Everything We Never Had

nine

The rest of the day went by without a hitch. I sat with my normal people at lunch, listened to Kacie complain about Ashton, suffered through math, and then finally went home.

That night, my mom and I ate dinner in front of the T.V watching the new Marvel movie that we had been too cheap to go to the movies to see.

Then I was forced to go upstairs and suffer through my math homework.

Instead of trying, I call.Ashton for the answers because I knew he actually understood the class.

He answers on the second ring.

"Yo," he says.

"Can I have the math homework answers?"

He laughs out loud. "Woman, I just got home from lacrosse practice. You think I already did the math homework?"

I hear a loud sound in the background. "What's that sound in the background?" I ask him.

"I'm in the shower," Ashton whispers into the phone. Then I hear him start laughing..

I almost scream. "Ew! Oh my god! Finish your shower and then call me back." Then I hang up. I know he's smirking and laughing right now. Damn it.

But, as soon as I've hung up, I sortve wish I didnt.

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Ashton calls me back ten minutes later. The fastest shower in the whole world.

"Sorry for disturbing you," he says. "I just couldn't resist not answering you."

I want to smack him. "Oh, screw you."

He ignores my statement but I know he heard it. "So! The math! No clue how to do it?"

"Nope. That's why I called you."

Ashton is silent for a moment. "Okay, well, I guess it's a good thing Google exists because I don't know how to do it either."

Oh my god. "You always seem to know what you're doing in that class, though!" I exclaim.

"I'm faking it most of the time. Plus, this is a new unit."

I groan. "Okay well should we do it?"

"Can we just not do it and copy off someone in class tomorrow? I sit next to Sam and he knows what he's doing so I'll just steal his answers and then give them to you."

That's not something I would ideally want to do but at least it won't be wrong and I have a chance of getting a better grade. So I agree.

We talk on the phone for a while longer until he hangs up on me to go eat dinner. At 9:30pm. I mean really?

"I'm gonna hang up on you and eat dinner."

"It's almost 10:00!" I exclaim. Was he crazy?

"Okay well that's what happens when you have lacrosse practice for four hours after school and homework."

"Alright, alright, fine! I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye, Val."

My stomach erupts in butterflies when he calls me that and I certainly do not know why.

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The next morning, I sleep twenty minutes past my alarm and have a panic attack.

My original plan was to shower but there's no time for that. I had also planned on wearing something actually presentable but instead I decide on my red and black checkered pajama pants and black zip up sweatshirt.