Never Be •LH•

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Warning: intense sexual scene.

My eyes flutter open slowly. I love the moment when you first wake up, the split second between being awake and being asleep. When your eyes first open but the world is still blurry. When you can still hold on to the blissful feeling of sleep and it just covers you like a blanket. When you can still remember every single detail of the dream. When you don't think about your worries and just lie there and feel. That is my favorite moment. The in-between. I am totally by myself in that moment. It doesn't matter that a split second later everything from your life comes crashing down on you to bring you back into the real world. Because in that moment I am totally new. Like being born into the world again.

Then that moment passed and I felt the weight of something resting on my waist. Reaching out to touch it, I hesitate. What is it? I ask myself. My hand surges forward. As if breaking an invisible barrier. My curiosity has gotten the better of me. I timidly touch the surface of it. It is soft and smooth. I feel a few little hairs under my touch. I run my fingers over some very slight crests. A hand! It's a hand. But why is a hand on my waist?

Ashton.

I glance down and sure enough I am topless under the covers. I feel his bare chest against my back. He is in only his underwear.

Damn it Scarlett, you slept with him!

Well not sex, but in the literal sense. What if someone saw us? That would be horrible. But I know no one did. I relax against Ashton's body once more. Of course Andrew is in college and dad is in San Antonio for a job. Im safe. For now.

Not to be reminded that Ashton is in my bed, sleeping soundly against my back. But it kind of feels nice. I nuzzle into him and just enjoy the feeling of someone holding me. The steady rise and fall of his chest when he breathes comforts me. Why do I hate him again?

Suddenly his hand twitches and starts to move upwards. I stiffen in surprise. Is he still asleep? Just moving his hand unconsciously? It falls of my side and flops down on the bed and I relax again, he's asleep. I close my eyes and melt into him again.

I become so comfortable that when his hand grabs my bare breast suddenly it takes a second for it to register. But when it does, boy am I pissed. Thats why I jump off the bed, bringing the covers with me. "Ashton Irwin, what do you think you are doing! Groping me in the wee hours of the morning! You sick little pig!" I yell while covering myself up in the sheet.

He flinches but doesn't open his eyes. "Babe, come back to bed. Besides, it's not like I am unfamiliar to the touch of your breasts." He says in that thick Aussie accent. Much stronger than mine. I flush at his words. He called me babe. And the way he said that just makes me swoon inside. But then I get a grip of reality. This is no strings attached. And I fucking hate him.

"Shut it, Irwin." I sass. I walk -in the sheets- to my bathroom, only dropping them when I am shielded from view by the door. Oh! I pop my head back into my room. "You had better be gone by the time I get out." I say and pull my head back into the bathroom. I turn the water on in the shower, setting the water to a temperature I am satisfied with. I remove the only article if clothing I wear and step inside.

I flinch away from the water at first because it's still cold but after a few moments it starts to heat up. The warm water runs down my back and some of it falls down the front of my shoulder. I let the droplets hit the top of my head and roll down.

I stand under the water until my senses are fully awake then I grab my shampoo and pop the top open. I turn the bottle upside down and let the thick stuff fill my palm. I massage the soap into my hair and let the bubbles clean. I put my head back under the nozzle and let it strip the shampoo from my hair. Once I am completely sure its gone I set to work cleaning and shaving the rest of my body. When I am done I stop and just let the water run over me. I turn off the water and slide the curtain back. I reach over and grab the towel I have hanging on my door. I swing the towel under my curly light brown hair and wrap it around my body. I pat myself dry before I flip my head over and wrap my towel around my hair. I straighten myself up and flip my towel covered hair back over. I grab my bathrobe off the door also and put it on, just in case Ashton is still here.