It's been a few days since the incident happened but guess what? Ashley was instructed to stay inside. She didn't leave the house for whatever reasons best known to her parents. Her electronic gadgets excluding her laptop were taken from her so she had to be homeschooled. At least, her school's website had that feature. She was able to watch live lessons and also contribute. But the house was very boring. She couldn't even leave the place. Somehow, she knew that her mother was using this to punish her. She claimed not to trust whatever explanation that she gave to the cops earlier that day. Ashley was also stubborn and hell-bent on not revealing anything. She couldn't get through to Alex and her friends - those guys had to come and visit her at home. They would give her a lot of gifts regarding some interesting topics in class then give her a few gifts but this exact day they came, she had to open up to them. "Alex wants to see me but for the past few days, I can't l
[ VERY IMPORTANT! PLEASE READ] If you are yet to read my other two books, please do so. I promise that if you find this book interesting, you will find the other two interesting as well especially this particular one - MEETING MR ICE VOLUME 1. It's completed already and Volume 2 will be ready. The second one is THE CEOS REJECTED BRIDE. I will be grateful to see your reviews as well. Thank you for reading. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "Can you please not shout?" That voice! She recognized it. Her eyes widened and when the stranger realized that she wasn't resisting him anymore, he slowly removed his palm from her mouth and pulled down the mask on his face. Ashley was shocked. "Alex?" He looked into her eyes, short of words to say. He looked away and slowly got off her. He distanced himself and sighed. Ashley rose and sat down. She was surprised to see him but before she could say a word, her phone suddenly rang, scaring her. It was Sammie calling. She answered th
"Since that night, I was told to keep shut. I only had the opportunity to spend the earliest four years of my life with my mother. I still miss her but till now, I don't know the cause of their argument. The man that I saw kissing her was nowhere to be found when I wanted to look for him. I checked my father's bedroom, his study, and everywhere else, but there was nothing that could give me a clue to finding out what happened. About my trauma, right at birth, I was declared someone with low brain capacity. I could turn out to be a slow learner or easily grasp things." "That's why you never performed well in class," Ashley added with wonder. "Hmm. I tried using drugs to solve my trauma because whenever I remembered that cold, thunderous night I don't feel at ease. While growing, I didn't have the desire to do what my father wanted me to do. I just wanted to be a normal person and live a normal life but I guess time didn't let me. I saw kids my age play happily and speak goo
The next morning, Ashley woke up feeling great. It was as if all the pain that she had been feeling ever since she fainted had suddenly disappeared. She needed to wake up early because of the live classes that she had which began at 8. At first, she reached out to her phone after muttering a few words of prayers. Then a message dropped in from Alex and immediately, she felt excited to view it. "Hey, pretty, good morning. How are you feeling? I feel like I haven't apologized enough for causing a lot of traumas in your life and I am sorry. I am really sorry. I hope to be able to show you a new Alex and I will make sure not to disappoint you. I love you." Ashley covered her mouth and hid her face with her blanket. They already kissed yesterday and now things were looking real again between them. She's got herself a new boyfriend. A real and first boyfriend in her life. This was the best news ever. She replied to his message with a few words of encouragement and immediat
"Why are you staring at me like that?" Alex sighed and locked eyes with Ashley. They were sitting under a tree with a small desk in front of them while they sat on the fluffy grass. Ashley covered her mouth and giggled. "I just find you cute and sweet. You are gorgeous and I can not believe you hid this...gold under a hoodie. I am Jealous that other girls have the right to stare at you." Ashley pouted. Alex was speechless - he wanted to say something but restrained himself. This was his first time in a relationship so he didn't know how he was supposed to react or even what to say. It's been a few days they had been dating and almost everyone in school was amazed at how close they were, knowing how unapproachable Alex was. However, he joined the threesome and they became the fantastic four group. Ashley wanted Alex to become comfortable with her and her friends. She was also patient with him, he didn't force her and she kept making sweet gestures towards him. What kep
[PLEASE BEWARE THAT A LOT OF NAUGHTY THINGS AND ACTIONS COULD BE SAID OR DONE SO YOU MIGHT WANT TO SKIP THIS PART, PLEASE. THANK YOU FOR READING.] Blasting songs were playing inside what seemed to be an underground resort. The whole place smelt of sweat, sex, blood, cigarettes, and cocaine. The place wasn't brightening because only red lights were turned on and men in black were seated across different sides of a large couch with naked ladies by their sides. In the middle was a large table and on top of it were different illegal items such as guns. A few people were patrolling the area with guns in their hands and had a stick of cigarettes in their hands. A man signaled to let the music down and it was done. Immediately an uproar was heard from a distance but it didn't interfere with what the men were doing. A lady pulled another young lady who looked around nineteen or twenty. The latter was wearing a short skirt with beads around her waist and then her shirt was exposing her
"Throw the ball over here Alex." His mate screamed and he did as he was told with the students yelling behind them, chanting their favorite club. Alex successfully threw the ball into the net and punched the air. He was sweating profusely but he didn't mind.He stopped and took a deep breath. With parted lips, he looked around the crowd filled with students and teachers, his eyes were looking for someone in particular. "Alex!" Her voice sounded like a bell to his hearing and instantly his heart raced, his head darted to the left-hand side and his eyes immediately spotted her among the female cheerleaders. She was with Sammie and they were both wearing a vest. She was holding a huge banner with his name inscribed on it. Alex waved at her with a wide smile and then got jumped on by his friends who were yelling. For the first time in his life, he felt inclusive. He felt the love that he had already wanted. He was lifted and praised for scoring what they believed was impossible.
