Sex Metal Barbie // lashton

chapter ten

Ashton pulled his hood over his head and then sighed as he looked around the bright, busy streets of Los Angeles. Golden rays bounced off of every glass surface surrounding him, making him glad he grabbed his sunglasses instead of his actual glasses. Sure he couldn't see, but he doesn't think it mattered too much. All there was were guys who kind of all looked alike and girls dressed like Sam Manson. If he had a dollar for every girl he saw in fishnets then he wouldn't even need to be in the band anymore. There were so many and each gave him double tame to see if it was actually him, that one drummer guy in that one band with that one hit out right now.

It was honestly too early for him to be up considering he didn't fall asleep until late last night, and his pounding migraine hurt more than ever as he listened to cars zooming past with stereos that had the bass boosted. He can hear them vibrating and shaking from miles away. He can hear stiletto's hitting the concrete. He can hear the fly buzzing around him, circling like a vulture above his head.

He just wanted to get his stupid order of overpriced pressed juice and leave before someone recognized him behind his shades and hood. It didn't help that it was his own band's merchandise either, as if anyone else in this town would wear it but the band themselves.

He paid the lady behind the bar and then grabbed his bottle, reminding to give Kaitlin a piece of his mind for putting him on these stupid drinks. He doesn't know how to explain them. The green ones tasted like green and the red ones tasted like red.

He accidentally bumped someone's shoulder as he turned to walk away and he raises his eyes as he apologized. "So-"

"- It's alright."

He paused as he stared at the blond and he wondered if he should talk to him or not. Should he apologize? He vaguely remembers leaving him and making him go to the party for nothing.

He turned around when Luke was next to get his drink and he saw his nails were still painted a shiny black color. Luke really did that for him, and he left him as soon as he arrived to for some girl who made shitty cocktails.

"Luke?" He asked and the man turned around before dropping his own sunglasses on to his nose.

"Ash?" He asked and Ashton looked around before approaching him. "I didn't know you drink these. I didn't even recognize you."

He nodded. "My friend put me on them. I need to have one after getting smashed." He admitted as he looked at the bottle. "And that was kind of the point, to go unnoticed

"Yeah..." Luke awkwardly added and Ashton watched as his hand curled around the square bottle. "How's your day been?"

"I'm hungover and there was bile in my toilet when I went to have a morning wee." Ashton answered, hoping to get a chuckle or even a smart grin off of him. Nope. "If that uh answers your question..."

"You seemed pretty hammered last night, yeah. You were kinda red and stumbling." Luke agreed and Ashton rubbed his forehead as they began walking.

He took a deep breath as he tried to recall what happened last night. "I'm sorry." He rushed before he can overthink it.

The younger blond furrowed his eyebrows and then tilted his head as they strolled along the sidewalk side by side. "For what?"

"I shouldn't have left last night. I asked you to come and instead of beinf with you I um... I let my dick dictate the moves I made." He explained him and Luke gave him a grin.

"I guess you put the dick in dictate."

Ashton laughed a little harder at the shitty pun than he'd ever admit aloud.

Luke twisted the cap off of his drink before taking a drink of the yellow mix. "It's okay." He replied.

Ashton still felt bad, like a weight was tugging on his chest and pulling it to the floor. He didn't think he deserved to be forgiven, yet here this man was just forgiving him like it was nothing. Was it nothing? Was it blowing it out of proportion? He doesn't know anymore.

"I feel really bad." The drummer insisted and Luke nodded. "Especially when you went through all the trouble to uh paint your nails and all."

"You're pretty slow for being the only one in your band who graduated." Luke snorted. "You know that?"

Ashton was taken back. "What do you mean?"

"I get that you don't want a relationship, but when a man paints his nails the color you asked him to wear and does laundry to go to a shitty house party..." Luke told him and Ashton stopped walking.

He looked up at him and Luke shrugged his shoulders as he held his bottle to his chest. "Why'd you ask me to come to that party anyways, Ash?" He asked and the older man ran his tongue over his lips.

He didn't know how to answer it.

Luke chuckled as an awkward silence filled. "Better yet, why are you apologizing?"

He still didn't know how to answer.

He parted his lips to speak but nothing came out as the other waited for a reply. He didn't know anymore. He didn't know why Luke effected him so much and he didn't know why be was apologizing. He can't pinpoint the exact moments he found himself stuck with a board full of Luke's face, but he knew that there were more moments than he'd admit. Luke was just a person worth remembering and thinking about.

Luke still wanted an answer.

"Because no offense, Ashton, you're cool and all, but if you want something from me, you're gonna have to ask. I don't read minds and as much as I like you, I'm not a last resort." He stood up for himself.

"Do you want something from me?" He asked the heavy question that filled the space.

Luke looked around. "I don't know. All I know about you is what I've heard, but from what I've heard you're pretty fucking great. But I'm not a rebound."

"No, of course not." The celebrity agreed as he looked down at the floor briefly. "I'm not used to people having the balls the stand up to me."

"Get used to it."

Ashton smiled as he met his eyes. "I think I'm gonna have to." He agreed and Luke returned his grin before leaning forward.

"Just because I have guts, it doesn't mean I don't want you in control." He whispered and Ashton tightened his grip on his juice.

He didn't know what he was getting himself in to, but it felt like a rerun of everything wrong he's ever done. He could feel a sense of déjà vu settling in as their arms brushed when they walked. It was like an old memory came to life, and he only hoped the ending would be different than the last time it played.