Page 36 of We May Be Fractured

“How about giving your aim a go?” Nyle suggested to Aaron, gesturing towards a stall draped in plushies, all hanging like ivy from its roof with tin cans lined up behind them on shelves.

“Even if I was any good, those games are rigged.”

Landon chimed in, the first time he’d spoken to Aaron all day. “So, you’re saying you’re rubbish, then?”

Aaron shot back, “Got another fair game record to break, ‘Lannyster zero zero’?”

With a cheeky smile, Landon handed his drink to Ria. “Hold my chocolate.”

He marched over to the stall like he meant business. Nyle whipped out his phone to film Landon.

Aaron watched, doubtful, but his scepticism quickly faded when Landon knocked down all the cans with three throws. The smug look Landon tossed him afterwards sent a shiver down Aaron’s spine.

The stall guy, equally impressed, told Landon to pick a plushie. Landon chose a tiny one, then strolled back, holding it out. Nyle, jumping up and down, seemed to expect the prize, but Landon sidestepped him and lobbed the toy straight to Aaron.

Aaron caught it just as Nyle’s face dropped in disbelief. The tiny bunny plushie, attached to a keyring, held its arms outstretched as if begging for a cuddle.

“See any resemblance?” Landon teased.

“Yeah, hilarious. What am I supposed to do with this, then?”

“Keep it, bin it, set it on fire for all I care. It’s your problem now.” Landon grabbed his hot chocolate from Ria and wandered off with Nyle, who continued to moan about not getting the plushie.

Aaron examined the little bunny. When he poked its belly, its arms and legs wrapped around his index finger. A smile crept in at the sight of the silly thing before he shoved it into his pocket.

The group approached Nelson’s Column, where everyone pretty much ignored the barriers around the lion statues at the base. Some people even chilled out on the steps of the column.

“Who’s game for sitting up there?” Maeve asked.

Without a second thought, Aaron hopped the barrier and started climbing the monument. Halfway up, he paused when a pair of combat boots stopped in front of him.

“First one to the top wins,” Landon said as he kept moving.

By the time Aaron caught on to the challenge, Landon had already made it to the top, lounging there, looking pleased with himself.

“Beat you to it,” Landon said with a cheeky grin.

Aaron settled beside him without making a fuss about losing. He glanced down at the crowd—Nyle, Maeve, Ria, and Cliff had stayed amidst the bustle. They hadn’t made any effort to join in, despite throwing the challenge. Or maybe that had been their intention all along.

Aaron leaned back on his hands, gazing up at the black-stained sky, not a star in sight.

If he squinted, he could just about make out the shape of the clouds, so dense they blocked any moonlight from seeping through.

The artificial lights around them, though, did their best to make up for the lack of natural light.

“Do we really need all this extra energy wastage just for Christmas?” Aaron wondered out loud.

Landon, blowing a puff of smoke, shot him a playful look. “What, you allergic to Christmas too?”

“Maybe. It’s never been my favourite holiday.”

“Is that why you don’t like presents?”

Aaron turned to face Landon. “Actually, I barely even got any Christmas presents. My parents didn’t buy into all the commercial hype. They reckoned you shouldn’t need a special day to spend time with family, said Christmas was the worst time for it.”

Landon seemed to mull over something, then said, “They weren’t entirely wrong. Twelve families and very few decent Christmases to remember…” He bit his lip, playing with his piercing as if he wanted to say more before stopping himself.

Sensing something wrong, Aaron asked, “Did you get many presents at least?”

“Oh yeah, loads of them.”

“That doesn’t sound too bad, does it?”

Landon gave a half shrug. “You’d be surprised. Some people think a pile of gifts can make up for a lot of things.”

He said it in such a flat way, his eyes distant, that Aaron got the hint there was more to it. But he didn’t pry. He suddenly felt daft for his remark. Foster care must’ve been tough for Landon—always moving—with things probably staying the same in his own family.

Sad, frustrating, a never-ending cycle of misery.

“Well, I only had one family,” Aaron replied, “and trust me, it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows there either.”

“Strict parents?”

A soft murmur slipped out of Aaron at ‘strict’, an understatement. “More like authoritarian. They had to control everything, had a say in every little thing I did.”

“Is that why you learned to lie?”

That hit a nerve. Aaron pulled his coat tighter at a sudden chill. Lying to Aunt Olivia with Landon around had been a misstep, and it had come back to bite.

“Why do you keep lying to your aunt?”

Aaron had seen the question coming, but it still threw him off. “I was too embarrassed to tell her the truth. If the police hadn’t caught me that night, I’d be in Australia now. So, it’s kinda…half true?”

