Breathless // lp

Chapter 4.

Ash sighed and sprawled out over the couch, allowing her eyes to flutter shut. Liam bit his lip and glanced at the clock, wincing at the time. It was already noon, which meant they'd already wasted an hour trying to get back home, plus another twenty minutes of Liam trying to cook breakfast.

"Hey Ash?" Liam said, cracking an egg over the skillet. As the eggs sizzled in the pan, Liam reached out and grabbed the hot mug of tea and shuffled towards Ash.

"Mhm," She hummed, allowing her eyes to close as she sprawled herself out on the couch. Liam chuckled and grabbed the ready mug of hot tea he had made Ash. He handed the mug to her and she mumbled an incoherent 'thank you' before taking a small sip.

"We're going out today," Liam said quietly after a long period of silence.

"Hmm?" Ash hummed, glancing up from the mug that her gaze was fixed on. "Are we?"

"Yeah, we need to get you stuff."

Ash's pupils widened, and she shook her head. "What are you talking about, Liam?"

Liam turned away from the frying eggs on the stove to stare at her. "Clothes, shoes, all that stuff."

"But-" Ash glanced down at her mug, enjoying the feeling of the warmth against her fingers. Tears of confusion brimmed in her eyes but she managed to hold them back. "But, I thought-

"Don't worry about it," Liam mumbled, shaking his head and taking a swig from his coffee mug on the counter next to him. Ash sighed, slowly nodding her head.

"Just remember that I can go anytime, okay?" Ash whispered.

Liam frowned. "You're not though." Liam knew he couldn't keep Ash from doing things, of course But he knew that Ash didn't really want to leave, he was sure of that. "The street is a horrible place to live."

Ash shrugged, casting her eyes down to her feet. "I guess I'm just used to it."

"Nevertheless, we're going," Liam decided, handing Ash a full plate of breakfast. Ash blinked as she stared down at the food. Eggs with cheese, buttered toast, some orange juice, and a few strips of bacon.

"T-Thank you," Ash whispered hoarsly, standing up from the couch to sit down at the table. Liam grabbed himself a plate and sat across from Ash, shoveling a few bites into his mouth. Ash looked at him, her eyes sparkling.

To be honest, Ash didn't remember the last time she sat down and had a full meal. She'd only just now realised how long she had actually gone without food.

Immediately, Ash scooped up her fork and scarfed down her food, her eyes widening at the delicious taste. Liam was an amazing cook. That, or it was the fact that Ash hadn't eaten in forever that , made the food taste like heaven was dancing on her tongue.

"You uh, you like it?" Liam asked, his fork midway between his mouth and his plate. Her mouth full of food, Ash attempted to swallow. She looked down at her cleaned plate and grinned proudly.

"Y-Yeah, thank you," She mumbled quietly.

"Let's go then, yeah?" Liam smiled. 

After about an hour of rushing around, the pair finally managed to make it to the store. Liam climbed out of his car and walked to the passanger side, letting Ash out before slamming the door and walking to the entrance of the store, eager to  get out of the cold. 

"What are we going to get first?" Ash questioned quietly as they walked in, her eyes widening at the sight of so many things.  

"Well I thought we would start with some clothing, and then make our way to the shoes and maybe some toiletries and ....girly things..." Liam said, happily, smiling brightly back at Ash as she cowered behind him.