Chapter Text
Aidan Roberts sips on his to-go cup of coffee as he makes his way to the Chambers Law office building he works at. It was 6:30 in the morning and he had already had three cups. Coffee was one of the things he lived off of these days.
Coffee and being the smartest man in the building. He didn't study math all those years ago for nothing.
Aidan enters the law office building and heads straight to the elevators, only nodding a greeting to the receptionist at the front desk. He pushes the up button next to the elevator doors and waits for it to arrive.
Another man in their thirties joins him. The man gives Aidan a small quirk of his lips. “It's hell getting up so fucking early in the morning, huh?”
Aidan raises his cup. “You can say that again. This is my fourth cup just this morning.”
The man leans into Aidan's space as though he was spilling a dirty little secret. “Too bad we don't have the hot and sexy secretaries on our floor like they do in the higher-up's division.”
Aidan shrugs his shoulders, silently telling the idiot to shut the fuck up. It was too early for this. But, unfortunately, that was what the old him would have done.
The elevator doors ding open and they both step inside.
Aidan presses button number five while the other man presses button number six. They stand in silence as the doors close shut and the elevator begins making its way up the building.
“So, what division are you in?” The man picks their conversation back up.
Damn it. Aidan thinks. So much for a quiet morning.
Aidan answers the man anyways. “Accounting.”
“Oh.” Is all the man says in a tone that clearly let Aidan know that the man was dissing him.
That angered Aidan. But he keeps his cool.
In that moment, the elevator doors ding open to Aidan's floor and he steps out but pauses to look back at the man. “Have a great day.” His smile sends a shiver down the man's spine. And not in a good way.
As Aidan leaves, he is plotting the man's murder in his head.
Aidan makes his way to his cubicle. Once there, he sets his briefcase down on top of his desk and settles in. When his computer is up and running, Aidan begins checking his email. He learns that he has a few deadlines for audits and a meeting with his boss.
By the time he has read every email, three hours have passed and his boss, Mr. Chambers is walking in. The man walks right by Aidan's cubicle.
“Roberts. My office now.” The man says as he passes.
“Yes, sir.” Aidan quickly responds, standing up and buttoning his blazer as he follows his boss into the man's office.
“Sit.” The man demands as he slams his briefcase onto the desk in front of Aidan.
Aidan sits down in the chair next to him. “What did you need to see me for, sir?”
The man sits down behind his desk, his black hair shining blue in the morning sun behind him. “Roberts, I want you to look over a potential client's accounts to make sure everything is nice and squeaky clean.”
“Of course, Sir.” Aidan immediately responds.
“Good.” Mr. Chambers says exuberantly. He then hands Aidan a manila file. “Here is the file.”
Aidan takes and dread fills his veins as he stares at the name on the file.
HARGREEVES.
Aidan hated this fucking name. It was everywhere he went. It reminded him too much of who he used to be.
“Is everything alright?” Mr. Chambers asks Aidan when he stares at the file too long.
“Yes,” Aidan tells the man. He stands up. “I'll get right on this.”
Mr. Chambers points his pointer finger at him. “You're the man, Roberts.”
Aidan quickly leaves the man's office and goes back to his cubicle where he grabs his briefcase and stuffs the file deep down to the bottom of the case. Hopefully, he will be able to buy himself some time before he is forced to look at the file. Aidan sits back down behind his desk and begins auditing some of their client's accounts.
By the time he is finished with his work, he is the last employee left in the building. The only other people were the cleaning crew. Aidan shuts his station down, rising up from his chair, and stretching to get all the kinks out of his back. He grabs all his things and turns to make his way to the elevators but freezes.
Immediately, he feels the hairs on the back of his neck raise as he feels a pair of eyes staring at the back of his head. He quickly looks to the side to see if he sees anything in the corner of his eye but finds nothing. Just a sea of cubicles.
But Aidan knew he wasn't alone.
He slowly pulls a pen from his blazer pocket, clicks it open, and throws it with precise precision into a dark corner of the room. He hears a faint grunt that lets him know he hit his target. A shark-like grin appears on Aidan's face. He still had it.
He then leaves without another backward glance.
He walks out of the building, gets into his car, and heads home.
Aidan relaxes as he drives. The familiar lights of the city around him take him back to normalcy.
