Ashton Enchanted » [cashton] √

0.3

They were back at Crystal's, which was slowly becoming a common occurrence, Ashton had to admit it was nice having people to spend time with. Even if that time was spent having his arse handed to him playing Call of Duty. He wasn't a great player as it was, but Crystal was really good, even when she was taking quick glances at her phone every five seconds, she was still easily beating him. She hadn't answered any of her text messages though, and Ashton knew it was her trying to keep her promise of 'no Michael, just us'. She was doing better than he'd thought she would, considering the pair could tend to be joined at the hip.

She'd managed to kill him again, and Ashton sighed, "Just reply to him, he'll probably die if you don't," she gave him a guilty smile and swapped her controller for her phone. He took the opportunity to respawn and kill her a few times. Ashton's kill/death ratio was still terrible, but he took pleasure in it nonetheless. 

"Mikey said Calum mentioned you today," she told him, not looking up from her phone.

He fought the urge to roll his eyes, and hummed, watching the television a little too closely as he stabbed Crystal's newly respawned character again.

"Don't you wanna know what he said?" she asked, confusion in her voice.

"What am I twelve?" this time he did roll his eyes,

She sighed, and Ashton stopped pretending to play, and he turned to her, "is that code for I'm not going to admit I want to know, but I expect you to tell me anyway?" he smiled knowingly at her but said nothing, "Ugh, he said you have gorgeous eyes," a grin split across her face.

"Okay that's fake, how does that even come up in conversation, you just want to use Calum as a distraction so you guys can make out without me getting annoyed," Ashton's eyes narrowed accusingly at her.

She laughed, "Alright, believe whatever you want, Michael did just ask if the four of us – that's you, me, Michael and Calum – wanted to go and get food,"

Something flipped in his stomach, and then he sighed exasperated, "I guess I could go for food,"

"You're a bad liar," Crystal chuckled.

He blushed deeply and stood making his way downstairs as casually as he could, leaving Crystal still chuckling behind him.

Once they'd picked the others up from Calum's, he and Ashton had been forgotten on the back seat like bags of groceries. Crystal's hand was in Michael's as she drove, him playing with her fingers, admiring them as though this were his first time seeing them.

Calum was leant against the window on Michael's side of the car, his brow furrowed deeply. Ashton was tempted to ask him what was wrong, but the thought of trying to have a one on one conversation with Calum sent a wave of nerves through him like nothing else could. Instead, he chose to look out his own window, there wasn't much to see, but it made it easier to block out whatever it was Crystal and Michael were discussing.

He heard Calum shift against the leather seats, "I'm not grouchy! You were supposed to help me work on the car, and instead, we're hanging out with Crystal again, why couldn't she have come to my place?" Calum asked, apparently there had been a conversation going on he'd missed, while he looked wistfully out the window.

He'd never heard any of them argue before not that this was much of an argument, but it was the most annoyed he'd seen any of them with each other. The dynamic was entirely unknown. He was too uncomfortable to engage, not sure how serious they were also because he'd never expected to see Michael and Calum arguing over Crystal. 

Michael turned to face Calum, his hand resting on the centre console, "stop whining, you can't even drive it yet," he rolled his eyes and turned back toward the windscreen, making it even harder for Ashton to gauge how serious he was. 

"He wants to be able to invite dates over to sit in it and show it off," Crystal added, a clear jab at Calum's expense and an attempt to lighten the mood. 

He shifted uncomfortably, not that the others seemed to notice as they laughed at Calum, who had flushed slightly.

Calum rolled his eyes at them, "I just want it so as soon as I can get my licence, I don't have to watch you two make out every time I need to go somewhere,"

The pair in the front chuckled, but Calum didn't seem to be satisfied with the conversation's direction. 

When it seemed clear that no one else was going to speak Ashton attempted to break the residual tension, "well I'm always going to have to put up with these two, I'm not allowed to get my license," cheekily grinning at Crystal through the rear-view mirror.

"Why not?" Michael asked, looking back over his shoulder again.

"You had like seizures when you were a kid hey Ash? So, they won't let him drive just in case," Crystal told Michael.

Ashton blushed, a smile splitting across his face and a warm feeling developing in his chest, a sense of being.. cared for? Known? He wasn't sure, but it felt intimate.

He didn't express this; instead, he shrugged, "yeah, it's a precautionary thing I haven't had one since I was a kid," this was one of the lies he told that did make him feel guilty, but he couldn't really tell the truth, so he swallowed the feeling it left in his stomach. 

"Well when I get my license, and my car is running, you can ride with," Calum told him, "And these two can just fuck off," 

Michael and Crystal shared a conspiratory look, apparently certain it would be missed by the pair in the back, which to be fair, Calum was back to looking out the window with a cute little frown on his face. But Ashton saw it clear as day, they obviously thought their plan was working. 

He couldn't help but imagine what other schemes that might concoct.

Ashton nervously looked around the restaurant; he'd been told by Crystal that they were all going to meet here, it was outside the city, so he'd had to catch the train. He didn't like having to meet places, preferring being picked up so he knew he had the right time and place, but apparently Luke and Sierra had needed a ride too. He moved through the front room of the restaurant without seeing a single familiar face; he was midway through the backroom before his eyes landed on Calum. He was sat alone at a booth at the very back. 

Their eyes met, and he gave the brown-skinned boy a warm smile and a wave but was met with a confused look in return. Surely Calum wasn't angry with him? And where was everyone else?

When he got to the table Calum, and he spoke simultaneously, "Where are the others?"

"What do you mean, where are they? They said they were running late because they were picking you up." Calum asked, looking around the room as though they might be hiding somewhere.

"They told me that I could meet everyone her..." Ashton let himself trail off before letting out a loud sigh, "we- we've been set up." What started as a low chuckle in the back of Calum's throat then became an unconfined booming laugh, "what's so funny? Is the idea of us that inconceivable to you?" Ashton bit back.

Calum stopped laughing, "Sorry no, it's just I knew they were plotting to get us together, but I didn't think it'd be this corny," he smiled looking up at Ashton. The standing boy let his defensive stance soften, and he smiled a little, but he was still very embarrassed by the whole situation. "Wanna go for a drive?"

"How? We're both stuck here thanks to Crystal,"

"I've got my car," Calum grinned standing once Ashton gave him a smile and a nod, he scooped Ashton's hand up in his own and led him out of the restaurant and into the parki-

He heard tapping on the glass beside his head and saw Crystal, "Ash, we're here come on,"

Supposing Calum wasn't entirely opposed, maybe being set up wouldn't be terrible.