Ashley POVIf it wasn't for his quick reflexes, my face would've been smashed into the concrete floor, or, if I was lucky, I could've crawled away and only suffered a few bruises instead of a broken nose. Luckily, Jayden rushed to catch me, and I found my face buried in the fabric of his coat, my hands clinging to his shoulders and arms as I struggled to regain my balance. He didn't even budge from where he stood, supporting me, and giving me an amused smile as I looked at him gratefully, before turning his attention to something... or rather someone, behind me."Uncle Smith," Jayden greeted politely as he nodded his head in respect.Soon, I broke away from him and walked quickly. My Dad seemed to be standing in front of the apartment door with his coat slung over his shoulders carelessly, with his shoes untied. Judging from the food box he was holding,
Ashley POVIt really felt like she had punched a hole in my chest. I dropped the glass of water I was holding, which was thankfully only an inch above the surface of the kitchen overhang, leaving only a slight splash of water coming out, and felt my jaw slacken.My eyes stared at her in utter disbelief. "You can't be serious," I managed to say. "This has to be a joke, right?"She looked away. So did my dad when I tried to catch his attention."Why?" I asked, my voice only sounding like a whisper. "How?""It's a long story," Dad finally said quietly, slumping down onto a barstool that was two stools away from me. "And sits so close to my heart and my past.""I think I have the right to know that story down to the smalle
Ashley POVI frowned, even as I felt a cold hand grip around my core as the realization slowly seeped into my mind like thick, viscous honey. Only if that honey was rotten and bitter like coal and ash."What does that mean?" I asked, my voice trembling slightly.Dad scratched the back of his head, letting Mom take over. "What he's trying to say," she told me firmly, "is that there's no way we can change the terms of your grandfather's will. 'As it is written, so shall it be established'. So our family must still be united by blood, no matter what we will do to keep our Red Moon Pack.""That means...?""Sweetie," Dad started, giving a sympathetic smile. "Do you remember Jayden's brother?"As soon as he finished his sent
Ashley POV"You're engaged?"As if I had punched the air out of him, his eyes shot open in shock. I had never seen his face turn so pale so quickly. I just blinked my eyes and suddenly, his face was as white as the wall behind him."And of all the men in this world," he continued, his voice trembling, "you're engaged to my brother?"Spontaneously, I took a step forward, an excuse that made sense and sounded honest, or maybe even the truth itself eager to escape my lips. "Jay..."I had just started when his face hardened into stone and he broke away from my gaze, which caused my words to get stuck in my throat. "I-I didn't know," he mumbled. "Uncle, Auntie, Ash..." His voice broke and he quickly cleared his throat. "...if you would just excuse me..."Without further explanation, Jayden hurried down the hallway in an instant. I heard the bathroom door lock behind him... just as I listened to the shards of my broken heart trying to merge into a single entity inside my rib cage. Just as t
Ashley POVI swallowed hard, and a shudder spread all over my system as I recalled the horrible pain in the pit of my stomach when Clark had called to tell me about Jayden's accident. If that idiot had died that night, I would never have forgiven myself, partly because I felt a little responsible for making him as angry as I felt. Knowing him, I should have been more careful, but then again, I was the angriest person ever in my entire life. And to make matters worse, I could not even tell him the real reason for his accident.But I doubt if I could have lived with myself had he died. Surely that would have shattered me."I've been lying awake thinking about my past every night," he continued, the frown on his forehead indicating that he had noticed my concern. "Partly because of the amnesia, because I want to know how much I can remember... but mostly because of you."I would have thought that he was being sarcastic if not for the look in his eyes. It was a look of solemnity and of ho
Ashley POV"What is it you're trying to say?" I asked slowly, briefly wondering if this was all a dream. If Jayden crouching before me was just a shadow of my imagination, and that everything about my engagement, be it with him or with his brother, everything about his accident and amnesia was just an imagination. Maybe I would wake up soon and realize that I was twelve again and the only problems in my world were whether my grandpa or grandma who would cook for me that evening, whether my parents would be okay on their flight to Rome, and whether Eva would stop trying to convince me that Harry Styles would win her heart in five years, and I just needed to watch and learn from her about how to charm pop idol stars. The latter was ironic considering my current dream, but it had come true nonetheless.The moment I felt the warmth of his fingers, met the warmth of caramel brown eyes on a face that used to have a nose that was too big and smelled the fresh scent of soap, white musk, and