He ignores the black suburban tailing him.
When Aidan pulls into his driveway, he spots the suburban parking a block away from his house. He ignores it again, gets out of his car, and makes his way inside his house.
“Babe, I'm home!” He calls out as he shuts the door behind him.
Footsteps approach him from their kitchen. A minute later, Aidan's wife, Kiera, enters the living room.
“Welcome home, Darling.” She greets him before wrapping her arms around him in a hug.
Aidan kisses her forehead as he returns her hug.
“How was work today?” She asks him when she releases him.
Aidan can't help the heavy sigh that comes out of his mouth as he loosens his tie and unbuttons the first two buttons on his shirt.
Kiera gives him a sympathetic grimace. “That bad, huh?”
Aidan shakes his head as he plops down on the pea-green sofa in the middle of their living room. “Just got a very weird request today.”
Kiera sits down next to him, pushes him back forcing him to rest his head on the back cushion of the sofa, and begins rubbing his temples to get him to relax. “Well, why don't you rest here for a few minutes while I finish dinner, and then you can tell me all about it after we put Brandon down for bed.”
Aidan sighs and closes his eyes, melting into his wife's touch. Hers was the only touch he craved for.
He nods his head instead of opening his eyes and telling her with words. He was too relaxed. He feels her touch leave his skin and her body leave his side. But then he remembers the black suburban.
Aidan pops his right eye open. “Oh, by the way, a black suburban followed me home from work.”
Kiera pauses. “Should I set an extra place at the table then?”
Aidan shrugs his shoulders. “If I don't kill them first.”
Kiera chuckles before pressing a sweet long kiss on his lips.
Aidan tries to drag out the kiss but they are interrupted by pattering feet coming down the hallway that leads to their bedrooms. Aidan reluctantly pulls away from his wife and looks in the direction of the hallway. A small five-year-old boy with Aidan's black hair and green eyes paired with his mother's delicate features on his face comes running straight to Aidan.
“Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!” The little boy shouts as he barrels into Aidan's lap.
Aidan picks up the boy and pulls him into a gentle hug, letting the boy cling to him. “Hey, buddy.”
The boy pulls out of Aidan's embrace and sticks a piece of paper into Aidan's face. “Look, Daddy! Look what I drawed for you!”
Aidan moves the boy so that he is sitting in his lap and takes the paper from the boy's hands. It was a picture of stick figures of Aidan, Kiera, and the boy and messily drawn in different colored crayons. Under each stick figure had their names. Daddy, Mommy, and Me.
Aidan smiles at the little boy and places a kiss on the top of his head. He loved this boy so much. He never thought he would feel this type of love until he met the boy's mother. Aidan squeezes the boy close to him, hugging him again. “I love it, sweetheart.”
Aidan then proceeds to tickle the boy, getting squeals and laughter out of him.
“Daddy! Daddy! Stop it! Stop it!” The boy screams in between squeals of laughter.
Aidan chuckles before relenting and setting the boy next to him. He looks at the picture again before turning to his son. “Do we need to put this on the fridge?”
“Yes! Yes! Yes!” Aidan's son declares loudly, bouncing up and down on the sofa cushion.
Aidan grabs his son's hand. “Then, let's do that before Mommy calls us for dinner.”
Aidan's son pops off the sofa before pulling Aidan along with him to the kitchen. Aidan chuckles again as he follows his son.
In the kitchen, they find Kiera stirring a boiling pot of pasta, steam wetting her face, and dampening her hair. They all give each other smiles as Aidan and their son pins the picture on the front of the fridge with magnets.
“There.” Aidan declares before crouching down to his son's level. “How's that?”
“Perfect!” Their son shouts gleefully, jumping up and down and clapping his hands excitedly.
All of a sudden, their doorbell rings.
Kiera and Aidan freeze for a second before looking at each other.
“Looks like we have company.” Aidan says standing up. He glances down at their son. “Stay in here until I say otherwise.”
Kiera nods her head before turning their stove burners down and picking up their son in her arms.
Aidan leaves without another word and heads to the front door. He pauses for a second, takes a deep breath, and opens the door.
Standing on the other side are two people he never thought he would see again. He didn't know if that was good or bad. Diego and Luther.
Diego looks at him with a serious look as always. “Five. We need your help.”