A Day in the Life (Aiden)

[Hinrik]

Hinrik played a lazy melody on the piano. It was something he was working on that reminded him of days spent with his mum sitting in the back garden together. He wanted the song to feel like a nice day in a small town in England but he wasn’t quite sure how to translate that feeling into music. He needed to chat with Costin. He wouldn’t necessarily understand but he could get Hinrik to figure it out. He smashed some keys, frustrated. He breathed and then started to play a little Scott Joplin instead. A jaunty little Maple Leaf Rag was always a good palate cleanser. The song came to an end and Hinrik rolled his shoulders.

He stood. He could use a break anyway. Perhaps he’d ring his parents at some point. Hinrik strolled into the kitchen. They would be politely curious about his work and proud that he was making an album that would feature songs about the family. He rummaged through the drawer where they kept their take away flyers. Perhaps a ring home would help with the writer’s block. He pulled out a couple of flyers. He liked the Thai place down the street. It was well run and delicious. You could always rely on a Thai restaurant to make an excellent cuppa. Hinrik’s mum would probably like it. He’d have to remember to bring her there the next time she was in town.

He heard the front door open and then shut. That was likely Aiden since she basically lived in his flat at this point. “Should we get takeaway tonight?” he called, the Thai flier still in his hand. “I was thinking Thai. Or burgers maybe.” He hummed and then headed toward the front door. “Or we could go down to that English pub and have some bangers and mash,” he offered. “The closest thing we’ve got to England around here.”

[Aiden Mumble]

Aiden would say she was having a four out of ten sort of day. She might push it to 4.5, if her driver managed not to speak to her for the entirety of her trip to Hinrik’s place. He asked her about her day before they even hit the second red light.

3.5

If therapy had taught her anything, it was to put things on a scale. It was annoyingly helpful, but that didn’t stop Aiden from rolling her eyes every time her doctor asked “On a scale from one to ten…”

Still, Aiden was set on trying in her thirties in a way she never had in her twenties, so she stuck to the system. She lorded over her life awarding and subtracting points like some sadistic gamemaster. Hinrik brought her coffee in the morning; that’s a point awarded. Her driver made her late for a songwriting session with one of her producers; that’s two points off. She watched a rude and overzealous photographer fall into wet cement; that’s two points back. Her manager booked her on Modred’s famously raunchy late night show. The show her boyfriend had a steady gig playing on. “What fun!” Her manager had said, “You’ll be working on the same set!”

Aiden took a deep breath. She’s trying to heal. This didn’t need to be a big deal. Still, her brain ticked off six whole points from the all mighty scale. The only true benefit to the scale Aiden would admit to, albeit privately, was that if the day scored anything below a five- she felt she was entitled to spend the night at Hinrik’s place instead of her own. It was healthy to not be alone when she'd been feeling bad! Not to mention Hinrik was always so pleased when she stayed. It was an absolutely selfless decision in the end, really.

Aiden was naturally grumpy and worked in entertainment, so a day reaching below five was not a stretch. That’s why she'd been staying at Hinrik’s place so often and definitely for no other extremely romantic reason. They’d not been dating that long yet and Aiden was stubbornly insisting that they were not living together to anyone that would listen.

By the time Aiden pushed through the door, her body was sore from spiraling about being on Mordred’s stupid show. She hummed noncommittally at Hinrik’s proposal for takeout and kicked her boots off by the door with too much force. Predictably, Hinrik appeared in the doorway just moments later and Aiden didn’t hesitate to bury her face in his chest. She waited to respond until he’d finished speaking then grumbled into his shirt.

“I’ll give YOU some bangers to mash.”

Which mostly means nothing, but she’d said it with the cadence of an innuendo and figured it was good enough. She snaked her hands around his waist and took a few long deep breaths before continuing.

“Let’s get Thai, they have that tea you like.”

[Hinrik]

Hinrik chuckled at her nonsense and planted a kiss on her head. He ran his arms around her shoulders, holding her in place. Not tightly though. Never tight enough to make Aiden feel trapped. That she was now not only accepting affection but initiating it was always exciting to Hinrik. It was a testament of all of her hard work to get to where they were. Hinrik hummed a little as he held her.