Ashley was standing in front of Alex with her hands folded across her chest. He was sitting on the couch with his arm blocking his eyes and a few buttons of his were unbuttoned. She had to come looking for him after calling his number but he refused to pick up. "So, what do you plan on doing? Are you going to give in? Are you choosing to make the deal?" Jonathan asked as he entered the sitting room. He had a plate of noodles in his hands and was eating it little by little. He sat opposite Alex, waiting for his answer. "Hmm." Alex's answer was neither positive nor negative. He collected a clip from a man and after watching the clip, he somehow felt down and angry at his father. How could he have done this to his mom? "I have been here for about thirty minutes but I still don't understand what's going on. Are you two trying to shove me under the bridge intentionally or am I not a part of this anymore?" She asked. She didn't want to act clingy or helpless in this situa
Alex closed the door and looked around with a soft look. The breeze blew his hair gently and his eyes were squinted as well as if trying to figure out something due to its view. This was surprising even though he had expected something like this. It was already evening in H City and the atmosphere brought back memories. Unlike ten years ago when this place was so despicable and no one could come here because it was a gangster's home, it was now an abode to many people and life had become better now. Alex could see the cops dragging a teenager with tattoos all over his body down the road. The teenager was trying to escape but with so many cops, his energy was futile. Ashley watched him, carefully observing his facial expressions. She had brought him to H City without his knowledge but he seemed to be taking it quite well. "What are we doing here?" Alex finally landed his eyes on her as his two hands went straight into his pockets to prevent them from getting iced. Good enough
"What do you think I should do, huh? I don't know if I am reciprocating the feelings back to her?" Alex frowned as he discussed his problem with Jonathan. "But she doesn't seem to mind. She is totally in love with you." "That's not an excuse. I just need to know if I am doing well enough." Alex answered.Jonathan exchanged his leg position and sat down a bit comfortably to the right. "Well...to be truthful, you are far from doing well enough."It felt as if someone had thrown a glass into his mirror, shattering all. Well, he knew what the truth was but having someone affirm it was something he wasn't expecting to hold within. Jonathan could see the sadness wash through his face. His lips curled downwards as a result of his answer. "Okay...you know what? Listen to me. I don't want you to pressure yourself in this short journey that you two would be going on. Ashley totally understands you, this is what I can assure you of so you don't need to rush and you don't nee
"I am sorry." These were Alex's first words immediately after he healed up and could speak. Ashley smiled and hugged him gently so as not to cause him any harm. It was their moment and they were taking the most of it. Alex missed her scent, he missed holding her and it was great to have her back. Later on, she held his hand. "I know...I know you're sorry and so am I" "You are not mad at me anymore?" "Why would I? I have told you that I have no reason any more to stay mad at you." She answered. "Does this mean that you still love me?" Alex asked gently, his eyes boring into hers desperately expecting a positive answer. Ashley couldn't meet his gaze and just stared somewhere else, intentionally raising his hopes.When Alex couldn't see her approval, he became slightly disappointed...in himself. "Oh." He muttered. "I must have been thinking too much that you and I..."Ashley silenced him with a kiss and looked into his eyes. "I know we have been apart for
It's been three weeks since Ashley started coming over to Alex's place all thanks to Valerie. Jenny and her husband also were able to come once in a while. Ariana was not left out as well. Ashley felt more at peace and worked from home instead. She had no trouble with Rhae going anywhere because Jonathan told her that she was going to find absolutely nothing. It was funny how he said that and somehow, she was just glad that they were both on good terms now. Ashley smiled at herself in the mirror as she packed her hair up. She had a great feeling that things were going to be good again and now that this misunderstanding had been clear, she couldn't wait to see Alex's expression whenever he woke up. Would he be happy to see her? Their time together as teenagers wasn't that long but they had impacted each other deeply and it was taking a toll on them even after all these years. She cleaned herself up and walked out of the bathroom only to meet the biggest shock of her life. She almos
