Always a Friend

Chapter 48

Luckily, Ashton didn't try to get me on any rides before we left The Pier. He knew better than to try to get me on the Ferris wheel. I was deathly afraid of heights, and knowing my luck, I would've gotten stuck at the top while they let people off. I was able to mouth to Chloe that I'd text her later after I got home. 

Ashton told me I could go to his house for dinner tonight if Mom wasn't home, as usual. I glanced out the passenger window, watching the last of the day's sunlight shine off the store windows as we kept up with rush hour traffic. We arrived home almost forty minutes later because of traffic, and sure enough, Mom's car was gone. I sat there for a few seconds, staring at the empty spot in the driveway. 

"Are you sure you don't want to come over for dinner? You know Mom doesn't mind at all." He turned the car off and opened his car door. 

"Thanks. I'll be okay tonight." I opened the car door, grabbing my book bag from the backseat. 

"Well, if you change your mind." He closed his car door, turned, and headed across his yard. I walked up the steps, glancing to my left at him as he ran up the steps, two at a time. He then opened his door and disappeared through the doorway. I stood there for a few seconds, staring at his front door, wanting to rush over there and have dinner with them. I opened the door to my empty house and went inside. I locked the door and carried my book bag upstairs to my room. I didn't feel like doing my homework downstairs today. I walked over and started to close my curtains but instead left them open partway. I turned to walk to my dresser to grab a pair of leggings, pausing in the middle of my room and glancing back at the curtain. I stood there staring at the curtain, wondering what I was doing. Was I giving him an invitation to watch me in my room? Without giving it another thought, I ran over and closed my curtains the rest of the way. 

I was halfway down the stairs when Ashton started hollering my name through the front door. "Gem! Gemma! Open the door!" 

I opened the door. "Did you forget how to ring the doorbell or knock?" I raised an eyebrow, tilting my head to the side while holding onto the edge of the door. 

"Funny. Mom wanted me to bring you over this plate of food. She said that she wanted to make sure you got a hot meal." He lifted the plate a little. 

"Thanks. Want to keep me company while I eat?" I smiled, opening the door and letting my eyes drift to the living room. 

"Yeah. I'll let Mom know." He walked in and headed for the kitchen with the container of food. By the time I got to the kitchen, Ashton was grabbing a plate out of the cabinet for my food. "I've got this; go ahead and sit down." He motioned to the stools on the other side of the counter. He set the plate on the table and then took the lid off the container. "Mom made some kind of chicken and potato casserole thing." He shrugged, then turned and grabbed a big spoon from the drawer. 

I sat there, resting my arms on the counter, watching him spoon the chicken and potatoes onto my plate when, all of a sudden, he looked older. Ashton's dark blonde hair was almost a light brown, and his eyes were now the victim of a few fine lines in the corners. I straightened up, leaning back in my chair and blinking a couple of times until Ashton, as I knew him, was standing on the other side of the counter. Before he could see the startled look on my face, I got up, walked around the counter, and grabbed a fork out of the drawer. 

"You okay?" Ashton asked as I rounded the corner of the counter. 

"Yeah, why?" I stared at the pieces of chicken and potatoes on my plate as I hopped up on the stool. 

"You look like you saw a ghost. You're pale, and your eyes were huge." He walked around the counter, sitting on the stool to my right. He pulled out his phone and set it on the counter. "You going to tell me what got you freaked out?" 

I shook my head no, taking a bite of the chicken and potatoes. My shoulders dropped, and my eyes closed as I savored what was probably the best chicken and potato casserole in a long time. Mom's cooking skills were lacking here lately because she wasn't home much to cook. It was nice for a change not having to cook for myself. I wasn't even out of high school, and I was sick of cooking all the time. "Thanks for staying with me while I eat." I peeked at him out of the corner of my eye. 

"Anytime. How is it?" 

"Sooo gooood." I emphasized the "o's" in each word as I closed my eyes again, enjoying the last bite. "Do you have homework tonight?" I asked, hopping off the stool and carrying my plate to the sink. 

"Yeah, I should probably head back home and start on it. I'll talk to you later, Gem." He stood up, grabbed his phone, and walked out of the kitchen before I had a chance to ask him if he wanted to study with me. Did I chase him away with how I looked?  I glanced down at my outfit, then ran my fingers over my hair to make sure it wasn't standing on end. 

I washed a few dishes, including Elizabeth's container, so that I could give it back to Ashton sometime tomorrow. I looked around the kitchen at the spotless counters and table, making sure I didn't forget anything. I couldn't help but notice just how immaculate things looked in here. The granite counters were shiny, and no pictures or notes were hanging on the refrigerator like I'd seen in my friends' houses. My house looked like it crawled out of a Home magazine, minus the homey vibes. I turned to leave the kitchen, flipping the light switch off. I paused in the hallway, realizing I had forgotten to get a drink to take upstairs with me. Right as I turned around. 

Knock Knock

I turned sideways, looking down the hall toward the front door, wondering who was knocking. Chloe and Sarah always texted first before coming over. The closer I got to the door, the more I could see it was Ashton waiting for me to open it. 

"Wow, you knocked. You feeling okay?" I asked, staring into his eyes and moving my head slightly from side to side. 

"Really." He frowned, halfway rolling his eyes. "Are you busy?" 

"No. I was just going to start on my homework. Want to come in?" I opened the door, stepping partway behind it. I closed the door and started walking down the hall to the kitchen. "I was going to get a glass of sweet tea. Want a glass?" 

"Sure," Ashton said, following a few steps behind me. "I'm not bugging you, am I?" 

"Yeah, as a matter of fact, you are. I've got two guys racing over here to be with me." I opened the fridge, reaching for the pitcher and laughing. I turned, glancing at Ashton sitting at the counter, pinching the bridge of his nose. "What?" I asked, sliding Ashton's glass over to him. His hand reached out and grabbed mine as I started to pull it away. My breathing quickened, and that feeling they talk about in movies, butterflies in your stomach. Mine felt like they were trying to fly out of my stomach. I never had this feeling with Jude, Noah, or even Rhys. Ashton's taken my hand before, but this feeling had never happened before, so I was a little frightened. 

"Gemma, are you home?" Chloe bellowed, knocking on the front door. Ashton snapped out of whatever he was thinking and pulled his hand away. "Gemma!" 

"I better see what she wants." I slid my hand off the counter and walked out of the kitchen. The butterflies were gone, replaced with annoyance. "Come in!" I shouted, my voice harsher than I meant for it to sound. 

Chloe opened the door and started babbling about a fight she and Braedon had a little bit ago. I turned and started walking back to the kitchen because I needed to be close to Ashton. I couldn't describe the feeling because I had never felt it before. 

Ashton scooted to the far left stool, and I hopped up on the middle one while Chloe, still rambling, proceeded to get herself a glass of sweet tea. "I..." She stopped talking right as she raised the glass to her lips, staring at the both of us with furrowed brows. "Did I miss something?" She set her glass down, her eyes moving from me to Ashton and back. 

"I'm going to head to Braedon's and see how he's doing; that way, you two can talk in private." Ashton stood up, took one last drink of his tea, and left the kitchen. 

"I'll be back." I hopped down and hurried down the hall, leaving Chloe in the kitchen looking confused. "Ashton..." I looked over my shoulder at the kitchen doorway, moving closer to him. 

"I'll be back later. You better go back before Chloe walks out." He smiled, motioning his head down the hall. He opened the door and walked out before I could say anything else. I stood there, staring at the door. 

"What the hell is going on?" Chloe asked from down the hall.