Ashley POVIt was no surprise that he was already eating oatmeal when I woke up and walked into the kitchen, his wet dark brown hair left to dry naturally. He pointed towards the second bowl on the kitchen table, and I took a seat in front of him, gingerly grasping the protruding spoon while trying not to think about what had happened the day before.In the most logical yet irritating way possible, I had agreed to marry his brother. And despite Jayden having agreed to forge a friendship with me and put his emotions aside, I was ninety-nine percent sure that he had lied. Why? Because I could feel it. But I didn't know the extent of his lies.“Your parents went to the gym,” he said in a tone of voice that sounded just like normal, snapping me out of my morning reverie. “They said they have something to take care of at the office, and won't be home until dinner.” He tilted his head curiously. “Are they always working? Even during the weekends?”“Yeah,” I muttered, using one hand to suppo
Ashley POVFear crept into his voice at the end of his sentence. I tried to give him a reassuring smile, but Jayden didn't look up, his face slowly stiffening into a rigid line. Knowing that I simply couldn't follow my instinct to do more to comfort him more closely, with touch or closeness, I braced myself in my seat. I was just about to make a joke when my cell phone vibrated in the pocket of my pajama pants.It was Eva.“What's up?” I asked as I answered the call, immediately drawing the attention of Jayden who was sitting near me.“Ash... You won't even believe what I'm about to tell you...” Eva sobbed loudly into her phone, her voice barely audible between her strangled cries.“Hey,” I said, trying to remain calm even though my heart was starting to get wary. “Snap out of it. Where are you? Are you hurt?”Jayden glanced at me in confusion. “Parents?” he asked hesitantly.I shook my head, my voice turned to a whisper. “Eva,” I replied, ”She's crying.”I winced as a horrible wail c
Ashley POVThe next day on the way to the first classroom, Eva abruptly lunged at me outside the main building. Although I had expected it, she still managed to catch me by surprise as she pulled me to the side of the road.“Is it true?” she asked, her voice trembling with anticipation. She was wearing a light midnight blue coat with a hint of red on her lips and nails. “Are they really going out?”“Yes,” I replied simply, trying to release her grip on my wrist, but her grip was strong, and alas, so was she.“Do you have any idea what this means? For them as celebrities? For the industry as a whole?”“Eva,” I scolded sternly as several passersby looked at me curiously. “Our class starts in less than five minutes. Do we really have to do this now?”“Now or later during class, you decide.”“You're a nasty friend.”“Say it for both of us then.”Realizing that she wasn't going to give in, I gave up on getting away from her with a loud groan. Instead, I pulled her further out of earshot an
Ashley POVKnowing that Jared still had office work to do, while I still had college work to do, we decided to go our separate ways after that. As we waited for David to arrive to pick me up, Jared went to the nearest secluded area where he could smoke a cigarette, while I checked my phone to see if there were any notifications.To my astonishment, Jayden had sent me a picture of his bandage-free, pink-colored right arm, with a text.16.45 - Freedom! They told me not to worry too much about the arm, but it was technically healed and functioning again. Time to see if I can get you in a wrestling match again.I gave a small snort in reply, but the smile that appeared on my face was lighter than air.17.58 - I never lost when we were kids. Don't try to trick me. I'm not going to strangle your freshly recovered arm either, you idiot.His reply comes shortly after.18.00 - Come on! Live up to your nickname, Miss Violent! When are you coming home?It seems like he's in a happy mood, but I c
Ashley POVHis perspective reminded me of how Miles would explain things. It felt like he was making a valid point, yet there was one crucial element he was missing. And that was...“My convictions,” I said honestly.Jared’s expression remained unchanged, surprisingly, but I thought I caught a flicker of surprise— or maybe even admiration— in his eyes. Then he blinked, and whatever it was, it disappeared. “I see,” he said. “But I stand by my intentions. One day, I want to love you.”I felt my cheeks heat up. Jared carefully placed a hand atop my head, and as he smiled at me, there was a shyness in his expression that I never would have imagined coloring anything he said or did. The weight of his gaze remained steady, yet it was mingled with such earnest determination that it left me almost incapable of looking away.Oh, how my heart raced wildly when he spoke his next words.“And hopefully, you’ll come to do the same for me.”Before I could react, Jared stepped away, glancing at Sylvi
Ashley POVI frowned at him, but he simply turned his focus back to the row of displays on the shelf. My pout deepened. Even though we had spent over a month getting to know each other, the true nature of his personality as well as his past was still shrouded in mystery. Sure, I see tiny details of his differences, but I don't feel that I've gotten any deeper than just his façade. His default neutral expression and often unreadable demeanor indicated he wasn’t someone easy to approach. Yet, since he had influential and wealthy friends, I knew there had to be more behind his rigid and stoic exterior.I wondered when— or if— I would ever get to see that side of him. With time, perhaps.Maybe.“What about this one?”While my mind wandered, my body followed Jared around the jewelry store. He stood in the center of the store when he caught my attention, his gaze fixed on a set of rings that appeared slightly more special than the others due to their placement in a separate glass cube.“Whi
