The Get-Go [Ashton Irwin]

12: Get Spoiled

    Ashton has a gold foil-wrapped heart made of solid milk chocolate that he always keeps in the freezer, wherever he is. It weighs a kilo, is about the size of his face, and he refuses to even take it out of the clear plastic box I gave it to him in. I mailed it to him this year for Valentine's day, with absolutely no context or apology for the terrible pun. He loved it anyways.

    It seems dumb, now that I think about it, but in a nice kind of way. Ash loves it when I call him 'Sweetheart', even if it is mostly sarcastically.

    It all started one day back in September of last year. I was ticked off because I'd a) found out I was supposed to be a student guide for new student Garrett, and he’d managed to piss every single one of my friends off (Brent, mostly) within ten minutes of meeting them, b) started my period in the middle of Phys. Ed, and c) been assigned a project with Madison Bridger, who's really nice… except for the fact that she only likes Top-40's pop. That's not really an issue, except for the fact that she was the type of person to label anything even in the realm of 'Alternative' or 'Rock' as 'Screamo', and was really only interested in chattering about Taylor Swift. Like, to the point where it was strange.

    When Ash and I video-chatted that night, and I mentioned it, he broke out into sound. Specifically, Our Song, loudly, and purposely off-key. He was probably expecting me to laugh, but I was irritated enough that I only glared at him until he got the point that I was thisfuckingclose to murdering him.

    "Sorry, Snowflake," he grinned impishly. "I guess that won't be… OUR SONG! Ha-ha, get it?"

    I continued glaring at him, my arms crossed over my chest. If he got to have days where he was moody for dumb reasons, then why shouldn’t I, right?

    He fell silent again, finally getting the point that I was not in the mood for dumb Taylor Swift puns at that particular point. I swigged from a bottle of Coke Zero at the side of my desk, trying to find a way to tell Ash that I just really wanted to take a nap without making him upset that I didn’t want to chat with him.

    “Hey, Wyn?” His voice was delicate - he was probably worried that one wrong syllable might lead to me ripping his head off. He’s a smart boy, my Ashton. Clearly, he’s learned a thing or two about dealing with moody females.

    I gave a cat-like yawn, stretching my arms high over my head before I replied, “Yeah, Ash?”

    “What do you want our song to be?”

    “I don’t think that’s how it works, Ash,” I giggled.

    Ah yes, the emotional roller coaster of ‘that time of the month’. Excellent.

    His relief at the mood swing for the better is evident in his smile. “Why not?”

    “I don’t know… it just doesn’t! Aren’t we supposed to have some dumb, cliché couple-y moment like our first kiss or something lame like that, and it’s the song that’s playing in the background?”

    “First of all, the first time I kissed you, we were hiding in the back of your car with no music,” he counters, eyes alight at the memory. I’m definitely willing to admit that I felt my cheeks flush as I smiled when I thought about it, too. He chuckled again before continuing. “And second, since when do you ever want to be lame and cliché?”

    He’s right, of course. True, we’re kind of a dumb cliché already, but I like having some things that are uniquely ours, and I think he does, too. “Fine. Our song is Danger Zone by Kenny Loggins. Y’know, that song from Top Gun.”