the treehouse ☾irwin [completed]

five;

"ashton!" ms. irwin exclaimed, staring at her son in astonishment. he jumped stood there, staring at his mom, now with a blank expression.

"go upstairs and get changed! now!" she told him firmly, pointing towards their stairs. ashton rolled his eyes in annoyance and turned on his heel to storm away.

i watched as he shot me a glare as he ran up the stairs. i let out a shaky breath and turned back to the table. ms. irwin looked disappointed as she watched her son go upstairs. "sorry about that," she mumbled before returning to play with her food.

"how is ashton?" dad asked, trying to break the awkward tension. "he's, erm, alright. he spends most of the time outside or at his friend, luke's house. he's became very distant, lately," ms. irwin answered, putting on a fake smile i could see straight through.

"does he still play soccer?" mom asked, eager to hear more. i shot her a look, which she simply ignored. "no, he quit awhile ago. i guess their likes change when they grow up," ms. irwin suppressed a soft chuckle, giving me a soft smile.

i gave a small smile, shrugging nonchalantly. after a few minutes of small talk that i mostly zoned out of, large footsteps ran down the stairs.

i could hear ashton sigh loudly as he walked over to the table. he collapsed ungracefully onto the seat across from mine, slightly cleaned up.

he now sported a collared shirt and a pair of skinny jeans - that weren't ripped. his mob of curly hair was ruffled, like he tried to fix it, but did a halfhearted job.

"thank you for joining us," ms. irwin smiled at her son a little too eagerly. ashton mumbled something and started eating as if he was starving, not glancing up at anyone.

i squirmed in my seat before continuing to pick at my salad. tony seemed a little too quiet, never seeming interested enough to join into the conversation my parents and ms. irwin were having.

i glanced awkwardly up at him and noticed his downcast eyes staring at the phone in his lap. i rolled my eyes.

"so, ashton. how have you been?" dad turned to the boy. "i've been better," ashton answered simply, giving a small shrug.

"oh. sorry to hear that," dad glanced awkwardly mom, who gave a slight shrug. "you know bree, right?"

ashton's eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched, but he didn't turn to me. "somewhat." i let out a soft sigh of annoyance.

"oh, that's great! you two should talk some more, since you're literally beside each other," dad exclaimed eagerly, turning to me with his eyes glimmering.

i just stared at him with a blank expression, trying to telepathically communicate with him. or anyone else at the table.

"you two should! aren't you a senior, bree?" ms. irwin chirped up, smiling equally as eagerly. i nodded, sneaking a glance at ashton.

he stared right back at me, but this time, his eyes weren't narrowed. he look relatively calm, just looking at me. i shifted uncomfortably in my seat, dropping my gaze quickly.

"ashton just graduated last year. i don't know if you remember him from school," ms. irwin chuckled and rubbed her son's back in a motherly way. "i remember him," i replied a little too quickly, causing my cheeks to redden.

ashton leaned back in his seat, still looking at me. only this time, he seemed interested and amused all in one.

ever since we moved in, obviously i thought ashton was cute. but, he was so quiet and stand-offish, i never really got to know him that well. recently, i became intimidated by ashton. but, in a way, his mysterious character intrigued me.

i always saw him talking to a small group of his friends. they all seemed mysterious...

i dropped my eyes and stabbed a piece of lettuce on my fork, hesitantly putting it into my mouth. i hate salad.

"how nice. how about you two go hang out, while the adults talk?" ms. irwin told us eagerly, oblivious to the fact there was tension.

"oh, that's ok-"

"mom, um-"

ashton and i both interrupted each other and stopped immediately. i squirmed awkwardly, keeping my eyes down in embarrassment.

"well, i'll grab the wine!" tony finally piped up, quickly getting up and walking towards the kitchen.