To be or not to be? (Book #1)

Chapter 6

"Wow, Ash, that's exciting!" Madison gushed. They were sitting alone at a table in the cafeteria, and Ashley had just told her what had happened on her date with Tyler last night. They had just sat in his living room and talked all night instead of watching a movie. Ashley spent the majority of the time talking about the kiss, though. She couldn't stop smiling while talking to Maidson.

"I know, it was pretty amazing." She said, her eyes dancing. Madison laughed, then sobered up.

"Boy alert." She whispered. Ashley turned to see Alex and Mark walking to their table. They plopped down.

"What were you guys talking about?" Alex asked curiously.

"Girl stuff." Ashley said.

"We don't want to know." Mark cut in. Alex nodded at his friend in agreement. Mark then added, "So how was your date last night, Ashley?" Alex looked surprised. Ashley felt Madison kick Mark under the table.

"Date?" Alex asked. Ashley laughed and shook her head.

"I was just hanging out with a friend." Ashley lied, for the fourth time that week to her best friend.

"What friend?" Alex pressed. Ashley looked at him, surprised that he wouldn't just let it go.

"Tyler." Ashley said, not being able to think of a good lie at the moment.

"Oh, fun." Alex said, smiling. He and Mark started talking about basketball or some other sport. Ashley shot a panicked look at Madison. She just rolled her eyes and mouthed 'sorry', apologizing for her boyfriend who obviously had no brain.

~.~.~

Ashley walked into cheer practice that afternoon, excited and ready for the hour and a half ahead of her.

"Hey everyone!" She said cheerily. Everyone responded with enthusiastic 'hi's, except Brianna. Ashley ignored her and began stretching with the others, ready to get to work.

After practice, a shower, and changing back into normal clothes, Ashley left the gym at 7:00, fully prepared to walk home in the darkening, cold October evening. She was surprised when she turned the corner and saw Tyler standing there, grinning at her. His hands immediately went into his pockets.

"Hey, um, I thought you could use a ride home. My dads working late again so I don't need to be anywhere." He said shyly. Ashley smiled.

"Sure, thanks." She accepted his offer and they turned to walk out. As they walked through the school, Ashley felt the heaviness in her heart again. She felt bad for Tyler. They pushed through the doors and continued walking through the almost-dark evening, heading to Tyler's car.

"Does your dad work late a lot now?" She asked him quietly. He glanced at her sideways.

"Um, yeah. Ever since my mom... Well, you know. I just don't think he likes all the reminders. Especially me." Tyler said softly. Tyler was almost the spitting image of his mother, and since he was an only child who was a junior in high school with a car, his father probably thought he could avoid him at all costs.

"I'm really sorry, Ty." Ashley knew that his mom used to call him 'Ty', but she didn't think he'd mind if she called him that. He half-smiled.

"Haven't heard that in a while" He said almost inaudibly. Ashley slid her hand down his arm, pulling his hand out of his pocket so she could lace her fingers through his. She gave his hand a light squeeze.

"I can't imgaine what you've been through, Tyler, but I'm here for you, okay?" Ashley said solemnly. He stopped walking, still holding her hand, and turned to face her. He had a sad expression on his face.

"Thanks, Ash, I really need that." He said with watery eyes. He took her in his arms and held her there, saying 'thank you' again into her ear. Ashley smiled sadly. They let go and continued walking to his car. They rode in a comfortable silence to Ashley's house, and when he put his car in park to let her out, she turned to him.

"Wanna come in for a while?" She asked. He looked surprised, then nodded, turning off the car. Both of them opened their doors and walked into the dark, empty house.

"My mom's out of town." Ashley explained.

"Is she gone a lot?" Tyler asked, repeating Ashley's earlier question to him. Ashley nodded.

"Ever since the divorce and my dad's wedding. She's gone about 3 weeks of every month." She said. Tyler nodded in sympathy. Ashley turned the family room light on and they both sat down on the love seat.

Ugh, the love seat. Where my dad told me about his new children. Ashley shuddered in her mind. She couldn't stand the thought of her father having children other than her.

"What's on your mind?" Tyler asked. He sounded so much like Alex when he said that, Ashley was almost expecting to hear 'pal'. She shook her head to clear her mind of her problems.

"Just that our dads kind of suck." She said, smirking. He laughed.

"I completely agree."

~.~.~

"Hey you." Ashley said, walking up behind Tyler in the hallway. Tyler turned around and smiled widely at her.

"Hello beautiful." He said, making Ashley blush.

"So, the dance is is a week, I was thinking I'd just wear black." Ashley said. Tyler smiled and nodded.

"I think you'll look perfect." He agreed. She smiled shyly at him.

"Did you have fun last night?" She asked, wanting to be a good hostess.

"We mostly just talked about my mom. I wouldn't say it was fun... But it was pretty great. You're pretty great, did you know that?" Tyler reminded Ashley, smiling and taking her in his arms.

"I didn't, but thanks for letting me know." Ashley teased smiling back. Ashley and Tyler had talked the whole night about memories of his mom. She had learned that the anniversary of his mom's death would be next Friday, the night of the halloween dance. She had offered to stay home with him and skip the dance, but he objected, saying he needed to 'show her off'. The bell rang and Ashley groaned, not wanting to leave his arms. He kissed her softly on the cheek and then let her go, each going their seperate ways. Ashley passed Alex not 5 seconds later.

"Hey Al" She said, smiling. He looked at her with a weird expression on his face.

"Hey Ashley." He said, and they both kept walking in opposite directions.

Huh, I wonder what THAT was all about. Maybe he's just having a bad day.

She began to worry about Alex as she sat down in her seat . Then she realized something. 

He was there almost immediately after Tyler and I said goodbye. He could've seen everything.

But Alex wouldn't be jealous of Tyler and Ashley, would he?