My Best Friend's Locket {The 2017 Awards}

Chapter Nine

Late in the middle of the night I heard murmurs from behind me. Odd murmurs, ones you would only hear from people who were ill or crazy.

Not a person who is perfectly normal.

Not Asher.

Turning around, I saw Asher murmuring things to himself, his forehead creased in concentration. He kept murmuring what he had to do, and one thing that really stood out. A name. My name.

When he said my name for the third time, a tear slipped from his sealed eye, running down his cheek. I started to wipe it away, but in the process, I woke him up. His hand shot up to mine, his eyes wide and searching.

"Safiya?" He said in an whisper, disbelief in his voice. He suddenly wrapped his arms around me, holding me tight to his bare chest, his heart pounding.

Pulling away slightly, I put my hand on his cheek, wiping away the tears that continued to flow. "Shh, Asher, it's okay. I'm here." I said, sounding worried.

Letting out a deep breath, he pulled me close once again, his heart still pounding.

"Asher?" I questioned.

"Never leave me, baby girl." his voice was barely a whisper. I was about to reply when he started talking again, his voice scared, an emotion no one has seen on Asher Jacobs. "You'll never leave me, right?" His breaths labored and heavy.

"Asher, no I would never." I said truthfully. He looked away, a look of shame crossing his face. Pulling his chin so that he was looking right at me, I gave him a soft kiss on the cheek.

"I'm sorry."

"Ash, you have nothing to be sorry about."

"But...I scared you," he said, sitting up. sitting up with him, I looked over at the clock, realizing that it was four in the morning.

"Ash, I'm only scared because I don't know whats going on. Asher, what was that?" I asked in a low whisper, feeling like I was intruding.

Letting out a sigh, Asher got up. He walked over to his desk, opening a small drawer that I barely took notice to. He took out a little bag that was holding something in it. He then moved over to his bookcase, opening a book from the top shelf and opening it up to a page that had a piece of loose leaf paper.

He then started walking to me, all of the things in his hand. Now that he had the book in front of me, I realized that it was none other than a textbook about the brain.

I looked up at Asher questioningly. He nodded towards the little bag, gesturing for me to open it.

Opening it up, I saw that it was a prescription. It was in one of those orange bottles, with a fancy name on the front, Asher's full name below it.

"Asher, what is this?" I questioned as my heart started beating faster.

"Read the letter, then the textbook."He said confidently. Well, as confidently as you can in this situation.

The letter was for the prescription. It was a severe stress and anxiety reliever.

"Asher?" I said, growing worried.

"Read the pages, Saf."

Reading through it, I learned the symptoms, some of which I had seen in Asher already.

Anxiety.

Insomnia.

Head aches.

Depression.

"Asher..." I started. But I couldn't finish. I was at a loss for words, I did not know what to say.

Letting out a sigh, Asher sat down again, shoving the things off the bed.

"Everyday, I am pressured to be someone I'm not. Everyday, I'm expected to be perfect. The perfect player, the perfect captain who will take our school to state, the perfect man, with the perfect grey eyes, the perfect body, the perfect blond hair. I'm expected to be the perfect straight A student, to be the perfect role model, to be the perfect choice for scholarships. The perfect son, the perfect older brother, the perfect grandson, the perfect nephew. I'm expected to be the perfect golden boy. Everyday, since I was born, people have been judging me, putting pressure on me, expecting me to be something I'm not. Perfect," he let out a little scoff. "Who ever asked me if I wanted to be perfect? Who sat down and said, 'Yes, this boy will have to be perfect.' Everyday, the pressures of having to be perfect add up, until the day I crash." He ranted. In the end, he was shaking his head, his face streaked with tears.

Moving closer, I threw my arms around him, holding me tight. Without saying anything, he got my message to continue.

"I thought that after I crashed, everyone would leave, would shut me out. And for a while they did, censoring me to what was happening. After a while though, everything was back on, including the pressure. I ended up taking those pills to help me. They didn't help as much as the doctor said it would."

I pulled away, looking at his face, his grey eyes shone with sadness as they looked into mine. Eventually, a small smile spread across his lips.

"But then I met you. You became my medicine, my everything. For the past six months, I have barely needed those pills. You are the only person who accepted me for me. You saw all of my flaws and embraced them without a care in the world. I didn't have to work to get you to like me, I didn't have to hide my true personality from you. I didn't need to be perfect for you, but God, all I wanted to do was be perfect for you. I wish I was perfect for you, because you're the only one that matters."

"Asher," I said, a tear slipping down my cheek. He reached up to wipe it away. "You are perfect. Your flaws, they make you perfect."

"Saf, you know I'm not perfect."

"And that's okay!" I said, looking him straight in the eye. "I never wanted perfect, and I didn't get it, but what I got is a million times better than perfect. I got the boy who listens, who draws, who reads, who has flaws. And that's all I need. You may think that I want perfect, but Ash, I think you're forgetting that I'm flawed too."

He then smiled, looking down at me.

"And together we're perfect."

Guys, I think this might be my new favorite chapter.

We learned a lot about Asher in this. I absolutely love his character and his dynamic with Safiya.

I didn't think I would include this in this book, I thought of this last night, and I knew I wanted Asher to have some depth.

Anyway, don't forget to comment and vote, it means a lot to me. I do respond to all comments by the way.

Also, THIS BOOK HIT 1000 READS!! That is absolutely crazy guys. I didn't think we could even make it to 20 reads.

As a treat, I will be following anyone who votes on this chapter!!

Love you guys.

-Fiza