Work Text:
Aaron woke up that morning to his phone ringing, which was odd as usually he woke up a few times in the night from the bed having so much extra room that he’s still not used to. Last night, though, it seemed he’d slept all the way through which he really hoped meant he was getting used to being on his own. He put a hand over his face at first, before eventually groaning and picking up the phone - he doesn’t bother to look at the number, half-expecting it just to be Paddy or something - but he does notice the time from the clock on the wall that tells him it’s 7:30.
“Hi,” he grumbled.
“Uh, hello, hi. Is this Aaron Dingle?” The voice was of a young woman, she sounded like a receptionist of some kind, maybe around Belle's age. He started quickly going over if he’d booked something and forgotten about it.
He tried to not let confusion run into his tone as he spoke, “Who’s asking?” He didn’t want to give his number out in case it was someone after Cain who still had his number.
“This is Parkhurst Prison of Isle of Wight,” The woman introduced, “You’re speaking to Amalie.”
Aaron’s heart stopped for a moment, going over what this phone call really was - was his name back on Robert’s list?
“Are you the next of kin of Robert Sugden?”
“Next of kin?” Aaron repeated, his heart almost didn’t start beating again, for a moment he thought his husband would let him see him again, but those words terrified him, “Robert’s my husband, so I guess I am. Is he okay?”
The woman - Amalie - cleared her throat, “Excuse me, sorry. Mr Sugden hasn’t got you on any visitation or contact right now, correct?”
Aaron shook his head for a few seconds, before realising he was on the phone. He sat up before speaking again, “No, none. Not since he was transferred.”
“Right. Well, Mr Dingle, the reason I’m calling you is that Robert Sugden is in the prison infirmary. It’s our policy to call the next of kin, even if you’re not in current contact,” she reported.
“The infirmary?” Aaron panicked, “Is he okay? What happened?”
“He will be placed in his cell on his own for up to 21 days after he returns,” she explains, and Aaron’s eyebrows furrow in the relevance of this, “This will be a form of his privileges being stripped because of the incident.”
Aaron scoffs, “I really don’t care, I’m sorry, I asked how my husband is, not how he’s going to be punished for being attacked.”
“Mr Sugden is in the infirmary, and that’s all I can tell you over the phone, I’m afraid.”
“So you ring me, telling me he’s so hurt he’s in the infirmary but you can’t tell me if he’s stable, at least?” he hears silence on the other end, “Okay. Look, I live in Yorkshire. I can come down to the prison, am I going to be able to see him?”
Aaron starts to get out of bed now, opening the curtains as he pulls out clothes from his side of the wardrobe, despite the anger of the divorce papers initially, Aaron ended up keeping a lot of Robert's stuff, they still smelt of him. “I can tell you that Mr Sugden has been in an altercation with another inmate, and that he’s been placed into the infirmary to keep him safe and to ensure his injuries are tended to. Our procedure is to tell the family of this, or in this case, the next of kin - due to you both not being in contact.”
“Look, I’m trying to be calm, here, okay? I don’t care about your policy or procedure or whatever you call it. Can I see my husband if I come to the prison?”
“Yes. Due to him being in the infirmary, you can visit, but once he’s back in the prison - you can only see him with a visiting order.”
“Thank you. Can I see him anytime?”
“Yes. As long as it’s before he returns to his cell.”
“Right. Cheers,” He’s about to hang up when he hears Amalie’s voice again.
“Mr Dingle,” she begins, and Aaron's finger stops from pressing the red button on the screen, “If he was in danger because of the altercation, he would be transferred to an NHS hospital, and he’s still in the infirmary, so try not to worry too much on your travel down.”
He lets out a relieved sound, “Thanks. Bye.”
He hangs up the phone and throws it onto the bed, quickly pulling on his clothes and hammering on Liv’s door.
“Jesus, what?” Luckily, Liv was awake, she was in her pyjamas but the curtains were open and clothes were on the bed, “What's happened to you? Looks like a ghost is wearing your ugly mug for a laugh or sommat.”
“Prison rang, Robert’s been in an fight or something - he’s in the infirmary and I can go see him.”
“Shit, is he okay?”
“No clue, stupid cow on the phone wouldn’t say, can you just google on your phone the ferries to get over to Isle of Wight. I’m going as soon as.”
“Yeah, sure, you get your stuff together.”
Liv pulls out her phone and grabs a pen and paper and notes down all of the ferries for the day. She notes down the next ferry connections in about six hours, to give her bother time to drive down there, she pulls on clothes of her own and opens a tab on the laptop so Aaron can book the ferry when he comes down.
