ghost of you | c.h

three

Apollo stared at the bowl in front of her.

It was her favorite, Shoyu Ramen and Tonkatsu, hell Ashton had even gotten her iced jasmine tea, but all Apollo could do was stare at the meal before her.

After buying her a boat load of groceries, Ashton had went to her favorite Japanese restaurant on the other side of the valley and gotten her all her favorites in hopes she would eat. And yet, even with food she would have normally scarfed down in seconds lying before her, Apollo's stomach didn't so much as growl.

Ashton and Calum stared at Apollo intently. She was like a statue. She hadn't made a single move since having the plates placed in front of her. If looks could kill, it seemed Apollo was murdering her ramen. "If you want I can make it a smaller portion," Ashton spoke up, but Apollo simply shook her head. 

No, I have to eat. I will force myself to. Her expression seemed to say as she glanced up at Ashton. He nodded with a small sigh. Calum couldn't help but smile a little. He was so glad the two most important people in his life shared such a bond. Words were hardly needed. For the entire day Ashton had been speaking to Apollo to which she would respond with certain looks and body language. That was all it took for Ashton really. He would carry on the conversation as if she had responded verbally. It was probably for the best seeing that Apollo wasn't ready to speak and until recently wasn't ready to interact with other people.

"Just take your time, no one is rushing you," Ashton assured as he looked down at his own bowl and said a small prayer before beginning to eat himself. Apollo's gaze shifted from the noodles before her to the blonde sitting at the other end of the table. She gazed at him longingly, wishing she could eat so eagerly once more. 

Lately everything Apollo had done was only because she needed to. She had no motivation to pursue any other tasks unrelated to keeping her body from functioning off the bare minimum. She ate because her body needed food not because she had a desire to. She drank water because if she didn't she would dehydrate not because she felt thirst. She used the bathroom when her body told her she had to and returned to bed without any detours. All Apollo seemed to be able to feel was her own terrible sorrow and the giant growing hole in her being from losing what she considered to be quite literally her other half. She longed to feel once again. To feel something, anything more than this mind numbing emotional pain. 

Ashton looked up, feeling a pair of eyes watch him eat as his eyebrow rose slightly. "You're staring," he pointed out as Apollo just blinked rapidly, biting her lip and looking back down at her now cold meal. "Did you want some of mine?" Ashton asked motioning to udon with a small wave of his chopsticks. Apollo took a deep breath and shook her head once more as Ashton shrugged and returned to eating his own food. Calum sat in the middle of the two, to Ashton's right and Apollo's left. He looked straight ahead at the empty seat across from him, sighing lightly.

"You guys are making a mess and we haven't even started eating yet!" Apollo whined softly as the three boys before her simply laughed, placing the food down on the table eagerly. They fumbled taking out plates as they began rationing out the food for themselves. "Gah, you pack of  wolves," Apollo scoffed as she reached for her own plate and began serving herself.

"Luke I want a dumpling, you're taking them ALL," Calum groaned as his friend Luke simply grinned evilly, quickly filling his plate with as many as he could fit. 

"You snooze you LOSE," Luke said triumphantly mimicking Calum's annoyed tone. Calum's eyes widened as he looked towards Ashton and pointed at Luke with a flabbergasted expression on his face.

"What?" Ashton asked plainly as he slurped a chow mein noodle, looking at Calum blankly.

"Stop this madness!" Calum demanded slamming one fist on the table as Apollo and Luke just laughed at the boy's tantrum.