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It was a quiet, simple night throughout each of the three camps. It was no different than the last three nights, really, each of the teams had now accepted that this was how they’d live until they’d inevitably be sent home, or win the season.
The gentle rustle of leaves in the wilderness was the only sound present to most. A light breeze was calmly sweeping through the night, though most wouldn’t notice. It was a serene night, with nothing to disturb the slumber of the exhausted contestants.
Tom was stuck, however, in his own head. His mind was steadfast on the premonition that him and Miriam would begin fighting. Ever since the challenge, his thoughts lingered on the fact that Miriam had sabotaged his team.
Sure, he did not contact her or Jake, but that doesn’t mean he doesn’t care about her. He still very much valued her, although it may not seem that way. He had to fight his own demons as well, and had distanced himself from Jake and Miriam for the time being, but he did not believe that justified the hostility.
His attention shifted towards the empty spot next to him, it was where Aiden slept during the night, but Aiden wasn’t here right now. The rest of the girls were asleep, but Aiden had silently and quickly left while Tom was trying to go to sleep. Tom guaranteed Aiden had no idea that Tom saw him leave.
He was curious where the boy had left to, Aiden was the only one Tom really had on the team right now. Ellie was still as untrustworthy as ever to him, and he was sure Tess and Gabby would side with Ellie when given the chance. Even still, he was not going to play dirty and try to backstab Aiden, he genuinely appreciated Aiden’s company.
So, although Aiden probably didn’t want Tom following him, Tom decided to anyway. Aiden had left a bit ago, so Tom didn’t think the boy could have gone very far. Tom was just curious, is all.
Tom stood up as quietly as he could manage and stepped out of the tent, into the cool night. The grass was slightly chilly on Tom’s bare feet. Tom was in his sleeping
attire, which was not the optimal choice of fashion given the current temperature, but he did not mind the cold.
His footsteps were light upon on the grass, acting as cushions to mitigate any sound his feet could have made. His eyes scanned the surrounding area, searching for the boy, but he was nowhere to be found.
Immediately, Tom had assumed that Aiden had to have gone to Kristal for something urgent, and was slightly worried. But something had stopped his fears from truly coming into fruition. A small, muffled sound that would be easy to miss. Tom stopped everything he was doing and stood completely still. He tried to pinpoint the exact direction of the noise.
He hears it again, and his eyes snap to a direction. His eyes had shifted towards the beach, where he heard the noise coming from. It was faint, and could barely be heard over the wind and water.
So, he followed the noise, gently tip-toeing towards what he’d find on or near the beach. When he finally got close enough, he could make out what it truly was.
A soft, muffled cry, it sounded like a puppy whimpering. In fact, Tom could’ve sworn that’s what it was at first, until he moved closer. Slowly but surely, he peered around the corner and saw the very thing he was looking for originally.
Not a puppy whimpering, but Aiden crying. He was hugging his knees while staring out at the water. Tom couldn’t see much of the finer details from this distance, but he could see at least that. He was immediately worried, and quickly moved towards Aiden.
“Aiden! Aiden!” Tom raised his voice to get the attention of the crying boy, his effort proved successful and Aiden’s face slowly lifted up and his tear-filled eyes looked up at Tom.
Tom kneeled down to Aiden’s level. “Are you okay!?” He asked with panic in his voice, to which Aiden just nodded slowly. He didn’t talk at all, but his lip was quivering slightly.
“That was a stupid question… You’re obviously not okay, Aiden. What’s wrong?” Tom sat down next to Aiden and put a hand on his shoulder, he looked into Aiden’s water filled eyes, which were slightly glistening due to the star’s reflection.
“I-I miss them.” Aiden said weakly, it was a simple answer that spoke volumes. Tom’s face immediately shifted into a sympathetic expression.
“Oh… I’m so sorry Aiden…” Tom wasn’t the best at comforting others, far from it, but he would try everything he could to make Aiden feel better. He put an arm around Aiden and just held him close.
The two were now staring out at the water, together. Neither muttered a word, just a peaceful gaze upon the star lit water. The tranquility remained unperturbed for a while. Tom could hear the faint sniffles and little sobs coming from Aiden, but they were slowly dying down as time passed.
Aiden’s eyes moved from the water up to Tom. His voice was still meek. “H-How am I gonna do anything without either of them?” Aiden seemed desperate for any sort of comfort, which made Tom feel utterly terrible.
Tom was quiet for a moment, before he answered. “Aiden, you don’t need them to do anything. You’re strong, they’d want you to go far in this game.”
“I was nothing in my season without James, Tom. I’m just a dependent, worthless, mess…” And yet again, Aiden’s tears began to flow. They ran down his face and in due time, would drop off onto his leg.
“Hey, hey. No you’re not. You’re perfectly capable of making it far by yourself.” Tom looked down at Aiden, who just sniffled and looked back at the water.
And it was quiet again. The beach’s waves were moving against the sandy beach, creating the slightest bit of noise.
Aiden shook his head and sighed, he sounded defeated. “There’s no point… Tom, we’re the next to go, you know that.”
“That’s not true. We can still make it to merge, and we can still bring Tess to our side.” Tom grabbed both of Aiden’s shoulders and gave him a reassuring smile. “We can still make it far! Don’t you see? James and Lake would love to see you thriving in this game.”
Aiden’s eyes locked onto Tom’s, and his lips slowly curled into the smallest smile. “You’re right… They’d love that.”
Tom felt his happiness grow slightly when he saw Aiden smile, it added some positivity to this difficult experience. His smile grew wider. “See? You may miss them, but just know they’re watching and rooting for you. They’ll always be with you.”
A small, slightly forced laugh came from Aiden. He wiped the tears from his face. “I suppose they wouldn’t want to see me like this either.”
Tom sensed the fact Aiden was trying to dismiss the issue, and stopped him. “Don’t force your happiness, either, Aiden. Just relax right now, we’re in no hurry to get back to camp.” Tom’s voice became softer, as a way to comfort the other boy.
Aiden gulped, his throat was sore from crying, which showed on his face when he swallowed. His frown was back now. “I-I won’t, Tom.” He took a deep breath and looked back out at the water. “I’m just so used to having them around, especially James, it’s hard to envision playing this game without him. I miss my boyfriend, Tom…”
Tom looked up at the starry sky, while collecting his thoughts. “Sometimes we have to work without those we hold dear, and when that happens, we just have to be strong for them.” Tom then looked back at Aiden, who was intently listening to his words. “So be strong for James and Lake, they’ll be waiting for you once you’re done.”
“Those we hold dear…” Aiden muttered again to himself, as if it was some sort of shocking revelation. Now he looked up at the sky, his hands were on the ground on both sides of him.
Tom looked up too. It was as if they were both fixated on the cosmic void above them. “Yes, Aiden. Do it for them, whoever they are.”
The stars twinkled above, there was a special allure the sky held which made the two admire it. The gentle breeze lightly brushed against the two’s skin as they gazed at the sky.
“I will, Tom. Everything I do is for them.”