Just in Fifteen Days

36. Daniel Kingsley

A lot of chattering voices, bright lights and the interrupting Drake’s song on the loudspeaker welcomed us at The Taco’s Bell. It was recently opened by some friends of Char’s parents who apparently Char didn’t like much. They judged her a little too much for her liking. The only reason she brought us here was the discounts they were going to offer to us. Now that I looked around, I wished we would be better off at some night club. I walked further in, wishing that the food was good. Because, at the end of the day, what actually needed to be happy was my tummy.

“Why isn’t Ashton here yet?” Steve asked as he let Char slide in the sofa seat. This time, again, I was fated to sit besides Ashton, just like the last time.

I realized that it had already been almost two weeks since I met him. He was going to leave for Australia on Sunday. Something inside me shifted. I was so used to him since last few days, it felt almost empty without him. I had really started liking him. But then, my mind was a mess because of what we had read earlier today. It was all so confusing, I could barely find any meaning in those words. I had no idea who Daniel Kinglsey and Nicholas Preston were. And why was Ashton being blackmailed for this. Maybe because Cheryl was his girlfriend. But, that should be the same reason why people should be sympathetic towards him.
When Char told about the whole matter to mom, she advised us to confront him. Initially, she became that typical mother who tells her kid to stay away from a possible oncoming danger. And for a moment, even I considered that. But, Ashton was going to leave in couple days, and I didn’t want to have any doubts about him. I anyway didn’t know where our relationship was going to go but whatever we had, no matter how little it was, I wanted everything to be sorted.

I knew I had to confront him but I wasn’t sure if I could. I was really bad at confrontation, the only reason why I hadn’t asked my mom about that guy.

Suddenly, I felt something wet on my cheeks. Before I could realize it was a kiss, I heard Char ‘aww’ us with her puppy eyes and take a picture of the look on my face. I could imagine myself going all red. Steve had a fake smile plastered on his face, I could tell. All the fraternity he had for Ashton seemed to fade away. I could imagine Char ‘aww’ing us with a lot more intensity in her voice if we hadn’t read what we actually did. I smiled as he gave me a side hug.

“You look so beautiful!” Ashton whispered. I had worn a white tank top and a denim buttoned skirt. I remembered Ashton complimenting me on how every colour looked good on me, although white looked better than any other. I liked him more for the way he kept complimenting every person. I had seen him complimenting strangers, even. He had a huge heart.

“Thank you! You look great!”

“Okay, enough of it, lovebirds. Let’s talk about everything that happened while we were gone, huh,” Char said, making sure she sounded excited as she subtly hit Steve with her elbow for his ever growing silence. Ashton didn’t seem to notice anything out of place as he blushed looking at me.
I passed few glances at Steve to make sure he was not being a stone cold bitch with a pretty stone cold face.

Suddenly, while Char and Ashton were so engrossed in talking and laughing and high-fiving each other quite zealously, Steve tucked on Char’s hand and said, “I want to give a little something in private, if you know what I mean,” and winked. I caught all the double meaning in it but I was so sure he wanted me to ask Ashton what I had revised in my mind for about hundred times before coming here.

Char looked a bit confused but when she saw that fake smile on Steve’s face that only her and I could tell, she gave in, while Ashton kept blushing instead of my hormonal friends.

“So, what’s up? You look a little off,” Ashton scooted closer and my heart just started pumping the juice faster.

“Um, I just wanted to ask…ask you something,” I said, my eyeballs bouncing side ways to look anywhere but his mesmerizing eyes. I bet I could look into them and just keep looking till the end of the time.

He lifted his arm and rested it on my shoulder, his eyes asking me the permission to do something that takes my senses away. I nodded and fought my blush away.

“Sure, anything!” he said.

I was just saying when his phone vibrated. He disconnected it without letting my eyes set on his phone screen.

“I just wan…” The phone vibrated again. He disconnected it. It vibrated again. I could see the nerves of his arm popping out. It seemed like it would burst any time now.

“You can pick up, really. I don’t mind,” I said.

He looked at me dubiously for a moment and asked to excuse him. I couldn’t quite make out what he was thinking from his look. By then, Char made her way to the table from the washroom.

“I thought you guys were making out!” I gave her a weak smile.

“Do you really think Steve would when he had so much going on in his mind? Anyway, what happened? You didn’t ask him yet?” She asked as she took a sip of her iced coffee. It was time I needed one.

“I just don’t know why I’m with him. It doesn’t make sense to me, considering we live on the opposite sides on the globe. It’s just that I really like him.” I sighed, covering my face with my palms. I had done nothing in the whole day, yet just talking was tiring me out.

“Come on, Nat! It’s just a matter of time. To be blatant, it’s not going to work at all. After he reaches his place, you guys would chat and FaceTime each other, miss each other badly and even probably send nudes to each other. But, that’s just it. It’ll hardly last over a couple of weeks.” Char had ripped out the reality and I didn’t like how it sounded.

“That’s the thing, Char. I don’t want that to happen. After such a long time I’ve felt something like this for someone. I’ve dated guys for a couple days, a week, a month, but never felt what I feel with Ashton. And now when I have those feelings, he’s going to leave. And just become one of the names in that guys-i-have-dated-for-a-couple-weeks list.”

“Nat, you don’t even know everything about him. He could be critically involved in that murder case for all we know. Why else do you think someone was blackmailing him? And I wanted to set you up with him just because I wanted you to have fun for a while. I didn’t know you would get this serious. It would be better if you stay away after he leaves.” She easily said munching on her burritos.

Steve approached us, sprinting, and constantly looking behind his back as if he expected some ghost to follow him. He removed a handkerchief, we never knew he carried with himself and dabbed his wet forehead with it. It was water, I believed.

“Guys, listen to me. I just heard something that blew my mind.” He was starting to fumble over his words. I saw Char keep her hand on Steve’s.

She said, “First, you need to calm down. And tell us, what is it?”
He looked over his back towards the men’s room and then again back to us, leaning forward as if he was telling us about a thousand million dollars treasure.

“Ashton! His name is not Ashton! It’s Daniel! He is Daniel Kingsley, the one who was there with Cheryl when she got murdered. And I don’t know who he was talking to, but he sounded really scared and said something like not dragging him in any case and asked to fix a meeting with Nicholas Preston, the one who is in prison right now.” And Steve finally let out a breath.

I avoided looking at Char because I knew her expression already, the one that said, “I told you so.” She surely did give that look but extended her other hand towards me.

All I knew was that we had to get out of here.