Confiding in You ϟ a.i.

Chapter 18

The next morning, I wake with the sunlight shining in my face and the feeling of being pressed up against someone. I can barely comprehend where I am at first, until I struggle to turn my body around only to have Ashton's sleeping face right in front of mine. His arms are wrapped tightly around my waist and he lets out a groan upon my moving, pulling me closer to him and nuzzling his face in the crook of my neck. So much for not invading my space, or whatever.

"Fucking hell," I press my hands on his chest, struggling to push him away from me so I can sit up. Disturbed, he squeezes his eyes shut before tiredly opening them. They open wide as though he hasn't even been sleeping once he sees me.

"Holy shit!" Ashton exclaims, his voice hoarse. He jumps off of me and rolls back toward the other end of the bed, hitting his head on the wall. Gripping it with both of his hands, he pulls himself into the fetal positions and mutters, "Shit shit shit, I'm sorry. Oh my god."

"Yeah," I roll my eyes, finally able to sit up. The breath I started holding in the moment I realized he was so close to me finally leaves my aching chest and my head begins to pound immediately. I grab my phone off it's place on the ground with a sigh and check the time. 9:43am. Great. This was all just turning out to be great. "Ashton, guess what time it is."

"Mmm," I turn to see he's beginning to fall asleep again, all curled up. He yawns, glancing up at me with heavy eyes, "5:30 in the morning."

"Wrong, we're already two hours late for school."

"Amazing," Ashton closes his eyes again, reaching his hand out to search for mine. When he's grabbed it, he pulls me backward and our foreheads collide. He gives a loud laugh and I scoff, sitting back up and completely getting off the bed this time.

The entire problem that I'm finding myself involved in by just staying out late last night is becoming annoying and frustrating. Not to mention the fact that now that I'm awake, I can't get the idea that Ashton apparently knows about the incident from pervading my conscious. I run my fingers through my tangled hair and attempt to braid it, but continuously fail. 

My clothes are in a wrinkled pile under my feet and I yank them up so I can quickly get changed. I don't have my mind in the right place, pulling Ashton's shirt up over my head with my back to him. The anxiety I feel about my body around boys would have been much worse if Ashton was awake, but he isn't and I'm far too carried away with other sources of stress.

"That was really hot," I can hear the smirk in his tired voice before I even get the chance to grab my shirt from yesterday that's now being held awkwardly between my legs. My anxiety level hits its limit and bubbles over, forcing me to nervously pull his shirt back over my head in one swift movement.

"Can you make up your fucking mind? Either wake up or go back to sleep," I face him, my heart beating more quickly every second. Heat raises to my face and he moves to the edge of the bed with a chuckle. Every time I look at him all I can think about is he fucking knows and then I'm reminded, Hey! you should be worried about being late too! Also, your brother hates you. I fall to the floor in a heap the second it becomes too much and put my head in my hands, "I can't do this, Ashton."

"Whoa," the bed squeaks as he stands. I feel his presence next to me and am assured of that as he rests his hand on my shoulder, but I don't bother to look up. "Why don't we just skip today?" His voice is soft and I nod before I can think of the consequences, still keeping my head in my hands. He stands beside me and I hope he'll leave me alone, but I never hear him walk away.

"Go away," I mumble.

"Come on, Maddie," He laughs lightly, but I just press the palms of my hands into my face even harder. It hurts on my overly-abused cheek but why should I even care? Ashton heaves a sigh and before I know it, he's got his arms wrapped around my waist again. I jump and let out a whimper, being forced to take my hands away from my eyes and untangle my legs while he throws me over his shoulder.