misophonia | m.c

dance with him

"Do you need a ride home to change?" Ashton stopped awkwardly by his car, Cassidy a few paces away.

The girl thought on it for a moment before nodding, "That would be great. Yeah. Thanks."

Ashton slid into the drivers seat and waited for her to hop in. "It's no problem. Could I use your bathroom to change once we get there? I kind of look like a dork right now." He laughed an easy and light laugh before starting the car. The parking lot was flooded with students and parents walking back so they would have to sit for a little while.

"Of course." Cassidy nodded with a small smile, finding herself tapping her fingers on her thigh to the soft beat coming through the car speakers.  "And you don't look like a dork, by the way. You just look.... Spirited." The girl added with a gentle smile, brushing back a few strands of hair as she managed to look over at him.

"Is that a good thing?" Ashton asked, returning a grin. 

Cassidy felt heat rise to her cheeks as her lips parted and she began to stammer. "Uh, I-I. Um." She clamped her jaw shut when no words would come out. 

"I'll take that as a yes." He laughed lightly as he glanced over at her.. Cassidy liked his laugh. It was light without being breathy, and comforting without being loud. It was unique, but still familiar. She thought he was a nice enough boy, but she still kept all her walls up around him. 

After giving a few directions, Ashton parked his car in Cassidy's driveway. She led him slowly up to the front door, pulling key out of a small zipper pocket on the front of her backpack. 

"I'll be up in my room for a few minutes, but the bathroom is right down the hall. Second door on the right." Cassidy smiled gently before jogging up the stairs.

The girl quickly shed the clothing she had been lent, and started to rummage through her closet. She wanted to be quick for Ashton, but she also wanted to look nice. Cassidy pulled on a pair of black leggings first, she hated her legs. They reminded her of the legs of  a chicken. She wanted to hide them in the black fabric. She pulled out a navy blue dress that had thick straps and not  very deep neckline. She absolutely loved the color, but wasn't crazy about how much it cinched at the waist. She had a little fat on her abdomen like any healthy teenage girl, but she loathed it. Cassidy crossed her arms around her waist, sucking in her breath and trying to hide what was a practically unnoticeable bulge around her hips. She ran to the bathroom she shared with Luke to check her hair and touch up her mascara, but ended up taking a moment to put on lipstick. A red shade she rarely wore, but it instantly boosted her confidence so she didn't wipe it off.

Cassidy walked down the stairs to see Ashton standing by the bottom step in black skinny jeans with a fraying hole over his left knee, a gray Led Zeppelin shirt, and a black bandanna holding his curls back. His grin softened into a smile and his eyes lit up as Cassidy joined him on the first floor.

"You look..." He paused, biting his lip and motioning to her, as if he couldn't place his words. "Great."

Cassidy smiled, picking up her jacket by the door. "Thank you, Ashton."

"Well we should head over to the Clifford residence, the team should already be there. We'll just be fashionably late." He walked over to the door, holding it open for her.

"That's not a thing, Ashton." Cassidy laughed lightly, shaking her head. She walked back to his car, sliding into the passenger side.

"No such thing as fashionably late? Of course there is. You wanna show up before the guests of honor but after everyone else." Ashton grinned, starting the car and pulling out onto the road.