“Of course, Lucy. I think I’ve become a bit desensitised since yesterday. Come on, Ash is Martin James, could anything be more shocking than that?” Penny asked, glancing between them again. Lucy found herself speechless, as her sister gave her a casual wave before going back to her own room.
“You okay?” Ash asked, watching Lucy carefully.
“Yeah, I’m just… I still can’t believe that she has taken it so well. It’s just a bit unusual,” Lucy replied, with a shake of her head.
“Maybe she wasn’t as obsessed with me as you thought,” Ash sent her a cheeky look.
“Do you think Mindy will try to call you again? Where did she even get your number?” Lucy asked curiously.
When Ash ran a hand roughly through his hair making it stand on end, Lucy felt worried. He bit his lip, and she knew that the answer wasn’t going to be good. She sat on the bed opposite him, crossed her arms, and sent him an intense look.
“I gave it to her,” he managed to choke out.
“Right… well, I think I might require an answer for that one,” she tapped her fingers impatiently against her arm, her glare intensifying.
“The night we went to the charity thing, I needed to know where to meet her. I gave her my number, so we could organise it.” He explained, making Lucy relax her tense pose.
“Alright,” she let out the breath that she had been holding. “Come here.” She gestured to the space next to her on the bed.
“I know I’ve said it before, but you know you’re incredibly demanding.” He said with a chuckle.
“Yes, obviously,” she agreed dryly. "I want to sleep a bit more, before I face the homework that I should have finished last night.
She tugged on his arm, until he lay down beside her. She snuggled against the warmth and security that he provided. One of his arms went around her waist, while the other played with her hair.
“Where did you go before? I woke up and you were gone?” She whispered, sounding far needier than she had meant to.
“Bathroom,” he muttered
“Oh, okay,” she said on a yawn.
“Will you come over to my place this afternoon?”
“Sure, if I make it through the day still awake.” She snorted out a laugh, and he smiled at her.
“I want you to tell me the truth,” his words hit like a sledgehammer, and the drowsy feeling of sleep left her instantly, as she stiffened against him. “You need to let it out, Belle.” He whispered in a soft but determined voice, and she let out a resigned sigh.
“Okay, but don’t say that I didn’t warn you.” She muttered to herself.
Even as his arms tightened about her, she felt dread swamp her. She could only wonder if she was strong enough to tell him the whole truth. She wasn't sure whether he was strong enough to take it, either.
Chapter 21 – Drama and chocolate
With scratchy eyes, and an uneasy feeling in her chest, Lucy walked to her first class. Ash had disappeared somewhere, and she was surprised at how alone she felt. Ren and Col had called in sick, with their parents taking them to their great Aunt’s funeral for the day. It seemed that she was on her own.
The smug look on Rachel’s face when she entered the classroom worried her. Being the only other person in the room with her, was never a good plan. Lucy took a deep breath, and walked in, took her seat, and ignored the other girl.
“I heard that you had another little fainting scene yesterday,” Rachel let out a trill of laughter, while Lucy grimaced.
“You know something? I always thought that you were a bit stupid, but if you're siding with Crystal again, be warned that it won’t be your smartest move,” Lucy told her sharply, and the other girl let out a telling gasp.
“What makes you think that I would take her side?” Rachel spat back, looking furious.
“How would you know I even saw her yesterday?” Lucy pointed out, and the other girl scrambled for an answer. “Don’t make this like last time.” Lucy finished, before turning away and ignoring her.
That was when she noticed Ash standing in the doorway. He sent her a curious look, but there was a hint of anger in his eyes. She hit her hand to her forehead and frowned. Now he would really want to know what had happened. Before he could say anything, the room began filling with students.
Ash found his frustration increasing, as the day went on. Mindy kept persisting in ringing him, while Lucy seemed to be going out of her way to avoid him. He caught up with her at the beginning of lunch, and when she sent him a guilty look, he knew that he was right.