She really wanted to go, too. She missed Robert more than anything, he was as much her's as Aaron was. She ran back upstairs to get her paper, and on a whim, she pulls a hoodie out and her backpack and makes her way back downstairs afterwards.
Aaron's already down there, squinting at the screen, “Right then, I’m off in a sec, just booking this,” he tells her with his back to her.
“Can I come?”
His back straightens, looking over to his little sister, “Liv-” he starts but she interrupts.
“No, I don’t care if they don’t let me in, I don’t want you on your own driving or driving back. You need someone there, please Aaron. I miss him, too.”
“Fine.”
.
Aaron had been driving for about four hours now. Liv has been busting for a wee for a solid two hours and he was starting to count how often his stomach let out groans of a need for food. They decided they were going to stop at the next services so they wouldn’t end up killing each other, and the petrol tank was getting dangerously lower. It would also give them a chance to call Chas and Rebecca. Aaron was supposed to pick Seb up that morning, so he wanted to pick him up at a later time so he didn’t rush through seeing Robert.
Liv rushed to the bogs while Aaron ordered them both something from McDonalds, pulling out his phone and selecting his mum’s contact.
“Where the hell are you?”
“Good morning to you too.”
His mother’s voice repeated itself, “Won’t ask you again, it’s your day off, where are you?”
“Halfway to Isle of Wight.”
“You what?”
“The prison rang me this morning,” he explained, keeping an eye on the order monitor listing off numbers, waiting for 042 to show itself, “Altercation, so possibly beaten to an inch of his life. Infirmary, so his no contact means nowt.”
“Oh sweetheart,” he hears, “And that means you can see him?”
He keeps an eye on the monitor as he answers, hearing the tuts of the old pensioners overhearing the conversation surrounding prison, one older woman clutches at her bag, “Yeah, receptionist said the next of kin can go, so I don’t know if they’ll let Liv in.”
“Might just be a thing that you have to get him to say so or sommat,” she says, “Have you rang Rebecca about Seb?”
“No, I just tried her a second ago and she didn’t pick up so I’ve sent her a message saying I’ll come get him when we’re off home. I’ve got his car seat and a toy for him in the boot so I’ll be set later.”
“Right. Get something to eat, and make sure Liv does too, eh? You’ll be nervous wrecks.”
Liv finds him at that point, mouthing if it was Chas on the phone, which he nods at, “I am, just waiting for our order now. I’ll give you a bell when we’re getting on the ferry, yeah?”
“Yes, love. Don’t be getting worked up, he’s not in the hospital so he’s probably just hit a spot of bother and got some bruises. Give him a kiss and a slap from me.”
“Okay,” he says as 042 is called for, and he gives Liv the money to get the food, "Can you give Vic a ring and let her know?"
“Course I can. Love you sweetheart, bye now.”
.
After some food, Liv and Aaron got back on the road in time for the ferry and arrived in Isle of Wight safely enough. Aaron wasn’t a big fan of the water, but he made it in the end safe and sound. They ended up using the Maps app on Liv’s phone to get to the prison and the front desk were about to take them through to the infirmary. He'd had to show them his ID but other than that, they were quite laid back, it seemed like a nicer prison than the one he'd left.
It was at this point that Liv held onto Aaron’s hand, it wasn’t often that she would show anything resembling physical affection or reassurance to anyone but they both needed each other in that moment. They were being taken down a few different corridors, two guards following them.
Aaron faced two double doors when the man leading them stopped in front of them, “So, Robert Sugden. He was in an altercation with four other inmates last night, at about 8:30. Uh, reports said that Sugden started the fight - unknown cause," he read aloud, holding a clipboard in front of him, "But he threw the first punch, and it was in his cell. Because you’re his next of kin, we have to inform you, but only you can visit unless Sugden says otherwise.”
Aaron nods, “Can I go in now?”
“Yes, course. I should say he’s got a lot of cuts and bruises, especially in his torso and face, so prepare yourself for that. He’s completely stable, he’s in here for his own safety and to make sure he’s all stitched up and healing - he’s set to go back to his cell tomorrow morning. When he was admitted, he wasn’t conscious but he woke up about ten minutes after, we gave him some painkillers and he’s just been asleep all night. Woke up around 7, and he’s been in and out sleeping all day.”
He nods again, and squeezes his sister’s hand, “Okay, you wait in the waiting bit, okay? I’ll come out as soon as I can get him to let you in, promise. If you really want to go just have someone come get me or send me a bell.”
