Chapter 57 - Why do people suck?

Note:

- That last arc was NOT meant to be that long. Once again kids, do not wing your story. Plan your story. As well as your life. Or else you'll end up like me. Not that you know what that means lol

- You know who doesn't suck though? Thoma. Thoma's cool

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The next day

POV: Nero

"NEEERRRROOOOOO!!"

Oh for fucks sake, can't this boy greet me properly for once in his life? I came out of the security gates as everyone's favourite blue-haired hacker sprinted across the MegCorp ground floor, clearly heading my way to tackle me down. I contemplated on just moving to the side last minute and letting the boy crash through the gates but decided to play nice in front of my many, now-staring co-workers.

I lifted my arms out, ready for the oncoming traffic and Aiden immediately leapt into my arms, wrapping his thighs around my waist and arms around my shoulder.

"Oomph" was the only thing that can be said against the collision and I took a couple of steps back to regain stability. Once achieved, I released a hefty sigh and pat the back of the taller man who was currently nuzzling the side of my neck and into my bones. It fucking hurt.

"That fucking hurts," I said as I bonked him hard on the head. He yelped and came down from my grasp, pouting outwardly.

"That fucking hurts," he retorted back, sending my own words back at me. I rolled my eyes at his childish antiques but didn't comment on it. Instead, I addressed his reason for his presence.

"Do you have no other friends?"

"Of course I have friends," Aiden was completely unfazed by the random question, "in fact, I made two new acquaintances as I was waiting for you. They were describing the history of the receptionist's floor. It's quite interesting, you should look into it."

"*sigh* of course you made new friends." I quietly mumbled to myself. "Anyway," in a louder voice, "if you have friends, why do you have to be here to eat lunch?"

Aiden was looking at me like I've asked a preposterously stupid question. "To eat with my best friend, obviously."

"Obviously," I repeated with a dead voice.

"I need to tell you the details about yesterday and how amazing I would be as Sherlock Holmes, with Shinsou – Erwin's assistant – as my Watson. And today's like one of the only days where our breaks match up. It's perfect. We can catch up and–"

"You do realise we see each other almost every day? You crash at my place every second day."

Aiden waved at the comment dismissively. "That is that and this is this. Having lunch with a friend during a break is a completely different experience from going either of our places and being couch potatoes while screaming at the PS4."

"... right. Well, what do you wanna eat?"

"The café. I've been dying to try out the food at your café."

"Alright."

With that, we set off towards the café, Aiden practically skipped in excitement and hunger. He was beaming brighter than the sun. We're about halfway there when Aiden abruptly stopped and froze, his grin immediately dropping from the face of the earth. Instead, it was replaced with a gaping mouth of surprise. And not a good surprise type. The bad surprise. His face visibly paled and his eyes tremble with what looks like terror. The sudden change in reaction would've caused anyone some sort of whiplash. I turned my head to face the café again and lord behold, I found the cause of Aiden's distress. Coming out of the café and heading in our direction was Leonardo and Erwin, who were animatedly talking to one another. But it wasn't them that we were worried about. It was the third member that was with them. Walking on the left of Leonardo was Bradley Troph, Aiden's worst nightmare.

POV: Aiden

What is he doing here? What is he doing here? What is he doing here?

Why is he here? Why is he here?

Why? Why? Why? Why?

Go away. Go away. GO!

I did nothing wrong! Not this time... not ever.

LeAvE Me ALoNE PleASe

I'm sorry... I did nothing wrong but I'm sorry.

I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry

POV: Nero

Although paralysed, I knew my best friend was on the verge of a mental breakdown so I put my hand on his back and rubbed it, hopefully grounding him a little bit. They still haven't noticed, we have a chance to go before they see us. I grabbed Aiden's elbow to dragged him away and I was so close to doing so but it seemed luck wasn't on my side today because the menace noticed us. "Oh my god! Is that Aiden?" Fuck, fuck, fuck. We should run, we still have a chance to run. I tugged at Aiden but we didn't move.