"Rough day?" He asked gently, rubbing a hand along her back. A grumpy Aiden coming home was starting to become more and more usual. Which meant that she was likely to stay. He was always pleased when she stayed. Though they hadn't been dating very long he didn't sleep well on the nights Aiden wasn't there in the bed beside him.

He nuzzled her head affectionately. She chose the Thai place because he liked the tea there. It made his heart swell with affection for her. Hinrik pulled back a bit to look down at her face."Shall I put in the order now? Same as usual?" He nodded his head towards the hall. "Movie night and a cuddle, perhaps? Or do you want to have a venting session first?" He dropped his arms from around her and headed into the living room. "Come and sit, love".

[Aiden Mumble]

Aiden was attempting to be better and, never satisfied with herself, she was constantly aware of her short comings and ignorant of her progress. Any person who knew Aiden for even ten minutes at college would see her hugging anyone other than her parents currently and be amazed by her progress. Aiden, on the other hand, felt it was about damn time she started accepting meaningful connections with good people in her life and scolded herself for not being better about it. Listen, she’s a work in progress, ok?

The point being that she had a threshold, a scale if you will, for specifically soft affection along with everything else. Aiden often found herself spilling over this threshold at Hinrik’s place and finding creative ways to release the bundled up emotions that came with it. That was either in bed (or the couch, or sometimes the table…or the floor), or in any number of ways she and Hinrik had learned to sparr. Her therapist had said everything was above board and healthy about this so long as open and honest communication was kept up. Aiden still fretted about it on occasssion even thought she knew if anyone in the relationship was going to be closed off and dishonest, it would not be Hinrik.

There, safe in the circle of his arms, breathing him in, Aiden felt a complicated mix of comfort and stress. The day had already made her feel like a shaken soda can, but the way Hinrik pushed into her gently, the way he nuzzled into her hair like their conversation about take out was something precious—It made her feel like she might bubble over for an entirely different reason.

She breathed through it and met his eyes when he moved to look down at her. She pushed up on her toes and pressed her lips against his for a moment.

“Yes,” she grumbled into his lips after his question about the order. He tipped his head to look into the hall and asked her two more horribly kind questions and then topped it off with her favorite and least favorite thing in the world: love. It made her want to climb inside his chest and live there. It made her want to explode into roughly eight thousand tiny pieces. It made her want to hold him and be held by him through even the most invovient of tasks. It made her want to throttle him.

She followed him into the living room, a dramatic frown on her face and shuffling her feet the whole way. She wastes no time expressing her displeasure at his ability to pop her affections levels well into the red in record time. He was just so perfect and she—no that line of thinking has never lead anywhere good.

“Ugh, I’m going to strangle you,” she bemoaned. She pushed him into the couch with too much force for a normal person, but was probably a strong breeze for a Viking. She then proceeded to flop on top of him. She set her teeth gently into his shoulder for good measure. Satisfied she blew out a massive sigh and shifted to buried her face into his neck, planting a kiss there in apology for the outburst.

“My manager booked me on a show and I don’t know if I want to do it,” she confessed, at last, into the dark safety of the space between the couch and his shoulder.

[Hinrik]

Hinrik led Aiden into the living room while pulling out his phone and putting in their orders for their takeaway. It seemed like a night where Aiden might be a bit clingy so he set the order for delivery. That gave them ample time to Aiden to very possibly try to crawl into his skin with him. He chuckled when she said she wanted to strangle him, but he was cut off when she shoved him into the couch. He was caught off guard enough that he just went with it, falling to the couch and turning to catch Aiden when she inevitably crashed into him.

What he didn’t predict was the bite to his shoulder. “Careful there, love,” he cautioned. “Don’t damage the goods.” He swiped a hand over her head and she kissed him better and then tucked his arms around her comfortably, holding her as she mulled over her many and meandering thoughts. Her bursts of aggression weren’t unusual but they did keep him on his toes. Sometimes they led to full out sparring in the apartment. Sometimes it led to sparring of a decidedly different kind. Sometimes, like now, it just led to more cuddling.

Hinrik stroked one hand over her hair, listening to her confession. He wasn’t sure what to say to that. In the entertainment industry one often had to do things they didn’t want to do, but it was hard when it was Aiden. He wanted to be understanding and supportive. “What show?” he asked gently, wanting to give her the chance to explain more if she wanted to, but also the space to tell him to buzz off and mind his own business. He twirled a lock of her hair around a finger. “What can I do to help?”

