Settle Down // Irwin

50

"So, then I said," Luke slurs and throws the bottle around in his hand. "You can take being my brother," Luke points in no particular direction of the park. "And shove it up your ass!" Luke then flips off his imaginary brother and slumps back down on the park bench. He giggles to himself before taking a sip from his beer.

This was the lowest Ashton has felt in a long, long time. This is even lower than when Jade walked in on Ashton's dad beating him. Then he went and had a fucking panic attack in front of her. Probably scaring her even more. When she finds out what he did... and she will. Because Calum is a little bitch and will run to her thinking she will save him. Ashton has new for Calum. Jade loves Ashton, not him. Jade is Ashton's. Not Calum's.

Ashton felt so low he almost felt happy. Like there was a sense of pride running through him. Maybe it was just the alcohol in his system, making him think that way. Whatever it was, it was making it better. Which is fucking awful. What kinda person thinks alcohol makes things better? It makes it worse, and Ashton knows that.

"Are you ever going to talk to him?" Michael asks Luke.

Luke just shrugs and drinks some more. He clearly has the same idea as Ashton about the alcohol making it better.

"Fuck him." Ashton laughs.

Luke laughs too, he raises his bottle to Ashton on the other end of the bench, clinking them together. "Fuck him." Luke spits.

Michael was sitting in the middle and he puts his arms around his two friends. "This is it." Michael says happily. "This is the way it's supposed to be."

"Yeah," Ashton agrees. "We are all going to college together."

"All going to be playing football together." Michael continues.

"And always be best friends." Luke concludes. All three of them raise their bottles and clink them together then take swigs.

There was bottles already littered around them. They haven't gotten to the cans Michael snuck out off his dad's cooler yet.

Ashton has done this before. Him, Luke and Michael did this a lot at the dart of the year. Thy got drunk together in the massive park near Michael's house. It was pretty close to Ashton's grandparents house too. It would be pretty awkward if they walked by right now. That's a conversation that would go downhill fast.

Ashton, Luke, and Michael were sitting on the side of the park that was like a big field. Kids would come and play soccer, people would walk their dogs and couples go on picnics. Behind them is the big woods that lead off to wherever. Then on the other side is the actual play park. Behind that is all the houses and neighbourhood.

Ashton's phone vibrates again. Ashton sighs and rolls his eyes. He knows how it is. Why doesn't she get that he isn't going to answer? Jade should just realize that Ashton's going to come back. He hasn't left her with his younger brother and sister. He hasn't left her. He's going to come back. He just needs to wait until she had cooled off. She'll forgive him. She always does. It's supposed to end up as him and Jade. He knows that's how it ends.

It all ends with him and Jade. They aren't going to end. Jade and him, their end game. That's what Ashton had to tell himself when he took the first hit at Calum. He pushes Calum's face out of his head and takes another drink.

"Can you switch that thing off?" Luke asks, leaning forward.

"What?" Ashton asks.

"Your phone." Luke says, rolling his eyes. "It's pissing me off."

"I should probably check it." Ashton sighs, reaching into his pocket.

"Fuck," Luke breathes out. "I'm sure every thing is fine."