I Couldn't Protect Her

The Truth

Ashlyn was putting up her new display of purple dandelions, she was alone in the shop, Finn was coming to work later, he had a dentist appointment so he'd be back in before Ashlyn needed to go for a wedding florist consultation

She heard the bell on the door and she smiled

"Good morning what can I do for y-" she cut herself as she turned around and saw AJ

"AJ-" she began, pinching the bridge of her nose

"I just wanna talk," he said, Georgia accent thick and Ashlyn sighed and gestured him to continue

"Ashlyn, I can't keep going on without you," he told her and she looked at him

"You were the best thing to ever happen to me, I'm so sorry I let you go, please, please forgive me, I'll never love Wendy like I love you," he said and then clasped his hands together

"Please take me back baby, please," he begged and Ashlyn looked into his blue eyes and saw the sembelance of the man she once worshipped, the man she wanted a life with.

Then she saw Dean, his light blue eyes, that beautiful smile, the way he lit up when she so much as looked at him and she shook her head

"No." She told AJ and his face fell

"You made your choice AJ, you made your choice the day you fucked us over, the day you threw away everything we had, that first time should've been the last time, but I stuck around for you, hoping you'd change," she said

"I have changed!" He exclaimed

"That might be. But you won't change my mind, I gave you the world and I gave you so many chances to change, and you didn't when you had the chance." She said and shook her head

"I'm happy Allen. I'm happy with Dean, I gave up on love after you, it's been 2 years. That's how bad you fucked me up. I loved you AJ, I worshipped the ground you walked on and you threw my love back in my face, Dean would never do that." She explained

"I love Dean, and only Dean, he's perfect in my eyes, and so were you, but unlike you, I know he won't ever hurt me like you did. He put me together after you ripped me apart," she told him

"I love you AJ, I always will but I'm allowing myself to heal and not get sucked back in on your path of destruction, Dean is safe. I want him for a very long time," she admitted and AJ sighed

"I won't give up," he promised and Ashlyn shrugged

"My answer won't change," she said and AJ huffed as he left the shop and Ashlyn sat down exhausted and hung her head

"Hey I bought you a coff- you okay Ash?" Finn asked as he walked into the shop and Ashlyn raised her head and nodded with a forced smile that Finn saw through but didn't say anything

"Thanks for the coffee Finn, I gotta get to the Marano's consultation, I'll see you later," she said pressing a kiss to his temple before she picked up the coffee and made an exit

Finn sighed, he couldn't have told her, but he heard the whole conversation with AJ and Ashlyn, he knew he needed to do something now that he heard AJ wasn't gonna let Ashlyn be happy and he knew just what to do

"Finn?" Dean asked, walking into the waiting room where he was paged and seeing his girl's best friend sitting there

Finn stood up at the sound of his name and smiled at his best friend's boyfriend

"Heya Dean, um, you got a minute to chat?" Finn asked, rubbing the back of his neck

"Uh, sure? I'm on break for the next 20 minutes, we can chat upstairs," he told Finn who nodded and followed