[Aiden Mumble]

Aiden had a particular weakness for people playing with her hair. Her parents had always been very tactical in showing their love. They loved hugs and hand holding. It was really Aiden that became the odd one out when she pulled away as she grew, but that didn’t mean the desire and the need for physical affection as a love language ever left her bones.

All this to say, her mother played with her hair almost habitually when she was growing up. It was particularly calming. Hinrik is one hell of a man by anyone’s standards and probably had picked up on this. Or maybe he just enjoyed it. Maybe both. Aiden was trying this new thing where she just…let’s some things go. Like the near constant little thoughts that swarmed around in her head, trying to convince her that Hinrik deserved better.

This thought process was as tired and overworked as she was at this point and, you know, learning to trust your partner to make adult decisions for themselves is also a thing. Things hadn’t been easy for a while there. Well, things hadn’t been easy for a long time, but they didn’t just fall into each other's arms overnight when they met back up later in life. They worked for it. Aiden worked for it. She is still working for it, and she knew Hinrik was just as active in that journey.

She didn’t need to be responsible for everything. No one should be expected to do everything all the time.

Unless you are an entertainer under contract.

Aiden sigh heavily into Hinrik’s neck as he spoke. She felt soothed by the way his chest rumbled as he spoke gently and the way he spun her hair around his nimble fingers. Her hair was shorter now, she’d shaved it a few times and played with some wild colors. These days it had faded back to her natural brunette, but it remained choppy at the ends and barely made it to her shoulders with the longest layer. It was a pain to braid, but it was perfect for twirling. Aiden tried to focus on that and not on Hinrik’s question, but, ultimately she found she wanted to tell him.

She leaned back on another heavy exhale so she could read his expression.

“Mordred’s show,” she complained, quietly.

Just like how she and Hinrik found themselves swimming in the same circles again, so too had they found Mordred. He texted her sometimes, late enough for him to absolutely be wasted. She heard about Mordred from others, just as everyone kept up with anyone in this town. None of it sounded particularly reassuring. Not to mention, Hinrik plays on his show and the general public was aware they at least had some kind of relationship. It was pretty obvious at this point that she’d been avoiding Mordred.

[Hinrik]

Hinrik hadn't heard the words "I love you" said much. Not out loud. There was very little adding evidence that his family loved each other. So he learned to read it in body language instead. The light touch of his mum could carry the weight of concern. A disdainful shove from his sister could either be one of annoyance or one of fond exasperation. Sometimes even both. The squeeze of a shoulder in passing from his father meant I'm proud of you or I'm here for you. It was the small things that others didn't notice that carried weight and meaning for him. He had always been able to read between those lines to parse out meaning that others missed.

But twirling her hair was mostly because it gave him something to do with his hands. It was an old carryover from the before times when he wasn't allowed to touch but sometimes could get his hands in her hair. She had such pretty hair, no matter what she did with it. It was just so quintessentially her.

As Aiden took her time to think about whether she wanted to tell him, Hinrik thought about the world of entertainment. How they had both landed there, but in very different situations. Hinrik's gig on Mordred's show was far from ideal. Working for someone who couldn't possibly appreciate his achievements was difficult at best. But it was a job that afforded him time to write his own music. To dip a toe, so to speak, into different waters. The current album he was working on was something more indie-folk inspired. His first album had learned heavily on classical. And yet, at the end of the day, he still has to shuffle onto a stage so that one day people might recognize him and that recognition might turn into looking into his music. He was a public-adjacent figure that occasionally had to do publicity to sell his own work. And it helped to maintain a job where he was in the public eye even if he wasn't front and center. And overall, he had a lot of freedom to pursue the things he wanted to do at the end of the day. Not everyone could say the same in the industry.

As Aiden shifted to look at him, Hinrik turned his attention back to her. He tensed at the admission. Aiden was going to be on Mordred's show. A show where he made his guests slip in bed with him. Mordred, who Aiden had been trying to avoid.

Hinrik forced himself to relax. He wanted to respond, not react. This was an intensely complicated issue. Hinrik had never failed to make sure that Aiden knew he did not like Mordred. Even the Norns knew he had never liked that smarmy bastard. And yet, that smarmy bastard was his boss.

