on again, off again | lashton

two.

Just to clear up some things because I manage to forget a million details: Ashton, Calum, Michael and Jack are all seniors and Lukes still a junior. So just ignore if I've written otherwise I haven't had chance to go back over!

(some of Ashtons story is inspired from Benjis in LV!)

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The first game of the season and year was quickly approaching and with little practice the team was feeling pretty nervous. Their team captain, and Lukes older brother, Jack, was running them into the ground in preparation.

Ashton actually found himself welcoming the intense training, it gave him something to keep his mind off of other things although one of these other things was harder to push away than most.

Problem was the majority of the time they were practicing, so was the cheer team and Luke just so happened to be front and centre alongside Sierra. Ashton was ashamed to admit that he'd been tackled brutally into the field more than once because he just couldn't keep his eyes off the blonde cheerleader.

The school was buzzing the entire Friday in suspense for the game after school. The first game was always the most celebrated - with the final being the only exception - and Ashton loved it.

He knows he sounded vain but he loved the attention of game days, his mum never really took an interest nowadays always the one to comment on how he should've stuck to his academic studies more. So sue him if the praise he got on game days wasn't a little bit of an ego boost.

He and Calum had been practicing hard after the players positions had been shifted around and new plays had been added. They'd spent almost every evening either in person or over the phone revising the plays, often at the expense of their homework.

Their teachers usually gave them a free pass through the lead up to the game but realistically Ashton knew he couldn't start slacking already. It was one of the things that a lot of their classmates got pissed about, particularly Luke though.

He'd protested the leniency for the football players and the unfair bias on their side as opposed to the other sports teams, Ashton remembers taking the piss out of him for weeks, probably why Luke had yelled at him in the middle of the hall that day and refused to speak to him for weeks.

Truth be told Ashton was impressed by the boys passion for the 'injustice' as he put it, but he couldn't help aggravating him like he always did. Luke was just uptight, especially when it came to Ashton.

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The two hour break before they had to reconvene at the school let Ashton pick up his siblings from school and head home for a bit. Lauren had immediately poked fun at the massive grin he was sporting due to his excitement but even her jabs didn't bring him down - no, that was his mums job.

"So.. what time you thinking of leaving tonight? I was thinking a little earlier so you can get the good seats ya know?" Ashton rambled as he plated up the spaghetti for everyone.

"What?" His mum blurted.

"The.. game?" His mum looked clueless and Ashton felt his heart drop, surely she hadn't forgotten. "The football game? First one of the season?" He moved his hands in a circular motion. "The game I've been talking about for the past two weeks?" His voice rose incredulously.

"Oh.." she sighed "Ash, sweetie... I don't think I'll be able to make it, Rob was going to-" Ashton scoffed,

"Of course." He said with a roll of the eyes.