One-Shot Book (One Direction/ 5 Seconds of Summer)

She Lived for Books (Ashton Irwin)

She was sobbing by the end of the book, clutching it to her chest. Oh, the character's hurt, and his lover's attempt on saving him! She let out another sob, unaware of the hidden eyes watching her.

Ashton looked on sadly at his girlfriend, knowing that yet another book has left her in tears. He knew how affected she was by the books she read, heck, she went depressed for an entire week just because a character in a book committed suicide! A fictional book in which the characters didn't even exist! He didn't understand how a book could affect one so terribly, but he did understand how she felt about every single one of them. They had shelves and shelves worth of books, ranging from fantasy to romance. Being a famous singer, he didn't exactly have time to read them all but he knew exactly how her love for books was.

Bianca's sobs quietened and it didn't take Ashton long to realise that she had cried herself to sleep. He sighed. Yup, just another normal routine. He headed to the kitchen and made himself a cup of hot cocoa before sitting on the armchair opposite his girlfriend. Bianca had a peaceful expression on her face despite the tear tracks that were still visible.

Ashton smiled fondly and sipped at his drink, recalling how he had first met her. He was at a meet and greet session in London, and he sat at the table with a bored look, occasionally signing something a fan gave to him and taking a couple of photos. That was until he saw... her.

"Come on, Bianca! We're finally meeting him and you still have your face buried in that book?" her friend asked. "Well, I can't help the fact that I just happen to be at the chapter where Cameron dies!" Bianca said, still reading. Bianca's friend rolled her eyes and stood in front of Ashton.

"Hi! I've always wanted to meet you for a long time! My name's Nadia by the way," she said. "Um, hi," Ashton replied, waving awkwardly. "Oh my gosh, he just waved at me! My life goals are finally achieved! Are you getting this Bia?!" she yelled. However, by then, Bianca had had fresh tears in her eyes. "KEYLA KILLED HERSELF BECAUSE SHE COULDN'T LIVE WITHOUT CAMERON!" she exclaimed. Ashton had to admit, he was slightly taken aback by her outburst but minus that, wow.

Bianca was easily one of the most appealing girls he had ever met. She was wearing no makeup, just some lip gloss on her pouty lips. She wasn't skinny, but she certainly wasn't fat either, all her curves in the right places. Sure, there were a few freckles but they just made her seem even cuter in his eyes. He eventually found out that Bianca hated them, but he absolutely loved them. Even with the tears pooling in her eyes, she was stunning to him.

"Gosh, Bianca! Don't embarrass us in front of our idol, here!" Nadia whisper-yelled. In her normal voice, she said, "Um, yeah... sorry 'bout her. She can get slightly carried away when it comes to books." Ashton was knocked out of his stupor and said, "Oh, uh, yeah! No problem!" Nadia grinned and ushered Bianca forward. She too was a blushing mess in front of him. "Yeah, um... sorry, Ashton. It's just that this book is one of my favourites, that's all," Bianca squeaked. Gosh how could she embarrass herself in front of her idol!

Ashton chuckled. "It's okay, love," he said, "What might your name be?" "Bianca. Bianca Evans," she said in a small voice. "Well, Bianca, I assure you that's the first time someone fangirl-ed for a reason other than me," he said, laughing. Bianca blushed even harder. "But it's okay, I like it. So... what would you girls like for me to sign today?" he added. Nadia quickly produced a poster of him with his guitar on stage. It quickly became popular amongst fans when it first came out. Ashton smiled and signed it quickly while Bianca just stood there awkwardly.

"And you, love?" Ashton urged. Bianca put the book she was reading earlier on the table. "Look, I know it's not a poster or merch or something like that, but could you sign it for me, please?" she said, her voice catching in her throat slightly. "Of course, anytime!" Ashton replied. He signed the book on its first page, right next to where he saw that the author had already autographed. "There you go, love!" he said cheerfully. That was until he noticed the book cover.