“You need to stop evading me, Belle. Trust me when I say that I will not let this go,” he told her stubbornly, making her grumble under her breath. His phone rang in his pocket again, and the anger in his eyes threatened to explode.
“Hey, it’s okay, calm down,” she said soothingly, as he fished into his pocket.
“Why won’t she get the damn message?” He growled, staring at the offending object. Lucy put her hand out, and he gladly passed it over.
“Hello, Mindy again, right? Listen, I think you’ve called him enough for now. I’m going to swap phones with him, so the only one you’ll be hearing for the rest of the day is me. I would suggest you stop calling him, unless your gigantic crush is on me,” Lucy said quickly, not letting the other girl say a word. Mindy hung up straight away, while Lucy grinned, and handed him back his phone. “She should leave you alone now.”
“That would be one problem solved today.” He sent a meaningful look her way, and she sighed.
She ordered some lunch for both of them. Instead of sitting with her friends, she threw him a sandwich, and a bottle of water, while gesturing outside. She chose the shade of a big old gum tree that everybody avoided, due to its tendency to drop leaves or branches constantly. He sent her that look again, as he unwrapped his sandwich and took a bite.
“Where do you want me to start?” She asked him, with a raised brow.
“Tell me why you react the way you do,” he questioned, and she scratched at her neck, trying to put off the inevitable.
“I think my brain shuts down in preparation of what might happen,”
“That’s not an answer, Belle. How did you get that scar on your chin?” He asked, and she fiddled with one of the twigs that had just landed in her lap.
“Um… Crystal. Daz was teaching me how to fight around that time, at least when. He was home, which wasn’t often. I, um, hit her, and she returned the favour.” Lucy explained, as the twig shredded into tiny pieces in her fingers.
“Belle, are you going to keep evading me?” Ash sent her a rather cross look.
“I’m answering your questions, Ash, what more do you want?” Lucy asked, feeling annoyance flood through her.
“Alright, what happened that made you hit her?” His words had images flooding her mind. She knew that he would never understand what she was about to say.
“She was going to hurt Rachel.” She whispered, and he could barely hear her.
“Rachel was a part of this too? I’m guessing she’s the third person that knows the truth.” He said on a sigh.
“She doesn’t know much, she ran off after I first hit Crystal.” Lucy looked down at the ground.
Her chest constricted just thinking about that day. Crystal had been pleased when Rachel had run off, nobody to witness what she did. She shivered in memory for a second, worried that she was going to black out again.
Warm arms surrounded her, and Lucy took in a deep breath. Tears stung her eyes. How she hated remembering. She hated knowing that she had no control over any situation that included her mother. That was why she fought things so hard; it was why she fought against injustices, as much as she could. Nobody should have to feel as rotten and disgusted, as what Lucy did towards her mother.
“Don’t worry about it, Belle,” he said softly, feeling the amount of distress this caused her.
“As in don’t worry about it, ever?” She asked hopefully.
“How about this,
if you ever want to talk about it, then I’ll be ready to listen.” He said pulling her closer onto his lap, and resting his chin on her head.
“Okay,” she whispered, snuggling deeper into his embrace.
The bell rang a while later, and Lucy let out a grumble. She was almost to the point of exhaustion, and the last thing she wanted to deal with was more school. She gave Ash one last squeeze, before pushing to her feet, and helping him up. They went their separate ways to class, and Lucy felt a pang at being apart from him.
After school, she drove over to his house. In a way, she was glad that he had stopped pestering her about the accident, but in the back of her mind, the memories of it remained. She trembled, as she pulled up to his house. Despite the heat of the day, she felt cold, frozen in a time that she never wanted to recall.
“Hey, Lucy, are you alright?” A voice asked, snapping her from the depressive way her thoughts were going. She looked up, and saw Nick with a concerned look on his face. She ran a hand down her face, and automatically nodded.
“Fine,” she answered for what felt like the hundredth time that day. “How are you Nick?” She forced politeness into her voice.
