Deja Vu (SatoGou)

Chapter 16

"What are you smiling at?" Mom asks at dinner the next day. I'm lost in my thoughts, and don't realise I'm staring down at my plate, smiling like an idiot. I catch myself, and look up, the smile flipping.

"Nothing," I lie. I had been thinking about Ash, and the fact that we stayed up all night, texting. We've been apart for less than a day, and I'm so desperate to see him again that it actually hurts. I want to tell my parents, but I also want to respect Ash's wish. I haven't even told Chloe or Dawn, and neither has he. They'll be the first two to know, once Ash is ready.

"You're a bad liar," my mom says, pointing her fork at me. "But I won't push you."

"Thanks," I say, rolling my eyes. She's smiling at me, and I have a feeling she knows exactly what I'm smiling about. After dinner, I pull my phone back out. Ash has sent me a photo of himself. He's lying in bed, holding the camera above himself, and is jokingly making the peace sign, the red band falling down his wrist. His text after says Wish you were here.

I blush, my throat going dry. It should be illegal for someone to look that attractive. I hurry upstairs, texting back. I can drive over if you want.

He texts back quickly: I've gotta finish this English assignment, but you can come help?

I grab my keys and hurry downstairs, calling out goodbye to my parents. I make it to Ash's house in less than ten minutes. He answers the door himself. His hair is messy, like he might have taken a nap and not fixed it since. I feel my heart flip at the sight of him- my boyfriend. I step inside, itching to kiss him, but knowing I have to wait until we get upstairs, in case Delia sees.

"Hey," he whispers, shutting the door behind me. I follow him up the stairs, and we go into his room. The second the door closes, he puts his arms around me, lifting me into a hug. My feet leave the ground for a second, and I'm dying again.

"Okay, put me down," I laugh. He does, then gives me a quick kiss, and crosses over to his desk, sitting down again. His laptop is open, and I can see a text document, but can't read it from here. I follow him across the room and lean over him, looking at the screen over his shoulder. I knew he meant the nostalgia assignment, which the professor didn't let him get away with skipping, but I'm not sure what he's writing about.

"What are you writing about?" I ask as my eyes scan the screen. I read one line, and then my heart stops in my chest, as Ash answers.

"You."

I stumble for words. "You- You can't write this, Ash."

He looks over his shoulder up at me, frowning. "Why not?"

"Because-" I look down, meeting his eyes. "I wrote about you, too."

His eyes sparkle. "Really?" He asks, grinning. I shake my head.

"The professor will know," I say. "If you write about me, too. He'll be able to tell we're writing about each other, even though I never mentioned your name."

"I can't believe you wrote about me," Ash says, ignoring my other point. I sigh, exasperated. "I can't change it now. It's almost finished."

I can't really ask him to rewrite everything. I don't even know why the thought of the professor putting the pieces together bothers me. If Ash is okay with it, I should be too. I mean, what's he going to do? Tell everyone? Accepting it, I start reading what's visible on the screen. With every line, my heart beats a little faster. Reading this, it's obvious Ash felt the same things I did. His feelings for me are evident, pouring out of his words. It almost makes me choke up.

"I know it's bad," he says, frowning up at me.

"No," I say quickly. "It's good, Ash. I wish I could have read this sooner, though."