You stepped outside into the frigid air, a breeze cold as ice hitting your face. Leaning your back against the brick exterior of the night club, you dug around in your purse searching for your carton of cigarettes. A silent cheer left your lips once you found them and your lighter. Pursing your lips, you took the cylinder between your lips, bringing the lighter to the end. Even with your hand cupping over the lighter you could not for the life of you get it to light. The wind was relentless, almost like hearing your parents yelling at you for smoking, like they were telling you to stop.
"Try facing the wall to light it." Someone out of the blue told you, yet somehow the voice was familiar. Turning your head your eyes must have deceived you.
You removed the cigarette from your mouth, holding it between your two fingers, "Ashton?" Your voice cracked as the name came out. With a low chuckle he nodded, leaning his shoulder against the wall. "I haven't seen you since graduation! What have you been up to?" This man in front of you wasn't the same though. His scooped shirt illuminated two bird tattoos just below the collarbones. You could also see an eyebrow piercing adorning his right eyebrow.
"Nothing really. What brings you out tonight?" You could vividly see that he was in no way the same as he was back in school. Your typical thought of him came with glasses and books galore. You weren't really close to him, but you did go to school with each other forever so you did know him for a long time. He caught you staring at him, something you couldn't help but do. You needed to take it all in, that he looked so damn hot. His leather jacket and ripped jeans made him seem like such a bad boy. And to be honest it turned you on. Ashton chuckled, "Earth to Y/N?"
"What?" You shook your head back to reality, out of your daydreaming, "Oh sorry, um what did you ask?"
"I asked what brought you out to the club tonight." His low accent was sending chills all throughout your body.
"Uh, well I was just gonna have a drink or two."
"Or three." He smirked.
You laughed at the comment, "Hey now!"
"Don't play coy Y/N we both know how you were in high school." He was right, you did like your rinks every once in a while.
"How would you know?" You rebutted, "You never went out!" You crossed your arms over your chest, leaning your back fully on the brick. Ashton went silent, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his pants. Very subtle, you thought, you probably just blew your chance.
Much to your thought of ruining any chance with this changed man, Ashton broke the awkward silence, "Well, I'm headin' home, do you wanna come?" Your eyes went wide at the question, did he really just ask you back to his place? Either way, if you were dreaming or not, you wouldn't say no. You stuffed the lighter and cigarette in your coat pocket.
"Yeah, that's fine." You didn't want to sound too eager, not risking ruining your chances any further.
His flat wasn't far from the club and you found yourselves getting caught up in each other's lives. You learned that after graduation he was sick of being the nerd everyone sought him out to be. Once college rolled around, his full scholarship was thrown aside, he dropped out within the first semester. He got a bunch of tattoos and changed his whole outlook on life. He didn't care what people thought when they looked at him and you realized that this new look, his entire being just fit him so much better than being what he used to be. Still, you kept thinking about what he would be like under all that.
After unlocking the door he headed straight for the kitchen. Awkwardly, you shut the door behind you, taking off your shoes and setting your purse down next to them. You removed your jacket tossing it on top of them both. When you stood back up, you noticed Ashton had taken off his jacket as well, and you could almost feel the drool come out of your mouth. His arms were filled with tattoos from shoulder to wrist. "What?" He cut off your day dreaming once again, chuckling at you.