“Good thanks. I promise that this time I’m getting out of your way.” He gave her a secretive grin, and waved, as he hopped into his car and drove off.
She stared at where he had been, rather puzzled at his behaviour, as she got out of the car. She was surprised that Ash hadn’t come out to meet her. With her curiosity growing, she walked up to his front door. She knocked, and when an older man in a stylish suit answered the door, she was beginning to think that she pulled up at the wrong house.
“Ah, Miss McConnell, please come in,” the man stood back with a welcoming smile, ushering her in. “Mr Martin should be along shortly, in the meantime, he has asked me to show you in.” The dignified man said in a posh tone, making Lucy instantly feel uncomfortable.
Still, she followed him, and when he led her to the mystery room that Ash wanted to turn into a recording studio, she sent him a raised eyebrow. He escorted her in, and closed the door behind her. Light only came from the one small window, making the room quite dim. She bit her lip uncertainly, which turned to instant wonder, as the whole room lit up with twinkling fairy lights.
Ash sat on a stool with his guitar held in his arms. As usual, he took her breath away, even in old jeans and a t-shirt. There was something about him when he played music that made him irresistibly attractive, it was unexplainable, but always gave her a warm, fuzzy feeling in her chest.
He strummed his guitar gently, and she instantly recognised the tune. The song used to be the ring tone for her phone. She let the melody drift over her. When he began to sing, he caught her eye and held it. Mesmerising, wonderful words filled her with intense emotions, threatening to buckle her knees.
She felt a deepening love for him that inspired joy in her heart. The words dropped sweetly from his lips, and she realised that the song suited how she was feeling recently. It was how she wanted to be, what she most wanted to be like. The fact that Ash recognised that had her throat clogging and tears blurring her vision.
“You always see the sunshine through the clouds
Always looking up instead of down
No matter how bad you feel you always push on through
You are the light in your own life
You are the strength when you think you can’t go on
Always believing, never once giving up
And I only wish that I could be more like that.”
He sent her his most dazzling smile when he finished, while Lucy felt glued to the spot that she stood in. Her body swarmed with emotions at how lucky she was to have him. She watched, as he leaned his guitar against his stool, and then he approached her. When he wiped a finger gently beneath her eye, she came back to herself.
“Why do you always cry at my songs, Belle?” He asked softly, with a small smile on his face.
“I don’t know… the words are just beautiful. You always seem to know which one to play as well. Who did you write this one for?” She asked softly, as he ran his hands up and down her arms.
“This was for a woman, who was my assistant for one of my videos. Her name is Tess. It was also about the same time that my parents sold a story about me to a big magazine. We were both going through stuff. Her husband was sick in hospital, but she always remained upbeat and positive. I had to admire that kind of strength, so I wrote her a song.” He explained with a shrug, trying to downplay his efforts.
“She sounds really special,” Lucy whispered.
“She is. Her husband is out of hospital now, and on the mend, so life is looking up for her,” he said thoughtfully.
“And you?” She sent him a shy look from beneath her lashes.
“My life has never been better, Belle,” he told her seriously, while peering intently at her. “Which is all because of you.”
He leaned down, and captured her lips with his. It was sweet and soft, but overwhelmingly intense. She went up on her tiptoes to reach him better. Her hands plunged into his hair, as she deepened the kiss. He gently nibbled on her lower lip, which sent tingles through her.
She opened her mouth to his, and cheekily swiped her tongue against his. He smiled against her lips, before delving in, and kissing her until she was dizzy, slightly dazed, and wanting more. A throat cleared behind them, and Lucy backed away from him a little.
“My apologies, Sir, I just wanted to advise you that afternoon tea is ready to be served,” the older man that had greeted Lucy at the door told them, looking stoic and serious.
“I’ll be in shortly, thanks, Carl,” Ash answered, as he turned back to Lucy.
“Who is he exactly?” Lucy asked in a whisper, as Ash put his forehead on hers, and stared into her eyes.
