Neighbours

The day went by so fast, and before I knew it, school was over. Thank goodness.

I got to know a lot about Eli over lunch. Found out he was an only child… I was totally jealous. But hey, you can't pick your family now, can you?

He also lived just a few streets away from me. Meaning we’re gonna be meeting a lot.

Plus, he had a car too. I just needed to convince my parents that he was a good kid, and then it’d be goodbye Arnold and his threatening ways. All I needed was time. And I had more than enough of it.

Much to my delight, the day ended without me seeing any more of the Aiden crew, and I was so thankful. So, so thankful.

“How are you getting home?” Eli asked as we walked out of class.

“Hmmm…” I contemplated not telling him about Arnold, but I figured it wouldn’t harm anyone… okay, maybe just Arnold. But I didn’t mind that.

“I’ll be going with my brother,” I said, continuing to walk.

He fell out of step for a moment, then caught up with me. “You have a brother?!”

“That I do,” I replied as we stepped into the driveway.

“Why didn’t you say anything about him?”

“Well, Eli,” I said with a little smile, “we haven’t talked that much today. Okay, maybe we have, but—he specifically asked me to pretend we don’t know each other at school. So I’m doing just that.”

“You guys are weird,” he said, laughing.

“I would kill to have a sibling,” he added.

“And I would kill to get rid of mine,” I retorted sarcastically.

I pointed to the car, where Arnold stood beside it looking impatient. “Now that’s my brother—Arnold,” I said as we approached.

“Hey, stranger,” I greeted him casually.

“You’re 3 minutes late, Nova,” he said, turning to Eli. “Who’s the kid?”

“I’m Eli,” he said, stretching out his hand for a handshake. “Nova’s new bestie.”

Surprisingly, Arnold took his hand.

“Way to go, Nova. You got yourself a friend on your first day,” Arnold teased.

“Oh please, you say it like I’m antisocial.”

“Are you not?” he asked seriously.

Eli burst out laughing. “See? This guy gets it,” he said, pointing at Arnold.

“Okay, enough with the chatter. Let’s get going,” Arnold said.

“Are you going with us, Eli?” he asked.

“Nah, I brought my car,” Eli replied, pointing to one parked a few spaces away.

“Alright then. See you around.”

“See you tomorrow, Eli,” I said, waving at him.

“Okay, one thing before I go,” he whispered with a grin. “Your brother is hot.”

Then he ran off.

That little—

What are the chances my brother would be gay? Practically impossible. So, sadly, there was no hope for Eli. As much as I would have loved to see that ship.

I chuckled slightly and slipped into the passenger seat.

“Okay, let’s get going,” I said.

He pulled out of the driveway and blasted music. We couldn’t resist singing along.

“Don’t you want me like I want you, baby—”

Then, as if passing the mic to him, he continued, “Don’t you need me like I need you now—”

Then we both chorused at the top of our lungs, “Sleep tomorrow but tonight feel crazy, all you gotta do is just meet me at the—”

“Apt! Apt! Apt! Apt!”

We kept singing, laughing occasionally. It was moments like these that reminded me how deep the sibling bond ran.

It was cute… seeing us like this.

Before I knew it, we pulled up in front of our house and he cut off the music. Clearing his throat, he said, “You just had to ruin my song with your off-key singing.”

And there he was—the nonchalant Arnold. Took him long enough.

“At least mine was just off-key,” I responded. “I was honestly convinced you were tone deaf.”

He stepped out, switching off the engine. “My singing is flawless, Nova. And you of all people know that.”

“Okay, okay. Whatever helps you sleep at night.”

There we were, arguing pointlessly outside our house instead of stepping in. He was about to respond when someone cut him off.

“Arnold, my guy—is that you?” a voice called from behind.

Arnold turned. “Aidennn!” he said, voice higher than usual.

Did he just say Aiden? I really hoped I misheard.

They did a little bro-hug, but Arnold was still blocking the guy from view. I could still hear them though.

“What are you doing here, man?” Arnold asked.

“My house is just in the next compound.”

“You must be kidding me,” Arnold said, clearly excited.

“I’m guessing you’re the new family that just moved in?” the guy asked.

“Yeah, we got here less than a week ago.”

“I’m glad we live so close. We can hang out more.”

“I’d like that,” the guy replied. “You can come over whenever. My parents are hardly ever home anyway.”

They both laughed.

What’s funny about that? I wondered.

I was about to quietly step inside when Arnold just had to pull me into it.

“Oh yeah! I totally forgot,” he said, turning to the guy. “This is my sister—Nova.”

He stepped aside.

And I was face-to-face with Aiden.

I had prayed it would be a different Aiden. After all, few people bore that name.

His face showed surprise for a second—then it was replaced by a smirk.

“Nice to meet you, Nova,” he said, voice all innocent.

I managed a nod. “I think I should go now.”

“I’ll see you around, dude… and you too, Nova,” he added with a smile.

Oh.

What the hell have I gotten myself into?

The moment we stepped into the house, I bombarded Arnold with questions.

“How do you know Aiden? And how are you guys so close? You’re in different grades, and we literally just started school.”

“Calm down, tiger,” he said, flopping onto the sofa. “Guys don’t need a reason to bond. We met by coincidence in the driveway. I kinda admired his bike, and we hit it off. He’s cool.”

“Now what’s with the questions? You know him?”

“I don’t know that, I also don’t know him. First time seeing him today.”

“Wow. What a coincidence,” I said, unamused.

“Hang on—where did Mum and Dad go?” I asked, noticing the house was locked.

“Shopping, probably,” he replied, turning on the TV. “Mum talked about needing more stuff for the house.”

I nodded and made my way upstairs. Once in my room, I plopped onto the bed and immediately pulled out my phone, texting Eli:

Dudeee you won’t believe who I’m neighbors with!!!

I hit send.

When I didn’t get a reply after a few minutes, I sighed and dropped the phone. With nothing better to do, I walked over to the slightly large window on the side of my room. I’d never opened the curtains since we moved in, but I flung them open.

And there it was—Aiden’s house.

Oh goodness.

His curtains and windows were open, so I had a clear view of what was happening inside. I doubted they could see me though.

But as if summoned by my thoughts, Aiden walked past the window—completely shirtless.

He was a blur, but I still got a good view of his toned abs. My mouth dropped open.

I was frozen—surprised and... okay, maybe a little impressed.

Before I could react, he walked past again—this time stopping right in front of the window. And looked directly at me.

I stared, too stunned to move.

His features were clear. Defined V-line. Sharp jaw. Smirk tugging at his lips—like he knew I was watching.

And then…

He locked eyes with me.

That smug little smirk grew, as if saying, You like what you see?

HE CAN SEE ME!?

I panicked, immediately yanking the curtains shut and dropping to the floor like my life depended on it.

What have I done? What have you gotten yourself into, Nova?

Now he’s going to think I’m some pervert who spies on shirtless neighbors!

A notification on my phone made me jump. Eli?! Finally!

I grabbed the phone—

Only to see a message from an unknown number.

'You like what you see, Nova?'

-A

[smirk emoji]

HOW IN THE HELL DID HE GET MY CONTACT?!