Written And Composed

08 / convenient surprises

"A surprise? This is a surprise? This is a secret you conveniently hid from me, Ashton!" Melannie said, pointing fingers at her brother.

"Mel, why don't you calm down for a second?" he suggested, taking her by the arm and coaxing her to take a seat on the couch.

Melannie had come home for Christmas. She had been looking forward to spending time with her brother but she never thought it would turn out like this. As soon as she had come, Melannie had suggested they go Christmas shopping. Earlier, she used to buy presents for Ash, Aunt Lily and her twin sons and for Jane. But now she had to buy four more presents this year which made her excited for no reason. Usually, Ash loved shopping and would readily come with her but this time he wasn't very enthusiastic. He kept checking his phone and disappearing somewhere to pick up calls. When she had confronted him, he had shifted uneasily and admitted he had a surprise for her. An early Christmas present, of sorts.

And what was it? The news that Ashton Woods had been dating a woman named Leah for the past month and a half.

Melannie had no hint about who this Leah was, not even a mention of her name since Ash had come to know her.

Melannie was the one who urged Ashton to get back into dating. He had stopped looking for relationships because, after their mother passed away, he barely had time to make ends meet. He had dropped out of college and started working in a garage. Ashton had solely supported her and himself, reserving what their mother left behind only for her education.

Melannie had made money by writing stories for magazines but it wasn't much. Only after her debut novel had become a massive sensation in the world and Ash opened his own motor garage, life became much much easier.

Even though Melannie was the one person who encouraged him to date again, he hid Leah from her and that hurt. Very badly.

"Do you want hot chocolate?" Ash asked.

Melannie shot him a glare. "Stop sugarcoating it. I know that you deliberately hid her from me. I want to know why. No lies this time, Ash. I am really hurt."

"Mel, I am sorry, okay?" he said, sitting next to her on the couch. "I just- I didn't hide it from you because I didn't want you to know her. It's not about you. It's about me."

"What do you mean?"

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I don't know, Mel. Even now it feels surreal that Leah is my girlfriend. It's hard to believe. It's like a dream."

"Why so? What's so special about her?" Melannie asked, her eyebrows raising.

"She is so fucking beautiful, Mel. So beautiful. The first time she walked into my garage, she wore this muddied ripped jeans and this pale blue halter top. I couldn't even take my eyes off her. When she complained about her car, all I could think of was that I could keep hearing them all day, even if they were complaints."

"So the romantic bone in our bodies are genetic." Melannie teased.

"Shut up."

"Oh, please continue."

Ashton rolled his eyes. "Yeah, so, I was whipped since the day I met her. On the day her car was supposed to be fully repaired and serviced, she came by early. She offered to wait till it was done. Leah asked if she can use my desk and -"

"You obviously said yes," Melannie filled in.

" - yeah and she started bringing out papers and sketches of clothing. Watching her in her own element made me appreciate her even more. After the car was done, she offered to buy me coffee. I mean, who does that?"