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Chapter Thirteen --> The Past

Once you start to date someone you want then to open up to you, allow you to get a sense of who they are from their likes and dislikes, their past and their dreams. The only problem was that Ashton had opened up to Alexis, but she was keeping to herself. Sometimes she would spit out some random event that did occur in school or how she did not like boats. It was great in the moment for Ashton, for he felt like she was starting to trust him, but soon that belief was gone.

"I swear I have no idea who she is," Ashton remarked, taking a seat across from Michael who was picking at the pizza on his plate

Glancing up, Michael shrugged his shoulders. "Don't know." He then picked up the slice of pizza that has cheese running off the sides. About mid-bite he paused and put the pizza back down on the plate. "Wait, you know who she is. She is Alexis Bradshaw and her aunt and uncle are a part of some art community."

Shaking his head from side to side, Ashton sighed. "No, I mean like her past. I have told her about where I grew up, my family, what my life was like and she has not told me anything at all."

"Then find someone from her past," Michael responded.

That thought had crossed Ashton's mind before, but he had never wanted to try and locate someone who had been a part of Alexis's past. It felt wrong on so many levels.

"I'm not so sure about that," Ashton admitted, shifting in the chair like he was being interrogated and wanted to be anywhere but where he was.

Rolling his green eyes, Michael scoffed. "Fine, then don't find out about what she may be keeping from you. I know that I am not going to ask her, since she did already try and Delete us once, so don't you think she has something to hide?"

That was a true statement and got Ashton's mind spinning, wondering not if it would be best to seek someone out. There had to be a reason why Alexis was the way she was and there was no way that he was going to find out just sitting around.

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After hours and hours of digging though Alexis's social media pages Ashton was able to pick out a few people, get their names and then locate them. It still felt wrong, but the need to find out about Alexis's past was more intense then the feeling of dread.

The need led him straight to an electronic repair shop, where according to the internet, one of her ex-boyfriends worked here.

Taking a deep breath, Ashton pulled open the door and stepped inside. The first thing that he noticed was that the entire place smelled like lemon scented polish that was used on the floors. The lights were bright and reflected on the tile ground. Scattered around the store were shelves loaded with different parts and accessories for any type of electronic device that had been released to the public. The only thing missing was an employee, specifically the one who was the ex-boyfriend.

Ashton walked up to the counter and started to fiddle with a pamphlet that talked about why the store guaranteed the customers happiness or how the customer could get their money back. Since he was not in there to locate a new hard drive or case for his phone, the guarantee to leave the store happy was not applying to him.

"Can I help you?"

Ashton looked up to where the voice was coming from and saw a lanky, blonde haired boy wearing glasses and a simple black tee-shirt. "Ah, yeah, I am looking for Austin."

The blonde boy stopped and raised an eyebrow. "I'm him. What can I help you with?"

"I need you to tell me more about Alexis Bradshaw."

After that request there was only silence. It was like Austin had forgotten how to talk or time itself had stopped.

"You want me to tell you about Alexis Bradshaw?" Austin restated in the form of a question. "You realize that I don't have much to tell you, right?"

"I honestly don't care," Ashton snapped, starting to get desperate for any tidbit of information. "Anything that I don't already know would be helpful."

Adjusting his glasses, Austin nodded. "Well, she was born in this city and has lived in the city or on the outskirts of the city her entire life. She is an only child and she lives with her Aunt Bea and Uncle Jay. I date her for two years before she decided that she was over me and wanted to move on."

"That's it?" questioned Ashton. He was already storing the new found information away, but he thought there would be more if this Austin guy had dated her for two years.

"Yeah, pretty much."

"Um, okay, can you think of anything else?"

Sighing and shutting his eyes for a moment, Austin tapped his fingers on the counter. "She does not tell anyone about her past much. There is a way to get information about her past though, but it's risky and is not easy to get to."

Just hearing that there was a way to get more information was turning Ashton into someone he was not for the time being. The drive to gain more intel was there and was slowly starting to eat him alive.

"It's not cheap either," added Austin.

"Money is not an issue," Ashton said back in seconds.

Surprise registered on Austin's features as Ashton said money was not an issue. Most of the time people were weary when anything - no matter what the good or service was - seemed to think twice about the hefty cost that came with that they wanted. Still unsure and shocked, he scribbled a number onto a piece of paper and slid it across the counter. "You still want to get that information?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ashton stared at the number, starting to get second thoughts. Soon he pushed those thoughts away and nodded his head. "Deal," Ashton replied. "How soon can you have the intimation?"

Austin looked up at the ceiling, mentally calculating the amount of time it would take to gather the information. "Two or three days… a week at most."

On the same piece of paper Ashton jotted down his number. "Just call me when you have it." Ashton instructed, pointing to the number.

Without another word, Ashton turned and left the store, not even asking how Austin would get the information about Alexis's past, but perhaps that the time he did not care. All that mattered was that in a few days he would know more, if not all, of Alexis's past.