"Another Year of Hearts?! No way, I love that book!" he shouted excitedly. Bianca's eyes brightened. "Really?!" she exclaimed. Ashton nodded excitedly. "Yep!" he said, "It's my favourite one yet!" And it was true. He totally loved that book. "Who knew that Ashton Irwin was such a fan of love stories?" Bianca said, chuckling awkwardly. Just then, Nadia coughed. "Um... maybe we can have a picture together?" she asked. Both of them flushed, embarrassed to forget that Nadia was still there and that Ashton had a job to do.

"Oh, yeah," he said. The three of them took some selfies together and finally, their meeting had come to an end. Just as they were leaving, Ashton grabbed Bianca's hand. "Hey, um... do you want to like, discuss that book sometime over coffee? I mean, I've never really met a fan who liked that book as much as I did, if judging by your outburst just now," he requested, mentally face palming due to his bad line. He was mildly surprised when Bianca laughed.

"Honestly, who would say no to that? Of course I do! Two fans discussing Another Year of Hearts over coffee?! Of course!" she exclaimed. Then, she seemed to remember who she was talking to and blushed. "I... I mean... if you want to, I guess?" she said, turning shy. Ashton chuckled and said, "Oh, boy, I want to. Mind passing me the book for a moment?"

Reluctantly, Bianca passed the book over and he wrote something inside. He passed the book back to her and leaned in close. "My phone number's next to the autograph. Don't tell anyone though. Text me, Bianca?" he whispered. Bianca nodded shakily and he sat back down. "See you around then, Bianca Evans," he said. "Yeah," she squeaked before running off back to Nadia who was waiting for her friend. "Well? What did he want?" she demanded. "Just wanted to talk about the book for a moment," Bianca replied, glancing back at Ashton. Ashton grinned at her and she smiled back. Too soon, she was gone.

Ashton finished his hot cocoa, the memory still as fresh as a daisy in his mind. Bianca had indeed texted him and soon enough, they were chatting over a coffee, talking about their favourite parts in the book. Fan meetings turned into dates, separate coffee cups turned into shared milkshakes and everything just clicked into place. After several months of dating, Ashton invited Bianca to move in with him upon finding out that their houses weren't that far to each other. Since then onwards, their relationship had only gotten stronger.

Ashton got up from the armchair and washed his cup, silently humming 'Midnight' by 5 Seconds of Summer under his breath. Having finished, he leaned against the doorway, looking at Bianca as her chest rose up and down with every breath she took. He couldn't help but wonder what he had done to deserve such a loving, sensitive human being as a girlfriend. Gently, he shook her awake. "Hey, Bia, it can't be comfortable sleeping here," he said.

Bianca moaned slightly in protest. "Albert and Penny broke up," she said. Ashton chuckled. But of course the first thing she said after waking up would be about her book. "Why did they have to break up?" she added, her eyes glazing over with tears again. Ashton knew she was about to start crying again, so he quickly hugged her to calm her down. "Hey, hey, hey, it's just a book," he said.  Bianca shook her head. "No, it's not," she retorted.

Ashton stiffened. She was right. A book was never just a book to her. For she doesn't read, she absorbs, she feels, whatever events that affect the character, affect her too. She was the character, in her own book called 'Life'. Ashton picked up the book she had been reading and quickly skimmed through the last page. "Albert proposed," he said quietly. Bianca's sobs stilled. "Really?" she asked. "Really," he affirmed, "He and Penny got married on a hill."

Through the tears, Bianca smiled. "They deserve it," she stated. "They do," Ashton agreed, smiling along with his girlfriend. "I wish we could be like them someday. Minus the breaking up part, of course," she said absentmindedly. Ashton smiled. "And we will," he said, "Bianca, I've been waiting for the right time to say this, and I believe the time is now. So, Bianca Evans," he reached into his back pocket, "Will you make me the happiest man in the world, and be my wife?"

Ashton opened up the box he retrieved and revealed a gorgeous diamond ring. Bianca gasped. "Really?" she asked. "Truly," he said. "Then, yes. Yes!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms round him,

"I do."

VOTE,COMMENT, AND SHARE <3