Perspective

10- Friends

"Have you talked to him yet?" Aspen asks, peeling an orange.

"Asher or Evan?" I question.

"Both."

I shake my head. "It only happened last night. I'll wait a couple days."

Aspen gives me a look. "I hope you realize that you have to face both of them tomorrow at school."

Shit.

I groan just as the doorbell rings.

"I GOT IT!" My dad yells.

The door opens and I hear him talk.

"Hi, Asher! What are you doing here?" Dad asks.

"Asher?" Aspen and I both whisper, looking at each other with wide eyes.

"I need to talk to Chase," Asher says.

Shit. Shit. Triple shit.

"We don't have time to prep but I'll try my best to help you," Aspen tells me before dragging me over to Asher and Dad.

Asher smiles at me. "Hi Chase."

I awkwardly wave.

Dad steps back. "We'll let you guys talk alone."

I follow Asher to the porch and shut the front door behind us.

I have this weird feeling inside me. I'm not sure if it's good or bad.

"What's up?" I ask, leaning against the porch railing.

"I know spring break is a month away, but I need to know if you have anything planned," Asher says.

"I'm pretty sure that I'm free," I say. "Why?"

"Harper and I need to go to Italy to visit my dad. Since you're Harp's babysitter, we need you to come with us," Asher says. "You cool with that?"

Hold up. What?! ITALY? ME?

Okay, Chase, remain calm even though you're super excited.

"Yeah, I'm cool," I reply to Asher's previous question.

"Sweet," Asher syas with a smile. "Have you talked to Evan yet?"

"Not yet." I brace myself for a talk about how I should do it as soon as possible.

"Good. You should wait to see what excuse he's gonna make up for standing up. Then, you should make a scene and embarrass him."

I blink. "I'm not going to make a scene. That's not me."

Asher shrugs. "I would totally do it if I were you."

"I didn't feel hurt or anything, so I don't think it would matter. I didn't have feelings for him in the first place," I admit.

"Speaking of feelings....are you crushing on anyone?" Asher asks.

"No," I say.

Why do I feel like I'm lying?

"Why do you ask?" I question.

"If you do like someone, I could probably help you get with them. It's okay if you don't, I was just wondering."

"Why would you want to help me?"

"You've helped me many times. Driving me around whenever my car broke down, babysitting Harper, and sometimes helping me with my homework. It's only fair if I return the favor."

I groan. "Asher, I absolutely hate it when people try to return favors whenever I do something for them. I don't like the whole concept of getting something in return."

Asher looks a bit offended before he starts laughing. "This is going to be hard because I always feel the need to return favors no matter what."

"Oh."

"Yeah."

I hear a car pass by in front of my house and I look over Asher's shoulder. There's a motorcycle parked on my driveway.

"Is that yours?" I ask.

"Hm?" Asher turns his head to look behind him. "Oh the motorcycle? Yeah."

"Well, I know a way you could pay me back," I start.

:::

"Here's the helmet," Asher holds up a black helmet that's identical to his.

I use my scrunchie to tie my hair into a bun. Once I'm done, I take the helmet and place it on my head.

"I'm just gonna adjust it a bit," I hear Asher mumble.

He adjusts the helmet before knocking on the top of it.

"You're all set, Ryder," He says.

I'm so ready to ride a motorcycle. I haven't done it in years, but I can already feel the adrenaline.

Asher starts the motorcycle and motions for me to get on.

"Okay, remember to hold on tight and lean with me," He says, his voice muffled by his helmet.

I get on and wrap my arms around his waist. I can't feel his abs since he's wearing a thick hoodie, but I know he has them.

"Rest your head on my shoulders if you want," Asher says. "I'm going to start. Ready?"

"Ready," I say.

As soon as the word leaves my mouth, we're off.

Even with the helmet covering my ears, I can clearly hear the wind rushing past us. My stomach is turning, but in a good way. I missed this feeling.

We ride for a bit longer, before Asher comes to a stop in front of the park.

"I love that you're hugging me, but you kinda need to let go," Asher tells me.

Shit.

I pull my hands back and get off the motorcycle.

I see Asher turn off the engine and get off as well. He takes off his helmet and then helps me take mine off.

It's in the middle of February so it's cold, but it's not too bad. We walk over to the empty playground and sit on the swings. 

"Have you been on motorcycles before?" Asher asks. 

"Yeah. I love riding on them. My cousins that live in India got me addicted to it," I say. 

"Speaking of cousins and family, I'm always confused about your dad."

I look up from the ground and look at Asher. "What do you mean?"

"Well, your last name is Ryder, just like Chandler's but you look nothing like your dad and Chandler."

"Oh. Chandler's my half-brother. My biological dad is a man named Matt Conaway and he was a sperm donor for my mom. Then, my mom met Daniel who is Chandler's dad and I guess my stepfather, but he's a dad to me," I explain. 

"That's actually pretty cool. Your mom is Indian and Daniel is Filipino, right?"

"Yup. Matt was Brazilian, so I'm mixed," I say. 

We settle into a silence. 

This might be the first time that Asher and I have actually talked without dirty jokes or arguments. It's nice. 

"Hey, Chase, are we friends?" Asher questions. 

I slightly tilt my head to the side, a habit I have whenever I'm thinking. "I guess. I never really considered you my friend....until now."

"Ouch," Asher winces. "I'm just kidding. I didn't really think of you as a friend either since we didn't do anything that actual friends do."

"So friends?" I hear myself ask. 

"Friends," Asher sticks out his hand for me to shake. 

I guess Asher and I are friends now. 

•••

Algebra 2 is going to kill me. I failed the first quiz so I can already see my future and it's not bright. 

Thanks for reading :)

~M♥