Zero

Chapter 16: Ashton

~Ashton's Point of View~

Beep

Beep

Beep

I roll over and hit my alarm until it turns off. This is it. I'm graduating today. I get out of bed and jump into the shower. When my mirror starts to fog up, I know it's time for me to get out. I grab my black slacks and my blue plaid shirt and I'm already dressed. I run my fingers through my hair and grab my socks from one of my drawers.

Graduation is at 10:00 and it's already 9:33. I grab my shoes and run down the stairs. My blue graduation gown is laid out on the couch. I make my way towards the kitchen and try to ignore my dad who is sitting at the table. I grab a box of Lucky Charms and a bowl and place it on the table. I grab the milk from the ice box and take a sit farthest away from Dad.

"That used to be your Mom's favorite cereal." He tells me, looking down into his cup of coffee. "Okay." I tell him, taking a bite of my cereal. I'm practically inhaling my cereal so I can eat faster to avoid all the awkward attempts of conversation he's trying to make. I don't know if he's trying to suddenly make up for being a crappy dad, but I could care less. It's too late.

I pick my bowl up from the table and place it into the sink. I put the cereal back in the cupboard and I put the milk back into the ice box. "What are your plans for tomorrow?" Dad asks, still sitting at the table. "I'm going to pack my bags and head to college." I tell him. I've already checked with the college I'm going to and they said it was fine for me to come early. "So soon?" He asks, and I'm pretty sure I'm going delusional but I think I hear sorrow in his voice. "Yep." I say walking past him into the living room. I slip on my shoes and grab my graduation gown from the couch. "You're not going to come back after you leave for college, are you?" He asks walking into the living room as I'm walking out the door. I shake my head at him. "No."

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After I give my valedictorian speech, the usual about how without the teachers and parents we wouldn't be where we are today, I sit down and wait my turn for the videos. I was right about most of them being about their parents or older brother or sister. All though, Hillary Elroy did hers on Miley Cyrus. "Ashton McReynolds." Principle Rhodes says into the microphone.

I get up from my seat and grab my diploma from him. After I've gotten my diploma, I go over to the man in charge of the video. I walk back to the microphone and begin my speech. "The person I admire is someone every single one of you know. Her name is Elizabeth Rogers." I hear a few moos from the students and a couple of snickers. "I may not been here since freshman year, but I've seen what Elizabeth has gone through this year and I believe that if she has gone through the hell my fellow classmates have caused, then she is worth admiring." I say. "My video will tell you the rest." I finish, walking down the stage and resuming my seat.

After my video there is silence. Then a couple of claps and pretty soon everyone is clapping. The next couple of videos go by before we finally hit the R's. After Kevin Ronalds gets his diploma and shows his video, Principle Rhodes call Elizabeth's name. "Elizabeth Rogers." He says into the microphone. I hear a few faint moos and turn to see her stand up. I haven't seen her at all today and I really want to know her opinion on my video.

"Elizabeth Rogers?" Rhodes asks into the microphone. Suddenly the auditorium'a doors bursts open and in comes Thalia. Her face is red and blotchy and her hair is a mess. She runs up the stage and whispers something into Principle Rhodes' ear.

He seems stunned for a moment before he finally speaks back into the microphone. "It has come to my attention that Elizabeth-." He begins and then takes a deep breath. "Elizabeth Rogers has sadly passed away." The whole auditorium is silent. Thalia runs down the stage and out the auditorium doors. Before I even process what I'm doing, I run after her.

"Thalia!" I shout, chasing her in the hallway. "What?" She sobs out. When I finally reach her, I pull her into a hug. She seems to hesitate for a second before hugging me back and sobbing into my graduation gown. We stand like that for a while, until she seems to have calm down a little bit.

"It's t-terrible Ashton. S-She was g-going to be a m-model and then I g-get a phone call this morning saying she d-d-." She starts to say before sobbing back into my gown. "What happened?" I ask, rubbing circles on her back. She takes a deep breath, trying to calm down her sobbing. "Apparently when we were doing our bet-." "What bet?" I ask interrupting her. "We had a bet to see who could lose the most weight fastest." She says. "We've been doing this for about a month or so. And you know, I thought she was just skipping a few meals here and there like I was. But it turns out that she was making her self throw-up." She pauses, trying to control her tears. "Her mom and sister found her last night passed out on the bathroom floor. They took her to the hospital but it was t-to l-late. Her body didn't have enough nutrients in it and with throwing up so much, the acid from her stomach was eating up her throat." She finishes sobbing.

"I'm sorry Thalia." I tell her, hugging her again. We stay like that for a couple of minutes before finally pulling away. "This is for you." She says, handing me a DVD from her purse. "What is it?" I ask, taking the blue case from her hand. "Turns out you were the person she admired." She says walking away. "Thalia, who did you choose as your person?" I ask her, curious. She turns and gives me a small, sad smile. "Who did you choose?" "Elizabeth." I say softly. She nods her head at me. "So did I."