Chim- Change your life

Chapter 7

(Cheryl POV)

I lay there in my bed afraid, it’s nearly 2 in the morning and Ashley still isn’t home. I knew he was going out with some of his mates, but I still can’t help but worry. He occasionally compares me to a puppy, because when you leave them, they get scared, they’re scared you’re never going to come back. I should be used to it by now really, this is basically his usual Friday night routine. Usually I’d have Nadine or Sarah come around and have a girls night with one of them, but they moved out to London about a week ago, while I’m still here in Newcastle. I miss them and their company at times like these.

It’s nearly 4 now, and he still hasn’t come home, or answered his phone. I don’t know what to do, he usually texts me if he’s going to be out later, but he hasn’t.

I feel like I’m going to be sick. It’s like the room is spinning and it won’t stop. What if something bad has happened to him? What if he’s lying in some ally hurt and dying? “Pull it together Cheryl, he’s fine he’ll be home some.” I spoke out loud, just to ease my mind and give myself just a bit of self-reassurance.

Opening my eyes, I must have fallen asleep, there was a loud thud. I shot up quickly, “ASH? ARE YOU HOME?” yelling this frantically not knowing what to do. I quickly and quietly leapt from my bed, slowly making my way to the bedroom door. Another large thud startled me, grabbing the neartest object to protect me…the most useless thing to protect me, a candle stick. What was I gonna to, beat them with the wax to death?

Footsteps, there were footsteps and they were making their way up the stairs. I slowly opened the door peering out into the dark corridor, candle stick in hand. There he was, on the floor...

“ASHLEY WHAT THE FOOK DO YOU THINK YOU’RE DOING? I WAS WORRIED SICK YOU KNOW!!” I was raging, furious. Not only is he out till 5 in the morning, but now he’s practically scared us to death.

“I’m sorry babe,” he slurred, getting up sloppily from the floor. “I meant to ring but my phone died, please don’t be mad.” He wrapped his arms around me, pulling me in for a hug. “I’m so sorry if I worried you.”

It hit me; it was a weird scent… It wasn’t the alcohol or the cigarettes, nor was it his cologne… It was feminine. A sweet, yet floral scent faint, but I could still tell it was there. He wouldn’t cheat would he? No. He loves me, he tells me every day… well almost every day.

The morning came and he had left to go do a few things at work, so he wasn’t overloaded with paper work the following week, that’s when I saw it.

I was doing some laundry, cleaning his mess up from his sloppy return home last night… His phone was sat on the table, and it was buzzing like mad. Normally I wouldn’t have checked it, but the damn buzzer was making me go insane. Picking it up, I decided to see who needed him and wouldn’t stop ringing him.

No calls just a text, a simple text that ruined my night, my day, my life… I felt sick, worse than last night when he didn’t ring me. I wanted to just rewind time, wishing I’d never seen it.

From: Lindsay-

Hey bby, I had a g8 night last nite. Call me up, and we can meet up again soon, I dnt want to b our last time together.;-) x

I dropped the phone, and fell to the floor sobbing, not being able to breathe. It’s like someone took a spear and put it straight through my heart, it didn’t just emotionally hurt, but physically hurt.

That was the first time he had ever cheated on me… I frequently have dreams about it all, ever since it happened. I try to block it all out as much as possible, I try to just not think about it, but my mind can’t help it when I’m asleep and not able to consciously stop the thoughts from wondering back into my mind.