A CUT ABOVE THE REST | Ashley Graves x (m)Reader

Before

Your parents were late picking you up from school that day. It wasn't weird for them to be pressed for time. In fact. "They'll probably buy me some fast food as an apology."

It was an hour after school got out, and you were left to your own devices for entertainment. Your devices? Your mind and imagination. It was the middle of October now, and the mood for the scare season was well in full swing. The fallen leaves bustled by as a cool rain came in. The fresh rotting smell of decaying foliage greeted your nose, and you exhaled. 13 and undecided on what his favorite season was. Fall? Or, Autumn, if you cared enough to sound felicitous. You were a kid, so it didn't matter.

Your friends had talked about what they would dress up as that year for Halloween. Commander Chef, Dark Trooper, Princess Cherry– the game characters and movie heroes you knew. You weren't sure what you were going to be that year. Were you outgrowing the age of trick-or-treating? Would you have to be an adult next year and buy your own candy?

The concept was instantly lost as someone burst through the school's doors. It was a girl...

You saw bright eyes  with dark hair kept by hair clips. adorned in a vibrate yellow raincoat covering her overalls and stripped shirt. She was wearing sneakers that looked either hand-me-downs or used to go anywhere. The little girl looked at you and stared, somewhat startled to see someone was still here. Her mouth quirked like she was considering something to say. She opted not to and avoided you entirely as she skipped the stairs.

Ashley fuckin' Graves. You thought, physically shivering as she had her back turned from you. There were a lot of rumors about her; they weren't all good– they weren't good at all in most cases. It's rumored to be believed that she had been involved in some kind of killing, middle school gossip, mostly, but it freaked enough people out that most of the kids stayed away from her. You briefly wondered if that theme would continue as you proceeded toward high school. College?

You looked at your watch and then down the street. Neither of your parents was here, so you could find out what she was doing. That is precisely what you did after waiting a few seconds, too. Since she had a bright yellow coat, tracking her through the track yard and soccer field was relatively easy. She was going directly behind the school, where a stream cut through a section of forest that was here long before the school was here.

There was a sense of wrongness as you followed her, though. Despite your curiosity, you knew you weren't supposed to be here. Following someone was weird, but following a girl who was younger than you? That wasn't normal, regardless of her reputation. Ashley skirted along the edge, humming to herself while occasionally stopping to skip a stone (typically unsuccessfully), then jumped at a narrow part of the stream. You hesitated, looked at your watch again, and then decided it was OK to follow her.

You jumped across and followed the faint muddy print she left behind. This is a good indication that Ashely was here not long ago. You smirked, rolling your eyes as you sarcastically remarked on yourself as Sherlock. Of course, she came through here; who else could have left these prints?

You push and press through the brush, the world around you becoming darker as the canopy of trees reduces the already lackluster sunlight through the heavy slate to cut through the rest of the forest grounds. Aside from the stream, you don't even hear birds... Uneasy silence torments your sense of security until you spot Ashley's raincoat.

It's comforting to see her so far away because now you have the sense you can rush through the muddy Earth and not be so sneaky in the process. However, before you can slow down and steady against a tree to catch your breath, she turns around and spots you.

  "Hey!" she shouts, her voice loud in the silent forest. "What are you doing, creep!!?"

Like every other kid getting caught doing something they ought not to be doing, you think of a lie but realize there is none. "I lost my kite," you say, and have to almost facepalm when you hear yourself."