Outcasts

Guess whos back? Back again.

A look into ashby's mind...

I held the gun, unwavering, looking into the guys eyes as his hands shot up. "You're gonna take me to the guy in charge, or I call the cops."

His brown eyes were wide. He was too young to be in the drug business, 14, maybe 15, and he still had that boyish look to him.

He nodded slowly, staring at my gun and dropping the gun his leader had stupidly given to him.

What was a kid that size going to do with a gun?

Suddenly I wondered what Levi was doing, and what she would think if she saw me here, doing this.

Would she understand the lies? There weren't many, I was real with her, but some lies had to be told. I had to protect her. And me.

I followed the smaller boy to a familiar part of town, a place where most the parties had been thrown.

"He doesn't live here, but he stays here with hunter a lot." I nodded. "What do you want with him anyway?" He asked me curiously.

I glanced at the boy, before starting up Hunter Romero's driveway. "In," was all I mumbled.

Sunday was uneventful. I laid in bed and listened to Toby disappear until late hours of the night and to my disappointment, ashby didn't show up again either. I used this time to bleach my roots, and then dye my hair a slightly different shade of blue. When I finished I curled up in bed, and fell asleep.

When I pulled into school Monday morning ashby's bike was already parked and he was inside.

I quickly found Jess who simply looked exhausted.

"Late night with Austen," I stated as I fell into step beside her. It wasn't a question, they'd stayed up many late nights, facetiming and talking.

She shrugged, seeming kind of indifferent. "Austen's coming home," she said quietly. She didn't seem happy though. "He should be back by lunch."

"Aren't you excited?" I asked her as we entered homeroom. She shrugged, and then pushed her dark hair off her shoulders, her bright eyes on the ground. "Yeah, excited."

Time passed slowly until lunch. Ashby didn't show up in the lunch room or outside and I was puzzled by that, but the guy had a life and I couldn't expect every single day to be the same. I sighed when I sat beside Jess and Maleia at a table with perfect view of Chastity and Travis. I groaned as I saw Chastity slip her hand into the top of his jeans.

"Jesus they need to-" Maleia stopped, her eyes catching two looming figures in the doorway. Neal Clark, who really needed to get a life if he was showing up during school hours waltzed in and walked straight towards the disgusting pair in the corner. And then Austen Carlisle appeared, his blonde hair disheveled and his eyes looking tired. He headed straight for our table and I jumped up and hugged him.

"Oh my god I can't believe you're back," I said excitedly. I'd missed him.

"Is there a mirror in your pants cause I can see myself in them," he joked, wrapping his arms around my waist loosely before he poked my nose and pulled back, his eyes landing on Jess.

"You didn't answer my calls last night," he said sadly, sliding onto a seat at the table. I frowned. She wasn't up late talking to Austen?

"I was busy," she said plainly, her eyes on her plate of food. Austen studied her for a second before shaking his head.

"Well I'm just glad to be back," he said quietly. "I missed you guys."

Mason, Elin and fletcher, who all were on sports teams with Austen, all nodded in agreement.

When lunch was over we headed to gym. The usual gym teacher was sick so we had a substitute who was making all the seniors play together.

"Let's play football?" Maisy asked, scampering to the group my friends had made in the middle of the field. We shook our heads.

"We could always be elementary and play hide and seek?" Mason suggested.

That got grins and lots of nods. "Hide and seek it is!" I called.

Mason smiled. "I'll count first then I guess."

The gym door opened and ashby's blonde locks appeared, jogging over into the field.

"Sorry I had stuff to take care of," he mumbled as he reached the field. He was wearing a green long sleeved v neck and some jeans and I had to bite my lip to keep from drooling.

"K I'm gonna start counting," mason told us. I took off, heading for the back off the school where a ladder, hidden behind the dumpster, would take you to the roof. Probably the best hiding spot to go to if you didn't want to get dirty.

I started climbing when I heard a rock hit the dumpster. "Hey this is my hiding spo-" I stopped when I saw it was ashby. He grinned at me sheepishly, his hands in his pockets.

"Can I hide with you?"

I laughed slightly, before nodding and finishing the climb. I waited up top for ashby, who grunted when he had to climb over the small wall on top of the building and it brushed his stomach.

We sat down, waiting. I heard mason call out that he was looking, and leaned back on my palms. "He probably won't think to look up here," I told ashby. He nodded, looking off into the distance, over the trees that lined the school. "How was the rest of your weekend?" I asked, trying to make conversation. He kept staring out, "uneventful," he mumbled.

I sighed, and that's when I saw it, the bandages wrapped around his thumb and moving to his wrist on his left hand.

"What happened?" I asked quietly. He glanced at me before looking away. He took a long time to answer, so long I didn't think he was going to. "I got in a fight. Someone pulled a knife. Just skinned me."

I bit my lip, wondering who and where and why, but forcing myself to keep everything in. I didn't want to scare ashby, I wanted to be close to ashby, despite all his efforts to keep me away, I wanted to know him.

And if I played my cards right, I knew eventually I would.

A/n I have something really cute planned for the next chapter ASDFGHJKL just yes.

Do you like ashby?

What's up with Jess?

Should Levi apologize to Toby?

And OMG Austen is back, whatttt?