Unguarded Love

45-Everything Changes

One Months Later....

Persephone 

"I can't believe you fell on your ass that many times." I laugh and Asa rolls his eyes. 

"It was only twice." He corrects me.

"That one eight year old girl had to help you up." I counter, still laughing. 

"Whatever." He grumbles, before reaching into his pocket and pulling his key out to unlock the front door to the house. 

I had finally convinced Asa to come out onto the rink with me and now I understood why he had never before. 

There was a reason this man played football instead of hockey. 

I had never seen someone with worse grace and balance in my life. It had been cute though watching Asa try to skate and I know that isn't the last time I'll have him out on the rink with me. 

This past month has been a dream. Asa and I are doing better than ever and he regularly attends his therapy session once a week to deal with his past. 

Sometimes he slips into that mindset of worrying about his mom and we'll just sit there for hours until he talks it out. 

I remind him all the time, every chance I get about how wonderful he is and that what his mom had said that day wasn't true. 

Asa wasn't his dad. He had been there for his mom through thick and thin and that she just had to face the consequences of her actions. 

On another note Miles and I are closer than ever. He's like a little brother to me now and we go every Sunday night to my dads and Janet's place for a family dinner and game night. 

Even against Asa's protests I drag him along too. He claims he wants to give us family time but the sooner he realizes he's a major part of that family the better. 

My dad already treats him like a son and I know it fills me with joy to see it. Asa deserves a strong father figure and the fact that my dad accepted him meant the world to me. 

Last week had already been the last week of my student teaching as well. 

It had been hard saying goodbye to the kids I had been around all semester but it solidified that I had made the right choice in choosing to be an elementary teacher. 

Peyton had told me that she knew I was made to be a teacher after I helped one of the younger kids at the rink learn to skate. 

Speaking of Peyton, she's been acting different lately since her and Brendan Gack broke up. 

I thought she would seem more vibrant but she's actually seemed sad and I hate it. 

Asa said it was the same for Phoenix but most of us could guess why. 

He spent the semester pining for my roommate and when she breaks up with her boyfriend we think he thought they would get together but then she did her whole swearing off boys declaration at bowling night. 

I had seen how hurt he'd seemed and I felt for him. I hoped they would find their way to each other eventually. 

"So I was thinking after your shift at the library tonight we can go see a movie at the drive in?" Asa suggests as we head towards the stairs. 

We planned to get some studying in for our finals before I had work and decided his place would be the best. 

"I'm game as long as we can take your truck and sit in the bed." I say and he leans down to kiss my cheek.