Liv sends him a closed mouth smile, “Go on.”
And with that, he opens the doors. For the first time in six months, he finally sees his husband. Luckily, he was awake. His right eye was almost swollen shut, and the eyebrow on his right had stitches - four of them. His forehead looked red raw, like it had scraped across the floor or it had been stood on, and it looked like the same thing down his neck. The left side of his face had odd scratches but nothing too major. His right cheek had a purple-looking bruise forming, with dried blood caked on the skin before his ear, the blonde hair above his ear had the same colour of dried blood. His hand on his right had three fingers bandaged together, like he’d used that arm to protect his body and they’d been stood on, perhaps, while his left hand was handcuffed to the hospital bed.
“Aaron,” Robert breathed.
It was like Aaron finally exhaled, he couldn’t explain it. He’d been through so much after his husband cut him off. The anger of it. The complete emptiness that ate him alive. The loneliness, the worry. The worry kept him up most. But more than anything, the simple and unjust feeling of missing him. His other half.
“Hi, idiot.”
“What are you- how are you here?”
Aaron took a seat, taking a hold of his bandaged hand, even if he was livid with Robert - he hadn't seen his husband in six months, nearly seven, “If you wanted rid of me, you should probably get rid of me on your next of kin document.”
Robert was quiet, and he closed his eyes, squeezing his husband’s hand, “Are you okay?”
“Am I okay? Don’t treat me like I’m stupid,” Aaron scoffed, “Tell me why you thought in your bright ideas, that leaving me in the dark and trying to divorce me was of my best interest.”
“I wanted to give you the best life, I promised you,” he explained, opening his eyes now, Aaron noticed that they were wet, “I promised you the best life, that wasn’t one in and out of a prison for 14 years.”
“That’s my decision, not yours.”
Robert nodded at his husband, “I’m sorry.” It was only at that point that he noticed that Aaron wouldn’t look at him, his eyes were locked on his own hand, interlocked into Robert’s bandaged one.
“Sure,” Aaron said, “You always are.”
“Please try to understand. Please,” Robert pleaded, “You know I love you, I know you know that.”
“Do I? I’ve had six months to think that over,” He quickly spat.
Robert squeezed Aaron’s hand, “I didn’t do this for me, I did it so you could move on and have a normal life.”
“And I had one. I had one with you, we could have done it. I was ready to do it, we could do anything as long as we did it together.”
“I’m sorry.”
Aaron looked up at him for the first time, he’s only let himself see quick looks away from their hands, and he finally took in how his husband looked - battered, “God, look at you,” he weakly said, “What happened?”
Robert lifted their hands to kiss them, he wished he could hold his hand in both of his, but the other was locked onto the bed, “I’m okay, I swear.”
“Tell that to the blood caked onto your face.”
He noticed the tears on Aaron’s cheeks, “Don’t cry,” he whispered, “I promise, it doesn’t hurt.”
“Robert,” Aaron begged.
“Uh, I was in my cell, and a bunch of lads were passing in the hall - the door was open, the guard let me out because we were going to get food or something. I was just getting ready to go but one of the lads pushed the other into my cell. One of the photos I have was on the desk, and it fell on the floor and they stood on it and I lost it. I did it, I punched the guy and then the lot of them were getting me off of him and beat me up a bit,” Robert explained, rubbing circles on the back of Aaron’s hand.
He breathed out, and put a hand through Robert’s hair, “You’re an idiot, you,” he said, “Don’t start anything in there, need you in one piece.”
“I missed you,” Robert cried then. He let the tears he was holding in drip down, “I missed you so much.”
“We did too,” Aaron says, swiping the pads of his thumbs over the wet skin under his eyes, not missing how he flinches when he grazes over his bruise, “None of us forgot anything," Aaron tells him, remembering the promise he had made his husband the last time they were together.
Aaron can hear his husband’s relief spilling out of him, “Do you still see Seb?”
“I’m going to get him on the way home. I get him every two weeks, stays at ours two nights. He asks after you so much, Rob.”
“He does?”
Aaron nods, “Asking for Dada Ruh, he wanted to show you a teddy I got him last time I had him, a little green dinosaur thing - kept screaming at photos of you I keep in his room,” and he smiles at the thought of their son, “Vic’s had her baby. Little boy, Bertie. Bertie Robert Sugden.”
“She-”
“Your name, yeah. She’s brilliant with him, he’s beautiful.”
Sniffing, Robert closes his eyes, “Liv?”
“She’s outside, she misses you so much.”
He looks over to the door, “She is?”
