Ashes (Chris Evans)

Chapter 29

I cried myself to sleep that night. Chris had to carry me to the car and then into the hotel. Chris never left my side. "Do you want me to order breakfast?" Chris asked as I lay in bed the next morning. I nodded slowly and he picked up the phone in the room.

"I want Scarlett." I mumbled. Chris gave me a sympathetic look and while he was on hold for room service picked up his phone. Presumably, to text Scarlett. "Yes, hi. By any chance are you able to make pesto eggs?....okay great, I'll have an order of those, 3 eggs if you can, with bacon and a pancake....and for the second order, an order of 2 pancakes, sausage, and 1 scrambled egg with cheese....orange juice for both would be great....Thank you!" Chris hung up the phone and walked over to the bed, laying down next to me. "Do you want to talk about it?" I shook my head slowly and he sighed. "Phee-" "I don't want to talk about it." I snapped and pulling the hotel comforter over my head. I heard Chris sigh and stand up from the bed.

I fell asleep again until Chris lightly shook me awake. "Phee, sweetheart, breakfast is here." My eyes opened slowly and Chris had brought the plate of my food onto the bed. "I don't want it." I mumbled. "Phoenix, you have to eat something. I got your favorites."

"Is there a scrambled egg with cheese?" I said, muffled by the comforter over my head.

"Yes."

"Pancakes?" "Yes." I pulled the comforter off my head and looked over at him.

"Sausage?" "Yes, Phoenix." He shook his head with a light laugh. I sighed and sat up, letting Chris place the tray in my lap. I picked up the fork and started eating the food that Chris had ordered for me. He grabbed his own plate of food and sat at the edge of the bed after turning on the TV.

"He blamed me for my mother's death." I whispered. Chris muted the TV and turned towards me. "I was 7. I missed the bus one day after school and the front office called her to come pick me up. She was on her way when a drunk driver ran a red light and hit her. She was on her way to get me. If I had been on the bus then she never would have been in the car. She would still be here today." A tear slipped past my eye and Chris was quick to wipe it away. "Phoenix...that was not your fault." "It was. I-" "It wasn't. I'm sorry he ever made you think that." Chris pulled me into a tight hug as tears fell from my eyes, wetting his shirt.

Chris laid with me for a while until someone knocked on the door. Chris detached himself from me and walked towards it, opening it slowly. "Hey, she's in here." I heard him say. "Phoenix..." I looked over and saw Scarlett standing in the doorway. "Scar..." She quickly walked over to me and pulled me into a hug. She didn't say anything, she just let me cry in her arms.

"I'm so sorry, Phee. I should have been there." She whispered after I had calmed down a little. "It's not your fault. I told security I didn't want to see you after the show." I sniffled. "I don't blame you. I was a bitch to you in Arizona. I regret everything I said to you." "I know. I forgive you." She let out a breath of air and pulled away from our hug, holding my face in her hands. "My biggest regret is leaving you with him for those two years. If I could go back in time and take you with me that day, I would have." I shook my head and looked down at my hands. "You wouldn't have made it if you had taken me with you. You would've been too worried about me. You couldn't have done what you did if you had a sad 11 year old in tow. You came back, that's all that mattered to me."

My eyes wandered over to Chris who was sitting in the living room staring off into space. "You know, he was worried about you yesterday. He said after dad left you just kind of went numb." I sighed and looked back at her. "Don't shut him out, Phee. I know you. When things go to shit you run. Don't run from him, he cares about you. He always has."

"I'm not going to shut him out." I whispered. I couldn't imagine shutting Chris out. He was slowly becoming my entire world. Without him, I think I would break.

"Why'd you tell him dad died?" I asked softly.

"Because he did. The man we knew died with mom."

"It's been 13 years...and he shows up now? At my concert?"

"I should have told you this, but he reached out to me a few weeks ago trying to apologize and make amends. I told him to leave and to stay away from you. I thought he would." I let my head hang down and slumped back on the bed. Scarlett stood up and walked into the living room with Chris. They spoke quietly for a moment before Scarlett walked back over to me. "I have to go pick up Rose, will you be okay? I can come back." I nodded, "no it's fine. Go be with Rose and give her a big hug from me." Scarlett smiled and gave me a quick hug. "She wants to see you. She misses you, so I'm going to bring her to a show. I love you." "Okay, I'll sing something special for her. I love you too, Scar." She smiled at me before walking out of the room.

Chris walked back in and sat down next to me. "Can I get you anything?" He asked quietly. "Can you lay with me?" He smiled and slowly laid down next to me, pulling me against his chest. I turned around in his arms and rested my head on his chest. His heartbeat was calming. "I'm sorry for being a mess." "Phee, you're not a mess." He whispered, kissing my head. "When can we go to Boston?" I asked. "Do you want to go now?" I nodded and he laughed a little. "I want Dodger cuddles." I mumbled.

"Oh, are mine not enough for you?" I shook my head, a smile tugging on my lips. "I see how it is." He joked. "Well if you don't want my cuddles, I'll just move over here then..." "No." My grip around his waist tightened and he laughed. "Can we watch 'Not Another Teen Movie'?" I asked Chris. "Phoenixxxxx." Chris whined and threw his head back in the pillows. "It will cheer me up..." "Don't give me that look." My bottom lip was slightly pouted as I looked up at him. "Fine!" I smiled and kissed his cheek. Chris pulled himself off the bed and grabbed my laptop from my bag, bringing it over to the bed. "I own it. On Vudu." I said, watching as he typed Vudu into the google search. I pulled the computer away from him and typed in my log in before selecting the movie.

Chris and I got comfortable again, with the laptop resting on his stomach as the movie started. "You wanted to watch this, so you aren't allowed to fall asleep." I rolled my eyes and turned my attention back to the movie.

"We should recreate this scene." I said as I watched Chris walk onto the screen with whip cream on his body and a banana in his ass. "You can't be serious..." "What? You don't like banana splits?" He glared at me as I pushed the laptop off his stomach and straddled his hips. "It could be fun..."

"Absolutely not." "Buzz kill."