Dreams & Other Lost Things {Sequel to B&TBR}

Chapter 8: A Giant Mess of Judgmental People.

"I don't want this moment to ever end
Where everything's nothing without you
I wait here forever just to, to see you smile.
'Cause it's true, I am nothing without you."
-Sum 41, With Me.
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Asher was sprawled out on his stomach on his bed when I got out of the shower. My hair was soaked, brushed, and resting against my back. Asher's clothes on me were warm and roomy, giving me chills at the sudden comfort I felt in them.

Without his shirt on, I could see the tattoos on his arms and even one on his shoulder blade. They covered his left arm like a sleeve and a few were randomly placed on his right arm. I wasn't close enough to see the small details in them, though. I just admired the way they looked against his skin.

I jumped when he suddenly stood up, turning to face me. "Oh, I didn't know you were done." He rubbed the back of his head awkwardly.

"It's okay," I mustered as I tried not to look at his shirtless upper body. He looked around his room messy room to find a white muscle shirt to pull on.

"Oh, Grayson is staying with Ellie tonight because of the snow. Just thought you'd like to know," he explained. I smirked and jumped onto the soft and bouncy bed.

"I won't even have to threaten him to be good to Ellie," I laughed. Grayson was the kind of person to not stop after he's threatened countless times. But, after being kneed in the nuts just once, I think he got the point: don't mess with Ellie. She came from Georgia, the southwestern part, and she knows how handle herself.

"Why's that?" Asher asked, amused.

I chuckled to myself. "Ellie sort of kneed him in the balls the other night after he lost her at Washington State Park..." I trailed off.

Asher's eyes widened before he burst into guffaws. "Seriously?" I nodded my head, not able to answer because of the giggles erupting from me. My phone started going off where it was still in my pants in the bathroom. I jumped off the bed and ran to grab it.

"Speak of the devil," I said, showing Asher the caller I.D of Ellie's name on my screen.

He laughed and shook his head at me. "I'm going to take a shower." He took a set of clothes and disappeared down the hall and into the bathroom.

"Hello?" I answered as I flopped back onto the bed.

"Bea? Hey," Grayson's mischievous voice rang through. I pulled back my phone to make sure it was Ellie's name written across the screen. I wasn't insane, I was sure.

"Why are you calling me on Ellie's phone?" I asked in monotone. Probably just Grayson and his shenanigans.

"Because I figured you would've blocked me by now. You know, best friends with your ex? Anyway, that's not my point." He sounded thoughtful as he spoke which scared me, not in a seriously scared way, though.

"Okay, what's your point?" I inquired, almost eager to hear what he had to say.

"Are you... fixing him? Like right now?" He hesitated on the words he was trying to spit out.

"You act like 'fixing' him is like sex." I deadpanned, not amused anymore.

"Ha-ha, good one, and maybe I was, but if it's not that, what are you doing?"

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. If there was ever a guy with a dirtier mind than the average male, it was Grayson. I wondered where Ellie was and secretly wished she would take the phone away from Grayson to save me the embarrassment.

"Grayson," I stressed. "Helping someone takes a little less of that and a lot more of talking and listening."

"You mean it does take a little bit of it?" He asked suggestively. I could imagine him wiggling his eyebrows at me.