Picture This (Niall Horan Trilogy)

-It's my life now [Chapter 54]

Ashley's POV;

“What are you doing here?”

Was the first thing that came out of my mouth as she sat in the metal chair on the opposite side of the table to me placing her bag in front of her.

She looked sceptical as she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear and sipped her glass of carbonated water.

“Well it’s nice to see you too”

Her tone dripping with sarcasm which I wasn’t looking for, I just wanted an answer because if she’s here to take me to back to England to live with her again I am going to have something to say, I’m not ready, not yet. Me and Niall still have so much left to do and she is not going to drag me away from him now.

“I just want to know. I thought this was my holiday with my boys, just us”

I said placing my phone on the table as I replied to a tweet.

“Ashley love you’re past 5 months have been your holiday with the boys, don’t be so ungrateful and put that away, I need to talk to you”

What am I? Two?

I raised an eye-brow but slid my phone back into my pocket again crossing my legs over underneath the table as I stared at her. She had somewhat changed. The wrinkles around her eyes now becoming more visible despite the layers of anti-aging creams she smothers in, however her make-up was always done to perfection and her hair was straight and dyed reaching just past her shoulders.

“What about?”

I asked praying for any minute Ellie to arrive making it almost impossible for this conversation to turn to Niall but this was not looking hopeful, the sheer bluntness of her voice and the way she looked at me when she laid eyes upon me just showed that this trip was not just a friendly drop by. She had meaning and purpose in her eyes and she knew what she wanted, just I didn’t quite yet.

“A lot of things, really”

“I guess you better begin then, I have places to be later”

“Who’s that with then? Niall?”

“Maybe”

She exhaled looking down at the fizzing water in her glass which she had pressed in-between both palms then looked back up to me, this isn’t sounding good.

“Maybe that’s one of the things I need to talk to you about”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

I retorted instantly my tone defensive.

“That means”

She breathed.

“That maybe I feel you are too distracted by your relationships with these boys, especially Niall”

“What do you mean ‘especially Niall’? He’s my boyfriend, what do you expect? Ellie never got these lectures…”

“We are not talking about Ellie. We’re talking about you, would you please just listen?”

“No, If you are going to suggest I start spending ‘less time’ with them and ‘focus more on my studies’ then no, I won’t listen because you know what Mum? I’m 17, am I not aloud to just live a little?”

“Ashley you are in no position to tell me that I don’t let you live like a 17 year old should, because I do. I have given you no boundaries these past few months, I have no clue on hell what you’ve been doing and I don’t know if I want to, do I?”

She had half a point. Half. She did not know what I had been doing these past few months and even though she wouldn’t like it, she probably did want to know because it’d be even more of a reason to drag me away from them, drag me back into a world of textbooks and paper. If she counted as wondering around wherever our feet take us during the middle of the night and then jumping into rivers in the middle of no-where reason enough to take me away, then yes she did want to know. And I guess, being abducted by some perverted boy who only wanted me for sex and collapsing due to not eating enough was reason enough for her too. But on paper these all sounded so bad but there is no way to show her that I really am okay and safe with these guys then for her to experience it herself which she never will. I know all the boys will protect me and Niall would just go the extra thousand miles after them as well, he looks after me so well and my mother does not appear to realise just how much he cares and what a good boyfriend he is to me, he’s protected and saved me from so much, more than anyone ever has, even her.