Page 119 of Northern Stars

My heart sank. “What? No. People don’t get the right to talk about you in those ways. I know how hard it was for you five years ago, and your father was right. It’s my job to protect you from this kind of stuff. And if I can’t do that—”

“Aiden.” She walked over to me and took my hands into hers. “It’s not your job.”

“Yes, it is.”

“No. It’s not. If you feel as if you need to put out a statement on your behalf, by all means, do it. But if you’re doing it because of me, then I urge you not to.”

“But…”

“I’m okay,” she stated. “Did it shock me at first? Yeah. Was I transported back to those old insecurities that existed when I was seventeen? Sure, for a moment. Then I remember how far I’ve come. I’m not that young girl anymore, Aiden. I’m not broken and scared of what the world thinks of me, because I know who I am, and I’m so deeply confident in myself that the outside noise is nothing more than a slight buzzing sound.”

I swallowed hard. “I just feel bad about the things they are saying, and the only reason they are saying those things is because of me.”

She placed a hand against my cheek. “I choose you. Back then, I was blindsided. I didn’t know what to expect, but now I’ve had experience with the media, and I know how it works, how it moves. And this is me saying ‘okay’ to it all. I choose this life because I choose you. The stories will die down. The internet will find someone else to talk about. We will ignore it all, and we will be okay. We have to unplug from social media and live our lives. That’s how we win—by not playing their game.”

I swallowed hard and rested my forehead against hers. “But your father—”

“Is human, which means he’s not perfect. He reacted from an emotional state and feared watching his daughter suffer again, but I’m no longer suffering. I know who I am. I love who I am. I love this body of mine in all of its glory. I love my hip dips, and stomach rolls, and stretch marks. I don’t live in a world where people could create new insecurities for me anymore because my love for self is so loud that it drowns out their sounds. Do you know why I’m able to do that?”

“Why’s that?”

“Because of you.” She took my hands into hers and guided me to my bed, where she sat me down. She stood in front of me and removed her shoes and socks. She took the back of her hand and caressed her cheeks. “You told me that this was beautiful.” She then moved to her blouse and began undoing the buttons, revealing her bra and stomach. Her hands wandered across her arms, across her stomach, across her chest.

Her beautiful, luscious breasts…

I could stare at her body for the rest of my life, and it still wouldn’t be long enough.

“You told me to love my thighs,” she said, removing her pants. Her hand moved between her legs as she gently brushed against the fabric of her panties. My eyes were dialed into her every movement, as was my hardening cock.

“What else?” I asked her, not removing my stare from her. “What else did I tell you to love?”

She unhooked her bra, dropping it to the floor. Her beautiful breasts released from the fabric, and all I could think about was how I wanted to wrap my mouth around her nipples and taste every inch of them. Her hands cupped her breasts, and she massaged them, making my desire to take all of her right then and there grow even deeper.

“You taught me to love these, and to love…” She took a free hand and slid it into her panties, and within a second, I was beside her, holding her in my arms as my mouth fell against her neck. I moved her back a few feet until she was pressed against the wall.

One of my hands joined hers in her panties. My fingers gently massaged her as her eyes dilated and a quiet moan escaped her lips.

I slid two fingers inside her. “How long is your lunch break?” I whispered against her neck, kissing her, licking her, sucking her.

“Long enough,” she muttered, pressing her hips in my direction.

That was a good enough answer for me.

38

Hailee

I wentover my lunch break by thirty minutes, but luckily, Kate was more than willing to cover for me. As I got dressed after the most entertaining lunch break, Aiden sat on the edge of his bed, putting on his jeans.

He looked at me and said, “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

“How did you do it?” His voice was timid and low as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Do what?”

“Become so happy with yourself? I see it in you. I see your joy, and I envy that. I see how much you love your life in every aspect. I want that feeling, but it seems so unattainable.”

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