Paint Stain <Lashton>

VI

Vision is the art of seeing what is invisible to others. ~Jonathan Swift

Ashton's POV

I sat next to Luke while we ate. He almost looked repulsed by just the way we ate. He bounced his leg constantly as we engaged in conversation he could not understand. After we all had finished, the cleaning commenced. Luke helped with all of it, despite the fact that we insisted he was a guest.

"Well, I better be on my way." Luke smiled as he headed towards the door.

"Let me walk you out." Larra volunteered. She followed Luke outside and I exchanged a glance with Michael.

"What's that face for?" Michael asked.

"He looked really uncomfortable." I said. "I don't think he finds it easy to be around us."

"He just doesn't fit in here Ashton." Lucas smiled as he leaned on my shoulders. His arms draping around me. "It's not your fault. I don't have any idea of why he would want to be down here in the first place."

I sighed. "I guess so, but I felt like we should have at least compensated for that." Lucas shrugged his own shoulders as he stood up and walked away.

The night ticked on, and slowly everyone headed for bed. Except for me, I was sitting on the couch staring at a screen that made me dread everything. Watching actors on television talk about how terrible their lives were.

"Ashton?" I turned my head to see Esther poking her head inside of the room, she rubbed her eyes as if she was tired. "Why are you still awake?"

"I don't know." I shrugged. It was one in the morning and Esther continued in the living room, a glass of water in her hand. She sat down off to my left and set her cup on the table, tugging her shorts down and her t-shirt down to cover her bottom. "What are you doing?"

"I thought I might accompany you. After all, eventually you'll want to talk about it, and I want to make sure I'm there to help." Esther shrugged.

"Well than I might as well get down to it." I sighed. "I felt really bad about - "

"Dinner with Luke," Esther spoke up. "I know. But why does it matter to you so much?"

"Because there's something deeper to him, that I really don't understand." I said. "He told me he hates girls, and he always has. He hates his parents so why does he continue to work for his father if they never see eye to eye?" Esther pursed her lips together, maybe trying to think of a good reason? Either way, I continued. "He said his only friend is his secretary and that's why they were hired."

"No one like Luke Hemmings could be that lonely," Esther immediately spoke. "After all, how could you be lonely when you have all that money to your name. He could get whatever he wanted."

"Maybe the one thing he wanted was what he couldn't have. He didn't get to make the decisions that would affect his entire life. He never made those choices." I shrugged. "And what if all of the friends that he had, only liked him for his money? Why would he want to befriend anyone?"

"You're really putting a lot of thought into this." Esther commented. "Why are you letting it consume you? I know you said that you didn't understand him. But why are you so desperate to understand?"

I thought about it. "Maybe it's because his eyes look so cold, and his voice is so formal. He's so distant from everything. When he's not saying anything he has a look on his face like he's aware that in the end he's alone."

"A-And you notice all of this?" Esther asked, shocked by what I said.

"I notice all of the little details, I wouldn't be a good artist if I didn't." I rolled my eyes. "You can't say that you haven't seen it too."

"No, I think I have." Esther replied. Shaking her head slowly. "I suppose it's true that people are miserable rich. Wait right here." Esther stood up and walked out of the room, eventually coming back with her laptop. She opened it and pulled up Luke's father's name. It was clear he was the owner of Hemmings Enterprise, but his name still soared through newspapers and blogs. Including Luke showing up in a lot of them.

Then one stood out to me; The End of Hemmings Enterprise?

"Click on that one." I said as I pointed at the article title.

After the disappearance of the wife (Alisha Hemmings) to Hemmings Enterprise's CEO (Marcus Hemmings), the founder has been secluded and has not given any state or notice about new products, new upcoming sales, or anything and has been reported to be continuously grieving. He could not even be seen with his son (Luke Hemmings) and was rather escorted by several different workers employed to Hemmings.

Either way, stock prices for Hemmings Enterprise are falling and it may seem to be the end of the company as it is challenged by others. Driving out the business and the employees. It has lost one-eighth of its employees and rates seem to continuously dropping.

Police have not released any investigation notes on Alisha Hemmings or her whereabouts, under the assumed request of Marcus Hemmings. All that is known is that she disappeared on July twentieth during a family vacation.

"Luke's mother was an idol it seems." Esther said. "Look at all of the pictures of her! And they're not all exactly inappropriate when she has a son, especially with the age he was at."

"They were regular celebrities in the business world." I said. "Did they ever find her?"

"I don't think so, but it doesn't have a follow up article. They probably closed the case. After all, a lot of cases get closed after just fifty to sixty hours after being discovered. And if they were on a family vacation, well that would be even harder." Esther said.

"Maybe I'll ask him about it." I shrugged.

"I don't know if that's a good idea, Ashton. How would you feel if he just asked about your mother?" Esther said.

"That's why, I can connect to him." I explained.

"Ashton you lost your mother to illness. Luke's mother disappeared. They are not the same thing. Whether either of you had one. Besides, he was just a kid when this happened. Maybe six or seven, I'm sure if anything is bothering him it's not that." Esther said. "Besides, you really should not bother him about it. You could lose your commission piece or possibly make critics towards fine arts. He's got a lot of power and the will to drag your name through the mud." 

"Esther but - " 

"No buts, you leave that poor boy alone." Esther snapped. "Ugh, now I feel like a mother." She closed her laptop and left the room. "Go to bed Ashton!" 

"Thanks mom." I called back to her. She let out a huff of annoyance but I only laughed slightly. I thought about going ahead and asking Luke, but what would I gain from it? Would he want to have those memories stirred? I know I would not. But in order to keep something from burning, you have to stir it.

AUTHOR'S NOTIFICATION; Ariana

Hey guys, I have an announcement. So I know I just started this book like a week ago. But I started another one called Fallen From Hell, and it's about Luke being the son of the devil, so if you're into that you should check it out. It's actually really funny at the moment, so that's good. (Also it is a Muke, if you like that better).

Hugs, Kisses, Cuddles and Serenades xX