the silver lining playbook// a. irwin

chapter two

I don't know what I had done to deserve the way Ashton treated me. After all, I had done everything he had told me to do. So, why in the world was he so hostile towards me?

Alright, I will admit that I have done my share of bad things towards him, but they were unnoticeable. That soy-latte that I bring him every morning is actually just fat-free milk. And there was this one time when he asked me to make thirty copies of something, and I only made twenty-nine.

Oh, who am I kidding. It's useless. I haven't done anything horrible to Ashton, yet he just hates me with a passion. But even though he hates me, he hasn't fired me yet.

As I sat on the spinning chair, thinking about this, the phone rang. Propping myself up, I crossed my legs over one another and answered politely,"Baltimore Raven's Corporate Office, how may I assist you?"

"Hello, have I reached Mr. Irwin's office?" A woman's voice spoke. Somehow, she sounded familiar, but I really couldn't put my finger on it.

I nodded my head up and down, but then quickly realized that they couldn't see me so I responded,"Yes, ma'am, this is Miss Layla Collins, his assistant."

"Oh goodness," the lady chuckled in relief. All I was hoping at this point was that she wasn't some sort of crazy football lady ready to pounce on us. It has happened in the past. I wouldn't be surprised if it happened again.

However, I was completely and totally wrong because the lady regained herself and responded,"It's your mother, Layla,"

"Oh, hi mom," I muttered, covering the speaker by cupping my hand.

"Hello, how's the city treating you?" She asked sweetly and I knew she had the best intentions. But I began to hear laughter from Ashton's office, which meant that they were about to head out for lunch.

"Fine, mom," I groaned and placed a hand on my head, rubbing my temples. Keeping my eyes locked on door and praying that he didn't come out.

"Oh, darling," She guffawed, "you'll never guess what the cat did this morning,"

"Mom, I can't right now," I whispered, my breath hitching in my throat as the door began to open up.

"That's rubbish, put that handsome boss of yours on the phone, I'll teach him-" She began to say but it was too late because Ashton and Calum had come out of the room and their heads snapped towards me.

Ashton looked me up and down and saw the frightened look on my face. "Who are you talking to?"

"Would you believe me if I said the Fitness Facility?" I squinted my eyes and gave him a sheepish smile. Ashton rolled his eyes and took the phone in his hands. Covering the microphone, he spoke directly to me.

"No, because I just spoke to them and made plans to drop by after lunch," He hastily and roughly spoke. Then, he pressed the phone onto his ear and asked who it was. I slumped back onto my chair, realizing that I was screwed.

They spoke for a few seconds and he even cracked a smile once or twice. Then, he muttered his good bye and hung up the phone. After that, Ashton just stared at me with a harsh expression and I feared that he would flip over the table right then and there.

"What the hell have I told you about taking personal calls at work?" Ashton was harsh with his words, and he slammed his hands down on the desk. I flinched back and tried to formulate a coherent sentence, one that never escaped my lips.

Frankly, if Calum wasn't there, I wouldn't doubt that he would have fired me. But luckily for me, Calum came up behind Ashton and placed a hand on his shoulder, making Ashton straighten his back and step away to talk to Calum. "Mate, calm down,"

"She knows that she can't do that, and she goes ahead and does it anyway," Ashton responded, tugging at the ends of his hair. I don't think I've seen him so frustrated in his whole working career. Why did I tick him off so much?

"Ash, calm down. Just go say sorry an-" Calum began, placing his arms on his friends shoulders. Ashton shrugged him off as soon as he heard these words.

"No, I refuse. She broke my rules an-" Ashton began to say, but Calum wasn't allowing him to get out of this conversation victorious.

"Ashton, I swear if you don't say sorry I will quit this job, and you and I both know you cannot afford that," Calum threatened and his normally grinning face turned straight and serious. Even I was a bit intimidated by him and I wasn't in the conversation.

Ashton rolled his eyes and turned to face me. He ran his hand over his face a few face after he sighed and finally made eye contact with me. Something told me to stand up, so I did so, and he followed my every move. "I deeply apologize for my brusque actions,"

"You just can't say sorry, can you?" Calum sighed and followed Ashton and stood beside him,"But I'll take it; now, invite her to lunch,"

"What?" Ashton scoffed and shook his head. Calum shrugged and nodded towards me. "Why am I the one kissing your ass, Calum?"

Then, Ashton turned to me and looked me dead in the eye. I don't think that I've ever stopped to look at his eyes. And apparently, now wasn't the time anyways. "Would you like to join me and Mr. Hood for lunch?"

"Oh, that's quite alright," I responded and, due to the fact that I hadn't spoke in a while, it came out a bit hoarse. "I only made reservations for two anyway,"

"I'm sure we can sort something out," Calum smiled at me and Ashton's jaw tensed up.

"This goes against so many rules."

--/--

thats sara hopkins right there

shes gorgeous jesus h christ wtf

ok so i hope yall liked this chapter

ill post again prob tomorrow

ily all

xoxo

gossip girl