.”

“That is amazing!” I exclaim.

Mateo smiles and nods. He doesn’t mention it, but I know that ever since Sterling came under Aden’s mentorship, Mateo’s salary has increased a lot.

He gets a certain percentage of the sales and also a salary from Sterling himself.

At the beginning, he did most of it for free, but now it’s a full-time job, and Ster is the last one who would rip off a friend.

He couldn’t have done it without Mateo, and he knows it.

I have also heard that there are other artists reaching out to Mateo now, to have him as their manager.

I am just so happy to see both my friends flourishing.

“Do you need help with the cupboard?” I ask.

“No, you were busy in the kitchen, weren’t you?” Lynn asks.

“Yes, Aden and I ordered a bunch of utensils for me,” I explain. “I am going to a few barkeeping courses soon and want to practice at home.”

“Aden is lucky,” Lynn sighs.

“All the more reason for you to visit us often,” I point out.

Lynn grins. “Don’t need to tell me again, because I will definitely come over plenty.” She looks at me with a smile. “I told you once, Noel, and I stick to it: This is good. You and Aden are really good together.”

Instead of rebuffing her by telling her how I think he is too good for me and that he brings more to the table than a nutcase like I do, I decide to have confidence in my relationship and show it. “I love being with Aden,” I tell her. “He is amazing.”

“He says the same about you,” Mateo says. He stretches his muscles. “Well then, Lynn, love, are we ready to get this upstairs?”

“We are,” Lynn turns to me with a soft smile. “He calls me ‘babe’,” she whispers. “And ‘love’. No guy ever did that.”

I give her the thumbs up and nod. It’s very Mateo to shower his significant other with love and respect. I am glad she reciprocates.

While the two of them continue their way upstairs, another person comes through the front door. “Where do you want these two boxes?” Sterling asks, without putting them down.

“They should have a label,” I say. “Wait, let me check.” I study them before nodding. “Bedroom, please.”

As Sterling walks past me, he smiles. “I am very happy for you,” he says.

Nothing more, but between him and Mateo, he is less forthcoming with words, so it makes me happy he comments on my decision.

Knowing I have his and Mateo’s approval means something special to me, actually more than I can imagine.

While Sterling stumbles upstairs, Cedric seeks me out. “I am going to organize some lunch for us. Mr. Randall usually eats around that time in the office.”

“Thank you, try to keep it simple.”

“I was thinking about wraps,” he says. “Won’t make much waste and are easy to eat.”

I nod my approval, grinning when Cedric dashes off full of motivation. Despite his chipper attitude and his lack of experience, the guy is a born assistant. Strangely, he always knows what Aden wants. Thinking about Aden makes me want to look for him immediately.

He is in the living room, talking to the carpenter about the small bar we had designed for me. I wait for him to be done talking before hugging him from behind. Aden turns around, brushing through my hair. “Is everything okay?”

He is still worried about me. Well, after the way I had a full-fledged panic attack and ran to hide at Sterling’s—our—house at the lake not even a week ago, I get why he is nervous.

“I am fine,” I reassure him. “I promise, if anything even remotely triggers me, I will tell you. But really, Mom hasn’t reached out to me, and she is usually my biggest trigger. ”

“I am not trying to be patronizing,” he says. “I am just a little worried.”

It reminds me of how he said that my disappearing triggers him, too. I guess we’ll both need some time to adapt to our new realities, and I probably need to be more aware of the things I do that might hurt him.

“I have reached out to the therapist Cedric recommended,” I tell him.

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, I did so yesterday. I was early at work and did some paperwork for the boss, then figured I could use the thirty minutes I had before opening to make that call.” I pause. “Cedric is really good.”

“I know,” Aden chuckles. “He has a passion for the job, which is why I hired him. Plus, I don’t get on his nerves.”

“You could never get on anyone’s nerves!” I exclaim.

“You say that because you have rose-tinted glasses on and are obviously head over heels in love with me,” he says in that usual dry humor, he only shows me and, sometimes, Lynn.

“I am confident you could never get on my nerves,” I add.

“That’s what I am hoping for, too,” he says. “But at work, I guess, I can be a perfectionist. My other assistants hated my guts. Cedric, however, doesn’t mind.”

“You click with him,” I agree. It’s so funny, though, since Aden and Cedric are nothing alike.

How in the world these two can work together so well is beyond my understanding, and I know it’s also beyond Lynn’s.

She is just happy he finally has someone who can keep up with him, and I am happy that Cedric is nice, honest, and genuinely wants to do his job well.

Aden puts an arm around my shoulder. “So, you gave the therapist a call?”

“Yes, his first open spot is next month, but I’ll definitely be seeing him then.” I pause. “If… and I am not even sure it will happen–but if he wants to see you too, would you really come?”

“Yes,” he says promptly, then hesitates for a moment. I am almost scared he will go back on his promise, but then Aden shrugs. “I think I should probably see someone myself. Wouldn’t do any harm, would it?”

“I think it would be good,” I admit. “You have a lot of baggage from your upbringing to boot, and… then there was Emil.”

“I thought I moved past it all,” he admits. “But I feel like I do carry some baggage in my relationship with you, and with Lynn and Mom.”

I nod, making sure to put on a serious expression. “Wherever you go, go with all your heart.”

“God, Noel,” Aden snorts. “In which cheesy calendar did you read that one?”

I grin, happy that my little joke hit. “No calendar. A fortune cookie!”

Aden looks at me, amused. “It’s amazing how you manage to surprise me daily.”

“Is that good or bad?”

“Good,” he says, winking at me. “Keep the surprises coming.”