Aiden rose from his seat so fast, it toppled over behind him as he ran from the room. He could hear the inquiries about what he'd figured out but there was no time. First, he needed to check his theory was correct before he approached them with it. He was running so fast as he took the corner to his office that he slammed into the wall and bounced off, landing hard on his bottom and bouncing his head off the concrete floor.
Aiden had heard the phrase I saw stars before but had never experienced it. He wondered why it was called seeing stars. It didn't fit. As he lay there stunned, a veritable kaleidoscope of flashing colored lights blinked in and out of his vision, reminding him of the fancy light displays they set up at Christmas time.
After a moment, the pain set in, the back of his head bursting with sharp radiating pain and his bottom throbbing. As soon as the pain registered, Aiden's nature took over and he burst into tears. He tried to be stoic and hold them back but it hurt too bad. He just couldn't do it.
"Ouchie!" he yelped between hiccupping sobs, "It...h-hurts!"
Suddenly, strong arms were working their way underneath his back and his knees as a deep soothing voice whispered in his ear, "It's okay, little one. I've got you," and he was lifted up and against Rocky's rock hard chest.
In that moment, it didn't matter to Aiden that Rocky had called him little one or that he'd acted like such a baby. His head hurt and his butt hurt and all he wanted was someone to make it better.
"I've got you, baby. I'll help take the hurt away."
Just hearing the words soothed some of Aiden's pain. It had been so long since someone had offered to take care of him. He soaked up the caring comfort like a sponge, hoping it would be enough to hold him over when the crisis passed and he had to go back to being “strong and capable Aiden”. It was coming soon and Aiden knew it so he decided to cherish every minute of the time Rocky was offering to be strong and capable for him.
Rocky set Aiden on the couch in his office and positioned him on his side so his bottom wasn't resting on the cushion. He placed a pillow under Aiden's head and without asking, reached into the messenger bag next to the couch removing Octavia and settling her in Aiden's arms.
"How..."
"Shhhh, it doesn't matter right now." Rocky brushed a lock of Aiden’s hair off his forehead and bent down to his level before asking, "do you have any type of pain reliever here? Tylenol, Advil, anything?"
Deciding to leave his curiosity for now in favor of relieving some of his headache, Aiden set aside his reservations and answered, "Top right drawer of my desk."
Immediately, Rocky stood and headed to his desk. Before finding the Advil, Rocky found a package of chewy antacids and frowned deeply. Aiden had a feeling he was going to get asked about it but he didn't have the wherewithal to care at the moment. Finally, Rocky lifted out the bottle of liquid pain reliever and the measuring cup. His face took on a wistful smile as he stared for a moment before seeming to shake off whatever thought he'd been having and headed back to Aiden, measuring out the correct dose as he walked.
Rocky once again knelt down to Aiden’s level and gently cradled his head as he helped Aiden sit up enough to drink down the grape flavored medicine. Once he'd had the medication, Rocky stood again and bent over him to check the back of his head. Aiden marveled at how he could be in so much pain, and still find himself drooling when he came face to face with Rocky's jean-covered cock. His very large and very hard jean-covered cock.
Rocky D'Angelo was hard. For him. Rocky found him sexy? Oh, hell.
"It's okay, baby. I don't see any bleeding. You've got a nice bump back here, though." Aiden could barely hear or register the words as he fought against his urge to reach out and touch the holy grail. He shouldn't. He couldn't. Could he? Rocky's next words snapped him out of it, though, making his internal debate superfluous. "That's quite a bit of swelling, maybe I should take you to the ER."
Aiden sucked in a breath and practically shouted, "No!"
He fucking hated doctors. All they wanted to do was poke people and give them medicine and try to tell people that they weren't normal and couldn’t live normal lives. Doctors ruined families and got people sent away. He wasn't going to a fucking doctor. Not ever again.
"We need to get it checked out and make sure you don't have a concussion." Rocky began tenderly prodding his finger over the sore area and Aiden hissed in pain. "I was going to ask if that hurt but I can hear it does. I really think you need to get this checked out, baby boy."
"But you're already checking it out," Aiden whined, "There is no need to bring an icky doctor into this."
Rocky knelt down and looked Aiden directly in the eyes. "If you won't go to the ER, then I'm willing to compromise. You'll come home with me tonight. I'll keep an eye on you." Aiden was already nodding his agreement despite the pain. Anything to avoid a damn doctor. "But..." Uh, oh. Buts were never good. "If I see even the tiniest hint that you might have a concussion, you will be going to the hospital if I have to hog tie you, throw you over my shoulder, and carry you there."
Well, fuck. All he could do was cross his fingers he'd be fine and wouldn't need to go. Distracting himself from the possibility, he wondered why the hell the image of Rocky carrying out his threat had Aiden about ready to come in his pants. What the ever-loving hell?
Chapter Four
Rocky
Fuck him. He'd been right. Pup was a Little. Everyone had assumed he was a Daddy. Rocky hadn't thought to question it until he'd found Pup sleeping that day. To top it off, when Pup went into Little mode, it was fucking adorable. Rocky knew Pup had seen his reaction to him. That couldn't be helped. Anytime the boy was anywhere in his vicinity, Rocky went hard as granite.
Rocky would like to have said he'd never been as scared as when Pup's head had bounced off the floor. He couldn't. It had been a long time since he'd felt that spear of panic steal his breath, though. When Pup had begun crying, it was all Rocky could do to try and remain calm for him. To offer his boy comfort. Aiden hadn't needed his over-the-top protectiveness. No, his Pup had needed care and comfort. So, Rocky had set about offering it.
Something in the way Pup had vehemently rejected seeing a doctor had pulled at Rocky's heartstrings until he'd finally relented. No way was Rocky leaving the boy alone, though. If there was even the slightest chance Aiden was in danger from his injury, Rocky was going to take action whether Pup liked it or not. That's what Daddies were for and in that moment, Pup needed a Daddy. Rocky needed to be one just as much.
As he led Pup into his home, he held his breath. Pup was the first person to set foot in Rocky's home. He knew it was fucked up that he wouldn't let anyone in there but he'd lost someone and every room of his previous home that he’d shared with Seth reminded Rocky of that loss, so he'd left and never gone back. He didn't want that to happen again. If no one was in his home, then he couldn't have memories of them there. He didn't know why he'd brought Aiden here. He could have just as easily stayed in Aiden's quarters at the clubhouse with him. Somehow, though, that hadn't felt right. For some reason, Rocky felt that nowhere would do but here.
Pup looked around at the admittedly sparse home. Rocky wondered if he would like it. Would he hate it? Rocky hadn't done much in the way of decorating. Everything he'd thought to do had made him remember Seth. At the time, that had been a bad thing. His grief had been such that a mere memory could drop him to his knees. Rocky wasn't sure when it had happened or how, but over time, it had eased. Over time, memories had ceased to bring such intense pain and had instead brought hurtful comfort. Something sweeter and less gut wrenching. Maybe it was time to start thinking of ways to make his house a home again.
"It's big." Pup's voice was small and slightly higher pitched and a bit disappointed, if Rocky hadn't missed the mark. But when Pup turned to the living room, it was a whole different story. "Wow! That TV is massive!" He rushed into the room and directly to the item in question. "I could see a freaking dungeon boss from a thousand yards away on this thing!"
