There's Something About You (Ashley Purdy)

Epilogue

Ashley and I broke up when Ethan was 6 months old. We still keep in touch for the baby's sake, though. Ashley takes him when he's home from touring, and I have him when he's on the road. There are no hard feelings between us, but we decided that we just weren't meant to be together. Ethan is now 2 years old, and he looks more and more like Ashley every day. Black Veil Brides is coming home from tour today, and Ashley is taking him home with him. The house is quieter when Ethan is away, but at least I can deep clean the house. 

I hear a knock on the door, and Ashley just comes right in, like he always does. 

"Hey, Alex," he smiles happily. 

"Hi. Ethan's upstairs taking a nap. I have his things packed, though. How long until your next tour?" I ask. 

"We're taking a little break. It should be around 5 months. Don't worry, we'll trade off before then," he says. "When do you want him back?"

"Whenever he wants to come back," I shrug. "You can go get him if you want."

"Okay." He goes upstairs to Ethan's room. I can hear them both get excited to see each other. Minutes later, Ash comes downstairs with our son in his arms. I kiss Ethan goodbye and watch them drive away. I smile. I miss being with Ashley sometimes, but it's easier emotionally to have him gone. It's better this way. 

Less than an hour later, I hear sirens blaring from outside and rushing down the street. Cop cars, ambulances, fire trucks, everything. They're going the same way Ethan and Ashley went. My mind immediately goes to  the worst. What if something happened to them? I still know where Ashley lives, so I'm just going to drive by there and make sure everything okay. My gut tells me I should. I shakily grab my keys and get in my car. I start following the sound of the sirens. I get closer and closer to the sound. My view is blocked by the emergency vehicles, so I pull over and get out of the car. In the wreck, I see a black car engulfed in flames. I gasp. It looks just like Ashley's. I begin running towards the scene, and I get stopped by a police officer. 

"Ma'am, we need you to stay back," he says firmly.

"No! My son is in there!" I yell frantically. I look past his shoulder and see Ashley. His face is covered in ash and his clothes have burnt spots and holes. He's laying deathly still. A medic comes over to him and just covers his body. "No!" I scream. "Ashley, no!" 

"Ma'am, calm down. Everything is alright."

"Where is my baby?" I demand. I see a small body being carried on a stretcher to an ambulance. I can immediately tell that's Ethan. "Ethan!" I scream. I push past the officers. "I'm his mother, let me ride with you!"

"I'm sorry, ma'am, but we can't allow that. You may meet us at the hospital if you would like," a medic says, closing the door. I watch them drive away before kneeling beside Ashley's body. 

"How?" I whisper. "Why?"

I get up and look around me. The car is basically burnt metal by now, and the sirens won't stop blaring. I walk silently back to my car and begin driving to the hospital. This has to be a mistake. This can't be real. I turn on the radio, hoping to lighten the mood with some music, but my radio seems to have other plans. 

"Ashley Purdy, bassist of Black Veil Brides, was just killed in a car accident. We have just received word that his son passed away on the way to the hospital," a reporter says. 

I shut the radio off and pull over. I can't do anything but scream. I scream and cry and bang my fists on the steering wheel. My phone rings with calls from Andy and calls from the hospital. I ignore everything, unable to accept the fact that they're gone. But when Andy calls me for the sixth time, I answer it. 

"Andy," I wail. 

"Where are you?"

"I'm on the side of the road. I just heard everything," I sob. My whole body is shaking. "I saw the scene." 

"I'm coming to get you. Everything is gonna be alright. Just stay there and don't move," he says sternly. 

I don't listen, though. I hang up the phone and get out of the car. Cars are flying past me. I look straight ahead and run straight into traffic. My whole body loses feeling as cars slam into me, horns honking. 

I close my eyes and let the silence take over my body.