Happiness and Other Illusions {Carpe Vitam Book One}

5-One Day In the Life of Ash

The shrill ringing of his phone jolted Ashton out of his midday slumber. He groaned; he didn't want to talk to anyone, especially not Lisa or Xora. Reluctantly, he reached for the phone, only for it to stop ringing. He glanced at the display to see had called. "Whitney," he muttered with a roll of his eyes. She wanted a ride home from her boyfriend's house, no doubt.

Almost immediately, the phone rang again. Ashton hit ignore at once, not even bothering to look at it this time. He turned over in his bed, wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep, only to have his phone start ringing a third time. He swore loudly, then answered.

"It's literally four blocks, Whitney. Stop acting like such a princess and just walk!" he yelled into the phone.

"Hi to you, too," said a familiar male voice on the other end.

"What's up, Devon?" Ashton's earlier annoyance dissipated.

"I have a dilemma. I have this friend whose 18th birthday is less than a month away, and he has yet to invite me to his epic party."

Ashton ginned. "Maybe he hasn't planned anything yet, or maybe he's thinking about dropping you but hasn't found a way to tell you yet."

"You're planning on dropping me?"

Ashton could have sworn he heard hurt in Devon's voice. He chuckled. "Of course not, you big 'mo. Where would I go when I need some time away from this place?"

"You mean when you're drunk and need to sober up without your parents seeing you."Ashton stretched and sat up in bed, not bothering to respond. Devon knew perfectly well that's what he had meant. He didn't have any other friends that had moved away from their parents yet. If he and Devon stopped being friends, there would be nowhere for him to escape from his family. Devon was always pretty cool about letting Ashton crash at his place, just as long as he didn't damage anything or eat all the food.

"You really have nothing planned for your big day?" Devon's question pulled Ashton out of his reverie. "What's with you? You've been acting super weird lately."

Aston swallowed hard. He still hadn't told anyone about the girls being pregnant. Every time he thought about it, he felt sick to his stomach. Even now, he didn't know whether to scream, cry, or jump out his window. He wasn't ready for this. There was no way he could be a dad for two kids. Hell, he couldn't even handle one at this stage in his life. Not to mention what Marcie and his parents would do to him when they inevitably found out.

"I've just had a lot on my mind lately," he told Devon.

"Like what?" his friend pressed.

Ashton rubbed the back of his neck with his hand. He'd been dodging the question so much lately. It had taken him forever to convince Marcie to let the subject drop after he had let it slip to her two weeks ago. And he knew that Devon wouldn't leave it alone until he either spilled or snapped. It couldn't hurt to tell one person, right? Besides, he knew Devon would take his secret to the grave.He took a deep breath. "I got-"

Before he could finish his sentence, his bedroom door flew open. Ashton looked up at his dad, who frowned down at him.

"I need to talk to you."

"I gotta go, Devon," Ashton said quickly before disconnecting the call. He then turned his attention to Stuart.

"What's up, Dad?"

"What time did you get in last night?"

Ashton sighed. He had been stupid to think they could have a conversation without it turning into an argument; he couldn't remember the last time they had. "I don't know. Like...tenish?"