Zap! (M. Clifford/5SOS)

Chapter 16: Heartbreak Girl

Ashton's P.O.V.

I can't believe it. I can't believe how effective Monica has been on me. I've only known her for about two weeks and she's already turned my world upside down. It still baffles me that she wants to help me, let alone already has. No one, and I repeat, no one has ever cared for my scars like this and actually wanted me to recover. Ever since everything went downhill years ago, I've been living in a dark cave trying to find the way out, the sharp rocks ready to hurt me whenever I hit the wall or lost my balance. And now suddenly, I see the light at the end of the tunnel, the opening becoming larger and larger. Monica's my sunshine, the one who sacrificed herself to run into the cave and pull me out. How do you repay someone who saved you?

The next morning, I wake up in surprisingly a good mood. Last night was amazing with Monica and I've never been happier to make a relationship official. I grab my phone off of my nightstand and send her a few messages, thanking her for everything she's done so far. Once they send, I force the warm covers off of me and a chill runs through my body as I swing my legs over the edge of my bed. I walk around my room seizing clothes and other items needed for a shower and head into the bathroom.

After my shower, I carefully examine my hands. They've been healing pretty well these past few days and I'm able to use my fingers more now. The palms and the backs of my hands are still a little red yet, but thankfully, the blistering has gone down. Wrapping them in a new bandage, I return to my room and check my phone. Monica hasn't answered back yet and I assume she's still sleeping. But it's 11:00am. It was a long night, remember? Oh, yeah. I smile at the thought of our date and finish getting ready for the day.

I step down the hallway and hear my mum talking on the phone with someone in the living room. She gestures for me to sit on the couch and wait for her to finish. My stomach is growling and I want breakfast, but her expression tells me I must stay. Something doesn't seem right.

"Okay...mmhmm...thank you very much...yep...okay...goodbye," my mum ends, taking the phone away from her ear.

"Who was that?" I ask.

"That was the repair guy, the people who came in to redo the kitchen. I've been able to negotiate with them about the payment, but it's going to be a long time before we can pay it all off. I still don't know what I'm going to do about the hospital bill, either. Our insurance is only covering about a fourth of each, which means we have to come up with a whole lot of money in a short time," she explains. "With that being said, I can't go back to work for a few more weeks until these burns are mostly healed. Lauren and Harry are too young to work, which brings me to you."

"You want me to get a job..." I answer her thoughts.

"I need you to get a job," my mum insists. Oh, boy, a job is going to mess up everything that's going great right now. I mean, instead of just taking care of my family, I have a girlfriend to love and a band to play with.

"What if the boys and I book more gigs? Will that help?" I try.

"I'm sorry, honey, but those are scarce since you're just starting out and also, you won't be able to play for another week or so because of your hands. Don't get me wrong, I want you to succeed, but before that happens, we need a stable income right now to pay everything off," she replies. I sigh and nod, understanding our situation. My family means everything to me and I want to do what I can, but this accident we had didn't help because it set us back, delaying things we were hoping to do.

"I heard that the video place was hiring. Maybe you could try there," my mum suggests.

"Okay," I respond.

"It's just for a little while, okay? I don't know what else to do."

"It's fine, mum, I understand," I answer. She pauses and looks at me with a sympathetic expression.