Aaron rubs the tears away again and nods, “They won’t let her in unless you agree, but I wanted you for myself first anyway. Give you a good bollocking.”
“Go on then, let me have it,” He smiles.
“What are you playing at, eh?” Aaron scolds, “Anyone else giving you grief?”
Robert shook his head, “Keeping my head down, ‘cept this.”
“Good,” He’s glad. He’s been worried at what Robert would do without anyone to report to, “I lost my head a bit too.”
“How?” Robert asked, and his husband saw the worry in his eyes.
“Got caught up with Cain, he went a bit mad. That Nate and Moira were having an affair, turns out Nate's Cain's son from way back. Faith had sent him and his mum packing when she was pregnant with Nate," he recalls.
"Nate's Cain's son?" Robert's eyes widened, temporarily forgetting the worry in the pit of his stomach - his biggest fear was Aaron falling apart when he got locked away.
Aaron nods, "Yeah, we were both a bit mad. I'd just properly lost you and he'd lost everything too. We got into stealing cars off some proper nasty blokes and Moses got taken. Liv and Mum got me out of it, I just wanted to feel something again. Not just empty all the time.”
“I’m so sorry, I should have been there, I’m sorry I did this,” Robert tried to rub at his face but Aaron held onto his hand, tight.
He looked into Robert’s eyes, “Don’t think you meant to get locked up, eh? I got back on track. I lost it for a bit after, I missed you, didn’t I? Just worked myself into the ground and Liv made me see sense. I had to think of her and Seb, I'm meant to be a good dad and I can’t be that if anything bad happened.”
Robert was so glad Liv had him, had his husband’s back. His biggest fear was that this would ruin Aaron and he’d lose his head for too long and lose himself along the way, and even with all the care Chas holds for her son, she had a newborn to worry after. Liv was his only hope. “You’re okay now, right?”
“I’m good. I’d be better when you get yourself sorted. Don’t lose your head when a picture gets trod on, I can get you more. I can get you visits if you’d let us.”
Aaron kisses Robert’s hairline, as he sighs, and strokes his husband's cheek with the back of his knuckles, as Robert speaks, “I never wanted to stop seeing you. I just thought it was too much.”
“How’s this sound, I won’t relocate. But every month, I’ll drive down. Come see you. I can bring Seb and Liv sometimes, hm? You miss us.”
“So much,” Robert says, “So so much. I’d like that.”
“Yeah?”
He nods, “Rob?”
Robert looks up at him.
“Please don’t try to divorce me ever again.”
"Promise."
.
After half an hour, Robert lets Liv come in, and she’s the same Liv he remembers letting go.
“Look at the state of your mug,” she exclaims, “What happened? Are you alright?”
Behind her face, Aaron could see the worry, her hand was twitching, playing with the material of her jacket nervously, “He’s fine. Lost his head at a picture getting ruined is all.”
“Come here, you,” Robert smiles at her, lifting his arm for her.
Liv goes over to where Aaron’s sat, and he gives her his seat, walking over to the other side of the bed.
“You doing okay?” Robert asked her, feeling his husband's hand in his hair.
She nods, “Shouldn’t you be answering that?”
“More worried about your homework than me, aren’t I?”
“Stupid, you are,” she smiled, Aaron can feel her feeling more comfortable now, he sensed her wariness like it was his own, “I’m doing okay, Doug helps sometimes.”
Robert nods, and rubs the back of her hand, “I miss you, you know? Got your picture up and everything.”
“Mine?”
“Mm, I have all of yous up. Listen, I’m going to allow visits again, will you come?”
Liv stands and hugs him, which shocks Robert for a moment, “Course I will. Could bring Seb too, he asks after you all the time now.”
“I’d love that.”
.
It was hard to say goodbye that day. Aaron held onto the idea that he could see Robert soon. They were talking towards the end about how to talk more, and he promised to ring Aaron everyday and to not block him out ever again. Everything seemed to be as good as they could be.
He’d decided to get some photos together to replace the one that got ruined, and on the drive home, he was getting Liv to go through his phone to get them ordered off of Snapfish.
“Best go get little man, then.”
“Yeah, we can tell him all about his daft dad, can’t we?” Aaron says, smiling.
“Which one?”
“Give over.”
Liv laughs, and looks over to her brother, “He’ll be okay, now. Got us, doesn’t he? That’s a reason for him to keep going. And hey, Seb can see this place, that’ll get Rebecca to stop taking him to the coast every two minutes.”
“Yeah. He’s going to be just fine.”
And for the first time in a long time, he really believed it.
fin.