eighteen ➳ punk a.i.

Chapter Three

So sorry for the late update! I've been a little busy but I'm back. I hope you like this chapter, and Ashton will appear again very soon, don't worry :)

I lock my door and start walking down the long hallway of apartments to reach the elevator. I don't know where I'm headed, but I honestly didn't care. I'm tired of being in that apartment all the time and I need to explore some other parts of the city other than my little block right outside my building. I grip my journal closer to my chest and fix my black beanie.

"Hey, Jess! Wait up!" I turn around to find Calum locking his own door. He jogs towards me and I can't help but notice his old band tee of one of my favorites: Daughtry. His smile gets brighter as he approaches my side.

"Hey," I tuck my hair behind my ear and push the down button on the elevator. "Nice shirt."

"Oh, which on-oh, yeah. I love Daughtry. They're my favorite." He smiles throught out the whole sentence, almost like he never stops.

"Mine too!" I can feel a grin spread across my ivory skin and the elevator ding signals us to get inside. The rest of the ride down is consistent of chatting about our favorite songs of Daughtry and other bands. We really do have a lot in common after all.

We reach the lobby and we walk outside side by side, our hands almost touching with every step. The sounds of cars flashing by and small chat amongst other people floods my ears as we take a right and continue down towards his workplace. So," I clear my throat and we walk outside, the cool air wrapping around us. "Did they find your sisters' luggage?"

"Yeah, they did. Turns out some freak took it thinking it was his," He laughs softly and runs his fingers through his effortless quiff.

"That's good," I smooth my hair that was blowing through the wind. "Where are you going?"

"Midnight Red. I've got work," He licks his lips and turns his head towards me. "Where are you headed, exactly?"

"That's a question I can't answer. I don't know exactly, I haven't been here for that long and I don't know places, so I might as well explore.."

"Well, touring New York isn't fun alone. C'mon," he gives me a devilish grin and motions towards a cross walk.

"W-what about your job?" I plant my feet in the side walk to keep myself from following him. I don't want him to loose his job because of a girl he barley knows.

"Don't worry about it, babe. It'll be fine," he grins again and chuckles lightly. Crinkles form by his eyes and his grin is pure and true. The way he called me 'babe' made my heart flutter and a grin to form on my face.

"Calum, I'd love to, but I don't want you to get in trouble. It's fine I can go al-"

"You're so stubborn, aren't you?" A smirk plays on his face as the words leave him mouth.

"No, not really, but you barely know me an-" Calum's hand wraps around my forearm and pulls me frontward, causing me to stumble into him. I quickly comb myself out from under his grip and smooth out my shirt. A confused expression is set on his face but he quickly brushes it off.

"It will be fine," he sigh deeply and gazes into anything but my eyes. "I won't get fired. Just come along, please?"

I felt like it was hours to give him am answer, but the word finally left my lips. "Fine." A massive smile covers his face as he pulls me along the crosswalk onto another sidewalk lined with blank fencing.

"This," he points to his left to a park area, "is Simmons Park. I used to come here every day when I'd come to visit my aunt. One of my favorite place I'v ever been."

The park is absolutely beautiful. Lights wrap around the trees and little kids are playing in the grass, laughing and not caring about anything else.

He continued to show me around the massive city, pointing out his favorite spots are telling his favorite memories being here as a child. I don't think there was a second where we weren't laughing or talking. His laugh was pure bliss and I could listen to it on repeat all day long.

Jessica, stop. You can't fall for him, or anyone. Just leave before anything happens.

The thoughts consume my mind again and the numbness sinks in.

"J-Jess? You okay?" he waves his hand infront of my face and I push the thoughts aside for a minute. His joyful eyes are now replaced with worried ones. He takes a step closer and I take one back to keep the space between us.

"It's getting late...I-I think I should go," The sun is sinking into the sky and we're about 2 hours into the city. It'll take me some time to get home. I turn on my heel in one swift movement and start walking back to my building when a hand grabs my forearm.

"Jess, don't leave me. Is everything okay?" He steps closer towards me to where are chests are almost touching. A lump in my throat form when I look up to him. His breathing is scattered and his eyes are full of worry. I don't know why he cares so much, he just met me four days ago. I look down at my feet and he lifts my head up by my chin.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I lie. He lets go and I'm slightly colder without his touch. He phone buzzes and he excuses himself to the side while I sit on the nearby bench. I run my fingers through my hair in frustration. I can feel myself falling slowly and I need to stop it before it's too late. Calum approaches my side and sits next to me, our knees brushing slightly.

"Hey, my friend wants to know if we'd like to go grab some food with him. The restaurant isn't but a ten minute walk from here," he looks down shyly at his feet and cautiously I nod my head in response. I don't why I just agreed to have dinner with him and his friend. He's done a lot of nice things since we met but this is just too much

A grin forms on his face and I don't dare to ruin it, so I go along with him. We start walking and talking about the most random things. When I talk to him, the pain fades away and all I can do is focus on the moment.

We arrive at a quaint restaurant and the waiter leads us to the booth set in the near front. I sit down next to Calum, suddenly feeling insecure. I chew on the inside of my bottom lip a nervous habit I've come to grow into. I look up at the door to see a tattoo'd man with piercings who looks strangely familiar. I focus back on the menu when I hear a husky voice approach us. I've heard that voice before, somewhere. Calum greets the stranger and I look up from my menu to see who has joined us and I sit frozen in place. My blood as run cold and my heart is beating out of my chest.

"Jess, meet Ashton. Ashton, meet Jess." Ashton's face goes pale as he studies my face. A grin appears on his face and I finally realize who he is. The voice, the tattoos, the piercings, the voice...it's him.