“Someone my parents sent to look after me actually,” he frowned for a second, appearing deep in thought. “He’s been here for the last couple of days.”
“That seems a bit random,” Lucy mumbled with a frown. “I guess your parents know where you are now?”
“Yeah, Nick convinced me to talk to them. I would have told you earlier, but you’ve had a lot of other stuff to deal with recently. They agreed to give me some space, but well…” He trailed off, and she waited for him to finish his thought. Silence stretched between them, and eventually he shook his head.
“I’m glad you’re working things out with them. Now, what’s this about afternoon tea?” She tried distracting his thoughts, which worked a treat, as he sent her one of his stunning grins.
She watched that little scar on his lip crinkle, and couldn’t stop herself from running her finger across it. His eyes smothered hers with their liquid gold fire, as he kissed the finger trailing across his lips.
“Come on, and I’ll show you.” He waggled his eyebrows at her, as he tugged on her hand, and left the room.
She followed him into the dining room, where her eyes almost bulged out of her head. Cake of every description covered the tabletop. Slices of chocolate cake sat on tiny silver trays, while cupcakes with bright icing made a carousal of colours in the tiered trays that they sat on.
“You did this for me?” She asked, barely able to get the words out of her choked up throat, as tears welled in her eyes.
“Yes, I thought you needed a break from all the stuff that’s been going on,” he admitted, with an indulgent grin sent her way.
“Thank you, this is wonderful,” She squeezed him tight, feeling overawed that he had gone to such extremes.
“Come, and sit down.” He motioned to a seat, which he pulled out for her
She sat feeling marvellous and special, as he pushed the chair in for her. He sat down opposite her, and waved a hand at her to have whatever she wanted. She was almost afraid to touch the fantastic array in front of her. She smiled at him, and reached across the table for his hand. She didn’t know if she could possibly explain the joy or wonder that she experienced from such an expansive gesture.
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“Excuse me, but could I get either of you anything to drink?” Carl walked into the room to ask them.
“Two hot chocolates please, Carl,” Ash ordered, as he sent Lucy a wink. “Trust me when I say these are almost better than the milkshake that you get from Jolee.” Her eyes widened at his words.
“Not possible,” Lucy stated, as she picked up a chocolate cupcake from the top of the tier.
Ash just sent her a smirk, “I guess we’ll wait and see.”
By the time Lucy had polished off two cupcakes, Carl was carrying a tray back into the room. He placed a large mug in front of her that had a variety of marshmallows around the saucer. The drink smelt heavenly, and she moved even closer for that delicious odour to fill her nose.
She stopped abruptly when her nose touched the cream that was on the top of the drink. With a chuckle, Ash leaned across, and swiped at the offending dollop with his finger, just as Lucy reached up with her tongue to lick it off. They met halfway, and she watched his eyes brighten, as her tongue touched his finger.
He could only stare at her, the sheer beauty that she was. When she chuckled to herself, he admired the way that she could laugh things away. It only made him love her more, if that was even possible.
“Try it.” He encouraged, as he tucked his hand back around hers.
She tipped her head, considering him for a moment. She scooped the cream off slowly relishing the taste before dunking some marshmallows in. She finally took a sip, and her eyes almost rolled back in her head, at the sheer chocolate delight that overtook her senses. A tiny moan escaped her at the intense taste of the rich dark chocolate.
“Wow, that is really hard to watch,” Ash said hastily, and Lucy looked over at him.
“Huh?” She murmured.
“See, I told you it’s better than your milkshake.” He changed the subject abruptly, and shifted in his chair seeming uncomfortable.
“Hmmm, maybe. What did you mean before?” She asked, as she scooped out a half-melted marshmallow to pop into her mouth.
His face went slightly pink, and her curiosity flared. She pushed her foot against his, and nudged him gently. He refused to look at her, which only made her tap her fingernails on the table edge, as he shuffled around.
I Met Her On the Balcony Page 22