My shaken friend had locked eyes with his brother, which locked him in position. I guess we can't run. I sighed frustratedly before standing by Aiden's side, continuously comforting him. He was pale as a sheet of paper and looked as if he was about to faint. The trio came in front of us, with Bradley smirking at us evilly and the other two looking between us with mild befuddlement and concern.

I sent a scowl back at him and open my mouth to greet him but surprisingly, it was Aiden who stuttered out meekly, "B-Br-Br-Br-Broth- I mean Br-Bradley..." the purple-haired man snickered at the response and continued to humour us. "Wow I haven't seen you in years and you're still such a weakling. Still can't say a sentence without stuttering like a broken record?"

Aiden's eyes widened and looked away in shame. My scowl grew deeper and I used the opportunity to take over. "I'd say nice to see you again but it's really not all that nice."

The fucker's smirk dropped and looked at me with a frown of his own. "Oh, you're still around? I never really did like you. I hoped he would've chased you away as he did to all his other friends did too." Aiden flinched and attempted to hide away from the world.

I scoffed at the comment. "We all know that's not what happened Mr. I-leech-off-daddy's-money-to-destroy-everyone- else's-life-because-I'm-an-insecure-fuck-who-has-a-superiority-complex-and-mild-daddy-issues."

Bradley emitted an animalistic growl as he threatened me (again). "Listen here you little fucker–"

But he couldn't finish because Leonardo interrupted with his booming British voice. "Can someone explain what is going on here?" Not going to lie, for the first time, I completely forgot Leonardo and Erwin were there, so when I went to look at them, I was surprised to see that they both had extremely concerned expressions. Erwin's not even looking at me, choosing to stare at his own employee with a mean frown.

Leo was looking at me, waiting for some sort of explanation.

"You could say that us three have history. These two have a longer history than I." I glared at the purple-haired man. "Are you still hiding that fact?" I asked Bradley. Bradley remained silent and which was a bunch of mixed signals for me but since I didn't like the guy, I'll do the one thing he most likely didn't want. Without looking away from his face, I informed the other two, "This is Bradley Troph, half-brother of Aiden Hendrix."

I saw the other two's jaw-dropping at the new revelation through my peripherals. Bradley on the other hand did the opposite and clenched his jaw, probably to control his anger. Aiden was still quiet but instead of paralysis, his body was slightly trembling, clearly not knowing what to do. I need to get him out of here as soon as I can.

I grabbed Aiden's elbow with the intent of pulling him away from everyone but Bradley's annoying hissing voice managed to stop me in my track. "That wasn't your secret to tell, brat."

ThAt wAsn't yOur sECret tO tELl. I didn't mock him out loud (as much as I want to), instead used a more professional (and bullshit) approach. "My boss over here," nodding towards Leo, "asked me a question and by not responding, I would be disrespecting him and possibly getting myself on the verge of getting fired (again). Therefore, I will answer him and I will answer him honestly. Plus, I'm sure you guys are jolly good friends. Just tell them to shut the fu- I mean, just tell them to keep the fact within themselves and the problem is solved, no?"

"You work here?'

I blinked. "Really? THAT'S what you got out of all that? Yes, I work here, not that it's any of your business."

"Does useless Addie work here as well?"

I saw Erwin's jaw clenching in the corner of my eyes, Leo's frown turned deeper and I growled out, loud. "You have no privilege of calling him by any other name, mocking or not, except for Aiden or Hendrix, nothing more. Where he works is none of your business. Never was, never fucking will be."

"N-Nero... stop..." Aiden managed to speak out for the first time since his brother's arrival but it was meek and so soft. Seeing the usual confident man shrivelled into someone completely different hurt my heart and saddened me as well as angered me. It seemed the response doesn't only affect me though. Both Leo and Erwin looked absolutely dumbstruck by the uncharacteristic nature of the blue-haired man and I don't blame em, even I was shocked the first time I saw it. Although, the first time was a lot worse.

Bradley stepped forward so our chests were barely touching and he looked down on me, literally and metaphorically. His attempt of intimidation failed because my scowl didn't drop and the urge to punch him just intensified a bit more. The tone of his voice deepened when he replied, "Know your place, kid. I have the power to destroy you and everyone around you with the click of my fingers. I can call my little of shit of a brother anything I want and do whatever I want with him. He's the property of the Troph family and my brother, even if he's useless and I don't acknowledge him."