A MONTH LATER,Ashley had just finished her therapy session with her female therapist. Her phone had been confiscated for a few days now because Ariana feared that things wouldn't improve but her phone was given back to her a day ago. She hadn't been to work as well.Ashley laid on the couch and crossed her legs against each other. She turned on the phone, only to meet a series of text messages inquiring about her health and how things were going. Sammie and Josh were also not excluded. Where they were was a bit far so it denied them the chance of visiting frequently like they would always do when they were still teenagers.So with the little amount of strength in her, she replied to all messages until she got to a particular one that caught her attention. She clicked on it so she could view the entire message. "Hey there, this is Valerie, Alex's sister. If you still want to speak with Alex and also to know where he is, contact me back." This message was sent just a MONTH ago as
Jonathan was already ushered in and was sitting down with the rest of the family but on the other side. His hands were clasped together with his head bowed. His right leg kept tapping against the ground as he prepared his mind to speak. He suddenly raised his head at once to speak, his eyes were on Ashley who he considered the oppressor. "Valerie told me what happened and I think you know what you have done so there is no need for me to start explaining. I hope your family is also aware this time. We don't need you to keep useless secrets that we would be blamed for again. Who do you think you are?" His tone started rising at the end of his sentence. "Tell me! Who do you think you are to do all this trash? How dare you approach my brother only to insult him and say trash to him, you b*tch...?"Ashley became angered and stood up fiercely. "How dare you call me a b*tch when you and that psycho brother of yours are the real d*ck, huh? Oh...so he ran out of the cafe and went
Ashley closed the door of the sitting room, looking soaked up and terrible at the same time. Her face was pale and at that point, even though it was deadly cold, it felt as if she was immune to the weather: 's circumstances. She leaned against the door and slid down to the ground which she sat upon, bawling her eyes out. Jenny who woke up due to the sound of the door being unlocked appeared with a knife and her husband behind her as well. She was scared that it was probably a thief or an attacker. Their minds didn't go through to the thought of it being Ashley because she would have called. But they were both stunned at the situation in front of them. "Ashley?" Jenny called in surprise and then looked at her husband. She gave him the knife and quickly approached her sister. When she got to her side, she knelt and touched her wet hair with a little bit of confusion. Her hands kept moving from one part of her body to another, purposely checking for any physical injuries while being
"Are you sure it's not something that you need my help with?" Philip asked as he looked at the cafe and turned off the car's engine. This was the third time he had brought Ashley over to this place. Was she now obsessed with it that she wouldn't stop coming or there was just another reason for it? "No, thank you. I am fine. You can go home now. We will discuss it tomorrow." Ashley answered with a brief smile and came out of the car with her things. She stood to watch Philip leave first before proceeding.The latter quickly reversed and took the other route. The hand Ashley was waving vigorously halted and her smile was wiped off. She exhaled silently as her eyes ran across the surroundings. She turned to face the cafe.Yeah, she had been coming here for a while with the hope of having a proper conversation with Alex regarding her pending questions. She was so much curious and there was no way she would let this slide but her first attempt in speaking with him landed in failur
"And this counts as the end of your story, Alyssa," Loius said and kisses his daughter's forehead. Jennie glanced back at them and smiled. She had also been listening to the father-daughter discussion while preparing Alyssa's things for school. Louis was a good reader and his voice was smooth which could make the listener not get tired of listening to him speak multiple times. That was the major score he used in winning her over finally. "Thank you, Daddy." Alyssa chuckled after Louis shook her head playfully. "Get to sleep. You don't want to go to school very late."Alyssa then closed her eyes and Louis stood up. He approached his wife and hugged her from the back. "You got a free concert." "I didn't know reading was now some form of concert." Jennie teased back and Louis bit her earlobe. "Ouch... Louis, stop it." "Should I?" Louis asked, proving to be stubborn. Before Jennie could answer, Alyssa did her the favor. "This is still my room." She mumble