Love Isn't...

2. A Dream

Chapter – 2

LOVE ISN'T... A DREAM

"This must be a dream," I mumbled to myself as I ran my fingers through my hair. Of course, it was. My mind was playing games due to lack of proper sleep. "Yes, definitely, a dream."

But then I heard her groan from the other side which immediately shattered my assumptions. There was a part of me which wanted it to be a dream, and then there was a part of me which wanted to talk to her. The truth was that I wasn't ready to face her. My plans involved seeing her from a distance just once, and completing the paintings that were pending. They didn't involve her landing at my apartment at the most unexpected times. I heard her growl in complete frustration and a little chuckle at her expense escaped my lips. In an instant, I opened the door and commented, "Now you're speaking your language."

Much to my pleasure, she narrowed her green eyes at me and asked in a voice that contradicted her narrowed eyes, "Ahem... Ashton Parker?"

These three words struck three points in my head. First was that she didn't recognize me as the man she had met four months back at that bar. Second was that she came here to meet me and she wasn't aware that I was Ashton. And lastly, her voice was way better than I recalled it, especially when she said my name so innocently.

I wasn't sure whether I should shake her hard and make her remember that night, so I just stared at her with narrowed eyes from head to toe, once again realizing how different she looked from the memory I had of her. She cleared her throat; effectively pulling me out of my observations of her attire and making me observe the irritation in her eyes. Dare I say, I liked that look a little too much for my own good and to continue seeing that, I scratched my chin and leaned closer to her, only to make her take a step back. "You look like an Ashley to me," I muttered with humor in my voice.

The time she took to react to my statement, reminded me of a light bulb. Her eyes widened and her cheeks turned red when she stuttered, "O... of course, I'm an Ashley." At the end of which she scowled, and damn it, she looked f*cking cute with that scowl on her face. "I mean to say that I'm not Ashton, you moron. I'm here to meet Ashton Parker."

I didn't know whether to feel offended at the fact that she didn't recognize me at all, or to play along with her as I had been doing because this was definitely more fun than I had imagined it could be. Without a doubt, I gave all the credit to the girl who was cluelessly standing in front of me, looking like this was the last place she wanted to be at.

Well, I didn't know what to feel about that particular thought either...

"Moron?" I snickered, choosing to play along as I took a step back and leaned against the door frame. "Are you eight, bear?" Bear? Seriously? What was it? A nickname?

In response, well, actually in lack of it, her jaw dropped open and she seemed to be in a dilemma. It was just one of the many expressions that she had displayed in the short while that she had been standing here. And it was just one of the many expressions that I liked on her.

"Something," she uttered, after what seemed like hours.

'Something is definitely wrong with her,' I concluded as I watched her shut her tightly as she probably realized that she had said something completely out of the blue just now. Mentally, I added this expression of complete embarrassment in the list of Ana's reactions that I liked. Clenching my teeth lightly, to stop the laughter that was threatening to erupt, I managed to snicker. "No, not eight; you act like a seven year old."

She took a deep breath, maybe to recollect her thoughts and looked at her straight in the eyes. "Is Ashton Parker here?" With that, her eyes drifted behind me as if searching for some other man to come out and introduce himself as Ashton f*cking Parker. And that straight out hit at my ego! How could she not recognize me? "He is definitely here. But who the f*ck are you?" I asked, letting the little manners I had slip aside even further.