Aiden was basically on the verge of tears at this point and he clearly wanted nothing more but to dig himself a hole and jump in it.

This motherfucker is asking for it. Instead of punching him (surprisingly), I stabbed his chest with my finger and pushed, hard. It caused him to stumble back a couple of steps, eyes wide at the fact that a midget like me could push around a tall ass guy like him. My voice was hushed down, barely above a whisper. Only the five of us could hear. "Your threats mean nothing to me. You think you can ruin my life? Think again bitch because before you click your pretty little fingers, they would be sliced off, tumbling one the floor, along with your head which would have been decapitated by me personally. Your useless ass wouldn't even be able to defend yourself, even with that Oddity of yours.

You mentioned Aiden being the property of the Troph family? My best friend left your fucking family the day he went out of your door and changed his name to Hendrix. You consider him your brother? We all know that's fucking bullshit, he's nothing more than your verbal and physical punching bag. Do you think he lives your life for your acknowledgement? Maybe initially but now he wants nothing more than to spite the shit out of you, your other brothers and his birth givers. You called him weak? Honey, you know nothing. He can whoop your ass all the way to China without even touching you. Fucking back off because right now, you're playing with fire (well more voltage and current). If I had a fucking say in this, you would've been mangled the first time we met by yours truly. You're fucking lucky that Aiden fucking Hendrix is your brother. Always keep that in mind. Always."

Halfway through my speech, I nearly lost control of my power and felt my eyes glowing it's a classic shade of red but luckily, Erwin's secret warning (pointing at his own eyes vigorously) managed to stop me from fucking up big time.

I stepped back to properly look at everyone's reaction. Aiden's looked at me with wide eyes and awe, a single tear travelling down his left cheek. Leo looked astonished and a bit terrified by my quiet outburst but he also looked proud, (which warmed my chest). Erwin also looked astonished and interestingly enough, he looked just as pissed as I, which was a new development because from what I know, Aiden and his boss supposedly hated each other and couldn't care less about each other's woes. Interesting development indeed. On the contrary, Bradley looked livid with veins popping out of his forehead, his white skin turning into a dark red shade. A beautiful sight.

It seemed the words struck a nerve or a hundred because he couldn't help himself from lifting his arms in a fist, ready to punch me. Except, it wasn't aimed at me. It's aimed at Aiden and I was too late to realise that. Aiden probably realised it but didn't move, he was just frozen. I was about to scream out, "dodge," when suddenly a gateway opened in front of my best friend and a hand came out, blocking the incoming punch by grabbing the fist and holding it tight.

We all turn to face Erwin and immediately, shivers ran down my spine in fear. He was displaying the coldest face mankind had ever seen as he had his left arm through the other end of the portal. It was a look that could kill and for once in my life, I was glad I haven't properly pissed him off. The douche seemed to experience a similar sensation plus more since the look was directed at him. He paled and looked as if he was about to piss himself. The terror was evident but it was not enough to stop him from questioning, "Wha-Why? This isn't any of your business."

Erwin released the hand and in a blink of an eye, was standing behind Aiden with one of his hands on his shoulders in comfort. The other man was shocked by what happened in the last ten seconds and couldn't help himself but look up at his temporary boss with some vulnerability. Erwin wasn't looking at him though, looking at the enemy instead, as he sternly answered back, "Actually, it is my business since the man you were about to harm happens to be my employee."

Bradley sputtered out indignant noises but Erwin ignored it to continue adding on, "No harm shall befall on my employees, including verbal abuse from their supposed family."

The purple-haired man's jaw dropped before closing again and angrily spat out, "I don't understand. Why are you defending him? You're my mate, if anything, you should be defending me and telling me I'm justified."

