At the Hospital

Aiden woke up just before lunch time. He yawned, stretched, and reluctantly got out of his warm bed. Opening the curtains, he squinted at the sudden bright light. Then, he picked out a set of clothes and went to take a shower. When he came out of the bathroom, he checked his phone and saw a text message from Yuki. Aiden smiled and texted back, reassuring his friend that he was okay.

When he was ready, he went downstairs to get something to eat. Just as he reached the bottom of the stairs, Mrs. Hudson came rushing over.

"Aiden, dear, Derek called and told me what happened! I'm happy everything worked out but you mustn't make a habit of staying awake all night! Sleep is very important for your health."

"I know, Mrs. Hudson. I promise I won't make it a habit. I'll be sure to get plenty of sleep." Aiden couldn't believe a day would come when he'd actually feel happy after getting nagged but he was. Knowing someone cared about him enough to be worried over how much sleep he got was a pleasant feeling.

"Good!" Mrs. Hudson nodded with her hands on her hips. Then she motioned for Aiden to go into the dining room. "Now, go sit down and I'll bring you something to eat. You must be really hungry since you slept through breakfast." Aiden complied and sat down at the table. A moment later, Mrs. Hudson came in with a cup of tea, a small bowl of fresh fruit, and a breakfast sandwich made with toast, eggs, cheese, sausage, and spinach. She set it down in front of him and urged him to eat. "There you go. Dig in!"

"Thanks, Mrs. Hudson. It looks delicious."

"You're welcome, dear. Let me know if you want more after that." Then, she went back to work. Aiden ate his meal slowly to savor the flavor. Really, everything Mrs. Hudson made was awesome.

When he finished his food, he sent a text to Derek reminding him not to skip lunch. Then, he went back to his room. He lazily sprawled out on the bed, thinking about what he should do for the day. He had finished his portion of research for the group project and, since he didn't go to school, he didn't have any homework to do for the day. There wasn't anything else he could do to help Derek at the moment either and he didn't feel like going to the gym.

That's when he got a text from someone he didn't expect. He looked at his phone and saw that, of all people, Zeke had sent him a message. It was strange since Zeke never bothered to text him before, even when there was a group text discussion about their project. Aiden curiously opened the message but frowned as he read it.

"What?!" What did he mean Yuki got into a fight? Was he serious? Aiden quickly responded and asked for more details. Surprisingly, Zeke texted back almost immediately. The more information Aiden got, the angrier he became and when he read that Yuki had been taken to the hospital, he sent a message to Milo saying he'd need a ride.

After grabbing his bag and shoes, Aiden rushed downstairs. Mrs. Hudson saw him getting ready to leave and asked,

"Dear, what's wrong?"

"Yuki was sent to the hospital after a fight in school. I asked Milo to come and pick me up so I can go see him." Mrs. Hudson gasped and a worried expression appeared across her face.

"Oh no! That sweet boy I met at the festival? Good heavens!"

"I'll be back later." Mrs. Hudson nodded and Aiden walked outside. Milo was already waiting there with the car. Aiden got in the back seat, explained where he was going, and Milo immediately set off towards the hospital. The drive was relatively quick and after he arrived, Aiden asked which room Yuki was in. The nurse kindly told him which one and how to get there. He arrived at Yuki's room minutes later.

After he knocked on the open door, Yuki looked up and spotted him. Aiden clenched his fist when he saw all the bruises and bandages covering his friend.

"Aiden! Why are you here? Ah! Not that you can't be here or something like that but just, how did you know that I was here?" Aiden chuckled at seeing Yuki's usually flustered self. He walked in and took a seat next to the hospital bed.

"Zeke texted me and told me that you were sent here after a fight."

"Zeke did?! Are we talking about the same Zeke here?"

"I know, right? I was surprised too. So, you wanna tell me what happened?" Yuki looked reluctant to explain but he slowly did anyway. He started from the moment Ash and his friends first showed up, to his step-brother bringing him to the hospital to treat his injuries.

"I don't know what's going to happen but Mikael seemed really angry," Yuki said.

"As he should be! They should all be expelled! And why the hell did everyone just stand around like useless sacks of potatoes while all this happened?! What's wrong with them?!" Aiden ranted and raved until he was slightly out of breath. Yuki smiled and giggled. "What are you laughing for?" Aiden asked.

"Nothing. It's just, this is the first time I've had a friend who'd get angry for my sake. It made me kind of happy." Aiden stared at Yuki's smiling face for a moment before standing up and carefully hugging him.

"Of course I'd get mad. They dared to harm my friend." Yuki returned Aiden's hug as best he could with all his injuries. The two of them talked for a long time until Yuki started feeling tired. "You should rest. You've been through a lot today." Yuki yawned and nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I am a little sleepy. The doctor said it's one of the side effects of some of the medication they gave me. Um," Yuki hesitated to continue.

"What's up?"

"Will…you stay with me until I fall asleep?" Yuki looked nervous as he asked.

"Sure. If that's what you want. Do you want me to get you another blanket?"

"No, I'm fine." Yuki laid down and Aiden pulled the blanket up around his shoulders. Then, he sat down and waited for Yuki to drift off to sleep. When Aiden was sure Yuki wouldn't wake up, he stood up and left the hospital room. As he was walking down the hallway toward the exit, a tall, angry looking man with platinum blond hair passed by him with long strides.

Outside the hospital, Aiden got back in the car and asked Milo to take him home.

"Is your friend alright?" Milo asked.

"Yeah, he's injured but he'll be okay. They're going to send him home later today."

"That's good. I'm sure he'll feel more comfortable at home."

During the drive back, Aiden contemplated how best to punish the idiots who hurt his friend. What he decided to do would depend on just how much punishment they were dealt by the school but Aiden wasn't expecting a lot. All their parents were sure to kick up a fuss at the slightest mention of consequences. He could only hope that Yuki's step-brother knew how to handle them. If not though, Aiden had no problem taking care of it in his own way.

Back at the house, Mrs. Hudson asked how Yuki was and what on earth happened to land him in the hospital. Aiden roughly explained the situation and she too was outraged.

"Just what are those parents teaching their children that they go around doing such things? My goodness! When he's feeling better, you should invite that boy over here. I'll cook up a feast."

After talking to Mrs. Hudson, Aiden went back to his room. He flopped down onto the bed with a long sigh. He missed one day of school and everything went crazy. Even though he slept in that morning and hardly did anything during the day, he was still tired. He couldn't help but think he should've just gone to school with no sleep instead of taking the day off but it didn't matter anymore. What's done is done. The only thing he could do was make sure those guys got the punishment they deserved.

Around six in the evening, Mrs. Hudson called him down for dinner. Aiden was halfway through his meal by the time Derek got home. Mrs. Hudson started fussing over him the second he walked through the door. He got nagged a lot more than Aiden had.

Even after five whole minutes she wasn't finished lecturing him on overworking and his health. Watching Derek's expression during the ordeal made Aiden laugh. How could someone be so cute? Derek looked like a puppy being scolded for chewing up a shoe. He couldn't even argue and simply let Mrs. Hudson continue until she was satisfied.