KIWI | LASHTON

「 nine 」

week fourteen: you have entered the second trimester of your pregnancy, congratulations!

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silence, as a beautiful yet fearful gift, extended between the arrival of luke's to bryana's. that gift was fleeting the shell of ashton's ears once he arrived to the airport to happily greet his girlfriend along with their best friend; who of which ashton greeted as an old friend since vanishing and going off the grid the last couple of weeks.

honestly, luke was the first person to witness ashton's existence prior to this moment.

photographers lined the entrances of the airport, other than a couple managing to slip in side mostly likely due to connections, while ashton and michael along with other ordinary people filed through the entrance—the photographers paying absolutely no mind, but a few clicks here or there sounded like screams of torture in his ears.

grinding his teeth together, ashton clutched tightly onto michael's side and avoided separation. burning acid rose up his throat like a snake through the under brush, and his stomach unwillingly twisted in churning knots. he darted across the vast airport, slipping through endless waves of people heading in different directions until he reached the men's restroom.

in a blurry flash, ashton managed to swipe a utterly disgusting stall that wrenched of airport food as he emptied his stomach into the toilet, and he crumpled to cool floor, gripping around different parts of the toilet that he managed to grasp. the bile rose once more, and he heaved, shaking and panting, into the toilet bowl. collapsing on the ground, he curled in on himself.

outside, michael rushed inside the bathroom, knocking on each door frantically and calling the pregnant boy's name till he rounded the end. releasing a soft sigh and kneeling on the ground, he encouraged the crumpled form on the ground to open the stall door.

"ash," he whispered faintly, leaning his head on the stall, "i know your weak, but i need to find your strength."

the pregnant boy grunted softly in response, not shifting off the floor for a surprising amount of time. the morning sickness subsided some weeks ago, so ashton knew the only thing causing his stomach to churn was the thought of bryana's arrival. the anticipation he suppressed over the pass few days left him shaking in the stall.

sliding his backside against the wall, michael waited patiently, and during that time he disregarded any odd or baffled glances thrown his way. he simply studied the limp body on the floor a few feet away from him, giving ashton all the time in the world; even though the world persisted on around them.

bryana's plane would land. she would wait for them. the photographers would snap shots of her and any other model exiting the airport. people rush past them. there were destinations to arrive to and departures from them. yet, michael stayed beside his weak friend, letting the world pass him.

"ash?" he whispered softly, "i am gonna be here...no matter what happens. i always have a spare bedroom."

the limp man released a hoarse whimpered, leaning weakly off the ground and curling his hands into shaking first. "promise?"

"i promise," michael whispered.

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