The four of us all had a similar expression to that statement. It's an are-you-being-legit-right-now look. "Just how spoiled are you? Are all your friend's hype men?" Erwin expressed his discontent verbally, "and I never once considered you a friend. An acquaintance, maybe but even then, that's because Leo over here, who happens to somewhat enjoy your company. However, that might change after this entire ordeal. Anyway, I don't know what happened between you guys but I trust these two," pointed towards Aiden and me, "than you, so I'm more prone to believe them. Plus, your reasonings are utter bs from what I heard. I don't know why you consider Aiden weak when he literally forms elec–"

"STOP! DON'T FINISH THAT SENTENCE," yelled out Aiden, in a panic. The outburst startled everyone in the group. Erwin was staring at him with widened eyes and Aiden returned a more panicked look. "He doesn't know and I don't need him to know. Don't tell him."

Erwin opened and closed his mouth like a fish, confused by the decision but he followed through with it and shut his mouth.

"What don't I know? What are you hiding?" Bradley asks with a frown.

"None of your business," I turned to face the duo next to me. "Aiden, you should probably go back to work and breathe. Raincheck on the lunch, ok?"

My friend stared at me before nodding and pulling me into a bear hug. "Thank you," he whispered in my ear. I gave him a comforting pat on the back before he moved away from me and attended to his temporary boss. "I'll uh, see you at work Mr. Fonzo. And um, thank you for–"

"Why are you dismissing me? I'm coming with you, Denny."

Aiden looked at him in disbelief. "Who are you calling Denny?"

"You," Fonzo said it like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

I blinked once before a smirk befalls on my face, similar to the one on Leo's face. Aiden, on the other hand, was completely flustered by the new nickname and he attempted to send a mean glare (he fails) as he refuted back. "Don't call me that! You make me sound like a child." He definitely liked the nickname if his intense blushing said anything.

"You are a child."

"You're only like a couple of years older than me!" Aiden threw his hands up in frustration.

"And yet, you're reacting like a fourteen-year-old. Denny, you need to grow up." Any observer could tell that Erwin was trying to rile the other man up to create a distraction. It was cute. I ship. They were totally going to bang.

"Fuck you! I'm going alone and you're not coming with me, stupid boss. Even after saving your sorry ass, this is how I'm treated." Aiden grumbled out the latter statement then proceeded to stomp off towards the exit. Erwin was guffawing before chasing after him. Once caught up, he ruffled the blue locks of Aiden's hair, which caused another annoyed outburst from the man. He was too far to hear what he's saying but from the looks of it, Erwin was thoroughly entertained.

Who would've guessed that it was a blue-haired brat that is able to push out Erwin's cold exterior and bring out his playful one instead so easily?

It's once they disappear out the exit that I noticed that one, I had an involuntary smile on my face and two, Leo was staring at my said smile with an unreadable expression. I dropped the smile immediately and I swore it caused a disappointed expression on the other man but it passed by too fast for me to confirm. Oh wait, bitchface is still here.

I attended to the fucker, who happened to be still staring at the exit and broke him out of his stupor. "Well, I have to go to work now. Can't really say it was nice seeing you around again. Hope we never have to meet you ever again. Adios."

With that, I turned and walked towards the elevator... only to be pulled back again by a deathly grip on my elbow. The force turned me back to an irritated Bradley. He growled out in attempt of intimidation, "What. Are. You. Guys. Hiding?"

I glared back and tried to squirm out of his grip but it tightened further, causing me to wince. How embarrassing. I was about to scream "ABUSE" when a stone-cold, venomous voice from the side ordered, "Let go of my employee." We both whipped our heads towards Covell and if looks could kill, Bradley would be dead three times over. The expression was bloodcurdling and it was something I never wanted to ever see. It turned my blood cold and it wasn't even directed towards me.

Bradley was intimidated and immediately let go of my arm. I rubbed my elbows soothingly as I continued to stare at my boss. He continued to stare at his so-called friend but directed his next words at me. His tone was still arctic cold. "Nero, I'm assuming you can't tell me the back story."

"Uh, yeah. Not my story to tell."

"... Right. In that case, you can go back to your floor. You can take your lunch break later. I'll have a chat with Mr. Troph over here."

I looked between the two before giving a single nod and departed. As terrifying as that was, Leo just shot up further in the hotness scale. He's about to break it real soon.

As I recalled the past few minutes, I began wishfully hoping that he said, "hands off my lover" instead of employee. Big fucking sigh. I'm absolutely gone for this guy.