Half Hearted

Chapter Thirteen

| Ash |

He heard. He was wide awake and heard everything Teresa had said on the phone. Despite the seven feet of space between the kitchen and her bedroom, the apartment's walls were thin, and he had heard every word.

The conversation played in his head over and over again, and he couldn't help the pang in his chest when he heard about her concern for him. He'd treated her so badly. And yet she came back to pull this off. Maybe she knew he was awake. Maybe she'd been lying to her friend. Playing both of them.

Either way, he couldn't sleep for the rest of the night. All he kept thinking of was the burden he'd placed on their household. Their generosity, letting him live there and crash their place.

The internal conflict racked his thoughts until he stopped. Enough was enough. Grabbing their phone, he dialled Peter's number.

Of course, Peter was still asleep, so he left a voice mail. "It's Ash. I'm in Toronto right now. Call me through this number when you can, and I'll talk. No more bullshit."

| Teresa |

I woke up feeling better that day. After knowing that Steven had finally built up enough trust in me to tell me - something that I'd known for a while now - it felt nice to be trusted. The only thing was that he hadn't told Claire yet, so I'd have to keep it from her for now.

When I got out of my room, Ash was using our phone in the living room. Letting him be, I walked past him and into the kitchen, preparing my own breakfast. Oria was already in the washroom brushing her teeth.

Without trying to, I heard bits of his conversation. It seemed heated, since his face looked stern. "For the love of God, I'm not doing that again." Then a pause. "Nothing. It was no one. What? No. None of your business you arse."

I gave up trying to figure out who he was talking to, and then proceeded to get ready in my bedroom. Once I was done, I was going to grab my sweater from the coat rack when I heard Ash from behind. 

"Do you think you could drop me off somewhere before you go to school?" He asked, the tone of aggression still present in his voice.

"Where to?" Oria asked him for me, making me slightly annoyed that I was completely invisible when it came to the two of them.

"The airport," he answered. I heard Oria suck in a breath, and I would have as well if it weren't for the fact that she was still in her nightgown. "I'm just going to see someone for a bit."

"Who?"

He shook his head, "just an old friend."

I turned around and raised an eyebrow at him, and was about to answer when Oria cut me off. "In that case, sure. I think we could spare some time. We're probably not going to be late."

I sighed, giving up. I really had no space between the two of them.

Outside, the snow had already fallen, and street cleaners were driving down the roads, turning fresh white snow into disgusting mud. I hopped in the car, and surely, Oria got in the back seat with Ash. Were they together now, or what?

Taking the quickest route to the airport was not quick enough, as we got stuck in traffic for about ten minutes. Well, there goes my perfect attendance record. 

Even though there technically was no attendance, I attended the lecture every day. It was one of the only things that the professor recognized me for. Now I had nothing to separate me from my friends.

The drive was longer than usual, thanks to the heavy traffic of the first snow fall. During some parts of the drive, I acknowledged the rearview mirror through my peripheral vision, and I thought I saw Ash staring at me. But looking up, he was back, grinning at Oria.

Rolling my eyes, I parked in front of the airport, careful not to be too close to the fire hydrant. Ash got out of the car, and without saying a simple thank you, vanished inside the airport doors.

"He's a load of crap," I muttered, and Oria laughed.

"Not once you get to know him," she sang, obviously still in her dreamy state.

I rushed to get the car out of the airport, and headed for school. The only thing to worry about now was how to break the news to Steven. Oria would be blunt about it, so I wanted to tell him beforehand.

I didn't want him to leave with a regrettable feeling.

I knew the feeling all too well, and couldn't wish it upon anyone. Not even the notorious Ash Stymest.

| Ash |

Ash wandered around the waiting area, pacing here and there. He wondered why Peter would bother taking a flight all the way from London to Toronto. But then again, Ash was his source of money. How else could he survive without his model?

Soon enough, Peter's scruffy beard came into his view, and he was greeted by a punch on the arm. "Don't you make me fucking worry like that again."

Ash shrugged, "your fault. As if you actually worried anyways."

"It wasn't mine, you knob," Peter tried to insult. He held more of a feeling of relief rather than anger. He thought Ash had disappeared for good. "Where have you been?"

"Places," was Ash's short response. "I'm not going back there, though. You know that."

"I figured," Peter sighed. "That's why Maudie and Riel are coming here tomorrow. Maudie already tried finding some places in Toronto that you could shoot at. There's a topic about 'freeing the body', and it's not as good as Elite was, but it's what we can do for now, especially after your little... break - which, by the way, we have to come up with an explanation for. I tried buying off the news on their little story on you and the coke, but they're not budging."

"You sure it wasn't a story you made up?" Ash asked, letting Peter grab his own luggage as they walked out of the airport. He was still pissed off, but after seeing that Peter was having none of it, he asked, "fine. What's a story you'll make up for all of this?"

Peter pursed his lips, "I'll think of it somehow. Anyways, we better get a room. Where are you staying right now?"

"Some girl's apartment."

"Who's that girl?" Peter's eyebrow was raised.

"Remember Oria? That girl you told me about that had connections with that old American?"

"You're staying at her apartment?" Peter whistled, getting a cab to settle in front of them. "I never knew you'd actually follow through with that one. Keep her for now, we might need her just in case we don't get you booked for anything."

The two of them headed to a hotel in downtown Toronto, and Ash found himself missing the small apartment, and his tiny mattress on the kitchen floor.

He also found himself missing that one pair of bushy eyebrows.

But, of course, he had built himself an isolation wall. There was no penetrating it yet.