Ashley POVI rolled my eyes and used my other hand as a barrier to block my vision from seeing something I didn't want to see. “You'll never know,” I stated. “Better to be safe before you regret it.”“I'll go change in the bathroom,” he said with a grunt. “I just wanted you to know about the appointment.”His figure disappeared, and I let out a breath that I didn't realize I was holding. The allure of his scent was too strong for me, for some reason. “Why?” I asked without turning around.“Would you like to come along with me?”I frowned. “I can't,” I said quietly. “I'm going to see Jared that day. He and I... we're getting a ring.”It wasn't my idea, nor was it Jared's idea to do that. The first week in April, my parents returned here for a short break and to meet up with Jared before they were forced to return to London. According to my mom, their business venture there hadn't been entirely successful, and still needed more time before they came to a final agreement. Despite the bit
Ashley POVAs time ticked by, March ended and April slowly turned into May, I found myself and Jayden drifting further and further apart. It wasn't a deliberate move by either of us, or at least not a deliberate effort. It just happened.Jayden was spending more time at the dance studio, and he started coming home with a sore throat some days when he decided to hum along to the choreography. He started singing and reading the lyrics whenever he had time in my apartment, and despite me pretending not to notice, I actually did. I loved his voice, pleasant and velvety like that, soothing my mind and body. And he kept showing drastic improvement with each passing week. Also, when he wasn't dancing or singing or memorizing song lyrics, he went and exercised.“I'm getting fat,” he told me as he read comics on the extra bed one night.I was editing an essay at the time, and didn't think much of it until he mentioned it. “I guess not,” I replied bluntly with a shrug.“I've gained almost five
Ashley POVHe didn't speak, but he didn't need to. His silence was enough. However, the stubborn part of me wanted to push him to bring up the topic... more specifically, how he had been affected by his father.“What about you?” I continued cautiously.His eyes narrowed slightly as they scanned my face. “You know about Jayden,” he pointed out.I averted my eyes.“How long have you known?”He didn't sound accusatory, or angry. No, instead, there was something more familiar, something I also felt related to his... childhood.“Too long,” I replied stiffly. I didn't like being reminded of my mistakes, so I replied automatically, defensively with, “You?”“Me too.”And when my eyes locked with his, I saw that it was there. The endless shame, regret, and guilt. It reflected a part deep inside me, so much so that I could hardly bear to look at it.But I forced myself to do so. Because if I hated it, so did Jared. Yet he was brave enough to stick to his stance.Dinner ended shortly after that.
Ashley POVLooking at the menu, I already knew what I wanted to order. My mom's favorite dish at The Monarch was pasta with a sauce made from roasted oysters, so I went with that. By the time the waiter returned with our drinks, Jared and I were ready to order. She took the menus from us, and as I watched Jared pour himself a glass of dark red liquid, I decided to strike up a conversation that would hopefully shed some light on our upcoming wedding and Jayden. It took me a few precious minutes to gather my courage and organize my thoughts, but I finally went ahead with it.I started the conversation with a light topic. “How was Europe?”Jared quietly observed the interior design of the restaurant and kept doing so as he answered. “Warm,” he said, “and dirtier than I imagined. But also incredibly beautiful in moments I didn't think possible.”“How so?” I asked.“I often hitchhike with my group of friends,” he told me as he raised the wine glass to his lips. He took a slow sip, his eyes
Ashley POVAs Jared and I walked out of the building, I spotted David parked and waiting in the car. But instead of going over to him, Jared stopped at the end of the concrete steps and pulled out a small red cardboard package. It was an automatic action, I could see that, from the way he pulled a lighter from the same pocket and pointed it at the cigarette already tucked between his lips.“Wait,” I chided, ”You can't smoke in here.”He glanced at me. “Why not?” he muttered, stroking his cigarette.Peeking over my shoulder, I glanced at the security guard outside the entrance. “That's illegal,” I said after making sure they weren't watching us.He didn't speak, but his lighter stopped halfway to his lips.“I'm not joking,” I continued. “It's illegal in almost all public places.”“I see.” He hurriedly lowered the lighter and stuffed the cigarette into his shirt pocket. “Where else can I go?”“Er.” I scratched my cheek and looked around for the smoking booth shyly. I didn't find one. “G