Aiden’s situation with Mordred was intense and complex. Emotions would likely be high for her. But Hinrik would be there, right on stage. But maybe that would be worse for her. Her public persona was not the same as the Aiden who almost lived in his flat. Hinrik let out a breath and pushed a strand out of her face. “Well then,” he said at last. “How do you want to handle this? I don’t have to be on a show that day if that’s better for you.”

[Aiden Mumble]

Hinrik tensed and Aiden held her breath. She wondered if it was a bad idea for her to have remained so close when she told him. Not that she was fearful of what he might do, but because she was fearful of making him feel trapped. Aiden often had to remind herself that not everyone’s boundaries and desires were the same as hers. Still, she observed him closely, ready to spring away if he needed space to think.

Instead, he relaxes a moment later and Aiden worries shift in a different direction. Those whispering gnats buzz around her head trying to tell her he has to bury his true feelings in situations for her sake. He had to hold back his true feelings. She was holding him back, holding him down, keeping him locked in this love.

Aiden Blinked hard when his voice broke through her spiraling thoughts. She felt the warmth of the places their bodies touched. She drank her fill of the concern and support written on every line of his face and felt almost scolded for spiraling so quickly. He just knew her history with Mordred and knew it was complicated. He wanted to help, as he always did, whenever possible.

Aiden huffs and then allows herself a moment of theatrics. She groaned loudly and then shifted her focus to adjusting some of Hinrik’s hair away from his face as she worked on the problem in her head.

“I don’t want you to feel like you have to be there if it’s going to be too hard, but-“ She hesitated, focusing on her fingers fidgeting with his hair rather than his eyes.

“I think I’d like it if you could, be there,” She admitted in a wavering tone. Aiden hated asking for things, emotional supportive things in particular. Still, one of the many new things she was trying out these days was believing people when they said things. Hinrik asked her what she wanted to do. Which means he would probably like an actual answer on that point, but she loathes giving such answers when she’s even one percent certain it might cause any harm to someone she cares about. Compromises like wording her answer the way she did seem to be the best she can do so far, which isn’t nothing, but it's certainly not her top score in therapy.

[Hinrik]

Asking Aiden to tell him what she wanted wasn't any easy thing for her. He had known that in the admin and yet he had to ask. He needed to know what she wanted and what she would be comfortable with. So he let her do whatever it was she was doing to his hair because he knew that she was actually weighing her options.

He was relieved that she was giving him an answer, even if it was a bit evasive. She was giving him an out at the same time as telling him what she wanted. And that was a start. He took the hand that was still fiddling with his hair and pulled it to his lips, where he deposited a quick kiss. "It will never be hard for me to support you. I'm happy to be there."

He squeezed her hand because he was going to have to ask another hard question. "How do you want me to be there? I can be backstage if you want, or in the audience. Or I can be there on stage with the band, doing my job." It was a tricky situation since they hadn't told the public yet that they were dating. There were people who speculated of course. He and Aiden spent a lot of time together, but they weren't into pda either. So there was no concrete proof that they were dating. "Don't feel like you have to answer that now, either. You can think about it for a while."

[Aiden Mumble]

Aiden sigh affectionately when Hinrik kissed her hand and reassured her. Despite her busy brain’s best efforts, reminders like this often did ease something tight in her chest. Perhaps it was the way he said it, or maybe how often he said similar things. Maybe therapy just worked and she was actually making progress. Regardless, his words washed over her like a warm rain. He would be happy to be there. Aiden knew that it would be hard for him, but she knew what he meant by the sentiment. He was happy to be by her side. He was happy to continue doing so. Not even she, with all her years of experience self sabotaging, could deny the fact that he has said things like this at least a hundred times and never once proven he did not mean it.

She bumped her forehead against his then braced for whatever more he had to say. The squeeze of her hand reminding her to brace for more. Surprisingly, this question felt easier to answer. Sometimes it worked that way. If she pushed her way into an emotional conversation, it was easier to keep the momentum going from there. She pulled away again after a few moments of thought.

“I think it would be suspicious if you were just backstage or in the audience,” She admits. “If it was just another day on the job, no one there would think twice abut us talking backstage before and after,” She notes. “And…” She looked down for a moment, feeling a little silly for the next thought.

