home (halsey)

19

Ashley

"What should I do?" I sighed into the phone as I made myself some coffee. I held it tightly between my ear and shoulder.

There was shuffling on the other side of the line, a few grunts and complaints, too. I waited patiently for a response as I stirred milk into my coffee, swirling the spoon around slowly.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" Sean replied, letting out a deep breath.

I know it seems weird to be speaking with him on the phone, but I really just needed someone's help with my decision making. I needed a friend and I knew that all of my closest friends were busy. Maya was away at work, so I was free to discuss this with Sean for as long as I wanted. Now that everything between us was finally okay and there was less of a chance for Sky to act up, I wanted to start setting a date for our wedding.

Call me paranoid, but the thought of waiting any longer and something happening to us is the scariest thought to me. If we waited a while, who knows what could possibly happen? By setting the date so soon, I felt as if I would be preventing further problems.

"I was asking you what I should do," I replied, sipping my coffee. "Should we hold off on the wedding or should I make arrangements to have it soon?"

"Why are you in such a rush?" He said curiously, and I bit my lip so harshly that I felt as though my teeth would tear through it. Every time I had to explain my situation to someone, I would get all worked up. I stayed silent for a few minutes, causing Sean to clear his throat awkwardly.

"It's okay if you don't want to answer. You don't need to," Sean muttered reassuringly. "If it's something personal, I understand."

I let out a deep breath that I didn't know I was holding and swirled the bitter coffee around in my cup as a distraction.

"Let's just say some people are crazy and they'll do anything to break us up," I sighed, playing with the little curls of my natural hair.

"Really? What is this, some crappy love triangle out of a romance movie?" He teased, trying to lighten the mood. I let out a small laugh, covering my mouth with my hand.

"Shut up," I poked fun at him. "The thing is, it's not even a love triangle. This person is literally obsessed with me and the feeling is not mutual."

"Why would they be obsessed with you?" His voice sounded through the phone, the humorous tone evident.

"Why wouldn't they be? Have you seen me?" I played along, laughing at myself.

He chuckled loudly through the phone, causing me to smile childishly. I enjoyed talking to Sean. He was a genuine person who understood my problems and guided me through them. It was nothing romantic at all, but I felt a new attraction towards him. It was the start of a very pure friendship.

"You're funny. I like talking to you," He admitted, causing my cheeks to burn up. I felt like Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, except this time, my cheeks were glowing red and hot.

"The feeling's mutual, Sean. I like talking to you too," I said genuinely, and I realized that the door had opened as I spoke these words.

I snapped my head to the door, my attention now on that. Sean said something on the line, but I didn't hear it.

"Who's that?" Maya asked curiously, placing her arms across her chest and raising her brows.

"Oh, hi, babe," I chuckled nervously, scratching the back of my neck. "Didn't know you were going to come home early today. I'm talking to Sean."

"Sean?" She questioned, narrowing her eyes.

Please don't be mad. Please don't explode on me. Nothing is going on.