A Certain Romance || Ashton Irwin

Thursday's Are Always Boring

Being alone was fantastic. Waking up this morning to an empty house...wasn't so fantastic. That just showed I was used to waking up to my mother shouting at me for taking too long to get ready and not leaving enough time to eat a "healthy" breakfast which was usually burnt eggs and cement-like bacon because breakfast foods were not her specialty. I settled for a bagel that wasn't burnt or capable of chipping a tooth and a glass of orange juice that I prayed would liven me up. A restless night of sleep was what I had. After being banished to my bedroom, Ashton texted me a few minutes later that he had Lily with him next door and that dad practically punted the thing across the front lawn.

Upon finishing my breakfast I sent Madeline a text asking for the whereabouts of Sam. Madeline always had her phone on her and always responded to text messages within seconds of receiving them. She was reliable in that sense and I loved it. I didn't have to sit around hypothesizing the if's, and's, and but's of any situation. This morning I would be left to do just that, seven in the morning was probably too early for Madeline to piece together a coherent response.

My notebook was still in place from last night along with the crumbled papers and neat pieces of paper that lied across the floor, couch, and coffee table. Clearly, I hadnot done my part in being eco-friendly. Those papers ended up in the recycle bin out of guilt and my notebook was placed in my backpack to continue my journey to having some normality to my morning routine. Now I was to walk over to Ashton's and wait for him to finish eating breakfast and then we'd bicker about the first topic to come up while walking to his car. Sitting in the car, our bickering would become more intense until one of us got too upset to continue arguing about whatever stupid thing we chose to argue about. But with our project, our arguments were now typically ending in spite of it crying and screaming.

"Why aren't you in your uniform?" I pointed at Ashton's sweat pant and t-shirt combination.

He had glasses framing his face and his hair looked worse than it usually did. I may or may not have fantasies of brushing his hair. The once tanned boy, was more pale than ghostly Michael.

"I'm not feeling well." Visibly shaking, he hugged his torso. "Would it be possible for you to find another ride?"

"Yeah, I mean, I can call Michael or someone..." I scrolled through my contacts, stopping to question Ashton because my only ride wasn't exactly talking to anyone at the moment. Luke had started to get to school using the city bus, which wasn't working out for him very well because someone tried to steal his mirror. Michael was barely participating in practice either. Coach told Calum and Calum told Elizabeth, who then told the cheer team that Coach was planning on kicking "Clifford The Lazy Ass Red Dog" off the team if he wasn't going to try during practice. I was more horrified by Calum and Elizabeth talking again. "I could stay? Get you things you need? Because, you know, I am a nice person." Boasting was what I did best in moments like this. I could be a bit rough, but I couldn't doubt that when needed I was very nice and caring.

"It's just a cold I think. It's not like I'm dying." Ashton closed his eyes, leaning his head against the wooden doorway. "You can't miss school anyway."

"So what? I'll be behind one day." I made myself at home the minute I walked into Ashton's house. Kicking off my shoes and tossing my backpack by the door, I then pulled Ashton to his living room, ordering him to rest on the couch. "Thursday's are always boring anyways. Unless Calum does something to make things interesting. But considering his recent fate, I'm sure he's trying to keep a low profile."

"His low profile makes him more of an asshole." He sighed at the warmth of being under at least ten different blankets.

"Full moon."

Ashton squinted up at me while I touched his forehead with the back of my hand. "Full moon?"

"There was a theory sophomore year that Calum became feistier as the full moon arrived." I chuckled, pulling my hand away from his forehead. "Still seems valid two years later."

"Why are there so many inside jokes at that school? I feel like there's so much I need to know so I'm not left out."

I shrugged, "Do you need anything?"

"Just the remote." He stared off toward the coffee table that was out of his reach with the blankets constricting his hands.

After handing him the remote, Ashton demanded I sit on the same couch he was lying on. He didn't even fit on it lying stretched out completely, I suppose that was slightly adorable.

"Everything okay with your parents?"

"Not a clue."

"Any idea on what could've sparked last night's events?"

"When my mom is involved, it could mean anything." I watched the extravagant personalities on the day time talk show hum over each other, only hearing the sounds of their voices and not making out any words they were saying. "My mom is not the most tolerable person in the world. She's one of those people you put up with because you have to see them everyday, you know? Maybe, at one point, there was a significant type of love between my parents and between my mother and I, but neither exist anymore. The love between my mother and I, it disappeared the same day she started to look at me like I spawned in straight from hell. When she began putting boundaries on me, not letting me venture out and grow as a person...Basically when I began to rebel.

"For awhile I allowed her to construct me into what she wanted me to be, I thought maybe our relationship would change, go back to normal. I did the dresses, never missed a mass service, helped host a few dinner parties for her and her friends, slept in uncomfortable hair rollers like a 50s housewife, waxed body parts I didn't even know someone could wax. I did all of these boring and torturous things that didn't appeal to me in any way just for a minute of my mom's attention and affection. I was 15 and so unwise. September of this year, I chopped off my waist-long hair and literally stopped giving a shit about my mom's approval because self-love is greater than any other love that exists in this universe."

It killed me to know that I was potentially boring enough to lull Ashton to sleep. His mouth was open and the remote lied on his chest, rising and falling with every tired and sick breath he took.

First and last time I talk about anything. Ever.