Landon looked sceptical.

“I didn’t want to burden her more. After the accident, she was great to me, and I’m…well, not a good nephew.”

“You’re not a bad person, Aaron.”

“I am. I’m a selfish little prick.”

“Aren’t we all? But maybe your aunt deserves to know the truth. Does she even know you’re planning to move there permanently?”

“Nah, and it’s better that way. She won’t miss me.”

“You’re too harsh on yourself.”

“That’s a bit rich coming from you. Why do you put on this bad-boy front?”

“I’m not acting. People see what’s easy for them,” Landon replied defensively.

“But it seems like you’re okay with them thinking that. Why didn’t you tell Luzanne the real story? About her ex and why you and Nyle ended up doing community service?”

“Wouldn’t have changed anything.”

“It might have.”

“Wouldn’t have changed anything for her ,” Landon corrected. “She already had it in for me. She wouldn’t have believed me.”

“Did you try?”

“No, and I didn’t need to.”

Aaron dug his nails into his palms, feeling the crescent shapes imprinting into his skin. “Do you get a kick out of people seeing you a certain way, or are you scared to show you actually care?”

“And what about you? Running off to the other side of the hemisphere to dodge your issues. But here’s the thing. If you keep running with all that baggage, it’s gonna weigh you down, ready or not.”

“I’m not running,” Aaron said firmly. “I made a promise, remember?”

“To who? A ghost named Tori?”

Aaron shivered. For the second time that day, someone other than Aunt Olivia had said Tori’s name. He wrapped his arms around himself.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to—”

“Tori was my sister.”

Landon opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

Stopping his self-hug, Aaron looked straight into his eyes.

“The whole Australia trip was her thing. She was mad about it, had this notebook full of places she wanted to see, the Lights, the koalas…” He smiled at the memory of her always sharing a fun fact about the cute, cuddly animals.

“Did you know koalas smell like eucalyptus? Or that they sleep, like, twenty hours a day?”

“No, but now that I do, I can say you’ve made my day,” Landon replied, not flippantly.

“She was so close to making it to Sydney, but then…” Aaron reached for the pendant, the rough texture grating under his fingertips.

“The accident?”

“Yes.” Aaron’s voice caught in his throat.

“So, the messages you’ve been leaving…”

“I know, I know, it’s stupid. Tori will never hear them, but it helps me if I feel like I can still talk to her.”

Landon shook his head gently. “No, it’s not stupid. It’s actually…nice. But at some point, you need to move on.”

“That’s what I’m trying to do.”

“Just putting one foot in front of the other isn’t enough to move forward. You need to move on in here too,” Landon said, tapping his temple.

“What, you reckon I should call that Lottie therapist you mentioned?”

“I gave you her number. But in the end, it’s up to you. Like everything else.”

Aaron flashed a half-smile and glanced down. Nyle and Maeve hadn’t been subtle with all their sneaking looks up at them. “We should probably head back.”

He was about to climb down when Landon reached out to stop him.

“Wait. You’ve shared a lot. Fair’s fair. Ask me something.”

Caught unawares, Aaron’s pulse quickened, a jumble of emotions shaking him. He sifted through a million things he wanted to ask, finally settling on one, his voice wavering.

“So…uh, what’s your favourite song?”

Landon’s eyes went wide. “Seriously? Is that what you’re asking?”

“Hey, it’s a question, isn’t it?”

Landon laughed, shaking his head. “All right, here, let me show you.” He pulled out his phone and handed Aaron an earbud. “There’s this song I’ve been listening to…kinda makes me think of you.”

Aaron put in the earbud and burst into laughter as he listened, particularly at the chorus. Glancing at the phone screen, he read the title, “Favorite Liar” by The Wrecks.

The world faded away, leaving Aaron and Landon in their little bubble. With Landon so close, the cold didn’t seem that bad after all.

They were almost touching, Landon’s warmth nearly chasing away the chill on Aaron’s cheeks. Yet, this tiny space remaining between them felt massive.

It seemed as if Landon was waiting for him to close that gap.

Aaron almost did, leaning in, heart racing. But then he hesitated.

His previous kisses had always been nothing special. Would kissing Landon be any different?

“We should go before I freeze into an ice lolly,” Aaron finally said, breaking the spell.

“Right,” Landon agreed, drawing back, and suddenly the night air became even chillier.

As Aaron made his way down, he glanced at Big Ben, glowing in the night, a silent witness to their almost-kiss.

It could’ve been a disaster.

It could have been the best kiss ever.