“You’d be closer on stage with the band,” She admitted, almost embarrassed, which is ridiculous given how long they’ve known each other and how utterly in love they were.

“I think we should have a signal,” She pressed on quickly. “Like one for everything is fine and another for everything is not fine. I can always get sick or something and have to leave if things get too dicey for either of us,” She said with a bit of mischievousness reaching her expression. It fell back to concern just a moment later.

“I could also just be ‘sick’ and not go, but…” She trailed. Her voice is only just above whisper when she next spoke.

“I can’t avoid him in this town forever.”

[Hinrik]

When Aiden bonked her forehead gently into his, Hinrik couldn't help the grin that escaped onto his face. It made his heart swell. He nuzzled her gently before she pulled away.

Since their relationship wasn't public it would be awfully strange for Hinrik to be at the show in any kind of capacity other than a professional one. They didn't need to tip their hand for Mordred. He hadn't even told his bandmates, though they did know he was seeing someone. And they had been understanding about the fact that he wanted to keep it private for now.

Hinrik grinned at her when she got a bit shy. "That settles it, then, doesn't it? It'll be just another day of work, only my amazing girlfriend will be at my work who will also be working," he teased. He nodded, mock seriously at the suggestion of hand signals. "Yes, right, hand signals definitely won't be obvious to everyone watching.

Hinrik squeezed her hand gently as her tone grew more serious. Their social circles overlapped too much. Talking to Mordred was bound to happen one way or another. It was unfortunate that it had to be so public though. Hinrik would have to be in his guard for the very real possibility that things would go very sideways.

Hinrik cocked his head to one side and very nearly laughed. "That makes you sound like a cowboy. Say it again, but this time add finger guns." He demonstrated said finger guns for her, hoping it might make her laugh.

[Aiden Mumble]

Aiden benevolently only rolled her eyes fondly when Hinrik used the words "amazing girlfriend" to describe her. He was lucky that her need for reassurance in the moment outweighed her aggressive way of dealing with the way affection made her want to explode. Even without her valiant self control, his next poke at her plan would have saved him. They know each other too well.

She laughed without meaning to. The kind of laugh Hinrik almost steals from her in unsuspecting moments like this. Aiden's life isn't void of laughter by any means, but her laughter was often sarcastic or even cruel. Like every other aspect of her personality, she weaponized it during a time in her life when she felt like there was not a soul she could trust with any real parts of herself. It was extraordinarily rare that someone made her laugh in interviews that the one time she did it, they had to stop and start over because the interviewer thought he was about to die. Aiden didn't hate this media built persona. She tough, scary, and all together below average height. People liked it. She was loud and passionate about the opinions she was allowed to share and she did not take shit from anyone. This was an excellent image for her to keep up because it was mostly just who she has always been.

Still, it's not all of her. Not by a longshot these days. Hinrik was one of the very few people that got to see more than the cameras.

"Noooo, don't they have anything better to do then decode our hand signals?" She groused, overdramatic to insist that she was very aware that they did not, in fact, have anything better to do. People were just as hungry to see their idols fall in love as they were to see them available as a potential lover forever. You could never please everyone. Which, thankfully, is one thing that has never once been Aiden's goal. In fact, she could not care less what most people had to say about anything she did. About five people total were allowed to have opinions. That's it.

Just as she sunk again into her seriousness, Hinrik pulled her out with stupid little finger guns. Idiot. so stupid. He is impossibly cute. This calls for action.

Aiden shook her head. She pushed his hands away and dove in to issue another mandatory bite near his jaw.
"You are such a loser," She scolded him. "Besides," She pulled back again, something sparkling in her eyes.

"You didn't even do it right," she rushed, poorly restraining a grin. She then sprung off him and slide into his room. She spotted her prize immediately. It's a cowboy hat she stole from a fan during one of her shows. It's black and worn and not particularly well made. Still, Hinrik had said he liked it and Aiden had said to prove it and--well now it has been hanging on his wall for months. She threw it on her head and then spun dramatically back into view.

"This town ain't big enough for the both of us," She drawled and then swung both arms up like she was a gunslinger in shootout. She pushed her thumbs down and popped her lips to mock fire at him, hat sliding over one eye with the effort.