The Butterfly Effect

Chapter 14

"No!" Ashley rebuffed as she resisted to move, trying to fight back. "I don't need you to care! I need Harley!"

In shock, her free hand went to cover her mouth, disbelieving what she had just said. His eyes shot an incredulous stare and his grip loosened simultaneously. Those words had just slipped out of her mouth, she hadn't meant to say it.

"Did someone say 'Harley'?"

A sudden deep voice behind her made her heart lurch. When she twisted around, Harley stood there at the top of the stairs with an innocent smirk. She could see the dimples on his cheeks.

"N- no... W- we just..." Ashley stammered.

"Hey, man," Joey said as he patted Harley's shoulder and gave him a sham smile when they were already standing side by side in the hall. "Right on time. Ashley got something to tell you."

Harley looked puzzled. "What about?"

"Just ask her." Then, Joey walked fast toward the stairs. Watching his back move further away, somehow it didn't feel right.

"You want to talk to me, Ash?" Harley asked. "Anyway, you feeling better?"

Ashley turned to him. "Uh, I... Yeah."

He rucked his brows but his smile was still there. "Hm? And what do you want to say to me?"

She could hardly think of what to say with her attention on Joey who had just receded from view. She used to always wait for this moment to come where she had a chance to talk to Harley. But this time, she unpredictably said, "I'm sorry, Harley, but I got to go" then deserted him. Scuttling to the stairs, she saw Joey's figure stepping down a few treads under her.

"Joey, wait!" Ashley called down to him. An abrupt strike hit her head worse.

Joey looked up and confound painted on his expression. He stopped at the landing, looking annoyed. "What are you doing here?" His voice rose. "I deliberately left you with Harley there so you can tell him you're sick. That's what you want, right?"

Through her bad headache, she tried to say something, but she couldn't. She ducked her head as she closed her eyes, massaging her temple to remove the headache, but it didn't work. Feeling dizzier, she propped herself on the handrail with one arm. When she disclosed her eyes, Joey already continued clomping down the stairs.

"Joey..." Ashley called again breathlessly. "Wait..."

She took a slow run to catch up with him, but her head hurt so much like a hundred spikes pricking it and she just couldn't hold it anymore. Then, everything went blank.

***

Climbing down the stairs fast, Joey didn't understand why Ashley's words bummed him out so much. But suddenly he heard her voice calling him faintly. When he looked up and saw her up on the landing, she looked worse than before. He was about to come to her, but her words kept echoing in his head.

"What are you doing here? I deliberately left you with Harley there so you can tell him you're sick," he said bitterly. "That's what you want, right?"

Joey didn't hear Ashley say anything while she just stood up there closing her eyes. Having no idea what she was doing, his feet brought him walking away from her instead as he tousled his hair angrily. One part of him said he had to come to her, but the other part told him to keep away from her. And he listened to the latter.

Out of the blue, a loud thud happened up there and his eyes boggled in total shock when he saw Ashley lying there on the upper landing.

"Shit!"